Shoichi Funaki
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese
/American
professional wrestler
best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment
, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion
and a one-time Hardcore Champion
.
wrestler in Yoshiaki Fujiwara
's Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi
promotion
and moved to its successor promotion, Battlarts
. He later found the lucha libre
style more to his liking, so he moved to the Great Sasuke
's promotion, Michinoku Pro Wrestling
. In that promotion, he joined with Taka Michinoku, Dick Togo, Men's Teioh
and Shiryu
in the Kai En Tai
stable. Funaki also wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Association
(UWA) where he won the UWA World Middleweight Championship
from El Pantera
on March 19, 1997, in Japan.
. Initially, they feuded with Taka Michinoku and defeated him and his partner Justin Bradshaw
in a 3-on-2 handicap match at Over the Edge: In Your House
. They lost to Michinoku and The Headbangers
at King of the Ring 1998 in a six-man tag team match
.
Michinoku eventually turned villainous
and joined the group. At SummerSlam 1998
, Kai En Tai lost to Oddities members Kurrgan
, Giant Silva and Golga
in a handicap match. Over time, the stable turned into a tag team, as in 1999, Teioh and Togo (and manager Yamaguchi-san) were given their releases. Michinoku and Funaki were often used for comedic purposes, often having their pre-match promos dubbed—while Michinoku would "deliver" the majority of dialogue for the duo, Funaki would "respond" strongly with a simple "INDEED".
At WrestleMania 2000
, Funaki participated in a 15-minute hardcore battle royal for the Hardcore Championship
. Funaki pinned Viscera after a diving shoulder block from Bradshaw but he was later pinned by Rodney
. Hardcore Holly
ultimately won the match and became the official champion. At Unforgiven 2000, Funaki once again participated in a hardcore battle royal which was won by the defending champion Steve Blackman
.
In 2001, Kai En Tai started participating in dark matches before pay-per-view events such as Royal Rumble 2001
and Judgment Day 2001
. After Michinoku left the WWF, Funaki found himself as a lower card wrestler and adopted the gimmick of "SmackDown!'s number one announcer", performing backstage interviews between matches, while competing in the WWF's cruiserweight division.
, Funaki participated in an "Immunity Battle Royal" which was won by Test. Funaki was drafted to WWE's SmackDown! brand
. As part of SmackDown! brand, Funaki wrestled for most of the time on Velocity
. At Rebellion 2002, Funaki defeated Crash Holly
. At Vengeance 2003
, Funaki participated in the APA
Invitational Bar Room Brawl which was won by Bradshaw.
at the time Chavo Guerrero
in a non-title match. On the March 11 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki participated in an 8-man cruiserweight tag team match teaming with fellow cruiserweights Rey Mysterio, Último Dragón and Billy Kidman against Tajiri
, Akio
, Sakoda
and Jamie Noble
. At WrestleMania XX
, Funaki participated in a Cruiserweight Open for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but was pinned by Jamie Noble.
On December 9, on an edition of SmackDown!, Funaki won a cruiserweight over the top rope number one contender's battle royal which included Chavo Guerrero, Paul London
, Billy Kidman, Akio, Shannon Moore
and Nunzio
. At Armageddon 2004
, Funaki defeated Spike Dudley
to win his first WWE Cruiserweight Championship
. Funaki successfully defended the Cruiserweight title against Spike Dudley, Akio, Nunzio. His last successful title defense was against Chavo Guerrero on the February 10, 2005 edition of SmackDown!, notably held in Funaki's birth country, Japan.
Funaki lost the championship to Chavo Guerrero in a six-man Cruiserweight Open match at No Way Out 2005
. Since then, Funaki has mainly been an enhancement talent
for new and returning talent. At Armageddon 2005
, he lost to Jamie Noble in a match on Heat
. During an interview with then Cruiserweight Champion Kid Kash on an episode of SmackDown!, Funaki was assaulted by Kash, who gave him a brainbuster
onto the interview platform.
