UWFi (1992)

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Yuko Miyato (UWFi, 1/9/92)

Probably the best match of the show, along with the tag main event, but damn, is this fiery from the opening with Miyato letting Tamura have it. Tamura grabs a great choke into the takedown and the whole escape sequence with Tamura flipping back into control and regaining the choke was phenomenal. Tamura's slick as catgshit with his takedowns an transitions, grabbing kneebars and armbars. Miyato was really good here, too. He hits a nice fireman's carry and works his way into a snug double wristlock. He kills Tamura with a backdrop hold and then pops him in the head with a follow-up kick. Tamura's able to grab the single leg crab but Miyato makes it to the ropes. The finish was the weakest part of the match but otherwise, a very cool sub-ten minute match.

Kazuo Yamazaki & Yoji Anjoh vs. Gary Albright & Jim Boss (UWFi, 1/9/92)

Anjoh is definitely one of the more underrated mat workers -- he's pretty slick and at one point, does a skull crusher. Boss is another clueless white dude and doesn't do much here but that's okay because Gary Albright rules in this match. He absolutely wrecks Anjoh with German suplexes throughout; that second to last German is especially brutal and awesome. When Yamazaki gets the initial tag in, he also takes Albright over with a killer German suplex of his own. Albright isn't much of a ground guy but he doesn't get paid the big bucks to work a side headlock. That finishing stretch with him and Anjoh is the definite highlight, with him clubbing the shit out of Anjoh before finishing him off with the Germans. Big Albright showcase.

Kiyoshi Tamura & Yuko Miyato vs. Mark Silver & Tatsuo Nakano (UWFi, 2/15/92)

Probably the best match on probably the worst top-to-bottom UWFI show chronologically. And it's good, in parts. Silver has about the most white trash haircut behind Tom Burton but he does manage a couple of neat throws. But like most of the gaijins, he's clueless on the mat and his strikes are feather light. And he also gets kicked in the face AND the nuts. Tamura is Tamura, which means he's uber slick on the mat, leaving Silver in the dust. He has some good interactions with Nakano (of course). Love Nakano's side headlock with the fingers clasped -- textbook. They keep sending each other to the ropes with submission holds, and Nakano throws back-to-back Germans. Miyato continues to be a little shitfire and lets SIlver have it, barraging him and throwing him with a belly-to-belly. The finish was awkward but otherwise, a fun tag.

Hiromitsu Kanehara vs. Masakazu Maeda (UWFi, 2/29/92)

A fun, competitive match with two scrappy young dudes going out there and showing off what they've learned over the past few months. Nothing fancy -- Maeda's a little smoother on the ground and had some nice counters/reversals. He also throws a few nice suplexes. Kanehara is the better striker with his quick open hands and knees. I liked the sequence where he had Maeda in the single leg crab and turned it into a facelock as Maeda inched his way to the ropes. By the end of it, they're both very exhausted -- Maeda a little more so -- and after Kanehara hits a German, he taps him with the armbar.

Gary Albright vs. Kazuo Yamazaki (UWFi, 3/17/92)

The best match of the show. Yamazaki flies at him with a kick and Albright quickly takes him down and starts pounding away with a few great body shots. Yamazaki is trying to play defense, trying to go after the arm, but Albright’s just too darn big. After a little temper flareup, Albright snaps him over with a belly-to-belly. When Yamazaki  finally gets the armbar, Albright right on the ropes. Yamazaki then stuns him with a knee to the midsection and German suplexes Albright to set up the crab hold but again, too damn big. Loved Albright running over and clobbering Yamazaki in the back of the head before German suplexing him and when Yamazaki is barely back up and on his feet, Albright hits a second German for the immediate KO.

Hiromitsu Kanehara vs. Masakazu Maeda (UWFi, 5/8/92)

Another fun spirited young boy match with Maeda being feisty with his strikes and Kanehara looking to suplex>submit. What they may lack in finesse they make up for with their hearts and determination. But there's some cool shit like Maeda blocking Kanehara's defensive kicks when he's got him in the single leg grab. It heats up heading into the finish with some big strikes and submission attempts. I really liked the desperation of Kanehara's single leg crab/side facelock when Maeda won't tap. They're both exhausted and swatting by the end of it and Kanehara wins after a German suplex into the armbar. One of the better matches of the show.

Kazuo  Yamazaki vs. Koji Kitao (UWFi, 5/8/92)

Not a very good match but totally a GREAT match. I loved it. Kitao's this big dumb judo guy eating leg kick after kick, waiting patiently for the right moment. Oh, and t's coming. I love that his counter to the double leg takedown is just standing there. At some point, Yamazaki's nose gets busted but he still wants to German suplex Kitao but settles for a sleeper hold, to which Kitao counters by trying to dump him over the top rope. Kitao's selling after he slowly crawls to the ropes to break a heel hold is off the charts. Kitao's monent comes when he swats Yamazaki's spinning heel kick out of the air. Then he proceeds to destroy Yamazak - a nasty running knee, a big uranage, and endless leg and butt kicks until Yamazaki can no longer stand on his own two feet. Altered Beast Kitao is the best Kitao, and Yamazaki is one of the best shithead underdogs.

Nobuhiko Takada vs. Gary Albright (UWFi, 5/8/92)

Takada's first big UWFi "epic" and a very fun match up top, with Albright grabbing suplexes and Takada being the charismatic striker trying to kick Gary's head off. He also delivers a pretty sweet Saito suplex to Albright so lots of suplex love in this match -- loved Gary's back-to-back belly-to-bellies. The groundwork slows it down and isn't very interesting until Takada starts blasting Albright with leg kicks and counters the German with the toe hold. I liked that Gary's first shitty German suplex seemed like a result of his bad knee buckling but then he hits the second shitty German and it's definitely Takada sandbagging him -- who then just lays there like a goof to give Gary the KO victory. Cool moments but not a great match.

Yoshihiro Takayama vs. Hiromitsu Kanehara (UWFi, 6/28/92)

Yoshihiro Takayama's pro-wrestling debut and it's exactly the big aggressive debut you'd expect from Takayama. He immediately open hands the hell out of Kanehara and gets in plenty of giant knees and slaps. Kanehara is obviously trying to get him down to the mat for a submission but he's having a hard time doing it. He gets in a few good shots at Takayama and finally lets him have it, backdropping Takayama to set up the submission. Really fun debut from Takayama.

