(born November 27, 1957) is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, MMA and wrestling promoter and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, ...

, best known as the original Tiger Mask. He has wrestled under his real name as well as the names Sammy Lee, and

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 ...

ed Super Tiger, Tiger King, Tiger Mask and The Mask of Tiger. He is the only man to hold the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship and the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship simultaneously. Sayama has the distinction of being a competitor (along with "Dynamite Kid" Thomas Billington) in the first 5 Star Rating awarded for a Match by Dave Meltzer, for their NJPW Sumo Hall Show 1983 match. This is thought of very highly in the industry. He is also recognized as a pioneer in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...

, founding Shooto in 1985, one of the first MMA organizations in the world. Sayama also pioneered mixed martial arts training and developed his own Shooto syllabus for learning what could be considered the first put together MMA training of its kind, with a focus on striking from arts like Muay Thai and karate, takedowns from

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

and

judo is an unarmed 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 Nipponica, "Judo") ...

, and submissions from

catch wrestling Catch wrestling (originally catch-as-catch-can) is a classical hybrid grappling style and combat sport. It was developed by J. G. Chambers in Britain . It was popularised by wrestlers of travelling funfairs who developed their own submission ...

sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , olymp ...

and judo. The curriculum would help produce the first well rounded fighters of MMA several years before the first UFC event. He is also the founder of the martial art Seikendo and professional wrestling promotion

Real Japan Pro Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling and martial arts promotion founded in 2005 by Satoru Sayama as , before being renamed in 2019. It runs shows every two or three months, and feature both pro wrestling activities and a variety of martial arts ...

Professional wrestling career

Beginnings: New Japan Pro-Wrestling, excursion abroad (1976–1981)

Sayama debuted in

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 sha ...

, against Shoji Kai, a jobber known to have been the debut opponent for future stars ( Rusher Kimura, Masa Saito, Osamu Kido,

Tatsumi Fujinami (born December 28, 1953) is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on a legend's contract. Fujinami is most well known for his long tenure with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was a six-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. ...

, and Mitsuo Momota had debuted against him before). Sayama weighed only 160 pounds, which, even given his training, impaired him from getting a permanent spot on NJPW cards. So they sent him abroad, to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

(where he wrestled as Sammy Lee) and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

, where he wrestled under his real name. It was in Mexico where he started to grow not only in physical stature but also in prominence, winning the NWA World Middleweight Title in EMLL.

Return to New Japan as Tiger Mask (1981–1983)

In 1981, NJPW was looking for a way to attract young fans to its wrestling. They looked to the popular Tiger Mask anime and created a wrestling character called Tiger Mask for the fans, with the recently returned Sayama playing the role. On the evening of Thursday, April 23, 1981, Satoru Sayama made his way to the ring in the Kuramae Kokugikan as Tiger Mask. Initially, many traditional Japanese fans scoffed at the thought of artist Ikki Kajiwara's popular comic book wrestling hero being pushed as a legitimate wrestling star, but he shocked the Japanese fans in the arena by pinning Dynamite Kid with his German suplex. As a result, he was immediately regarded as the premier star in New Japan's junior heavyweight ranks. Moreover, that match would be the first of many classic battles between the two men. On May 6, 1982, Tiger Mask was forced to vacate the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship after injuring his right knee. Tiger Mask would go on to win the NWA World Junior Heavyweight less than 3 weeks later on May 25, 1982. The next day, Tiger Mask defeated Black Tiger in a match for the WWF Junior Heavyweight title. This victory was met with controversy, as some board members on the NWA declared the title vacant, as they felt that the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship was the premier title for the division. However, during an annual meeting between the NWA and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, it was declared that Tiger Mask was still recognized as the official champion, which made him the only man to simultaneously hold the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship and the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship. Around this time, Sayama trained in

under

Victor Koga Victor Shoichi Koga (1935 - November 3, 2018) was a Japanese-Russian martial artist and trainer. He introduced the martial art of sambo in Japan and was one of its main exponents until his death.Hiroko Ishimura, ''Tatta hitori no hikiage-tai'', ...

and

kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

under Toshio Fujiwara.

World Wrestling Federation (1982)

In late 1982, while still a member of the New Japan roster, Sayama made at least two tours of 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 Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. He appeared primarily in the

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 var ...

, at the time a regional promotion in the northeast region of the country. Sayama defended the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship by defeating Dynamite Kid at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylv ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

on August 30, and Eddie Gilbert at the

Spectrum A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

on November 25. During his time as Tiger Mask, Sayama had faced mainly English and Mexican opponents, with styles complementary to his own. As a result, the match with Gilbert would be regarded as one of his higher-profile matches against an American-style opponent. Sayama also made appearances at WWF television tapings during these tours, in which he had televised matches against José Estrada and Mr. Saito.

Joe McHugh Joe McHugh (born 16 July 1971) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Chair of the Committee on European Union Affairs since September 2020. He has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Donegal constituency since 2016, and previously ...

