The Roughneck speaks ahead of G1 Climax 33

While intense competition abounds across all four blocks in the G1 Climax this year, speculation and excitement peaks when talking about A Block. The youth focused crew of eight will provide plenty of highlights, and Shota Umino seeks to provide more highlights than anyone. In the face of a block full of hunger and ill feeling, we talked to Umino about his tournament hopes, a controversial distinction for he, Yota Tsuji and Ren Narita, and more. 

Watch all of G1 Climax 33 live in English on NJPW World!

There’s so much to learn from BCC

–So to kick off, how do you feel reflecting on your 2023 so far?

Umino: Well, I was able to start the year in the Tokyo Dome, and even though I lost that (NEVER 6 man) title match in Osaka on June 4, in the big picture, I’ve been able to gain a lot of experience. Thing is though, with Naito, Zack, Finlay in the New Japan Cup, Okada just recently in Osaka, I think there is a clear difference in levels when it comes to where I’m at right now and the very top guys. There’s no quick path to come back from excursion and shoot right to the top with the level of competition that there is right now. 

–I see.

Umino: Like, 20 years ago, I think I definitely could have done something like that. But it’s a double edged sword to where there’s so many good guys, and a few generations of depth now to where it’s hard to come in and immediately be the top guy. That depth has a negative side. 

— It is a deep roster at the moment.

Umino: If you think back to the Rainmaker Shock, who was there right at the top opposite Okada? Tanahashi and that was about it. But right now, Okada is there, and Tanahashi is still there. So is Naito, so is SANADA, Ishii, Takagi, Ospreay, Finlay, Zack. There’s a lot of hurdles to overcome wherever you look. 

–That’s certainly a lot of tall tasks all around you.

Umino: I managed to beat Zack in the new Japan Cup, but then there was David Finlay right after him, and he managed to make it to the finals instead of me. So if I’m completely honest, it’s feels like it’ll be some time yet before I can be right at the very front line, right at the top and carrying the company. 

–You might not have won a trophy or title this first half of the year, but you were in Keiji Muto’s last NJPW match, and you teamed with Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli in Osaka. So you’ve certainly made a mark in that regard.

Umino: No doubt. Not many people will be able to say they wrestled in Muto’s last NJPW match, and I’m the only one in NJPW who can team with Moxley and Claudio. So they were both moments that saw me shoot up experience wise, and things to connect to the future as well. 

–What was it like teaming with Moxley again?

Umino: He’s doing some incredible things in AEW right now, love or hate them. There were a lot of people asking me these few weeks if I was part of Blackpool Combat Club, and the answer is that I’m not. I said it all in my backstage comments in Osaka, but me and Mox, it’s something that’s deeper than a babyface and heel fan opinion. 

–Moxley had a lot of praise for you in his own backstage comments that night.

Umino: I didn’t produce results wise, and that’s definitely frustrating, but to have Mox say what he said made me feel like the last four years weren’t in vain. 

–How was teaming with Castagnoli?

Umino: I learned a lot from him. I mean, it really was the first time, considering we didn’t meet at all until minutes before we were in the ring, but we were able to hit it off when we were out there, and going out to eat afterward he gave me a lot of advice. 

–It must be pretty motivating to be able to team with worldwide superstars like those two are.

Umino: Absolutely. The way they wrestle, the way they talk. The way they think as well- there’s so much to learn from them. 

–Was it big for you, to have that match before the G1?

Umino: It was huge for me to have that match before the G1. It was a turning point when it came to my year, I’d say. You know, this year started with Muto, and then I had those singles matches, then to have that six man… sure I definitely felt just how high of a barrier Kazuchika Okada is, but teaming with Claudio and Mox has set me up for a strong restart, I reckon. 

There aren’t any guarantees in the business and that’s how it should be

–How did it feel to know you were entered into the G1 for the first time?

