By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “G1 Climax 36 – Night 3”
July 19, 2026, in Hokkaido, Japan, at Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center
Streamed live on New Japan World
Walker Stewart provided solo English commentary. Once again, there are perhaps 2,500 fans here. Walker indicated that Yuto-Ice was injured when he was knocked out on Saturday; I presumed that was a kayfabe knockout, as it came at the logical conclusion to his match.
* This year’s field is 20 wrestlers divided into two Blocks. Thus, each wrestler has nine round-robin matches. A win is worth two points, while a (rare!) tie is worth one point to each wrestler. Today, we have FOUR B Block tournament matches, due to Shota Umino’s injury that has led to him forfeiting his final eight bouts.
* We see Taichi in the front row on Japanese commentary. Seriously … why wasn’t he tapped to fill in for Umino?
1. Hirooki Goto and Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. “United Empire” Jake Lee and Zane Jay. Tatsuya and Zane opened. Jake’s makeup is black today. Matsumoto hit some dropkicks that staggered Lee at 4:00. Lee applied a front guillotine choke, and Matsumoto tapped out. Dull; there was no point to this match.
“United Empire” Jake Lee and Zane Jay defeated Hirooki Goto and Tatsuya Matsumoto at 4:54.
2. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Hartley Jackson and Ryohei Oiwa vs. “United Empire” Jakob Austin Young and Great O-Khan. O-Khan attacked Oiwa from behind, and we’re underway. Oiwa has medical tape on his right ribcage and around his entire back. The UE worked over Oiwa. O-Khan hit his Mongolian Chops at 4:00, but Oiwa hit a DDT.
Hartley finally entered, and he splashed O-Khan in the corner for a nearfall. He hit his running crossbody block, but he missed his massive senton. Hartley hit a powerslam on Jakob, and this time he hit the senton. Young hit an enzuigiri and Jakob’s Ladder (Sliced Bread) for a believable nearfall. However, Hartley scooped Young up and hit the Jagged Edge (Death Valley Driver) for the pin.
“The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Hartley Jackson and Ryohei Oiwa defeated “United Empire” Jakob Austin Young and Great O-Khan at 7:05.
3. “The Unbound Co.” Gedo and Yuto-Ice vs. Toru Yano and Konosuke Takeshita. Luckily, Yuto-Ice is wrestling, so he’s good to go. Takeshita and Yuto-Ice immediately traded forearm strikes, as Walker said this is a first-time-ever meeting. They fought to the floor and into the crowd. They kept trading forearm strikes as they fought through the crowd. The ref was counting! He counted them out! Not the shortest preview tag match ever … but Gedo and Yano never got off the apron! (They have succeeded in making me look forward to their singles match!)
“The Unbound Co.” Gedo and Yuto-Ice vs. Toru Yano and Konosuke Takeshita ended in a double count-out at 2:12.
4. “The Unbound Co.” Yota Tsuji and Daiki Nagai vs. “House of Torture” Sanada and Yoshinobu Kanemaru. Sanada and Tsuji opened, and Yota hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker over his knee. Those two fought into the crowd. (Don’t stay out there too long!) In the ring, the HoT ‘wish-boned’ Yota’s legs. Kanemaru stomped on Yota and slammed his knee into the mat. Nagai entered and hit a Pounce on Kanemaru at 3:30, then a basement dropkick in the corner for a nearfall. Nagai hit a dropkick on Sanada, then a spinebuster for a nearfall at 5:00. Sanada hit a Shining Wizard. He applied a Skull End dragon sleeper. The ref checked Nagai and called for the bell.
“House of Torture” Sanada and Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated “The Unbound Co.” Yota Tsuji and Daiki Nagai at 6:03.
5. Boltin Oleg and Masatora Yasuda vs. “The Unbound Co.” Shingo Takagi and Taiji Ishimori. Oleg and Shingo opened, and they traded shoulder blocks. Ishimori entered at 1:30 to face Yasuda. Masatora is much bigger, and he knocked Ishimori down with a shoulder tackle. Those two fought to the floor. Shingo hit a suplex on Yasuda for a nearfall at 3:00. Oleg tagged in, and he brawled with Shingo, and he hit a splash to the mat for a nearfall. Shingo hit a suplex.
