G1 Climax

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G1 Climax trophy

The G1 (Grade One) Climax (G1（グレードワン）クライマックス, Gurēdo Wan Kuraimakkusu) is a professional wrestling tournament held each August by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. Though it has sometimes been held as a single-elimination tournament, it is usually – and currently – held as a round-robin, with the most victorious wrestlers in each pool wrestling in a short tournament to decide that year's winner. Since 2012, the winner of the tournament earns the right to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at the following January's Wrestle Kingdom show.

In its current format, the tournament lasts four weeks. The winner of each pool is determined by a points system; two points for a victory, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss or no contest. Under the current format, double decisions (such as double count-outs or double disqualifications) are treated as draws.

Tournament history[edit]

Hiroshi Tanahashi holding his prize for winning the 2015 G1 Climax, a contract for an IWGP Heavyweight Championship match at Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome

NJPW had an annual tournament since 1974 under various names: the World League (ワールドリーグ戦, Wārudorīgu-sen) (1974–1977, based on the World (Big) League tournament from the old Japanese Wrestling Association held between 1959 and 1972);[1][2][3][4][5] the MSG League (MSGシリーズ, MSG shirīzu) (1978–1982);[6][7][8][9][10] the IWGP League (IWGPリーグ戦, IWGP rīgu-sen) (1983–1988), "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix (インターナショナル・レスリング・グラン・プリ, intānashonaru resuringu guran puri). Most of these tournaments were dominated by NJPW's founding top star Antonio Inoki.

Although the 1983 winner, Hulk Hogan, was awarded a championship belt, this is not the beginning of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, but its early version that was defended annually against the winner of the IWGP League of the year. The current IWGP Heavyweight Championship arrived only in 1987, replacing the old version.[11]

In 1989, there was a World Cup Tournament (ワールドカップ争奪リーグ戦, Wārudokappu sōdatsu rīgu-sen), which included wrestlers from the then-Soviet Union.[5][12] No tournament was held in 1990.

With Inoki's dominance over NJPW gone, the promotion established the G1 Climax tournament in 1991 as a platform to showcase the company's top heavyweights and have them compete in round-robin matches where the winners of the two divisions would then square off in the tournament final. NJPW's then president Seiji Sakaguchi named the tournament after the G1 horse race.[13] Though considered a continuation of the previous tournaments,[5] officially NJPW does not recognize the earlier tournaments as part of the G1 Climax lineage.[14] The first G1 was held from August 7 to August 11, 1991, at Tokyo's Ryōgoku Kokugikan. The winner of the tournament, assuming they are not already the champion, has traditionally earned a shot at the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Since 2012, the winner has earned the "Tokyo Dome IWGP Heavyweight Championship challenge rights certificate", a contract for a title shot at NJPW's largest event, Wrestle Kingdom in Tokyo Dome, held annually on January 4. Much like WWE's Money in the Bank contract, the certificate is kept in a briefcase that the wrestler then has to defend until the end of the year.[15][16] Since its inception, the contract has only changed hands one time, on November 7, 2020 at Power Struggle when Jay White defeated Kota Ibushi. In 2021, the now retired IWGP Heavyweight Championship belt was given to G1 winner Kazuchika Okada instead of a briefcase. In 2015, the tournament format was changed with NJPW reducing the number of G1 Climax matches per show, giving the participating wrestlers more time to rest between matches. This increased the tournament's length to four weeks.[17] In 2016, Kenny Omega became the first non-Japanese wrestler to win the tournament.

The G1 Climax tournament has often been used as a platform for NJPW to push their rising stars. Wins by young up-and-comers over Japanese legends would usually take their respective careers to new heights. The first tournament was specifically created to make stars out of Keiji Mutoh, Masahiro Chono and Shinya Hashimoto, three NJPW wrestlers who had just returned to the promotion from their overseas learning excursions.[13] Past winners include Mutoh, Chono, Hashimoto, Yuji Nagata, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and others who have gone on to become wrestling superstars.

Unlike the New Japan Cup, the G1 Climax features the then-reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion as one of the participants, except in 1992, 2001, 2004 and 2008, when then-champions Riki Choshu (in 1992), Kazuyuki Fujita (in 2001 and 2004), and Keiji Mutoh (in 2008), respectively, did not compete in the tournament. Often being labeled as a favorite to win the tournament, the IWGP Heavyweight Champion has reached the final five times, the first one being in 1995 when Keiji Mutoh won the tournament. Mutoh would repeat this feat again in 1999, but would lose the final to Manabu Nakanishi. Other then-reigning champions to reach the final include Kensuke Sasaki in 2000, Kazuyuki Fujita in 2005 and Yuji Nagata in 2007. Mutoh and Sasaki are the only two wrestlers to have won the G1 Climax while holding the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.[18] Overall, Antonio Inoki holds the record for most tournament wins with ten, while Masahiro Chono with his five wins holds the record for most tournament wins under its G1 Climax name. Hiroyoshi Tenzan has taken part in the G1 Climax tournament a record 21 times.

The opening night of the 2019 G1 Climax took place in Dallas, Texas, marking the first time the opening night took place outside Japan.[19]

The finals for the 2020 G1 Climax took place in October due to the Summer Olympics originally intended to be held in Tokyo when the tournament is usually held, making this the first time the tournament took place in the Autumn.[20]

The longest match in tournament history is Kota Ibushi vs. Sanada in the 2020 finals at 35 minutes and 12 seconds. The longest match with a decisive winner in the block stages of the tournament is Sanada vs. Kazuchika Okada in the 2019 tournament at 29 minutes and 47 seconds, 13 seconds shy of the 30-minute time limit. Conversely, the shortest match is Hirooki Goto vs. Toru Yano in the 2020 tournament at just 18 seconds.

List of winners[edit]

Tournament Year Winner Total won Refs.
World League 1974 Antonio Inoki 1 [1]
1975 Antonio Inoki 2 [2]
1976 Seiji Sakaguchi 1 [3]
1977 Seiji Sakaguchi 2 [4]
MSG League 1978 Antonio Inoki 3 [6]
1979 Antonio Inoki 4 [7]
1980 Antonio Inoki 5 [8]
1981 Antonio Inoki 6 [9]
1982 André the Giant 1 [10]
IWGP League 1983 Hulk Hogan 1 [21]
1984 Antonio Inoki 7 [22]
1985 André the Giant 2 [23]
1986 Antonio Inoki 8 [24]
1987 Antonio Inoki 9 [25]
1988 Antonio Inoki 10 [26]
World Cup Tournament 1989 Riki Choshu 1 [12]
G1 Climax 1991 Masahiro Chono 1 [27][28][29]
1992 Masahiro Chono 2 [27][30]
1993 Tatsumi Fujinami 1 [27][31]
1994 Masahiro Chono 3 [27][32]
1995 Keiji Mutoh 1 [27][33]
1996 Riki Choshu 2 [27][34]
1997 Kensuke Sasaki 1 [27][35]
1998 Shinya Hashimoto 1 [27][36]
1999 Manabu Nakanishi 1 [27][37]
2000 Kensuke Sasaki 2 [38]
2001 Yuji Nagata 1 [39]
2002 Masahiro Chono 4 [40]
2003 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 1 [41]
2004 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 2 [42]
2005 Masahiro Chono 5 [43]
2006 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 3 [44]
2007 Hiroshi Tanahashi 1 [45]
2008 Hirooki Goto 1 [46]
2009 Togi Makabe 1 [47]
2010 Satoshi Kojima 1 [48]
2011 Shinsuke Nakamura 1 [49]
2012 Kazuchika Okada 1 [50]
2013 Tetsuya Naito 1 [51]
2014 Kazuchika Okada 2 [52]
2015 Hiroshi Tanahashi 2 [53]
2016 Kenny Omega 1 [54]
2017 Tetsuya Naito 2 [55]
2018 Hiroshi Tanahashi 3 [56]
2019 Kota Ibushi 1 [57]
2020 Kota Ibushi 2 [58]
2021 Kazuchika Okada 3 [59]
2022 Kazuchika Okada 4 [60]
2023 Tetsuya Naito 3

Tokyo Dome IWGP Heavyweight Championship challenge rights certificate[edit]

Year Certificate history
2012 Holder: Kazuchika Okada
Matches:
2013 Holder: Tetsuya Naito
Matches:
2014 Holder: Kazuchika Okada
Matches:
2015 Holder: Hiroshi Tanahashi
Matches:
2016 Holder: Kenny Omega
Matches:
2017 Holder: Tetsuya Naito
Matches:
2018 Holder: Hiroshi Tanahashi
Matches:
2019 Holder: Kota Ibushi
Matches:
2020 Holder: Kota Ibushi
Matches:
Holder: Jay White
Matches:
2021 Holder: Kazuchika Okada
Matches:
2022 Holder: Kazuchika Okada
Matches:
2023 Holder: Tetsuya Naito

1974[edit]

The 1974 World League ran from April 5 to May 8, 1974. The tournament began with 16 wrestlers, eight Japanese and eight Internationals (called gaijin, the Japanese term for foreigners), placed into groups accordingly. All first round matches featured the Japanese against the Internationals. The top four finishers from both groups advanced to a second round of round-robin competition.[1][27]

Round one
Japanese International
Seiji Sakaguchi 7.5 Killer Karl Krupp 7
Antonio Inoki 7 Invader I 6
Masa Saito 5.5 Stan Stasiak 5
Kantaro Hoshino 4 Geto Mongol 3.5
Kotetsu Yamamoto 3.5 Khosrow Vaziri 3
Haruka Eigen 2 Bolo Mongol 3
Osamu Kido 2 Walter Johnson 1
Katsuhisa Shibata 1 Argentina Zuma 0
Round two
Antonio Inoki 5.5
Seiji Sakaguchi 5.5
Killer Karl Krupp 5.5
Masa Saito 5
Stan Stasiak 2.5
Invader I 2
Kantaro Hoshino 1.5
Geto Mongol 0
Tie-breaker
Antonio Inoki (J) 2-0
Seiji Sakaguchi (J) 1-1
Killer Karl Krupp (I) 0-2
  Inoki (J) Krupp (I) Sakaguchi (J)
Inoki (J) — Inoki
(7:17)		 Inoki
(16:52)
Krupp (I) Inoki
(7:17)		 — Sakaguchi
(12:46)
Sakaguchi (J) Inoki
(16:52)		 Sakaguchi
(12:46)		 —

1975[edit]

The 1975 World League ran from April 4 to May 16, 1975. The tournament featured 16 wrestlers, but the Locals versus Internationals format was abolished. The top five finishers advanced to a knockout round, with the top finisher receiving a bye to the final.[2][27]

Final standings
Killer Karl Krupp 13.5
Antonio Inoki 12.5
Seiji Sakaguchi 12.5
Kintarō Ōki 12.5
Strong Kobayashi 12.5
Super Destroyer 10.5
Masa Saito 9
Kotetsu Yamamoto 8
Kantaro Hoshino 7
Man Mountain Mike 7
Haruka Eigen 5
Katsuhisa Shibata 3
John Gagne 2
Sangre Fría 2
Father Singh 2
Osamu Kido 1


QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
2Antonio InokiSub
1Killer Karl KruppSub
5Strong Kobayashi20:02
2Antonio InokiDefaulted2Antonio Inoki16:42
Won by defaultDDQ
3Seiji SakaguchiDDQ
4Kintarō Ōki2:23

1976[edit]

The 1976 World League ran from April 2 to May 11, 1976. The tournament featured 14 wrestlers. The top finisher advanced to the final match of the tournament, to face the winner of a three-wrestler round-robin semifinal round.[3][27]

First round
Pedro Morales 13
Killer Karl Krupp 10
Victor Rivera 10
Seiji Sakaguchi 10
Strong Kobayashi 9
Masa Saito 9
Kantaro Hoshino 7
Osamu Kido 6
Towering Inferno 5
Butcher Vachon 4
Haruka Eigen 3
Ken Mantell 3
Raul Mata 2
Kotetsu Yamamoto 0
Semifinals
Seiji Sakaguchi 2-0
Killer Karl Krupp 1-1
Victor Rivera 0-2
  Krupp Rivera Sakaguchi
Krupp — Krupp
(12:06)		 Sakaguchi
(6:12)
Rivera Krupp
(12:06)		 — Sakaguchi
(8:57)
Sakaguchi Sakaguchi
(6:12)		 Sakaguchi
(8:57)		 —


