Real name: Yoshihiro Tajiri
Height: 5’7″
Weight: 180 lbs.
Date of birth: September 29, 1970
From: Tamana, Japan
Pro debut: 1994
Trained by: Kendo Nagasaki
Finishing move: Brain Buster
Biography
– Tajiri began his career working under his full name for the UWA Japan promotion in late 1994
– Tajiri worked Big Japan’s debut events in March 1995, effectively on loan from IWA
– Tajiri twice challenged NWA World Champion Dan Severn in June 1995, both matches being held by NWA New Jersey
– Tajiri left IWA at the end of 1995. He worked a tour for CMLL in Mexico, before returning to his homeland with Big Japan, working under a mask as ‘Aquarius’
– Tajiri worked a WWF Raw taping in April 1996, teaming with Tim Patterson in a loss to The Godwinns
– On July 19, 1996, Aquarius defeated Dr Wagner Jr at a Big Japan event to win the CMLL Light Heavyweight Title
– On July 28, Aquarius lost the title back to Dr Wagner Jr and was forced to unmask. He would continue working under his real name
– Tajiri competed at the NJPW January 4 Tokyo Dome show in 1997, losing to Shinjiro Otani
– On July 23, 1997, Tajiri & Seiji Yamakawa defeated Kishin Kawabata & Takashi Ishikawa to win the vacant BJW Tag Team Titles
– On July 31, Tajiri & Yamakawa fought Gedo & Jado to a time-limit draw to retain the BJW Tag Team Titles
– On September 26, Tajiri & Yamakawa defeated Kishi Kawabata & Kendo Nagasaki to retain the BJW Tag Team Titles
– Tajiri returned to WWF for several more appearances in October 1997, including picking up a win over Marty Garner in a Shotgun Saturday Night dark match
– On December 8, Tajiri & Yamakawa defeated Masayoshi Motegi & Shinichi Nakano to retain the BJW Tag Team Titles
– Tajiri & Yamakawa lost the BJW Tag Team Titles to Gedo & Jado on December 22, only to regain them just over a week later
– On February 3, 1998, Tajiri defeated Gedo in the final of a tournament to win the vacant BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On February 18, Tajiri defeated Naohiro Hoshikawa to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On March 31, Tajiri defeated Ikuto Hidaka to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– Tajiri returned to Mexico for much of the remainder of 1998 and would debut for ECW in December
– At Guilty As Charged 1999, Tajiri defeated Super Crazy
– At Hardcore Heaven 1999, Tajiri defeated Little Guido
– At Anarchy Rulz 1999, Tajiri defeated Little Guido & Super Crazy
– Tajiri returned to Japan to work a pair of shows for FMW in December 1999
– At Guilty As Charged 2000, Tajiri & Super Crazy defeated Jerry Lynn & Little Guido
– On April 8, Tajiri defeated Super Crazy & Little Guido to win the ECW Television Title
– At Hardcore Heaven 2000, Tajiri defeated Steve Corino
– At Heat Wave 2000, Tajiri defeated Little Guido, Mikey Whipwreck & Psicosis in an Elimination Match
– On August 25, The Unholy Alliance (Tajiri & Mikey Whipwreck) won a one-night tournament to win the vacant ECW Tag Team Titles, but would lose them to The FBI (Tony Mamaluke & Little Guido) the next day
– At Massacre On 34th Street, The Unholy Alliance defeated Kid Kash & Super Crazy
– At Guilty As Charged 2000, The Unholy Alliance defeated Kid Kash & Super Crazy and The FBI (Tony Mamaluke & Little Guido)
– In January 2001, Tajiri signed a letter of intent to join the World Wresting Federation, but would work some independent events before officially signing with the company
– On February 28, Tajiri defeated Nick Berk to win the CZW Heavyweight Title, but immediately lost it to Zandig
– Tajiri made his official WWF debut on the May 24, 2001 episode of Smackdown
– At the 2001 Invasion PPV, Tajiri defeated Tazz
– On the August 6 Raw, Tajiri defeated X-Pac to win the WWF Light Heavyweight Title, but would lose it back at the Summerslam PPV
– On the September 10 Raw, Tajiri defeated Chris Kanyon to win the WCW United States Title
– On the September 17 Raw, Tajiri retained the WCW United States Title over Christian, losing by DQ
– On the October 22 Raw, Tajiri defeated Billy Kidman to win the WCW Cruiserweight Title
– On the December 11 Smackdown, Tajiri defeated Crash to retain the now-renamed WWF Cruiserweight Title
– On the January 29, 2002 Heat, Tajiri defeated Scotty 2 Hotty to retain the WWF Cruiserweight Title
– On the February 4 Jakked, Tajiri defeated Jason Partain to retain the WWF Cruiserweight Title
