Yuji Yasuraoka (安良岡裕二 ''Yasuraoka Yuji'') (born January 28, 1971) is a retired 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 ...

. He is best known for his work 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 ...

, where he became a one-time International Junior Heavyweight Champion and a four-time International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion.

Professional wrestling career

Super World of Sports (1992)

Yasuraoka was trained for a professional wrestling career by Genichiro Tenryu and made his professional wrestling debut for Tenryu's

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 ...

Super World of Sports Super World of Sports, more commonly known as SWS, was a Japanese professional wrestling promotion from 1990 to 1992. Its motto was "Straight and Strong". History Formation In April 1990, Genichiro Tenryu, one of the top stars of All Japan Pro Wr ...

(SWS) on January 4, 1992 by competing against Toshiyuki Nakahara in a losing effort. Yasuraoka picked up his first win of his career against Tetsuya Yamanaka on June 18. Yasuraoka competed in several matches in SWS until the promotion closed down a few months later on June 19.

Wrestling and Romance / Wrestle Association R

Early years (1992–1995)

Yasuraoka was soon hired by Tenryu for his new promotion Wrestling and Romance (WAR), which was a successor to SWS. He competed in WAR's debut show on July 14, 1992 against

Nobukazu Hirai Nobukazu Hirai (born December 30, 1969) is a Japanese professional wrestler best known for competing in All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is the son of former Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance wrestler Mitsu Hirai. Professional wrestling career Super World ...

in a losing effort. He wrestled Koji Inomata in several matches during the early days of WAR including a win against Inomata at a WAR/WWF interpromotional event on September 15. Yasuraoka mainly wrestled as a junior heavyweight and lost the majority of the early matches of his career. He also made a few appearances for

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 ...

during this time as a partnership between NJPW and WAR. At the promotion's 1st Anniversary of Revolution, Yasuraoka teamed with Nobukazu Hirai in a loss to

Black Cat A black cat is a domestic cat with black fur that may be a mixed or specific breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular breed. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognizes 22 cat breeds that can come with solid black coats. The Bombay b ...

and

Osamu Nishimura is a Japanese professional wrestler currently working as a freelancer. Nishimura formerly worked for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and MUGA World Pro Wrestling (MUGA). Professional wrestling career Early years (1991–1998) Nishimura debuted ...

. At ''

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

'', Yasuraoka teamed with Nobukazu Hirai to defeat

Tatsuhito Takaiwa (born Go Yong-Il (Hangul: 고 용일), July 5, 1972) is a Zainichi-Korean professional wrestler. Takaiwa is one of the more well-traveled junior heavyweights in Japan, having wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), and Pro Wrestling Zero1, ...

and

Yuji Nagata is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). A two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and a GHC Heavyweight Champion, making him a four-time world champion in major professio ...

. At ''Live War Rise'', Yasuraoka teamed with

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 " A ...

to defeat the team of

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and

Yaiba ''Yaiba'' (stylized as ''Y∀IBA'') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gosho Aoyama. It was serialized in Shogakukan's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' from September 1988 to December 1993, with its c ...

. He lost a match to Masanobu Kurisu at 2nd Anniversary of Revolution. On August 28, 1994, Yasuraoka received his first title shot against Último Dragón for the

UWA World Middleweight Championship The UWA World Middleweight Championship (''Campeonato Mundial de Peso Medio UWA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship originally created and sanctioned by the Mexican lucha libre promotion Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) fro ...

, where he failed to capture the title. He then suffered a loss against Masanobu Kurisu at ''Mega Power''. On March 26, 1995, Yasuraoka entered a tournament to crown the inaugural International Junior Heavyweight Champion, where he lost to

Gedo Gedo ( so, Gedo, Maay: ''Gethy'', ar, جيذو, it, Ghedo or ''Ghedu'') is an administrative region ('' gobol'') in Jubaland, southern Somalia. Its regional capital is Garbahaarreey. It was created in 1974 and is bordered by the Ogaden in E ...

in the quarter-final round. At ''Battle Angel'', Yasuraoka teamed with Último Dragón to defeat Masao Orihara and Ultimate Dragon. At 3rd Anniversary Show, Yasuraoka teamed with Hiroshi Itakura and Osamu Tachihikari to defeat Fukumen Taro, Kamikaze and

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, ...

in a

six-man tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder m ...