Final
   
1 Pedro Morales CO
2 Seiji Sakaguchi 25:38

1977[edit]

The 1977 World League ran from April 21 to May 30, 1977. The tournament featured 11 wrestlers.[4][27]

Final standings
The Masked Superstar 10
Seiji Sakaguchi 8
Mitsuo Yoshida 7.5
Nikolai Volkoff 7.5
Kantaro Hoshino 5
Johnny Powers 4
Manuel Soto 4
Haruka Eigen 3
Osamu Kido 3
Tony Charles 2
Enrique Vera 1
Final
   
1 The Masked Superstar Sub
2 Seiji Sakaguchi 20:05

1978[edit]

The 1978 MSG League ran from April 21 to May 30, 1978. The tournament featured nine wrestlers.[6][27]

Final standings
André the Giant 37
Antonio Inoki 29
Seiji Sakaguchi 28
Tatsumi Fujinami 25
Bugsy McGraw 15
Nikolai Volkoff 14
Riki Choshu 9
Umanosuke Ueda 5
Chief Jay Strongbow 0
Final
   
1 André the Giant CO
2 Antonio Inoki 16:41

1979[edit]

The 1979 MSG League ran from April 27 to June 7, 1979. The tournament featured 10 wrestlers.[7][27]

Final standings
Antonio Inoki 41
Stan Hansen 37
André the Giant 36
Seiji Sakaguchi 31
Tatsumi Fujinami 22
Riki Choshu 18
Canek 16
Masa Saito 10
Larry Zbyszko 5
Tony Garea 0
Final
   
1 Antonio Inoki Pin
2 Stan Hansen  9:03 

1980[edit]

The 1980 MSG League ran from April 25 to June 5, 1980. The tournament featured 10 wrestlers.[8][27]

Final standings
Antonio Inoki 35
Stan Hansen 32
André the Giant 32
Dusty Rhodes 29
Seiji Sakaguchi 29
Tatsumi Fujinami 20
Riki Choshu 14
Strong Kobayashi 12
Chavo Guerrero 7
Ryuma Go 0
Final
   
1 Antonio Inoki DQ
2 Stan Hansen  7:49 

1981[edit]

The 1981 MSG League ran from May 8 to June 4, 1981. The tournament featured 11 wrestlers.[9][27]

Final standings
Stan Hansen 39
Antonio Inoki 38
Tiger Jeet Singh 38
Hulk Hogan 36
Seiji Sakaguchi 33
Tatsumi Fujinami 29
Riki Choshu 16
Bobby Duncum 14
Sgt. Slaughter 12
Chris Adams 5
Mike Masters 0
Final
   
1 Stan Hansen CO
2 Antonio Inoki  7:45 

1982[edit]

The 1982 MSG League ran from March 4 to April 1, 1982. The tournament featured 14 wrestlers.[10][27]

Final standings
André the Giant 56
Antonio Inoki † 51
Killer Khan 48
Dick Murdoch 41
The Masked Superstar 35
Tatsumi Fujinami 35
Rusher Kimura 33
Seiji Sakaguchi 32
Tony Atlas 30
Tiger Toguchi 17
Yoshiaki Yatsu 13
Don Muraco 9
Riki Choshu 4
The Iron Sheik 4
† Antonio Inoki was injured and unable to compete in the final. Killer Khan, as the next highest finisher, took his place.
Final
   
1 André the Giant Pin
3 Killer Khan  16:42 

1983[edit]

The 1983 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from May 6 to June 2, 1983. The tournament featured 10 wrestlers.[21][27] The winner was awarded a championship belt (the original IWGP Heavyweight Championship) defended annually against the winner of the IWGP League of the year).[11]

Final standings
Hulk Hogan 37
Antonio Inoki 36
André the Giant 35
Big John Studd 25
Killer Khan 24
Rusher Kimura 21
Akira Maeda 14
Canek 5
Otto Wanz 5
Enrique Vera 4
André Canek Hogan Inoki Khan Kimura Maeda Studd Vera Wanz
André — André DCO André DCO André André André André André
Canek André — Hogan Inoki Khan Kimura Maeda Studd Canek Wanz
Hogan DCO Hogan — DCO Hogan Hogan Hogan Hogan Hogan Hogan
Inoki André Inoki DCO — Inoki Inoki Inoki Inoki Inoki Inoki
Khan DCO Khan Hogan Inoki — Khan DCO Studd Khan Khan
Kimura André Kimura Hogan Inoki Khan — Kimura DCO Kimura Kimura
Maeda André Maeda Hogan Inoki DCO Kimura — Studd Maeda Maeda
Studd André Studd Hogan Inoki Studd DCO Studd — Studd Studd
Vera André Canek Hogan Inoki Khan Kimura Maeda Studd — Vera
Wanz André Wanz Hogan Inoki Khan Kimura Maeda Studd Vera —
Final
   
1 Hulk Hogan KO
2 Antonio Inoki  21:27 

1984[edit]

The 1984 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from May 11 to June 14, 1984. The tournament featured 12 wrestlers, and was the first time that the tournament featured no sort of final round.[22][27]

Final standings
Antonio Inoki 53
André the Giant 49
Tatsumi Fujinami 34
Riki Choshu 32
Dick Murdoch 30
Masa Saito 26
Adrian Adonis 25
The Masked Superstar 18
Ken Patera 17
John Quinn 10
Otto Wanz 6
Big John Studd 2

1985[edit]

The 1985 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from May 10 to June 15, 1985. The tournament featured 13 wrestlers, and was single-elimination. This was the first time the tournament did not feature a points system.[23][27]

First round Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
            
Seiji Sakaguchi
André the Giant
5 Ron Miller
12 Strong Machine
Strong Machine
André the Giant
4 André the Giant
13 Canek
Tatsumi Fujinami
André the Giant
6 Tatsumi Fujinami
11 Mike Sharpe
Tatsumi Fujinami
Adrian Adonis
3 Adrian Adonis
14 King Kong Bundy
Tatsumi Fujinami
Dick Murdoch
7 The Masked Superstar
10 Seiji Sakaguchi
Seiji Sakaguchi
Dick Murdoch
2 Kengo Kimura
15 Dick Murdoch

1986[edit]

The 1986 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from May 16 to June 19, 1986. The tournament featured the return of the points system, with 14 wrestlers in two blocks of seven each. The top two from each block advanced to a knockout stage.[24][27] The winner won the vacated IWGP Heavyweight Championship (original version).[11]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Antonio Inoki 25 Akira Maeda 27
André the Giant 17 Dick Murdoch 21
Seiji Sakaguchi 15 Tatsumi Fujinami 17
Kengo Kimura 15 Jimmy Snuka 16
The Masked Superstar 14 Umanosuke Ueda 13
Yoshiaki Fujiwara 11 The Wild Samoan 9
Klaus Wallace 0 The Cuban Assassin 0
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Antonio Inoki Sub
A2 André the Giant 9:30
A1 Antonio Inoki Pin
B2 Dick Murdoch  30:07 
B1 Akira Maeda CO
B2 Dick Murdoch  16:22 

1987[edit]

The 1987 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from May 11 to June 12, 1987. The tournament featured 14 wrestlers in two blocks of seven each. The top finishers from each block advanced to the final, with the winner becoming the first IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Tatsumi Fujinami missed the tournament due to an injury he suffered on the IWGP Champion Series tour, but acted as a commentator for the final match.[25][27]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Antonio Inoki 29 Masa Saito 28
Yoshiaki Fujiwara 19 Kengo Kimura 21
Konga the Barbarian 18 Hacksaw Higgins 16
Scott Hall 13 George Takano 13
Seiji Sakaguchi 11 Akira Maeda 10
Killer Tim Brooks 4 Umanosuke Ueda 4
Tatsumi Fujinami 0 Alexis Smirnoff 4
Final
   
A1 Antonio Inoki Pin
B1 Masa Saito  14:53 

1988[edit]

The 1988 International Wrestling Grand Prix ran from July 15 to July 29, 1988. The tournament featured five wrestlers in a single block, with the winner becoming the number one contender to IWGP Heavyweight Champion Tatsumi Fujinami for August 8.[26]

Final standings
Antonio Inoki 6
Riki Choshu 6
Big Van Vader 4
Masa Saito 4
Kengo Kimura 0

1989[edit]

The 1989 World Cup Tournament was held from November 24 to December 7, 1989. The tournament featured 20 wrestlers in four blocks of five each.[5][12]

Final standings
Block A Block B Block C Block D
Riki Choshu 8 Masahiro Chono 8 Salman Hashimikov 8 Steve Williams 8
Victor Zangiev 6 Shinya Hashimoto 6 Brad Rheingans 6 Osamu Kido 6
Kengo Kimura 4 Manny Fernandez 4 Hiroshi Hase 0 Shiro Koshinaka 2
Wayne Bloom 2 Timur Zalasov 2 George Takano 4 Super Strong Machine 2
Buzz Sawyer 0 Andrei Sulsaev 0 Tatsutoshi Goto 2 Vladimir Berkovich 2
Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
      
Shinya Hashimoto
Salman Hashimikov [12]
Shinya Hashimoto
Steve Williams [12]
Steve Williams
Victor Zangiev [12]
Shinya Hashimoto
Riki Choshu [12]
Riki Choshu
Osamu Kido [12]
Riki Choshu
Masahiro Chono [12]
Masahiro Chono
Brad Rheingans [12]

1991[edit]

The 1991 G1 Climax was a round-robin tournament consisting of two four-man blocks, and running from August 7 to August 11, 1991.[27][28]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Keiji Mutoh 4 Masahiro Chono 5
Tatsumi Fujinami 3 Shinya Hashimoto 5
Scott Norton 3 Crusher Bam Bam Bigelow 2
Big Van Vader 2 Riki Choshu 0
Block A Fujinami Mutoh Norton Vader
Fujinami — Mutoh
(13:56)		 Draw
(7:56)		 Fujinami
(12:13)
Mutoh Mutoh
(13:56)		 — Norton
(9:56)		 Mutoh
(13:54)
Norton Draw
(7:56)		 Norton
(9:56)		 — Vader
(10:49)
Vader Fujinami
(12:13)		 Mutoh
(13:54)		 Vader
(10:49)		 —
Block B Bigelow Chono Choshu Hashimoto
Bigelow — Chono
(12:38)		 Bigelow
(10:10)		 Hashimoto
(9:59)
Chono Chono
(12:38)		 — Chono
(14:17)		 Draw
(30:00)
Choshu Bigelow
(10:10)		 Chono
(14:17)		 — Hashimoto
(7:50)
Hashimoto Hashimoto
(9:59)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Hashimoto
(7:50)		 —
Block B Decision Final
A1 Keiji Mutoh Pin
B1 Masahiro Chono Sub B1 Masahiro Chono 29:31
B2 Shinya Hashimoto 15:50

1992[edit]

The 1992 G1 Climax was a 16-man single-elimination tournament, and was also for the vacant NWA World Heavyweight Championship. It ran from August 6 to August 12, 1992.[27][30] Terry Taylor advanced to the quarterfinals, due to a shoulder injury suffered by his scheduled opponent Hiroshi Hase on August 3.[80]

Round 1
August 6, 7 		Quarterfinals
August 10 		Semifinals
August 11 		Final
August 12
        