Kiyoshi Tamura & Yuko Miyato vs. Tatsuo Nakano & Mark Fleming (UWFi, 6/28/92)

This was the best Fleming has looked since he first popped up in UWFi. He really gets to show off his power vs. Miyato with big suplex throws and a little more refined technique against Tamura, like his hammerlocked takedown into the headscissors. But Tamura is the slickest and wipes the mat clean with Fleming. Nakano isn't very slick either but he's scrappy and a little shit, which is why we adore him, and he knees Tamura in the face a couple of times. The exchanges between Nakano and MIyato are always very feisty and they didn't disappoint here. Nakano dumps him with a German suplex and Miyato answers by spiking him with a crazy uranage. Fleming still can't apply his shitty STF and while it doesn't work on Tamura, it works on Miyato. A really fun undercard tag.

Yoji Anjoh vs. Masahito Kakihara (UWFi, 6/28/92)

The best match of the show and an easy recommendation. It's 10:00 minutes. It's Dickhead Anjoh, it's Slappy Kaki, and there's plenty of heat between the striking, and the aggressive takedowns and submission attempts.When Kakihara misses his big spinning heel kick attempt, which he misses about 78% of the time, Anjoh adds some salt by kicking him in the face. Some real nasty shots from Anjoh toward the end but Kakihara pulls off the upset by submitting Anjoh with the leglock. Good stuff.

Kiyoshi Tamura & Kazuo Yamazaki vs. Gary Albright & Mark Silver (UWFi, 7/12/92)

Really awesome shoot-style tag because it definitely blurs the lines between shoot and pro-wrestling very well. Mark Silver, really representing 1992 in all its glory, won me over and became quite the fighting underdog when the fans turned on Tamura who basically bullies SIlver on the mat throughout the match. Really rides that back mount and at one point, SIlver lifts his hands and asks "why?". Things get really heated when SIlver tries to retaliate but Tamura goes back to dominating him and sending him to the ropes. Yamazaki's "I don't want to be here" energy is so good. He definitely gives Silver something more to work with and their exchanges felt gritty and seamless. Love Yamazaki's go behind German suplex. Yamazaki gives him some big kicks and Silver sells them great but it looks he was supposed to take Yamazaki's spinning heel kick counter, doesn't, stands there awkwardly trying to figure out what to do, and then Yamazaki, clearly pissed, shoot stomps him in the face and tags in Tamura. So now Tamura and Yamazaki are both shooting on Silver, Silver just wants some retribution against these assholes, the fans want Silver to tag in Albright, and Albright is ready to fucking kill somebody. We get the finish everyone was waiting for. Tamura tries to do his thing against Silver but Silver immediately goes to the ropes, drops Tamura with a uranage, and finally tags in Albright, whose like "f this a-hole" and annihilates Tamura with suplexes for the KO. Not a happy man at the way Tamura humiliated Silver and boy, did Tamura pay. Yikes.

Masahito Kakihara vs. Mark Silver (UWFi, 8/28/92)

Hey, this was pretty good. Plenty of struggle on the mat with Silver trying hard to do something and Kaki staying in control for much of the match. Silver's rough and tumble and would've made for a good generic AJPW gaijin or something. No finesse but all heart and mullet, which is what we need most sometimes. At one point in the match, Silver snags a kick and clobbers him with a sickle lariat and when Kaki tries for his big spinning heel kick, Mark catches a foot and drops down into a kneebar, which leads to a heated little spat. Silver plants him with a uranage but ends up trapped in a kneebar, with Kaki pulling him away from the ropes and re-applying for the submission.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Yoji Anjoh (UWFi, 8/28/92)

For a 30 minute draw, I thought this was pretty great and they did a good job of keeping the matwork exciting. Anjoh is easily the second best guy in UWFi at this point behind Tamura, and they always manage to have competitive tag exchanges up to this point. Tons of neat transitions and defense -- like Anjoh, for example, blocking the single or his transition into the double wristlock attempt, to which Tamura powers out and takes Anjoh over with a big fireman's carry. Lots of cool moments peppered throughout; Anjoh's reflex knee to Tamura's head, the shoot figure-four into the STF, Anjoh hitting the fisherman buster and Tamura immediately snagging the double wristlock. Loved Anjoh getting heat for dropping those knees to Tamura on the ropes. I thought Tamura's rubber-legged selling towards the end of the draw was really good, with Anjoh running in with these shitty low kicks, trying to take him out. By the final couple of minutes, they're both exhausted and Tamura tries for one last choke off the big waterwheel drop but the time expires. Good stuff!

Hiromitsu Kanehara vs. Mark Silver (UWFi, 9/21/92)

This was really pretty good. Mark Silver is such a lughead but unlike a guy like Burton, he's got more heart and a bit of a vicious streak. Nasty chokes and big kicks and slams. At one point, he repeatedly boots Kanehara in the head. Kanehara hasn't quite clicked yet but he was able to try out some new submission holds against SIlver. But yeah, this was kind of the Mark Silver show - he hits a belly to belly into the neck crank, clobbers him with a lariat, throws him with a big ass German suplex. I mean, the way he dumps him and stumbles around looking like a total klutz is a big plus for Mark Silver. He gets Kanehara in a pretty gnarly single leg crab but Kanehara's in the ropes and the match ends in a draw.

Masahito Kakihara vs. Tatsuo Nakano (UWFi, 9/21/92)

One of the best sub-five minute matches out there and within the first 10 seconds, Kakihara splatters Nakano's nose with a flurry of open hands. Nakano's able to slow Kaki down on the ground with a leglock and I like the combo of the knee > front neck chancery takeover, throwing some salt in the wound with a cheap shot kick. The blood really adds something to the match, with Kaki's grip slipping during a takedown attempt. As usual, Kakihara sets himself up for the big spinning heel kick but misses, which leads to the brutal finish from Nakano: smack, stomp, submit via single leg crab.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Kazuo Yamazaki (UWFi, 10/23/92)

Great match and definitely the most reminiscent of UWF 2.0 out of any of the UWFi stuff so far. That opening was fantastic and I loved all the crowd reactions to the constant counters and reversals on the mat through the first couple of minutes.  Tamura plays the brash young underdog, Yamazaki the stubborn veteran, and together, the competitive nature, the frustrations, the teases -- everything worked, for the most part. There were a couple of times when it felt a little long in the tooth but then they're turn it up again, and Yamazaki would fly at him with a spinning heel kick. There's a great moment toward the end when Tamura is smacking the hell out of Yamazaki when he's stuck in a leglock but Yamazaki ain't letting go. Then Yamazaki's like fuck it, let's finish this, and he's able to hit the German suplex but Tamura finally taps him with the armbar. Really good stuff here.

