(AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a
Japanese professional wrestling
Professional wrestling in Japan has existed for many years. The first Japanese to involve himself in catch wrestling, the basis of traditional professional wrestling, was former sumo wrestler Sorakichi Matsuda. There were subsequent attempts before ...
promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
established on October 21, 1972 when
Giant Baba
, best known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter, and professional baseball player. He is best known as a co-founder of All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), a promotion he founded in 1972 along with Mitsuo Momota ...
split away from the
Japanese Wrestling Association
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-st ...
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
was a Japanese amateur and professional wrestler and promoter. He is primarily known for his time in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and also for forming the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion in 2000. In the early 1990s, Misawa gained fame alongside ...
,
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams,
Kenta Kobashi
is a Japanese former professional wrestler. He started his career in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) in 1988, where he became one of the promotion's top stars, holding the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship three times, and winning the Champ ...
,
Gary Albright
Gary Mitchell Albright (May 18, 1963 – January 7, 2000) was an American professional wrestler best known for his work in Japan, first with UWF International (UWFi), and later All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). In AJPW, Albright was a two-time Worl ...
,
Toshiaki Kawada
(born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...
,
Mike Barton (Bart Gunn),
Akira Taue
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is also a former All Japan Pro Wrestling Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, a former GHC Heavyweight Champion and has had fourteen 5 Star Matches as awarded by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
...
and
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-he ...
, 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
(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 ...
and every single native wrestler besides
Masanobu Fuchi
is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is also a director and the co-head booker. Fuchi has exclusively worked for All Japan since his debut in 1974, and holds the record for the longest ...
and
Toshiaki Kawada
(born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...
left All Japan. This led to a loss of All Japan's TV deal and a period of hardship for the company. In 2001, they entered a cross-promotion agreement with
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
(NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...
which proved very successful, allowing All Japan to remain one of the larger promotions in the country, although now firmly behind NJPW.
In January 2002,
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 Ne ...
defected to All Japan, and was officially appointed as its new president that September. He would then acquire the rights to the company and Baba family stock by early 2003, when another exodus of gaijin wrestlers began, most notably
Steve Williams,
KroniK
KroniK (also stylized as Kroniꓘ) was an American professional wrestling tag team in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), composed of Brian Adams and Bryan Clark in the e ...
,
Bill Goldberg
William Scott Goldberg (born December 27, 1966), often known mononymously as Goldberg, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and former professional football player. He is best known for his tenures in WCW and WWE.
One of the most ...
and
Mike Rotunda
Lawrence Michael Rotunda (born March 30, 1958) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling in the 1980s and 1990s under the ring names Mik ...
.
By mid-2005, All Japan's attendance had dropped and the promotion seemed to be in trouble again but by 2007 had new sponsors and seemed to have recovered. After Misawa and most of the other wrestlers left the promotion, there was a lull in developing new stars until the likes of
KAI,
Suwama
is a Japanese professional wrestler better known simply as . He is best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he is a former record eight-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion and a seven-time World Tag Team Champion. He is also ...
,
Hama
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, ar ...
and
T28 debuted from the mid-2000s onward and helped restrengthen the company.
With established stars such as
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 Ne ...
,
Satoshi Kojima
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, but makes appearances for Pro Wrestling Noah. Considered to be one of the greatest Japanese professional wrestlers of the 21st century and of all-time, he was the first wrest ...
,
John "Earthquake" Tenta,
Masakatsu Funaki
is a Japanese actor, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler known professionally as , who has previously wrestled in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi (PWFG), Newborn UWF (UWF), ...
,
D'Lo Brown
Accie Julius Connor (born October 22, 1970), better known by his ring name D'Lo Brown (also formatted as D-Lo Brown), is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Impact Wrestling and WWE. Brown is also known for his ...
and
Minoru Suzuki
(born June 17, 1968) is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist, currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as a freelancer. In NJPW, Suzuki has held the IWGP Intercontinental Championship as well as twice hol ...
anchoring the promotion, the younger wrestlers were given time to grow and by 2010 were set to help lead All Japan. While still without a great TV deal, All Japan has operated consistently since 1972, making it the second-longest running promotion in Japan.
History
All Japan under Giant Baba (1972–1999)
NWA membership
![Giant Baba 1962 Scan10011 161022b](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Giant_Baba_1962_Scan10011_161022b.jpg)
The promotion was founded by
Shohei "Giant" Baba and the Momota brothers,
Mitsuo and
Yoshihiro
Yoshihiro is a Japanese masculine given name, and less commonly, a surname. There are dozens of different ways to write the name in kanji.
Some examples of possible writings
*義弘, "justice, vast"
*義広, "justice, wide"
*義寛, "justice, g ...
, sons of
Rikidōzan
(born Kim Sin-rak; ; November 14, 1924 – December 15, 1963), better known as Rikidōzan (), was a Korean-born Japanese wrestler who competed in sumo and professional wrestling. He was known as The Father of Puroresu, and one of the most inf ...
. Baba, a former professional baseball pitcher, joined the
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-st ...
(JWA) in 1960. In October 1972, he left the JWA and formed his own group, All Japan. Their first card was on October 21, 1972, at Machida City Gym in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan. The inaugural roster included Baba, Mitsuo Momota,
Akio Sato,
Samson Kutsuwada
was a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name .
He joined Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance in August 1967. He trained under Karl Istaz, and debuted in 1971. After becoming one of the original All Japan Pro Wrestling wrestlers, ...
, Motoshi Okuma and Mashio Koma.
Thunder Sugiyama, who had recently left
International Wrestling Enterprise
International Wrestling Enterprise (国際プロレス興行;, ''Kokusai Puroresu Kogyō'') was a professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1966 to 1981. Founded by Isao Yoshihara, it was affiliated with the American Wrestling Association i ...
, also came along to help and brought some lower-level IWE wrestlers with him on a freelance basis. Some personalities from North America also helped with the few cards, including
Dory Funk Sr.
Dorrance Wilhelm Funk (May 4, 1919 – June 3, 1973) was an American professional wrestler. He is the father of wrestlers Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk, and was a promoter of the Amarillo, Texas-based Western States Sports promotion.
Early li ...
,
Terry Funk
Terrence Funk (born June 30, 1944) is an American retired professional wrestler, rapper, disc jockey and actor. Funk is known for the longevity of his career – which spanned more than 50 years and included multiple short-lived retirements – a ...