At the 2006 Royal Rumble
, Funaki faced Kid Kash in a match for the title, when he was entered into a Cruiserweight Open along with four other former Cruiserweight champions, including the champion Kash. Funaki was pinned in this one fall match by then Raw
superstar Gregory Helms
, who won the match and title. At No Way Out 2006
, Funaki participated in a Nine Man Cruiserweight Match for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but Helms retained the title. Since that time Funaki, would regularly team with Scotty 2 Hotty during episodes of Velocity and SmackDown!. During one such Velocity taping, however, Funaki suffered a 2nd Grade concussion, where he was unconscious for just under two minutes. Funaki would resume wrestling later that year, forming a tag team of sorts with Scotty 2 Hotty, which was mainly used to put over debuting wrestlers or tag teams.
Funaki made a one off appearance at the Puroresu King Indy Summit, on December 31, 2006, reuniting with Kai En Tai DX
in what was being billed as a Kai En Tai DX Revival Ten-Man Tag Match; Funaki reteamed with Taka Michinoku, Kaz Hayashi
, Dick Togo and Men's Teioh to face five other wrestlers. Funaki returned to WWE TV on February 16, 2007 on SmackDown! in a brawl that involved the other SmackDown! cruiserweights and the then-Cruiserweight Champion Gregory Helms.
At No Way Out 2007
, Funaki participated in a Cruiserweight Open match for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but was pinned by the champion Helms. On May 18 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki was made short work of by recently returned superstar Mark Henry
. On the June 29 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki got a shot at the Cruiserweight title against Cruiserweight Champion Chavo Guerrero and Jamie Noble, but came up short. At The Great American Bash
, he participated in a match for the Cruiserweight Championship which Hornswoggle won. On December 14, on an edition of SmackDown!, he wrestled in a squash match against Edge
. He also made a televised appearance on January 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown! where he lost to Chavo Guerrero in a Beat the Clock match.
Funaki legitimately broke his nose at a joint SmackDown/ECW taping in Houston, Texas during a dark match against Vladimir Kozlov
.
. This was used as the basis for a gimmick change for Funaki; he then came to the ring dressed in a gi
and tweaked his moveset to incorporate theatrical martial arts moves. His first match as Kung Fu Naki saw him scoring a pinfall win over Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) and Shelton Benjamin
in a tag team match with R-Truth. Kung Fu Naki then defeated MVP in a singles match on the November 14, 2008 edition of SmackDown when The Great Khali interfered and distracted MVP. His first loss in the character was against WWE Champion
Edge on the December 5, 2008 edition of SmackDown.
He was inexplicably absent from WWE action until WrestleMania XXVI
, where he took part in the 26 Man Battle Royal
match, which was won by Yoshi Tatsu. On April 22, 2010, WWE released Funaki, ending his 12 year stint with the company.
.
On November 29, 2010, San Antonio, Texas
–based River City Wrestling (RCW) announced that it had reached a working agreement with Funaki to host his new professional wrestling school, named the FU Dojo. The school's first class started on January 15, 2011.
Most recently, Funaki worked a RAW live event in Yokohama, Japan. Funaki was the special referee for a match between Divas Champion Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly. After the match, The Miz interrupted Funaki and told him to get out of the ring.
.
On August 30, 2007, Funaki, along with nine other superstars, were named in Sports Illustrated
as recipients of illegal steroids not in compliance with the WWE Talent Wellness Program. Funaki was said to have received somatropin
in March 2006.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
/American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment
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...
, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
and a one-time Hardcore Champion
WWE Hardcore Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
.
Early years (1990–1998)
Funaki started as a shoot styleShoot wrestling
Shoot wrestling is a combat sport that has its origins in Japan's professional wrestling circuit of the 1970s. Professional wrestlers of that era attempted to utilize more realistic or "full contact" moves in their matches to increase their excitement...
wrestler in Yoshiaki Fujiwara
Yoshiaki Fujiwara
is a Japanese actor, and professional wrestler who has worked for New Japan Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, and UWF.-New Japan Pro Wrestling and Universal Wrestling Federation :...
's Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi
Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi
Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Group was a shoot style professional wrestling promotion based in Japan, operating from 1991 to 1995...
promotion
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...
and moved to its successor promotion, Battlarts
BattlARTS
was a professional wrestling promotion based in Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan. The promotion was formed in 1996 by Japanese wrestler Yuki Ishikawa and featured all of the wrestlers from the Fujiwara Gumi promotion, who had abandoned the promotion in favor of Battlarts...
. He later found the lucha libre
Lucha libre
Lucha libre is a term used in Mexico, and other Spanish-speaking countries, for a form of professional wrestling that has developed within those countries...
style more to his liking, so he moved to the Great Sasuke
Masanori Murakawa
, , is a Japanese professional wrestler who is best known by his stage name The Great Sasuke, as well as a former Iwate Prefectural Assembly legislator. He has wrestled in Japan and in the United States in various wrestling promotions...
's promotion, Michinoku Pro Wrestling
Michinoku Pro Wrestling
Michinoku Pro Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded by The Great Sasuke in 1993. Michinoku Pro was the first independent wrestling promotion in Japan to not base its operations in Tokyo, but rather in Morioka, Iwate...
. In that promotion, he joined with Taka Michinoku, Dick Togo, Men's Teioh
Takeo Otsuka
, also known as Men's Teioh or Terry Boy, is a Japanese professional wrestler who is a longtime mainstay of Big Japan Pro Wrestling as well as a former competitor of Michinoku Pro Wrestling...
and Shiryu
Kaz Hayashi
Kazuhiro "Kaz" Hayashi is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is working for All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is also the head booker for the company's junior division.-Career:...
in the Kai En Tai
Kai En Tai
Kai En Tai was a professional wrestling stable made up of Japanese wrestlers Kaz Hayashi, Dick Togo and Mens Teioh, later joined by Sho Funaki and Taka Michinoku. The group was managed by Yamaguchi-San when they were in the WWF....
stable. Funaki also wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Association
Universal Wrestling Association
The Universal Wrestling Association was a Mexican Lucha Libre or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995...
(UWA) where he won the UWA World Middleweight Championship
UWA World Middleweight Championship
The UWA World Middleweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship originally created and sanctioend by the Mexican lucha libre promotion Universal Wrestling Association from 1976 until the UWA closed in 1995...
from El Pantera
Pantera (wrestler)
Francisco Javier Pozas is a Mexican professional wrestler, or luchador, who is best known under the ring name El Pantera, but has also worked as Pantera II, El Manaya, América, Tritón and TANAKA over the years...
on March 19, 1997, in Japan.
Kai En Tai (1998–2001)
In March 1998, Funaki, along with Teioh and Togo, joined 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...
. Initially, they feuded with Taka Michinoku and defeated him and his partner Justin Bradshaw
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
in a 3-on-2 handicap match at Over the Edge: In Your House
Over the Edge: In Your House
Over the Edge: In Your House was the first of what was to be an annual World Wrestling Federation pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It was also the 22nd pay-per-view event in the In Your House series...
. They lost to Michinoku and The Headbangers
The Headbangers
The Headbangers is a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Mosh and Thrasher, best known for their work in the World Wrestling Federation...
at King of the Ring 1998 in a six-man tag team match
Professional wrestling tag team match types
Much like singles matches, 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...
.
Michinoku eventually turned villainous
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
and joined the group. At SummerSlam 1998
SummerSlam (1998)
SummerSlam was the eleventh annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 30, 1998 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York....
, Kai En Tai lost to Oddities members Kurrgan
Robert Maillet
Robert Maillet is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor. He is known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation, as a member of the Truth Commission and the Oddities, wrestling under the name Kurrgan....