Yoshihiro Takayama vs. Hiromitsu Kanehara (UWFi, 12/20/92)

The best match in their series so far, continuing the tradition of sloppy charm. They scrap around, both on their feet and on the mat. Takayama's strategy is largely the same: knee knee knee. But when Kanehara catches one, he dumps him with a big waterwheel slam and tries to choke Takayama out. Takayama looked more comfortable here and he definitely got to shine, hitting a big capture suplex, popping Kanehara in the face with a flying knee, and an awesome German. Kanehara looked good here, too, with his kicks and counters - loved him catching Takayama's kick and high kicking him in the head with the opposite leg. Or the leg catch slap. Really good desperation there at the end between the holds and counters and wild strikes -- at one point, Kanehara kicks Takayama in the nuts to set up a leglock.  Kanehara hits his own German and finishes Takayama off with a choke. Fun stuff!

Nobuhiko Takada vs. Naoki Sano (UWFi, 12/20/92)

This is easily Takada's best singles match in UWFi through 1992, and it comes after a warm up match against Dennis Koslowski. Takada, who is usually not very interesting on the mat, worked a stronger ground game against Sano. Sano, on the otherhand, had Takada on the ropes with chokes and single legs throughout. But it's DOUBLE TAKADA so he's going to shine here, which he did. He hits a nice Saito suplex>rear mount>face lock combo and he blasts Sano with a nasty high kick. Sano is able to grab the leg and German suplex Takada but when Takada tries to sneak in for a leglock attempt, Sano's able to roll him up with one of his own. They lay into each other with slaps and kicks and there are some good moments of struggle heading into the finish. They fight over armbars but Takada obviously wins out and picks up the submission. Good stuff! 

UWFi (1991)

Continuing the thread of promotion guidebooks, here's UWFi in its 1991 debut year.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Masahito Kakihara (UWFi, 5/10/91)

A cool little match-up. I loved how Kakihara faked like he was going to just grapple with Tamura before he unleashes his traditional flurry of strikes. Tamura shows off some skill on the mat but again, Kakihara’s hands are all over him like fly swatters. When he does get some breathing room, Tamura’s in-ring awareness is shines through, as he’s constantly grabbing limbs, settling into holds and avoiding the bigger blows from Kakihara to get a takedown. When Kakihara misses the big spinning heel kick, Tamura stays on him with knees to the ribs and a nasty shot to the face. When he starts swinging for the fences, missing wildly, Tamura coolly takes him down with a belly-to-belly slam. Kakihara finally grazes him with another spinning heel kick and follows up with another that squarely hits the mark. He then applies a front necklock, deadlifting Tamura with almost a brainbuster. The exhaustion faction plays into the finish of the match, as Kakihara is sluggish, trying to trade kicks with Tamura, and Tamura catches a leg for a takedown. Kakihara’s able to counter with a leglock of his own, but Tamura re-counters and Kakihara taps out.

Kazuo Yamazaki & Tatsuo Nakano vs. Yoji Anjoh & Yuko Miyato (UWFi, 5/10/91)

This was a lot of fun. Nakano spent the early minutes shielding himself from Miyato's quick hands and Anjoh's elbows. He does get off a nice throw>elbow to the back of Anjoh's head before he tags in Yamazaki. Yamazaki and Anjoh mostly fight for holds on the ground, which is fine, but when Miyamoto destroys Nakano's nose during a spat of palm thrusts, the match really settles in for a great bumpy ride. Nakano's pissed and retaliates with a German suplex. When Yamazaki tags in, he immediately high kicks Miyato in the head. Whenever Nakano and Anjoh are in there, they're sneaking in dirty elbow shots to the head -- Anjoh really gives it to Nakano at one point. Yamazaki's selling during the finish stretch where he's just taking punishment from both Miyato and Anjoh was really good.

Tatsuo Nakano vs. Yoji Anjoh (UWFi, 6/6/91)

This turned into quite the dirty scrap, as Anjoh stayed aggressive throughout this match, smashing Nakano's nose during a barrage of stiff shots. A bloodied Nakano manages a full nelson suplex on Anjoh, but then Anjoh locks in the choke sleeper, Nakano's blood smeared across his arm, and Nakano tries to fight out but ultimately taps out. And Anjoh doesn't let go. What a dick.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Yoji Anjoh (UWFi, 7/3/91)

This match is great. Tamura is already so good early into his career, having only wrestling eight or so matches prior to facing Anjoh. He's slick as catshit, utilizing his speed to his advantage -- I mean, it's hard to even keep track of him at times. Anjoh can't do too much on the mat without Tamura managing to slip out and away. He'll grab an arm and Tamura will maneuver his legs around to get back to a vertical base, controlling Anjoh with a front facelock. While Tamura keeps going back to the rear naked choke, Anjoh targets the leg throughout to set up the finish. But there's just so many cool little moments in this match. At one point, Tamura rolls through with an armbar attempt and Anjoh catches the leg but Tamura simply stands up out of it. When Anjoh isn't going after the leg, he's throwing knees. He repeatedly knees Tamura in the back of the head but Tamura doesn't let go of the arm, slipping out to his feet and smacking Anjoh. Tamura's front necklock counter with the go-behind into the rear naked choke was a thing of beauty. Then he just starts stomping the back of Anjoh's head, putting the fear of God in him. By the end, things aren't quite as silky as they're both fighting over holds and avoiding takedowns. The referee doesn't do shit when Anjoh grabs Tamura's hair as he's trying to turn him over into the crab hold. In the end, all that legwork pays off for Anjoh as he's able to crank on a sick single leg crab hold for the submission victory.

