, born July 18, 1969), 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 o ...

, promoter and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, currently wrestling for

Michinoku Pro Wrestling (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 ...

(MPW) under the ring name . Aside from professional wrestling, he is also a former

Iwate Prefectural Assembly The is the prefectural parliament of Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Its 48 members are elected every four years in 16 districts by single non-transferable vote. The assembly is responsible for enacting and amending prefectural ordinances, approving ...

legislator. He has wrestled in Japan and in 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 ...

in various

professional wrestling promotion A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling that has little relationship to the rules of the amateur olympic form. "Promotion" also describes a role which entails man ...

s. He is said to have an incredible tolerance for pain, mainly in reference to the injuries he has had including a cracked

skull The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, th ...

on two occasions.

Professional wrestling career

Universal Lucha Libre (1990-1993)

After failing the entrance exams to

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Puroresu, Japanese professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, 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 ...

, Murakawa joined

Universal Lucha Libre Universal Lucha Libre (Universal Pro-Wrestling until 1991; Federación Universal de Lucha Libre afterward; UWF and FULL used as acronyms) was a professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1990 to 1995. The name Universal Lucha Libre is used to ...

and had his debut on March 1, 1990 against Monkey Magic Wakita. He later adopted the name Masa Michinoku, derived from his own given name and the alternate name for his Japanese home region of Tōhoku, Michinoku. He portrayed a Japanese folkloric gimmick who wore a cloak and a sandogasa hat in his ring entrance, which he traded for a white ''

ōendan An , literally "cheering squad" or "cheering section", is a Japanese sports rallying team similar in purpose to a cheerleading squad in the United States, but relies more on making a lot of noise with taiko drums, blowing horns and other items ...

'' gakuran every time he wrestled abroad. His underling

Taka Michinoku (born October 26, 1973), better known by his ring name (with his first name usually stylized in all capital letters), is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. Michinoku is known in North America for his work for t ...

would receive a similar character. During a tour in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

for

Universal Wrestling Association The Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) was a Mexican ''Lucha Libre'' or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995. The name of the actual promotion was Lucha Libre Internacional (LLI) ...

, Murakawa adopted the character of Ninja Sasuke, a

ninja A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance, espionage, infiltration, deception, ambush, bodyguarding and their fighting skills in martial arts, including ninjutsu.Kawakami, pp. 2 ...

gimmick inspired by the legendary

Sarutobi Sasuke is a ninja who appears in kōdan narrative art and fictional writings. The nickname is generally believed to have been concocted from Meiji to the Taishō period. Some argue he is based on real live personages, such as and . His family name, ...

. He started wearing a black bodysuit with a matching

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...

, and utilized a wrestling style set between lucha libre and martial arts. Upon returning to Japan after a second Mexico tour, he finally tweaked his name to The Great Sasuke, and adopted a red, black and white mask patterned after

kumadori is the stage makeup worn by kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance- drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by ...

makeup, reminiscent of the one worn by fellow Japanese wrestler Mach Hayato. Shortly after, Sasuke proclaimed he was going to found a professional wrestling promotion in Tohoku, initially thought as an ULL branch, and left the promotion with a large group of wrestlers. He would found

, the first Japanese

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

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 ...

not to be based around the

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 ...

area.

Michinoku Pro Wrestling (1993-present)

Junior competition

MPW kicked off in March 1993, when Sasuke and the rest of babyface wrestlers entered an intense feud against the villainous

Super Delfín is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently runs Kaisen Puroresu and is also working as a wrestler there. He is better known by his stage name . Professional wrestling career New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1989, 1994) Hiroto Wakita joined N ...

and his Delfín Corps. This rivalry would last many years. Great Sasuke 2

In 1994, New Japan Pro-Wrestling celebrated the first '' Super J Cup'', a junior heavyweight tournament for wrestlers from all over the world. Sasuke was drafted and reached the finals after beating NJPW favourites

Jushin Thunder Liger , better known as and later , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is the longest-tenured member of the NJPW roster, having wrestled for the company since h ...

and

El Samurai Satyam Kumar (born 06 August 1997), known professionally as Technical Satyam, is an Indian YouTube personality based in the UAE. Chaudhary is notable for producing YouTube videos concerning graphics and technology in English and Hindi. In 202 ...

