(born June 9, 1974) is a Japanese comedian,

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 ...

and ''

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 "ta ...

'' ("talent") better known for his performing name of , which he adopted from his comedy partner Razor Ramon Hard Gay. He is better known for his work in Hustle and TV appearances.

Professional wrestling career

While at college he picked up wrestling as a hobby and soon joined the Doshisha Professional Wrestling Alliance (DWA). Along with his longtime friend Masaki "GiveUp" Sumitani, he won the tag team championship co-hosted by DWA and the Ritsumeikan Wrestling Alliance (RWA) of nearby

Ritsumeikan University is a private university in Kyoto, Japan, that traces its origin to 1869. With the Kinugasa Campus (KIC) in Kyoto, and Kyoto Prefecture, the university also has a satellite called Biwako-Kusatsu Campus (BKC) and Osaka-Ibaraki Campus (OIC). Tod ...

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the cit ...

. Current

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 ...

member

Hiroshi Tanahashi is a Japanese professional wrestler. He works primarily for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, his accolades in NJPW include a record setting eight reigns as IWGP Heavywe ...

was also a participant of these events. In 2006, Izubuchi debuted in the pro wrestling promotion Hustle, where Sumitani was working as his character Razor Ramon Hard Gay. Izubuchi first appeared in Hustle auditions as a Hard Gay parody before renaming himself Razor Ramon Real Gay. His

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand out ...

was similar to Hard Gay's, but adding a

rastafari Rastafari, sometimes called Rastafarianism, is a religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s. It is classified as both a new religious movement and a social movement by scholars of religion. There is no central authority in control ...

wig A wig is a head or hair accessory made from human hair, animal hair, or synthetic fiber. The word wig is short for periwig, which makes its earliest known appearance in the English language in William Shakespeare's ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona' ...

and a characteristic dance during his entrance. Initially working as Hustle's unpopular general manager along with

Hiroko Suzuki , née , (born 1974) is a Japanese politician, professional wrestling valet, occasional professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter best known in the United States for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment on its ''SmackDow ...

, Real Gay was challenged by Monster Army member

Kenzo Suzuki is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and in the United States with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), where he was a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion in the lat ...

, Hiroko's husband, who stipulated that if he was the winner, she would be appointed the only GM. Unfortunately for RG, he was squashed by Suzuki and lost his job. RG then became a regular wrestler for the Hustle Army, but he proved to be a comically weak contender and spent his early years being brutally beaten by each opponent he faced. Despite his losses, his never-say-die attitude and charisma made turned him into a favorite among Hustle fans. He used a humorous wrestling style, wearing a red

fundoshi is a traditional Japanese undergarment for adult males and females, made from a length of cotton. Before World War II, the was the main form of underwear for Japanese men and women. However, it fell out of use quickly after the war with th ...

under his tights (which he would display to perform his signature stink face) and

selling Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in ...

exaggeratedly whenever he received an atomic drop. He formed a

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

with Hard Gay, which resembled their old manzai duo.

Comedy

It was through wrestling in their college years, that Izubuchi met

Masaki Sumitani (born on December 18, 1975) is a Japanese comedian, retired professional wrestler, and ''tarento'' ("talent") also known under his performing name of , which he adopted from Razor Ramon. His act was featured on the '' Bakusho Mondai no Bakuten! ...

, with whom he would later form the comedy duo "Razor Ramon", the name inspired by the character portrayed by professional wrestler

Scott Hall Scott Oliver Hall (October 20, 1958 – March 14, 2022) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenures with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under his real name and under the ring name the Diamond Studd and with the ...

, in 1997. During their college years, Razor Ramon won the Fukuwarai award in the Imamiya Kids' Ebisu Manzai Contest and gained experience on the stage through the audition live performance SABUKI at 2chome-gekijo, an

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

comedy club opened by the

Yoshimoto Kogyo is a major Japanese entertainment conglomerate. It was founded in 1912, Osaka, as a traditional theatre, and has since grown to be one of the most influential companies in Japan, employing most of Japan's popular owarai (comedy) talent, produci ...

comedy troupe at which many comedians from the

Kansai The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropolit ...

area start their career. Years after, he reunited with Sumitani and officially joined

. Razor Ramon made their TV debut in 1999 and won the Judges Special Award in the ABC Owarai (Comedy) Grand-Prix in 2000. Both Sumitani and Izubuchi joined the Yoshimoto Kogyo-produced program Yoshimoto Shin-kigeki in 2001, often playing

yakuza , also known as , are members of Transnational crime, transnational organized crime, organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . ...

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addi ...

udon Udon ( or ) is a thick noodle made from wheat flour, used in Japanese cuisine. It is a comfort food for many Japanese people. There are a variety of ways it is prepared and served. Its simplest form is in a hot soup as with a mild broth called ...

restaurant owners, construction workers, and others.

Championships and accomplishments

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, ...

** F-1 Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with

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 ...

¹ ¹Championship not officially recognized by All Japan Pro Wrestling.

Film

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Izubuchi, Makoto 1974 births Living people Sportspeople from Kumamoto Prefecture Japanese comedians Japanese male professional wrestlers LGBT characters in professional wrestling People from Tamana, Kumamoto F-1 Tag Team Champions