Nobuhiko Takada vs. Tatsuo Nakano (UWFi, 7/3/91)

Fun match. Takada was able to avoid the German suplex throughout, but there were some fun teases and transitions, with Nakano grabbing the rear naked choke and rallying the fans behind him. Match really picks up when Nakano rushes him against the ropes with strikes and snap suplexes him. Takada's kicks looked good, Nakano's underdog defense worked well -- I especially liked the catch into the calf hold and then turning that into a pretty nasty side headlock on Takada.

Tatsuo Nakano vs. Yuko Miyato (UWFi, 7/30/91)

This was actually a lot of fun. Things get really heated in there at times with their strike exchanges and, like pretty much every match, Nakano's nose gets busted. There is a lot of good counterwork and takedowns, and when Nakano's pissed, he dumps Miyato with the German suplex. There's also a point where he almost capture suplexes Miyato out of the ring as things escalate in violence. A good little Nakano showcase and a strong finish with the choke to win. Really good stuff.

Kazuo Yamazaki vs. Billy Scott (UWFi, 7/30/91)

This was short and semi-sweet. Scott looks like such a dope with his mullet and singlet but when he comes out hot and heavy with the palm thrusts and knees, he becomes more of an asskicker dope. I thought there was good struggle on the mat, even though Yamazaki looked like he was going through the motions at times, and I liked Scott's out-of-nowhere backdrop into the elevated single leg crab. Yamazaki adds a little spicy mustard to his kicks toward the end, and Scott trying to build momentum to the German was cool, only to get German suplexed in turn and choked out with the front guillotine.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Tatsuo Nakano (UWFi, 9/26/91)

A fun contrast of styles, with Tamura utilizing his smooth takedowns to stay on top of Nakano and look for an opening on the mat. The match takes a bit to get going but when Tamura goes for a double leg takedown, he runs smack into Nakano's classic reflex knee to the face. That gives Nakano a bit of confidence, as he starts trying to bulldoze Tamura down but of course, Tamura being Tamura manages to find a way to coolly reverse a hold or counter the attack. At one point, Tamura tries for a headlock takedown and Nakano grabs a rear choke – almost a crossface chickenwing – and drags him down to the canvas. Tamura continues trying to get holds on Nakano but the little meatball doesn't really budge...so he starts smacking him around instead, or dumping him straight on top of his head with a waterwheel throw. Nakano keeps fighting 'til the very end as he tries elbowing out of the hold before submitting.

Kazuo Yamazaki vs. Yoji Anjoh (UWFi, 9/26/91)

I liked Anjoh's early defense, avoiding the German and keeping Yamazaki on the ground. His leg trip into the Fujiwara armbar was neat. They spend most of the match on the mat before Anjoh starts laying into Yamazaki with knees and kicks for a couple of knockdowns. There's a weird spot where Yamazaki finally hits the German suplex hold and Anjoh looks to counter that with a double wristlock but then rolls off with some delayed selling. The finish was cool too, with Anjoh trying for the rolling kneebar and Yamazaki countering with the neck crank.

Yoji Anjoh vs. Billy Scott (UWFi, 10/6/91)

Billy Scott continues to find comfort in shoot-style and this was probably his best solo outing to date. But still has an awful haircut.They open with a mad scramble and Scott lets Anjoh know early on that he ain't taking any of his shit. He kicks Anjoh in the face when they're tied up on the ground and when they're back on their feet, they're flinging hands and going kind of nuts, which is great. The groundwork throughout is a mess but that doesn't stop Billy from trying. I really like his German suplex lift into the Rock Bottom and his arm-trap judo throw but he can't really follow up on the mat. He does throw some mean palm strikes though. In the end, Anjoh catches him with a nasty knee strike in the corner, throws him with a dope belly-to-belly, but on the mat, Scott rolls him up, fucks the finish and Anjoh ends up tapping to a weak-looking neck crank. Good match nevertheless.

Masahito Kakihara vs. Jim Boss (UWFi, 12/22/91)

A stiff little sub-five undercard treat with Slappy Kaki coming right out of the gate and swatting the hell out of Boss repeatedly. Boss doesn't really know what to do but gets some retribution by dumping Kakihara with a release German suplex and then running over and punt kicking him in the head. He shoves the ref aside and keeps pounding on him in the corner as the fans let him have it. Kaki slaps his way back in control and his final head kick KO to Boss looked scary.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Gary Albright (UWFi, 12/22/91)

A good match-up with Albright using his size and weight on the mat and Tamura, of course, using his finesse to get Albright on the ground for a submission. Albright at one point has Tamura's leg and Tamura is able to take him down with a slick kneebar transition. Albright keeps trying for this inverted necklock and he ends up snapping Tamura over with a necklock suplex>inverted necklock. Of course, he throws a few more suplexes and ends up KO'ing Tamura with a German.

U-STYLE (2005)

Well, technically, only one show took place in 2005 but it had a couple of matches worth checking out.

Frank Shamrock vs. Daisuke Nakamura (U-STYLE, 11/25/05)

This was a blast, with a high energy opening and fun, chaotic scrambles on the mat. Just a good, competitive, well-worked shoot-style match. Shamrock was especially good here, between his taunting Nakamura to punch his abs to just deadlifting him with a front necklock. That looked pretty gross. All of his submissions and strikes looked snug. Nakamura, on the other hand, kept whiffing on his takedowns, which Shamrock would capitalize on, mainly by wrecking the shit out of his ankle. He's able to get a straight armbar on Shamrock but Frank takes the match with a nice heel hook. Good stuff.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Josh Barnett (U-STYLE, 11/25/05)

Match of the night, with Barnett in beast mode. He may not as quick as Tamura but he uses his size to his advantage and stays on top of Tamura. Him just flipping Tamura over his head by the leg was a great show of strength. After Tamura downs him with a pretty nasty knee to the face, Barnett rages with a brutal uranage followed by a deadlift German. POWERFUL~!  Tamura's able to crank on the armbar but Josh is close enough to the ropes for a break. They trade kicks, Barnett plants him with the capture buster but when he tries to double dip, Tamura grabs the armbar again and finally taps him. A super fun David vs. Goliath match-up.