, but fell to

Wild Pegasus Christopher Michael Benoit (; May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He worked for various pro-wrestling promotions during his 22-year career including most notably the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling ...

at the end. Despite his loss, Sasuke represented Michinoku Pro excellently and allowed for it to receive national coverage, and he himself became one of the most popular junior wrestlers in Japan. The same year, Sasuke competed in the similar NJPW ''Super Grade Jr. Heavyweight Tag League'', where he teamed up with

Black Tiger A black tiger is a rare colour variant of the tiger, and is not a distinct species or geographic subspecies. Description There are reports and one painting (now lost) of pure black non-striped tigers (true melanistic tigers). Most black mammal ...

. As with the previous, Sasuke and Tiger amassed a high number of wins and came to the finals, but were eliminated there by Wild Pegasus 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 ...

. Sasuke also participated in the first ''Fukumen World League'', hosted by Michinoku Pro Wrestling in 1995 and admitting only

masked wrestler A wrestling mask is a fabric-based mask that some Professional wrestling, professional wrestlers wear as part of their in-ring persona or gimmick (professional wrestling), gimmick. Professional wrestlers have been using masks as far back as 1915 ...

s. Sasuke was defeated in the final round by

Dos Caras José Luis Rodríguez Arellano (born February 21, 1951) is a Mexican '' Luchador Enmascarado'' (masked professional wrestler) who wrestles under the ring name Dos Caras (Spanish for "two faces"). His most active years were in the 1970s and 1980 ...

. In April 1996, Sasuke returned to NJPW and defeated Liger for the

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling world junior heavyweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . Only wrestlers under the junior heavyweight weight-limit may ho ...

, which he defended five times at both NJPW and MPW. His reign, along with his next title win over NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion

Masayoshi Motegi Masayoshi Motegi (茂木正淑) (born November 24, 1962) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler. He is known for his background in karate and the innovation of the Rolling German suplex. He also has been a staple of Big Japan Pro Wrestling, ...

and WWF Light Heavyweight and WWA World Junior Light Heavyweight double champion El Samurai, would lead to the creation of the

J Crown The J-Crown (also known as J-Crown Octuple Unified Championship) was formed originally by New Japan Pro-Wrestling as a way of unifying eight junior heavyweight and cruiserweight titles from several different organizations. The J-Crown tournament ...

title, with Sasuke winning it in the final of a tournament against Último Dragón on August. For two months, Sasuke was one of the most decorated wrestlers in history, until he lost all of it to Dragón in

Wrestle Association R Wrestle Association R (formerly known as Wrestle and Romance and abbreviated as WAR) was a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded and run by Genichiro Tenryu as the successor to Super World of Sports, and which lasted from 1992 to 200 ...

. In February 1997, Sasuke and several of his MPW teammates made a pair of appearances for

Extreme Championship Wrestling HHG Corporation, doing business as Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), was a professional wrestling promotion and media company that was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The promotion was founded in 1992 by Tod Gordon as National Wrest ...

in United States. In July, he and

also wrestled two matches for

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

, one of them at In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede. It was apparent that Sasuke would sign up with WWF, but it was Michinoku who ended up being signed on his place for unknown reasons.

Varied storylines

Upon returning to Japan, Sasuke and

Tiger Mask IV is a Japanese professional wrestler, best known for being the fourth man to portray . He currently works for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) where he is a former 6-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion and 2-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team ...

began feuding with two heel doppelgängers, Sasuke the Great and Masked Tiger (played respectively by Masao Orihara and Takeshi Ono), aside from usual villain Super Delfín. Around this time, however, Sasuke would take repeated hiatuses in order to have time to heal injuries, which led him to clash against other wrestlers, most particularly Delfín, who accused him of being unfit to lead the promotion. This dissension would end up switching their respective alignment, with Delfín joining the home army and turning into the promotion's ace while Sasuke turned heel for the first time on his career and became an egotistical overlord. He would even change his mask, replacing its red stripes for blue stripes, as well as his name, leaving it as just "Sasuke" written in all caps. Sasuke would create his personal villainous stable, Sasuke Group, by allying with resident heels and summoning Crazy Max ( Shiima Nobunaga's punk faction) from Toryumon. 卍固め

