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Kuniaki Kobayashi
Kuniaki Kobayashi (小林邦昭) (born January 11, 1956) is a retired Japanese Junior Heavyweight professional wrestler most notable for being the generational rival of the famous Tiger Mask character in Japanese pro wrestling. He wrestled numerous acclaimed matches against the first two Tiger Masks: Satoru Sayama and Mitsuharu Misawa. Career New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1973–1980) Kuniaki Kobayashi debuted in New Japan Pro-Wrestling in February 1973, against Masanobu Kurisu, at the young age of 17. Kobayashi stayed on the undercard, until he was sent abroad to North America in 1980. North American Excursion (1980–1982) Upon entering North America in 1980, Kobayashi's first stop was in Mexico, where he made his mark by trying to unmask the other luchadores, specially The Villanos. He also would wrestle against Los Misioneros de la Muerte putting their hair on the line. On June 6, 1981, in their first hair vs. hair encounter, Kobayashi's team, consisted of him, Gran Hamada and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Komoro, Nagano
is a city located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 42,489 in 18776 households, and a population density of 430 persons per km². Its total area is . Geography Komoro is located in eastern Nagano Prefecture. The Chikuma River flows thorough the southern and western part of the city. Some extinct volcanic mountains are located between Komoro and neighboring Tsumagoi. The highest point in Komoro is Mt. Kurofu ( ja). Its peak is above sea level. The lowest point is . The old city center is at about . There are many slopes, so Komoro is known as a "hilly city" (坂の町). Surrounding municipalities *Nagano Prefecture **Saku ** Tōmi **Miyota *Gunma Prefecture ** Tsumagoi Climate Komoro is far from the sea and surrounded by mountains, so the rainfall is lower and diurnal temperature range is greater than many locations in Japan, and average annual temperature of Komoro is relatively cool because of the high altitude. The city has a climate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world's most populous megacities. Los Angeles is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With a population of roughly 3.9 million residents within the city limits , Los Angeles is known for its Mediterranean climate, ethnic and cultural diversity, being the home of the Hollywood film industry, and its sprawling metropolitan area. The city of Los Angeles lies in a basin in Southern California adjacent to the Pacific Ocean in the west and extending through the Santa Monica Mountains and north into the San Fernando Valley, with the city bordering the San Gabriel Valley to it's east. It covers about , and is the county seat of Los Angeles County, which is the most populous county in the United States with an estim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norio Honaga
(born August 11, 1955) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and referee. Career New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1980–1984) Norio Honaga debuted for New Japan Pro-Wrestling on April 25, 1980, against Hiro Saito. In November 1982, after over two years on the undercard, Honaga was sent to on an excursion to Mexico, wrestling for Universal Wrestling Association. He returned to NJPW in March 1984, but political turmoil within the promotion forced Honaga to leave the promotion six months later. All Japan Pro Wrestling (1984–1987) After leaving NJPW, Honaga joined Riki Choshu's Japan Pro-Wrestling group, which joined forces with All Japan Pro Wrestling. In July 1985, Honaga won his only title in AJPW, the All Asia Tag Team Championship, with Isamu Teranishi, as Animal Hamaguchi gave his half to Honaga due to injury. He and Teranishi would hold on to the belts for over three months, before losing them to Takashi Ishikawa and Mighty Inoue in October 1985. Honaga remained with AJPW ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Junior Heavyweight Championship (AJPW)
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) is a professional wrestling world title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling, contested exclusively among junior heavyweight (<) wrestlers. It was created on July 31, 1986, when Hiro Saito defeated Brad Armstrong in a tournament final. The original World Junior Heavyweight Championship belt had a similar design to the title it replaced, the , which had been around since 1982 and only replacing the word "International" with "World". This belt was replaced with a new belt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dynamite Kid
Thomas Billington (5 December 1958 – 5 December 2018), best known by the ring name the Dynamite Kid, was a British professional wrestler. Trained by former wrestler "Dr Death" Ted Betley, he competed in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), Stampede Wrestling, All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). With his cousin Davey Boy Smith, he was also known for being one half of the tag team The British Bulldogs. He had notable feuds with Tiger Mask in Japan and Bret Hart in Canada. Billington is considered by many, including Bret Hart, to have been one of wrestling's most influential in-ring performers, having increased the level of athleticism involved in the art, bringing together styles from Britain, Mexico, Canada and Japan. Early life Billington was born in Golborne, Lancashire, England. He had two sisters and a younger brother named Mark. His father Bill and uncle Eric Billington were boxers in their youth and his grandfather Thomas Billington ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship
The NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship started in 1979. It was formed by a split in lineage from the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship caused by the retirement of champion Nelson Royal the same year. The first champion, Steve Keirn, was recognized as World champion only by Florida, Los Angeles, and New Japan Pro-Wrestling. This version was eventually taken to the latter promotion by Tatsumi Fujinami, who already held the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship. In 1981, champion Chavo Guerrero Sr. left NJPW to go back to the United States, only to come back to Japan under the banner of All Japan Pro Wrestling, where a year later, it was renamed the International Junior Heavyweight Championship to avoid confusion and (along with being given a new belt design) in general line with AJPW's NWA titles. The championship became the cornerstone of AJPW's junior heavyweight division until its eventual replacement by the World Junior Heavyweight Championship, which kept ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
All Japan Pro Wrestling
(AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established on October 21, 1972 when Giant Baba split away from the Japanese Wrestling Association and created his own promotion. Many wrestlers had left with Baba, with many more joining the following year when JWA folded. From the mid-1970s, All Japan was firmly established as the largest promotion in Japan. As the 1990s began, aging stars gave way to a younger generation including Mitsuharu Misawa, "Dr. Death" Steve Williams, Kenta Kobashi, Gary Albright, Toshiaki Kawada, Mike Barton (Bart Gunn), Akira Taue and Jun Akiyama, leading to perhaps AJPW's most profitable period in the 1990s. In 1999, Giant Baba died and the promotion was run by Motoko Baba. Misawa was named President but left in 2000 after disagreements with Motoko. Misawa created Pro Wrestling NOAH and every single native wrestler besides Masanobu Fuchi and Toshiaki Kawada left All Japan. This led to a loss of All Japan's TV deal and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nobuhiko Takada
Nobuhiko Takada ( ja, 高田伸彦, ring name: ) (born April 12, 1962) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist, retired professional wrestler, actor, and writer. He competed in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) and the Union of Wrestling Forces International (UWFI) in the 1980s and 1990s, becoming one of the highest figures of the "shoot-style" movement. Takada later turned to mixed martial arts (MMA) where, despite his controversial match fixing ventures and lack of competitive success, he was credited with the existence and development of global MMA promotion Pride Fighting Championships, in which he worked as an executive after his retirement from active competition until its closure. He also founded and starred at the sports entertainment professional wrestling promotion Hustle from 2004 to 2008, and currently works as an executive for the Rizin Fighting Federation. Professional wrestling career New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1981–1984) A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kantaro Hoshino
(born Yeo Geon-bu (여건부) on October 9, 1943 – November 25, 2010) was a Japanese born, Korean professional wrestler, manager, and promoter best known for his time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling. As a wrestler, he was half of The Yamaha Brothers team along with Kotetsu Yamamoto. As a manager, he co-led the heel stable Makai Club, with Tadao Yasuda. Career Hoshino began his wrestling career after previously attempting a professional boxing career. He was trained by the father of Puroresu: Rikidozan. Using the name Kantaro Hoshino, he wrestled his debut match on December 22, 1961, against Atsuhide Koma (Masio Koma, future NWA World Middleweight Champion). The godfather of the ring name is Toyonobori. Over the next few years, Hoshino worked his way up the card and paid his dues. In 1967, he was sent on a learning visit to the United States with fellow up and comer Kotetsu Yamamoto, with the two forming the tag team: The Yamaha Brothers with Hoshino using the name Great Yamaha. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kengo Kimura
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, best known under the ring name and for his many years working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in Japan. Professional wrestling career Japan Wrestling Association (1972–1973) Kimura made his professional wrestling debut on August 2, 1972 on a Japan Pro Wrestling (JPW) card where he faced Akio Sato. In 1973, JWA folded. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1973–1977) After JWA folded, Kimura joined New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in 1973 as a junior heavyweight. He mainly worked on the undercard during this tenure, until he was sent to North America on a learning excursion. Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre, Universal Wrestling Association and World Wrestling Council (1977-1980) In the late 1970s Kengo Kimura travelled to North America for an excursion mainly working in Mexico for Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL) and Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) and in Puerto Rico for the World Wrestling Council (WWC). In WWC Kimura defeated ... [...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] |
Killer Khan
Krugman, Michael. ''André the Giant: A Legendary Life'', p.48. (born March 6, 1947) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. Popularly known as Killer Khan, he was billed from Mongolia and had numerous high-profile matches with André the Giant in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) during the 1980s, including a high profile "Mongolian stretcher match". Khan used Asian mist against opponents. Professional wrestling career Ozawa's Mongolian giant character was created by Karl Gotch. He traveled to America in 1979 to wrestle. The following year, in 1980, Khan first wrestled André the Giant in a tag team match for Georgia Championship Wrestling. Later that same year, he was hired by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In the WWF, Khan originally feuded with WWF Champion Bob Backlund, as well as the WWF Intercontinental Champion Pedro Morales. Khan was then placed in feud with André the Giant. During one match in May 1981, a kayfabe Khan kneedrop off of the top turnbuckle r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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