Riki Chōshū

Riki Chōshū
Chōshū in January, 2006
Ring name(s)	Riki Chōshū Yoshida
Billed height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Billed weight	120 kg (260 lb)[1]
Born	(1951-12-03) December 3, 1951 (age 60) Seoul, South Korea
Resides	Yamaguchi, Japan
Trained by	Masa Saito New Japan Pro Wrestling Dojo
Debut	01974-08-08August 8, 1974

Mitsuo Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田光雄; hangul: 곽광웅 , hanja: 郭光雄 , Kwak Gwang-ung) (born December 3, 1951), better known by his stage name Riki Chōshū (長州力 Chōshū Riki), is a Korean-Japanese professional wrestler who is most known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) as a wrestler and a booker. He is considered one of the most influential wrestlers in Japan in the 1980s and 1990s and known as the first wrestler to popularize the Sasori-Gatame, better known in English as Scorpion Deathlock or Sharpshooter. After Chōshū left New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2002, he formed Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling (WJ), which was later known as Riki Pro as he was the main promoter of the promotion. In October 2005, he returned to New Japan as a site foreman, a booker, and a part-time wrestler.

Amateur wrestling career

1972 Summer Olympics

Kwak Gwang-ung represented South Korea in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, as a wrestler. He didn't place in the tournament.^[1]

Professional wrestling career

Early years (1974-1987)

He debuted in New Japan Pro Wrestling in August 1974. In the mid-1970s, Chōshū was sent to North America to gain experience. Wrestling under his real name, he appeared in George Cannon's "Superstars of Wrestling" promotion as a heel, managed by Superstar (or Supermouth) Dave Drasen. Chōshū had a brief feud with the top fan favorite of Cannon's promotion, Luis Martinez.

Chōshū was the first "traitor heel" in a Japanese promotion. In 1983, upset at not being selected for the inaugural tournament for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, he turned on Tatsumi Fujinami during a match and formed his own stable, Ishingun (Revolutionary Army), which was the core for the later Japan Pro-Wrestling promotion that "invaded" All Japan Pro Wrestling.^[2]

New Japan Pro Wrestling (1987-1998)

Upon returning to NJPW in 1987, Chōshū was a part of the Takeshi Puroresu Gundan. After NJPW split ties with Takeshi Kitano over the December 27 Sumo Hall riot, Chōshū slowly climbed back up into the main event picture. In June 1988, he won his first IWGP Tag Team Championship with Masa Saito, with whom he had also teamed with while in a brief stint in the American Wrestling Association.^[3] At the same time, he feuded with Tatsumi Fujinami over the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. On May 27, the match ended in a no contest, in which the title was held up. Fujinami won the rematch on June 24.^[4]

In July 1989, he won his first IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Salman Hashimikov of the Soviet Union.^[4] The same month, he would also win his second IWGP Tag Team title with young up-and-comer Takayuki Iizuka.^[3] Two more IWGP Heavyweight title reigns would follow between August 19, 1990 and January 4, 1992.^[4]

In August 1996, he won the G1 Climax, winning every single match in the tournament.^[5] In 1997, he won his third IWGP Tag Team title with Kensuke Sasaki.^[3] In January 1998, he retired from the ring; for his retirement match, he wrestled five matches in one night, winning four out of five matches.^[6] He would focus on booking matches for NJPW.

Comeback (2000-present)

Retirement wouldn't last long, as Atsushi Onita challenged Chōshū to a barbed wire deathmatch in 2000. Chōshū accepted and wrestled Onita. He then balanced wrestling and booking for NJPW, until his departure in 2002, stemming from the departures of Keiji Mutoh and Satoshi Kojima, among others, to All Japan Pro Wrestling, which caused his position of head booker taken away.

After leaving NJPW, he formed Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling in 2003, which would later changed to Riki Pro, after the failure of some of their big shows.^[7] He ran Riki Pro, until 2005 when he returned to NJPW as a site foreman, booker, and wrestler. In 2007, Chōshū joined the Legend stable with Masahiro Chono, Jushin Liger, and AKIRA.

Chōshū also promotes an occasional series of events called "LOCK UP", which feature talent from New Japan and other promotions. New Japan supported this financially until 2008 before withdrawing.

In wrestling

• Finishing moves

• Lariat^[1]
• Sasori-Gatame – Innovated^[1]

Championships and accomplishments

• All Japan Pro Wrestling

• NWA International Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Yoshiaki Yatsu^[8]
• PWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[9]

• Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling

• WMG Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Genichiro Tenryu

• New Japan Pro Wrestling

• Greatest 18 Championship (1 time)^[10]
• IWGP Heavyweight Championship (3 times)^[4]
• IWGP Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Masa Saito (1), Takashi Iizuka (1), and Kensuke Sasaki (1)^[3]
• NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Los Angeles/Japan version) (1 time) – with Seiji Sakaguchi^[11]
• WWF International Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[12]
• G1 Climax: 1996^[5][13]
• Super Grade Tag League: 1992 – with Shinya Hashimoto
• World Cup Tournament: 1989^[14]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated

• PWI ranked him #30 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003

• Universal Wrestling Association

• UWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[15]
• UWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Gran Hamada^[16]

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

• Best Booker: 1992
• Promoter of the Year: 1995, 1996, 1997
• Wrestler of the Year: 1987
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame: Class of 1996

References

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