, better known by his ring name Yo-Hey (stylised in all capital letters), is a Japanese

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 signed to

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 ...

(Noah). Fujita started his career in Dragon Gate (DG) under the ring name Ryoma (stylised in all capitals); his ring name being a tribute to former Japanese movement leader Ryoma Sakamoto. In 2009, Fujita left Dragon Gate due to an animal abuse scandal, and took an extended hiatus from professional wrestling until he returned in 2011 for Smash. He later wrestled for

Wrestling New Classic was a Japanese ''puroresu'' or professional wrestling promotion, founded in April 2012 by Yoshihiro Tajiri. WNC was the follow-up promotion to Smash, which folded in March 2012. History On April 5, 2012, Tajiri held a press conference to annou ...

(WNC) until 2013 when he left to become a freelancer, before signing with Noah in September 2017.

Early life

Fujita has a background in

Shorinji Kempo is a Japanese martial art claimed to be a modified version of Shaolin Kung Fu. The name ''Shōrinji Kempo'' is the Japanese reading of ''Shàolínsì Quánfǎ''. It was established in 1947 by , a Japanese martial artist and former military ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

, and

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...

. After graduating from the Human Academy Sports College, he began training in the Dragon Gate dojo.

Professional wrestling career

Dragon Gate (2008–2009)

Fujita made his debut in Dragon Gate (DG) under his real name on December 22, 2008, against Kenshin Chikano. On March 20, 2009, during a Nex show, he joined Warriors-5 and changed his ring name to RYOMA in tribute to Ryoma Sakamoto. In mid 2009, an animal abuse scandal was causing an uproar in Dragon Gate surrounding the pet monkey, Cora. Fujita was one of the accused wrestlers who were involved in the abuse of Cora, and was put on an indefinite disciplinary measure. Then, Fujita announced his retirement from pro-wrestling due to the issues that were surrounding the whole situation.

Smash and Wrestling New Classic (2011–2013)

In 2011, Fujita moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

for a short stay in the Funaki Dojo, run by

Sho Funaki (born August 24, 1968) is a Japanese professional wrestler and color commentator signed to WWE, where he is a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Hardcore Champion. He currently works for WWE as a Japanese-language play-by-play co ...

. He would then return to Japan under the ring name Yo-Hey, and received a tryout match in Smash which he passed. He made his re-debut in 2011, losing to Akira, but would leave Smash later in the year due to a disagreement between Smash owner Tajiri and financial backer Masakazu Sakai. After that, he debuted in

alongside

Yusuke Kodama is a Japanese professional wrestler and currently wrestlers for All Japan Pro Wrestling as a freelancer. Kodama is best known for his time with Wrestle-1 (W-1), where he is a former two time UWA World Trios Champion, two time Wrestle-1 Cruiser ...

, losing to

Mikey Whipwreck John Michael Watson (born June 4, 1973), better known by his ring name Mikey Whipwreck, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler working for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a trainer, and global ambassador. He is best known for his career w ...

and Tajiri on May 26, 2012. He left WNC to become a freelancer in 2013.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (2012, 2014–2016)

In 2012, he began competing 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, ...

(AJPW) under the ring name Gillette, participating the 2012 AJPW Junior Tag League with Kai, finishing with 4 points and failing to make it to the finals. He would return participating in the 2012 Junior Hyper League finishing his block with 2 points and failing to advance. After that, he would make sporadic appearances as Yo-Hey until 2016 when he made his last appearance, teaming with

Sushi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...

and losing to Billyken Kid and Toru.