Arn Anderson Pin
Steve Austin 8:58
Steve Austin 13:52
Keiji Mutoh Pin
Keiji Mutoh Pin
Barry Windham 10:17
Keiji Mutoh 26:07
Masahiro Chono Sub
Masahiro Chono Sub
Tony Halme 12:20
Masahiro Chono Sub
Scott Norton 10:48
Scott Norton Pin
Crusher Bam Bam Bigelow 8:16
Masahiro Chono Pin
Rick Rude 29:44
Kensuke Sasaki Pin
Jim Neidhart 8:20
Kensuke Sasaki Pin
Terry Taylor 9:35
Hiroshi Hase
Terry Taylor Forfeit
Kensuke Sasaki 19:24
Rick Rude Pin
Shinya Hashimoto Pin
The Barbarian 11:29
Shinya Hashimoto 13:52
Rick Rude Pin
Super Strong Machine 11:54
Rick Rude Pin

1993[edit]

The 1993 G1 Climax was once again a 16-man single-elimination tournament, held from August 3 to August 7, 1993. NJPW invited several non-NJPW wrestlers to participate in the 1993 tournament, including Hiromichi Fuyuki, Ashura Hara, Takashi Ishikawa and The Great Kabuki from WAR, and Yoshiaki Fujiwara from Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi.[27][31][81]

Round 1
August 3, 4 		Quarterfinals
August 5 		Semifinals
August 6 		Final
August 7
        
Hiroshi Hase Pin
Shinya Hashimoto 20:42
Hiroshi Hase Pin
Kengo Kimura 15:55
Michiyoshi Ohara Pin
Kengo Kimura 26:44
Hiroshi Hase Sub
Masahiro Chono 26:46
Takayuki Iizuka Pin
Hiromichi Fuyuki 12:10
Hiromichi Fuyuki Sub
Masahiro Chono 19:04
Ashura Hara Sub
Masahiro Chono 12:28
Hiroshi Hase Sub
Tatsumi Fujinami 21:49
Tatsumi Fujinami Pin
Yoshiaki Fujiwara 14:32
Tatsumi Fujinami Sub
Osamu Kido 11:58
Osamu Kido Pin
Takashi Ishikawa 11:33
Tatsumi Fujinami Sub
Keiji Mutoh 24:26
Shiro Koshinaka Pin
Super Strong Machine 17:33
Super Strong Machine Pin
Keiji Mutoh 17:22
Keiji Mutoh Pin
The Great Kabuki 16:17

1994[edit]

The 1994 G1 Climax returned to the round-robin format, this time with two blocks of six. It was held from August 3 to August 7, 1994. Guest natives included Yoshiaki Fujiwara from Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi and Yoshiaki Yatsu from Social Progress Wrestling Federation (SPWF).[27][32]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Masahiro Chono 8 Power Warrior 7
Keiji Mutoh 6 Hiroshi Hase 6
Riki Choshu 6 Shinya Hashimoto 6
Yoshiaki Yatsu 4 Tatsumi Fujinami 6
Yoshiaki Fujiwara 4 Shiro Koshinaka 5
Osamu Kido 2 Takayuki Iizuka 0
Block A Chono Choshu Fujiwara Kido Mutoh Yatsu
Chono — Choshu
(3:47)		 Chono
(9:31)		 Chono
(6:55)		 Chono
(27:28)		 Chono
(15:01)
Choshu Choshu
(3:47)		 — Fujiwara
(9:14)		 Choshu
(5:13)		 Mutoh
(15:32)		 Choshu
(10:11)
Fujiwara Chono
(9:31)		 Fujiwara
(8:26)		 — Kido
(9:45)		 Fujiwara
(12:12)		 Yatsu
(9:14)
Kido Chono
(6:55)		 Choshu
(5:13)		 Kido
(9:45)		 — Mutoh
(7:53)		 Yatsu
(8:25)
Mutoh Chono
(27:28)		 Mutoh
(15:32)		 Fujiwara
(12:12)		 Mutoh
(7:53)		 — Mutoh
(15:12)
Yatsu Chono
(15:01)		 Choshu
(10:11)		 Yatsu
(9:14)		 Yatsu
(8:25)		 Mutoh
(15:12)		 —
Block B Fujinami Hase Hashimoto Iizuka Koshinaka Warrior
Fujinami — Hase
(11:53)		 Hashimoto
(10:31)		 Fujinami
(7:09)		 Fujinami
(12:59)		 Fujinami
(5:25)
Hase Hase
(11:53)		 — Hase
(9:10)		 Hase
(17:32)		 Koshinaka
(20:44)		 Warrior
(16:50)
Hashimoto Hashimoto
(10:31)		 Hase
(9:10)		 — Hashimoto
(13:04)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Draw
(30:00)
Iizuka Fujinami
(7:09)		 Hase
(17:32)		 Hashimoto
(13:04)		 — Koshinaka
(14:02)		 Warrior
(17:33)
Koshinaka Fujinami
(12:59)		 Koshinaka
(20:44)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Koshinaka
(14:02)		 — Warrior
(14:10)
Warrior Fujinami
(5:25)		 Warrior
(16:50)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Warrior
(17:33)		 Warrior
(14:10)		 —
Final
   
A1 Masahiro Chono Sub
B1 Power Warrior 21:51

1995[edit]

The 1995 G1 Climax was another eight-man round-robin tournament held August 11 to August 15, with the addition that the top two scorers from each block would advance to a four-man mini-tournament to decide the winner. Masahiro Chono advanced out of his block despite being tied with Ric Flair because of his faster match winning time over Shiro Koshinaka.[27][33]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Keiji Mutoh 4 Shinya Hashimoto 4
Masahiro Chono 3 Scott Norton 4
Ric Flair 3 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 2
Shiro Koshinaka 2 Kensuke Sasaki 2
Block A Chono Flair Koshinaka Mutoh
Chono — Draw
(30:00)		 Chono
(11:10)		 Mutoh
(11:36)
Flair Draw
(30:00)		 — Flair
(17:17)		 Mutoh
(23:33)
Koshinaka Chono
(11:10)		 Flair
(17:17)		 — Koshinaka
(15:47)
Mutoh Mutoh
(11:36)		 Mutoh
(23:33)		 Koshinaka
(15:47)		 —
Block B Hashimoto Norton Tenzan Sasaki
Hashimoto — Hashimoto
(13:35)		 Hashimoto
(11:44)		 Sasaki
(21:46)
Norton Hashimoto
(13:35)		 — Norton
(15:08)		 Norton
(16:21)
Tenzan Hashimoto
(11:44)		 Norton
(15:08)		 — Tenzan
(12:51)
Sasaki Sasaki
(21:46)		 Norton
(16:21)		 Tenzan
(12:51)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Keiji Mutoh Pin
B2 Scott Norton 17:07
A1 Keiji Mutoh Pin
B1 Shinya Hashimoto 24:08
A2 Masahiro Chono Pin
B1 Shinya Hashimoto 10:05

1996[edit]

The 1996 G1 Climax was held from August 2 to August 6, 1996, and was a round-robin tournament featuring two blocks of five.[27][34] Junji Hirata suffered an injury during his match with Kensuke Sasaki, which caused him to forfeit his remaining matches.

Final standings
Block A Block B
Riki Choshu 8 Masahiro Chono 6
Kensuke Sasaki 6 Shiro Koshinaka 4
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 4 Keiji Mutoh 4
Shinya Hashimoto 2 Kazuo Yamazaki 4
Junji Hirata 0 Satoshi Kojima 2
Block A Choshu Hashimoto Hirata Sasaki Tenzan
Choshu — Choshu
(17:14)		 Choshu
(Forfeit)		 Choshu
(15:13)		 Choshu
(5:12)
Hashimoto Choshu
(17:14)		 — Hashimoto
(Forfeit)		 Sasaki
(9:13)		 Tenzan
(11:27)
Hirata Choshu
(Forfeit)		 Hashimoto
(Forfeit)		 — Sasaki
(5:08)		 Tenzan
(Forfeit)
Sasaki Choshu
(15:13)		 Sasaki
(9:13)		 Sasaki
(5:08)		 — Sasaki
(15:03)
Tenzan Choshu
(5:12)		 Tenzan
(11:27)		 Tenzan
(Forfeit)		 Sasaki
(15:03)		 —
Block B Chono Kojima Koshinaka Mutoh Yamazaki
Chono — Chono
(13:46)		 Koshinaka
(22:10)		 Chono
(24:43)		 Chono
(12:25)
Kojima Chono
(13:46)		 — Kojima
(10:33)		 Mutoh
(15:21)		 Yamazaki
(9:56)
Koshinaka Koshinaka
(22:10)		 Kojima
(10:33)		 — Mutoh
(11:59)		 Koshinaka
(13:50)
Mutoh Chono
(24:43)		 Mutoh
(15:21)		 Mutoh
(11:59)		 — Yamazaki
(13:50)
Yamazaki Chono
(12:25)		 Yamazaki
(9:56)		 Koshinaka
(13:50)		 Yamazaki
(13:50)		 —
Final
   
A1 Riki Choshu Sub
B1 Masahiro Chono 13:45

1997[edit]

The 1997 G1 Climax was a 14-man single-elimination tournament, with Kensuke Sasaki and Buff Bagwell receiving byes to the quarterfinals. The tournament was held from August 1 to August 3.[27][35]

Round 1
August 1 		Quarterfinals
August 2 		Semifinals
August 3 		Final
August 3
            
Satoshi Kojima Pin
Steven Regal 9:45
Satoshi Kojima Pin
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 11:43
Hiroyoshi Tenzan Pin
Tadao Yasuda 10:39
Hiroyoshi Tenzan Pin
Shinya Hashimoto 14:01
Masahiro Chono Sub
Michiyoshi Ohara 18:39
Masahiro Chono Sub
Shinya Hashimoto 5:45
Shinya Hashimoto Stop
Kazuo Yamazaki 11:35
Hiroyoshi Tenzan Pin
Kensuke Sasaki 8:09
Junji Hirata Pin
Scott Norton 6:31
Scott Norton Pin
The Great Muta 6:31
The Great Muta Pin
Manabu Nakanishi 10:25
Scott Norton Pin
Kensuke Sasaki 5:16
Buff Bagwell Pin
Kensuke Sasaki 8:04

1998[edit]

The 1998 G1 Climax was another 16-man single-elimination tournament, held between July 31 and August 2. Genichiro Tenryu, who had separated from his own WAR promotion to become a freelancer since early in the year, was invited.[27][36]

Round 1
July 31 		Quarterfinals
August 1 		Semifinals
August 2 		Final
August 2
            
Big Titan Pin
Tadao Yasuda 10:35
Tadao Yasuda Pin
Satoshi Kojima 13:38
Satoshi Kojima Pin
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 11:08
Satoshi Kojima Sub
Shinya Hashimoto 13:51
Tatsutoshi Goto Stop
Shinya Hashimoto 4:00
Shinya Hashimoto Pin
Genichiro Tenryu 13:13
Keiji Mutoh Pin
Genichiro Tenryu 21:37
Shinya Hashimoto Pin
Kazuo Yamazaki 15:34
Shiro Koshinaka Pin
Osamu Nishimura 10:25
Shiro Koshinaka Sub
Masahiro Chono 16:03
Masahiro Chono Sub
Manabu Nakanishi 18:52
Masahiro Chono Sub
Kazuo Yamazaki 9:43
Michiyoshi Ohara Pin
Kensuke Sasaki 10:59
Kensuke Sasaki Sub
Kazuo Yamazaki 6:42
Tatsumi Fujinami Sub
Kazuo Yamazaki 7:51

1999[edit]