,
Bruno Sammartino
Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino (October 6, 1935 – April 18, 2018) was an Italian-born American professional wrestler, best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF, now WWE). There, he held the WWWF World Heavywei ...
,
Dominic DeNucci
Domenico A. Nucciarone (January 23, 1932 – August 12, 2021) was an Italian-American professional wrestler and trainer better known under his ring name of Dominic DeNucci. He held over a dozen championships around the world in the 1960s and 197 ...
,
Freddie Blassie
Frederick Kenneth Blassman (February 8, 1918 – June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager, known by the ring name "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate","Classy" Freddie Blassie with Keith Elliot ...
and
The Destroyer.
Baba established the
Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
(PWF) as the governing body for all future titles in All Japan. In the beginning the PWF recognized a
world heavyweight championship and several "regional championships" given as billing to foreign stars depending from which region they came from, but after All Japan joined the
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc.
Founded in 1948, the NWA ...
(NWA), the PWF world title was downgraded to a regional championship. The first PWF Chairman, who presented the belts to the winners in title bouts, was
Lord James Blears
Lord Blears (born James Ranicar Blears, August 13, 1923 – March 3, 2016) was a British-American professional wrestler, ring announcer, promoter, actor, mariner, and surfing personality.
Early life
Blears was born in Tyldesley, Lancashire, E ...
. As a loyal member of the NWA, All Japan enjoyed the ability to bring in foreigners, and the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professional wrestling promotion. The current champion is Tyrus, who is in ...
was frequently defended. In the beginning Baba continued the Japanese vs. foreigner formula for the championships, but gradually
Dory Funk Jr.
Dorrance Earnest Funk (born February 3, 1941), known professionally as Dory Funk Jr., is an American retired professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. The son of Dory Funk (Dorrance Wilhelm Funk) and brother of Terry Funk, he was the promoter ...
and his brother
Terry Funk
Terrence Funk (born June 30, 1944) is an American retired professional wrestler, rapper, disc jockey and actor. Funk is known for the longevity of his career – which spanned more than 50 years and included multiple short-lived retirements – a ...
, as well as
Mil Máscaras
Mil Máscaras (born Aarón Rodríguez Arellano, July 15, 1942) is a Mexican luchador (professional wrestler) and actor. He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico – along with El Santo and Blue Demon ...
from Mexico became fan favorites when wrestling other foreigners and subsequently one of the few foreign wrestlers to become icons in Japan.
Separation from the NWA, new stars and company growth
![Steve_Williams_2003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Steve_Williams_2003.png)
When the NWA territorial system collapsed in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Baba distanced himself from other promoters at home and abroad, and began a system of promoting talent (both Japanese and
foreign
Foreign may refer to:
Government
* Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries
* Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries
** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government
** Foreign office and foreign minister
* Unit ...
) who competed exclusively for his promotion. With the
unification of the titles in All Japan into the
Triple Crown Heavyweight and the
World Tag Team Championship
The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championships in professional wrestling promotions.
Nomenclature
The name of the promotion is often preceded to the term "world tag team championship" as the ...
, as well as the promotion of talent including
Jumbo Tsuruta
, better known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) for most of his career, and is well known for being the first ever Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, having won the PWF Heavyw ...
,
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 ...
,
Akira Taue
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is also a former All Japan Pro Wrestling Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, a former GHC Heavyweight Champion and has had fourteen 5 Star Matches as awarded by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
...
,
Mitsuharu Misawa
was a Japanese amateur and professional wrestler and promoter. He is primarily known for his time in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and also for forming the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion in 2000. In the early 1990s, Misawa gained fame alongside ...
,
Toshiaki Kawada
(born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...
and
Kenta Kobashi
is a Japanese former professional wrestler. He started his career in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) in 1988, where he became one of the promotion's top stars, holding the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship three times, and winning the Champ ...
, the promotion was able to carve a loyal fanbase that lasted during the 1990s. Interpromotional matches were rare, and wrestlers who arrived from other Japanese promotions (such as
Hiroshi Hase
is a Japanese politician who is currently the governor of Ishikawa Prefecture. He served as the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology under Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. Prior to his appointment in the Cabinet, he also se ...
,
Shigeo Okumura
is a Japanese professional wrestler who works for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) and is billed as Okumura. Okumura originally worked for Tokyo Pro Wrestling (TPW) and later on All Japan Pro Wre ...
and
Yoshihiro Takayama
is a former Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Debuting for UWF International (UWFI) in the 1990s, Takayama joined All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) in 1997 after UWF-i folded. In 2000, he joined Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah), and ...
) were not given pushes, but in Hase's case, it was voluntarily, due to his primary involvement with the
House of Councillors
The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers. If the two houses disagree on matters of the budget, treaties, ...
.
Gaijins who signed with AJPW full-time were given pushes regardless of which promotion they arrived, most notably
Stan Hansen
John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler.
Hansen is known for his Glossary of professional wrestling terms#S, stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesigh ...
,
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams,
Gary Albright
Gary Mitchell Albright (May 18, 1963 – January 7, 2000) was an American professional wrestler best known for his work in Japan, first with UWF International (UWFi), and later All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). In AJPW, Albright was a two-time Worl ...
,
Vader and
Mike Barton
Michael Polchlopek (born December 27, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1993 to 1999 under the ring names Bart Gu ...
.
All Japan would achieve its third best-selling attendance with an attendance of 58,300 in the
Tokyo Dome
is an indoor stadium in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. It was designed as a baseball stadium following its predecessor, Korakuen Stadium. Construction on the stadium began on May 16, 1985, and it opened on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of th ...
on the May 1, 1998 pay-per-view, having seen consistent growth since 1992. On the March 4, 1992 pay-per-view All Japan sold out the
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 con ...
for the first time, with an attendance of 16,300.
All Japan's highest-selling show was the Giant Baba Memorial pay-per-view on May 2, 1999, which sold out the Tokyo Dome with an attendance of 65,000. The January 28, 2001 pay-per-view was All Japan's second highest attendance of all time at 58,700, which was notable for Stan Hansen's retirement and the Steve Williams vs. Mike Barton
Brawl For All
WWF Brawl for All was a shootfighting tournament held in the then World Wrestling Federation that lasted from June 29, 1998 to August 24, 1998 and was the creation of then-WWF writer Vince Russo. Brawl for All resulted in a number of legitimate ...
revenge angle. The last two matches of the card featuring
Keiji Muto
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 Ne ...
vs.
