[2017-07-21-NJPW-G1 Climax] Kota Ibushi vs Zack Sabre Jr

[KawadaSmile]

I actually felt that this was more suspenseful than Ibushi/Naito. ZSJ keeps on working the already fucked neck of Ibushi, and his counters to pretty much all of Ibushi's offese kept the crowd invested, as it really looked like Ibushi was going to tap out at anytime.

 

However, considering the difference in striking ability and how Ibushi has the bigger bombs, once he actually gets his hands on ZSJ, he sure lays it in.

 

Not a fan of Zack's selling. Be it an overhead chop or a kick to the chest or a german suplex, he always does the same facial expressions. However, he is very good at being a skinny cunty bully.

 

Overall it is ***3/4 - ****

[superkix]

I never really connected with this match and I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe part of it was Zack's selling, maybe I wanted a little more fire from Ibushi. It may have been the case of Zack being a little too dominant. I enjoyed his neck work and counters -- really liked how he hit the neck twist and kept the scissors applied. I really wanted Ibushi to cream him, which says a lot about Zack's smugness in the ring. Ibushi was able to sneak in some offense where he could, like him ducking the uppercut to deliver the German, and his kicks are always on point. I haven't seen these two before (assuming they've wrestled in the past) so I've got nothing to compare it to but I guess I was expecting something a little different. Still a good match. Probably the match I enjoyed the most on Night 3.

[gingears]

I really, really liked the final powerbomb Ibushi used to win. That was cool. Nothing else really stood out to me as exceptional though. Card placement may have been a factor as it came both before and after matches I liked more but I don't think I will be revisiting it in isolation to give it another chance.

[Maciej]

I thought this was really fun and pretty clever. Zack seemed ready for most of Ibushi's high-flying but eventually cocky in his ability to strike with him, Ibushi's big strikes actually meant something, and the execution on all of it was world class. Fav match of the G1 so far. ****1/4

[ShittyLittleBoots]

Ibushi's deadly strikes vs. Zack's deadly ground game. Great styles clash resulted in a really good, borderline great match. ***3/4

[bradhindsight]

I watched this match first for day 3, and this was phenomenal. Great ZSJ work with all the scouting and counters. Ibushi really never gets in a groove here, by design obviously, they left a ton on the table for an extended match. Heavy strike-based by Ibushi, which worked in the story of ZSJ keeping him grounded moving from limb to limb. I really wanted more as this was trending towards a MOTYC for me - ****1/2. I liked Naito/Ibushi more, but this was almost there.

[GOTNW]

A fun little match featuring some of their "best of" spots, but nothing great. Sabre's matwork is too loose for him to leave a big impression in control and his pastiche of jiu jitsu and Johnny Saint spots has reached a point where, at least in this match, it wasn't flashy enough to impress with style or legitimate enough to impress with sheer danger and pain. Almost every big spot here was recycled from a big match these two have had previously, and even when there was something new it lacked in execution (I loved the idea behind Ibushi's palm strike, but he chest slapped Sabre and Sabre sold it like he hit him in the jaw, it looked ridiculous. You want to see that same spot done right, watch the first Misawa vs Kawada match, there's a kick which at first glance actually looks like it hit the neck/jaw and Misawa's selling is of course a thousand times better). Maybe the biggest problem of the match is that lacked the glue to connect everything. There wasn't a strong dynamic-Sabre going toe to toe with Ibushi in stand up when his offence looks so much worse in that department was ridiculous, they were more focused on getting in counters than getting over a struggle and actually milking the holds, even the finish felt abrupt in that regard, Ibushi just picked Sabre up and slammed him. I still enjoyed Sabre putting on some wacky holds and the little input Ibushi actually got in, but this was disappointing. ***

[bradhindsight]

From Ioan's review at PTBN:

 

 

Sabre easily grounded Ibushi in the opening moments, with Ibushi scrambling not to get caught in a heel hook. Once back to their feet, though, Ibushi floored Sabre with slap, then they exchanged snapmares until Sabre torqued Ibushi’s neck between his feet! Sabre then focused on the neck, standing on it while applying a single-leg crab and wrenching a surfboard, easily dealing with Ibushi’s attempted reversals. A straitjacket chinlock kept him in control, but eventually Ibushi found an opening for a high kick. He peppered Sabre with elbows and a strike flurry, but the standing moonsault was countered to a triangle choke and Ibushi dived for the ropes.

A snap German from Ibushi wasn’t enough to deter Sabre, whose lightning quick counter almost led to a three-count off a European Clutch, but Ibushi broke out of the Octopus Hold and landed a brutal double stomp. Ibushi nailed a couple of kicks, but again Sabre was quick enough to land a Penalty Kick. They fought up from the mat, Ibushi meeting Sabre’s uppercuts with elbows, then Sabre caught the overhead kick attempt and locked in a modified STF! Dragon suplex hold – two-count only! After a moment’s respite, Ibushi scored a big lariat and reversed a backslide into a knee strike. Sabre blocked the powerbomb and countered into a triangle choke, but Ibushi lifted him, initially looking for the Phoenix-Plex, but settling for the sit-out Last Ride! One, two, three.

Just brilliantly done. They never left the ring and only once did Ibushi leave his feet. I was excited to see how Sabre Jr. would match-up with his opponents during the tournament and so far it’s been a joy to watch. He’s excelled in this role. Proof too, as if it were needed, that Ibushi is capable of far more than high-risk spots and angering Jim Cornette. A tremendous match. ****1/2

 

[soup23]

I thought this was a masterful match. Styles can make matches sometimes and this one just gelled from the start with me. The contrast between the mat game of Sabre and the strikes and speed of Ibushi were presented well here. Sabre was able to convey a heel character just in being such a dominant wrestler and doing things like his shoulder shruh after a sequence as if to say is that all you got. This also went an excellent length in being long enough to tell a fully engaged story but short enough to not feel dragged out in the slightest. Some of the highlights included Sabre catching Ibushi in the triangle, the ankle locks Sabre applies, Sabre catching Ibushi’s foot on a dive and transitioning right into his briding combo which allowed Kevin Kelly to have a super call of saying unfreakingbelievable during the whole thing and lastly Sabre doing the flying triangle which played right into the finish. Ibushi had to muster up all of his strength to hit the powerbomb and win the match. This is my favorite G1 match so far. ****1/2