, the Pennsylvania Athletic Commission-appointed ring announcer for WWF events in the state and nearing 80 years of age, mistakenly introduced Sayama during one of his appearances as "Timer Mask."

Departure from New Japan (1983)

During a tag team match on April 3, 1983 he was injured by Dynamite Kid; two days later, he was forced to vacate the NWA World Junior Heavyweight title after it became clear that he would need time off to recuperate. However, once the determined Tiger Mask recovered, he regained his NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship by defeating Kuniaki Kobayashi on June 2, 1983, making him a simultaneous NWA/WWF Jr. champion for the second time. By 1983, however, Sayama started feeling dissatisfied as he hated the politics behind-the-scenes. As a result, he announced his retirement from active competition on August 12, 1983. His last match occurred on August 4, facing Isamu Teranishi. It was a shock to the wrestling world, as Tiger Mask was going to retire while he was at the top of his game and as the holder of two Junior Heavyweight Championships. Both titles were declared vacant, as he became a trainer to martial arts fighters.

Universal Wrestling Federation (1984–1985)

Sayama was inactive from the ring for nearly a year, having founded the Tiger Gym and spending most of his time training with his protege Kazuo Yamazaki. Sayama resurfaced in the Japanese UWF in 1984. By then,

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 ...

had purchased the Tiger Mask name and gimmick and given it to Mitsuharu Misawa. As a result, Sayama initially made appearances for UWF as The Tiger (which was the same colors as Tiger Mask), then alternated between using his real name and the gimmick of Super Tiger (colored silver and

purple Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used by painters ...

). He initially supported the UWF concept and had several memorable matches against

Akira Maeda (born Go Il-myeong ( Hangul: 고일명, Hanja: 高日明), January 24, 1959) is a Japanese mixed martial arts promoter, writer and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist of Korean descent. Maeda was also known by the ring ...

and

Yoshiaki Fujiwara is a Japanese Professional Wrestler and trainer. He is famous for his long career in wrestling, having worked in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE (ZERO-ONE), and the two incarnations of shoot style promotion Universal Wr ...

. Sayama would soon disagree with Maeda over style ideology, which led to a shoot during a match between Sayama and Maeda in 1985, in which Maeda delivered some controversial kicks to Sayama's lower abdomen. Sayama claimed that he was kicked in the groin, resulting in Maeda being disqualified. Shortly after this, Sayama left UWF, amid recriminations from other UWF wrestlers who disliked him for his selfish leadership. With no key opponents for Maeda, the UWF collapsed and Maeda and the rest of the roster headed back to NJPW.

Retirement and Shooto (1985–1995)

Sayama then left professional wrestling altogether. In 1986 he founded Shooto, finally realizing his dream of becoming a martial arts trainer. He taught the art of shooting to fighters like Yorinaga Nakamura,

Yuki Nakai is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist. He currently teaches Shooto and Jiu-Jitsu, and is the president of the Japanese Confederation of Jiu-Jitsu. He competed in Shooto, an early MMA promotion where he won the Shooto World Welterweight Cha ...

and Rumina Sato, among others. During this time Sayama hosted the Vale Tudo Japan event, leading to the introduction of

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

in Japan, which drove him to change the rules of Shooto to adapt them to the vale tudo. In 1996 he left Shooto due to disagreements with the board of directors, and was succeeded by Taro Wakayabayshi.

Return and aftermath (1995–present)

In 1995, Sayama was offered to return to puroresu for a match against old mentor

Antonio Inoki Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born ; February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name , a homage ...

. As there was already a Tiger Mask on the scene (his disciple, Tiger Mask IV, who debuted with the mask), Sayama used the name and gimmick Tiger King, using a

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...

-colored outfit. Inoki ended up winning the match. In subsequent years, he (using the Original 'Shodai''Tiger Mask identity), competing sporadically in various independent promotions, often in legends matches and teams with his younger disciple. In 1998, he was invited by Inoki to be a part of the board of his new venture, Universal Fighting-Arts Organization. He did, but left a year later to form Seikendo. In 1999, attempting to return to the world of martial arts and to create something similar to Shooto, he created a martial art named Seikendo. It was a hybrid martial art similar to Shooto and MMA, but more akin to a traditional martial art—with focus on etiquette and ceremonials based on traditional Japanese imagery and ideals and spiritual and mental development—and focused on self-defense: Seikendokas would wear keikogis to simulate clothing, had rules that based on the principle it had a

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...

floor, with groundfighting that focused on ground-and-pound, with no submissions allowed, and fighting was in an octagonal ring without ropes. Sayama also created a professional promotion by the same name to promote his martial art (as he had done to Shooto), which ran for three years and had five events before closing down in 2003. In 2005, he founded a new promotion called

and started to promote his old Super Tiger gimmick. However, with a career spanning over 30 years in addition to being actively involved in martial arts aside from wrestling, have taken its toll, with Sayama being fodder in singles matches for current stars aiming to become legends, such as Shinjiro Otani and Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion Minoru Suzuki (the title was not on the line in their match). He has also appeared in

's Dradition promotion, as well as Antonio Inoki's

Inoki Genome Federation (IGF) was a Japanese professional wrestling and mixed martial arts promotion founded by Antonio Inoki in 2007. History Antonio Inoki left New Japan Pro-Wrestling, a promotion he founded in 1972, to start the IGF. The first IGF show was held on J ...

