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The finals of G1 Climax 31 will feature a pair of familiar foes battling for the briefcase containing a Wrestle Kingdom title shot.
Kota Ibushi claimed the first spot in the Thurs., Oct. 21 match when he won A Block earlier this week. This morning (Oct. 20), Kazuchika Okada joined him by scoring a win over the Jeff Cobb, who until this point had been undefeated in this year’s tournament.
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— njpwworld (@njpwworld) October 20, 2021
G1 CLIMAX 31 Bブロック最終戦(10/20)を公開‼️
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『G1 CLIMAX 31』Bブロック公式戦‼️
勝った方が決勝進出‼️オカダとコブの一騎打ち
果たして勝つのは⁉️
@rainmakerXokada × @RealJeffCobb
#njpwworld で配信中
登録＆視聴⏩https://t.co/Tj7UBJ4PjP#G1Budokan #njpw pic.twitter.com/FymC5ctQnv
Okada managed to counter every attempt Cobb made at hitting his Tour of the Islands finisher, finally landing his Rainmaker one as the bout approached the 25 minute mark.
It’s the third time Okada’s reached the finals of New Japan’s most prestigious - and grueling - tournament, but the first since 2014. He’s won both previous times he made it this far. Ibushi has a 2 - 1 record during his ongoing, record-setting streak of consecutive G1 finals appearances.
The two men have wrestled five singles matches in their career. Okada won the first three of those, including the main event of 2020’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night One for the IWGP Heavyweight title. The Golden Star has won the two times they’ve met in the G1.
【いよいよ明日、最終決戦！】
— 新日本プロレスリング株式会社 (@njpw1972) October 20, 2021
『G1 CLIMAX 31』特設サイトで“優勝決定戦”を勝敗予想！
※10月21日（木）日本武道館大会が予想スタート！
“予想的中”の方に抽選で「G1 CLIMAX 31 大会記念マフラータオル」プレゼント！
コチラから！
⇒https://t.co/MjReik8lgm#G1FINAL #njpw pic.twitter.com/aI1aO3co30
NJPW built Cobb up well with his G1 31 run, but in the end decided to add to the legend of two of their biggest stars. Should be a hell of a final.