Power Rankings: New Japan Pro Wrestling
Up-to-date Power Rankings for New Japan as the company kicks off their 27th G1 Climax events!

With the G1 Climax tournament being the major wrestling event of the next four weeks, it only makes sense to kick off Power Rankings with the most relevant event. So the following rankings will give more of a snapshot of the top competitors in this tournament, as opposed to the entire company. Given that many fans are still relatively new to NJPW, this will be a nice guideline for which matches to pay attention to.

- Kazuchika Okada — Even though the champion has only won the tournament twice (Keiji Mutoh 1995 & Kensuke Sasaki 2000), looking at what Okada has over come this year, you could see them have Okada pull off something else not seen in a while. Beginning with Omega vs Okada II being the first IWGP Heavyweight Title match to end in a time limit draw in twelve years, another feather in Okada’s cap seems within the realm of reason.

2. Tetsuya Naito — Arguably the consensus favorite to win the tournament. I didn’t put him at one mainly because he and Okada aren’t in the same block (so they’re more like 1A and 1B), on top of the fact Okada been “booked like Superman”, as Kenny Omega so eloquently put it. However, Naito has been booked almost as strongly this past year, is the highest merchandise seller, and head of the most popular faction in New Japan. It’s hard to see why they wouldn’t ride his wave of momentum all the way to Wrestle Kingdom 12.

3. Kenny Omega — He is one of the largest draws and perceived as a favorite to the majority of western fans. The current IWGP US Heavyweight Champion, they won’t book him poorly or that would devalue the new title. Even though I don’t see him winning, he has a reputation to uphold, so win or lose…he will be something special to watch.

4. Kota Ibushi — The only wrestler in this tournament not signed to a full time NJPW contract. Having a well documented past with many participants (especially Kenny Omega), Ibushi has a lot of unfinished business. Coming up short during his previous tenure in New Japan as well as the WWE’s Cruiserweight Classic; he should approach this tournament in a dangerous fashion with something to prove to all of the fans.

5. Tomohiro Ishii — Proving to be the most consistently high level wrestler in NJPW, there’s something about him that always makes him seem like a legitimate contender. He’s had success in the last few years being NEVER Openweight Champion, IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions as well as ROH TV Champion. Similar to Hirooki Goto, he has a tendency to fall short in tournaments and title shots. However, the major difference is the quality of the match overshadows the similar “bridesmaid” feel to his booking. A huge dark horse to win due to the fact that he hasn’t had the ability to finish on top, but luck has to change at some point.
The next NJPW Power Ranking will be after the G1 Climax Finals are over. This tournament has a tendency to create most of the championship storylines for the remainder of the year. So once the dust settles, it should be interesting to see if there are any major shake ups, as well as seeing if any of these five men won the tournament.