Umino: I was definitely happy to hear it, and I don’t want this to seem like I’m taking it for granted, but I had those years away and that excursion on my mind; I think if you come back and you aren’t in that lineup then there’s some serious questions that have to be asked.

–What does the G1 mean to you?

Umino: Well, you’re putting all these guys into a month of singles matches to find out who the toughest is. No matter how you cut it, it’s obviously the hardest, most demanding tour there is in wrestling. 

–It’s been called a meat grinder.

Umino: But for as demanding as the tour is, it’s the biggest chance there is to make a lasting impact and be recognised by the fans and your peers as a top wrestler. Especially in my case, I’m in the same block as SANADA. So beating him would change the conversation in an instant. It’s a huge positive to be in a situation like this.

–You were in the Young Lion Cup before, but that aside, this is your first real long form tournament. Would you say you’re mentally ready? 

Umino: It’s easy to talk about physical conditioning, and focusing on the next match in front of you, but at the end of all this, everybody’s really running on empty. I mean, I’ve wrestled singles matches with Zack, Ospreay and Naito, and the next day, believe me, you know about it.

–But there’s no breaks in the G1.

Umino: It’s about putting yourself into the survival mindset. That even though you’re hurting you have to keep pushing forward and keep winning. It’s that ‘just do it’ mentality, you know? And I think in that respect, having youth on my side is important.

–There are 32 entrants in this year’s tournament. How do you feel about that? 

Umino: Coming up as a fan, it was two blocks of ten. That’s what I’m used to, so it’s kinda complicated. In the end, I’m 50-50 on it, but I bet Naito hates it, right?

–He’s said to Tokyo Sports that it’s too many.

Umino: I think to be honest, when you limit the entries, then just competing to receive that honour of being chosen is a big deal in and of itself. Then having four blocks, I wonder whether the fans can keep track of it all at once.

–I see.

Umino: So I think there’s absolutely valid criticism. But at the same time, if you have a tournament that’s all the top guys as of right now, then you can’t build for the future. I think it’s too easy to stay with that pat hand in that format. Like, if I were in the same block as Naito. Naito might be able to say that I haven’t gotten the results or achievements that he has and I shouldn’t be in there. But going into the tournament and beating a guy like Naito would put me right on the map. That’s part of what makes this tournament so important.

–That’s a paradigm shift right there.

Umino: That’s the point, right? The chance to really seize an opportunity and do something big. There aren’t any guarantees in this business, and that’s the way it should be. You have 20 guys who are already the 20 top guys, then that definitely carries interest. It definitely gives you that excitement of who will win out. But that’s where it ends. Here we have a chance to really connect to what lies beyond, because if you produce results here then there’s no question you’re a top guy going forward.

–For the first time since 2004 we have an elimination phase with quarter finals. How do you feel about that twist?

Umino: It creates more chances. Like in the Japanese pro baseball Climax series, the top three teams advance, right?

–Right.

Umino: There you can have the top ranked team eventually crash out to the teams they might have beaten during the regular league This year’s BOSJ was just like that- the finalists both finished second in their block. 

–Another first for this year is the 20 minute time limit on group matches.

Umino: I’m not a big stats guy. So I don’t have much to go on from that standpoint, but ‘one fall, thirty minutes,’ seems tougher in my view. Then again, if you wrestle a 30 minute match style, you aren’t going to win in a twenty minute environment.

–Meaning?

Umino: Well, you have less time to put the work in. In 30 minutes you can afford to breathe a bit, calm down. When you have that call of the 20 minute time limit almost being up, guys are going to want to avoid that draw, they’ll hurry, and that makes them prone to mistakes. So I’m not thinking of the time limit, per se, but I am thinking about changing up my style.

 –That change of styles for people will make for a fresh feel, perhaps.

Umino: I think so, and I think it creates more chances again. Beating a top guy is obviously what you want to do, but you can also go hard, push them to their limits and even if you end on a draw, it shifts the conversation around you.