The 1999 G1 Climax was a 12-man round-robin tournament, held from August 10 to August 15.[27][37]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Keiji Mutoh 8 Manabu Nakanishi 8
Yuji Nagata 8 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6
Kensuke Sasaki 6 Shiro Koshinaka 6
Tatsumi Fujinami 6 Masahiro Chono 6
Satoshi Kojima 2 Shinya Hashimoto 4
Tadao Yasuda 0 Kazuo Yamazaki 0
Block A Fujinami Kojima Mutoh Nagata Sasaki Yasuda
Fujinami — Fujinami
(13:10)		 Fujinami
(17:36)		 Nagata
(12:03)		 Sasaki
(10:23)		 Fujinami
(3:29)
Kojima Fujinami
(13:10)		 — Mutoh
(11:40)		 Nagata
(19:51)		 Sasaki
(13:50)		 Kojima
(13:51)
Mutoh Fujinami
(17:36)		 Mutoh
(11:40)		 — Mutoh
(21:11)		 Mutoh
(20:56)		 Mutoh
(6:25)
Nagata Nagata
(12:03)		 Nagata
(19:51)		 Mutoh
(21:11)		 — Nagata
(14:43)		 Nagata
(10:26)
Sasaki Sasaki
(10:23)		 Sasaki
(13:50)		 Mutoh
(20:56)		 Nagata
(14:43)		 — Sasaki
(7:28)
Yasuda Fujinami
(3:29)		 Kojima
(13:51)		 Mutoh
(6:25)		 Nagata
(10:26)		 Sasaki
(7:28)		 —
Block B Chono Hashimoto Koshinaka Nakanishi Tenzan Yamazaki
Chono — Chono
(21:36)		 Koshinaka
(13:05)		 Chono
(10:21)		 Tenzan
(17:25)		 Chono
(10:18)
Hashimoto Chono
(21:36)		 — Koshinaka
(13:47)		 Nakanishi
(15:22)		 Hashimoto
(13:24)		 Hashimoto
(4:55)
Koshinaka Koshinaka
(13:05)		 Koshinaka
(13:47)		 — Nakanishi
(14:15)		 Tenzan
(15:14)		 Koshinaka
(Forfeit)
Nakanishi Chono
(10:21)		 Nakanishi
(15:22)		 Nakanishi
(14:15)		 — Nakanishi
(15:40)		 Nakanishi
(6:43)
Tenzan Tenzan
(17:25)		 Hashimoto
(13:24)		 Tenzan
(15:14)		 Nakanishi
(15:40)		 — Tenzan
(12:30)
Yamazaki Chono
(10:18)		 Hashimoto
(4:55)		 Koshinaka
(Forfeit)		 Nakanishi
(6:43)		 Tenzan
(12:30)		 —
Block A Decision Final
A1 Keiji Mutoh Sub
A1 Keiji Mutoh Sub B1 Manabu Nakanishi 14:43
A2 Yuji Nagata 10:28

2000[edit]

The 2000 G1 Climax was a round-robin tournament, featuring four blocks of five, with each block champion advancing to a four-man tournament to decide that year's winner; it was held from August 7 to August 13. Also note that the points system was modified from the original: 1 point for a victory, and zero points for a draw or loss. This was the first time that two recognized junior heavyweights; IWGP titleholder Tatsuhito Takaiwa and previous champion Jyushin Thunder Liger, were invited to compete in the heavyweight tournament.[38]

Final standings
Block A Block B Block C Block D
Yuji Nagata 3 Kensuke Sasaki 3 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 3 Masahiro Chono 3
Takashi Iizuka 3 Satoshi Kojima 2 Manabu Nakanishi 3 Junji Hirata 2
Tatsumi Fujinami 2 Brian Johnston 2 Tadao Yasuda 2 Shiro Koshinaka 2
Jyushin Thunder Liger 1 Osamu Kido 0 Osamu Nishimura 2 Yutaka Yoshie 2
Tatsutoshi Goto 1 Hiro Saito 0 Kenzo Suzuki 0 Tatsuhito Takaiwa 1
Block A Fujinami Goto Iizuka Liger Nagata
Fujinami — Fujinami
(6:42)		 Iizuka
(11:46)		 Fujinami
(10:33)		 Nagata
(12:25)
Goto Fujinami
(6:42)		 — Iizuka
(9:42)		 Liger
(7:17)		 Goto
(11:41)
Iizuka Iizuka
(11:46)		 Iizuka
(9:42)		 — Iizuka
(15:13)		 Nagata
(16:38)
Liger Fujinami
(10:33)		 Liger
(7:17)		 Iizuka
(15:13)		 — Nagata
(12:06)
Nagata Nagata
(12:25)		 Goto
(11:41)		 Nagata
(16:38)		 Nagata
(12:06)		 —
Block B Johnston Kido Kojima Saito Sasaki
Johnston — Johnston
(5:38)		 Kojima
(10:08)		 Johnston
(5:18)		 Sasaki
(6:48)
Kido Johnston
(5:38)		 — Kojima
(9:55)		 Draw
(6:29)		 Sasaki
(4:21)
Kojima Kojima
(10:08)		 Kojima
(9:55)		 — Draw
(5:54)		 Sasaki
(19:39)
Saito Johnston
(5:18)		 Draw
(6:29)		 Draw
(5:54)		 — Draw
(5:37)
Sasaki Sasaki
(6:48)		 Sasaki
(4:21)		 Sasaki
(19:39)		 Draw
(5:37)		 —
Block C Nakanishi Nishimura Suzuki Tenzan Yasuda
Nakanishi — Nakanishi
(13:04)		 Nakanishi
(8:43)		 Tenzan
(18:21)		 Nakanishi
(9:23)
Nishimura Nakanishi
(13:04)		 — Nishimura
(7:37)		 Nishimura
(14:22)		 Yasuda
(11:47)
Suzuki Nakanishi
(8:43)		 Nishimura
(7:37)		 — Tenzan
(13:24)		 Yasuda
(10:43)
Tenzan Tenzan
(18:21)		 Nishimura
(14:22)		 Tenzan
(13:24)		 — Tenzan
(11:40)
Yasuda Nakanishi
(9:23)		 Yasuda
(11:47)		 Yasuda
(10:43)		 Tenzan
(11:40)		 —
Block D Chono Hirata Koshinaka Takaiwa Yoshie
Chono — Chono
(11:42)		 Koshinaka
(12:40)		 Chono
(14:22)		 Chono
(20:16)
Hirata Chono
(11:42)		 — Hirata
(8:24)		 Hirata
(11:08)		 Yoshie
(11:19)
Koshinaka Koshinaka
(12:40)		 Hirata
(8:24)		 — Takaiwa
(9:04)		 Koshinaka
(10:38)
Takaiwa Chono
(14:22)		 Hirata
(11:08)		 Takaiwa
(9:04)		 — Yoshie
(13:48)
Yoshie Chono
(20:16)		 Yoshie
(11:19)		 Koshinaka
(10:38)		 Yoshie
(13:48)		 —
Tiebreakers Semifinals Final
A1 Yuji Nagata Pin
A1 Yuji Nagata Sub B1 Kensuke Sasaki 15:12
A2 Takashi Iizuka 10:48 B1 Kensuke Sasaki Sub
C2 Manabu Nakanishi 19:42
C2 Manabu Nakanishi Sub
C1 Hiroyoshi Tenzan Sub D1 Masahiro Chono 9:33
C2 Manabu Nakanishi 11:26

2001[edit]

The 2001 G1 Climax was a two-block, twelve-man round-robin tournament held from August 4 to August 12. It returned to the original method of scoring, and also reintroduced the 1995 G1's format of each block's top two scorers advancing to the final four. Jyushin Thunder Liger and Minoru Tanaka were the junior heavyweight invitees.[39]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Yuji Nagata 7 Keiji Mutoh 8
Tadao Yasuda 6 Masahiro Chono 6
Manabu Nakanishi 6 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6
Kazunari Murakami 5 Satoshi Kojima 4
Tatsumi Fujinami 4 Jyushin Thunder Liger 3
Minoru Tanaka 2 Osamu Nishimura 3
Block A Fujinami Murakami Nagata Nakanishi Tanaka Yasuda
Fujinami — Fujinami
(0:36)		 Nagata
(11:30)		 Nakanishi
(5:18)		 Fujinami
(8:38)		 Yasuda
(5:14)
Murakami Fujinami
(0:36)		 — Draw
(8:01)		 Murakami
(2:02)		 Tanaka
(5:10)		 Murakami
(3:48)
Nagata Nagata
(11:30)		 Draw
(8:01)		 — Nakanishi
(14:15)		 Nagata
(12:39)		 Nagata
(8:11)
Nakanishi Nakanishi
(5:18)		 Murakami
(2:02)		 Nakanishi
(14:15)		 — Nakanishi
(9:47)		 Yasuda
(7:11)
Tanaka Fujinami
(8:38)		 Tanaka
(5:10)		 Nagata
(12:39)		 Nakanishi
(9:47)		 — Yasuda
(7:35)
Yasuda Yasuda
(5:14)		 Murakami
(3:48)		 Nagata
(8:11)		 Yasuda
(7:11)		 Yasuda
(7:35)		 —
Block B Chono Kojima Liger Mutoh Nishimura Tenzan
Chono — Kojima
(17:18)		 Chono
(14:16)		 Mutoh
(8:14)		 Chono
(26:16)		 Chono
(17:53)
Kojima Kojima
(17:18)		 — Liger
(16:01)		 Kojima
(17:30)		 Nishimura
(19:23)		 Tenzan
(20:53)
Liger Chono
(14:16)		 Liger
(16:01)		 — Mutoh
(14:24)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Tenzan
(15:44)
Mutoh Mutoh
(8:14)		 Kojima
(17:30)		 Mutoh
(14:24)		 — Mutoh
(16:08)		 Mutoh
(18:35)
Nishimura Chono
(26:16)		 Nishimura
(19:23)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Mutoh
(16:08)		 — Tenzan
(24:06)
Tenzan Chono
(17:53)		 Tenzan
(20:53)		 Tenzan
(15:44)		 Mutoh
(18:35)		 Tenzan
(24:06)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
B1 Keiji Mutoh Sub
A2 Tadao Yasuda 11:22
B1 Keiji Mutoh Sub
A1 Yuji Nagata 22:03
B2 Masahiro Chono Sub
A1 Yuji Nagata 13:44

2002[edit]

The 2002 G1 Climax was identical in structure to the previous year's, and was held from August 3 to August 11.[38]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Yoshihiro Takayama 8 Masahiro Chono 7
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6 Osamu Nishimura 5
Kensuke Sasaki 6 Manabu Nakanishi 5
Hiroshi Tanahashi 4 Yuji Nagata 5
Shiro Koshinaka 4 Kenzo Suzuki 4
Yutaka Yoshie 2 Tadao Yasuda 4
Block A Koshinaka Sasaki Takayama Tanahashi Tenzan Yoshie
Koshinaka — Sasaki
(8:33)		 Takayama
(12:00)		 Tanahashi
(8:52)		 Koshinaka
(11:02)		 Koshinaka
(10:54)
Sasaki Sasaki
(8:33)		 — Sasaki
(12:11)		 Tanahashi
(1:40)		 Tenzan
(15:52)		 Sasaki
(0:41)
Takayama Takayama
(12:00)		 Sasaki
(12:11)		 — Takayama
(9:24)		 Takayama
(13:18)		 Takayama
(11:28)
Tanahashi Tanahashi
(8:52)		 Tanahashi
(1:40)		 Takayama
(9:24)		 — Tenzan
(14:49)		 Yoshie
(10:38)
Tenzan Koshinaka
(11:02)		 Tenzan
(15:52)		 Takayama
(13:18)		 Tenzan
(14:49)		 — Tenzan
(15:53)
Yoshie Koshinaka
(10:54)		 Sasaki
(0:41)		 Takayama
(11:28)		 Yoshie
(10:38)		 Tenzan
(15:53)		 —
Block B Chono Nagata Nakanishi Nishimura Suzuki Yasuda
Chono — Nagata
(16:00)		 Chono
(16:17)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Chono
(17:33)		 Chono
(Forfeit)
Nagata Nagata
(16:00)		 — Nakanishi
(17:21)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nagata
(14:51)		 Yasuda
(11:10)
Nakanishi Chono
(16:17)		 Nakanishi
(17:21)		 — Draw
(30:00)		 Nakanishi
(11:17)		 Yasuda
(2:15)
Nishimura Draw
(30:00)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Draw
(30:00)		 — Suzuki
(18:10)		 Nishimura
(1:36)
Suzuki Chono
(17:33)		 Nagata
(14:51)		 Nakanishi
(11:17)		 Suzuki
(18:10)		 — Suzuki
(0:37)
Yasuda Chono
(Forfeit)		 Yasuda
(11:10)		 Yasuda
(2:15)		 Nishimura
(1:36)		 Suzuki
(0:37)		 —
Tiebreaker Semifinals Final
         
