Keita Yano

Keita Yano

Yano in August 2010
Born January 9, 1988[1][2]
Matsubara, Osaka[3]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Brody Boy[4]
Keita in the °C[5]
Keita in the House*[6]
Keita Yano
Kendo Ke Ita[7]
Billed height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1][8]
Billed weight 85 kg (187 lb)[8]
Billed from Detroit, Michigan[9]
Trained by Joe E. Legend[10]
Negro Navarro[10]
Yuki Ishikawa[10]
Debut February 25, 2007[11]

Keita Yano (矢野 啓太 Yano Keita, born January 9, 1988)[1] is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Pro Wrestling Wallabee. He started his career with Battlarts in February 2007 and remained with the promotion for four years, winning the B-Rule Tournament in 2009. During the years, Yano also represented Battlarts in major Japanese promotions such as New Japan Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Zero1 and American promotion Chikara, where he took part in the Young Lions Cup VIII tournament in August 2010. After the folding of Battlarts, Yano began working for Dramatic Dream Team (DDT), where, as a representative of the Crying Wolf stable, he became a one-time Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion, before parting ways with the promotion in July 2012.

Professional wrestling career

Battlarts (2006–2011)

Yano began training professional wrestling with Battlarts in 2006, when the promotion accepted his third application to enter its training program.[12] He eventually made his in-ring debut on February 25, 2007, losing to Manabu Hara.[11] During the rest of 2007, Yano faced the likes of Yuta Yoshikawa, Kota Ibushi and Ryuji Hijikata, losing all of his matches.[13][14][15] As Battlarts only held an event every two months, Yano also made regular appearances for Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW) and women's wrestling promotion Ice Ribbon, losing all of his matches in those promotions as well.[16][17][18][19] Yano finally picked up his first win at a Battlarts event on March 9, 2008, submitting Akifumi Saito with the Larsson.[20] Despite his first win, Yano's second year in professional wrestling also included mostly opening matches and losses.[21][22][23] Through Battlarts' and especially its top star Munenori Sawa's relationship with Pro Wrestling Zero1, Yano also made appearances for the promotion, most notably taking part in the 2008 Tenkaichi Jr. tournament.[24] On January 10, 2009, Yano entered the B-Rule Tournament, advancing directly to the semifinals, after Yuta Yoshikawa was unable to wrestle in his first round match.[25] Later that same day, Yano defeated Super Tiger II in his semifinal match to advance to the finals, where he would defeat veteran Alexander Otsuka via points to win the entire tournament.[25] Finally out of the opening match spot, Yano main evented his first Battlarts event on February 15, when he and Munenori Sawa were defeated in a tag team match by Super Tiger II and Yuki Ishikawa.[26] The following June, Yano entered the 2009 B-1 Climax tournament, but failed to advance from his round-robin block.[27][28] During 2009, Yano also made debuts for Apache Pro-Wrestling Army, Freedoms, Kaientai Dojo and Osaka Pro Wrestling.[29][30][31][32] On January 17, 2010, Yano made it to the finals of his second B-Rule Tournament in a row, but was this time defeated by Yujiro Yamamoto.[33] During the year, Yano teamed regularly with Munenori Sawa,[34][35][36][37] while also debuting a new look, inspired by the Joker from the Batman film The Dark Knight Rises.[38]

Yano and Green Ant shaking hands prior to their match during the Young Lions Cup weekend

On August 28, 2010, Yano made his American debut, when he represented Battlarts in Chikara's eighth Young Lions Cup tournament in Reading, Pennsylvania. In his first round match, Yano defeated Mike Sydal with a submission.[39] Later that same day, Yano wrestled in a six-way elimination semifinal match, from which he was the third man eliminated by Obariyon.[39][40] The following day, Yano defeated Green Ant in a non-tournament match.[40] The finish of the match had to improvised, after Green Ant legitimately broke his arm, after Yano performed one of his signature moves, Calf Branding, on him.[41][42] Back in Japan, Yano began working regularly for Pro Wrestling Wallabee, a promotion founded by the male wrestlers of Ice Ribbon, becoming the promotion's first TV Champion in October 2010.[43] Yano later went to unify the TV Championship with the Capture International and Ricky Fuji Aggressive World Heavyweight Championships, creating what he referred to as the "Indie Triple Crown".[44] On October 8, 2010, Yano made his debut for New Japan Pro Wrestling, losing to Tomohiro Ishii at a NEVER event, a New Japan project aimed at showcasing up-and-coming wrestlers not signed to the promotion.[45] On January 23, 2011, Yano once again made it to the finals of the B-Rule Tournament, but was, for the second year in a row, defeated there by Yujiro Yamamoto.[46] On March 21, Yano was defeated by Battlarts founder Yuki Ishikawa in a main event singles match.[47] The following day, Battlarts announced Yano's resignation from the promotion, which had announced it would be folding before the end of the year.[48] Yano returned to take part in Battlarts' final event on November 5, 2011, defeating Kenji Takeshima in the opening match.[49]