U-STYLE (2004)

Kyosuke Sasaki vs. Crafter M (U-STYLE, 2/4/04)

A fun exhibition-y shoot maestro match (if that makes sense) between the masked trashbag pants-wearing Crafter M and Kyosuke Sasaki, who of course, knows how to do-si-do on the mat. Lots of counters and reversals before Sasaki starts taking the kicks to him, downing him with a great solebutt. Crafter can only try and legwhip him down to find a submission on the mat because, as we've all learned, his strikes stink. Eventually he gets a deep Fujiwara armbar takedown and stays in control of it, trapping Sasaki with the headscissors when he tries to escape. Cool moment. Sometimes it seems like Crafter will somehow roll himself into a hold, or accidentally trap Sasaki with something but in the end, after more kicks, Sasaki grabs the armbar for the win.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (U-STYLE, 2/4/04)

I love a slow burn when it's done right and these two know how to do just that. The tension builds to the initial takedown before Tamura starts maneuvering his way around the mat. TK isn't as spry as Tamura but he's still scrappy and able to grab a hold whenever while still doing a little fancy maneuvering himself. Cool stuff from Tamura as usual, including a great front necklock counter, and TK busting out a bunch of great kneebars trying to submit the hometown hero. Loved the part where he's got Tamura in a kneebar, Tamura tries punching his way out and then TK creeps up and pops him in the face with slaps. The scrambling intensifies, the striking picks up, especially from Tamura, who lays into TK with big body knees and killer head kicks. And in the end, they're dancing around the mat, trying for a few different things in a final attempt at victory. Tamura's single leg crab doesn't do the trick but he's ultimately able to snap off the jujigatame for the submission. An easy recommendation.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Kyosuke Sasaki (U-STYLE, 3/13/04)

A match-up I was eagerly anticipating and one that sadly underwhelmed. But it's still Tamura so you're at least getting something very good. Sasaki shows no respect at the outset and he is all over Tamura, trying to hook him with something, as they scramble and trade strikes. Sasaki tries for plenty of things but Tamura's defensive is too good and when Sasaki catches him, Tamura slickly maneuvers out. There's a cool spot where Sasaki has the arm and Tamura flips out in an attempt to counter, but Sasaki holds onto the arm and takes Tamura to the ropes. A lot of slower moments in between but still calculated work by both dudes. The strikes pick up toward the end but nothing too crazy. Tamura rocks him with a few kicks, Sasaki's able to catch a kick and take him down with a single leg but Tamura is fast to the ropes. By the end of it, Tamura's playing with Sasaki like a cat with a half dead mouse, finally putting him out of his misery with a few hard kicks to the midsection. I'll throw it on the recommendation list but it's a low one.

Alexander Otsuka vs. Ryuki Ueyama (U-STYLE, 8/7/04)

The finish to this was a little bit of a mess but otherwise, this match was great. The contrast between these two helped flesh this out. Otsuka just wants to slam but Ueyama isn't making it easy for him, keeping him at bay with kicks and trying to tangle on the mat. Ueyama's strikes, especially his knees, looked brutal and Otsuka sold them especially well. He's still able to throw Ueyama around his suplexes and I like how Otsuka flows with Ueyama's escape attempts, grabbing limbs and turning each evasion into a submission of sorts. Them slinging palm strikes at one point was really great and the way the shoot STF plays out was a nice touch. Otsuka takes a beating in there but finds a way to pull off the win - although it was confusing exactly how he won.

Masahito Kakihara vs. Yuki Ishikawa (U-STYLE, 8/7/04)

This was great and another easy recommendation from the show. Of course, Kaki is quick and very slappy/kicky, but Ishikawa has that veteran patience and also some pretty dirty body shots. Ishikawa utilizing more pro-wrestling offense was a cool touch. He tries for the cobra twist, Kaki slings him off, but Ishikawa slickly gets the heel hook and forces Kakihara to the ropes. Kaki blasts Ishikawa with an absolutely nasty face kick and picks up a yellow card because poor Ishikawa was on his knee. Ishikawa's dazed but still gives Kaki an enziguri (and picks up a yellow card himself because enziguris are ILLEGAL). Ishikawa slaps on the sleeper hold but Kakihara is able to maneuver his way to the ropes so Ishikawa gives him a nasty elbow. Kakihara, however, wins via submission with a side headlock.

Yuki Ishikawa vs. Crafter M (U-STYLE, 8/18/04)

Oh hey, it's my favorite dirty barefoot, trashbag pants, Rey Mysterio-knock off mask wearin' shooter gimmick, Crafter M...against one of my other favorite wrestlers in Yuki Ishikawa. The juxtaposition of Crafter floating all over Yuki grabbing holds and Yuki getting more and more frustrated with it and finally trying to snap Crafter in half was an excellent story. Truth be told, Crafter is very good and he just slips out of Ishikawa's fingers and quickly snags a number of holds -- his roll-up choke was very swanky. He's just making Ishikawa work extra hard to find leverage. Of course, Ishikawa's grittier approach was a nice counterbalance and him working the STF was great. Ishikawa slapping Crafter M into a heel hook was a cool spot. Ishikawa finally dumps him with a German suplex and grabs the Fujiwara armbar, and when that doesn't work, he tries to bed M in two and M taps. Great match-up.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Hiroyuki Ito (U-STYLE, 8/18/04)

This is the other semi-final pairing and Ito doesn't hold back against Tamura. He absolutely rocks him with big nasty kicks and knee strikes. Not only that but Ito also sends him to the ropes a few times as he goes after the arm. Tamura's strategy seems to be catch a kick>grab the submission and it works a couple of times but Ito continues to knock him down with big strikes and Tamura's ultimately down to his final point. He tries but can't quite finish off Ito with strikes and by the end, they're both staggering and Tamura even gets caught in the ropes with a missed kick attempt. He's finally able to catch a kick and tap Ito with the single leg crab to advance. Very bueno.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Alexander Otsuka (U-STYLE, 8/18/04)

A very good match in which an injured Otsuka is really trying to suplex Tamura but Tamura won't let him, which forces Otsuka to work extra hard on the mat. Immediately Tamura goes after that right elbow with kicks for a knockdown but on the mat, Otsuka more than holds his own in their exchanges, even with the bad elbow. His counter into the STF was very cool, and I loved watching them fight for control. Tamura realizes that kicking the elbow is a good thing so he goes back to it, with Otsuka trying to protect himself, finally tossing Tamura with a waterwheel drop. But Tamura keeps attacking with kicks and in desperation, Otsuka dropkicks him off...but Tamura's like a shark and kicks him once again in the elbow and then the face for the KO. New champ. Good stuff.

