It's here; it's finally here: NJPW has announced the participants in the 2022 G1 Climax, and it features a certain member of the AEW roster that should get fans hyped for the tournament indeed.

No, it's not Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley, or any member of The Elite – much to the chagrin of fans the world over – the AEW roster member set to join the likes of Jeff Cobb, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shingo Takagi, Tom Lawler, and EVIL is none other than Lance Archer, the “Murderhawk Monster,” who was most recently defeated in the Casino Battle Royal.

Disappointing? For some fans, maybe, but this actually marks the sixth time Archer has appeared in the tournament and, after spending much of the year flirting with NJPW via matches for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Title and tag matches with his Suzuki-gun cohorts like Minoru Suzuki, it looks like Jake “The Snake” Roberts' occasional client will be headed back to Japan for his first singles match in the country since January of 2020, when he took on Jon Moxley in a Texas Death Match at WrestleKingdon 14.

https://youtu.be/NU12wFgOVWM?t=6

With two years of matches to make up for, Archer's return could help to revitalize his current run and give fans of AEW a home promotion hero to root for in NJPW's premier tournament of the year.

Lance Archer's next run in New Japan could springboard his time in AEW.

When Lance Archer took part in his first G1 Climax, he was incredibly new to the promotion. Initially debuting during NJPW's first tour of the United States, he attacked Satoshi Kojima after a bout versus Bad Intentions and subsequently joined Minoru Suzuki's Suzuki-gun faction; a faction he remains a member of to this day. Largely performing in tag matches with his fellow guns until his G1 debut, Archer won four of his nine matches and finished eighth in his block, but notably secured a win over ex-IWGP Heavyweight Champion Togi Makabe. Though far from the debut he wanted, Archer rebounded quickly by entering the G1 tag team tournament and, alongside Suzuki, won the event outright.

Archer didn't have to wait long for his second shot at the G1 trophy, as, in 2012, he again participated in the tournament and did fairly well, making it to the final day of the event with a 4-3 record. Unfortunately, he lost his final bout to MVP and had to watch on as Karl Anderson became the first foreign-born wrestler in promotion history to make it to the G1 Finals, even if he too ultimately lost to overall winner Kazuchika Okada.

From there, Archer appeared in the G1 Climax in 2013 and 2014, but by that point, he was much more of a tag team competitor thanks to his pairing with Davey Boy Smith Jr. as the Killer Elite Squad, and he failed to secure more wins than losses in either tournament.

Fast forward to 2019, and, after a brief run in Pro Wrestling Noah and GFW, Archer was back alongside his Suzuki-gun stablemates to wreak havoc on the NJPW roster once more. Once Smith opted to leave the promotion, Archer turned his attention to singles competition once more, where he took part in the 2019 G1 Climax; his first G1 Climax since 2014. Though Archer didn't advance, he clearly inspired enough interest from the higher-ups at NJPW, as shortly thereafter, he was thrust into the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship picture after Jon Moxley vacated his belt due to Typhoon Hagibis.

Had the G1 gone down in 2020, maybe Archer would have been back in the promotion looking for another chance at the finals, but alas, it just wasn't meant to be; the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and Archer's involvement with NJPW has been relegated to Strong shows in the United States. Archer has won the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship once, notably against Moxley on an episode of Dynamite last summer, and has appeared in three matches alongside Minoru Suzuki, but for his career to take its next logical step forward, the “Murderhawk Monster” has to fully partake in a New Japan storyline, as it's clear AEW isn't quite sure what to do with him in a regularly televised role.

Fortunately, that opportunity is here.

Now finally able to return to Japan, the 2022 G1 Climax is a huge opportunity for Lance Archer. He'll earn bouts against some of the best performers in New Japan, face off against US-based talents like Jonah and “Filthy” Tom Lawler, and maybe, just maybe, etch his name next to Karl Anderson as one of the two non-Japanese wrestlers to make it to the G1 finals; a list that currently only features one other performer, Kenny Omega.