Freelancer (2013–2017)

After he left Wrestling New Classic (WNC) in 2013, he began making appearances in Doutonbori Pro Wrestling (DPW) and participated in the 2013 Doutonbori Tag King Decision League with Hayata finishing with 8 points but failing to advance to the finals. He would later begin making appearances in Dove Pro Wrestling (Dove Pro), where he participated in the tournament to crown the new #1 contenders to the Dove Pro Tag Team Championship where he and Ippei made in to the finals but lost to Billyken Kid and Rey Paloma. In 2014, he participated in the Dotonbori Saikyou Otoko Tournament, losing to Shoichi Uchida in the 2nd round. In July 2015, he took part in a tryout with WWE. On April 2, 2016, he won his first championship with Kenshin Chikano as the Gingin Boys, defeating Black Buffalo and Tsubasa and Gunso and Hayata for the Dove Pro Tag Team Championship in a TLC match. They lost the titles to

Jun Kasai (born September 9, 1974) is a Japanese professional wrestler, primarily competing for Pro Wrestling Freedoms. Dubbed the for his violent and often self-harmful style of hardcore wrestling, Kasai is considered a breakthrough talent in Japanese w ...

and GUNSO on November 26. Afterwards, they would split up due to Yo-Hey focus on wrestle in NOAH.

Pro Wrestling Noah (2016–present)

In December 2016, he began appearing in

(Noah) after president Masayuki Uchida announced that he would allow freelancers to wrestle in Noah. On January 14, 2017, he made his debut in Noah, defeating Rionne Fujiwara. Later in January 2017, Yo-Hey and Hayata defeated

Hi69 is a Japanese professional wrestler better known by his ring name Hi69 (pronounced as Hiroki). He is currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah. Since debuting in 2000, Tanabe has frequently worked for Kaientai Dojo, Michinoku Pro Wrestling, Apache P ...

and

Taiji Ishimori is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he wrestles as part of the Bullet Club. He is the current IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion in his third reign, and is also a one-time NEVER Openweight 6 ...

. After the match, Yo-Hey and Hayata stated that they wanted a match for the vacant

GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions The is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Noah, contested exclusively among junior heavyweight wrestlers. It was created on July 16, 2003 when Kenta and Naomichi Marufuji defeated Jushin Thunder Liger an ...

. This led to a feud for the vacant GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships between XX (Ishimori and Hi69) and Hayata and Yo-Hey. On February 18, he and Hayata failed to capture the vacant GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, losing to Hi69 and Ishimori. Three days later, Hayata and Yo-Hey came together with

Daisuke Harada (born November 13, 1986) is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah. He’s a four-time GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion and a six-time GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion. Harada is also known for his time ...

and

Tadasuke , known mononymously as is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah. He is best known for his work in Osaka Pro Wrestling, where he is a former one-time Osaka Pro Wrestling Champion, three-time Osaka Pro Wrestli ...

to form a new stable named Ratel's. On August 26, Yo-Hey and Hayata defeated XX in a rematch to become the new GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. On September 3, Noah announced that Yo-Hey had signed an exclusive contract with the promotion, ending his days as a freelancer.

Championships and accomplishments

* Dragon Gate **

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 ...

( 1 time) – with Atsushi Kotoge and

*Dove Pro Wrestling **Dove Pro Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kenshin Chikano *

GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Noah, contested exclusively among junior heavyweight wrestlers. It was created on July 16, 2003 when Kenta and Naomichi Marufuji defeated Jushin Thunder Liger an ...

( 4 times) – with Hayata (2),

Atsushi Kotoge (born October 18, 1985) is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah, where he is a former one-time GHC Tag Team Champion, three-time GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion and record eleven-time GHC Junior Heavyweight T ...

(1) and

Kzy KZY was a radio station located in Oakland, California, that was licensed to the Atlantic-Pacific Radio Supplies Company from December 9, 1921, until its deletion on January 24, 1923. It, and the Preston D. Allen station, KZM, were the first broa ...

(1) ** Global Junior Heavyweight Tag League (

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

) – with Hayata

References

{{Navboxes, , list1= {{GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship {{Pro Wrestling Noah personnel {{Open the Triangle Gate Championship 1993 births Living people Sportspeople from Hyōgo Prefecture Japanese male professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Open the Triangle Gate Champions