Taiyō Kea
Maunakea Mossman (born November 18, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, better known under his stage name . He is the only wrestler to have held the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, the World Tag Team Championship and t ...
, as well as the main event tag-team match, did not appear on the initial television broadcast in 2001, the original broadcast instead ending with Williams finally getting his redemption and defeating Barton in the main event.
First exodus: Super World Sports
In April 1990, Genichiro Tenryu led the first exodus of wrestlers (
The Great Kabuki
, better known as , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is famous as the first to blow Asian mist in his opponents' faces.
Professional wrestling career
Mera was born on September 8, 1948 in Nobeoka, Japan. He started wrestling in 19 ...
,
Samson Fuyuki,
Tatsumi Kitahara,
Masao Orihara
(born June 16, 1969) is a Japanese professional wrestler.
Orihara is known by his career in numerous Japanese promotions such as Michinoku Pro Wrestling, Wrestle Association R, Battlarts and Dramatic Dream Team.
Professional wrestling career
O ...
,
Yoshiaki Yatsu
Yoshiaki Yatsu (谷津嘉章 ''Yatsu Yoshiaki'', born July 19, 1956) is a Japanese professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and mixed martial artist. He is known for being one-half of the first-ever All Japan Pro Wrestling World Tag Team Champi ...
, Goro Tsurumi, and Shinichi Nakano) lured as they were to form
Super World of Sports
Super World of Sports, more commonly known as SWS, was a Japanese professional wrestling promotion from 1990 to 1992. Its motto was "Straight and Strong".
History Formation
In April 1990, Genichiro Tenryu, one of the top stars of All Japan Pro W ...
, which enabled Baba to push Misawa, Kawada, Taue and Kobashi to be his new stars.
All Japan under Mitsuharu Misawa (1999–2000)
With the death of Shohei "Giant" Baba on January 31, 1999, top star Mitsuharu Misawa immediately inherited the position of company president. On May 28, 2000, Misawa was removed from his position by a majority vote of the executive board. At a regular All Japan board meeting on June 13, 2000, Misawa, Mitsuo Momota (co-vice president, member of directory), Kenta Kobashi (member of directory), Akira Taue (member of directory, chairman), Kenichi Oyagi (member of directory) and
Yoshihiro Momota
(March 15, 1946 – November 22, 2000) was a professional wrestler and a former ring announcer, known for his tenure in All Japan Pro Wrestling. He was the son of wrestler Rikidozan and the older brother of Mitsuo Momota.
Career
On October 21, ...
(member of directory) resigned from their board positions. A day later, Motoko Baba ("Mrs. Baba") released a two-page written statement, which claimed that Misawa "took no responsibility and abandoned his duty." In addition, she hinted that Toshiaki Kawada and
Masanobu Fuchi
is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is also a director and the co-head booker. Fuchi has exclusively worked for All Japan since his debut in 1974, and holds the record for the longest ...
would be the only two native wrestlers to stay with All Japan, as "Kawada and Fuchi have sworn to carry out Baba-san's last wish: to keep All Japan Pro Wrestling alive"; this was confirmed a day later when Kawada and Fuchi both renewed their contracts with All Japan, along with
referee
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...
Kyohei Wada. The gaijin wrestlers that chose to stay with AJPW were
Maunakea Mossman
Mauna Kea ( or ; ; abbreviation for ''Mauna a Wākea''); is a dormant volcano on the island of Hawaii. Its peak is above sea level, making it the highest point in the state of Hawaii and second-highest peak of an island on Earth. The peak i ...
,
Johnny Smith
Johnny Henry Smith II (June 25, 1922 – June 11, 2013) was an American cool jazz and mainstream jazz guitarist. He wrote "Walk, Don't Run" in 1954. In 1984, Smith was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame.
Early life
During the Great Dep ...
,
George Hines
George Hines (born June 1, 1963) is a retired American professional wrestler, best known by his ringname Jackie Fulton, who competed in regional and independent promotions including the American Wrestling Association, East Coast Championship Wrest ...
,
Mike Barton
Michael Polchlopek (born December 27, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1993 to 1999 under the ring names Bart Gu ...
,
Jim Steele,
Mike Rotunda
Lawrence Michael Rotunda (born March 30, 1958) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling in the 1980s and 1990s under the ring names Mik ...
,
Stan Hansen
John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler.
Hansen is known for his Glossary of professional wrestling terms#S, stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesigh ...
and
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams, while
Scorpio,
Vader and
Richard Slinger
Richard Aslinger (born September 16, 1971) is a retired American professional wrestler, known by his ring name Richard Slinger. Slinger was a long-time mainstay of All Japan Pro Wrestling and later Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was one of two ''gai ...
joined Misawa's crew. Not wanting to choose sides,
Johnny Ace
John Marshall Alexander Jr. (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), known by the stage name Johnny Ace, was an American rhythm-and-blues singer. He had a string of hit singles in the mid 1950s. Alexander died of an accidental self-inflicted gunsh ...
would retire from active competition and return to
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
in the United States as a road agent.
Second exodus: Pro Wrestling Noah
![Mitsuharu Misawa, 2007](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Mitsuharu_Misawa%2C_2007.jpg)
On June 16, 2000, 24 out of the 26 contracted native wrestlers for All Japan were led by Misawa for a press conference, where it was announced that they would be leaving the promotion; more than 100 reporters and photographers attended, and Misawa expressed his wish for the promotion to debut in August, with the Differ Ariake being the site of the unnamed promotion's debut. When asked what his reason for leaving All Japan is, Misawa claimed that it was so he could do things in a "modern style." A day later, Misawa announced the promotion's name:
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 ...
, which was inspired by the Biblical story where Noah built an ark and put two of every kind of animal in the world in the ark before God destroyed the world.
