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Riki Pro
Fighting of World Japan Pro-Wrestling, frequently shortened to World Japan or WJ was a professional wrestling promotion formed in Japan in 2002 by former New Japan Pro-Wrestling employees Riki Choshu and Katsuji Nagashima, who also served as chairmen along with Tomohiro Ishii. History Formation In January 2002, New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) ace Keiji Mutoh left the promotion, jumping to rival All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) along with Satoshi Kojima and Kendo Kashin. Riki Choshu, NJPW's head booker at the time, was blamed for their departure and removed from his position by the president Antonio Inoki in February. Furious with Inoki's decision to do this, Choshu left the promotion altogether in May 2002 and blasted both Inoki and chairman Tatsumi Fujinami in interviews. At the same time Mutoh had left NJPW, Choshu's longtime friend Katsuji Nagashima, who worked as a booker and head of NJPW's advertising department, had also left the company and formed his agency, Nagashima Promotion ...
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Puroresu
is the predominant style of professional wrestling that has developed in Japan. The term comes from the Japanese pronunciation of , which is shortened to puroresu. The term became popular among English-speaking fans due to Hisaharu Tanabe's activities in the online Usenet community. Growing out of origins in the traditional US style of wrestling, it has become an entity in itself. Japanese pro wrestling is distinct in its psychology and presentation of the sport. It is treated as a legitimate fight, with fewer theatrics; the stories told in Japanese matches are about a fighter's spirit and perseverance. In strong style, the style most typically associated with puroresu, full contact martial arts strikes and shoot submission holds are implemented. Overview Despite some similarities to the popular style of professional wrestling in the United States, Japanese wrestling is known for many differences from the Western style. ''Puroresu'' is known for its "''fighting spirit''" ( ...
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Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance
The was the first professional wrestling promotion to be based in Japan. It operated from 1953 to 1973. History JWA under Rikidōzan (1953–1963) Rikidōzan, a former ''rikishi'' (sumo wrestling practitioner) who had debuted as a Western-style professional wrestler in 1951, decided in 1953 to establish a territory that would represent the National Wrestling Alliance in Japan. In those early days, Japanese professional wrestlers came from out of the sumo or judo ranks; former sumotori usually used their shikona (Rikidōzan, Azumafuji, Toyonobori, etc.) while former judokas usually used their real names or modifications of them ( Masahiko Kimura, Michiaki Yoshimura, etc.) Rikidōzan pushed himself as the top star of the promotion, first battling other Japanese wrestlers such as Kimura and Toshio Yamaguchi, but found a strong niche in feuds with American wrestlers such as Lou Thesz, The Destroyer and Bobo Brazil. In 1957 he defeated Thesz to win the title that would be the JWA ...
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Nippon Budokan
The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. While its primary purpose is to host martial arts contests, the arena has gained additional fame as one of the world's most outstanding musical performance venues. The Budokan was a popular venue for Japanese professional wrestling for a time, and it has hosted numerous other sporting events such as the 1967 Women's Volleyball World Championship. Most recently, the arena hosted the Olympic debut of karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ... in the 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as the judo competition at both the 2020 Summer Olympics and the 2020 Summer Paralympics. A number of ...
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Pro Wrestling Noah
(stylised as Pro Wrestling NOAH) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2000 by former All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) ace Mitsuharu Misawa after he had led a mass exodus in which 24 of AJPW's 26 contracted wrestlers left the promotion to form Noah. Noah held its first shows in August 2000, and established the Global Honored Crown as the in-house governing body for its collection of championships. Throughout its -year history, Noah has had working relationships with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), Ring of Honor (ROH), Impact Wrestling (formerly TNA), Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), All Elite Wrestling (AEW), and Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW). In January 2020, the company was purchased by CyberAgent, parent company of DDT Pro Wrestling, with DDT's executives taking over Noah's operations and Noah's content appearing on DDT's streaming service Wrestle Universe. History Noah under Misawa (2000–2009) In January 1999, AJPW found ...
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Yokohama Arena
is an indoor arena located in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five-minute walk from the closest station, Shin-Yokohama Station on the JR/Yokohama Municipal Subway. As one of the largest concert venues in the Kantō region, it is a frequent location for artists to end their tours. The spacious stage allows for more complex set design and lighting, but the reasonable size makes it easier to sell out than the Tokyo Dome. History The Yokohama Arena was opened on April 1, 1989. At the exact day was held the opening celebration concert where performed renowned Japanese singer-songwriter Yumi Matsutoya, and the three upcoming days were additional dates of her concert tour. Many notable Japanese music acts performed at the arena, alphabetically: AKB48, Namie Amuro, Aqours, B'z, Babymetal, Buck-Tick, °C-ute, Gackt, The Gazette ...
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The Shane Twins
The Shane Twins (born December 21, 1967) are a professional wrestling tag team that consist of twin brothers Mike and Todd Shane. They were best known for their appearances in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as Gymini. History Independent circuit (1998–2005) After being trained at the Malenko School of Wrestling in Tampa, Florida, The Shane Twins debuted in the Florida based IPW Hardcore Wrestling. They were originally known as "Biff Wentworth" (Mike) and "Chaz Wentworth" (Todd), collectively known as "The Wentworth Twins" or as "Phi De Kappa U". The Shane Twins held the IPW Tag Team Championship five times between 1998 and 2003. Their fifth reign began when they defeated The Road Warriors in Hokkaidō, Japan on a World Japan show. They also took on the Warriors, as well as feuded with The Nasty Boys, in the short-lived X Wrestling Federation in November 2001. As Phi Dekappa U, they wrestled The Pitbulls in the main event of the ''Break the Barrier'' supershow at th ...