–Playing for the draw might be what leads some to defeat.

Umino: If you’re constantly pushing for that win, that’s demanding physically and mentally. But as a younger guy, I want to be going hard, and I think I’ll be more able to wrestle my pace than be forced to use up time wrestling my opponents’. At any rate this is the first time for it all, so we just have to wait and see, I reckon.

Umino and Narita should be a main event drawing match for the next 10, 20 years

–Let’s get into your schedule. First on July 15, it’s Ren Narita.

Umino: This is what I love about NJPW. Having a night one match like this, like having Okada and Tanahashi- bam night one- I love that stuff. 

–This is your first match with one another since excursion.

Narita: We’ve teamed together but not faced one another. We’ve been rivals since before we went on excursion, and even though he might not say it directly, I know Narita feels he has to win at all costs. I know I’m the same way.

–What’s your take on Ren Narita since his excursion?

Umino: Winning any championship  in NJPW is no easy feat, and he did it first when he won those NEVER 6 man titles. So that definitely got to me.

–What makes him a threat in the ring?

Umino: His stubbornness I think. He hates to lose, and even though eh isn’t much of a talker, all of that fire in him can come out at a moment’s notice. I’ve experienced that first hand more than anyone- I think Narita is more invested than anyone in this tournament. 

–And perhaps more explosive.

Umino: He’s all about letting his actions do the talking. I might tell you how I feel, but with Narita he shows you, by getting up faster than anyone when you knock him down, or by staying standing while other people hit the deck.

–There’s more than one way to show emotion.

Umino: And I think his way is almost the direct opposite to mine. It’s like I’m a red flame and he’s a blue one. When you mix those two elements is when things get exciting. And blue flames burn hotter, right?

–Right.

Umino: So to me my only problem with this match is that it’s on fourth. If there was any acknowledgement we’re the future around here they would put us on last. If they didn’t have the guts for that they should have put us first.

–There’s a lot more at stake in this match than two points to you.

Umino: To have that judgement of ‘well those guys are midcarders’ sucks. Umino vs Narita has to be a big drawing match for the next ten, twenty years in my opinion. But I guess it’s down to both of us to make the company regret not putting this as the main event.

SANADA was more intimidating in LIJ

–In Yamagata on July 18 you have the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion SANADA.

Umino: I haven’t put all that much thought into SANADA. The thing with him is if you could win championships just by changing your hair colour costume and faction, we’d all be doing it. Something else woke up within him. It’s no small accomplishment to beat Okada-you can’t sell the man short.

 –I mean, with respect, it kind of sounds like you’re selling him short.

Umino: I might sound way out of line here, but I want SANADA to make a bigger deal of himself than where he is right now. I feel he really needs to stand there as the hardest obstacle for us younger guys to overcome. 

–You have actually pinned SANADA in a six man tag.

Umino: Right. It was before he became champion, but I do have a win over him.

–But the biggest change since then has been his new faction.

Umino: The way I see it, he left LIJ for Five Guys, what, just so he could be with his pals? Just so he could have some goons tagging along with him, and copy my entrance?

–You don’t buy into the Just 5 Guys hype.

Umino: I just thought that if he’d have gone independent faction wise, it would be a cold restart, something that would make him hungrier, more frightening. I kinda think SANADA was more intimidating in LIJ. 

–You do?

SANADA: In a way, I think that’s where his story ends. Like, if he gets beat by a younger guy, gets that belt taken off him by someone underneath, I’m not sure there’s a way back from that for him. At any rate, he’s the champ, he’s the symbol of this business, so he’s the guy I have to beat to make it to the top.

If Kiyomiya loses, he’s got nowhere to go

–Third for you is July 21 in Nagaoka, Kaito Kiyomiya.

Umino: There’s nobody in this block I’m less interested in.

–Really?