Oleg hit a double shoulder tackle at 6:00. Yasuda got back in and hit a shotgun dropkick on Ishimori. He hit some impressive snap suplexes and got a nearfall. Ishimori hit a shoulder-breaker over his shoulder for a nearfall at 8:00. Shingo and Oleg fought to the floor. Ishimori applied the Bone Lock (crossface), and Yasuda immediately tapped out. Easily the best of the preview tags.
“The Unbound Co.” Shngo Takagi and Taiji Ishimori defeated Boltin Oleg and Masatora Yasuda at 8:28.
6. Aaron Wolf (2) vs. Shota Umino (0) in a B Block tournament match. Again, Shota Umino suffered a concussion in Chicago and is forfeiting the remainder of his tournament matches. It’s better to be safe than sorry, so I’m glad that Umino isn’t being rushed back… even though I maintain that Taichi or Yoshi-Hashi should have been a late replacement.
Aaron Wolf (4) defeated Shota Umino (0) via forfeit.
7. Drilla Moloney (2) vs. Henare (0) in a B Block tournament match. An intense lockup to open, and they tied up on the mat. Drilla hit a stiff kick to the spine at 3:00, then a dropkick. On the floor, Henare ran him back-first into the ring post, then slammed Drilla onto the apron. In the ring, Henare hit some kicks to the back and a senton for a nearfall at 5:00. Drilla hit a brainbuster at 7:00, then a baseball slide dropkick to the floor. Drilla hit a top-rope flying elbow drop for a nearfall at 8:30.
Henare hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall. They got up and traded chops, then traded clotheslines. Henare finally knocked Drilla down with a clothesline and got a nearfall at 11:00. Drilla hit a running powerbomb for a nearfall. Henare blocked the Drilla Killa and hit a flying headbutt for a nearfall. Henare hit a spin kick to the head. Drilla hit a stunner and a spin kick to the jaw for a nearfall at 13:00. Drilla hit a Gore! Henare again blocked a Drilla Killa! He hit another headbutt and a sit-out powerbomb for the clean pin. That developed nicely.
Henare (2) defeated Drilla Moloney (2) at 13:28.
8. Gabe Kidd (0) vs. Oskar (2) in a B Block tournament match. Kidd took so long to disrobe and prepare in his corner, I thought I was watching a Naito match. We got the bell, and they immediately traded strikes. Kidd dropped him with a clothesline. Oskar hip-tossed him across the ring! He hit a bodyslam, and Gabe rolled to the floor at 1:00. Oskar followed, and they brawled past the guardrail and into the crowd.
Oskar whipped him into the rows of chairs. They made their way back to ringside, and Gabe bit Oskar’s forehead. In the ring, Oskar hit a leg drop for a nearfall at 5:30. Kidd hit a piledriver at 7:00, but Oskar got up, and Kidd’s eyes bugged out of his head in disbelief! Kidd hit a second piledriver for the pin! Really good for the time given.
Gabe Kidd (2) defeated Oskar (2) at 7:31.
9. Callum Newman (2) vs. Ren Narita (0) in a B Block tournament match. Callum hit a Mafia Kick, we got the bell, and they immediately fought to the floor. Newman set up for a move, but Dick Togo got between them to stop him. They brawled in the crowd. Ren whipped Newman into rows of chairs. In the ring, Ren hit a clothesline for a nearfall at 4:00, and he kept Callum grounded. Callum mounted Ren and hit a series of forearm strikes, and Narita rolled to the floor at 7:00. Newman flipped a chair into Ren’s arms and kicked it as they brawled on the floor. (Just about anything is legal on the floor in NJPW!)
