is a
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
currently working for
Dragon Gate as .
Nakamura initially broke into the wrestling business with
Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling
Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded on July 28, 1989, by Atsushi Onita as (FMW). The promotion specializes in hardcore wrestling involving weapons such as barbed wire and fire. They held their f ...
(FMW), but was not allowed to be a wrestler by owner
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 ...
and instead worked as a referee for the promotion during the mid 1990s. Longing to become a wrestler, he left FMW in 1997 and joined
Ultimo Dragon
Ultimo may refer to:
* Ultimo, New South Wales
* Ulten, comune in Italy, Italian name ''Ultimo''
* Ultimo (Marvel Comics), comic books character
* Ultimo (brand), Scottish designer lingerie brand
* ''Karakuridôji Ultimo'', a Japanese manga
* Ul ...
's Toryumón Gym, where he was given the gimmick of “Dragon Kid”, a character he has used for his entire career.
Professional wrestling career
Training and early career (1994–1997)
Nobuyoshi Nakamura wanted to be a wrestler for a long time, but he was told that he was too small to become one. He started training in the
Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling
Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded on July 28, 1989, by Atsushi Onita as (FMW). The promotion specializes in hardcore wrestling involving weapons such as barbed wire and fire. They held their ...
dojo in 1994, but ended up as a referee (FMW head
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 ...
, wary of injury to smaller wrestlers from his days as a junior heavyweight in
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, ...
, prevented him from trying to achieve his potential). Nakamura never gave up his dream of being a wrestler. He was eventually introduced to
Último Dragón
(born December 12, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler and actor, better known as . In addition to having trained in Japan, Asai learned to wrestle in the lucha libre style while working in Mexico. He is credited with popularizing the "Asa ...
by Nakamura's relative
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 curre ...
, who told him that his wrestling school had no size restriction, so he entered the Último Dragón Gym.
Toryumon and Dragon Gate (1997–present)
Nakamura debuted in 1997 as a first term student, and was given the gimmick of Dragon Kid, Último Dragón's pupil, as he was perceived as the Último Dragón's heir.
He spent 1998 wrestling in Mexico, but he did some spot participation with
Michinoku Pro
(originally known as North Eastern Wrestling) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded by The Great Sasuke on October 1, 1992. It was the first independent wrestling promotion in Japan to not base its operations in Tokyo, but rather ...
and also had a short run with
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 ...
working as "Little Dragon." His only appearance on ''
Monday Nitro
''WCW Monday Nitro'', also known as ''WCW Nitro'' or simply ''Nitro'', is an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and broadcast weekly every Monday night on TNT in the United ...
'' would be a victory over
Eddie Guerrero
Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes (October 9, 1967 – November 13, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. He was a prominent member of the Guerrero wrestling family, being the son of first-generation wrestler Gory Guerrero. Eddie Guerrero is ...
via
rollup
A rollup (also "roll-up" or "roll up") is a process used by investors (commonly private equity firms) where multiple small companies in the same market are acquired and merged.
The principal aim of a rollup is to reduce costs through economies o ...
after interference.
In 1999, he debuted in Japan along with the rest of Toryumon.
In February, he captured his first title, defeating Dr. Cerebro to win the vacant NWA World Welterweight Title. He would lose the title two months later to SUWA, and in that match, he suffered a bad knee injury that put him out of action for the remainder of the year.
[ He would return to action on the first show of 2000 and proceeded to feud with SUWA. Though he failed to win the NWA World Welterweight Title back from SUWA, he did defeat him in a Mask vs. Hair match on August 24.] Shortly after winning, he was attacked by a debuting Darkness Dragon, and they started a feud that would last for a little over two years. It ended on September 8, 2002, when he defeated Darkness Dragon in a Best of Three Falls Mask vs. Mask Match, forcing Darkness to unmask.
Darkness Dragon was booted out of M2K following the loss. He announced the formation of a new stable dubbed Do FIXER, and he invited Kid and Ryo Saito to join him, and they both accepted. On October 28, after Magnum TOKYO dissolved M2K, he announced that he and the remnants of M2K were the real Do FIXER, and that Darkness Dragon - now renamed K-ness - was still a member of the group and was sent into the home army (Seikigun) to cause problems within it. It worked in that Ryo Saito was not welcomed back into Seikigun, but Dragon Kid, however, was.
