永田@nagata769、棚橋から #G127 初勝利へ…雪崩式エクスプロイダーが炸裂！#G127 Aブロック公式戦を生中継！▷https://t.co/mlGKMiczsl #njpwworld #njpw pic.twitter.com/hSkuMUVxBn

— njpwworld (@njpwworld) 2017年7月23日

Tanahashi:
‘Yuji Nagata’s final G1. I have to say, I felt a little sentimental in there tonight but there's no room for sentimentality in the ring. The point is that Yuji Nagata to me has a different level of significance than to anyone else, and tonight reaffirmed that.’

-- You've said before that every match with Nagata feels like you're a challenger. Was it the same tonight?

Tanahashi:
‘Yes! Yes. It's always felt that Nagata is superior, and that I have to challenge that superiority. I thought maybe tonight was my time to finally surpass Nagata and mark myself out as superior to him but… no, that's not the thing to do. I want Yuji Nagata to always be Yuji Nagata.’

-- Tonight you tied with Makabe for most career victories in the G1. Your thoughts?

Tanahashi:
‘I'll break every record you have. Maybe I've found my motif for this tournament.’


Nagata:
‘Ahhhh, I lost. But it was interesting to face Tanahashi in his 40s. When you're in your 30s it's still go go go, but hit 40 and people start looking at you differently. That tiredness starts to kick in. When you're 40, people look at you different, your own outlook is different. The company looks at you different. But you start to find an inner strength you never had before. The strength and will to change yourself and change your surroundings. I saw a little of that in Tanahashi tonight. I felt it in my legs. I'm spaghetti legged now. He hit so hard my legs are buckling now. That's the level he was at.’