Masa Saito
Encyclopedia
is a former Japan
ese professional wrestler
better known as Mr. Saito or . He wrestled for several years in various promotions
operated by the National Wrestling Alliance
(NWA). He later joined the World Wrestling Federation
(WWF), where he teamed with Mr. Fuji
to hold the World Tag Team Championship twice. He also won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship
in 1990. In Japan, Saito wrestled for both All Japan Pro Wrestling
and New Japan Pro Wrestling
. Saito gained notoriety for his arrest after throwing a boulder through the window of a McDonald's
restaurant in Waukesha Wisconsin and for a match wrestled against Antonio Inoki
on a deserted island in Japan.
version of the World Tag Team Championship
. The following year, he defeated Dale Lewis to win the NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship
. After losing the title to Jack Brisco
on February 10, 1970, he continued to team with Shibuya in the Los Angeles-based NWA Hollywood Wrestling, winning the NWA Americas Tag Team Championship
three times in 1971 and 1972. While wrestling in Los Angeles, he also won the NWA Beat the Champ Television Championship twice in 1972.
Saito's next championship came in Vancouver, British Columbia
, where he teamed with Gene Kiniski
to win the Vancouver version of the Canadian Tag Team Championship
. They held the belts for almost four months before dropping them to Ormand Malumba and Guy Mitchell on March 3, 1975. Saito regained the championship later in the year, however, teaming with Dale Lewis.
Saito next wrestled in NWA Florida, where he teamed with Ivan Koloff to defeat Rocky Johnson
and Pedro Morales
for the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship
in 1977. After losing the belts, Saito and Koloff won them twice more. Their final loss, on January 25, 1978 was to Jack
and Jerry Brisco
. Saito regained the title, however, teaming with Mr. Sato to defeat the Brisco Brothers. They lost the belts back to the Brisco Brothers three months later but succeeded in regaining them from Mike Graham and Steve Keirn
later in the year. While wrestling in Florida
, Saito also teamed with Sato to win the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship
on two occasions in 1978 and 1979. In 1979, he also won the Japan
version of the North American Tag Team Championship
, teaming with Hiro Matsuda
to win the belts on April 5.
Wrestling in the United States again in 1981, Saito won the Alabama Heavyweight Championship
twice, defeating Bob Armstrong
and Ray Candy
. That year, he was also involved in a controversy regarding the Florida version of the North American Tag Team Championship. The Assassins were stripped of the title when it was discovered that Saito was wrestling under a mask as a third member of the team.
. He formed a tag team
with Mr. Fuji
, which was managed by Captain Lou Albano
. They began a feud
with tag champions Tony Garea
and Rick Martel
, whom they defeated on October 17, 1981 edition of Championship Wrestling to win their first WWF Tag Team Championship, though it was Fuji's fourth individual reign. They began feuding with The Strongbows (Chief Jay
and Jules
) in the fall of 1981. This culminated in a title match on June 28, 1982 at Madison Square Garden
(MSG) where Strongbows won the titles. On July 13 edition of Championship Wrestling, they defeated Strongbows in a two out of three falls match for Fuji's fifth and Saito's second WWF Tag Team Championship. The feud of these two teams ended after Fuji and Saito lost the titles to Strongbows on October 30 edition of Championship Wrestling.
were refused service at a McDonald's
restaurant after the restaurant had closed. The two men threw a boulder through the restaurant's window in retaliation. When the police came, Saito and Patera fought with them before being arrested. As a result of the incident, Saito and Patera were convicted of battery
of a peace officer
and sentenced to serve two years in prison.
with Antonio Inoki
. To settle the feud, the two competed in an Island Death match on October 4, 1987. They were placed on Ganryujima Island
and wrestled a match that lasted two hours and spread across the island. Ultimately, Inoki was victorious, defeating Saito by technical knockout
. The following year, after leaving All Japan Pro Wrestling
to return to New Japan Pro Wrestling
, Saito won his first IWGP Tag Team Championship while teaming with Riki Chōshū
. He followed this with a second victory the following year, this time with Shinya Hashimoto
.
Saito's final major title came in the American Wrestling Association
(AWA), where he defeated Larry Zbyszko
for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship
in front of a hometown crowd of 63,900 fans at the Tokyo Dome on February 10, 1990. He lost the title two months later in a rematch with Zbyszko at SuperClash 4. While wrestling in the AWA, Saito also formed a tag team with Jesse Ventura
known as the Far East-West Connection.