International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion (1996–1997)

On February 23, 1996, Yasuraoka teamed with Lance Storm to participate in a tournament for the new

International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team championship contested for in the Japanese promotion Wrestle Association R, and later Dragon Gate and Tenryu Project. This title was the first tag team championship in Japan dedicated to junior heavywe ...

, defeating

Gran Naniwa (February 15, 1977 – October 6, 2010) was a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . Naniwa was known for his comedic gimmick, in which he performed mannerisms of crabs. This was also reflected upon in the design of hi ...

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 karatek ...

in the semi-final before losing to

and Lion Do in the final. Yasuraoka and Storm defeated Gedo and Lion Do in a rematch on March 27 to win the International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, marking Yasuraoka's first championship win of his career. After making successful title defenses against Masaaki Mochizuki and

on May 26 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 ...

and

Norio Honaga (born August 11, 1955) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and referee. Career New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1980–1984) Norio Honaga debuted for New Japan Pro-Wrestling on April 25, 1980, against Hiro Saito. In November 1982, after over ...

's ''Skydiving J'', Storm and Yasuraoka dropped the titles to El Samurai and

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 ...

at 4th Anniversary Show. The following night, at '' Super Summer Wars'', Lance Storm, Rey Misterio, Jr., Último Dragón and Yuji Yasuraoka defeated Gedo, Jushin Thunder Liger, Juventud Guerrera and Lion Do. At ''Osaka Crush Night'', Yasuraoka teamed with

Koki Kitahara (born March 9, 1964) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name . Career Kitahara trained in soccer and karate during high school, particularly the latter due to his penchant for street fighting. After graduatin ...

against

and Masaaki Mochizuki in a losing effort. On November 9, Storm and Yasuraoka regained the International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship by defeating El Samurai and Jushin Thunder Liger. The following month, at ''Ryogoku Crush Night'', Storm and Yasuraoka made their first title defense against

Tiger Mask is a Japanese manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Naoki Tsuji. The series was first published in Kodansha's ''Bokura Magazine'' from 1968 to 1970 and was later published in ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from 1970 to ...

and Masaaki Mochizuki. The duo would lose the titles to Battle Ranger and Masaaki Mochizuki on February 12, 1997. The duo received a rematch against Ranger and Mochizuki for the titles at the following month's ''Battle Angel'', in which they lost. Shortly after, Yasuraoka had a brief stint 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 ...

(WCW), where he debuted as a

villain A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

introduced by

Sonny Onoo Kazuo Sonny Onoo (born July 29, 1962) is a Japanese-American professional wrestling manager, and actor better known by his ring name Sonny Onoo. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling between 1995 and 1999 as the m ...

on the May 17 episode of '' Saturday Night'', where he defeated

enhancement talent In professional wrestling slang, a job is a losing performance in a wrestling match. It is derived from the euphemism "doing one's job", which was employed to protect information related to kayfabe from being revealed. The term can be used a numbe ...

Julio Sanchez. After the match, Yasuraoka continued to assault Sanchez until Rey Misterio, Jr. made the save, leading to a match between the two at

Slamboree Slamboree was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event from World Championship Wrestling (WCW) held from 1993 through 2000. It was originally billed as "A Legends' Reunion" because many retired legends from Jim Crockett Promotions attend ...

, which Misterio won. Yasuraoka then returned to WAR.