Yuki Ishikawa vs. Hiroyuki Ito (U-STYLE, 10/9/04)

Good stuff here as you've got that veteran grappler (Ishikawa) vs. feisty striker (Ito) dynamic, which is always a joy. Ito lands some nasty knees and head kicks early on, but then Ishikawa does what Ishikawa does best, which is bend and twist on the mat, and spoon up those nasty strikes like a true big boss. He catches one of Ito's kicks, turns it into an Indian deathlock and then grabs a choke. When ito grabs a headlock, Ishikawa dumps him with a backdrop suplex. But Ito is relentless with the strikes, catching Ishikawa with a dirty kick to the face. Ishikawa also lets Ito have it with some open hands, hit the deadlift German and finishes him off in style with a dope submission. I liked this a lot!

Ryuki Ueyama vs. Seichi Ikemoto (U-STYLE, 10/9/04)

Good stuff, part two. You know you're off to a good start when you've got a pre-bell slap to the face, which leads to a quick, back-and-forth stand up before the action on the mat takes center stage. Very good, competitive groundwork from both guys, with some cool submissions pulled out. Ikemoto is so spry on the mat, flipping every which way for position, as Ueyama is basically trying to snare him in a hold, which he tries with armbars and chokes. But Ikemoto will crank on an ankle when given the opportunity, or roll back into a choke of his own. Ueyama lays out Ikemoto with a quick flurry of slaps, and at the end, he lays into him with kicks and a big KO head kick. I liked this a lot, part two!

Dokonjonosuke Mishima vs. Crafter M (U-STYLE, 12/7/04)

Two weirdo grapplers doing their shtick. Crafter makes it hard for Mishima to get a hold of anything - he's like an elegant fish out of water, flopping all over the mat. Mishima pops him with a handstand high kick to the side of the head and his rolling armbar attempt was cute. Some funky holds throughout, which, yeah, makes sense considering the competitors. Crafter's  shoot double arm suplex into the legscissors choke was very cool. Likewise, Mishima uses a belly-to-belly to set up a scarf hold. Plenty of close calls with the submissions that builds to a chaotic finish, which sees Mishima using a crossface hold to tap Crafter. This was all over the place in the best way possible. Good stuff.

Yasuhito Namekawa vs. Kyosuke Sasaki (U-STYLE, 12/7/04)

Very competitive, athletic match-up with some real slick takedowns and transitions from both guys. Plus, some crazy suplex throws from Namekawa but with each throw, Sasaki maintains control over a limb.  The strike exchanges are a lot of fun - Namekawa in particular lands a couple of nasty ones, including a kick and knee to the eye socket. Namekawa’s takedown into the double wristlock was also very dope, and ends up winning him the match. More good stuff!

Ryuki Ueyama & Seichi Ikemoto vs. Kiyoshi Tamura & Takaku Fuke (U-STYLE, 12/7/04)

Super fun main event which gave the younger guys plenty of time to shine against the vets, and they're presented like legitimate threats throughout. Ueyama and Ikemoto are just so quick and spry, making Tamura seem slow at times...well, not really but KIND OF. There’s a fun part where Ikemoto is in the front mount and he and Fuke are just paintbrushing each other with slaps before Ikemoto gets crazy and puts him in a dope indian deathlock choke. The struggle to slow either Ueyama or Ikemoto down with holds is well done, especially the armbar attempt from Fuke. Lots of highlights, although these shoot-style tags never really feel like tag matches. Tamura getting spicy with the kicks vs. Ikemoto was great, Ikemoto's floatover armbar attempt, Fuke's capture suplex into the triangle choke, and the very strong finish for Ueyama as he peppers Fuke with the mounted slaps before transitioning into the calf crusher for the submission.

U-STYLE (2003)

Hey, check these U-Style matches out for the year 2003. 

Yasuhito Namekawa vs. Kyosuke Sasaki (U-STYLE, 2/15/03)

This was a blast -- a much more scrappy, spunky fight, which I love. Namekawa has a great look and presence, and he's much bigger than Sasaki so he can slam him down with spinebusters and snappy belly-to-belly suplexes and cool cradled throws. He gets a yellow card for kicking Sasaki on the ground so we now know he's a bad boy. Sasaki tries some fancy things on the mat and ends up managing something out of the attempt. He gets a nice roll up into an ankle hold and hits a German, trying to transition into the armbar but Namekawa is quick to get a foot on the ropes. There's a heated little front mount slap battle before Namekawa uses a...unique dragon screw for the takedown and finally taps him with a cool legtrap armbar/facelock combination.  Easy recommendation. 

Takehiro Murahama vs. Kazuki Okubo (U-STYLE, 2/15/03)

Murahama, the babyfaced rookie phenom from the year 2000, is here and he just wants to pro-wrestle. This is a pretty fun match and worth checking out to see Murahama running the ropes and hitting enziguries. I like how Okubo is the spoiler in this match, trying to keep it pure shoot-style. He knows his way around the mat and actually looked a bit cleaner than Murahama. But Murahama's department is striking and his strikes were snug. But Okubo also snaps off some great lanky-legged kicks. There were a couple of hiccups along the way but the finishing stretch was really good. Good drama with Okubo's calf hold and then Murahama destroying him with the German before locking in the armbar for the submission. U-STYLE really loves German suplexes. 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Wataru Sakata (U-STYLE, 2/15/03)

King Kiyoshi wants to start off with a handshake but Sakata says no with a slap to the face. Really good match that escalates throughout. There's a lot of jockeying for position early on, with neither really getting the advantage. Sakata tries for a swanky handspring transition but he can't catch Tamura with a hold. Tamura takes him to the ropes with an armbar and then dumps him with the waterwheel drop and puts on the single leg, turning it into a kneebar and sending him back to the ropes. They slaps it out as Tamura tries to take control of the leg again but when he tries to turn him over, Sakata's able to grab the leglock and send Tamura scrambling. Tamura's kicks and knees looked great as he downs Sakata with a combo and his selling of Sakata's own kicks and knees was terrific. Sakata wins with the rear neclock as he should. 