(WCW) in 1995 and 1996, which included an appearance at Starrcade. Wrestling as part of a series of matches between New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling, Saito lost his match to WCW representative Johnny B. Badd
. On February 14, 1999, Saito retired from wrestling. His last match was a loss to Scott Norton
.
Since 2006 Saito has worked with the Kensuke Office promotion as a supervisor and manager/advisor to the promotion's younger talent.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
better known as Mr. Saito or . He wrestled for several years in various promotions
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
operated by the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
(NWA). He later joined the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWF), where he teamed with Mr. Fuji
Harry Fujiwara
Harry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...
to hold the World Tag Team Championship twice. He also won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship
AWA World Heavyweight Championship
The American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association. All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, are now owned by WWE...
in 1990. In Japan, Saito wrestled for both All Japan Pro Wrestling
All Japan Pro Wrestling
is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. All Japan Pro Wrestling still remains one of the most popular puroresu promotions still in operation.-The Giant Baba Era :...
and New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
. Saito gained notoriety for his arrest after throwing a boulder through the window of a McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
restaurant in Waukesha Wisconsin and for a match wrestled against Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki
is a Japanese professional wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist who now resides between New York City and Tokyo. He was also the founder and former owner of New Japan Pro Wrestling before selling his controlling share in the promotion to Yukes...
on a deserted island in Japan.
1964 Summer Olympics
Saito competed in freestyle wrestling for Japan in the 1964 Olympic Games, placing seventh, making him one of the Top 10 Olympic wrestlers that year.Early career
He began his pro wrestling career in 1965 and quickly established himself in both Japan and the United States. Nicknamed "Mr. Torture" for his punishing and sadistic style, Saito held numerous titles while wrestling in North America and Japan.National Wrestling Alliance
On July 13, 1968, Saito won his first title, teaming with Kenji Shibuya to win the San FranciscoSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
version of the World Tag Team Championship
NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version)
The San Francisco, California version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship existed from 1950 until 1961, and then from 1968 until 1979.-Title history:...
. The following year, he defeated Dale Lewis to win the NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship
NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship was a major title in Championship Wrestling from Florida, USA and is now the major title in NWA Florida. It started in 1937 and was abandoned in 1949. It was picked back up in 1966 by CWF and lasted until 1987 when the company was purchased by Jim Crockett...
. After losing the title to Jack Brisco
Jack Brisco
Freddie Joe Brisco was an American professional wrestler, better known as Jack Brisco or Uvalde Slim. He performed for various territories of the National Wrestling Alliance , becoming a two-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, and multi-time NWA Tag Team Champion with his brother Gerald Brisco...
on February 10, 1970, he continued to team with Shibuya in the Los Angeles-based NWA Hollywood Wrestling, winning the NWA Americas Tag Team Championship
NWA Americas Tag Team Championship
The NWA Americas Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Hollywood Wrestling based out of Los Angeles, California....
three times in 1971 and 1972. While wrestling in Los Angeles, he also won the NWA Beat the Champ Television Championship twice in 1972.
Saito's next championship came in Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, where he teamed with Gene Kiniski
Gene Kiniski
Eugene Nicholas "Gene" Kiniski was a Canadian professional wrestler and the father of wrestlers Nick Kiniski and Kelly Kiniski. "Canada's Greatest Athlete" as he billed himself for promotional purposes was born outside of Edmonton, Alberta...
to win the Vancouver version of the Canadian Tag Team Championship
NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version)
The Vancouver version of the NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship was established in 1962 as the top tag team title in NWA All-Star Wrestling. The title held that status until late summer 1985, when the title was renamed the UWA Tag Team Championship upon All-Star Wrestling's departure as a member of...
. They held the belts for almost four months before dropping them to Ormand Malumba and Guy Mitchell on March 3, 1975. Saito regained the championship later in the year, however, teaming with Dale Lewis.