When Seikigun disbanded at the end of 2002, he joined Masaaki Mochizuki
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling Noah. Mochizuki is a former FIP World Champion and three-time Open the Dream Gate Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Early years
A former karateka ...
's Shin M2K stable at the start of 2003. He stayed with the group until it dissolved in December, after Mochizuki lost a match to stablemate Kenichiro Arai
is a Japanese wrestler for Dragon Gate.
Biography
Kenichiro Arai, also known as AraKen, is a second term graduate of Último Dragón's Toryumon Japan group, and has been a mainstay on the roster ever since. He participated in FMW before joinin ...
. After that, Kid would go unaligned until mid-2004, and in May he won that year's El Numero Uno Tournament to the surprise of everyone.[ In mid-2004, he became a member of Do FIXER, and would stay in it until the very end. During his tenure with them, he won the ]Open the Brave Gate Championship
The Open the Brave Gate Championship is a professional wrestling title in Japanese promotion Dragon Gate; it has a weight limit of , though it has been defended against heavier wrestlers in the past. It can be considered the secondary singles t ...
from inaugural champion Naruki Doi in November 2005, and would hold the Open the Triangle Gate Titles with Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi
is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . He is currently a full-time wrestler for Dragon Gate. He has also competed in Wrestling Society X and Ring of Honor.
When Horiguchi's hairline began receding, the fans began t ...
on three separate occasions in 2005 and 2006.[ During the last few months of 2006, he contracted appendicitis, forcing him out of action for several months.
2007 he won his first non-Japanese promotion's championship, wXw's Lightweight Championship, in ]Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...
, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
after defeating the British wrestler PAC.
When Dragon Kid returned in early 2007, Saito decided to end Do FIXER activity following the betrayal of Genki Horiguchi, and brought him along into CIMA's new Typhoon stable. He joined them with a new look, marking the first ever change of his ring attire. When Saito and Susumu Yokosuka
, better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to Dragon Gate. He is not related to fellow Dragon Gate wrestler and long term ally/rival Masaaki Mochizuki, who debuted much earlier for WAR.
Professional w ...
started teaming together, he and CIMA started teaming up exclusively with each other, calling themselves CK-1. When CIMA was out injured in mid-2008, Dragon Kid formed a team with Shingo Takagi for that year's Summer Adventure Tag League
Summer Adventure Tag League is an annual professional wrestling tag team tournament held in the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate since 2007. It features a round-robin first round, after which the top four teams participate in the single-elimination ...
Tournament. The team proved very successful, even making it to the finals, but they lost out to the previous year's winners Naruki Doi
is a Japanese wrestler for Dragon Gate. He also wrestled for Ring of Honor (ROH) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA); in the former promotion, he was a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Shingo Takagi.
Career
Toryumon
Doi debuted in ...
and Masato Yoshino
is a retired Japanese professional wrestler, best known for working in Dragon Gate, where he was known as ''Speed Star''. Dragon Gate's second Grand Slam champion, having been a record six-time Open the Brave Gate Champion, four-time Open the ...
.
On December 28, he, Ryo Saito and Susumu Yokosuka fought a Unit Split Survival Three-Way Six-Man Tag Match against teams from WORLD-1 and Real Hazard, and they lost, bringing about the end of Typhoon. However, he did not remain unaligned for very long, for on January 11, 2009, he joined Shingo Takagi's new unit, KAMIKAZE. On February 15, he, Shingo, and Taku Iwasa won the Open the Triangle Gate titles, but they lost them two months later.[
At the end of the year, when the Generation War was going on, the Veteran-gun extended an invite to him to join their ranks. He did not accept nor reject the invitation, which eventually caused his KAMIKAZE stablemates to question where his loyalties lied. After Akira Tozawa interrupted an Ultra Hurricanrana attempt in a six-man tag match on January 11, 2010, causing them and YAMATO to lose, Kid decided to leave KAMIKAZE and side with CIMA, Gamma Susumu Yokosuka and KAGETORA in the WARRIORS-5 group, and by default the Veteran-gun.][
]
Dragon Kid turned heel on January 14, 2011, along with the rest of WARRIORS, when they attacked Masato Yoshino and World-1, and joined forces with Naruki Doi's group. On January 18 the new group was named Blood Warriors.[ On May 15, the rest of Blood Warriors turned on Dragon Kid and kicked him out of the group, despite the fact that he still held the Open the Triangle Gate Championship with CIMA and ]Ricochet
A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...