Takehiro Murahama vs. Kyosuke Sasaki (U-STYLE, 4/6/03)

Murahama's really great in his straddling shoot-style/pro-wrestling role, and Sasaki does a good job of playing to Murahama's strengths, as well as his own. He's got some pretty slick matwork to counter Murahama's more feisty approach and I liked his flying armbar. At times, they're constantly switching and reversing holds, trying to sustain something long enough for a submision. When Murahama comes at him with hard kicks, Sasaki uses a double leg takedown just to col him down. But Murahama has a little mean streak in him with his stricks and gets more and more aggressive with them as the match progresses. Loved when he tries for the irish whip and Sasaki holds onto the ropes to block it, kicking Murahama down and taking him to the ropes with a leglock. Also he gets a nice reverse armbar counter to the first German suplex attempt but in the end, Murahama hits it and taps him with the armbar. 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Dokonjonosuke Mishima (U-STYLE, 4/6/03)

Can you image if Mishima had a Matt Riddle-like run through the Japanese promotions in the mid-00s? He has such a unique presence and this was a terrific little match-up, with Mishima showing off his quasi-capoeira style and judo throws against Tamura's slick-as-catshit counter and matwork. Mishima manages some hard slams and I really liked his takedown into the headscissors, transitioning into the armbar. Of course, Tamura's great here as the master, tip-toeing out of trap attempts and scoring takedowns>submission holds. The struggle on the ground was conveyed well, although because Tamura's is king, there are times when he looks bored at Mishima smothering his leg with a hold. Heading into the finish, an exhausted Mishima comes at Tamura with a palm thrust but Tamura is able to take him down into a necklock, flipping him over into the armbar and cranking it on for the submission win.

Kyosuke Sasaki vs. Dokonjonosuke Mishima (U-STYLE, 6/29/03)

This may be my favorite U-Style match so far. Mishima's just so much fun to watch in there and Sasaki is a great counterbalance. Real competitive, seamless grappling with some snappy strikes and tons of awesome takedowns and transitions. Sasaki tries to dominate early but Mishima uses his cleverness and slick movements to escape. Mishima dishes out plenty of big high kicks and spin kicks, and his snap German suplex was great. Sasaki is hanging with Mishima on the mat and later, with the strikes, and by the end, they're down to their last point. They're slipping and sliding all over the mat, trying to grab a hold. Mishima chops him down to a knee with kicks, snaps him over with a suplex into a front neck chancery. Sasaki survives it but finally taps to a dope rear ankle hold. Terrific match.

Wataru Sakata vs. Hiroyuki Ito (U-STYLE, 6/29/03)

Oh my god, Wataru Sakata is such a complete dick in this match and every second of it rules. What a great companion piece to the Sasaki/Mishima match. Ito becomes quite the underdog by the end of it. But to open, they're not playing around with their strikes. Once Sakata gets him on the mat, he's rubbing his wrist taped wrists in his face and hammering him with body shots. He takes him over with a nice Saito suplex before walloping Ito with big open hands from the front mount. Oh, Ito dishes out some too but not as hot as Sakata. He rubs his fists in Ito's face, pops him with a few more nasty body shots and then tries to break him with the double wristlock. Ito fights out and gets a little revenge on Sakata, taking him to the ropes with an armbar. I like that he keeps trying to do what Sakata has done to him but Sakata just gives it back to him twice as hard. After some more elbow washes and nasty palm strikes, Sakata puts him in the single leg crab. The fans chant for Ito to escape but as he reaches for the ropes, Sakata drags him back to the middle and submits him. Another great match and easy rec.

Wataru Sakata vs. Kyosuke Sasaki (U-STYLE, 12/9/03)

A slow, methodical burn but recommended viewing, with Sakata still being a dick and Sasaki his usual crafty self. I liked the stalemate opening with Sasaki showing off his canvas skillz. Sakata gets a hell of a leg trip in the corner but can't follow up on the mat. He lacks Sasaki's finesse and works more of a bully smothering style. He's like a less refined Hideki Suzuki. The striking picks up and Sakata punishes him with mounted palms and body bunches. When he tries for the double wristlock, Sasaki counters with the armbar. When Sakata tries to get away with forearm rubs, Sasaki gives it right back to him. At some point, Sasaki gets busted open and Sakata overhwhelms him with knees and smacks him down for the KO. Had the groundwork been a little more interesting, this would have a great match but it's still good and worth a watch. 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Katsuhisa Fujii (U-STYLE, 12/9/03)

This is a big test for young Fujii, whose looked dominant in his 2-4 minute squashes but will he fare as well against the master Tamura? The contrast of power vs. technique is one of my favorite match-ups and they do a good job of establishing that here. This felt the most UWFi Tamura of any U-STYLE match thus far, with Fujii using his strength and throws to break him down. I loved Tamura wildly fighting out of the German. Fujii always manages to grab a few holds, which aren't elaborate or anything, but fit the theme of trying to break Tamura. Tamura stuns him with a high kick to the head and keeps sweeping Fujii's leg but Fujii fights back and finally hits the German on Tamura (even though Tamura really doesn't want to get German'd). Tamura retaliates with kicks and this time, defends with a front necklock and when Fujii tries for a second German, Tamura takes him down with the double wristlock for the submission win. Very fun match!

Fighting Network RINGS (1997)

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Mikhail Ilioukhine (RINGS, 1/22/97)

I know Han/Tamura steals the attention but this match rules. Ilioukhine does a good job of showing off his power, and comes out strong but TK's technique gives him the edge. There's a great kneebar counter that sends Mikhail to the ropes and he manages to escape a follow-up choke only to get caught in an armbar and sent back to the ropes. The crowd is loving the exchanges and Mikhail especially does a good job of selling the damage sustained, from his targeted leg to the rib kicks. They trade some big strikes -- knees, kicks, body shots, face palms -- and in an awesome moment, TK uses a triangle counter out of a leg whip. But Mikhail immediately muscles him over into a heel hook. TK's rolling front necklock is dope but countered with a side choke and when Mikhail tries to finish him off with the single leg, TK counters that with the kneebar for the submission finish. Great build to the final submission. 

