Misplaced Pages

#350649

26-416: After an intense feud with each other early from 1988, Shiro Koshinaka and Kuniaki Kobayashi formed a tag team, and feuded with many other teams from 1988 to 1992. Between those rivalries, they feuded with Masashi Aoyagi and Akitoshi Saito who were karate fighters, to prove which sport was the best. After defeating them many times, Kobayashi, Koshinaka, Saito and Aoyagi formed a stable. Kengo Kimura and

52-717: A group, Heisei Ishingun feuded with wrestlers from New Japan Pro-Wrestling , WAR , UWF International , and nWo Japan . On February 8, 2017, Akira, Akitoshi Saito, The Great Kabuki, Masashi Aoyagi and Shiro Koshinaka made a one-night reunion as Heisei Ishingun under Keiji Mutoh 's Pro-Wrestling Masters banner. The group once again had a one night reunion on October 1, 2017, when Akitoshi Saito and Shiro Koshinaka teamed with Maybach Taniguchi to defeat Mitsuya Nagai , Tatsumi Fujinami and Leona at Pro Wrestling Noah ’s Great Voyage in Yokohama. Shiro Koshinaka Shiro Koshinaka ( 越中 詩郎 , Koshinaka Shirō , born September 3, 1958)

78-773: A match for the WWA World Heavyweight Championship, which was booked as a MMA style one, with an armbar submission. The match took place at a Forever Hero event at the Olympic Park stadium in Seoul. On October 26, 2009, at his second reign, he lost his title in a rematch to Bob Sapp at the Olympic Stadium in Seoul . In 2015, he retired after 40 years in the business. He studied different martial art sports, including taekwondo , judo and hapkido . Lee created

104-474: A match involving his future master Kim Il that he saw on television. In 1975 he began training in professional wrestling in a wrestling gym run by Kim Il: Kim Il notice Lee’s talent and started to personally train the young wrestler. In 1975 he debuted in the Korean Wrestling Association (KWA), which was founded in 1961 by his master Kim Il : Lee is now considered his master's successor as

130-567: A small village in South Chungcheong province in South Korea , the second of four children. He was notable for his tall stature since young age. In elementary school, he was stabbed by an upperclassman. When interviewed about this fact, Lee claimed "The upperclassman couldn’t beat me by force, so he used cowardly means to win". He said in an interview that it was in third grade that he decided to practice professional wrestling, inspired by

156-523: A tag team with Keiji Mutoh in a bid to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship , which was vacated by Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura in February 1987. On March 20, 1987, Koshinaka and Mutoh defeated Takada and Akira Maeda to win the vacant titles, making Koshinaka a double champion, but the tag team title reign didn't last as he and Mutoh lost the titles to Takada and Maeda in a rematch nearly

182-493: A title shot against Hase on March 19, 1988, but lost. He tried again to wrest the Junior Heavyweight title from Hase on May 8, 1988, but failed again. Finally, on June 24, 1988, the third time was the charm, as Koshinaka finally won his third and final IWGP Junior Heavyweight title from Owen Hart . He would hold on to the title, before losing the title to Hase on March 16, 1989. As a new decade began, Koshinaka graduated to

208-488: A tournament to become the inaugural IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion . At the same time, NJPW was in a feud with the shoot-style UWF promotion, and Koshinaka was immediately put in a feud with Nobuhiko Takada , who at one time was Antonio Inoki 's protégé, just like Koshinaka was Giant Baba's. Koshinaka lost the title to Takada on May 19, 1986, but regained the title exactly four months later on September 19, 1986. While reigning as IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, he formed

234-634: A violent feud with karatekas Akitoshi Saito and Masashi Aoyagi . After their feud ended in the summer of 1992, the four eventually formed a stable that would eventually become Heisei Ishingun . Heisei Ishingun would also self-promote their own shows. They were also wrestle in WAR , which they feuded with several stars including Genichiro Tenryu , Ashura Hara , Takashi Ishikawa , Hiromichi Fuyuki , and Koki Kitahara , among others. In January 1995, Koshinaka teamed up with The Mad Dogs ( Tatsutoshi Goto and Michiyoshi Ohara ) to defeat Fuyuki, Jado , and Gedo to win

