A Look at How Zack Sabre Jr. Winning the G1 Impacts New Japan

Sabre will challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in October–which casts a whole new set of questions about Wrestle Kingdom

Zack Sabre Jr. won the G1 Climax, defeating Yota Tsuji in the finals in Tokyo at Ryogoku Sumo Hall. It marks his first-ever visit city in the G1, which is New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s famed tournament that paves a road for the winner to become IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.

And that is exactly what is happening here. Except for Saber, a lot sooner than most.

Long overdue, ZSJ finally gets his moment as G1 winner / NJPW

Unlike past winners, however, Sabre is not going to challenge for the belt at Wrestle Kingdom on January 4 at the Tokyo Dome. Instead, he will wrestle reigning champion Tetsuya Naito at the King of Pro-Wrestling show on October 14. That takes place a week prior to Royal Quest in London, which is scheduled for October 20.

Sabre is one of the industry’s most prominent stars from the United Kingdom. If he wins the title at King of Pro-Wrestling, then a championship homecoming in England will be in place for the Royal Quest show. But that all leaves the main event of Wrestle Kingdom a mystery.

Naito already lost and regained the title this year in a feud with Jon Moxley. Will NJPW bring in another AEW star to wrestle Sabre at Wrestle Kingdom? If that is the case, the most obvious choice is Bryan Danielson, especially since the two split their last two matches and a trilogy bout awaits. Also, it is important to note AEW is holding a pay-per-view in Japan on January 5 with Wrestle Dynasty. Could Danielson-Sabre headline that show?

Danielson and Sabre wrestled in 2023 and 2024; could that streak continue into 2025? / NJPW

Would Kazuchika Okada, who is now signed with AEW, be an option for the Tokyo Dome main event? There are other options from within NJPW–like a rematch of the G1 finals with Tsuji, or it could be Shota Umino or Yuya Uemura, both of whom have to be among the leading candidates yet feel at least a year away. There is no clear-cut choice, which might actually be the whole point.

In addition to likely producing the first-ever world title reign for Sabre and a new main event for Wrestle Kingdom, a potential shift where the G1 winner challenges for the belt in the fall is an interesting proposition for New Japan. Since the G1 winner is determined in the summer, that excitement can wane over the ensuing months in the build to January. Even though that title contract is often put at stake at some point in a match, the winner of the G1 is highly likely to make it to Wrestle Kingdom. Now, a whole different mystery factor emerges.

If this is a change NJPW is considering in a more permanent manner, it allows for a new wave of excitement to crown a new title contender before Wrestle Kingdom.