Umino: The guy lost to Okada, and keeps pining for him all through All Together. Then on Twitter all he’s ever talked about is being in the same block as the IWGP World Champion. Umino, Narita, Tsuji- those names haven’t come out of his mouth. 

–He hasn’t given you the time of day so you feel the same way?

Umino: Well, maybe what he feels behind the scenes is different. But if he thinks he can look past us he’s got another thing coming. It’s a high barrier to entry here, we’re all going through it, and us NJPW guys back from excursion are no easy pickings. 

–You’re right there.

Umino: I don’t think Kiyomiya understands that. So I plan on showing him just how tough NJPW is. 

–Tough talk.

Umino: If he goes in snapping at SANADA and Okada, and gets wiped out by the guys he’s overlooking, then that’s an embarrassment to NOAH. If he was able to beat me, Tsuji, Narita and then start talking about going after SANADA, well then that shows that he’s got a future and so does his promotion. But now he’s shot his shot, if he loses, he’s got nowhere to go, right?

–Right.

Umino: So my advice to him is to keep those names out of his mouth. I don’t have any interest in him particularly, but he’s like me in that he’s chosen to have the company on his back, so I want him to think of his future a bit. 

–Interest aside, how do you feel about him as a wrestler. 

Umino: He’s an honours student right? A geek. The kind of kid who puts his hand up for every question in class ‘me sir, me sir’, like. I don’t feel any kind of threat from him; I mean he got Okada mad, but only because of one kick to the head. 

–His GHC Heavyweight Championship history speaks to his ability in ring.
Umino: Well, I beat him and I’ve beaten a GHC Champion, an N-1 Victory winner, an All Together main eventer; beating him puts me on that level. It’s a results driven business so that’s what I plan to do.  

Gabe is the one we have to be most on guard for

–July 25, your fourth match is with Gabe Kidd.

Umino: He was in the Noge Dojo for about a year, and I spent a lot of time with him in the UK, so we’re pretty connected. Now he took it upon himself to join BULLET CLUB and he’s created this G1 chance for himself. Taking matters into his own hands is a good thing in my book.  

–Even if that means being in BULLET CLUB?

Umino: I can’t really criticise it. The way things were, the company wasn’t calling him out to Japan and he was working a couple of STRONG dates a month. For him, it was probably ages of ‘when am I getting the call’ before that turned into thinking the call wasn’t gonna come. He had to take matters into his own hands and make an impact, and he did that.

–So that shift was important.

Umino: But on the other hand, just because he’s in BULLET CLUB and got into the G1 doesn’t mean that he can cruise in and win. Beive me, I’ve known how tough things are at the top these last six months in a way he hasn’t. This is our first singles match buy the way.

–What do you think you can expect from him in a singles setting?

Umino: He has that Lancashire wrestling backbone to really rival Zack, and then you have that added X factor of him having just turned heel. So I think he’s the one we have to be on our guard for most. 

I wonder whether Chase fits in BULLET CLUB now

–July 27 in Ota, Chase Owens.

Umino: He’s younger than people think, right?

–33.

Umino: But he has such a sense for wrestling, and everything he does is on point. He’s a tricky one. 

–That’s a common take.

Umino: I just wonder whether he’s really OK with being in BULLET CLUB. I think there’s all these changes happening there with Finlay, and Gabe, Coughlin, Moloney, I wonder whether he fits.

–This will be the first match of the night, how do you feel about that placement?

Umino: I always think that the first match is the second most important behind the main event. But wherever I am on each card the most important thing in the G1 is results. So I want the crowd to be hyped, but I want to win more. 

Trust Tsuji as far as you can throw him

–Sixth on the schedule is Yota Tsuji on August 1 in Takamatsu.

Umino: Tsuji definitely made a huge impact on his return. He made his mark with the people. 

–How do you feel about him as a wrestler?

Umino: We were in England together, we’ve teamed and we’ve fought. I think we’ve both changed since, but what gets to me with him is when he talked about me and Narita and said he’s not interested in changing the guard around here like he thinks we are.