International Junior Heavyweight Champion (1997–1999)

On June 6, 1997, Yasuraoka defeated the J-Crown Champion

to win the International Junior Heavyweight Championship, his first and only singles championship. Due to Yasuraoka's win the International Junior Heavyweight Championship was removed from the J-Crown Championship. Yasuraoka made his first successful title defense against Masao Orihara at 5th Anniversary Show. He then successfully defended the title against the likes of

and Battle Ranger. On October 12, Yasuraoka became a double champion as he teamed with

Tomohiro Ishii is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He also makes additional appearances for All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is also known for his work with the independent Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling ( ...

to defeat Masashi Aoyagi and Hirofumi Miura to win the

, beginning Yasuraoka's third reign with the title. The duo vacated the title only six days later on October 18. In May 1998, Yasuraoka entered

's 1998 Best of the Super Juniors tournament, where he won only one match in his block against the eventual winner

Koji Kanemoto (born Kim Il-Sung (김일성); October 31, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler of Zainichi Korean descent. He has previously worked with New Japan Pro-Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is currently a freelancer. Professional wres ...

, while losing the rest of his matches in the tournament. In July, Yasuraoka teamed with

Kendo Kashin Tokimitsu Ishizawa (''Ishizawa Tokimitsu'', born August 5, 1968), better known by his ring name Kendo Kashin (ケンドー・カシン, ''Kendō Kashin''), is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his time in New Japan P ...

to participate in a

round robin tournament A round-robin tournament (or all-go-away-tournament) is a competition in which each contestant meets every other participant, usually in turn.''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged'' (1971, G. & C. Me ...

for the new

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 ...

, which they failed to win as they won only one match in the tournament against eventual winners

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 ...

and

. On September 27, Yasuraoka and Yasha Kurenai entered the Mixed Tag Team Tournament, which they won by defeating Masaaki Mochizuki and

Harley Saito Sayori Saito (斉藤さより) (December 21, 1967 – December 15, 2016) was a Japanese professional wrestler, who performed under the name of Harley Saito (ハーレー斉藤). She spent much of her career for Ladies Legend Pro-Wrestling. Ca ...

in the quarter-final,

and

Noriyo Tateno (born December 1, 1965) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler who is best known as one half of the tag team Jumping Bomb Angels with Itsuki Yamazaki. She worked in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling, WWF and has been working in Ladies Le ...

in the semi-final and

and Eagle Sawai in the final. On January 15, 1999, Yasuraoka lost the International Junior Heavyweight Championship to Masao Orihara, ending his reign at 588 days. On March 1, Yasuraoka and Tomohiro Ishii defeated Shinjiro Otani and Tatsuhito Takaiwa to win their second International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship as a team, while marking Yasuraoka's fourth tag team championship reign. At 7th Anniversary Show, Yasuraoka teamed with Masaaki Mochizuki against

Naohiro Hoshikawa is a retired Japanese professional wrestler. Hoshikawa competed extensively in Michinoku Pro Wrestling, Osaka Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Zero1 until he was forced to retire after suffering a career-ending brain injury in 2004. Hoshikawa al ...

and Super Delfin in a losing effort. Immediately after losing, Yasuraoka competed against Mochizuki in a match, which Yasuraoka lost. This would be Yasuraoka's last match as he announced his retirement from wrestling after the match, which led Yasuraoka and Ishii to vacate the International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.

Retirement

A motorcycle enthusiast before entering pro wrestling, Yasuraoka became a motorcycle mechanic after ending his wrestling career.

Championships and accomplishments

* Wrestle And Romance / Wrestle Association R **

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) **

WAR International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team championship contested for in the Japanese promotion Wrestle Association R, and later Dragon Gate and Tenryu Project. This title was the first tag team championship in Japan dedicated to junior heavyw ...

( 4 times) – with Lance Storm (2),

(2) ** Mixed Tag Team Tournament (1998) - with Yasha Kurenai

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yasuraoka, Yuji 1971 births Japanese male professional wrestlers Living people People from Yachiyo, Chiba Sportspeople from Chiba Prefecture 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Tenryu Project International Junior Heavyweight Champions