On June 19, 2000, it was confirmed (at a press conference at All-Japan's dojo held by Toshiaki Kawada and Masanobu Fuchi) that NTV decided to discontinue broadcasting All Japan after 27 years; however, NTV maintained their 15% stock in All Japan (as Motoko Baba held the remaining 85%), and would prevent All Japan from being put on another network. On June 20, twelve All Japan office employees resigned from their positions with the promotion, with intentions to follow Misawa to Noah. NTV also announced that they will carry weekly tapings of Misawa's Noah promotion, with the title of the program being called "Colosseo." Noah took All Japan's 30-minute timeslot on Sundays at midnight. Misawa was interviewed in Tokyo on June 21, where he announced that he and the other wrestlers leaving to form Noah would compete on four of the sixteen shows in All Japan's Summer Action Series 2000 tour, which began on July 1. NTV also aired the final All Japan TV show on the network, which aired for 45 minutes and featured footage from
Jumbo Tsuruta
, better known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) for most of his career, and is well known for being the first ever Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, having won the PWF Heavyw ...
's funeral, the Noah wrestlers' press conference from June 16, Kawada's press conference from June 19, highlights of the first ever Kawada vs. Misawa Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship match from October 21, 1992, and Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue vs. Yoshihiro Takayama and
Takao Omori
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is a one-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion and seven-time World Tag Team Champion. He is also part of the All Japan Board of Directors. He ...
for the World Tag Team Championship from All Japan's Nippon Budokan show from June 9.
On June 28, 2000, Misawa formally announced at a press conference that
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 ...
would debut with two consecutive shows (titled "Departure") in Differ Ariake on August 5 and 6 in Tokyo.
Rebuilding
On July 2 in the Korakuen Hall, Motoko Baba announced the unfathomable return of
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 ...
(as Giant Baba publicly swore that he would never be allowed back in All Japan, following a departure in 1990 to form the
Super World of Sports
Super World of Sports, more commonly known as SWS, was a Japanese professional wrestling promotion from 1990 to 1992. Its motto was "Straight and Strong".
History Formation
In April 1990, Genichiro Tenryu, one of the top stars of All Japan Pro W ...
), as he would team with Kawada to face
Maunnakea Mossman and
Stan Hansen
John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler.
Hansen is known for his Glossary of professional wrestling terms#S, stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesigh ...
on July 23 (at the final tour show). On July 20, 2000,
Yoshinobu Kanemaru
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he also works as a backstage producer. Kanemaru is best known for his work in Pro Wrestling Noah, where he holds the records for the most reigns with the GHC ...
,
Takeshi Morishima
(born October 15, 1978) is a Japanese former professional wrestler.
Morishima is best known for his work with Pro Wrestling Noah, where he is a former three-time GHC Heavyweight Champion. He has also performed for Ring of Honor (ROH) in the Uni ...
,
Naomichi Marufuji
(born September 26, 1979) is a Japanese professional wrestler who competes for Pro Wrestling Noah, with occasional appearances in other professional wrestling promotions including New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), R ...
,
Kentaro Shiga
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working as a freelancer. He returned from a two-year hiatus due to injury in 2005.
History
All Japan Pro Wrestling (1994−2000)
Shiga trained in the All Japan dojo and debuted in All Japan Pro Wr ...
,
Takeshi Rikio
Takeshi Inoue (born December 20, 1972) known by his stage name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, who worked for Pro Wrestling Noah. He is also a former sumo wrestler.
Sumo career
He made his sumo debut in March 1988, after leaving ...
,
Mitsuo Momota
(born September 21, 1948) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and executive, known for his work in the Japanese promotions All Japan Pro Wrestling and later in Pro Wrestling NOAH. He is the son of wrestler Rikidōzan.
Career Japan Wres ...
,
Rusher Kimura
was a Japanese professional wrestler, best known by his ring name . He was a five-time IWA World Heavyweight Champion, making him a five-time world champion.
Sumo wrestling career
He was a sumo wrestler under the ''shikona'' Kinomura, a dir ...
,
Haruka Eigen
(January 11, 1946 – November 28, 2016) was a Japanese professional wrestler. He was an executive director of Pro Wrestling Noah.
Sumo career
In July 1961, Haruka Eigen began wrestling as a sumo. He was part of the Tatsunami stable. He quit su ...
,
Tsuyoshi Kikuchi
(born November 21, 1964) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for All Japan Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling NOAH. Kikuchi idolized and patterned his style after the Dynamite Kid.
Professional wrestling career
All Jap ...
,
Kenta Kobayashi
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he performs under the mononymous ring name Kenta (stylised in all capital letters), and is a member of the Bullet Club stable. He also makes occasional appea ...
, Takao Omori, Yoshihiro Takayama,
Jun Izumida
Junji Izumida (泉田純; Izumida Jun; October 28, 1965 – January 25, 2017) was a Japanese professional wrestler who worked for Pro Wrestling Noah.
Career
Sumo wrestling
Before being a professional wrestler, Izumida was a sumo wrestler, mak ...
,
Masao Inoue,
Yoshinari Ogawa
(born November 2, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for Pro Wrestling Noah. He has earned the nickname of "Rat Boy" from the English-speaking Puroresu fanbase due to his sneaky, clever in-ring tactics and baiting his ...
, Akira Taue,
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-he ...
and Mitsuharu Misawa competed in their last matches for All Japan Pro Wrestling at the sold out Hakata Star Lane in Fukuoka. After the show, "Dr. Death" Steve Williams came out and shook Misawa's hand, and requested one last singles match between the two. However, Misawa returned to the bus immediately after his match, not staying for the last two matches of the show. Every one of All Japan's titles were vacated due to the departure of the aforementioned wrestlers and title holders. Mrs. Baba appointed Stan Hansen as the new Chairman of All Japan's
Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
title governing body, replacing
Lord James Blears
Lord Blears (born James Ranicar Blears, August 13, 1923 – March 3, 2016) was a British-American professional wrestler, ring announcer, promoter, actor, mariner, and surfing personality.
Early life
Blears was born in Tyldesley, Lancashire, E ...
.
Interpromotional feud against New Japan (2000–2002)
On August 10, 2000, All Japan mainstay Masanobu Fuchi walked into the
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
(NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...
ring and declared that his intention was to "break down the walls" between All Japan and New Japan. In response, New Japan foreman
Riki Choshu
, better known by his ring name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler who is best known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as both a wrestler and a booker. He is considered one of Japan’s most influential wrestlers ...
rushed into the ring and exchanged a firm handshake with Fuchi, signaling the beginning of the cross-promotional alliance. On September 16, 2000, Toshiaki Kawada followed Fuchi's path and vowed to crush New Japan ace
Kensuke Sasaki
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, and founder of the now-defunct wrestling promotion Diamond Ring.