A1 Yoshihiro Takayama Pin
B2 Osamu Nishimura 22:38
B3 Manabu Nakanishi Sub
B2 Osamu Nishimura 5:49
A1 Yoshihiro Takayama Pin
B1 Masahiro Chono 20:23
B1 Masahiro Chono Sub
A2 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 22:03

2003[edit]

The 2003 G1 Climax was another 12-man round-robin tournament, held from August 10 to August 17. Jun Akiyama from Pro Wrestling Noah, along with freelancer Yoshihiro Takayama were invitees.[41]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Jun Akiyama 7 Yoshihiro Takayama 8
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6 Yuji Nagata 5
Masahiro Chono 5 Katsuyori Shibata 5
Manabu Nakanishi 4 Yutaka Yoshie 4
Osamu Nishimura 4 Shinsuke Nakamura 4
Hiroshi Tanahashi 4 Tadao Yasuda 4
Block A Akiyama Chono Nakanishi Nishimura Tanahashi Tenzan
Akiyama — Draw
(30:00)		 Akiyama
(16:35)		 Nishimura
(27:17)		 Akiyama
(16:08)		 Akiyama
(19:43)
Chono Draw
(30:00)		 — Nakanishi
(11:39)		 Chono
(24:08)		 Chono
(13:11)		 Tenzan
(21:21)
Nakanishi Akiyama
(16:35)		 Nakanishi
(11:39)		 — Nishimura
(13:45)		 Nakanishi
(14:04)		 Tenzan
(14:50)
Nishimura Nishimura
(27:17)		 Chono
(24:08)		 Nishimura
(13:45)		 — Tanahashi
(14:03)		 Tenzan
(25:56)
Tanahashi Akiyama
(16:08)		 Chono
(13:11)		 Nakanishi
(14:04)		 Tanahashi
(14:03)		 — Tanahashi
(15:14)
Tenzan Akiyama
(19:43)		 Tenzan
(21:21)		 Tenzan
(14:50)		 Tenzan
(25:56)		 Tanahashi
(15:14)		 —
Block B Nagata Nakamura Shibata Takayama Yasuda Yoshie
Nagata — Nagata
(11:32)		 Draw
(13:17)		 Takayama
(14:05)		 Yasuda
(12:21)		 Nagata
(12:51)
Nakamura Nagata
(11:32)		 — Nakamura
(10:14)		 Takayama
(7:08)		 Nakamura
(7:38)		 Yoshie
(12:31)
Shibata Draw
(13:17)		 Nakamura
(10:14)		 — Takayama
(6:38)		 Shibata
(1:14)		 Shibata
(9:17)
Takayama Takayama
(14:05)		 Takayama
(7:08)		 Takayama
(6:38)		 — Yasuda
(11:16)		 Takayama
(12:31)
Yasuda Yasuda
(12:21)		 Nakamura
(7:38)		 Shibata
(1:14)		 Yasuda
(11:16)		 — Yoshie
(13:01)
Yoshie Nagata
(12:51)		 Yoshie
(12:31)		 Shibata
(9:17)		 Takayama
(12:31)		 Yoshie
(13:01)		 —
Block B Decision Semifinals Final
         
A1 Jun Akiyama Pin
B2 Yuji Nagata 16:11
B2 Yuji Nagata KO
B3 Katsuyori Shibata 4:11
A1 Jun Akiyama Sub
A2 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 31:43
B1 Yoshihiro Takayama KO
A2 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 21:13

2004[edit]

The 2004 G1 Climax was a two-block, sixteen-man tournament held from August 7 to August 15. As well as the increased number of participants, it introduced a format in which the second and third runners-up from each block would advance to a four-man tournament, the two finalists of which would advance to a second four-man tournament also featuring each block winner; the eventual winner of this tournament would win the G1 Climax. Also, it would seem that, for this particular year, matches which ended in a double countout or double disqualification would result in zero points for both competitors.[42]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Katsuyori Shibata 8 Hiroshi Tanahashi 12
Genichiro Tenryu 8 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 11
Shinsuke Nakamura 8 Kensuke Sasaki 9
Masahiro Chono 8 Koji Kanemoto 6
Minoru Suzuki 8 Manabu Nakanishi 6
Yuji Nagata 8 Osamu Nishimura 6
Blue Wolf 4 Togi Makabe 4
Yutaka Yoshie 2 Yoshihiro Takayama 2
Block A Wolf Chono Nagata Nakamura Shibata Suzuki Tenryu Yoshie
Wolf — Chono
(14:29)		 Nagata
(13:35)		 Nakamura
(8:15)		 Wolf
(11:46)		 Suzuki
(13:34)		 Tenryu
(6:09)		 Wolf
(14:04)
Chono Chono
(14:29)		 — Chono
(16:26)		 Draw
(14:36)1		 Shibata
(15:05)		 Chono
(17:32)		 Tenryu
(0:38)		 Chono
(12:57)
Nagata Nagata
(13:35)		 Chono
(16:26)		 — Nakamura
(13:08)		 Nagata
(12:44)		 Suzuki
(17:39)		 Nagata
(11:28)		 Nagata
(13:50)
Nakamura Nakamura
(8:15)		 Draw
(14:36)1		 Nakamura
(13:08)		 — Shibata
(12:00)		 Nakamura
(11:58)		 Tenryu
(14:43)		 Nakamura
(11:33)
Shibata Wolf
(11:46)		 Shibata
(15:05)		 Nagata
(12:44)		 Shibata
(12:00)		 — Suzuki
(7:20)		 Shibata
(7:15)		 Shibata
(10:22)
Suzuki Suzuki
(13:34)		 Chono
(17:32)		 Suzuki
(17:39)		 Nakamura
(11:58)		 Suzuki
(7:20)		 — Tenryu
(13:01)		 Suzuki
(9:12)
Tenryu Tenryu
(6:09)		 Tenryu
(0:38)		 Nagata
(11:28)		 Tenryu
(14:43)		 Shibata
(7:15)		 Tenryu
(13:01)		 — Yoshie
(4:07)
Yoshie Wolf
(14:04)		 Chono
(12:57)		 Nagata
(13:50)		 Nakamura
(11:33)		 Shibata
(10:22)		 Suzuki
(9:12)		 Yoshie
(4:07)		 —
Block B Kanemoto Makabe Nakanishi Nishimura Sasaki Takayama Tanahashi Tenzan
Kanemoto — Kanemoto
(13:50)		 Kanemoto
(9:54)		 Nishimura
(14:03)		 Sasaki
(16:55)		 Kanemoto
(Forfeit)		 Tanahashi
(15:45)		 Tenzan
(16:55)
Makabe Kanemoto
(13:50)		 — Nakanishi
(7:40)		 Makabe
(12:51)		 Sasaki
(6:34)		 Makabe
(Forfeit)		 Tanahashi
(11:35)		 Tenzan
(11:33)
Nakanishi Kanemoto
(9:54)		 Nakanishi
(7:40)		 — Nakanishi
(14:36)		 Sasaki
(17:57)		 Nakanishi
(15:48)		 Tanahashi
(9:12)		 Tenzan
(12:47)
Nishimura Nishimura
(14:03)		 Makabe
(12:51)		 Nakanishi
(14:36)		 — Sasaki
(14:00)		 Nishimura
(Forfeit)		 Tanahashi
(16:23)		 Nishimura
(20:02)
Sasaki Sasaki
(16:55)		 Sasaki
(6:34)		 Sasaki
(17:57)		 Sasaki
(14:00)		 — Takayama
(14:40)		 Tanahashi
(12:00)		 Draw
(30:00)
Takayama Kanemoto
(Forfeit)		 Makabe
(Forfeit)		 Nakanishi
(15:48)		 Nishimura
(Forfeit)		 Takayama
(14:40)		 — Tanahashi
(Forfeit)		 Tenzan
(Forfeit)
Tanahashi Tanahashi
(15:45)		 Tanahashi
(11:35)		 Tanahashi
(9:12)		 Tanahashi
(16:23)		 Tanahashi
(12:00)		 Tanahashi
(Forfeit)		 — Tenzan
(15:15)
Tenzan Tenzan
(16:55)		 Tenzan
(11:33)		 Tenzan
(12:47)		 Nishimura
(20:02)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Tenzan
(Forfeit)		 Tenzan
(15:15)		 —

1 This was a double countout, and so neither Chono nor Nakamura received any points.

Block A DecisionQuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
A1Katsuyori ShibataKO
B2Hiroyoshi TenzanSubB2Hiroyoshi Tenzan7:11
A4Masahiro ChonoDQA3Shinsuke Nakamura13:06B2Hiroyoshi Tenzan21:01
A3Shinsuke Nakamura4:39B1Hiroshi TanahashiSub
B1Hiroshi TanahashiPin
A2Genichiro TenryuPinA2Genichiro Tenryu6:34
B3Kensuke Sasaki8:11

2005[edit]

The 2005 G1 Climax was another 16-man round-robin tournament, held from August 4 to August 14. It returned to the format of 2003, eliminating the "quarterfinals" seen in 2004, and simply bringing each block's top two scorers into the final four.[43]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Masahiro Chono 10 Kazuyuki Fujita 14
Toshiaki Kawada 10 Shinsuke Nakamura 11
Yuji Nagata 8 Manabu Nakanishi 10
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 8 Hiroshi Tanahashi 7
Minoru Suzuki 6 Yutaka Yoshie 6
Kendo Kashin 5 Tatsutoshi Goto 4
Osamu Nishimura 5 Toru Yano 4
Tatsumi Fujinami 4 Togi Makabe 0
Block A Chono Fujinami Kashin Kawada Nagata Nishimura Suzuki Tenzan
Chono — Chono
(11:08)		 Chono
(1:45)		 Chono
(12:14)		 Chono
(17:02)		 Nishimura
(20:55)		 Chono
(17:50)		 Tenzan
(18:33)
Fujinami Chono
(11:08)		 — Fujinami
(4:50)		 Kawada
(12:03)		 Nagata
(9:37)		 Nishimura
(11:29)		 Fujinami
(10:17)		 Tenzan
(12:49)
Kashin Chono
(1:45)		 Fujinami
(4:50)		 — Kashin
(11:16)		 Nagata
(13:08)		 Kashin
(15:07)		 Draw
(12:17)		 Tenzan
(12:19)
Kawada Chono
(12:14)		 Kawada
(12:03)		 Kashin
(11:16)		 — Kawada
(26:55)		 Kawada
(17:00)		 Kawada
(17:11)		 Kawada
(19:08)
Nagata Chono
(17:02)		 Nagata
(9:37)		 Nagata
(13:08)		 Kawada
(26:55)		 — Nagata
(19:34)		 Suzuki
(12:06)		 Nagata
(16:55)
Nishimura Nishimura
(20:55)		 Nishimura
(11:29)		 Kashin
(15:07)		 Kawada
(17:00)		 Nagata
(19:34)		 — Draw
(30:00)		 Tenzan
(18:46)
Suzuki Chono
(17:50)		 Fujinami
(10:17)		 Draw
(12:17)		 Kawada
(17:11)		 Suzuki
(12:06)		 Draw
(30:00)		 — Suzuki
(13:50)
Tenzan Tenzan
(18:33)		 Tenzan
(12:49)		 Tenzan
(12:19)		 Kawada
(19:08)		 Nagata
(16:55)		 Tenzan
(18:46)		 Suzuki
(13:50)		 —
Block B Fujita Goto Makabe Nakamura Nakanishi Tanahashi Yano Yoshie
Fujita — Fujita
(3:19)		 Fujita
(Forfeit)		 Fujita
(6:25)		 Fujita
(8:02)		 Fujita
(9:14)		 Fujita
(3:41)		 Fujita
(8:45)
Goto Fujita
(3:19)		 — Goto
(Forfeit)		 Nakamura
(6:11)		 Nakanishi
(7:26)		 Tanahashi
(9:09)		 Goto
(4:16)		 Yoshie
(8:22)
Makabe Fujita
(Forfeit)		 Goto
(Forfeit)		 — Nakamura
(2:30)		 Nakanishi
(Forfeit)		 Tanahashi
(Forfeit)		 Yano
(Forfeit)		 Yoshie
(12:23)
Nakamura Fujita
(6:25)		 Nakamura
(6:11)		 Nakamura
(2:30)		 — Nakamura
(14:38)		 Nakamura
(13:35)		 Draw
(5:15)		 Nakamura
(10:49)
Nakanishi Fujita
(8:02)		 Nakanishi
(7:26)		 Nakanishi
(Forfeit)		 Nakamura
(14:38)		 — Nakanishi
(13:50)		 Nakanishi
(5:17)		 Nakanishi
(12:40)
Tanahashi Fujita
(9:14)		 Tanahashi
(9:09)		 Tanahashi
(Forfeit)		 Nakamura
(13:35)		 Nakanishi
(13:50)		 — Draw
(30:00)		 Tanahashi
(15:01)
Yano Fujita
(3:41)		 Goto
(4:16)		 Yano
(Forfeit)		 Draw
(5:15)		 Nakanishi
(5:17)		 Draw
(30:00)		 — Yoshie
(12:39)
Yoshie Fujita
(8:45)		 Yoshie
(8:22)		 Yoshie
(12:23)		 Nakamura
(10:49)		 Nakanishi
(12:40)		 Tanahashi
(15:01)		 Yoshie
(12:39)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Masahiro Chono Sub
B2 Shinsuke Nakamura 11:35
A1 Masahiro Chono Pin
B1 Kazuyuki Fujita 8:52
B1 Kazuyuki Fujita Pin
A2 Toshiaki Kawada 6:23

