Muhammad Hussain Inoki was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name Antonio Inoki, a homage to fellow professional wrestler Antonino Rocca. Inoki was a twelve-time professional wrestling world champion, notably being the first IWGP Heavyweight Champion and the first Asian WWF Heavyweight Champion – a reign not officially recognized by WWE.
Keiji Muto is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and professional wrestling executive. He is known for his work as The Great Muta in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) during the 1980s and 1990s, and from his runs in other Japanese, American, Puerto Rican, and Mexican promotions. He was the president of All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) from 2002 to 2013 and representative director of Wrestle-1 (W-1) from 2013 to 2020.
Kensuke Sasaki is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, and founder of the now-defunct wrestling promotion Diamond Ring.
The NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Created in 1943, the title is competed for by junior heavyweight wrestlers.
The IWGP Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix. The title was introduced on June 12, 1987, in the final of an IWGP tournament. It was unified with the IWGP Intercontinental Championship on March 4, 2021 to form the new IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
Shinya Hashimoto was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and actor. Along with Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh, Hashimoto was dubbed one of the "Three Musketeers" that began competing in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in the mid-1980s and dominated the promotion in the 1990s.
Tatsumi Fujinami is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on a legend's contract. Fujinami is most well known for his long tenure with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was a six-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. He was famously nicknamed "The Dragon", and is credited for inventing the dragon sleeper and the dragon suplex.
Mitsuo Yoshida, better known by his ring name Riki Choshu, is a South Korean-Japanese retired professional wrestler who is best known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as both a wrestler and a booker. He is considered one of Japan’s most influential wrestlers for his work in the 1980s and 1990s and is known as the first wrestler to popularize the Sasori-Gatame, better known in English as the Scorpion Deathlock or Sharpshooter. After leaving NJPW in 2002, he formed Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling (WJ), but eventually returned to New Japan in October 2005 as a site foreman, booker and part-time wrestler. Choshu once again left NJPW in 2010 and primarily worked in Tatsumi Fujinami’s Dradition, as well as his own self-produced Power Hall events as a freelancer. Choshu was a second generation Zainichi Korean until his naturalization in 2016.
The IWGP Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of the NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix. The title was introduced on December 12, 1985 at an NJPW live event. The IWGP Tag Team Championship is one of two weight-specific tag team titles contested for in NJPW; the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship is also sanctioned by NJPW. According to NJPW's official website, the IWGP Tag Team Championship is considered the "IWGP Heavyweight [Tag] Class", while the Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship is listed as the "IWGP Jr. Tag Class". Like most professional wrestling championships, the title is won via the result of a scripted match. Title changes usually happen at NJPW-promoted events; although the title has only changed hands twice at a non-NJPW event, it has been defended in several other promotions.
Masanori Saito was a Japanese professional wrestler better known as Mr. Saito or Masa Saito (マサ斎藤), who wrestled for 33 years around the world. He had success as a singles wrestler, winning the AWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1990, and as a tag team wrestler with multiple partners in various National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) territories.
The NWF Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship used as part of the National Wrestling Federation and later New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
Shota Samsonovich Chochishvili was a Georgian professional wrestler and judoka.
Wrestling Dontaku 1993 was the first Wrestling Dontaku professional wrestling event produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on May 3, 1993, in Fukuoka, Fukuoka at the Fukuoka Dome. As part of working relationships between NJPW and American promotions World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Federation (WWF), WCW's Sting and WWF's Brutus Beefcake, Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Hart took part in the event. Professional wrestlers from Japanese promotion Wrestle and Romance (WAR) also appeared at the event.
The IWGP Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship owned by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) that existed from 1987 until 2021. This article covers the interpretation of the title's history according to Inoki Genome Federation (IGF) and its founder Antonio Inoki. Both promotions agreed on the title's history up to July 15, 2006, when Brock Lesnar, who was the reigning champion, was stripped of the title by NJPW. Inoki saw this event as an error made by NJPW and spawned the IGF version of the title's history, with Lesnar still recognized as the official champion.
Ultimate Crush was a major professional wrestling and mixed martial arts event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on May 2, 2003, at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. The card contained a mixture of pro wrestling matches and mixed martial arts fights. The show was headlined by Yoshihiro Takayama defending the NWF Heavyweight Championship against Yuji Nagata, who also defended the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a unification match.
The Greatest 18 Club Championship was a championship created and promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
The Wrestling Summit was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event that was produced and scripted collaboratively between the US-based World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and the Japanese All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotions. The joint venture show took place on April 13, 1990 in the Tokyo Dome, in Tokyo, Japan and reportedly drew 53,742 spectators. The event was the only time the three promotions produced a joint show, although NJPW and WWF had previously worked together in the 1970s and '80s.
Battle Satellite in Tokyo Dome was a major professional wrestling event produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on April 24, 1989 at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. It was the first major professional wrestling event held in the Tokyo Dome, with wrestlers from the United States, Japan, and the Soviet Union.