, Giant Silva and Golga
John Tenta
John Anthony Tenta was a Canadian professional wrestler known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation as Earthquake and later Golga, and in World Championship Wrestling as Avalanche and The Shark.-Early life:John Tenta was born in Surrey, British Columbia...
in a handicap match. Over time, the stable turned into a tag team, as in 1999, Teioh and Togo (and manager Yamaguchi-san) were given their releases. Michinoku and Funaki were often used for comedic purposes, often having their pre-match promos dubbed—while Michinoku would "deliver" the majority of dialogue for the duo, Funaki would "respond" strongly with a simple "INDEED".
At WrestleMania 2000
WrestleMania 2000
WrestleMania 2000 was the sixteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on April 2, 2000 at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California...
, Funaki participated in a 15-minute hardcore battle royal for the Hardcore Championship
WWE Hardcore Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
. Funaki pinned Viscera after a diving shoulder block from Bradshaw but he was later pinned by Rodney
Rodney Leinhardt
Rodney Leinhardt is an American professional wrestler, better known simply as Rodney from his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation. He is currently working on the independent circuit as RodRageous.-Career:Leinhardt trained under Tom Prichard and debuted in 1998...
. Hardcore Holly
Bob Holly
Robert "Bob" Howard better known by his ring name Bob "Hardcore" Holly, is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for his 15-year stint with World Wrestling Entertainment ....
ultimately won the match and became the official champion. At Unforgiven 2000, Funaki once again participated in a hardcore battle royal which was won by the defending champion Steve Blackman
Steve Blackman
Steve Blackman is a American professional wrestler who is best known for his career in the World Wrestling Federation under his own name.-Stampede Wrestling and South Africa :...
.
In 2001, Kai En Tai started participating in dark matches before pay-per-view events such as Royal Rumble 2001
Royal Rumble (2001)
Royal Rumble was the fourteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
and Judgment Day 2001
Judgment Day (2001)
Judgment Day was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It was the third such annual event and took place on May 20, 2001 at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California....
. After Michinoku left the WWF, Funaki found himself as a lower card wrestler and adopted the gimmick of "SmackDown!'s number one announcer", performing backstage interviews between matches, while competing in the WWF's cruiserweight division.
Post-Kaientai (2001–2003)
At Survivor Series 2001Survivor Series (2001)
Survivor Series was the fifteenth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
, Funaki participated in an "Immunity Battle Royal" which was won by Test. Funaki was drafted to WWE's SmackDown! brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
. As part of SmackDown! brand, Funaki wrestled for most of the time on Velocity
WWE Velocity
WWE Velocity was a professional wrestling television program produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It replaced two syndicated WWE shows, Jakked/Metal. Once a weekly Saturday night show on Spike TV and on Sky Sports 2 in the UK on Sunday mornings, Velocity became a webcast from 2005 to 2006...
. At Rebellion 2002, Funaki defeated Crash Holly
Mike Lockwood
Michael John "Mike" Lockwood was an American professional wrestler best known for his time with World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment under the ring name Crash Holly....
. At Vengeance 2003
Vengeance (2003)
Vengeance was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on July 27, 2003 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. It was the third annual Vengeance event and starred wrestlers from the SmackDown brand.Eight professional wrestling...
, Funaki participated in the APA
Acolytes Protection Agency
The Acolytes Protection Agency , was a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Bradshaw and Faarooq. They wrestled for the American promotion World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment between October 1998 and March 2004....
Invitational Bar Room Brawl which was won by Bradshaw.
Cruiserweight Champion (2004–2005)
Funaki started wrestling in the cruiserweight division around 2003. On March 4, 2004 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki lost to WWE Cruiserweight ChampionWWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
at the time Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
in a non-title match. On the March 11 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki participated in an 8-man cruiserweight tag team match teaming with fellow cruiserweights Rey Mysterio, Último Dragón and Billy Kidman against Tajiri
Yoshihiro Tajiri
, is a Japanese professional wrestler, perhaps best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment. He is currently competing in SMASH as TAJIRI.-Early years :...
, Akio
James Yun
James Carson Yun is an American professional wrestler and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jimmy Wang Yang, in World Championship Wrestling as one-third of the Jung Dragons as Yang, and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and the independent circuit...