2006[edit]

The 2006 G1 Climax was a 10-man round-robin tournament held from August 6 to August 13.[44]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Satoshi Kojima 7 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 8
Giant Bernard 5 Koji Kanemoto 5
Hiroshi Tanahashi 4 Yuji Nagata 4
Jyushin Thunder Liger 2 Togi Makabe 3
Manabu Nakanishi 2 Naofumi Yamamoto 0
Block A Bernard Kojima Liger Nakanishi Tanahashi
Bernard — Draw
(25:54)		 Bernard
(6:53)		 Nakanishi
(11:41)		 Bernard
(17:54)
Kojima Draw
(25:54)		 — Kojima
(14:09)		 Kojima
(18:17)		 Kojima
(21:55)
Liger Bernard
(6:53)		 Kojima
(14:09)		 — Liger
(8:32)		 Tanahashi
(14:18)
Nakanishi Nakanishi
(11:41)		 Kojima
(18:17)		 Liger
(8:32)		 — Tanahashi
(14:51)
Tanahashi Bernard
(17:54)		 Kojima
(21:55)		 Tanahashi
(14:18)		 Tanahashi
(14:51)		 —
Block B Kanemoto Makabe Nagata Tenzan Yamamoto
Kanemoto — Kanemoto
(11:25)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Tenzan
(13:07)		 Kanemoto
(13:14)
Makabe Kanemoto
(11:25)		 — Draw
(15:44)		 Tenzan
(12:23)		 Makabe
(11:18)
Nagata Draw
(30:00)		 Draw
(15:44)		 — Tenzan
(15:41)		 Nagata
(10:28)
Tenzan Tenzan
(13:07)		 Tenzan
(12:23)		 Tenzan
(15:41)		 — Tenzan
(12:28)
Yamamoto Kanemoto
(13:14)		 Makabe
(11:18)		 Nagata
(10:28)		 Tenzan
(12:28)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Satoshi Kojima Pin
B2 Koji Kanemoto 15:41
A1 Satoshi Kojima Pin
B1 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 27:36
B1 Hiroyoshi Tenzan Sub
A2 Giant Bernard 11:13

2007[edit]

The 2007 G1 Climax, featuring twelve men in two blocks, was held from August 5 to August 12.[45]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Togi Makabe 6 Shinsuke Nakamura 7
Yuji Nagata 6 Hiroshi Tanahashi 6
Akebono 5 Toru Yano 5
Giant Bernard 5 Shiro Koshinaka 4
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 4 Milano Collection A.T. 4
Masahiro Chono 4 Manabu Nakanishi 4
Block A Bernard Chono Makabe Nagata Tenzan Akebono
Bernard — Bernard
(3:40)		 Makabe
(8:34)		 Nagata
(13:58)		 Bernard
(13:24)		 Draw
(9:57)
Chono Bernard
(3:40)		 — Makabe
(11:17)		 Chono
(16:15)		 Tenzan
(17:20)		 Chono
(7:45)
Makabe Makabe
(8:34)		 Makabe
(11:17)		 — Makabe
(15:44)		 Tenzan
(15:45)		 Akebono
(7:48)
Nagata Nagata
(13:58)		 Chono
(16:15)		 Makabe
(15:44)		 — Nagata
(10:41)		 Nagata
(6:32)
Tenzan Bernard
(13:24)		 Tenzan
(17:20)		 Tenzan
(15:45)		 Nagata
(10:41)		 — Akebono
(9:18)
Akebono Draw
(9:57)		 Chono
(7:45)		 Akebono
(7:48)		 Nagata
(6:32)		 Akebono
(9:18)		 —
Block B Koshinaka Milano Nakamura Nakanishi Tanahashi Yano
Koshinaka — Milano
(10:29)		 Koshinaka
(10:34)		 Koshinaka
(10:30)		 Tanahashi
(17:04)		 Yano
(9:52)
Milano Milano
(10:29)		 — Nakamura
(12:30)		 Nakanishi
(5:29)		 Tanahashi
(9:59)		 Milano
(6:00)
Nakamura Koshinaka
(10:34)		 Nakamura
(12:30)		 — Nakamura
(12:38)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nakamura
(12:13)
Nakanishi Koshinaka
(10:30)		 Nakanishi
(5:29)		 Nakamura
(12:38)		 — Nakanishi
(12:13)		 Yano
(10:41)
Tanahashi Tanahashi
(17:04)		 Tanahashi
(9:59)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nakanishi
(12:13)		 — Draw
(12:27)
Yano Yano
(9:52)		 Milano
(6:00)		 Nakamura
(12:13)		 Yano
(10:41)		 Draw
(12:27)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Togi Makabe Pin
B2 Hiroshi Tanahashi 15:24
B2 Hiroshi Tanahashi Pin
A2 Yuji Nagata 19:02
B1 Shinsuke Nakamura Stop
A2 Yuji Nagata 18:22

2008[edit]

The 2008 G1 Climax, featuring fourteen men in two blocks, was held from August 9 to August 17 over seven shows.[46]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Togi Makabe 8 Hirooki Goto 8
Satoshi Kojima 7 Shinsuke Nakamura 8
Shinjiro Otani 7 Toshiaki Kawada 7
Manabu Nakanishi 6 Yutaka Yoshie 7
Giant Bernard 6 Yuji Nagata 6
Hiroshi Tanahashi 4 Toru Yano 4
Wataru Inoue 4 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 2
Block A Bernard Inoue Kojima Makabe Nakanishi Otani Tanahashi
Bernard — Inoue
(7:32)		 Bernard
(13:27)		 Makabe
(10:56)		 Nakanishi
(13:17)		 Bernard
(14:12)		 Bernard
(13:51)
Inoue Inoue
(7:32)		 — Kojima
(12:39)		 Makabe
(12:59)		 Inoue
(8:38)		 Otani
(9:56)		 Tanahashi
(14:07)
Kojima Bernard
(13:27)		 Kojima
(12:39)		 — Makabe
(12:26)		 Kojima
(15:15)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Kojima
(16:57)
Makabe Makabe
(10:56)		 Makabe
(12:59)		 Makabe
(12:26)		 — Nakanishi
(9:31)		 Otani
(12:11)		 Makabe
(20:14)
Nakanishi Nakanishi
(13:17)		 Inoue
(8:38)		 Kojima
(15:15)		 Nakanishi
(9:31)		 — Otani
(12:21)		 Nakanishi
(17:33)
Otani Bernard
(14:12)		 Otani
(9:56)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Otani
(12:11)		 Otani
(12:21)		 — Tanahashi
(12:44)
Tanahashi Bernard
(13:51)		 Tanahashi
(14:07)		 Kojima
(16:57)		 Makabe
(20:14)		 Nakanishi
(17:33)		 Tanahashi
(12:44)		 —
Block B Goto Kawada Nagata Nakamura Tenzan Yano Yoshie
Goto — Kawada
(13:24)		 Goto
(12:12)		 Goto
(14:22)		 Goto
(12:43)		 Goto
(9:11)		 Yoshie
(14:28)
Kawada Kawada
(13:24)		 — Kawada
(16:38)		 Nakamura
(14:36)		 Tenzan
(19:24)		 Kawada
(8:38)		 Draw
(30:00)
Nagata Goto
(12:12)		 Kawada
(16:38)		 — Nakamura
(15:52)		 Nagata
(11:34)		 Nagata
(13:10)		 Nagata
(15:38)
Nakamura Goto
(14:22)		 Nakamura
(14:36)		 Nakamura
(15:52)		 — Nakamura
(12:16)		 Yano
(12:53)		 Nakamura
(15:20)
Tenzan Goto
(12:43)		 Tenzan
(19:24)		 Nagata
(11:34)		 Nakamura
(12:16)		 — Yano
(11:50)		 Yoshie
(15:09)
Yano Goto
(9:11)		 Kawada
(8:38)		 Nagata
(13:10)		 Yano
(12:53)		 Yano
(11:50)		 — Yoshie
(11:38)
Yoshie Yoshie
(14:28)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nagata
(15:38)		 Nakamura
(15:20)		 Yoshie
(15:09)		 Yoshie
(11:38)		 —
Final
   
A1 Togi Makabe Pin
B1 Hirooki Goto 22:25

2009[edit]

The 2009 G1 Climax, featuring fourteen men in two blocks, was held from August 7 to August 16 over eight shows. In a tournament first, the exact tie for first place in Block A between Togi Makabe and Hiroshi Tanahashi was decided by a coin toss.[47]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Togi Makabe 7 Shinsuke Nakamura 12
Hiroshi Tanahashi 7 Takashi Sugiura 7
Masato Tanaka 7 Hirooki Goto 6
Toru Yano 6 Manabu Nakanishi 6
Takao Omori 6 Yuji Nagata 5
Giant Bernard 5 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 4
Tajiri 4 Takashi Iizuka 2
Block A Bernard Makabe Omori Tajiri Tanahashi Tanaka Yano
Bernard — Bernard
(12:15)		 Bernard
(10:11)		 Tajiri
(10:33)		 Tanahashi
(19:57)		 Draw
(13:07)		 Yano
(9:50)
Makabe Bernard
(12:15)		 — Omori
(14:40)		 Makabe
(12:17)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Makabe
(12:29)		 Makabe
(13:18)
Omori Bernard
(10:11)		 Omori
(14:40)		 — Omori
(1:05)		 Omori
(18:20)		 Tanaka
(13:08)		 Yano
(9:11)
Tajiri Tajiri
(10:33)		 Makabe
(12:17)		 Omori
(1:05)		 — Tajiri
(18:03)		 Tanaka
(11:24)		 Yano
(11:34)
Tanahashi Tanahashi
(19:57)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Omori
(18:20)		 Tajiri
(18:03)		 — Tanahashi
(22:28)		 Tanahashi
(18:39)
Tanaka Draw
(13:07)		 Makabe
(12:29)		 Tanaka
(13:08)		 Tanaka
(11:24)		 Tanahashi
(22:28)		 — Tanaka
(10:44)
Yano Yano
(9:50)		 Makabe
(13:18)		 Yano
(9:11)		 Yano
(11:34)		 Tanahashi
(18:39)		 Tanaka
(10:44)		 —
Block B Goto Iizuka Nagata Nakamura Nakanishi Sugiura Tenzan
Goto — Goto
(12:24)		 Nagata
(17:48)		 Nakamura
(16:42)		 Goto
(14:55)		 Sugiura
(13:32)		 Goto
(6:57)
Iizuka Goto
(12:24)		 — Iizuka
(7:53)		 Nakamura
(5:11)		 Nakanishi
(11:58)		 Sugiura
(9:05)		 Tenzan
(10:59)
Nagata Nagata
(17:48)		 Iizuka
(7:53)		 — Nakamura
(17:41)		 Nakanishi
(21:58)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nagata
(11:01)
Nakamura Nakamura
(16:42)		 Nakamura
(5:11)		 Nakamura
(17:41)		 — Nakamura
(7:10)		 Nakamura
(13:51)		 Nakamura
(8:41)
Nakanishi Goto
(14:55)		 Nakanishi
(11:58)		 Nakanishi
(21:58)		 Nakamura
(7:10)		 — Sugiura
(14:22)		 Nakanishi
(10:30)
Sugiura Sugiura
(13:32)		 Sugiura
(9:05)		 Draw
(30:00)		 Nakamura
(13:51)		 Sugiura
(14:22)		 — Tenzan
(12:42)
Tenzan Goto
(6:57)		 Tenzan
(10:59)		 Nagata
(11:01)		 Nakamura
(8:41)		 Nakanishi
(10:30)		 Tenzan
(12:42)		 —
Semifinals Final
      
