AEW Star Victorious In NJPW Debut As Part Of G1 Climax Tournament
AEW star Konosuke Takeshita made good on his NJPW debut to notch two points on the board in Block B of the G1 Climax 34. Takeshita was announced last month among this year's pool of competitors, confirming that the former DDT Pro Wrestling star would be making his debut in the "King of Sports," and picked up the win over Yota Tsuji after 17 minutes of action in the co-main event of the opening night in Osaka.
A stunning battle between Konosuke Takeshita and Yota Tsuji headlined the B Block matches on a gripping opening night in Osaka!#G1CLIMAX34 B Block update:https://t.co/7b27D64uu4
Watch the replay!https://t.co/sQvi1LXQOR#njpw pic.twitter.com/G0iL9TvPd4
— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) July 20, 2024
The bout itself saw hard-hitting offense from both competitors in the early going. Takeshita seized control from Tsuji following a stiff lariat, delivering a tope con giro and sending his opponent into the guardrail on the outside. Back inside the ring, Tsuji regained control with lucha libre style offense, landing a tijeras and tornillo to the floor much to the excitement of the crowd. After surviving a Boston Crab, Takeshita reversed a suplex attempt into a brainbuster, further hitting an Akiyama knee and German Suplex for the two-count. He almost lost the match towards the end, Tsuji landing a mesmerizing Spanish Fly off the top rope, followed by a headbutt and Marlowe Crash for the near-fall. Tsuji shaped up to finish things off with the Gene Blast, receiving an abrupt flying knee from Takeshita, who followed up with Razing Fire to win by pinfall.
Takeshita is now on two points in Block B, joined by Boltin Oleg, Yuya Uemura, Jeff Cobb, and HENARE. His next match in the tournament will come against HENARE on July 23 in Hiroshima.