– On the February 19 Heat, Tajiri defeated The Hurricane to retain the WWF Cruiserweight Title
– On the March 11 Jakked, Tajiri defeated Crash to retain the WWF Cruiserweight Title
– Tajiri lost the Cruiserweight Title to Billy Kidman on Smackdown in early April, but regained it at that month’s Backlash PPV
– At Judgment Day 2003, Tajiri & Eddie Guerrero defeated Team Angle (Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin) in a Ladder Match to win the WWE Tag Team Titles
– On the May 20 Smackdown, Tajiri & Guerrero defeated Team Angle to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles
– A week later, Tajiri & Guerrero defeated Team Angle by DQ to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles
– On the June 24 Smackdown, Tajiri & Guerrero defeated Sean O’Haire & Roddy Piper to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles
– On the September 23 Smackdown, Tajiri defeated Rey Mysterio to win the WWE Cruiserweight Title
– A week later, Tajiri defeated Billy Kidman to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Title
– On the October 14 Smackdown, Tajiri fought Jamie Noble to a no-contest to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Title
– At No Mercy 2003, Tajiri defeated Rey Mysterio to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Title
– On the November 16 Heat, Tajiri defeated Jamie Noble to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Title and would do so again on the following Smackdown
– On the December 9 Velocity, Tajiri defeated Billy Kidman to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Title
– In early 2004, Tajiri formed the Kyo Dai stable alongside Akio & Sakoda
– Tajiri was drafted to Raw in March 2004
– At Vengeance 2004, Tajiri & Rhyno defeated Jonathan Coachman & Garrison Cade
– On the February 4, 2005 Raw, Tajiri & William Regal defeated La Resistance (Rob Conway & Sylvain Grenier) to win the World Tag Team Titles
– On the February 14 Raw, Tajiri & Regal defeated La Resistance to retain the World Tag Team Titles
– On the February 28 Heat, Tajiri & Regal defeated Tyson Tomko & Christian and La Resistance (Rob Conway & Sylvain Grenier) in an Elimination Match to retain the World Tag Team Titles
– On the March 28 Raw, Tajiri & Regal defeated La Resistance (Rob Conway & Sylvain Grenier) and Simon Dean & Maven to retain the World Tag Team Titles
– On the April 11 Heat, Tajiri & Regal defeated La Resistance to retain the World Tag Team Titles
– On the April 18 Raw, Tajiri & Regal defeated The Heart Throbs (Romeo & Antonio) to retain the World Tag Team Titles
– Tajiri requested his WWE release in late 2005 and it was granted in December
– In March 2006, Tajiri would join Japan’s HUSTLE promotion, though would regularly work dates for other promotions
– At HUSTLEMANIA 2006, Tajiri, Naoya Ogawa & Newling defeated Toshiaki Kawada, Commander An Jo & CAIYA
– At HUSTLEMANIA 2007, Tajiri, Genichiro Tenryu & RG defeated Monster Bono, Commander An Jo & Yinling
– At HUSTLEMANIA 2008, Tajiri, Chie & KUSHIDA defeated Ray Ohara, Red Onigumo & Private Shoji
– Tajiri contested the 2009 G1 Climax Tournament
– At Destruction 2009, Tajiri defeated Kazuchika Okada
– At Wrestle Kingdom IV, Tajiri & Masato Tanaka defeated Yuji Nagata & Akebono
– On May 29, 2010, Tajiri defeated Valentine to win the FCF Finnish Heavyweight Title
– At Destruction 2010, Tajiri defeated Toru Yano
– On November 22, Tajiri defeated Starbuck to regain the FCF Finnish Heavyweight Title
– On January 29, 2011, Tajiri defeated Super Crazy to retain the FCF Finnish Heavyweight Title, but immediately lost it to Michael Kovac
– On August 8, 2013, Tajiri defeated Osamu Nishimura to win the WNC Title
– Tajiri would join Keiji Mutoh’s WRESTLE-1 promotion in late 2013 on a freelance basis
– On October 31, Tajiri defeated Taka Michinoku to retain the WNC Title
– On November 29, Tajiri defeated El Hijo del Pantera to retain the WNC Title
– On December 6, Tajiri defeated The Bodyguard to retain the WNC Title
– On January 30, 2014, Tajiri defeated KAZMA SAKAMOTO to retain the WNC Title
– On February 23, Tajiri defeated Hiro Tonai to retain the WNC Title
– Tajiri wrestled several matches for Impact in August 2014
– At Bound For Glory 2014, Tajiri & The Great Muta defeated The Revolution (James Storm & The Great Sanada)
– On May 16, 2015, Tajiri defeated Minoru Tanaka to win the EWP Intercontinental Title