A1 Togi Makabe Pin
B2 Takashi Sugiura 11:57
A1 Togi Makabe Pin
B1 Shinsuke Nakamura 18:29
B1 Shinsuke Nakamura Pin
A2 Hiroshi Tanahashi 13:31

2010[edit]

The 2010 version of the G1 Climax tournament was announced in late May 2010 and was the 20th anniversary of the G1 Climax tournament. The tournament took place over eight shows between August 6 and August 15, 2010.[82][83][84] Naomichi Marufuji was scheduled to participate in the tournament, but was forced to pull out after suffering an arm injury on July 25.[85] On August 5, NJPW announced that Prince Devitt would replace Marufuji in the tournament.[86] With his victory, freelancer Satoshi Kojima became the third man to have won both the G1 Climax and All Japan Pro Wrestling's Champion Carnival.

Final standings
Block A Block B
Hiroshi Tanahashi 9 Satoshi Kojima 10
Togi Makabe 8 Shinsuke Nakamura 9
Manabu Nakanishi 8 Go Shiozaki 9
Toru Yano 8 Hirooki Goto 8
Prince Devitt 8 Yuji Nagata 8
Tetsuya Naito 7 Giant Bernard 6
Strong Man 4 Yujiro Takahashi 4
Karl Anderson 4 Wataru Inoue 2
Block A Anderson Devitt Makabe Naito Nakanishi Strong Man Tanahashi Yano
Anderson — Devitt
(10:44)[87]		 Makabe
(11:07)[88]		 Naito
(11:52)[89]		 Nakanishi
(7:29)[90]		 Strong Man
(6:30)[91]		 Anderson
(11:42)[92]		 Anderson
(9:16)[93]
Devitt Devitt
(10:44)[87]		 — Makabe
(13:36)[90]		 Devitt
(11:42)[88]		 Nakanishi
(9:23)[91]		 Devitt
(7:36)[92]		 Devitt
(11:35)[93]		 Yano
(7:26)[48]
Makabe Makabe
(11:07)[88]		 Makabe
(13:36)[90]		 — Naito
(14:34)[92]		 Makabe
(10:52)[93]		 Makabe
(5:57)[89]		 Tanahashi
(11:58)[48]		 Yano
(7:18)[87]
Naito Naito
(11:52)[89]		 Devitt
(11:42)[88]		 Naito
(14:34)[92]		 — Naito
(10:52)[48]		 Strong Man
(7:55)[93]		 Draw
(30:00)[90]		 Yano
(10:59)[91]
Nakanishi Nakanishi
(7:29)[90]		 Nakanishi
(9:23)[91]		 Makabe
(10:52)[93]		 Naito
(10:52)[48]		 — Nakanishi
(8:41)[88]		 Tanahashi
(15:01)[89]		 Nakanishi
(7:30)[92]
Strong Man Strong Man
(6:30)[91]		 Devitt
(7:36)[92]		 Makabe
(5:57)[89]		 Strong Man
(7:55)[93]		 Nakanishi
(8:41)[88]		 — Tanahashi
(6:50)[87]		 Yano
(5:16)[90]
Tanahashi Anderson
(11:42)[92]		 Devitt
(11:35)[93]		 Tanahashi
(11:58)[48]		 Draw
(30:00)[90]		 Tanahashi
(15:01)[89]		 Tanahashi
(6:50)[87]		 — Tanahashi
(14:49)[88]
Yano Anderson
(9:16)[93]		 Yano
(7:26)[48]		 Yano
(7:18)[87]		 Yano
(10:59)[91]		 Nakanishi
(7:30)[92]		 Yano
(5:16)[90]		 Tanahashi
(14:49)[88]		 —
Block B Bernard Goto Inoue Kojima Nagata Nakamura Shiozaki Takahashi
Bernard — Bernard
(11:25)[89]		 Bernard
(9:19)[92]		 Kojima
(11:44)[88]		 Bernard
(13:05)[87]		 Nakamura
(10:39)[90]		 Shiozaki
(11:07)[91]		 Takahashi
(8:03)[93]
Goto Bernard
(11:25)[89]		 — Goto
(10:14)[90]		 Kojima
(12:09)[48]		 Goto
(15:22)[88]		 Goto
(16:51)[87]		 Shiozaki
(17:52)[93]		 Goto
(13:03)[91]
Inoue Bernard
(9:19)[92]		 Goto
(10:14)[90]		 — Kojima
(13:56)[89]		 Nagata
(10:18)[93]		 Nakamura
(11:18)[91]		 Shiozaki
(16:03)[87]		 Inoue
(8:19)[88]
Kojima Kojima
(11:44)[88]		 Kojima
(12:09)[48]		 Kojima
(13:56)[89]		 — Nagata
(16:18)[91]		 Nakamura
(16:45)[93]		 Kojima
(15:13)[90]		 Kojima
(8:20)[92]
Nagata Bernard
(13:05)[87]		 Goto
(15:22)[88]		 Nagata
(10:18)[93]		 Nagata
(16:18)[91]		 — Nagata
(17:43)[92]		 Nagata
(16:25)[89]		 Takahashi
(5:28)[48]
Nakamura Nakamura
(10:39)[90]		 Goto
(16:51)[87]		 Nakamura
(11:18)[91]		 Nakamura
(16:45)[93]		 Nagata
(17:43)[92]		 — Draw
(30:00)[48]		 Nakamura
(11:47)[89]
Shiozaki Shiozaki
(11:07)[91]		 Shiozaki
(17:52)[93]		 Shiozaki
(16:03)[87]		 Kojima
(15:13)[90]		 Nagata
(16:25)[89]		 Draw
(30:00)[48]		 — Shiozaki
(10:36)[92]
Takahashi Takahashi
(8:03)[93]		 Goto
(13:03)[91]		 Inoue
(8:19)[88]		 Kojima
(8:20)[92]		 Takahashi
(5:28)[48]		 Nakamura
(11:47)[89]		 Shiozaki
(10:36)[92]		 —
Final
   
A1 Hiroshi Tanahashi Pin
B1 Satoshi Kojima 21:25[48]

2011[edit]

The 2011 version of the G1 Climax tournament was announced on May 3, 2011. It took place over ten shows between August 1 and August 14 and included 20 participants, making it at the time the largest G1 Climax in history.[94][95]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Tetsuya Naito 12 Shinsuke Nakamura 14
Hiroshi Tanahashi 12 Satoshi Kojima 12
Yoshihiro Takayama 10 Minoru Suzuki 12
Togi Makabe 10 MVP 12
Giant Bernard 10 Hirooki Goto 12
Toru Yano 10 Karl Anderson 8
Yuji Nagata 10 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 8
Lance Archer 8 La Sombra 4
Yujiro Takahashi 6 Wataru Inoue 4
Hideo Saito 2 Strong Man 4
Block A Archer Bernard Makabe Nagata Naito Saito Takahashi Takayama Tanahashi Yano
Archer — Bernard
(11:23)[96]		 Archer
(8:18)[97]		 Nagata
(8:42)[98]		 Naito
(12:38)[99]		 Archer
(6:42)[100]		 Archer
(7:14)[101]		 Archer
(7:19)[49]		 Tanahashi
(11:33)[102]		 Yano
(8:51)[103]
Bernard Bernard
(11:23)[96]		 — Makabe
(12:35)[103]		 Bernard
(10:00)[104]		 Naito
(10:44)[98]		 Bernard
(9:47)[97]		 Bernard
(8:58)[100]		 Takayama
(9:36)[102]		 Tanahashi
(13:05)[101]		 Bernard
(7:29)[49]
Makabe Archer
(8:18)[97]		 Makabe
(12:35)[103]		 — Makabe
(13:13)[99]		 Makabe
(14:27)[96]		 Makabe
(5:23)[102]		 Takahashi
(8:37)[49]		 Takayama
(12:14)[98]		 Tanahashi
(18:46)[104]		 Makabe
(10:54)[100]
Nagata Nagata
(8:42)[98]		 Bernard
(10:00)[104]		 Makabe
(13:13)[99]		 — Nagata
(13:11)[100]		 Saito
(4:29)[49]		 Nagata
(9:49)[102]		 Nagata
(13:51)[103]		 Nagata
(18:19)[97]		 Yano
(11:24)[96]
Naito Naito
(12:38)[99]		 Naito
(10:44)[98]		 Makabe
(14:27)[96]		 Nagata
(13:11)[100]		 — Naito
(7:25)[103]		 Takahashi
(10:52)[97]		 Naito
(10:32)[101]		 Naito
(5:11)[49]		 Naito
(14:05)[102]
Saito Archer
(6:42)[100]		 Bernard
(9:47)[97]		 Makabe
(5:23)[102]		 Saito
(4:29)[49]		 Naito
(7:25)[103]		 — Takahashi
(9:25)[96]		 Takayama
(3:29)[104]		 Tanahashi
(8:01)[99]		 Yano
(6:09)[101]
Takahashi Archer
(7:14)[101]		 Bernard
(8:58)[100]		 Takahashi
(8:37)[49]		 Nagata
(9:49)[102]		 Takahashi
(10:52)[97]		 Takahashi
(9:25)[96]		 — Takayama
(9:25)[99]		 Tanahashi
(12:43)[103]		 Yano
(8:30)[104]
Takayama Archer
(7:19)[49]		 Takayama
(9:36)[102]		 Takayama
(12:14)[98]		 Nagata
(13:51)[103]		 Naito
(10:32)[101]		 Takayama
(3:29)[104]		 Takayama
(9:25)[99]		 — Tanahashi
(11:57)[100]		 Takayama
(6:29)[97]
Tanahashi Tanahashi
(11:33)[102]		 Tanahashi
(13:05)[101]		 Tanahashi
(18:46)[104]		 Nagata
(18:19)[97]		 Naito
(5:11)[49]		 Tanahashi
(8:01)[99]		 Tanahashi
(12:43)[103]		 Tanahashi
(11:57)[100]		 — Yano
(16:57)[98]
Yano Yano
(8:51)[103]		 Bernard
(7:29)[49]		 Makabe
(10:54)[100]		 Yano
(11:24)[96]		 Naito
(14:05)[102]		 Yano
(6:09)[101]		 Yano
(8:30)[104]		 Takayama
(6:29)[97]		 Yano
(16:57)[98]		 —
Block B Anderson Goto Inoue Kojima MVP Nakamura Sombra Strong Man Suzuki Tenzan
Anderson — Goto
(10:56)[104]		 Inoue
(9:07)[99]		 Kojima
(12:55)[103]		 Anderson
(8:30)[49]		 Nakamura
(12:11)[101]		 Anderson
(7:49)[100]		 Anderson
(7:55)[102]		 Suzuki
(10:59)[96]		 Anderson
(9:39)[98]
Goto Goto
(10:56)[104]		 — Goto
(11:09)[103]		 Goto
(16:15)[96]		 MVP
(10:39)[101]		 Goto
(13:13)[98]		 Goto
(9:06)[102]		 Strong Man
(7:27)[49]		 Suzuki
(12:38)[99]		 Goto
(10:37)[97]
Inoue Inoue
(9:07)[99]		 Goto
(11:09)[103]		 — Kojima
(9:51)[98]		 MVP
(9:34)[96]		 Nakamura
(12:29)[102]		 Sombra
(8:41)[97]		 Inoue
(7:00)[100]		 Suzuki
(14:19)[101]		 Tenzan
(9:50)[104]
Kojima Kojima
(12:55)[103]		 Goto
(16:15)[96]		 Kojima
(9:51)[98]		 — Kojima
(11:26)[104]		 Nakamura
(15:05)[100]		 Kojima
(9:25)[101]		 Kojima
(8:15)[99]		 Kojima
(12:40)[97]		 Tenzan
(14:10)[49]
MVP Anderson
(8:30)[49]		 MVP
(10:39)[101]		 MVP
(9:34)[96]		 Kojima
(11:26)[104]		 — MVP
(12:02)[97]		 MVP
(4:59)[98]		 MVP
(8:18)[103]		 Suzuki
(12:03)[100]		 MVP
(11:17)[99]
Nakamura Nakamura
(12:11)[101]		 Goto
(13:13)[98]		 Nakamura
(12:29)[102]		 Nakamura
(15:05)[100]		 MVP
(12:02)[97]		 — Nakamura
(10:49)[99]		 Nakamura
(6:56)[104]		 Nakamura
(12:13)[49]		 Nakamura
(13:43)[96]
Sombra Anderson
(7:49)[100]		 Goto
(9:06)[102]		 Sombra
(8:41)[97]		 Kojima
(9:25)[101]		 MVP
(4:59)[98]		 Nakamura
(10:49)[99]		 — Sombra
(6:48)[96]		 Suzuki
(9:32)[104]		 Tenzan
(9:16)[103]
Strong Man Anderson
(7:55)[102]		 Strong Man
(7:27)[49]		 Inoue
(7:00)[100]		 Kojima
(8:15)[99]		 MVP
(8:18)[103]		 Nakamura
(6:56)[104]		 Sombra
(6:48)[96]		 — Strong Man
(9:31)[98]		 Tenzan
(7:18)[101]
Suzuki Suzuki
(10:59)[96]		 Suzuki
(12:38)[99]		 Suzuki
(14:19)[101]		 Kojima
(12:40)[97]		 Suzuki
(12:03)[100]		 Nakamura
(12:13)[49]		 Suzuki
(9:32)[104]		 Strong Man
(9:31)[98]		 — Suzuki
(14:26)[102]
Tenzan Anderson
(9:39)[98]		 Goto
(10:37)[97]		 Tenzan
(9:50)[104]		 Tenzan
(14:10)[49]		 MVP
(11:17)[99]		 Nakamura
(13:43)[96]		 Tenzan
(9:16)[103]		 Tenzan
(7:18)[101]		 Suzuki
(14:26)[102]		 —
Final
   