Sasaki is the first of four men ever to hold all three of '' puroresus major heavyweight titles (the IWGP Heav ...
, as he defeated Sasaki in the Tokyo Dome on October 9, 2000; the event sold out the building. In 2001,
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 Ne ...
and
Shinjiro Otani
is a semi-retired Japanese professional wrestler and the current acting president of Pro Wrestling Zero1 (Zero1). He is currently inactive from pro-wrestling competition due to a cervical spine injury substained in April 2022. A product of the N ...
created the interpromotional stable BATT (Bad Ass Translate Trading), which included All Japan's
Taiyō Kea
Maunakea Mossman (born November 18, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, better known under his stage name . He is the only wrestler to have held the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, the World Tag Team Championship and t ...
, Michinoku Pro's
Jinsei Shinzaki
Kensuke Shinzaki (新崎 健介 ''Shinzaki Kensuke'', born December 2, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler and professional wrestling executive, better known by his ring name, Jinsei Shinzaki (新崎 人生 ''Shinzaki Jinsei''). He is curr ...
and Hiroshi Hase. During this time, Mutoh challenged and defeated Tenryu for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, as well as capturing the World Tag Team Championship with Taiyō Kea. The alliance between the promotions lasted until January 11, 2002.
All Japan under Keiji Mutoh: Pro Wrestling Love era (2002–2013)
![Keiji Mutoh crop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Keiji_Mutoh_crop.jpg)
Signs of what would become the Pro Wrestling Love era would be seen in the spring and summer of 2001, when
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 Ne ...
, as a member of
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
(NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...
, made part-time appearances to All Japan, fighting
Toshiaki Kawada
(born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...
and
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams in major singles matches on pay-per-view. A notable shift in the product was seen in July 2001, when in a pay-per-view main event, Steve Williams lost to Keiji Mutoh for the
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 Championshi ...
, where it ended in an altercation. After leaving the backstage area Williams would then going on a huge swearing tirade, where he kicked a trash can, was about to cry in tears, and then throwing his armpads to the ground while swearing again. Such scenes never happened in the traditional All Japan and was characteristic to the "crash TV" style of
Vince Russo's writing.
On January 11, 2002, following the end of a year-long cross-promotional
angle
In Euclidean geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two Ray (geometry), rays, called the ''Side (plane geometry), sides'' of the angle, sharing a common endpoint, called the ''vertex (geometry), vertex'' of the angle.
Angles formed by two ...
with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Keiji Mutoh shocked the Japanese wrestling world by defecting to All-Japan as a full-time competitor, taking
Satoshi Kojima
is a Japanese professional wrestler signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, but makes appearances for Pro Wrestling Noah. Considered to be one of the greatest Japanese professional wrestlers of the 21st century and of all-time, he was the first wrest ...
and
Kendo Kashin
Tokimitsu Ishizawa (''Ishizawa Tokimitsu'', born August 5, 1968), better known by his ring name Kendo Kashin (ケンドー・カシン, ''Kendō Kashin''), is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his time in New Japan Pr ...
with him. This is considered the official start of the era. Keiji Mutoh would lose to Steve Williams in a grudge feud in March 2002, but a month later Mutoh defeated
Mike Barton
Michael Polchlopek (born December 27, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1993 to 1999 under the ring names Bart Gu ...
in the 2002 Championship Carnival tournament main-event. Despite Barton's loss, he and
Jim Steele would find success in winning the Stan Hansen cup in July 2002, Barton also being able to prevent Williams from winning.
On September 30, 2002, during an All Japan 30th Anniversary party at the famed Tokyo City Hotel, Mrs. Baba officially announced Mutoh's appointment as the new president of All Japan, transferring all of the Baba family stock to him.
[ Mrs. Baba's last on-screen appearance was on the October 27, 2002 pay-per-view, before leaving All Japan altogether by January 2003. Mutoh upheld some traditional aspects of the Baba-run All Japan, as the ]Champion Carnival
The is a professional wrestling tournament held by All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). The tournament is also known by the nickname and is sometimes abbreviated to CC. Created by AJPW founder Giant Baba, the tournament has been held annually since ...
and World's Strongest Tag Determination League
__NOTOC__
The , more commonly known in the West as the Real World Tag League, is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by All Japan Pro Wrestling since 1977, usually, run on the first weeks of December. The first tournament was actually ...
remained annual events.
In January 2003, a third exodus began, primarily of gaijin wrestlers. The most notable included "Dr. Death" Steve Williams, KroniK
KroniK (also stylized as Kroniꓘ) was an American professional wrestling tag team in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), composed of Brian Adams and Bryan Clark in the e ...
, Bill Goldberg
William Scott Goldberg (born December 27, 1966), often known mononymously as Goldberg, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and former professional football player. He is best known for his tenures in WCW and WWE.
One of the most ...
and Mike Rotunda
Lawrence Michael Rotunda (born March 30, 1958) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling in the 1980s and 1990s under the ring names Mik ...
. They had wrestled their last matches on pay-per-views that month, not renewing their contracts after the new ownership fully realized. Williams would only make one more appearance in the Pro Wrestling Love era on a July 22, 2004 pay-per-view, who at the time was going through throat cancer recovery and made a surprise appearance. Throughout 2003 and 2004, recent debuts like John "Earthquake" Tenta, Bull Buchanan
Barry Buchanan (born January 15, 1968) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) under the ring names Recon, Bull Buchanan and B² and ...
, Jamal (Umaga), D'Lo Brown
Accie Julius Connor (born October 22, 1970), better known by his ring name D'Lo Brown (also formatted as D-Lo Brown), is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Impact Wrestling and WWE. Brown is also known for his ...
and Gigantes (Jerry Tuite) would become the main gaijins.