, Sakoda
Ryan Sakoda
Ryan Sakoda is a Japanese American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in World Wrestling Entertainment and current work for Ultimate Pro Wrestling as a part-time trainer for the wrestlers, as well as working in the independents as Ryan Sakoda.-Professional wrestling...
and Jamie Noble
Jamie Noble
James Howard Gibson better known by his WWE ring name Jamie Noble, is an American former professional wrestler currently working for WWE as a trainer. He is best known for his work from 2002 to 2009 when a severe back injury forced him to retire from competition...
. At WrestleMania XX
WrestleMania XX
WrestleMania XX was the twentieth WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on March 14, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York....
, Funaki participated in a Cruiserweight Open for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but was pinned by Jamie Noble.
On December 9, on an edition of SmackDown!, Funaki won a cruiserweight over the top rope number one contender's battle royal which included Chavo Guerrero, Paul London
Paul London
Paul Michael London is an American professional wrestler best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment ....
, Billy Kidman, Akio, Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...
and Nunzio
James Maritato
James Maritato is an American professional wrestler, of Italian origin, currently working on the independent circuit. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring names Little Guido Maritato and Nunzio.-Starting out:While...
. At Armageddon 2004
Armageddon (2004)
Armageddon was the fifth annual Armageddon professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on December 12, 2004 at the Gwinnett Center in the Atlanta suburb of Duluth, Georgia. Nine professional wrestling matches were scheduled on the event's card...
, Funaki defeated Spike Dudley
Matt Hyson
Matthew "Matt" Hyson is a retired American professional wrestler, best known for his performances in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Spike Dudley and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Brother Runt.In ECW, he was a two-time...
to win his first WWE Cruiserweight Championship
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
. Funaki successfully defended the Cruiserweight title against Spike Dudley, Akio, Nunzio. His last successful title defense was against Chavo Guerrero on the February 10, 2005 edition of SmackDown!, notably held in Funaki's birth country, Japan.
Cruiserweight Division (2005–2008)
No Way Out (2005)
No Way Out was the seventh annual No Way Out pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 20, 2005 from the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania....
. Since then, Funaki has mainly been an enhancement talent
Job (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling slang, the term job describes a losing performance in a wrestling match. It is derived from the euphemism "doing one's job", which was employed to protect kayfabe. As professional wrestling is scripted, inevitably a wrestler will be required to lose to an opponent.The term...
for new and returning talent. At Armageddon 2005
Armageddon (2005)
Armageddon was the sixth Armageddon professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on December 18, 2005 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island and was a SmackDown! brand-exclusive event.The main event was a Hell in a Cell...
, he lost to Jamie Noble in a match on Heat
WWE HEAT
WWE Heat was a professional wrestling television program produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
. During an interview with then Cruiserweight Champion Kid Kash on an episode of SmackDown!, Funaki was assaulted by Kash, who gave him a brainbuster
Brainbuster
A brainbuster is a professional wrestling throw in which a wrestler puts his/her opponent in a front facelock, hooks his/her pants, and lifts him/her up as if he/she was executing a vertical suplex. The wrestler then falls onto his/her back so that the opponent lands on his/her head while remaining...
onto the interview platform.
At the 2006 Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2006)
Royal Rumble was the nineteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 29, 2006 in the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida and featured talent from the Raw and SmackDown! brands...
, Funaki faced Kid Kash in a match for the title, when he was entered into a Cruiserweight Open along with four other former Cruiserweight champions, including the champion Kash. Funaki was pinned in this one fall match by then Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
superstar Gregory Helms
Gregory Helms
Gregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment where he wrestled as The Hurricane and Gregory Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms...
, who won the match and title. At No Way Out 2006
No Way Out (2006)
No Way Out was the eighth annual No Way Out professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 19, 2006 at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland and was a SmackDown! brand-exclusive event...