Dramatic Dream Team (2011–2012)

On November 13, 2011, Yano began working regularly for the Dramatic Dream Team (DDT) promotion, when he teamed with Antonio Honda and Yasu Urano to defeat Hoshitango, Mikami and Tomomitsu Matsunaga in a six-man tag team match.[50] Following the event, Honda announced that the three men, along with Yuji Hino, had formed a stable named "Crying Wolf".[51] All four members of Crying Wolf remained undefeated for the rest of the year, with Yano ending his year by pinning Michael Nakazawa on December 31 in a tag team match, where he and Antonio Honda defeated Do Hentai Dan (Nakazawa and Hikaru Sato).[52] Crying Wolf's win streak ended at the first event of 2012 on January 8, when the four members were defeated in an eight-man tag team match by Daisuke Sasaki, Keisuke Ishii, Masa Takanashi and Shigehiro Irie.[53] During the following months, Crying Wolf developed a storyline rivalry with the Homoiro Clover Z stable, with Crying Wolf picking up six-man tag team victories on January 29 and March 4,[54][55] and finally defeating Danshoku Dino, Hiroshi Fukuda, Kudo and Makoto Oishi in an eight-man elimination tag team match on March 18.[56] On April 1, Yano took part in the annual Anytime and Anywhere battle royal, a match combining elements of a regular battle royal and a ladder match, where he managed to grab the "Performance Rights Anytime, Anywhere" contract to earn the right to book a DDT event of his own.[57][58] On April 8, Yano took part in a ten-minute, six-person battle royal for the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship. Towards the end of the match, Yano pinned Kana to win the title, however, just twenty seconds later, Kana rolled him up to regain the title.[59] On July 1, Yano used his "Performance Rights Anytime, Anywhere" contract to book a co-promoted event between DDT and Pro Wrestling Wallabee.[60][61] The following day, DDT announced that the promotion and Yano had agreed to terminate his DDT contract due to "ideological differences".[62]

Other promotions

Following his departure from DDT, Yano concentrated on his work with the Pro Wrestling Wallabee promotion, where he now also held a backstage executive role.[63] While also continuing to work for other small promotions, including Apache Pro-Wrestling Army,[64] Freedoms,[65] and Ganko Pro Wrestling,[8] Yano returned to Pro Wrestling Zero1 on February 8, 2013, working in an opening tag team match.[66]

Personal life

Yano cites Kendo Kashin as his main influence in wanting to become a wrestler himself.[12] He later also became a fan of Bruiser Brody, adopting many of his in-ring mannerisms, including his signature "huss" chant,[67][68] while also billing himself from Detroit, Michigan, Brody's hometown.[9] Yano has wrestled as both "Kendo Ke Ita" and "Brody Boy" in honor of his idols.[4][7] Yano is a fan of soccer, having played the game with some success in high school, and has named two of his signature moves after Swedish soccer players Fredrik Ljungberg and Henrik Larsson.[1][12]