260-455: A week later, on March 26, 1987. On August 2, 1987, Koshinaka vacated the Junior Heavyweight title due to an ankle injury. When he returned that fall, Koshinaka slowly rebounded, but the rebound was big when he won the first Top of the Super Juniors league in 1988, defeating Hiroshi Hase , the reigning IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion at the time, in the finals on February 7, 1988, earning him

286-1124: Is a Japanese professional wrestler who has competed in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Wrestle Association "R" (WAR) during the 1980s and 1990s. He was also the first IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion . After working for an electric power company for a year after graduating high school, Shiro Koshinaka enrolled in the All Japan Pro Wrestling Dojo in August 1978, training under Giant Baba and Kazuharu Sonoda . After months of training, on March 5, 1979, he debuted against one of his trainers, Kazuharu Sonoda . In his first two years, Koshinaka would only gain victories in battle royals , while losing in singles matches to guys like Atsushi Onita , Masanobu Fuchi , Mitsuo Momota , Tor Hayashi, Munenori Higo, Lee Wang-pyo , and Yoshihiro Momota , before gaining his first victory in February 1981 against Masaji Goto . In 1983, Koshinaka defeated Mitsuharu Misawa to win

SECTION 10

#1732895553351

312-603: The Great Kabuki from WAR soon joined the group. In 1993, they were initially called Han-Senshukai Dōmei (Anti-Wrestlers Alliance) referring to WAR and Genichiro Tenryu . After this feud was over, they changed their name to Heisei Ishingun, after Riki Choshu 's Shōwa period Ishin Gundan stable. In 1993, Michiyoshi Ohara and Tatsutoshi Goto joined the group and helped Koshinaka against main eventers. In 1994, Aoyagi left to return to Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling . In 1996, after

338-561: The J-J-Jacks split up, Akira Nogami joined, while Kabuki left. Kimura partially left in late 1996 to re-form his old team with Tatsumi Fujinami as well, but served as an associate until their dissolution. In 1997, Goto and Ohara briefly left for nWo Japan who were feuding with the Ishingun, however, both men didn't made any progress inside the unit and were kicked out by Keiji Mutoh and Masahiro Chono , and were accepted back by Koshinaka into

364-601: The WAR World Six-Man Tag Team Championship , before losing the titles to Tenryu, Kitahara, and Animal Hamaguchi months later in June 1995. In July 1998, he won his second IWGP Tag Team title, this time with Tenryu, defeating Masahiro Chono and Hiroyoshi Tenzan . He and Tenryu would on to the titles until January 1999, when they lost the belts back to Tenzan and his new partner, Satoshi Kojima . After Heisei Ishingun disbanded, Koshinaka rebounded and regained

390-464: The 1980s and the 1990s he has been the babyface and the ace of that promotion, which was called at the time Korean Wrestling Association , a position he held until his retirement in 2015. Lee was one of the most famous professional wrestler in Korean wrestling history. He was praised by Lou Thesz for his wrestling skills. Lee created the martial art known as gyeokgido . He was born in 1954 in

416-637: The Heavyweight division. In August 1990, he went to Austria to Otto Wanz 's Catch Wrestling Association to challenge Steve Wright for the CWA World Middleweight Championship, but failed, as he lost on the tenth round. Returning to Japan in September 1990, he was the very first opponent for Mutoh's alter-ego, The Great Muta, and also joined Tatsumi Fujinami's Dragon Bombers. In December 1991, Koshinaka and Kuniaki Kobayashi were involved in

442-680: The IWGP Tag Team titles in March 1999, this time with Kensuke Sasaki . He and Sasaki held on to the belts until June 1999, when they lost the belts to The Mad Dogs. In the summer of 2000, AJPW and NJPW were working together after the Pro Wrestling Noah exodus nearly killed AJPW. This led Koshinaka to return to his home promotion after fifteen years. He took part in a tournament for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship that