, Funaki participated in a Nine Man Cruiserweight Match for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but Helms retained the title. Since that time Funaki, would regularly team with Scotty 2 Hotty during episodes of Velocity and SmackDown!. During one such Velocity taping, however, Funaki suffered a 2nd Grade concussion, where he was unconscious for just under two minutes. Funaki would resume wrestling later that year, forming a tag team of sorts with Scotty 2 Hotty, which was mainly used to put over debuting wrestlers or tag teams.
Funaki made a one off appearance at the Puroresu King Indy Summit, on December 31, 2006, reuniting with Kai En Tai DX
Kai En Tai
Kai En Tai was a professional wrestling stable made up of Japanese wrestlers Kaz Hayashi, Dick Togo and Mens Teioh, later joined by Sho Funaki and Taka Michinoku. The group was managed by Yamaguchi-San when they were in the WWF....
in what was being billed as a Kai En Tai DX Revival Ten-Man Tag Match; Funaki reteamed with Taka Michinoku, Kaz Hayashi
Kaz Hayashi
Kazuhiro "Kaz" Hayashi is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is working for All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is also the head booker for the company's junior division.-Career:...
, Dick Togo and Men's Teioh to face five other wrestlers. Funaki returned to WWE TV on February 16, 2007 on SmackDown! in a brawl that involved the other SmackDown! cruiserweights and the then-Cruiserweight Champion Gregory Helms.
At No Way Out 2007
No Way Out (2007)
No Way Out was the ninth annual No Way Out pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 18, 2007 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California and was the final branded pay-per-view before all pay-per-view events became tri-branded.The main event was...
, Funaki participated in a Cruiserweight Open match for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship but was pinned by the champion Helms. On May 18 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki was made short work of by recently returned superstar Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
. On the June 29 edition of SmackDown!, Funaki got a shot at the Cruiserweight title against Cruiserweight Champion Chavo Guerrero and Jamie Noble, but came up short. At The Great American Bash
The Great American Bash (2007)
The Great American Bash was the fourth annual Great American Bash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
, he participated in a match for the Cruiserweight Championship which Hornswoggle won. On December 14, on an edition of SmackDown!, he wrestled in a squash match against Edge
Adam Copeland
Adam Joseph Copeland is a retired Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Edge. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract....
. He also made a televised appearance on January 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown! where he lost to Chavo Guerrero in a Beat the Clock match.
Funaki legitimately broke his nose at a joint SmackDown/ECW taping in Houston, Texas during a dark match against Vladimir Kozlov
Oleg Prudius
Oleg Aleksandrovich Prudius is a Ukrainian American professional wrestler, also known by his ring name Vladimir Kozlov . Since competing for WWE, he won the WWE Tag Team Championships with Santino Marella on one occasion...
.
Kung Fu Naki (2008–2010)
On October 10, 2008 Funaki revealed his full name to be "Kung Fu Naki" during a backstage segment with R-TruthRon Killings
Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
. This was used as the basis for a gimmick change for Funaki; he then came to the ring dressed in a gi
Keikogi
or dōgi is a uniform for training, used in martial arts derived from Japan, or budō. . The prototype for the modern keikogi emerged in the late 19th century. The keikogi was developed by judo founder Kano Jigoro...
and tweaked his moveset to incorporate theatrical martial arts moves. His first match as Kung Fu Naki saw him scoring a pinfall win over Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) and Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin
Shelton James Benjamin is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment. Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, Benjamin has acted...
in a tag team match with R-Truth. Kung Fu Naki then defeated MVP in a singles match on the November 14, 2008 edition of SmackDown when The Great Khali interfered and distracted MVP. His first loss in the character was against WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
Edge on the December 5, 2008 edition of SmackDown.
He was inexplicably absent from WWE action until WrestleMania XXVI
WrestleMania XXVI
WrestleMania XXVI was the twenty-sixth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on March 28, 2010 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona. This was the fourth WrestleMania to...
, where he took part in the 26 Man Battle Royal
Battle royal
Battle royal traditionally refers to a fight involving three or more combatants that is fought until only one fighter remains standing. In recent times the term has been used in a more general sense to refer to any fight involving large numbers of people that are not organized into factions...
match, which was won by Yoshi Tatsu. On April 22, 2010, WWE released Funaki, ending his 12 year stint with the company.