. He then joined Masaaki Mochizuki's new stable, Junction Three, to battle his former group. As a result, the title was declared vacant. On June 19 Dragon Kid gained a measure of revenge on Blood Warriors, when he and PAC defeated Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi to win the Open the Twin Gate Championship
The Open the Twin Gate Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title created and promoted by the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. Dragon Gate had used the WAR IJ Tag Team Championship since 2006, until 2007 when Masato Yoshino and Nar ...
. They would lose the title to Blood Warriors representatives CIMA and Ricochet on July 17. On February 9, 2012, Junction Three was forced to disband, after losing a fourteen-man elimination tag team match to Blood Warriors. After joining the Veteran-gun, Dragon Kid won the Open the Brave Gate Championship for the second time on May 6, defeating Ricochet. After a reign of 364 days and nine successful defenses, he lost the title to Masato Yoshino on May 5, 2013. He would go on to team with Oretachi Veteran-gun stablemate K-Ness to win the Open the Twin Gate Championship
The Open the Twin Gate Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title created and promoted by the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. Dragon Gate had used the WAR IJ Tag Team Championship since 2006, until 2007 when Masato Yoshino and Nar ...
, and with K-Ness and Masaaki Mochizuki
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling Noah. Mochizuki is a former FIP World Champion and three-time Open the Dream Gate Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Early years
A former karateka ...
, won the Open the Triangle Gate Championship
The Open the Triangle Gate Championship is a professional wrestling trios title in Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. It was created on November 7, 2004 when The Italian Connection faction of Milano Collection A.T., Anthony W. Mori and Yossino ...
. He would suffer an injury later on, and would be forced to vacate both titles. On August 17, 2014, Dragon Kid and Masaaki Mochizuki quit Oretachi Veteran-gun to form a new stable with BxB Hulk
, better known by his ring name BxB Hulk stylized as ( ), is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Dragon Gate. He was also known for his longstanding rivalry with Shingo Takagi.
Professional wrestling career
He was the seco ...
, which on September 9, 2014 would be named Dia.HEARTS. On February 4, 2016, Dia.HEARTS was forced to disband after losing a match to Monster Express and VerserK. On April 7, Dragon Kid joined the Over Generation unit.
On April 6, 2018, Kid defeated Kagetora to win the vacant Open the Brave Gate Championship for the third time.
Music career
On November 11, 2007, Dragon Gate Records (a subsidiary of Dragon Gate Wrestling) released a CD featuring music from Nakamura and Eiji Ezaki
was a Japanese professional wrestler, stage actor, musician and professional wrestling promoter, better known under the ring name . He was best known for his time with Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW), where he primarily wrestled throughout ...
(Japanese singer and retired wrestler, also known as Hayabusa).
Championships and accomplishments
* Dragon Gate
**Open the Brave Gate Championship
The Open the Brave Gate Championship is a professional wrestling title in Japanese promotion Dragon Gate; it has a weight limit of , though it has been defended against heavier wrestlers in the past. It can be considered the secondary singles t ...
( 4 times)[
**]Open the Triangle Gate Championship
The Open the Triangle Gate Championship is a professional wrestling trios title in Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. It was created on November 7, 2004 when The Italian Connection faction of Milano Collection A.T., Anthony W. Mori and Yossino ...