A1 Tetsuya Naito Pin
B1 Shinsuke Nakamura 20:19[49]

2012[edit]

The 2012 version of the G1 Climax tournament took place over nine shows between August 1 and August 12 and included 18 participants.[105][106] The 24-year-old Kazuchika Okada went on to become the youngest G1 Climax winner in history, breaking the previous record held by the then 27-year-old Masahiro Chono.[50] Okada also became the first winner since Hirooki Goto to win the tournament in his first attempt.[50] Karl Anderson became the first foreigner to make it to the final of the tournament since Rick Rude in 1992.[107]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Karl Anderson 10 Kazuchika Okada 10
Hiroshi Tanahashi 10 Lance Archer 8
Shelton Benjamin 8 Hirooki Goto 8
Yuji Nagata 8 Togi Makabe 8
Minoru Suzuki 8 MVP 8
Satoshi Kojima 8 Tetsuya Naito 8
Naomichi Marufuji 8 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 8
Toru Yano 6 Shinsuke Nakamura 8
Yujiro Takahashi 6 Rush 6
Block A Anderson Benjamin Kojima Marufuji Nagata Suzuki Takahashi Tanahashi Yano
Anderson — Anderson
(9:15)[108]		 Kojima
(12:47)[109]		 Marufuji
(9:14)[110]		 Anderson
(11:28)[111]		 Anderson
(12:22)[112]		 Takahashi
(10:16)[113]		 Anderson
(11:15)[50]		 Anderson
(9:14)[114]
Benjamin Anderson
(9:15)[108]		 — Benjamin
(9:04)[50]		 Benjamin
(7:54)[112]		 Nagata
(9:52)[114]		 Suzuki
(10:45)[115]		 Benjamin
(7:40)[109]		 Tanahashi
(13:54)[111]		 Benjamin
(8:11)[113]
Kojima Kojima
(12:47)[109]		 Benjamin
(9:04)[50]		 — Marufuji
(11:37)[111]		 Kojima
(13:52)[110]		 Kojima
(13:33)[114]		 Takahashi
(8:34)[112]		 Tanahashi
(17:41)[113]		 Kojima
(9:03)[115]
Marufuji Marufuji
(9:14)[110]		 Benjamin
(7:54)[112]		 Marufuji
(11:37)[111]		 — Nagata
(13:04)[113]		 Suzuki
(14:49)[109]		 Marufuji
(8:34)[115]		 Marufuji
(21:29)[108]		 Yano
(9:55)[50]
Nagata Anderson
(11:28)[111]		 Nagata
(9:52)[114]		 Kojima
(13:52)[110]		 Nagata
(13:04)[113]		 — Nagata
(9:03)[50]		 Takahashi
(9:31)[108]		 Tanahashi
(17:24)[115]		 Nagata
(10:01)[112]
Suzuki Anderson
(12:22)[112]		 Suzuki
(10:45)[115]		 Kojima
(13:33)[114]		 Suzuki
(14:49)[109]		 Nagata
(9:03)[50]		 — Suzuki
(8:05)[111]		 Suzuki
(20:53)[110]		 Yano
(8:05)[108]
Takahashi Takahashi
(10:16)[113]		 Benjamin
(7:40)[109]		 Takahashi
(8:34)[112]		 Marufuji
(8:34)[115]		 Takahashi
(9:31)[108]		 Suzuki
(8:05)[111]		 — Tanahashi
(14:23)[114]		 Yano
(7:34)[110]
Tanahashi Anderson
(11:15)[50]		 Tanahashi
(13:54)[111]		 Tanahashi
(17:41)[113]		 Marufuji
(21:29)[108]		 Tanahashi
(17:24)[115]		 Suzuki
(20:53)[110]		 Tanahashi
(14:23)[114]		 — Tanahashi
(14:18)[109]
Yano Anderson
(9:14)[114]		 Benjamin
(8:11)[113]		 Kojima
(9:03)[115]		 Yano
(9:55)[50]		 Nagata
(10:01)[112]		 Yano
(8:05)[108]		 Yano
(7:34)[110]		 Tanahashi
(14:18)[109]		 —
Block B Archer Goto Makabe MVP Naito Nakamura Okada Rush Tenzan
Archer — Archer
(9:41)[110]		 Archer
(9:55)[111]		 MVP
(10:50)[50]		 Archer
(10:41)[114]		 Nakamura
(12:11)[113]		 Okada
(10:46)[109]		 Rush
(7:30)[112]		 Archer
(10:57)[108]
Goto Archer
(9:41)[110]		 — Makabe
(13:31)[115]		 Goto
(9:19)[113]		 Goto
(11:05)[50]		 Goto
(13:31)[112]		 Goto
(18:36)[114]		 Rush
(8:02)[111]		 Tenzan
(13:39)[109]
Makabe Archer
(9:55)[111]		 Makabe
(13:31)[115]		 — MVP
(9:30)[112]		 Makabe
(14:10)[108]		 Makabe
(14:12)[110]		 Okada
(9:33)[50]		 Makabe
(7:17)[114]		 Tenzan
(11:58)[113]
MVP MVP
(10:50)[50]		 Goto
(9:19)[113]		 MVP
(9:30)[112]		 — Naito
(9:33)[110]		 Nakamura
(12:14)[109]		 Okada
(10:44)[115]		 MVP
(7:53)[108]		 MVP
(9:35)[114]
Naito Archer
(10:41)[114]		 Goto
(11:05)[50]		 Makabe
(14:10)[108]		 Naito
(9:33)[110]		 — Naito
(13:39)[111]		 Naito
(21:59)[112]		 Rush
(9:39)[109]		 Naito
(13:27)[115]
Nakamura Nakamura
(12:11)[113]		 Goto
(13:31)[112]		 Makabe
(14:12)[110]		 Nakamura
(12:14)[109]		 Naito
(13:39)[111]		 — Nakamura
(16:16)[108]		 Nakamura
(10:07)[115]		 Tenzan
(12:48)[50]
Okada Okada
(10:46)[109]		 Goto
(18:36)[114]		 Okada
(9:33)[50]		 Okada
(10:44)[115]		 Naito
(21:59)[112]		 Nakamura
(16:16)[108]		 — Okada
(9:20)[113]		 Okada
(11:20)[111]
Rush Rush
(7:30)[112]		 Rush
(8:02)[111]		 Makabe
(7:17)[114]		 MVP
(7:53)[108]		 Rush
(9:39)[109]		 Nakamura
(10:07)[115]		 Okada
(9:20)[113]		 — Tenzan
(9:30)[110]
Tenzan Archer
(10:57)[108]		 Tenzan
(13:39)[109]		 Tenzan
(11:58)[113]		 MVP
(9:35)[114]		 Naito
(13:27)[115]		 Tenzan
(12:48)[50]		 Okada
(11:20)[111]		 Tenzan
(9:30)[110]		 —
Final
   
A1 Karl Anderson Pin
B1 Kazuchika Okada 23:19[50]

2013[edit]

The 2013 version of the G1 Climax tournament took place over nine shows between August 1 and August 11 and included 20 participants.[116][117] In an unprecedented move, NJPW broadcast all nine events live on internet pay-per-view (iPPV) through Niconico and Ustream.[118] On August 8, NJPW announced that Hirooki Goto and Hiroyoshi Tenzan had suffered jaw and rib fractures respectively and would both miss the rest of the tournament.[119]

Final standings
Block A Block B
Hiroshi Tanahashi 11 Tetsuya Naito 10
Katsuyori Shibata 10 Minoru Suzuki 10
Davey Boy Smith, Jr. 10 Karl Anderson 10
Prince Devitt 10 Shelton X Benjamin 10
Togi Makabe 10 Shinsuke Nakamura 10
Kazuchika Okada 9 Yuji Nagata 10
Hirooki Goto 8 Kota Ibushi 8
Lance Archer 8 Toru Yano 8
Satoshi Kojima 8 Yujiro Takahashi 8
Tomohiro Ishii 6 Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6
Block A Archer Devitt Goto Ishii Kojima Makabe Okada Shibata Smith Tanahashi
Archer — Archer
(8:14)[120]		 Goto
(8:35)[121]		 Archer
(10:43)[122]		 Archer
(12:38)[123]		 Makabe
(9:07)[124]		 Okada
(11:26)[125]		 Shibata
(6:41)[126]		 Archer
(14:37)[51]		 Tanahashi
(10:56)[127]
Devitt Archer
(8:14)[120]		 — Goto
(8:04)[126]		 Devitt
(10:28)[125]		 Devitt
(9:02)[124]		 Devitt
(8:43)[51]		 Devitt
(12:56)[122]		 Shibata
(6:56)[127]		 Smith
(7:26)[123]		 Devitt
(11:07)[121]
Goto Goto
(8:35)[121]		 Goto
(8:04)[126]		 — Ishii
(Forfeit)		 Goto
(13:07)[125]		 Makabe

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