|
Bad Ass Translate Trading
Bad Ass Translate Trading (BATT) was a professional wrestling stable led by Keiji Mutoh, which competed in both New Japan Pro-Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling from 2001 to 2002. The name of the group meant that it was a group of wrestlers that crossed borders. The groups is best known for the fact that its members were from different promotions: New Japan (Mutoh, Frye, & Otani), All Japan (Kea & Hase), and Michinoku Pro (Shinzaki). History In January 2001, Keiji Mutoh and Shinjiro Otani both made returns to New Japan after spending much of the year 2000 on learning excursions, with Mutoh being in the United States for World Championship Wrestling, and Otani being in Canada and England for various promotions. The two made their return at Wrestling World 2001 as the two defeated Jushin Thunder Liger and Manabu Nakanishi in less than 6 minutes. At the ''Fighting Spirit 2001'' tour, Mutoh and Otani continued to team up and formed an alliance. On February 3, 2001, Mutoh and Otani ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Keiji Mutoh
is a Japanese professional wrestler and professional wrestling executive currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah), where he is a former GHC Heavyweight Champion. He is best known for his work as in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) during the 1980s and 1990s, and from his runs in other American, Puerto Rican, and Mexican promotions. He was the president of All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) from 2002 to 2013 and representative director of Wrestle-1 (W-1) from 2013 to 2020. Considered one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Muto is also one of the first Japanese wrestlers to gain an international fanbase. "The Great Muta" gimmick is one of the most influential in puroresu, emulated by many wrestlers, including Satoshi Kojima (as The Great Koji), Kazushi Miyamoto (as The Great Kazushi), Atsushi Onita (as The Great Nita), and Seiya Sanada (as The Great Sanada). Others copied or modified some of the moves that he popularized or innovated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michinoku Pro
(originally known as North Eastern Wrestling) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded by The Great Sasuke on October 1, 1992. It was the first independent wrestling promotion in Japan to not base its operations in Tokyo, but rather in Morioka, Iwate. Since the promotion is primarily focused on the Lucha libre style of wrestling, many of their wrestlers don masks and special motifs as they compete in the ring. However, Michinoku Pro has accepted wrestlers from various styles (such as shoot style and strong style) and backgrounds over the years. In 2003, Sasuke left the running of the promotion to Jinsei Shinzaki. History Michinoku Pro Wrestling (Michinoku Pro or M-Pro) was founded on October 1, 1992 by The Great Sasuke as a community-based promotion for the northeastern greater Tohoku region of Japan. Their first-ever pre-show was held on November 27, 1992 in Takizawa City, although due to disputes with the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF), the promotion was p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tatsumi Fujinami
(born December 28, 1953) is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on a legend's contract. Fujinami is most well known for his long tenure with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was a six-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. He was famously nicknamed "The Dragon", and is credited for inventing the dragon sleeper and the dragon suplex. He is also the owner and founder of the Dradition wrestling promotion. In 2015, Fujinami was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, while also becoming an ambassador for the company. Bret Hart said of Fujinami: "I always wanted to be the great wrestler that Tatsumi Fujinami was". He is a nine time World Champion, winning world titles in NJPW, NWA, UWA and WCWA. Professional wrestling career Japanese Wrestling Association (1971–1972) Fujinami started in the Japanese Wrestling Association (JWA) under Antonio Inoki's wing at the age of 17. When Inoki was fired from JWA in 1971, Fujinami and a few others followed him in forming ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Tag Team Championship (AJPW)
The is a professional wrestling World tag team championship in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling. It was created on June 10, 1988 as a unification of two previous tag team titles in All Japan; the PWF Tag Team Championship, and the NWA International Tag Team Championship; when the PWF champions Jumbo Tsuruta and Yoshiaki Yatsu defeated NWA champions The Road Warriors. As with the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, it is symbolized by four belts, two for each wrestler, representing the former PWF and NWA titles. It is currently the top of two tag team titles in AJPW, along with the secondary All Asia Tag Team Championship. There have been a total of 92 reigns shared between 60 different teams consisting of 65 distinctive champions. The current champions are Kono and Suwama who are in their first reign as a team. Title history Combined reigns As of , . By team By wrestler See also *Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship * World Junior Heavyweight Championshi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoji Anjo
(born March 28, 1967) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Professional wrestling career Universal Wrestling Federation and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1985–1988) A former practitioner of judo, sumo and muay thai, Anjo tried professional wrestling after meeting Nobuhiko Takada. He passed the original Universal Wrestling Federation's entrance tests and had his debut on July 6, 1985, against Osamu Hoshina. He only wrestled a handful of matches for the company, as it collapsed later in the year and its roster moved back to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where Anjo debuted as a low-ranking member of the UWF "invading" army. Often teaming with fellow shooter Tatsuo Nakano, he feuded with names like Akira Nogami, Osamu Matsuda and Masakatsu Funaki as part of the NJPW junior heavyweight division. He eventually left the company in 1988 following Takada, Akira Maeda and the rest of his crew to form the second incarnation of UWF. UWF Newborn (1988–1990) In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jun Akiyama