The battle between the Sasuke Group and the rest of Michinoku wrestlers would have the effect of fracturing the promotion, as

Dick Togo , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. Togo is currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a member of the Bullet Club stable, and its sub-group House of Torture. Togo has spent the majority of ...

and Super Delfin had their own feud about the latter's role in the babyface team. After Togo humiliated Delfín by forcing him to crawl between his legs and later caused a riot by abusing him further, Sasuke adopted the same approach against Delfín in their battles, which eventually led to his departure from MPW to form

Osaka Pro Wrestling Osaka Pro Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded in 1998 by Super Delfin. The promotion held a major flagship event called the Osaka Hurricane each year from 2003 to 2012 and also hosted the fourth edition of the Sup ...

due to both

kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe, as a noun, is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not staged ...

and real dissatisfaction with the angle. Sasuke continued his war on MPW until 1999, when he was forcefully turned face again after

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 ...

" exorcized the evil out of him." Now devoid of talent due to the absence of wrestlers who had left with Delfín and other ventures, MPW was left in ruins, a situation the now heroic Sasuke vowed to mend. In 1999 he won the

NWA World Middleweight Championship The NWA World Middleweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) between 1939 and 2010. For most of its existence, it was defended in the Mexican '' lucha libre'' promotion Consejo Mundial ...

vacated by old rival

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 * ...

. Although the tournament was promoted by Ultimo's Toryumon Japan promotion, Sasuke took the title to his base at Michinoku and styled himself a "traveling world champion" in the style of

NWA World Heavyweight Champion 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 i ...

s from the 1960-80s. In 2001, Sasuke had a feud in Michinoku Pro against a returning Dick Togo and his sable, Far East Connection. Sasuke left the running of the promotion to Shinzaki in 2003 to focus on his political career, handing the president job to him. He lost the NWA title to Último Dragón, who then vacated it in preparation for his

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

career. The same year, Sasuke reconciled with Super Delfín for a special match on November 2 by mediation of Shinzaki.

Toryumon X era

In 2004, Sasuke became a regular wrestler for Hustle, where he played a lieutenant role to "Hustle Captain" Naoya Ogawa. At the same time, with MPW now repopulated by most of the fallen Toryumon X wrestlers, Sasuke commanded the Michinoku home army against the new top heel faction, Los Salseros Japoneses (

Takeshi Minamino , (born December 24, 1985) better known by the ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. He wrestles in Michinoku Pro Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. Professional wrestling career Toryumon (2002-2004) Yamamoto made his pro wrestling ...

, Pineapple Hanai and

Mango Fukuda (born June 27, 1982) is a Japanese professional wrestler. He currently wrestles as a freelancer in the Japanese independent circuit and as a regular in Secret Base. Professional wrestling career Toryumon (2003–2004) A Último Dragón Gym g ...

). He formed tag teams with Dick Togo and Garuda, but also joined Kei and Shu Sato to try to reform Sailor Boys, the boy band stable they formed in Toryumon with

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 ...

. However, this was short-lived, as the Sato brothers turned heel the same year and joined Kagetora to create Stoned, the next great heel stable. Sasuke spent 2006 in an interpromotional feud with

, eventually having a degree of reconciliation with Super Delfin in the ring, and continued wrestling in Hustle and other promotions, allying with

tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in America were described as " ...

Hitomi Kaikawa in her wrestling debut. The same year, after a series of challenges, Sasuke initiated the tradition of the , a garbage wrestling event where he would face off against the Sato brothers under outrageous costumed identities and fantastic storylines. After sitting out of most of 2007 due to his political career, he returned to form a tag team with upcoming ace Yoshitsune. Stoned disappeared later in the year, leaving place for the rise of Kowloon, a traitorous faction apparently led by Hayato Fujita. Yoshitsune departed at the end of 2008, leaving Sasuke and Shinzaki to delegate the Michinoku Seikigun on Kenou. In 2010, Sasuke's old enemy Ultimo Dragón appeared to reveal himself as the master behind Kowloon. In August 2009, months after unsuccessfully challenging Fujita for the Tohoku Junior Heavyweight Championship, Sasuke adopted a gimmick based on Randy "The Ram" Robinson,

Mickey Rourke Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. (; born September 16, 1952) is an American actor and former boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. During the star of the 1980s, Rourke played supporting roles i ...