468-491: The Ishingun. In 1998, Saito left the group and professional wrestling to focus on his bartending business, while Genichiro Tenryu joined in and took his place in the group. In mid-1999, Heisei Ishingun disbanded as Goto, Nogami and Ohara joined Masahiro Chono's Team 2000 . Koshinaka went back to being an NJPW loyalist, while Kobayashi and Kimura retired and Tenryu, a de facto free agent, continued supporting NJPW loyalists in their battles against Team 2000. During their time as

494-851: The Lou Thesz Cup, his first tournament. In 1984, Koshinaka went on an excursion to Mexico, wrestling as Samurai Shiro in Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre , where in July, he lost a Hair vs. Hair match to El Satanico . While AJPW pushed Misawa, the man Koshinaka beat to win the Lou Thesz Cup the year before, as the second incarnation of Tiger Mask , Koshinaka was lingering in EMLL in Mexico. Frustrated, Koshinaka left AJPW in August 1985. After his excursion in Mexico, Koshinaka joined New Japan Pro-Wrestling in September 1985. On February 6, 1986, he defeated The Cobra in

520-421: The babyface faction Hustle Army shortly after. Koshinaka also formed a tag team with KG , acting as her mentor. Lee Wang-pyo Lee Wang-pyo (June 11, 1954 – September 4, 2018), better known by stage name Super Dragon , was a South Korean professional wrestler and martial artist . In professional wrestling, Lee was the promoter of the top national promotion, World Wrestling Association ; during

546-865: The interim IWGP Tag Team Championship with Togi Makabe in 2006 for New Japan Pro-Wrestling, and the KO-D Tag Team Championship with Danshoku Dino in 2010 for Dramatic Dream Team . On January 4, 2016, Koshinaka made a surprise return to NJPW by taking part in the New Japan Rumble on the Wrestle Kingdom 10 pre-show. He was the second to last man eliminated from the match by the eventual winner, Jado. In 2008, Koshinaka made his debut in Hustle , defeating Genichiro Tenryu and breaking his winning streak. Koshinaka would start teaming up with Tenryu in order to help him to recover his motivation, and they joined

SECTION 20

#1732895553351

572-735: The name Jaguar Lee in New Japan Pro-Wrestling . In 1985 he became the promoter of KWA, also known as Korean Pro-Wrestling Association (KPWA). In 1990, he returned to Japan for Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling . In 1993 he won in the KPWA the GWF World Heavyweight Championship and on December 13, 1999 he lost with No Ji Sim to Jason The Terrible and One Man Gang in a match for the GWF World Tag Championship. In 1995, he wrestled for Tokyo Pro Wrestling under

598-450: The name Lee Hi . In 2000 he changes KPWA name to World Wrestling Association: he claimed ties to the original World Wrestling Association . Therefore he proceeded to win the revamped version of the WWA World Heavyweight Championship in 2000 defeating Kurrgan . The KWA/KWPA was affiliated with National Wrestling Alliance till 1983; with Wang Pyo as the promoter, the "new" WWA rejoined NWA using NWA Korea as an alternative name for

624-639: The promotion, but still retaining the WWA name. On the January 23, 2003 he, along with Kim II, attended the WWE Raw show in Seoul. On March 21, 2003 in Seoul he defeated Honky Tonk Man in a match for the WWA World Heavyweight Championship, before 1,500 fans: the match was part of a feud they were having that year. In 2008 he defeated cleanly Kurt Angle in a WWA show in Korea. On November 12, 2008 he defeated Bob Sapp in

650-690: The top face of the promotion and his top student. The promotion was and still is the top professional wrestling promotion in Korea. During his career he has wrestled mainly in Korea and Japan : particularly, in 1978 Lee wrestled at the Japan-Korea Triple Competitions , a series of professional wrestling shows jointly organised by the Japanese International Wrestling Enterprise and by the KWA. He had also wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling . In 1982, he wrestled under

676-568: Was vacated by Kenta Kobashi ; he defeated Johnny Smith in the first round, but lost to Toshiaki Kawada in the semi-finals. In January 2003, Koshinaka's contract was not renewed by NJPW officials. Since January 2003, Koshinaka has been a freelancer, wrestling for various promotions through Japan, both major and independent. As a freelancer, he has won three championships: the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship with Takao Omori in 2004 for Pro Wrestling Zero1 ,

#350649