In wrestling

Yano grappling with Green Ant
Yano in the ring with Mike Sydal

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 "【FutureStar☆４・６】矢野啓太". Ice Ribbon (in Japanese). April 6, 2008. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Keita Yano". Puroresu Central. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Keita Yano". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "H23.8.25葛西純ﾌﾟﾛﾃﾞｭｰｽ興行新木場1stRing大会". Freedoms (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Results". Pro Wrestling Wallabee (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "矢野啓太ワラビーTV選手権タイトルマッチが早くも決定!". Battlarts (in Japanese). October 15, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 「強さ」を追う者. Pro Wrestling Wallabee (in Japanese). Ameba. June 20, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 矢野啓太. Ganko Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). FC2. February 24, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 自己紹介. Pro Wrestling Wallabee (in Japanese). Ameba. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Keita Yano". Cagematch. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "See the kight of Fight～産声～". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Yano, Keita. "Official blog". Battlarts (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 4, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  13. ↑ "May・愛・Help・You?". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  14. ↑ "バトラーツ～新宿物語 vol.1". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  15. ↑ 千住の風になって. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  16. ↑ 8月1日(水). Big Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 12, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  17. ↑ 12月27日(木). Big Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 12, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  18. ↑ ｱｲｽﾘﾎﾞﾝ･44. Ice Ribbon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  19. ↑ ｱｲｽﾘﾎﾞﾝ･50. Ice Ribbon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 21, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  20. ↑ 越谷大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  21. ↑ "千住の風になってvol.3". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  22. ↑ "千住の風になってvol.5". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  23. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  24. ↑ "WPFの刺客と澤が予選突破　佐藤が永田との蹴撃対決へ秒殺". Sports Navi (in Japanese). Yahoo!. October 28, 2008. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  26. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  27. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  28. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  29. ↑ 2009年3月16日(月). Apache Pro-Wrestling Army (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  30. ↑ "2009年09月02日　新木場1stRing". Freedoms (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  31. ↑ "1月11日（日）新年会プロレス(千葉BlueField)". Kaientai Dojo (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 22, 2009. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  32. ↑ 大阪夏祭りプロレス８月２０日試合結果. Osaka Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Livedoor. August 20, 2009. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  33. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  34. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  35. ↑ "Isamiレッスルアリーナ大会". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  36. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  37. ↑ ｱｲｽﾘﾎﾞﾝ173. Ice Ribbon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 21, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  38. ↑ "Freedoms & Misc. News 2010". FMW World. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Cambo, Rick (August 29, 2010). "Chikara Young Lions Cup day two report". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 40.2 "Past results". Chikara. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Cambo, Rick (August 30, 2010). "Chikara Young Lions Cup day three report". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  42. ↑ Higham, Joshua (August 25, 2011). "Detailed preview of Chikara Young Lions Cup tournament competitors". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  43. ↑ "矢野啓太がワラビーTVチャンピオンシップを奪取!!". Battlarts (in Japanese). October 4, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 44.2 44.3 "地下プロレスに“唯一の日本人横綱”あり！ 梅沢菊次郎、若き三冠王者・矢野啓太も撃破！ 2・13『Exit-62 Core:T』(1)". NPN (in Japanese). February 23, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  45. ↑ "NEVER.3". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  46. ↑ 北千住大会. Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  47. ↑ 2011年3月21日(祝月). Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  48. ↑ 矢野啓太 退団のお知らせ. Battlarts (in Japanese). March 22, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  49. ↑ "Once upon a time Battlarts ～あの時を忘れない～". Battlarts (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  50. ↑ "Non-Fix～11・13～". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  51. ↑ "11月27日DDT後楽園大会直前情報". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  52. ↑ "Never Mind 2011". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  53. ↑ "Dramatic 2012 January Special". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  54. ↑ "Sweet Dreams! 2012". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 7, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  55. ↑ 大阪・道頓堀ストーリー11. Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  56. ↑ "Non-Fix ～3・18～". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  57. ↑ "Aprilfool 2012". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 5, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  58. ↑ "DDT「Aprilfool 2012」". Sports Navi (in Japanese). Yahoo!. April 1, 2012. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  59. ↑ 59.0 59.1 59.2 "Dramatic 2012 April Spesial". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 5, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  60. ↑ "Kudo欠場で入江が出場！7月1日ワラビー×DDT直前情報". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). June 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  61. ↑ "矢野啓太が「いつでもどこでも興行権」を行使し、7・1アレナ・コリセオ・ケルベロスでワラビー×DDT全面対抗戦を開催！". Battle News (in Japanese). May 25, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  62. ↑ 矢野啓太契約解除のお知らせ. Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). July 2, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  63. ↑ "ワラビーがミクロの解雇を発表！この問題を清算するためにも二見社長、矢野、佐野を中心にしたT-1興行開催へ". Battle News (in Japanese). April 20, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  64. ↑ 2012年8月27日（月）. Apache Pro-Wrestling Army (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  65. ↑ "H24.8.19葛西純ﾌﾟﾛﾃﾞｭｰｽ興行大阪･東成区民ｾﾝﾀｰ大会". Freedoms (in Japanese). Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  66. ↑ 大仁田が曙にリベンジ　有刺鉄線電流爆破バット炸裂！. Sports Navi (in Japanese). Yahoo!. February 8, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  67. ↑ 矢野啓太選手からのコメント. Ganko Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). FC2. September 30, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  68. ↑ "Back at Tokyo Dome City". FMW World. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  69. ↑ "Non-Fix ～2・24～". Dramatic Dream Team (in Japanese). Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  70. ↑ 矢野啓太がアメリカのチカラプロに参戦!. Battlarts (in Japanese). August 4, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  71. ↑ "Wannabee". Battlarts (in Japanese). November 24, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  72. ↑ "チャンピオンVロード". Battlarts (in Japanese). November 29, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  73. ↑ プロフェッショナルレスリング・ワラビーが３・３０埼玉県越谷で、初のハウスショーを開催！. Battle News (in Japanese). February 10, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  74. ↑ "ワラビーが東京多摩ルチャスとの業務提携を解除！勇者アモンに代わり、Mr.450がL.W.oの新メンバーに". Battle News (in Japanese). March 19, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2014.

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