–Ah, right.

Umino: Thing is, it was Narita who’s been talking about changing the guard. I never said that, and I don’t think it was fair to lump me in with him. I’ve been talking about a paradigm shift, but to me that isn’t about getting rid of what came before- it’s about puttign everyone on my back, veterans rookies and all, and carrying us all forward.

–I see. 

Umino: I’m less about breaking down what was there before and building up again, I want to take everyone forward with me as the focal point. 

–After you and Tsuji were together in England, Tsuji went on to Mexico. Did you keep track of him there?

Umino: He has that lucha to him, and he’s also got power. And speed. And athleticism. He’s a huge key to the future of this business as well. I want Umino vs Tsuji to be a drawing card just like Umino vs Narita.

–How do you feel about him being in LIJ?

Umino: It was like- ‘so that’s what he chose’, you know?

–What do you mean?

Umino: Maybe not everyone knows this, but he kinda stabbed me in the back in England. With Gideon Grey.

–What happened?

Umino: Gideon wanted me and Tsuji for his faction, The Legion, and I turned him down. Then when I lost a match to Tsuji, I was forced to join. 

–I see.

Umino: Tsuji himself kept saying he didn’t want to join that faction either, but then he stabbed me in the back and joined. With that history I had thought Tsuji would join the United Empire some day, but him with LIJ- I think I’d trust him about as far as I can throw him. 

–Any way you cut it this is anothe rmatch about the future of NJPW. 

Umino: I’m going all out on this one, especially after he called me a poser..

–Tsuji has had a lot of words for his opponents on social media.

Umino: He called Narita a ‘Shibata clone’, Kiyomiya ‘the green kid’, Gabe ‘that punk from Britain’. He’s got a hell of a mouth on him. Talk smack, get whacked. I’ll make sure he shuts up about me at least.

 

I plan on making an impact and I plan on getting results

–Your last league match is August 5 in Osaka against Hikuleo.

Umino: We hung out a lot in the Dojo, we’ve been fairly close. As a wrestler, someone his size, his power, all those tools make him damn tough. 

–He matches a lot of power with a lot of speed. 

Umino: I’ve managed to roll him up a couple of times in England, but I don’t think I can rely on my past to beat him. He might be the tallest mountain to climb in this block, in more ways than one. I mean, he managed to put Jay White out of Japan, right?

–Right.

Umino: I wrestled Jay in Chicago last year and lost to him- I know how hard of a feat that is. I think maybe fans haven’t quite gotten it in their heads, how good Hikuleo is, but on pure ability alone, he could easily be IWGP World Heavyweight Champion by now.

–He could be the proverbial eye of the storm this G1.

Umino: No doubt. I really do think he could finish top of this block.

–What do you think the key to victory here is?

Umino: Hm, I think especially now he’s moved from BULLET CLUB to Hontai, it’s really hard to predict what kind of approach he’ll have. To be honest, I haven’t given it much thought- I’m only thinking of that first match right now.

–After you advance from A Block, is there anyone in the other blocks that catches your eye?

Umino: Eddie (Kingston), I reckon. I was able to team with him at Forbidden Door last year, and he was really good to me. I’d like to see him advance. And then I want revenge on Okada, Ospreay, Zack and Naito. 

–Who’s your ideal final opponent? 

Umino: I think Okada’s making a run to the final, and for me to meet him there and win would be the best story for me. 

–No surprises there. Your final thoughts on this tournament?

Umino: This tournament you have the young guys in A Block, the tough guys in B, the hard hitters in C, the big names in D. Each block has its own feel, but what I want A Block to make people feel is that ‘this is the future’. I plan on making an impact and I plan on getting results. You know, I hate the whole ‘ah, Okada’s gonna win, Naito’s gonna win’ kind of talk. Breaking all that down is exactly the paradigm shift I want to create.