AEW Star Announced For NJPW G1 Climax 35 Tournament

An AEW star has been announced as a participant in New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Climax 35 tournament.

At today’s NJPW Dominion pay-per-view (June 15), 16 of the 20 participants in this year’s G1 Climax tournament were officially announced, with a further four to be determined by four play-in matches.

Notable entrants in the field for this year’s tournament include AEW star Konosuke Takeshita, who last year made his G1 Climax debut, scoring 10 points before being eliminated by Yota Tsuji in the Block B playoff.

Also confirmed for the tournament is NJPW President and eight-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi, who will be competing in his final G1 Climax tournament this year.

IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hirooki Goto and reigning G1 winner Zack Sabre Jr. will also compete in the tournament, with the pair both taking part in the B Block.

The announced G1 Climax participants are as follows:

A Block:

Yota Tsuji

El Phantasmo

Hiroshi Tanahashi

SANADA

David Finlay

EVIL

Yuya Uemura

Boltin Oleg

Play-In Winner A

Play-In Winner B

B Block:

Hirooki Goto

Konosuke Takeshita

Zack Sabre Jr.

Great-O-Khan

Ren Narita

Shingo Takagi

Gabe Kidd

Shota Umino

Play-In Winner A

Play-In Winner B

The play-in matches are set to take place on June 23 and July 4, with the tournament itself taking place between Saturday, July 19 and Sunday, August 17.

The competitors in the play-in bouts have yet to be confirmed.

As is tradition, the winner of the G1 Climax 35 tournament will receive a shot at the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.

As previously reported, Konosuke Takeshita’s participation in the G1 will mean he’ll be off AEW television between the dates listed above.

G1 Climax 35 entrants and blocks revealed!
A Block:
Yota Tsuji
El Phantasmo
Hiroshi Tanahashi
SANADA
David Finlay
EVIL
Yuya Uemura
Boltin Oleg

B Block:
Hirooki Goto
Konosuke Takeshita
Zack Sabre Jr.
Great-O-Khan
Ren Narita
Shingo Takagi
Gabe Kidd
Shota Umino

Plus, 4 more… pic.twitter.com/mY8tfsdqhm

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) June 15, 2025