Yoshiaki Fujiwara
Yoshiaki Fujiwara | |
---|---|
Born | April 27, 1949 |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Yoshiaki Fujiwara |
Billed height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
Billed weight | 102 kg (225 lb) |
Debut | November 12, 1972 |
Yoshiaki Fujiwara (藤原 喜明, Fujiwara Yoshiaki, April 27, 1949) is a
Professional wrestling career
New Japan Pro-Wrestling and Universal Wrestling Federation (1972–1989)
Fujiwara was the first graduate of the
All the while, Fujiwara remained a strong member of the undercard, but rarely would he get opportunities for big singles matches or tag teams with better-known stars. On February 2, 1984, however, all that would change when Fujiwara appeared before a match to attack Riki Choshu, then the promotion's main villain. The sight of Choshu beaten and bleeding turned Fujiwara into one of the most popular babyface wrestlers in the promotion and a mainstay in the rivalry against Choshu and his Ishin Gundan faction. In storyline, it was suspected Inoki himself had arranged for Fujiwara's attack.[5] The same year, Fujiwara was among the defectors who created the Japanese UWF.
When he and most of them returned in 1986, they formed their own stable, indicating they would battle major New Japan wrestlers and receive recognition on their own terms. As a member of the UWF stable, Fujiwara, along with Akira Maeda, focused on Inoki's IWGP Heavyweight Championship, pushing him to the limit in the annual IWGP tournaments. But at heart, Maeda and Fujiwara were also rivals - when unable to get the IWGP title, Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada went for and won the IWGP tag team title, Fujiwara and Kazuo Yamazaki split from the main UWF stable, and feuded with them over the title, eventually winning it. This split, also in the wake of Riki Choshu's return to NJPW after leaving in circumstances similar to Maeda and the rest of the UWF roster, eventually weakened the UWF stable.
When Maeda was fired from New Japan for a shoot attack on Choshu during a match in late 1987, all the other UWF stable members except for Fujiwara and Osamu Kido left NJPW to reform the UWF. Kido and Fujiwara attempted to get back into the good graces of the rest of the NJPW roster - and for a time, Fujiwara seemed to go back into the NJPW undercard, although with more respect from his peers. Inoki had already gained respect for him enough to be his tag team partner in 1986 for the annual tag team tournament (despite being affiliated with the UWF stable). In the meantime, Fujiwara trained rookies Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. In 1989, however, Fujiwara felt the need to continue shoot-style wrestling, also due to the rise of Choshu in backstage politics, so he moved to the UWF with Funaki and Suzuki.
Newborn UWF, Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi, and Freelance (1989–present)
In Newborn UWF, Fujiwara was clearly seen as the senior peer to Maeda, but eventually jobbed to him. After Newborn UWF collapsed in December 1990, Fujiwara, Funaki, Suzuki and rookie Yusuke Fuke formed
Problems involving the collapsing Japanese economy and the essence of Fujiwara Gumi's wrestling, however, forced its roster to assess their individual futures. Funaki, Suzuki, Fuke and Takahashi, apparently unsettled by the "performing" direction Fujiwara was taking, abandoned him in late 1993 to form Pancrase. Fujiwara already had back-up talent - Ishikawa, Daisuke Ikeda, Katsumi Usuda, Minoru Tanaka, Mamoru Okamoto, Muhammad Yone, and Shoichi Funaki. In need of funds, however, Fujiwara proposed to cooperate with their root promotion, New Japan. Fujiwara and the rest of the roster began having a small feud with NJPW, Fujiwara challenging the heavyweights (he challenged future partner Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP title, but failed again), and the rest the junior heavyweight division. The NJPW-PWFG feud, however, did not have the star-studded impression on fans that the NJPW-UWFI feud later had.
In late 1995, Ishikawa and the rest of the Fujiwara Gumi roster abandoned Fujiwara and formed their own promotion,
Personal life
Fujiwara is also an
He is also a prolific artisan potter.
Championships and accomplishments
- Dramatic Dream Team
- Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling
- New Japan Pro-Wrestling
- IWGP Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kazuo Yamazaki
- NJPW Japan Cup Tag League (1986) – with Antonio Inoki
- NJPW Karl Gotch Cup (1975)
- Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi
- Fujiwara Gumi Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Pro Wrestling ZERO1
- 1 time) – with Shinya Hashimoto
- Tokyo Sports
- Effort Award (1975, 1982)
- Fighting Spirit Award (1987)
- Technique Award (1989)
- Universal Wrestling Federation
- Kakuto Prospect Tournament (1985)[7]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1978 | The Bad News Bears Go to Japan | Wrestler |
1995 | Toryu-den | Trainer |
1995 | Roppongi Soldier | Sabu |
1995 | Zero Woman: The Hunted | Yamamoto |
1999 | Gohatto | Samurai |
1999 | A! Ikkenya Puroresu | Kota's friend |
2005 | Koshu Prison | Inmate |
2005 | Muhito | Wrestler |
2005 | Yakuza (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2006 | Yakuza 2 (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2008 | Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! (video game) | Hon'ami Koetsu |
2009 | Yakuza 3 (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2010 | Yakuza 4 (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2010 | Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2011 | Yakuza: Dead Souls (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2012 | Yakuza 5 (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2012 | Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Ashura-hen (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2014 | Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin! (video game) | Bathkeeper of Sai |
2016 | Yakuza Kiwami (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2017 | Yakuza Kiwami 2 (video game) | Florist of Sai |
2023 | Like a Dragon: Ishin! (video game) | Bathkeeper of Sai |
References
- ^ "Yoshiaki Fujiwara profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
- ^ "Profile at Puroresu Central". Puroresu Central. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
- ^ "Japan's Rich MMA History: The Ken Shamrock Interview, Part 1 of 7". Mixedmartialarts.com. 2015-09-21. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
- ^ Gould, K. J. (July 26, 2012). "Karl Gotch Week: Yoshiaki Fujiwara And The Tradition Of Submission". Bloody Elbow.
- ^ Yoshiaki Fujiwara, Yomiuri Online 2015
- Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the originalon October 3, 2013. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
- ^ "Original UWF Tournaments". www.prowrestlinghistory.com.
External links
- Yoshiaki Fujiwara's profile at Cagematch.net , Internet Wrestling Database
- Online video clips of Fujiwara's Sub-Mission Master instructional
- Examples of Fujiwara's pottery