Zane Jay appeared and brawled with Togo. Callum hit an awesome leaping dropkick, crashing onto Ren, who was seated in a chair in the crowd, at 8:30. Callum threw him back into the ring and got a nearfall. Ren tied him in a Cobra Twist in the ropes at 10:00 but let go before the five-count. Callum hit a flying sleeper, and they fell to the mat. The bell rang at 11:30, and Newman let go of the hold! NO, it was just another House of Torture ruse! Ren applied a hammerlock on the mat. The bell rang again! No, this time it was a United Empire ruse!
Callum hit the Prince’s Curse high-angle DDT for a nearfall, then a decapitating clothesline for a nearfall. The ref got bumped! Togo threw powder in Callum’s eyes! Ren hit a low blow and the Double Cross (X-Factor), for a nearfall, but the ref was pulled from the ring! Ren and Togo hit a Magic Killer team slam for a believable nearfall at 15:00. Ren slammed Callum’s (already injured!) shoulder to the mat. He applied a Cattle Mutilation, and Callum tapped out! That exceeded my expectations.
Ren Narita (2) defeated Callum Newman (2) at 15:32.
10. Zack Sabre Jr. (2) vs. Yuya Uemura (0) in a B Block tournament match. They immediately tied up on the mat, with Sabre tying Yuya in a pretzel. They separated and had a standoff at 5:00. Sabre hit some armdrags. Yuya applied a leg lock around the neck. Sabre hit his neck-snap move between his ankles at 8:30. This has been highly entertaining, even though there isn’t much to describe. Sabre hit some European Uppercuts and applied a standing cravat. “This would certainly make Chris Hero proud,” Walker said, reading my mind!
Yuya hit an armdrag and a dropkick at 11:00, and Sabre rolled to the floor to regroup. Sabre hit another neck-snap on the apron. In the ring, Yuya twisted the left arm and cranked on it. Yuya hit a back suplex for a nearfall at 13:30. He applied a triangle choke, but Sabre flipped his body over and got a nearfall. The 15-minute call was a few seconds late. They got up and traded forearm strikes, and Sabre hit some European Uppercuts. Sabre applied a sleeper on the mat, but Yuya escaped, and they traded rollups.
They got to their feet, and Sabre hit more European Uppercuts. Yuya hit an armdrag and went back to twisting the left arm. Sabre nailed a Zack Driver for a nearfall at 19:30, and they were both down. Yuya hit an enzuigiri, and he hit his own Zack Driver! He missed a top-rope crossbody block, and Sabre immediately tied up Yuya on the mat. Yuya reached the ropes at 22:30. (This is now the longest match of the tournament thus far.)
They got up and traded forearm strikes and European Uppercuts. Yuya hit a German Suplex, then a Dragon Suplex for a nearfall at 24:00, and he was fired up! Yuya set up for Deadbolt, but Sabre blocked it. Sabre hit a Pele Kick on the shoulder. Yuya hit a release Deadbolt, tossing Sabre across the ring. He nailed a top-rope frog splash for a nearfall. He hit a top-rope crossbody block on a standing Sabre and scored the pin! Yeah, that was fantastic.
Yuya Uemura (2) defeated Zack Sabre Jr. (2) at 25:17.
Final Thoughts: Sabre-Yuya is tied with Takeshita-Tsuji for best match of the tournament thus far. A really good mat-based battle that built nicely. Unlike Saturday’s Goto-Tsuji bout, which had long stretches with little happening, this match kept going and going. No complaints with any of the four tournament matches. I really liked Kidd-Oskar, and I did a double-take when I glanced at my stopwatch, because I refused to believe it was that short!
In the Ren-Callum match, Callum hit an awesome dropkick on the floor that my description can’t do justice to the move. While we are all tired of the HoT shenanigans, I bought into the nearfalls, especially when powder was thrown into Callum’s eyes.
The big complaint, of course, is Gedo’s 50-50 booking. Everyone is “2-1 with four points” when factoring in all of Shota’s forfeits, except Wolf, who is 2-0. Again, I plan to add the forfeited points on the days Shota was slated to compete. The point is, I expected the outcome of today’s matches, so no one started 2-0 or 0-2.
After an off-day on Monday, the tournament resumes on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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