's character from the professional wrestling film ''

The Wrestler The Wrestler may refer to: * ''The Wrestler'' (1974 film), an American film directed by James A. Westman * ''The Wrestler'' (2008 film), an American film directed by Darren Aronofsky * "The Wrestler" (song), a song from the 2008 film written and ...

''. He started wrestling barechested for the first time in his career, donned green tights with, and adopted a taunting diving headbutt just like the film character. He abandoned the impersonation after a couple years, though he retained the custom to wear only shorter tights as opposed to his old bodysuit. On April 15, 2011, Sasuke returned to the United States to wrestle for Chikara in the 2011 King of Trios tournament, where he would represent Michinoku Pro with

and Jinsei Shinzaki. In their first round match Team Michinoku Pro defeated Team Minnesota ( 1-2-3 Kid,

Arik Cannon Arik Cannon (born December 23, 1981) is an American professional wrestler known for competing in companies such as Chikara, Dragon Gate USA, IWA Mid-South, All American Wrestling and Wrestling Society X. He also runs the Minneapolis-based wr ...

and Darin Corbin). The following day, Team Michinoku Pro defeated

Jigsaw Jigsaw may refer to: * Jigsaw (tool), a tool used for cutting arbitrary curves * Jigsaw puzzle, a tiling puzzle that requires the assembly of interlocking pieces Arts and media Comics * Jigsaw (Marvel Comics), a supervillain and arch-enemy of ...

Manami Toyota is a retired professional wrestler, best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) promotion. She is considered to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. Following AJW's closure, she continued to work ...

and

Mike Quackenbush Michael Spillane (born March 18, 1976), is an American podcaster, author, professional wrestling trainer, professional wrestling promoter, and retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Mike Quackenbush. He has hosted several ...

to advance to the semifinals of the tournament. On April 17, Team Michinoku Pro was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinal stage by F.I.S.T. ( Chuck Taylor, Icarus and

Johnny Gargano John Anthony Nicholas Gargano (born August 14, 1987) is an American professional wrestler best known under the ring name Johnny Gargano. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is best known for his time in NXT, wh ...

Mu no Taiyo

At the end of 2013, Sasuke took part in the classic "Great Space War" match, where he performed a striptease with Macho Pump parodying the film ''

Magic Mike ''Magic Mike'' is a 2012 American comedy-drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, and Matthew McConaughey. The plot revolves around Adam, a 19-year-old who enters the wor ...

''. However, for the first time in the history of GSW, Kei and Shu Sato (now known as the Brahman Brothers) defeated Sasuke after the latter crashed in a dangerous stunt, which prompted him to reflect about the state of things. Sasuke then said he knew the Brahmans were attempting to protect the Earth from alien invaders, and asked them to join forces to fight for the greater good. This led to the creation of Mu no Taiyo, a '' shinshūkyō'' cult-themed stable, with Sasuke posing as their messianic

leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

under a new mask modified to resemble the Brahmans. It marked the first time Sasuke had turned heel in many years. Mu no Taiyo opposed the Michinoku home army, but had a particular beef with popular tag team of Yapper Man 1 and Yapper Man 2, as well as New Phase, the new team of Ayumu Gunji and Daichi Sasaki. In early 2021, the Brahman Brothers kicked Sasuke out of Mu no Taiyo following a loss to the Yapper Men and GAINA. Two months later, Sasuke would reunite with Shinozaki and the two would beat Mu no Taiyo for the MPW Tohoku Tag Team Championships and the UWA World Tag Team Championships.