Saito next wrestled in NWA Florida, where he teamed with Ivan Koloff to defeat Rocky Johnson
Rocky Johnson
Rocky Johnson is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. Quite popular in his own right in the 1970s and 1980s, he is also known for being the father of actor and professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson...
and Pedro Morales
Pedro Morales
Pedro Morales is a retired Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He began his wrestling career as a teenager in 1959 and continued through to the late 1980s...
for the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship
NWA Florida Tag Team Championship
The NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in Pro Wrestling Fusion. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida and lasted until 1990 when it was abandoned. It was picked back up in 1997 by NWA Florida, where it was the primary...
in 1977. After losing the belts, Saito and Koloff won them twice more. Their final loss, on January 25, 1978 was to Jack
Jack Brisco
Freddie Joe Brisco was an American professional wrestler, better known as Jack Brisco or Uvalde Slim. He performed for various territories of the National Wrestling Alliance , becoming a two-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, and multi-time NWA Tag Team Champion with his brother Gerald Brisco...
and Jerry Brisco
Gerald Brisco
Floyd Gerald "Jerry" Brisco is a former American professional wrestler, and prior to June, 2009, worked as a road agent for WWE on its Raw brand....
. Saito regained the title, however, teaming with Mr. Sato to defeat the Brisco Brothers. They lost the belts back to the Brisco Brothers three months later but succeeded in regaining them from Mike Graham and Steve Keirn
Steve Keirn
Stephen "Steve" Paul Keirn is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for being part of the tag team The Fabulous Ones, with Stan Lane, and later for a run in the World Wrestling Federation as Skinner, a gimmick that portrayed him as a tobacco spitting alligator hunter from...
later in the year. While wrestling in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Saito also teamed with Sato to win the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship
NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship
The Florida version of the United States Tag Team Championship was a major professional wrestling tag team championship. The title was defended sporadically in the National Wrestling Alliance affiliated Championship Wrestling from Florida from 1961 to 1962, 1978 to 1980, and then 1983 until 1986...
on two occasions in 1978 and 1979. In 1979, he also won the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
version of the North American Tag Team Championship
NWA North American Tag Team Championship
The NWA North American Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team championship that is currently used and defended in various territories throughout the National Wrestling Alliance. This is the fifth NWA sanctioned championship to bear this name...
, teaming with Hiro Matsuda
Yasuhiro Kojima
was a professional wrestler and the trainer of Hulk Hogan, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, Lex Luger, Ron Simmons, Keiji Mutoh, and many other professional wrestlers. He was better known as Hiro Matsuda, an identity he adopted while competing in the southern U.S., inspired by earlier wrestlers...
to win the belts on April 5.
Wrestling in the United States again in 1981, Saito won the Alabama Heavyweight Championship
NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship was created in October, 1962. Since its creation, the championship has been defended in a number of NWA territories throughout the decades....
twice, defeating Bob Armstrong
Bob Armstrong
Joseph Melton James is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Bullet" Bob Armstrong. In the course of his career, which spanned five decades, Armstrong held numerous championships throughout the Southeastern United States...
and Ray Candy
Ray Candy
Ray Canty , known by the ring name Ray Candy, was an American professional wrestler for the Jim Crockett Promotions and various other regional wrestling territories...
. That year, he was also involved in a controversy regarding the Florida version of the North American Tag Team Championship. The Assassins were stripped of the title when it was discovered that Saito was wrestling under a mask as a third member of the team.
World Wrestling Federation
Later in the year, Saito signed with the World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
. He formed a tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
with Mr. Fuji
Harry Fujiwara
Harry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...
, which was managed by Captain Lou Albano
Lou Albano
Louis Vincent "Captain Lou" Albano was an Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor. He was active as a professional wrestler from 1953 until 1969, then he became a manager, until 1995....
. They began a feud
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with tag champions Tony Garea
Anthony Garcia
Anthony "Tony" Garcia is a retired New Zealand professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Tony Garea, who wrestled for the National Wrestling Alliance and the World Wrestling Federation , spending thirty-two of his thirty-five year career in the promotion...
and Rick Martel
Rick Martel
Richard Vigneault is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1980 and 1995 under the ring name Rick Martel...
, whom they defeated on October 17, 1981 edition of Championship Wrestling to win their first WWF Tag Team Championship, though it was Fuji's fourth individual reign. They began feuding with The Strongbows (Chief Jay
Joe Scarpa
Joseph Luke Scarpa is a former professional wrestler who was best known by his famous ring moniker, Chief Jay Strongbow...
and Jules
Jules strongbow
Frank Hill is a former professional wrestler, who is best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Federation , where he used to wrestle as Chief Jules Strongbow or simply Jules Strongbow, the brother of Chief Jay Strongbow.-World Wrestling Federation :Jules made his wrestling debut in the 1970s...