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The S
S is the nineteenth letter of the English alphabet. S may also refer to: History * an Anglo-Saxon charter's number in Peter Sawyer's, catalogue Language and linguistics * Long s (ſ), a form of the lower-case letter s formerly used where "s" occurred in the middle or at the beginning of a word * -s, a suffix added to some English surnames, originally meaning "son of" * , the International Phonetic Alphabet symbol for a voiceless alveolar sibilant sound * S, the subject of an intransitive verb Mathematics and logic * Integral symbol (∫), used in mathematics to denote integrals and antiderivatives * S combinator in combinatory logic * Sphere * ''s(n)'', the aliquot sum of an integer n Physics and chemistry * Sulfur, symbol S, a chemical element * S, the symbol for entropy * S, a non-SI unit used to designate molecule size named after the Svedberg sedimentation coefficient * ''S'', a label that denotes one of two chiral center configurations in the ''R''/''S'' syst ...
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Steve Madison
Stephen Philip Favata (born April 9, 1983) is an American professional wrestler, known by his ringname "Modern Miracle" Steve Madison, who competes in Southeastern independent promotions including AWA World-1 South, Full Impact Pro, Future of Wrestling, NWA Florida and Dusty Rhodes' Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling. While in NWA Florida, he was part of the ''heel'' stable 911 Incorporated with Ron Niemi, Rod Steel, Eric Loy and The Shane Twins. He was also a member of The Young, Rich & Ready with Chasyn Rance and Kenny King. Madison has also made appearances in Ring of Honor, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and WWE, including its developmental territories Deep South Wrestling and Florida Championship Wrestling, as well Japanese promotions Big Mouth Loud, Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling and New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He formed successful tag teams with Erick Stevens and Lex Lovett while touring Japan. Career Early life and career Stephen Favata was born in Tampa, Florida and ...
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Big Vito
Vito Joseph LoGrasso (born June 18, 1964) is an American actor and professional wrestler, best known for his work in World Championship Wrestling as Big Vito and more recently World Wrestling Entertainment and working for their "developmental territories" Ohio Valley Wrestling and Deep South Wrestling as Vito. Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (1990–1998; 2001–2004) LoGrasso started wrestling in 1990 on the independent circuit until being approached by NOW Wrestling Federation, based in Japan. Vito then went on to work in the USWA and WWC using the name Skull Von Krush. LoGrasso also travelled to Japan on other occasions after his NOW run. Firstly to All Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he holds a rare pinfall elimination over Mitsuharu Misawa in the ''New Year Giant Series'' battle royal of 1998, after hitting a Stunner on the Triple Crown Champion which leaded to his elimination. As Big Vito, he teamed with "Mr. Puroresu" Genichiro Tenryu twice while wrestling ...
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The Road Warriors
The Road Warriors, also known as the Legion of Doom, were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Road Warrior Hawk (Michael Hegstrand) and Road Warrior Animal (Joseph Laurinaitis).. They performed under the name "The Road Warriors" in the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), and World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and the name "Legion of Doom" (LOD) in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Under either name, their gimmick was the same – two imposing wrestlers in face paint. For brief periods, other wrestlers were added as stand-in partners for both men. In Japan in the 1990s, Kensuke "Power Warrior" Sasaki often teamed with Hawk and Animal, separately and together, while in WWE were joined by Ahmed Johnson and Droz in the 1990s and Heidenreich in the 2000s. The team also had three managers: Sunny in the 1990s, Christy Hemme in the 2000s, and Paul Ellering, the manager associated with the original team. Hawk and Animal were kno ...
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Big Van Vader
Leon Allen White (May 14, 1955 – June 18, 2018), better known by his ring names Big Van Vader or simply Vader, was an American professional wrestler and professional football player. Throughout his career, he performed for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and Pro Wrestling Noah (NOAH) during the 1990s and 2000s, He is widely regarded as the greatest super-heavyweight professional wrestler of all time. White performed as a monstrous wrestler, and he was capable of aerial maneuvers: his diving moonsault was voted the " Best Wrestling Maneuver" of 1993 by ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') readers. Among other accolades in WCW and Japan, he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship three times each, the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship twice, the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship once, and won the battle royal main e ...
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Atsushi Onita
is a Japanese actor, politician, and semi-retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW) and is credited with introducing Japan to the deathmatch style of professional wrestling. He founded FMW in 1989 to defeat Masashi Aoyagi under his own rules and made it a full-fledged organization after his deathmatch style became popular with the Japanese fans. He was the company's top superstar, wrestling at sold out events with large crowds, making it a hugely successful company and earning a lot of money. Onita sold the company to Shoichi Arai and retired in 1995 to pursue an acting career, which was unsuccessful, forcing him to return as a wrestler in 1996. He led stables ZEN and Team Zero after his comeback and departed the company in 1998 as he was upset at his position in the company. He held the FMW Brass Knuckles Heavyweight Championship a record seven times and headlined the first six editions of the company's premier event ...
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