Other media

In 1999, Sasuke performed on '' Sasuke'', the popular Japanese obstacle course competition. In the Third Competition, he got stuck at the Rolling Log and timed out on the Hill Climb. When the name SASUKE was translated into "Ninja Warrior" for the

, the translators ignored his wrestling background and called him "The Great Ninja Warrior". Sasuke is also part of the rock band Crazy Crew with

Ricky Fuji Ricky may refer to: Places *Říčky (Brno-Country District), a village and municipality in the Czech Republic *Říčky v Orlických horách, a village in the north of the Czech Republic *Rickmansworth, a town in England sometimes called "Ricky" ...

and Ken45°.

2009 arrest

On February 19, 2009, Sasuke was arrested for assault after kicking a 36-year-old man and grabbing him by the shirt collar. Sasuke was reported to be angry because his picture was being taken with a

cellphone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...

camera. The incident happened on a JR Joban Line train at Minamisenju Station. However, all charges were dropped and was released from jail on February 21, after serving 40 hours in jail, after Sasuke apologized to the man. The man who took Sasuke's photograph was said to not have known who he was and thought he was just some crazy person wearing a mask in public.

Political career

On April 13, 2003, Sasuke won election to the

, making him the first actual masked legislator in history. He is the fourth Japanese wrestler to get elected to office. Antonio Inoki,

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 ser ...

and

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 ...

preceded him, though all of them were elected to the

Japanese Diet The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a parall ...

at the national level. Sasuke lost in his bid to become governor of Iwate in the 2007 election.

Championships and accomplishments

* Active Advance Pro Wrestling :*Chiba Six Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Brahman Shu and Brahman Kei *

DDT Pro-Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Its name stands for Dramatic Dream Team, which was the promotion's official name from 1997 to 2004. Founded in March 1997 by Shintaro Muto, the promotion was eventually bo ...

Greater China Unified Zhongyuan Tag Team Championship The was a professional wrestling championship in the Japanese promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling. The title was introduced in 2011, in DDT's parodic sub-brand New Beijing Pro-Wrestling. History In storyline, this title was once held by Chinese histo ...

( 1 time) – 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 Independent World Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling championship that is being defended in various independent promotions in Japan. The title was originally created in 1993 by Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling. There have been a total of forty-four reigns spread over ...

( 1 time) *Japan Indie Awards :*Best Unit Award (2014) with Brahman Kei and Brahman Shu :*MVP Award (2008) *

British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Championship The British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship that although being created in England, it gained its biggest notoriety in Japan. Not long after its creation the title made its way to Michinoku Pro ...

(

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...

) :*

Tohoku Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling championship contested in Michinoku Pro Wrestling, where it is the primary singles title, and is strictly for junior heavyweights. It was created on August 25, 2002, when Dick Togo defeated Tiger Mask in a round ...

( 3 times) :*

Tohoku Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the Japanese professional wrestling promotion Michinoku Pro Wrestling. There have been a total of 33 reigns shared between 25 different teams consisting of 33 indivi ...

( 4 times, current) – with

(1), Yoshitsune (1), Brahman Kei (1) and

(1) :*

UWA World Tag Team Championship The UWA World Tag Team Championship is a tag team professional wrestling championship created by the Mexican Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) and defended there until the UWA closed in 1995. After the UWA's closing, the title was inactive unt ...

( 1 time, current) – with Jinsei Shinzaki :*Fukumen World League (2012) :*Futaritabi Tag Team League (1995) – with Kato Kung Lee :*Futaritabi Tag Team League (1997) – with Super Delfin :*Michinoku Trios League (2005) – with Jinsei Shinzaki and

Kesen Numajiro is a Japanese professional wrestler and singer, better known for his ring name . He has had a long career in Michinoku Pro Wrestling, where he currently wrestles, being a three-time Tohoku Tag Team champion and a one-time Tohoku Junior Heavyweigh ...

( 1 time) :*

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . The title was introduced on August 8, 1998, at an NJPW live event. The IWGP Juni ...

( 1 time) – with

J-Crown The J-Crown (also known as J-Crown Octuple Unified Championship) was formed originally by New Japan Pro-Wrestling as a way of unifying eight junior heavyweight and cruiserweight titles from several different organizations. The J-Crown tournament ...

