David Finlay vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

[7.0] "Not as good as the previous match, but still a really solid main event here. Finlay got a good showing, with Tanahashi getting a nice victory in the tournament. I wasn't really too concerned with who won this match, honestly. Tanahashi has been having a good performance so far and I hope he can keep it up through the end."

[7.0] "[4.5/6] Finlay has had a great G1 so far and while Tanahashi cannot wrestle like he used to, they put on a great performance. The story of Finlay trying to solidify his place as leader of the Bullet Club by beating Tanahashi was simple yet smart, and combined with the Ace's sly pin sets up a great rematch in the future."

[7.0] "Good! Tanahashi pulled some stuff out of his bag we don't see much often on him. I just don't know if it was the right choice to make him win this match. Anyway, good."

[8.0] "A great showing from Hiroshi Tanahashi. And such a great performance from David Finlay. He's so good at making everything he does, and everything his opponent does -- look fantastic. SINGLES RECORD: Hiroshi Tanahashi 1-0"

[8.0] "This was Tanahashi's best G1 match this year so far in my opinion. He was moving a lot better than in some previous matches, and I'm glad he got the win. 4/5."

[7.0] "Tana is really shocking me with being able to pull out consistently good G1 matches at this stage of his career, go ace!"

[7.0] "Solid main event with the extra intrigue of it being the first meeting between Finlay and Tanahashi. Lots of credit to Tanahashi for hitting three High Fly Flows with the current state of his body. I don't love the result here, but I wouldn't be surprised to see a rematch down the road where Finlay gets the win back to legitimize himself as leader of Bullet Club."

[8.0] "Tanahashi proving here that you don't need working knees to have fighting spirit. Honestly a much better match than I was anticipating."

[7.0] "A solid main event for the night. Tana looked great and actually looked more mobile than he has of late and continues to keep his retirement run alive with G1 win 99 in a good performance. Finlay put in another great performance and good heel work to lead them to a good match using his strength and speed advantage to work over Tana. whilst i enjoyed the match the result is what stops it from getting an 8 yes i know Tana will probably sneak through in 3rd in his block. However i think Finlay needed this win over the Ace to elevate him to the level of other leaders of the bullet club but he lost to a roll up after kicking out of the High Fly Flow. In all honestly the fact Finlay looks like he is going to get knocked out says to me either he is going to appear on AEW to build to a big match at Forbidden door or he is not resigning with New Japan. Overall a good match just not a fan of the finish. (***3/4)"

[7.0] "Tanahashi continues his great retirement run. Not his best match of the run but still very good. Finlay's nasty heel work works well with Tanahashi's ultra firey babyface work. Very good match. ***3/4"

[7.0] "(Grade:C/***) A solid main event, Tanahashi has been making sure to look like a star still and David Finlay put him through the ringer as expected from WarDog leaders and commentary aren't lying when they say Finlay is pound for pound the strongest on the roster!"

[8.0] "A good main event. The result wasn't the one I wanted and not in a roll up like that. It still was very good, with a lot of intensity and Tanahashi seems in better form with each day of competition passing. I had a great time in front of it."

[9.0] "This was a very good main event. Finlay looked great, and this was one of the best Tanahashi performances I've seen in a long time. Finlay played a good dominator role, while Tana was able to really get the crowd behind him. The strikes looked great, the sequences were much better then I had expected and this was just a great match."

[7.0] "A match I was waiting for between a rising star Finlay and the legend Tanahashi. Finlay lost this match but he was about to win only Tanahashi came out on top thanks to his experience."

[8.0] "This was the match of the night for me. Another super compelling match from the Ace and some more great heel work from Finlay. Finlay is such a dick in this match, that it makes the desire for Tana to overcome his limitations and beat him all the more greater. After a long Finlay control segment, Tana is able to take control with a hurricanrana of all things which is a move that I don't even think he hit that much, if at all, in his prime. The second half of this is super compelling, with Finlay continuing to use his strength and speed advantage to work over Tana while Tana fights on nothing but sheer heart and will. Tana takes a few big moves from Finlay but keeps kicking out and is eventually able to counter one of Finlay's moves into a pin for the win. This is neither man's best match this tournament, but this is still a very strong showing for the both of them, especially Tana who continues to show out despite his declining mobility. ****"

[7.0] "As good as this match could be at this point in Tanahashi's career. Finlay deserves a ton of credit not just for this match, but for how much he's grown in the last few years. He's now one of, if not the best, heavyweights on the roster. Tanahashi gave it his all, particularly down the stretch, and Finlay carried the rest. 3.5 stars."

[9.0] "Even with Tanahashi's current limitations, he still finds a way to make his matches compelling because he doesn't phone it in and gives his all like he's wrestling his last match. He doesn't cheat the fans who pay their hard earned money to see him wrestle, he has a very simple approach in how he goes about his matches but then he will add a few wrinkles here and there to differentiate how his past matches have gone. One of the greatest of all time for a reason. I continue to cherish every match he wrestles knowing that he's retiring next year, a true one of a kind wrestler. Go ace!"

[5.0] "***1/2 Interesting match, interesting pace, although it took them about 8 minutes to get into the groove, good chemistry, Tana didn't look bad, simple kick-outs but one came too early (the one with the High Fly Flow) and the two in to Oblivion that perhaps wasn't necessary, good limbwork by Tana to Finlay's leg and a good selling by him, normal ending somewhat cold to what they seemed to be preparing for"

[8.0] "This match exceeded the expectations I had for it. I didn't expect anything crazy as Tanahashi is very much a shell of his former self, but these guys put on a show. I was invested and I like Tanahashi getting the roll up win and Finlay being frustrated with the outcome."

[6.0] "Mild recommendation. It's another episode of Tanahashi trying and flying too close to the sun and using all his ammo late in the match. They all have picked up in the final minutes and been watchable. It's obviously not the same as it was, but considering I would only recommend two matches on this show, this is a notable 6/10."

[7.0] "Finlay worked his ass off in this, but Tana brought just about as much physically as he's been capable of this year."

[8.0] "Seeing these ratings I'm realizing that cagematch users don't understand the greatness that is old man graps. Sure, Tanahashi can hardly move at this point, but that adds to the emotional investment of his matches. You want to see the old, beaten down man overcome these athletic failures and beat the heel. Finlay is the perfect opponent for that. Great match."

[8.0] "I really enjoyed the intensity and humor in this match. It mixed well and made for a nice main event"

[9.0] "[4, 5 Stars] When The Ace takes on the War Dogs, he jumps 10 years into the past, it's not the same. It was so good, it's my favorite match of this early G1. (****, 5)."

[6.0] "This one was kinda slow and luckly it picked up later, anyways they should have never been in the main-event even though this wasn't a bad encounter at all. ***"

[7.0] "I honestly thought this was a rock solid main event. Nothing too crazy, but there was good intensity that made this somewhat compelling."

[7.0] "A really solid main event which actually played into the weaknesses of Tanahashi whilst showing him as a wily veteran who can still go toe to toe with someone as vicious as Finlay in 2025. Tanahashi secured his 99th G1 victory with a roll-up reversal which both makes the rest of his G1 more interesting as he hunts his 100th win, but also furthers the downfall of Finlay. A very enjoyable match and the best of Tanahashi so far in G1 Climax 35."