) in the fall of 1981. This culminated in a title match on June 28, 1982 at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
(MSG) where Strongbows won the titles. On July 13 edition of Championship Wrestling, they defeated Strongbows in a two out of three falls match for Fuji's fifth and Saito's second WWF Tag Team Championship. The feud of these two teams ended after Fuji and Saito lost the titles to Strongbows on October 30 edition of Championship Wrestling.
Arrest
On April 6, 1984, Saito and Ken PateraKen Patera
Ken Patera is a former professional wrestler, Olympic weightlifter, and Strongman competitor.-Weightlifting/Strongman career:Patera is a former Olympic weightlifter and American powerlifter...
were refused service at a McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
restaurant after the restaurant had closed. The two men threw a boulder through the restaurant's window in retaliation. When the police came, Saito and Patera fought with them before being arrested. As a result of the incident, Saito and Patera were convicted of battery
Battery (crime)
Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the fear of such contact.In the United States, criminal battery, or simply battery, is the use of force against another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact...
of a peace officer
Peace officer
A law enforcement officer , in North America, is any public-sector employee or agent whose duties involve the enforcement of laws. The phrase can include police officers, prison officers, customs officers, immigration officers, bailiffs, probation officers, parole officers, auxiliary officers, and...
and sentenced to serve two years in prison.
Later career
Following his release, Saito wrestled mainly in Japan, where he became involved in a feudFeud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki
is a Japanese professional wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist who now resides between New York City and Tokyo. He was also the founder and former owner of New Japan Pro Wrestling before selling his controlling share in the promotion to Yukes...
. To settle the feud, the two competed in an Island Death match on October 4, 1987. They were placed on Ganryujima Island
Ganryujima
' is an island in Japan located between Honshū and Kyūshū, and accessible via ferry from Shimonoseki Harbor . It is famous for the duel between Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kojirō...
and wrestled a match that lasted two hours and spread across the island. Ultimately, Inoki was victorious, defeating Saito by technical knockout
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
. The following year, after leaving All Japan Pro Wrestling
All Japan Pro Wrestling
is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. All Japan Pro Wrestling still remains one of the most popular puroresu promotions still in operation.-The Giant Baba Era :...
to return to New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
, Saito won his first IWGP Tag Team Championship while teaming with Riki Chōshū
Riki Choshu
Mitsuo Yoshida , better known by his stage name Riki Chōshū , is a Korean-Japanese professional wrestler who is most known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro Wrestling as a wrestler and a booker...
. He followed this with a second victory the following year, this time with Shinya Hashimoto
Shinya Hashimoto
, was a Japanese professional wrestler. Along with Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh, Hashimoto was dubbed one of the "Three Musketeers" that began competing in New Japan Pro Wrestling in the mid 1980s and dominated the promotion in the 1990s....
.
Saito's final major title came in the American Wrestling Association
American Wrestling Association
The American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
(AWA), where he defeated Larry Zbyszko
Larry Zbyszko
Lawrence "Larry" Whistler is a professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Larry Zbyszko. Zbyszko is perhaps best known for his feud with his mentor, wrestling legend Bruno Sammartino during the early 1980s....
for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship
AWA World Heavyweight Championship
The American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association. All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, are now owned by WWE...
in front of a hometown crowd of 63,900 fans at the Tokyo Dome on February 10, 1990. He lost the title two months later in a rematch with Zbyszko at SuperClash 4. While wrestling in the AWA, Saito also formed a tag team with Jesse Ventura
Jesse Ventura
James George Janos , better known as Jesse Ventura, is an American politician, the 38th Governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003, Navy UDT veteran, former SEAL reservist, actor, and former radio and television talk show host...
known as the Far East-West Connection.
Retirement
Saito had a short spell in World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW) in 1995 and 1996, which included an appearance at Starrcade. Wrestling as part of a series of matches between New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling, Saito lost his match to WCW representative Johnny B. Badd
Marc Mero
Marc Mero is an American retired amateur boxer and professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation as Marc Mero and with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Johnny B. Badd...
. On February 14, 1999, Saito retired from wrestling. His last match was a loss to Scott Norton
Scott Norton
Scott Michael Norton is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in World Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling.-Before wrestling:...
.
