NJPW G1 Climax Night 5 Results (July 18, 2019)

Hiroshi Tanahashi (0) vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (0)

G1 CLIMAX 29 後楽園大会！本日はAブロック公式戦！第8試合Aブロック公式戦、@tanahashi1_100 VS @zacksabrejr！ザックの関節技に苦しむ棚橋！昨年覇者としての意地を見せたい!！果たして勝負の行方は!?登録＆視聴▷https://t.co/oc8I1nKRTs#njpw #njpwworld #G1Climax #G129 pic.twitter.com/CFXOg6CTSR

— njpwworld (@njpwworld) July 18, 2019

A note: ‘Sabre Jr.’ will be written as ZSJ for the remainder of the G1. ZSJ is just easier to type when the man moves so fast, so I’m taking the liberty!

Within moments, ZSJ had Tanahashi fighting out of half-finished holds and grappling for dominance. Tanahashi won the G1 Tournament last year, and he was able to wriggle out of ZSJ’s holds, applying a few of his own.

Tanahashi’s left arm became a target, as ZSJ injured it so badly it needed surgery in the past, but the continued grappling left Tanahashi on top. That left arm of Tanahashi was damaged in a prior fight with ZSJ, so he was motivated to stay dominant over the submission specialist.

Tanahashi applied a brutal ankle lock to take some of the fight out of ZSJ and took a headlock in return. Cobra twists were reversed by both men, as well as multiple pinfall attempts. Tanahashi’s twisted choke didn’t ruin ZSJ’s chances, and he put Tanahashi into a black widow hold that seemed to last forever, and it ended with a dragon screw leg left from Tanahashi.

The men traded hard uppercuts and standing holds, jockeying for position. Tanahashi broke the stalemate and took ZSJ to the mat with a slingblade. More grappling and a relentless armbar put ZSJ back in the fight. Another slingblade and dragon screw were followed by an Aces High, but ZSJ was able to get his knees up.

It wasn’t enough, and Tanahashi pinned ZSJ with a surprising rollup. ZSJ continued to throw his loser’s fit.

Results: Hiroshi Tanahashi (2) def. Zack Sabre Jr. (0) via pinfall