Some interpromotional activities that would not have happened under Shohei Baba's watch have taken place, including the previously unfathomable IWGP Heavyweight Champion
The was a professional wrestling World Heavyweight Championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) Professional wrestling promotion, promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's gov ...
vs. Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion bout on a New Japan Pro-Wrestling event on February 20, 2005; Satoshi Kojima (who was the Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion) defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan
is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for New Japan Pro-Wrestling, and is better known by his ring name . With Satoshi Kojima, in 2008, they won the World's Strongest Tag Determination League in All Japan Pro Wrestling and the G ...
for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, which made Kojima the only wrestler to ever hold both titles simultaneously to that point (Keiji Mutoh would later accomplish the feat in 2008. However, he would hold the IWGP Championship as Keiji Mutoh, and the Triple Crown Championship as his alter-ego The Great Muta) In addition, Keiji Mutoh and Satoshi Kojima are both New Japan Pro-Wrestling alumni but played a consistent role in the main event picture of All Japan Pro Wrestling from the time of their arrival to the promotion. Furthermore, Keiji Mutoh competed at a Pro Wrestling Noah event on July 10, 2004, teaming with fellow AJPW wrestler Taiyō Kea to face Mitsuharu Misawa and Yoshinari Ogawa. On July 18, 2004, Mitsuharu Misawa returned to All Japan and defeated Satoshi Kojima at ''Battle Banquet''. Misawa returned to All Japan again on October 31, 2004, for the ''Keiji Mutoh: Love and Bump'' pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast.
Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
event, where he (along with 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 Ne ...
) defeated Hiroshi Hase and Kensuke Sasaki in what was billed as a "Special Dream Tag Match".
On July 10, 2007, Hiroshi Hase
is a Japanese politician who is currently the governor of Ishikawa Prefecture. He served as the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology under Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. Prior to his appointment in the Cabinet, he also se ...
was appointed as the new Chairman of the Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
, following Stan Hansen
John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler.
Hansen is known for his Glossary of professional wrestling terms#S, stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesigh ...
's voluntary resignation. Hase is the third chairman in PWF's history. Joe Doering
Joseph Doering (born April 16, 1982) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where he is a member of Violent By Design. He is currently inactive due to cancer surgery. He is a former two-time Impact World Tag T ...
would become the main gaijin around this time.
October 12, 2007 Baseball Magazine Sha, the publisher of Puroresu Shukan released AJPW trading cards
A trading card (or collectible card) is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing (fictional or real) and a short description of the picture, along with other ...
.
On June 7, 2011, Keiji Mutoh announced his resignation as the President of All Japan Pro Wrestling and named Masayuki Uchida as his successor.
On August 28, 2012, AJPW and Gaora TV announced that AJPW would introduce a new championship called the Gaora TV Championship
The is a professional wrestling championship owned by the All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) promotion. On August 28, 2012, AJPW and Gaora TV announced that AJPW would introduce a new championship called the Gaora TV Championship. A tournament for t ...
. The tournament for the title began on September 8, and ended on October 7 with Seiya Sanada
, better known by his ring name Sanada (stylized as SANADA), is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is a member of the stable ''Los Ingobernables de Japón''.
As part of NJPW, Sanada is mostly ...
defeating Yasufumi Nakanoue
is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name , currently signed to Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) in the Strong BJ division, where he is the current BJW World Strong Heavyweight Championship, BJW World Strong Heavyweight Cham ...
in the final to become the inaugural champion.
The "Pro Wrestling Love" name and theme was retired on July 5, 2013, thus ending the era.
All Japan under Nobuo Shiraishi (2012–2014)
On November 1, 2012, IT company Speed Partners purchased all shares of All Japan from Keiji Mutoh and his business partners for ¥200 million, however, the purchase was not made public until February 2013.[ In January 2013, AJPW signed ]Atsushi Aoki
was a Japanese professional wrestler who worked for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) as a wrestler, president of talent relations and head trainer at their dojo.
Aoki began his career in Pro Wrestling Noah in 2005, where he went on to become a two ...
, Go Shiozaki
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion where he is the former GHC Heavyweight Champion in a record breaking fifth reign. He made his debut for the promotion in July 2004 and remained with it unti ...
, Jun Akiyama, Kotaro Suzuki
is a Japanese professional wrestler better known by the ring name . He is currently working as a freelancer, mainly for promotion Pro Wrestling Noah.
Career
Pro Wrestling Noah (2001-2013)
Suzuki was the last person remaining of a grueling t ...
and Yoshinobu Kanemaru
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he also works as a backstage producer. Kanemaru is best known for his work in Pro Wrestling Noah, where he holds the records for the most reigns with the GHC ...
, all of whom had quit Pro Wrestling Noah the previous month, to return to AJPW, initially as freelancers. On March 17, 2013, it was announced that Hiroshi Hase
is a Japanese politician who is currently the governor of Ishikawa Prefecture. He served as the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology under Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. Prior to his appointment in the Cabinet, he also se ...
was stepping down as Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
Chairman, and that he would be succeeded by Kenta Kobashi
is a Japanese former professional wrestler. He started his career in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) in 1988, where he became one of the promotion's top stars, holding the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship three times, and winning the Champ ...
, following Kobashi's retirement as a professional wrestler on May 11, 2013.
Fourth exodus: Wrestle-1
On May 1, 2013, it was reported that negotiations had started between Speed Partners president Nobuo Shiraishi and All Japan president Masayuki Uchida, which would see Keiji Mutoh regain the promotion's presidency before the end of the month. However, on May 27, it was reported that Shiraishi himself would take over the presidency of All Japan effective June 1. This was later confirmed by All Japan, and led to Keiji Mutoh's resignation from the promotion. In the weeks that followed, Masakatsu Funaki
is a Japanese actor, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler known professionally as , who has previously wrestled in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi (PWFG), Newborn UWF (UWF), ...
, Kaz Hayashi
is a Japanese professional wrestler known simply as . He is best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where in addition to being a wrestler for the promotion, he also served as the head booker for the company's junior heavyweight ...
, Shuji Kondo
is a Japanese professional wrestler. Prior to becoming a pro wrestler, he played rugby. After starting his career in Toryumon, Kondo eventually joined All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he became one of the promotion's top junior heavyweigh ...
, Ryota Hama
(born November 21, 1979) is a retired Japanese sumo wrestler and current professional wrestler, signed to Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) in the Strong BJ division.
Sumo career
Hama joined sumo in July 1995, and he fought for the Hakkaku stable ru ...
, Masayuki Kono
is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is currently working as a freelancer. He is best known for his time in Wrestle-1, where he is a former two-time Wrestle-1 Champion.
Career
All Japan Pro Wrestling (2003 ...
, Hiroshi Yamato
, better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works as a freelancer. Trained by the All Japan Pro Wrestling promotion, he started his career in February 2007 working in Mexico for the International Wrestling ...