. Sayama is much heavier than he was in his younger days, and as a result, his style has changed; he focuses more on mat-based wrestling, though he still uses his trademark martial arts kicks. Still training young wrestlers, Sayama endorsed a second Super Tiger, played by seikendoka and mixed martial artist Yuji Sakuragi. In 2010, Sayama picked Ikuhisa Minowa as the fifth Tiger Mask, but has not wrestled under the mask since. At the March 20, 2015, Real Japan event, Sayama was defeated by All Japan wrestler Akebono following a splash from the former yokozuna. Afterwards, Sayama began experiencing chest pains, which forced him to pull out of subsequent matches. After multiple tests, it was determined that Sayama needed to undergo emergency heart surgery, which took place on May 22. Following the surgery, Sayama began suffering from

angina Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of obstr ...

, which forced him to pull out of Real Japan's 10th anniversary event on June 11. On June 5, Sayama held a press conference, stating that he was not thinking about retiring from professional wrestling despite his life being in danger prior to the catheter surgery. Sayama returned to the ring on June 23, 2016, battling Minowa-man to a draw, but has not been back since then.

Other media

In 1995, Sayama starred along

Itsumi Osawa is a Japanese actress, author, and singer. Biography Osawa was born in Hokkaidō, Japan. Her career began as a singer after she won the Grand Prix at the 7th HoriPro Talent Scout Caravan, a contest that searches for the next big talent in ...

in the Toshihiro Sato movie ''Roppongi Soldier'' as Ken Washizu, a former

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

turned private detective. His partner

appears as well, portraying a fellow fighter. He also had an appearance in the 2004 movie ''Shinsetsu Tiger Mask'', a

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

about Sayama's life in which he is played by

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 (U ...

. Sayama himself plays Tiger Mask's trainer.

Works

* (1984) * (1986) * (1989) * (1989) * (1998) - with

* (1999) * (2000) * (2001) * (2002) * (2010) * (2014)

Championships and accomplishments

Empresa Mexicana de la 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 ...

:* NWA World Middleweight Championship ( 1 time) :* WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) *

:* NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (

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 ...

) :* WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (

) *

International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame The International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (IPWHF) is an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum that is located in Albany, New York. The museum was founded by Seth Turner, Tony Vellano, the founder of Professional Wrestl ...

**Class of 2021 *'' Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' :*PWI ranked him #274 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2006 *

:* Legend Championship ( 1 time) *

Tokyo Pro Wrestling Tokyo Pro Wrestling is the name of two unrelated Japanese professional wrestling promotions. Despite their common name, they did not share management, promotional style, or talent in any way. Original Tokyo Pro Wrestling The original Tokyo Pro W ...

:*TWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Yoji Anjo *'' Tokyo Sports'' :*

MVP Award In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

(1982) :* Popularity Award (1981) :* Technique Award (1982, 1984) * Universal Wrestling Federation :*UWF Tournament winner (1984) :*Kakuto Nettai Road "A" League Tournament (1985) * Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards :*

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 ...

(1982, 1983) :* Most Impressive Wrestler (1982) :* Best Technical Wrestler (1982, 1983) :* Match of the Year (1982) vs. Dynamite Kid, August 5, Tokyo, Japan :* Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame ( Class of 1996)

Luchas de Apuestas record

Kickboxing record

, - , , Loss , Marc Costello , Kakutōgi Daisensō ,

Tokyo, Japan 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 ...

, Decision (unanimous) , 6 , 2:00 , 0-1 , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

, - , Draw , align=center, 1-0-2 , Yoshinori Nishi , Technical Draw , Lumax Cup - Tournament of J'95 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:30 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1-0-1 , Kuniaki Kobayashi , KO (high kick) , Shooto: Vale Tudo Perception , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 6:05 ,

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 37.46 ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, , - , Draw , align=center, 0-0-1 ,

Yuji Ito Yuji Ito may refer to * Yuji Ito (footballer), Japanese football player *Yuji Ito (fighter) Yuji Ito is a Japanese mixed martial artist. He competed in the Lightweight division. Mixed martial arts record , - , Win , align=center, 5-4-3 ...

, Technical Draw , Lumax Cup - Tournament of J'94 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , -

Filmography

References

External links

*
Tiger Mask (Satoru Sayama) biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sayama, Satoru 1957 births Japanese male professional wrestlers Japanese male judoka Japanese male mixed martial artists Japanese catch wrestlers Japanese sambo practitioners Living people Masked wrestlers People from Shimonoseki Professional wrestling executives Professional wrestling writers Mixed martial arts executives Mixed martial arts trainers Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo Mixed martial artists utilizing shoot wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing catch wrestling Stampede Wrestling alumni Japanese sportsperson-politicians Japanese writers 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers NWA World Middleweight Champions NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champions