( 1 time) :*

NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship The NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Created in 1945, the title is competed for by junior heavyweight wrestlers. History The first NWA World Junior ...

( 1 time) :*

( 1 time)¹ :*

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 Junior Light Heavyweight Championship The UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundia de Peso Semicompleto Junior UWA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship that was originally promoted by the Mexican lucha libre professional wrestling) promot ...

( 1 time) :*

WWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship The WWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundial Semi Completo de WWA'' in Spanish) is a singles professional wrestling championship promoted by the Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling based promotion World Wrestling Association (WWA) ...

( 1 time) :*

WAR International Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion Tenryu Project. The title was established in 1995 in Wrestle Association R (WAR). There have been a total of 24 reigns shared between 17 ...

( 1 time) :*One Night Eight Man Tag Team Tournament (1994) – with

Gran Hamada , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler, the first to adopt the high-flying Mexican lucha libre style. He has wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the Universal Wrestling Federation, Michinoku Pro and All Japan Pro ...

and

:*Junior Heavyweight Super Grade Tag League (1996) – with

Black Tiger II Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes (October 9, 1967 – November 13, 2005) was an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He was a prominent member of the Guerrero family, Guerrero wrestling family, being the son of first-generation w ...

Osaka Pro Wrestling Tag Team Championship The is the top tag team title in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion Osaka Pro Wrestling. The title was established in 2001 when Daio Quallt and Gamma won a seven-team round-robin tournament to win the inaugural titles. Being a prof ...

(1 time) – with Asian Cooger *''

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 ...

'' :*PWI ranked him # 23 of the best 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 Publi ...

in 1996 and 1997 :*PWI ranked him # 92 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003 *''

Tokyo Sports is a Japanese daily sports newspaper founded in 1960. See also * Tokyo Sports Film Award * Tokyo Sports Puroresu Awards The are Japanese professional wrestling, or ''puroresu'', awards that have been handed out by the ''Tokyo Sports'' mag ...

'' :* Topic Award (1993) * Universal Wrestling Association / Universal Wrestling Federation :*

UWA/UWF Intercontinental Tag Team Championship The UWA/UWF Intercontinental Tag Team Championship was a tag team championship created from the working relationship between the Mexican Universal Wrestling Association and the Japanese Universal Lucha Libre (also called Universal Wrestling Fed ...

(

) – with

(1) and Sasuke the Great (1) * World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment :*

WWF Light Heavyweight Championship The WWF Light Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) promotion. The title was challenged by light heavyweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs (before deactivation, ...

(

)² *

World Wrestling Association The World Wrestling Association (WWA) (Asociación Mundial de Lucha Libre in Spanish) is a lucha libre promotion based in the Tijuana-area of Mexico. It was founded in 1986 by Benjamin Mora Jr.. It featured some of Mexico's best ''luchadores'' a ...

:*WWA World Middleweight 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 W ...

'' :*

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 ...

(1994) :* Best Wrestling Maneuver (1994) The Sasuke Special ¹This championship is promoted by

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...

(CMLL), it was on loan to them from New Japan Pro-Wrestling when he won it. Also, despite the title still using the NWA initials, it is no longer recognized or sanctioned as a world title by the National Wrestling Alliance. The same goes for the

.
²Despite winning the title twice, neither of the reigns are recognized by

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and va ...

. No reigns with the title prior to December 1997 are recognized by the WWE.WWE: Inside WWE > Title History > Light Heavyweight
/ref>

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sasuke, The Great 1969 births Japanese sportsperson-politicians Japanese male professional wrestlers Professional wrestling executives Living people People from Morioka, Iwate Sasuke (TV series) contestants Masked wrestlers Members of the Iwate Prefectural Assembly IWGP Junior Heavyweight champions IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions NWA World Middleweight Champions NWA World Welterweight Champions British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Champions UWA World Welterweight Champions Tohoku Junior Heavyweight Champions Tohoku Tag Team Champions UWA World Tag Team Champions UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Champions Independent World Junior Heavyweight Champions Tenryu Project International Junior Heavyweight Champions Chiba Six Man Tag Team Champions