, Koji Kanemoto
(born Kim Il-Sung (김일성); October 31, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler of Zainichi Korean descent. He has previously worked with New Japan Pro-Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is currently a freelancer.
Professional wrestl ...
, Minoru Tanaka, Yasufumi Nakanoue, Kai, Seiya Sanada and Andy Wu
is a Japanese professional wrestler better known by his ring name who worked for Wrestle-1 until its closure in 2020. He is currently a freelancer.
Professional wrestling career
All Japan Pro Wrestling (2012–2013)
Andy Wu debuted for All Ja ...
announced their resignation from the promotion out of loyalty to Mutoh.
They all left the promotion following a June 30 event in Ryōgoku Kokugikan
, also known as Ryōgoku Sumo Hall or Kokugikan Arena, is the name bestowed to two different indoor sporting arenas located in Tokyo. The fist ''Ryōgoku Kokugikan'' opened its doors in 1909 and was located on the lands of the Ekōin temple in Ry ...
(the TV taping for the July 5 episode where the Pro Wrestling Love era ended) and went on to form the Wrestle-1
was a Japanese ''puroresu'' or professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, founded in July 2013 by Keiji Mutoh following his resignation from All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). The core of the promotion's roster was formed by ...
promotion the following month and announced their first show was held September 8 at Tokyo Dome City Hall
The Tokyo Dome City Hall (TDC Hall) is a facility for sports, fashion shows, circuses, and live music, located inside Tokyo Dome City in Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), i ...
. At the event, the Gaora TV Champion René Dupree made his debut in Wrestle-1, leaving AJPW. Before the end of the year, Manabu Soya
is a Japanese professional wrestler, best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling. He previously lived in Canada training at the Can-Am Wrestling School under Scott D'Amore, working regularly for the Maximum Pro Wrestling promotion. He is c ...
also quit All Japan to jump to Wrestle-1.
Rebuilding
After the exodus (along with the departures of ring announcer Makoto Abe and referees Daichi Murayama and Daisuke Kanbayashi), the promotion has now been reduced to less than half the active roster. On June 21, 2013, it was revealed that since 2009, AJPW mainstay Masanobu Fuchi
is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is also a director and the co-head booker. Fuchi has exclusively worked for All Japan since his debut in 1974, and holds the record for the longest ...
, who has been with the promotion since debuting in 1974, had long since resigned from the AJPW Board of Directors and has not been on an exclusive contract due to his age, thus becoming a freelancer, but chose to stay with AJPW on a pay per performance basis. On July 5, 2013, all five members of Burning
Combustion, or burning, is a high-temperature exothermic redox chemical reaction between a fuel (the reductant) and an oxidant, usually atmospheric oxygen, that produces oxidized, often gaseous products, in a mixture termed as smoke. Combusti ...
(Akiyama, Shiozaki, Aoki, Suzuki, and Kanemaru) officially signed exclusive contracts with AJPW, ending their tenure as freelancers, along with the returns of Taiyo Kea and referee Kyohei Wada. On July 14, during the launching event of the post-Mutoh All Japan, Masanobu Fuchi announced that he had officially re-signed with the promotion not only as a wrestler, but also as a member of the Board of Directors, ending his tenure as a freelancer. On August 1, all of the All Japan shares were moved from Speed Partners to Shiraishi's Red Wall Japan corporation, which effectively became the new parent company of the promotion. Meanwhile, the promotion's corporate name was changed to "Zen Nihon Puroresu Systems".[ On August 7, it was reported that All Japan had agreed to return the NWA International Heavyweight, NWA United National and ]PWF World Heavyweight Championship
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and one of the three titles that make up the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. It was created in 1973 by All Japan ...
belts, which make up the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, to Motoko Baba, the widow of the promotion's founder Giant Baba, bringing an end to the final remnant of the Giant Baba All Japan. The Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship retained its old name, but All Japan introduced a new title belt to represent it. The three original belts were defended for the last time on August 25, when Suwama
is a Japanese professional wrestler better known simply as . He is best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he is a former record eight-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion and a seven-time World Tag Team Champion. He is also ...
successfully defended them against Go Shiozaki. The new title belt was revealed on October 27. On August 27, Shiraishi announced that he would be stepping down as the All Japan president by the end of the month. He would, however, remain the owner of the promotion. On September 1, longtime freelancer Akebono signed a contract to officially join All Japan full-time. On September 11, Hirota Inoue, one of the executive director
Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization.
The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...
s originally brought to the promotion by Shiraishi, was announced as the new president of All Japan. On October 27, Dory Funk, Jr.
Dorrance Earnest Funk (born February 3, 1941), known professionally as Dory Funk Jr., is an American retired professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. The son of Dory Funk (Dorrance Wilhelm Funk) and brother of Terry Funk, he was the promote ...
was announced as the new Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
chairman.
All Japan under Jun Akiyama (2014–2021)
On June 5, 2014, All Japan announced a corporate restructuring taking place on July 1, which would see Jun Akiyama take over as the promotion's new president. On July 1, the promotion announced another corporate name change to "All Japan Pro Wrestling kabushiki gaisha
A or ''kabushiki kaisha'', commonly abbreviated K.K. or KK, is a type of defined under the Companies Act of Japan. The term is often translated as "stock company", " joint-stock company" or "stock corporation". The term ''kabushiki gaisha'' i ...
" (dropping the Japanese "Zen Nihon Puroresu" name), while also relocating its headquarters from Tokyo to Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
. Akiyama established a new company named Zen Nihon Puroresu Innovation, through which he will run the new All Japan Pro Wrestling. Akiyama also serves as the representative director of the promotion and reports to a board of directors, which most notably includes Suwama and Akebono. Motoko Baba also joined the promotion as a consultant. On September 28, 2015, Go Shiozaki announced his resignation from All Japan. On November 2, it was announced that Akebono was also leaving All Japan with the goal of returning to mixed martial arts. On November 16, yet another wrestler, the reigning World Junior Heavyweight Champion Kotaro Suzuki, announced his departure from All Japan at the end of the month. Four days later, Yoshinobu Kanemaru also announced he would be leaving All Japan following December 15. Akiyama revealed that the departures were all for the same reason: All Japan had recently decided to change all of its wrestler contracts to pay-per-appearance contracts. In October 2016, the promotion announced it had reached a deal with satellite television provider Nippon BS Broadcasting
() is a private satellite broadcasting station in Kanda, Tokyo, Japan. It is an independent television station and is a subsidiary of Bic Camera. Its channel name is BS11 (''BS Eleven'') and was BS11 Digital until March 31, 2011. It was founded ...