– On January 31, 2016, Tajiri, Kaz Hayashi & Minoru Tanaka defeated Jackets (Seiki Yoshioka, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Jiro Kuroshio) to win the UWA Trios Titles
– On February 27, Tajiri, Hayashi & Tanaka defeated New Wild Order (Manabu Soya, Kumagoro & AKIRA) to retain the UWA Trios Titles
– On March 27, Tajiri, Hayashi & Tanaka defeated Masayuki Kono, Shotaro Ashino & Hiroki Murase to retain the UWA Trios Titles
– On April 17, Tajiri, Hayashi & Tanaka defeated Real Desperado (NOSAWA Rongai, KAZMA SAKAMOTO & Yuji Hino) to retain the UWA Trios Titles
– On June 8, Tajiri, Hayashi & Tanaka defeated TriggeR (Masayuko Kono, Hiroki Murase & YASSHI) to retain the UWA Trios Titles
– Tajiri returned to WWE for the 2016 Cruiserweight Classic. He defeated Damian Slater before falling to Gran Metalik in the second round
– On July 30, Tajiri defeated Hikaru Sato to win the AJPW Junior Heavyweight Title. He lost it to Ultimo Dragon in August, before regaining it in October
– On November 5, Tajiri defeated Yohei Nakajima to retain the AJPW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On December 17, Tajiri defeated Atsushi Maruyama to retain the AJPW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On January 2, 2018, Tajiri defeated Kotaro Suzuki to retain the AJPW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On July 15, Tajiri defeated Jun Akiyama to win the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On September 12, Tajiri defeated Buffalo to retain the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On October 21, Tajiri defeated Chikara to retain the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On November 3, Tajiri fought Super Crazy to a double pinfall draw to retain the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On January 3, 2019, Tajiri defeated Minoru Fujita to retain the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On January 12, Tajiri defeated Tsuyoshi Kikuchi to retain the AJPW GAORA TV Title
– On May 5, Tajiri defeated Kazuki Hashimoto to win the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On June 23, Tajiri defeated Yuichi Taniguchi to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On July 5, Tajiri defeated Chris Colen to win the EWA Intercontinental Title and defended it against Mexx the next day
– On July 7, Tajiri defeated Red Scorpion to win the PWM Heavyweight Title, but lost it to Glamourous Roddy a week later
– On July 30, Tajiri defeated Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On August 7, Tajiri defeated Frank Atsushi to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On August 31, Tajiri defeated Great Kojika to retain the BJW Junior Heavyweight Title
– On September 3, Tajiri defeated Akira Francesco to retain the EWA Intercontinental Title
– On September 10, Tajiri defeated Shota Nakagawa to retain the EWA Intercontinental Title
– On July 23, 2020, Tajiri defeated Akira Francesco to retain the EWA Intercontinental Title
– On August 30, Tajiri defeated UTAMARO to retain the EWA Intercontinental Title
– On June 26, 2021, TOTAL ECLIPSE (Tajiri, Yusuke Kodama & Hokuto Omori) defeated Takao Omori, Carbell Ito & Black Menso-re to win the AJPW Six-Man Tag Team Titles, but lost them back the next day
– At MLW Fightland 2021, Tajiri defeated Myron Reed, Arez & Aramis to win the MLW Middleweight Title
– On November 28, Tajiri defeated Atsuki Aoyagi to retain the MLW Middleweight Title
– On March 27, 2022, Tajiri defeated Rekka to retain the EWA Intercontinental Title
– On October 30, Tajiri & Yoshitatsu defeated Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura to win the AJPW All Asia Tag Team Titles
– On Novmber 16, Tajiri & Yoshitatsu defeated Black Menso-re & Izanagi to retain the AJPW All Asia Tag Team Titles
– On January 3, 2023, Tajiri defeated Kodai Nozaki to win the Kyushu Pro Title
– On May 20, Tajiri defeated Shiho to win the PWS Title
– At NOAH’s Wrestle Magic 2024, Tajiri & Jake Lee defeated Naomichi Marufuji & Hajime Ohara
– On April 27, 2025, Tajiri & Shiho defeated Naoki Sakurajima & Asosan to win the Kyushu Pro Tag Team Titles
– At Wrestling Dontaku 2025, Tajiri, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Ryota Chikuzen & YOH defeated Zack Sabre Jr, Robbie Eagles, Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita & Hartley Jackson
– On July 19, Tajiri & Shiho defeated Naoki Sakurajima & Asosan to retain the Kyushu Pro Tag Team Titles