IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion Shota Umino is scheduled to defend his title against Gabe Kidd at New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s (NJPW) "Road to G1 Climax" event on July 6. The championship match will take place at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and will be available to stream live on NJPW World.
How the Title Match Was Established
NJPW confirmed the championship bout following Umino’s successful title defense at Forbidden Door. Umino captured the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship from Andrade El Idolo in a three-way match at Dominion earlier this month.
Kidd had been positioned as a challenger for the title immediately following Umino’s victory. However, according to NJPW, visa complications prevented Kidd from appearing at Forbidden Door in the United States. This logistical hurdle led to Umino defending his title against PAC instead. Following his win over PAC, Umino engaged in a tense physical confrontation with his former mentor, Jon Moxley, which required intervention from NJPW President Hiroshi Tanahashi to de-escalate.
The G1 Climax Connection
The July 6 match at Korakuen Hall serves as a precursor to the upcoming G1 Climax tournament. Both Umino and Kidd are confirmed participants in the B Block for the tournament, which runs from July 11 through August 16.
Because they are in the same block, the two wrestlers are also scheduled to face each other in a round-robin tournament match on August 8. While Kidd will not have a match on opening night in Chicago due to his visa issues, he is expected to be present for the remainder of the tournament schedule.
Road to G1 Climax Event Card
The July 6 card features several matches as the promotion prepares for the G1 Climax tournament. The current lineup includes:
- IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship: Shota Umino (c) vs. Gabe Kidd
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: YOH (c) vs. Francesco Akira
- G1 Climax A Block play-in match: El Phantasmo vs. Ryohei Oiwa
- G1 Climax B Block play-in match: OSKAR vs. Yujiro Takahashi
- Three-way tornado tag match: Tiger Mask & Jado vs. Taiji Ishimori & Gedo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Dick Togo
- Eight-man tag match: Oleg Boltin, Aaron Wolf, Hirooki Goto & Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi, Yuto-Ice & Daiki Nagai
- Eight-man tag match: Yuya Uemura, Taichi, El Desperado & Masatora Yasuda vs. Ren Narita, SANADA, DOUKI & SHO
The event at Korakuen Hall will feature English commentary for international viewers via the NJPW World platform.