( 7 times) – with Ryo Saito
(born August 15, 1979) is a Japanese professional wrestler, who currently works for Dragon Gate. He is a former member of the Jimmyz stable, where he was known by the ring name Ryo "Jimmy" Saito. His name is sometimes abbreviated as SaiRyo, so ...
and Genki Horiguchi
is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . He is currently a full-time wrestler for Dragon Gate. He has also competed in Wrestling Society X and Ring of Honor.
When Horiguchi's hairline began receding, the fans began t ...
(3), Shingo Takagi
, known by his ring name Shingo Takagi (鷹木信悟, ''Takagi Shingo''), is a Japanese professional wrestler and former bodybuilder, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is the provisional KOPW 2022 champion in his first ...
and Taku Iwasa
Taku Iwasa (born November 15, 1977) is a Japanese professional wrestler best known for his work in Dragon Gate.
Career
Early
Iwasa graduated as part of the Toryumon T2P class. He initially portrayed ''Takamichi Iwasa'', a Satanic character. ...
(1), Cima and Ricochet
A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...
(1), K-ness. and Masaaki Mochizuki
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling Noah. Mochizuki is a former FIP World Champion and three-time Open the Dream Gate Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Early years
A former karateka ...
(1), and Big R Shimizu and Masaaki Mochizuki (1)[
**]Open the Twin Gate Championship
The Open the Twin Gate Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title created and promoted by the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. Dragon Gate had used the WAR IJ Tag Team Championship since 2006, until 2007 when Masato Yoshino and Nar ...
( 3 times) – with Pac (1), K-ness. (1), and Cima (1)
*''Pro Wrestling Illustrated
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publish ...
''
**Ranked No. 106 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500
''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishi ...
in 2006
*Toryumon Japan
operating as and often referred to simply as Dragon Gate (also stylized as Dragongate (ラゴンゲート, Doragongēto)), is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion formerly known as Toryumon Japan. Most of the promotion's wrestlers are ...
**El Numero Uno (2004)[
**]NWA World Welterweight Championship
The NWA World Welterweight Championship ( es, Campeonato Mundial Welter de NWA) is an inactive professional wrestling championship governed by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and most recently promoted by NWA Mexico. The championship was ori ...
( 1 time)
**UWA World Trios Championship
The UWA World Trios Championship is a tag team professional wrestling championship created by the Mexican Universal Wrestling Association and defended there until the UWA closed in 1995. Since then, the championship has been defended in various p ...
( 3 times) – with Magnum Tokyo and Ryo Saito
(born August 15, 1979) is a Japanese professional wrestler, who currently works for Dragon Gate. He is a former member of the Jimmyz stable, where he was known by the ring name Ryo "Jimmy" Saito. His name is sometimes abbreviated as SaiRyo, so ...
(1), with Masaaki Mochizuki
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling Noah. Mochizuki is a former FIP World Champion and three-time Open the Dream Gate Champion.
Professional wrestling career
Early years
A former karateka ...
and Kenichiro Arai
is a Japanese wrestler for Dragon Gate.
Biography
Kenichiro Arai, also known as AraKen, is a second term graduate of Último Dragón's Toryumon Japan group, and has been a mainstay on the roster ever since. He participated in FMW before joinin ...
(1) and Kenichiro Arai and Second Doi (1)[The UWA Closed in 1995, since then various UWA titles have been used by promotions in Mexico and Japan, this title was promoted by Toryumon Japan at the time Dragon Kid won it.]
*Westside Xtreme Wrestling
Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its event ...
**wXw World Lightweight Championship (1 time)
*''Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four We ...
''
**Best Flying Wrestler
This is a list of both active and inactive ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll between ...
(2001)[
** Best Wrestling Maneuver (1999, 2000) ][
** Match of the Year (2006) ][
]
Notes
References
External links
Profile at kaz.theshoppe.com
*
Dragon Kid Official Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dragon Kid
1976 births
Japanese male professional wrestlers
Living people
People from Tōkai, Aichi
Sportspeople from Aichi Prefecture
Masked wrestlers
20th-century professional wrestlers
21st-century professional wrestlers
NWA World Welterweight Champions
UWA World Trios Champions
Open the Brave Gate Champions
Open the Twin Gate Champions
Open the Triangle Gate Champions