Independent circuit (2010–present)
After his WWE release, Pro Wrestling Zero1 announced they had signed Funaki to return back to Japan and team with his former student Ikuto HidakaIkuto Hidaka
is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently performing for Pro Wrestling Zero1. Hidaka was the regular partner of Minoru Fujita, with whom he has held the Zero1-Max International Lightweight Tag Team and Intercontinental Tag Team Titles, making them the only team to do so...
.
On November 29, 2010, San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
–based River City Wrestling (RCW) announced that it had reached a working agreement with Funaki to host his new professional wrestling school, named the FU Dojo. The school's first class started on January 15, 2011.
Most recently, Funaki worked a RAW live event in Yokohama, Japan. Funaki was the special referee for a match between Divas Champion Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly. After the match, The Miz interrupted Funaki and told him to get out of the ring.
Personal life
Along with Japanese and English, Funaki is semi-fluent in French, German, Portuguese and Spanish . This was helpful when he was a regular in the short-lived WWE Spanish-language show Los Super Astros, which was televised on UnivisionUnivision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
.
On August 30, 2007, Funaki, along with nine other superstars, were named in Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
as recipients of illegal steroids not in compliance with the WWE Talent Wellness Program. Funaki was said to have received somatropin
Growth hormone
Growth hormone is a peptide hormone that stimulates growth, cell reproduction and regeneration in humans and other animals. Growth hormone is a 191-amino acid, single-chain polypeptide that is synthesized, stored, and secreted by the somatotroph cells within the lateral wings of the anterior...
in March 2006.
In wrestling
- As Funaki
- Finishing moves
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-
- Rising Sun (Tornado DDT)
- Signature moves
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-
-
- Cross kneelock
- Diving crossbody
- Diving somersault cutter
- Enzuigiri
- Fisherman buster
- Front dropkick
- Inverted DDT
- Jumping one–handed bulldog
- Legsweep
- PowerbombPowerbombA powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
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- As Kung Fu Naki
- Finishing moves
- Crane kick
- Signature moves
- Diving overhead chop
- Multiple karate chops
- Spin kick
- Tornado DDT
- Finishing moves
- NicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
s- "SmackDown's #1 Announcer"
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "Kung Fu San" performed by Dice RawDice RawDice Raw is a hip-hop artist associated with The Roots, and one of the founding members of musical group Nouveau Riche.In 2000, Dice Raw recorded his solo debut album, Reclaiming the Dead on MCA Records....
and composed by Shane HelmsGregory HelmsGregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment where he wrestled as The Hurricane and Gregory Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms...
(2008–2010)
- "Kung Fu San" performed by Dice Raw
Championships and accomplishments
- 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 #103 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2001
- Texas Wrestling AllianceTexas Wrestling AcademyThe Texas Wrestling Academy is a professional wrestling training school that was operated by Shawn Michaels and Rudy Boy Gonzalez...
- TWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Universal Wrestling AssociationUniversal Wrestling AssociationThe Universal Wrestling Association was a Mexican Lucha Libre or professional wrestling promotion based in Naucalpan, Mexico State that operated from 1975 until 1995...
- UWA World Middleweight ChampionshipUWA World Middleweight ChampionshipThe UWA World Middleweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship originally created and sanctioend by the Mexican lucha libre promotion Universal Wrestling Association from 1976 until the UWA closed in 1995...
(1 time)
- UWA World Middleweight Championship
- World Wrestling EntertainmentWorld 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...
- WWE Cruiserweight ChampionshipWWE Cruiserweight ChampionshipThe World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
(1 time) - WWF Hardcore ChampionshipWWE Hardcore ChampionshipThe World Wrestling Entertainment Hardcore Championship is a hardcore wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and is contested under "hardcore" rules, meaning there is no disqualifications, no countouts, and pin falls could be counted anywhere...
(1 time)
- WWE Cruiserweight Championship