Yoshihiro Tajiri
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Yoshihiro Tajiri (born September 29, 1970 in Yokohama, Kanagawa) is a Japanese professional wrestler performing in World Wrestling Entertainment on the RAW brand.
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Career
Trained in traditional Japanese style and lucha libre, he debuted in the early 1990s in Japan wrestling mainly for the Japanese office of Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). In 1997, he left for the hardcore wrestling promotion Big Japan based in Tokyo.
In late 1998, while in Mexico, he caught the eye of Extreme Championship Wrestling owner Paul Heyman and was invited to the United States to wrestle for ECW. He became extremely popular with the fans, despite being brought in as a heel. He had a long feud with Super Crazy that had several exciting matches.
He stayed in ECW until it closed in 2001, and was almost immediately signed by WWE, where he has been ever since.
His fans believe that when given the opportunity, Yoshihiro Tajiri can be one of the best performers in WWE. His fans believe he has great charisma and that he is a fantastic wrestler.
On February 4, 2005 Tajiri and William Regal defeated La Résistance to win the World Tag Team Championship on an episode of RAW broadcast live from Tajiri's home country of Japan. Since then, in addition to holding the titles, Tajiri has been allowed to showcase a more comedic side to his personality, appearing in many funny sketches along with Regal and other WWE stars.
La Résistance repeatedly attempted to regain the gold (mainly on Sunday Night Heat) from Regal and Tajiri in many different matches but just fell short during each one, during their "last shot" for the gold the team thought they had won back the titles only to have the decision reversed by referee Mike Chioda due to La Résistance not pinning the legal man. After this match Regal issued an open challenge to any tag team in the world to come after their belts, Jonathan Coachman showed a large interest to this announcement. On the following episode of RAW, Regal & Tajiri successfully defended the belts against the debuting Romeo and Antonio, known collectively as "The Heart Throbs."
On May 1, 2005, at Backlash, Regal & Tajiri participated in a "Tag-Team Turmoil" match in which four teams competed for the World tag team titles. Regal & Tajiri were eliminated by La Résistance who, in turn, were eliminated by Hurricane and Rosey, who became the new champions.
Profile
- Height: 5'9" (175.3 cm)
- Weight: 209lbs (94.8 kg)
- Birthday: September 29, 1970
- Hometown: Yokohama, Japan
- Trained By: Kendo Nagasaki, William DeMott, Ricky Santana
- Professional Debut: September 19, 1994
- Previous Identities: Aquarius, The Japanese Buzzsaw
- Previous Manager(s): Don Callis, The Sinister Minister, William Regal, Torrie Wilson
Finishing/Signature Moves
- Buzzsaw Kick (stiff kick to the head)
- Brainbuster
- Bridging German Suplex
- Tarantula (Upside Down Rope Hung Leg Hook Boston Crab)
- Handspring Back Elbow Smash
- Octopus Stretch
- Springboard/Asai Moonsault
- Dragon Suplex
- Spits Green Mist at opponent's eyes in order to blind them; Tajiri has, however, been known to spit Red Mist (which is purported to burn rather than blind) and Black Mist (which is significantly more powerful, provided the storyline on WWE Smackdown! where Nidia was blinded for weeks by it). All three mists were previously used by Japanese wrestler Keiji Mutoh, most notably when he appeared as his alter-ego "Great Muta"
- Baseball Slide to opponent who is hanging upside down on turnbuckle
- Shining Wizard
- Multiple Kicks
- Swinging DDT (Powerbomb Counter)
- Diving Double Foot Stomp
Championships/Accomplishments
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)
- 1-time WWE United States Heavyweight Champion
- 3-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion
- 1-time WWF Light Heavyweight Champion
- 1-time WWE Tag Team Champion (with Eddie Guerrero)
- 1-time World Tag Team Champion (with William Regal)
Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW)
- 1-time ECW World Television Champion
- 1-time ECW World Tag-Team Champion (with Mikey Whipwreck)
- 1-time BJPW Junior Heavyweight Champion
- 2-time BJPW Tag Team Champion (with Ryuji Yamakawa)
Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW)
- 1-time CZW World Heavyweight Champion
International Wrestling Alliance: Puerto Rico
- IWA: Puerto Rico Hardcore Champion
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL)
- 1-time CMLL World Light Heavyweight Champion
Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI)
- PWI ranked him # 242 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
| WWE Cruiserweight Championship Reigns | ||
| Preceded by: Billy Kidman | First | Succeeded by Billy Kidman |
| Preceded by: Billy Kidman | Second | Succeeded by The Hurricane |
| Preceded by: Rey Mysterio | Third | Succeeded by Rey Mysterio |
Trivia
- Was rewarded for his hard work, talented efforts, and gaining popularity in ECW by wrestling then World Heavyweight Champion Taz for the title in the main event of an ECW Pay Per View card.
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