Shinjiro Otani
Shinjiro Otani | |
---|---|
Born |
Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan | July 21, 1972
Resides | Tokyo, Japan |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) |
Achichi Mr. Otani Shinjiro Otani |
Billed height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] |
Billed weight | 102 kg (225 lb)[1] |
Trained by |
Animal Hamaguchi Hiroshi Hase Kensuke Sasaki |
Debut | June 25, 1992 |
Shinjiro Otani (ć€§è°·æäșé, born July 21, 1972)[2] is a Japanese professional wrestler contracted to Pro Wrestling Zero1. Otani is also the acting President of the company.
Career
New Japan Pro Wrestling (1992â2001)
Otani was the first WCW World Cruiserweight Champion, defeating Wild Pegasus in a tournament final to be crowned champion on March 20, 1996. This was the start of his push as a legitimate junior heavyweight contender. Over the years, Otani earned the J-Crown[1] and was also part of the first IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions with Tatsuhito Takaiwa.
In 2000, New Japan booker Riki ChĆshĆ«, eager to push his protĂ©gĂ© Kensuke Sasaki above everyone else, downgraded the junior heavyweight members to mere jobbers for the heavyweights. Otani protested and was sent abroad to bulk up. Returning in 2001 as a full-fledged heavyweight, Otani challenged Sasaki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, but failed.[1]
Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE (2001âpresent)
He then joined Shinya Hashimoto in creating their own promotion, Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, where he became one of the top stars after Hashimoto's departure in 2004 and subsequent death. During the company's relaunch following Hashimoto's death it was renamed to Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX. In ZERO1 he formed a tag team with Masato Tanaka called Emblem;[1] Team Emblem (as they were later known) would appear in the US promotion Ultimate Pro Wrestling, and include Keiji Sakoda. This tag team has formed, disbanded, and reformed numerous times during Otani's time in ZERO1. EMBLEM would go on to win the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship (ZERO1's top Tag Team Title Belt) two times. (Otani has held that title 4 times) Otani has won ZERO1's annual round-robin tournament the Fire Festival three separate times (2001, 2002, 2005). On January 22, 2006, Otani defeated Steve Corino for the AWA Superstars of Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship.[3] On December 24, 2007 it was announced by ZERO1's parent company FIRST ON STAGE that Otani would become the President of ZERO1. Otani took office officially on January 23, 2007, replacing previous President Yoshiyuki Nakamura who became Director of FIRST ON STAGE. He defeated Yuji Nagata on February 27, 2009, to win the World Heavyweight Championship.
On January 4, 2013, at Wrestle Kingdom 7 in Tokyo Dome, Otani made a special return to New Japan, when he replaced an injured Daichi Hashimoto in a tag team match, where he and Keiji Mutoh were defeated by Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima.[4]
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Bridging dragon suplex[2]
- King Cobra Clutch (Bridging cobra clutch or a cobra clutch with bodyscissors)[1][2]
- Spiral Bomb (Spinning sitout powerbomb)[2]
- Signature moves
Wrestlers trained
- Daichi Hashimoto[5]
- Medianoche[5]
Championships and accomplishments
- HUSTLE
- New Japan Pro Wrestling
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (2 times) â with Tatsuhito Takaiwa
- J-Crown (1 time)
- NWA World Welterweight Championship (2 times)
- UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- UWA World Welterweight Championship (1 time)
- WCW Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)
- WWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- WWF Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Super Grade Junior Heavyweight Tag League (1994) â with Pegasus Kid[7]
- One Night Eight Man Tag Team Tournament (1994) â with El Samurai, Gran Hamada and Great Sasuke[8]
- Pro Wrestling Zero1
- AWA Superstars of Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship (6 times) â with Yuki Ishikawa (1), Masato Tanaka (2), Akebono (1), Takao Ćmori (1), and Kamikaze (1)
- World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Fire Festival (2001, 2002, 2005, 2010[9])
- Furinkazan (2009) â with Akebono (2009)
- Premier Wrestling Federation
- PWF Universal Tag Team Championship (1 time) â with Masato Tanaka[10]
- PREMIUM
- Yuke's Cup Tag Tournament (2008) â with Hiroyoshi Tenzan
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI also ranked him #42 of the 100 best tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Tatsuhito Takaiwa in 2003
- Wrestle Association "R"
- WAR International Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1 time) â with Tatsuhito Takaiwa
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- Best Technical Wrestler (1999)
- Tag Team of the Year (1998) with Tatsuhito Takaiwa
1The championship was won in Tokyo, Japan as part of an interpromotional card between New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling.
References
- â 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Pro Wrestling llustrated 500 â 2004 :87 Shinjiro Ohtani". Pro Wrestling Illustrated (Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC). October 2004. p. 27. December 2004.
- â 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 "Profile at Puroresu Central". Puroresu Central. Retrieved 2013-11-26.
- â Brady, Hicks. "2006: The year in wrestling". PWI Presents: 2007 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts (2007 ed.) (Kappa Publications). p. 17.
- â "Wrestle Kingdom 7 ïœEvolutionïœ in æ±äșŹăăŒă " (in Japanese). New Japan Pro Wrestling. Retrieved 2013-01-04.
- â 5.0 5.1 http://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=605&page=14
- â http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/japan/hustle/tournaments.html#sixman
- â http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/japan/newjapan/miscjr.html#sg
- â http://www.cagematch.net/?id=26&nr=2332
- â http://www.puroresumission.com/tournaments/zero1_firefestival.html
- â "Independent Wrestling Results â November 2002". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-07-06.