for a monthly highlights show, ''Eleven'', to be broadcast on the third Monday of each month. On November 27, 2016, the promotion returned to Ryōgoku Kokugikan for its first event at the venue in three years, headlined by Kento Miyahara
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is the current six time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion. He was trained by Kensuke Sasaki and started his career in his Kensuke Office promotion ...
defending the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship against Suwama. In August 2017 Toryumon Mexico Toryumon or Tōryūmon may refer to:
*Toryumon (Último Dragón)
is a professional wrestling promotion that operated in Japan until 2004 and in Mexico, where it's called Toryumon Mexico. The promotion is owned and operated by Yoshihiro Asai, who ...
started working with All Japan Pro Wrestling in with a collaborated event tour called Lucha Fiesta
Lucha is the Spanish for "fight, struggle". It may refer to
*wrestling
* Lucha libre (show wrestling)
* ''Lucha'', a publication by the Communist Party of Labour in the Dominican Republic
* Lucha Underground American Mexican wrestling promotion an ...
. On February 4, 2018, AJPW announced "All Japan Pro Wrestling TV
All Japan Pro Wrestling TV (AJPW TV) is a subscription-based video streaming service owned by All Japan Pro Wrestling. On February 4, 2018, AJPW announced "All Japan Pro Wrestling TV", a new worldwide streaming site for the promotion's events. All ...
", a new worldwide streaming site for the promotion's events. On October 10, 2019, Akiyama left his position as President to become General Manager.
Roster and current champions
; Titles previously promoted by the company include:
* Titles that were originally part of the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
** NWA International Heavyweight Championship
The NWA International Heavyweight Championship was a singles title recognized by the National Wrestling Alliance through its partnership with the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance, and later by All Japan Pro Wrestling. It is one of the three titles tha ...
** NWA United National Championship
The NWA United National Championship (often abbreviated to UN Championship) was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance, and best known for being defended in All Japan Pro Wrestling. It was unified in ...
** PWF World Heavyweight Championship
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and one of the three titles that make up the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. It was created in 1973 by All Japan ...
* Titles that are now part of the World Tag Team Championship
** NWA International Tag Team Championship
''This was a regional NWA championship based in Japan. For the version of this title that was promoted in NWA All Star Wrestling in Canada, see NWA International Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version).''
The NWA International Tag Team Champion ...
** PWF World Tag Team Championship
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team championship in All Japan Pro Wrestling, created in 1984. It was unified with the NWA International Tag Team Championship in 1988, to create ...
* Others
** 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, Stev ...
(replaced with World Junior Heavyweight Championship)
** PWF All Asia Heavyweight Championship (now promoted by Pro Wrestling Land's End
(Land's End) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 2016 by Ryoji Sai.
History
In January 2016, Ryoji Sai left Pro Wrestling Zero1 to launch a new promotion named Land's End. The promotion held its first event on Marc ...
with authorization from Pacific Wrestling Federation
(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, ...
)
** PWF United States Heavyweight Championship
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) United States Heavyweight Championship is a former title defended in All Japan Pro Wrestling.
Creation of the title
The title was established in 1970 when The Destroyer, who held the Hawaii version of the N ...
** F-1 Tag Team Championship (transferred to and promoted by Wrestle-1
was a Japanese ''puroresu'' or professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, founded in July 2013 by Keiji Mutoh following his resignation from All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). The core of the promotion's roster was formed by ...
until its closure)
Tournaments
AJPW also holds annual tournaments to decide the top wrestler or tag team in the promotion:
Broadcasters
Domestic:
* Gaora (2000–present, broadcasting monthly show ''B-Banquet'' and live specials; formerly broadcasting archive show ''Battle Archives'')
* Fighting TV Samurai
Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...
(2000–present, broadcasting live and taped shows; formerly broadcasting weekly show ''King's Road
King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents), is a major street stretching through Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
'' and archive show ''Royal Road Club'')
* Nico Nico Douga (2016–present, streaming untelevised spot-shows and interviews)
* Amazon Prime Video Japan (2020–present)
Worldwide:
* All Japan Pro Wrestling TV
All Japan Pro Wrestling TV (AJPW TV) is a subscription-based video streaming service owned by All Japan Pro Wrestling. On February 4, 2018, AJPW announced "All Japan Pro Wrestling TV", a new worldwide streaming site for the promotion's events. All ...
(streaming service, in partnership with Gaora, broadcasting most AJPW shows live, as well as on-demand)
Former
* Nippon Television
JOAX-DTV (channel 4), branded as , is the flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned-and-operated by the which is a subsidiary of the certified broadcasting holding company , itself a listed su ...
(1972–2000, continues to air AJPW footage unbranded as ''Wrestling Classics'' on NTV G+)
* Broadcast syndication
Broadcast syndication is the practice of leasing the right to broadcasting television shows and radio programs to multiple television stations and radio stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in the United States where ...
, Japanese Association of Independent Television Stations
The Japanese Association of Independent Television Stations (JAITS) is a group of Japan's reception fee-free commercial terrestrial television stations which are not members of the major national television networks. The association was establish ...
(1994–2013, intermittent weekly programming and specials)
* BS11 (2016–2018, broadcasting highlight/magazine show ''Eleven'')
International (former):
* FITE TV
Fite (stylized as FITE by Triller) is an American digital video streaming service launched on May 20, 2012, that is dedicated to combat sports-related programming (including boxing, mixed martial arts, and professional wrestling). The network dist ...
(2017–2018)
See also
* Professional wrestling in Japan
Professional wrestling in Japan has existed for many years. The first Japanese to involve himself in catch wrestling, the basis of traditional professional wrestling, was former sumo wrestler Sorakichi Matsuda. There were subsequent attempts before ...
* List of professional wrestling promotions in Japan
This is a list of professional wrestling promotions in Japan which includes both national and independent puroresu and joshi companies from the post-World War II period up to the present day.
Major promotions Puroresu
Joshi
Independent promo ...
References
External links
*
All Japan Pro-Wrestling title histories
Puroresu.com summary
{{Authority control
National Wrestling Alliance members
Japanese professional wrestling promotions
1972 establishments in Japan
Entertainment companies established in 1972
Companies based in Yokohama