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to DDT Pro-Wrestling, where he is a former KO-D Openweight Champion. He is best known for his time working for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he was the president, representative director, co-head booker, and an in-ring performer. In AJPW, he is a former two-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, while also being a six-time overall professional wrestling world champion. Akiyama is noted for his serious in-ring style and demeanor, innovating the '' Blue Thunder Driver'' and the wrist–clutch exploder suplex maneuvers. Considered an outstanding tag team wrestler, Akiyama is a three-time winner of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' Tag Team of the Year award. Personal life In junior high school, Akiyama participated in swimming and in senior high school he competed in freestyle amateur wrestling and judo. After high school, he attended Senshu University in Tokyo, where he joined an amateur wrestling team that produced ot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yuji Nagata
is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). A two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and a GHC Heavyweight Champion, making him a four-time world champion in major professional wrestling promotions in Japan, Nagata is considered one of the greatest Japanese wrestlers in history. He is the fifth longest-reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion with a reign of 392 days. He held the record for most successful title defenses with 10, until Hiroshi Tanahashi broke the record at Wrestle Kingdom VI. He is the only wrestler to have won Japanese professional wrestling's three biggest singles tournaments; New Japan Pro-Wrestling's G1 Climax (in 2001), All Japan Pro Wrestling's Champion Carnival (in 2011) and Pro Wrestling Noah's Global League (in 2013). Amateur wrestling career Before turning professional, Nagata was a successful amateur wrestler. Nagata met future professional wrestling rival Minoru Suzuki in the amateur wres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
G1 Climax
The is a professional wrestling tournament held each August by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. Though it has sometimes been held as a single-elimination tournament, it is usually (and currently) held as a round-robin, with winners from two pools wrestling in the final to decide that year's winner. In its current format, the tournament lasts four weeks. The winner of each pool is determined by a points system; two points for a victory, one point for a draw (time limit only), and zero points for a loss, no contest or double decision. Tournament history NJPW had an annual tournament since 1974 under various names: the (1974–1977, based on the World (Big) League tournament from the old Japanese Wrestling Association held between 1959 and 1972); the (1978–1982); the (1983–1988), "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix (インターナショナル・レスリング・グラン・プリ, ''intānashonaru resuringu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IWGP Heavyweight Championship
The was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . The title was introduced on June 12, 1987, in the final of an IWGP tournament. It was unified with the IWGP Intercontinental Championship on March 4, 2021 to form the new IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. The championship was represented by four different belts from 1987 to 2021. The fourth and last generation belt was introduced in March 2008. The title formed what was unofficially called the along with the IWGP Intercontinental Championship and the NEVER Openweight Championship. Title history An early version of this championship was introduced in 1983 for the winner ( Hulk Hogan) of the IWGP League 1983. Since then, the championship was defended annually against the winner of the IWGP League of the year. A new IWGP Heavyweight Championship arrived only in 1987, replacing the old version. The 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IWGP Tag Team Championship
The is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of the NJPW's governing body, the . The title was introduced on December 12, 1985 at an NJPW live event. The IWGP Tag Team Championship is one of two tag team titles contested for in NJPW; the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship is also sanctioned by NJPW. According to NJPW's official website, the IWGP Tag Team Championship is considered the "IWGP Heavyweight Class", while the Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship is listed as the "IWGP Jr. Tag Class". Like most professional wrestling championships, the title is won via the result of a scripted match. Title changes usually happen at NJPW-promoted events; although the title has only changed hands twice at a non-NJPW event, it has been defended in several other promotions. History Before the IWGP championship system was created, New Japan Pro-Wrestling featured the NWA North American T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
The is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Japanese All Japan Pro Wrestling promotion. History The championship was established after the unification of its then-flagship title the PWF World Heavyweight Championship, with the NWA United National Championship and the NWA International Heavyweight Championship. The titles were unified on April 18, 1989, when NWA International Heavyweight Champion Jumbo Tsuruta defeated the PWF World Heavyweight and NWA United National Champion Stan Hansen. Unlike most unified championships, the Triple Crown was originally represented through the continued use of the three individual championship belts. From 1989 to 2000, the holder of the Triple Crown was also presented by Nippon TV (AJPW's broadcaster at the time) with a large, globe-shaped trophy bearing the words "World Heavyweight Champion." The original title belts were returned to All Japan founder Giant Baba's widow Motoko in August 2013 and a new single titl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genichiro Tenryu
, better known as is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. At age 13, he entered sumo wrestling and stayed there for 13 years, after which he turned to Western-style professional wrestling. "Tenryu" was his ''shikona''. He had two stints with All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he spent the majority of his career while also promoting Super World of Sports (SWS), Wrestle Association R (WAR) and Tenryu Project. At the time of his retirement, professional wrestling journalist and historian Dave Meltzer wrote that "one could make a strong case hat Tenryu wasbetween the fourth and sixth biggest native star" in the history of Japanese professional wrestling. Sumo wrestling career As a sumo wrestler, Tenryu was ranked as a ''sekitori'' for 27 tournaments, 16 of them in the top ''makuuchi'' division. His highest rank was ''maegashira'' 1. Upon the death of his stablemaster at Nishonoseki stable he wanted to join former stablemate Daikirin's n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
