NJPW: Lance Archer has been turning heads in the 2019 G1 Climax

This year’s NJPW G1 Climax is arguably the most star-studded tournament in recent memory, perhaps ever. Although Lance Archer may not be everybody’s favorite to win the tournament, he has proved to everyone that he belongs in the G1.

When this year’s G1 Climax 29 participants were announced, the selections gave NJPW fans plenty of reasons to be excited. Fan favorites such as Kazuchika Okada, Tetsuya Naito, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Tomohiro Ishii are yearly guarantees to be featured in the tournament. However, the list of participants featured some surprises in the form of KENTA, Jon Moxley as well as with both Best of Super Juniors finalists, Shingo Takagi and Will Ospreay.

Among the wrestlers in the tournament was Lance Archer, marking his first G1 appearance in five years. Despite having four years worth of G1 experience under his belt—finishing with a consistent 8 points each attempt—this was a surprising selection given his lengthy time outside of the G1 in addition to his reputation as a heavyweight tag team division mainstay.

Archer gave fans a quick reminder of his ability to perform as a singles wrestler in the 2019 New Japan Cup, besting Toa Henare in the first round before losing to Will Ospreay in a banger of a second-round match. Shortly afterwards, it was announced that Davey Boy Smith Jr. – Archer’s long-time Killer Elite Squad tag team partner – was leaving NJPW.

The sudden breakup of the 3-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Title-winning tag team gave Archer a golden opportunity to turn some heads in the G1. While the tournament isn’t over yet, Archer has more than impressed.

The Suzuki-gun member’s G1 journey started in Dallas, beating Will Ospreay with the EBD Claw – Archer’s new finisher – in a spectacular rematch. Archer followed up with a win against fellow heavyweight bruiser Bad Luck Fale,

For Archer’s third match, he’d face KENTA in the legendary Korakuen Hall. For all the fanfare that KENTA’s New Japan arrival has received, the Korakuen crowd was pro-Archer throughout the match in what would end up being his first 2019 G1 loss.

His second loss would come at the hands of “The Ace” Hiroshi Tanahashi via roll-up before dropping his third straight tournament match, this time to Kota Ibushi. Archer notably was not put down by Ibushi’s first Kamigoye, requiring Ibushi to strike a second time before capturing the victory.

After a 2-0 tournament start, Archer’s three straight losses places him well outside of the favorites like Okada, KENTA and Jon Moxley to win the tournament. Archer would likely have to win out to even have a chance of finishing at the top of his block, but his string of solid performances should do well in convincing everyone not to overlook him going forward.

Hopefully, this G1 is a sign of things to come for Archer as it would be a shame for his string of good performances to have no payoff. His deceptive agility, nasty attitude and new finisher are all things worth capitalizing on well past the conclusion of this year’s stacked G1 tournament.