Since 2006 Saito has worked with the Kensuke Office promotion as a supervisor and manager/advisor to the promotion's younger talent.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Saito suplex – Innovated
- Prison lock
- Signature moves
- Cloverleaf leg laced Boston crabSharpshooter (professional wrestling)The Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English, is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known by several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing reverse figure-four leglock, and, the most commonly known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock...
- German suplex
- Headbutt
- Lariat
- Cloverleaf leg laced Boston crab
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Lou AlbanoLou AlbanoLouis Vincent "Captain Lou" Albano was an Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor. He was active as a professional wrestler from 1953 until 1969, then he became a manager, until 1995....
- Sonny Onoo
- Lou Albano
Championships and accomplishments
- American Wrestling AssociationAmerican Wrestling AssociationThe American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
- AWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipAWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association. All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, are now owned by WWE...
(1 time)
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
- NWA Florida Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Florida Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship was a major title in Championship Wrestling from Florida, USA and is now the major title in NWA Florida. It started in 1937 and was abandoned in 1949. It was picked back up in 1966 by CWF and lasted until 1987 when the company was purchased by Jim Crockett...
(1 time) - NWA Florida Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Florida Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in Pro Wrestling Fusion. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida and lasted until 1990 when it was abandoned. It was picked back up in 1997 by NWA Florida, where it was the primary...
(5 times) – with Ivan Koloff (3) and Mr. SatoAkihisa MeraAkihisa Yone Yoshi Mera , better known as The Great Kabuki, is a Japanese professional wrestler. He was famous for being the first to blow "Asian mist" in his opponents' faces.-Professional wrestling career:...
(2) - NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (2 times) – with Mr. Sato
- New Japan Pro WrestlingNew Japan Pro Wrestlingis a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
- IWGP Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Riki ChōshūRiki ChoshuMitsuo Yoshida , better known by his stage name Riki Chōshū , is a Korean-Japanese professional wrestler who is most known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro Wrestling as a wrestler and a booker...
(1) and Shinya HashimotoShinya Hashimoto, was a Japanese professional wrestler. Along with Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh, Hashimoto was dubbed one of the "Three Musketeers" that began competing in New Japan Pro Wrestling in the mid 1980s and dominated the promotion in the 1990s....
(1) - NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Los Angeles/Japan version)NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Los Angeles/Japan version)This version of the NWA North American Tag Team Championship was a major tag team championship that was primarily defended in the National Wrestling Alliance affiliated New Japan Pro Wrestling and NWA Hollywood Wrestling. The title essentially served as New Japan's primary tag team title though it...
(1 time) – with Hiro MatsudaYasuhiro Kojimawas a professional wrestler and the trainer of Hulk Hogan, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, Lex Luger, Ron Simmons, Keiji Mutoh, and many other professional wrestlers. He was better known as Hiro Matsuda, an identity he adopted while competing in the southern U.S., inspired by earlier wrestlers...
- NWA All-Star Wrestling
- NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version)NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version)The Vancouver version of the NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship was established in 1962 as the top tag team title in NWA All-Star Wrestling. The title held that status until late summer 1985, when the title was renamed the UWA Tag Team Championship upon All-Star Wrestling's departure as a member of...
(2 times) – with Gene KiniskiGene KiniskiEugene Nicholas "Gene" Kiniski was a Canadian professional wrestler and the father of wrestlers Nick Kiniski and Kelly Kiniski. "Canada's Greatest Athlete" as he billed himself for promotional purposes was born outside of Edmonton, Alberta...
(1) and Dale Lewis (1)
- NWA Hollywood WrestlingNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Americas Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Americas Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Americas Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Hollywood Wrestling based out of Los Angeles, California....
(3 times) – with Kenji Shibuya - NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Championship (2 times)
- NWA San FranciscoNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version)NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version)The San Francisco, California version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship existed from 1950 until 1961, and then from 1968 until 1979.-Title history:...
(2 times) – with Kenji Shibuya
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI ranked him #89 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
- Southeastern Championship WrestlingContinental Championship WrestlingContinental Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based out of Knoxville, Tennessee from 1974 until 1988 and Dothan, Alabama from 1978 to 1990, managed by Ron Fuller. When Fuller sold the promotion to David Woods, it changed name to the Continental Wrestling Federation...
- NWA Alabama Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Alabama Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship was created in October, 1962. Since its creation, the championship has been defended in a number of NWA territories throughout the decades....
(2 times)
- World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Mr. FujiHarry FujiwaraHarry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...