Volk Han vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (RINGS, 1/22/97)

This was an incredible display of skill, struggle and lightning-quick reflexes by both Han and Tamura, with Han a looking a little more in control. But Tamura's all over him and continues to evade the submissions with his slick as catshit maneuvering. The opening wristlock takedown by Han was beautiful but Tamura is immediately back on his feet, only to get hammerlock suplexed down but again, Tamura roll with the throw and he's back on the legs, trying to grab a hold. Loved Han slipping his leg out of Tamura's rolling kneebar attempt, and then, of course, being aware of Tamura's positioning at all times, especially when he's got him centered with the calf slicer. Tamura's leg kicks pester Han and he swats at him with a wild spinning backhand but Tamura remains very cool throughout and continues to escape the arm holds, although it's taking a toll. Loved him shimmying around Han for the cross armbar, just using his speed to confuse his opponent. He manages a few more strikes, blasting Han with the straight kick to the cut, but in the end, Han secures the single calf slicer and taps him. Awesome match. 

Akira Maeda vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (RINGS, 3/28/97)

Tamura isn't going to lay down for the old dog Maeda and lays into him with strong kicks to set the stage. I loved Tamura's defiance here, sweeping the leg because he can, jooking and jiving to add the confusion,  breaking the leglock and staring down Maeda as the fans eat up every second of this. Tamura's cross heel hold counter had Maeda on the ropes and he looked he almost inadvertently tapped out. He managed to make Maeda look not broken down, and Maeda pulls out some neat tricks like the front necklock takeover. Tamura maneuvering in and out of holds, only to get caught in the double wristlock was a great sope, and I loved the finish, with Tamura's glimpse of hope getting choked out by the big boss. Is this Maeda's last great match? I guess we'll see...

Yoshihisa Yamamoto vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (RINGS, 4/4/97)

My goodness, what a battle. The escalation of the strikes, the desperation of the submission holds, the absolute struggle and narrow escapes, blood spilled and a concerned Akira Maeda. This match had it all. The matwork was very sharp, with both guys trying to take advantage of the other's mistakes, and the many reversals/counters were great and added to the drama in the final minutes. Loved TK's beautiful takedown into the heel hold. I like that the early strikes were used as mere transitions into submission attempts, and then the latter strikes became purely about the KO and finishing this grueling match. They're both so sluggish by the end of this, and each back-and-forth submission seems like a plausible finish, and as the time limit expires, they're both still fighting for the submission to win it all. Great great stuff. 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (RINGS, 4/22/97)

Very much a "worked shoot" - the most telling aspects being the groundwork. But it was a damn good match, with plenty of strong tension, good defense on the mat, and some real sneaky strikes, especially from Tamura. He really lets those palms fly - love TK's staggering collapse into the corner after Tamura catches him with a hard shot. The finish was great as well, as they both fight for an opening and Tamura finally cranks the ankle to force a submission (and a yelp) out of TK. 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Nikolai Zouev (RINGS, 6/21/97)

Awesome counterwork from both guys but more organic than something forced and hokey like a ZSJ match. The way Tamura transitions his holds or slides into a leglock is a thing of beauty. So fluid. Zouev's arm whip takedowns look pretty brutal and Zouev has a lot more patience on the mat when looking for an opening, whereas Tamura is all about overwhelming with speed. I really liked Zouev's simple wristlock answer to Tamura's calf slicer to send Tamura to the ropes. Zouev starts to show weakness when Tamura attacks the leg with kicks and you can see the frustration in Zouev mounting. Big head kick from Zouev to set-up the takedown but Tamura recovers and snags the armbar as a last-ditch effort but in the end, Zouev rolls him up with that unique submission for the big upset. This was a great match. 

Tsuyoshi Kosaka vs. Grom Zaza (RINGS, 7/22/97)

A "Best of" list wouldn't be complete without Grom Zaza. He's back and his takedowns are still filled with slams and wrist throws. Very good legwork throughout, with Zaza putting TK on the rocks plenty but TK's the slicker of the two with his transitions - really liked the rolling necklock sequence, which leads to a scramble and TK on top with the armbar attempt. Also, his beautiful kneebar transition, which forces Zaza to the ropes. Very much a chess match of takedowns/holds/counters with a little more of a worked feel than a lot of the 1997 RINGS match-ups. TK finally grabs the choke to finish him off. Very good match.

Volk Han vs. Yoshihisa Yamamoto (RINGS, 8/13/97)

Yup, this ruled - quite the do-si-do of mat techniques and counterwork. The human octopus, Volk Han, is just so good at trapping limbs out of any which direction, while Yamamoto is slippery throughout, flipping out of holds and turning the pressure on Han. Great awareness from both guys and great escalation of rope breaks and close calls. Yamamoto loves to milk the shit out of submission holds, especially that final Han leglock that brings him to his final out. There was a part midway through the match where Han grabs a low angle single leg, which Yamamoto counters with a heel hook, only for Han to react with the cross heel hook. Loved Han powering Yamamoto up on the armbar attempt and dumping him on his head. Some beautiful leglock takedowns from Han as usual, and a spirited performance from Yamamoto during his rehabilitation. Strong KO finish by Yamamoto to put the cherry on that exciting finishing stretch.

Volk Han vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (RINGS, 9/26/97)

Holy shit, what a masterpiece. I preferred this to their January match as well, as I felt this one was very high drama on the mat, with each submission seemingly a "Game Over" screen. Han's savvy is on full display here from the get-go, with that beautiful arm whip and then trying to destroy the arm while simultaneously positioning Tamura away from the ropes. His takedowns and counters are just so slick and organic. Ham grabbing the side headlock/neckcrank to counter the heel hook looked especially nasty. I thought Tamura's selling was subtle but top-notch when it comes to this style. There is thought behind every movement, a patience to find the right position/angle/leverage, which further blurs the line between worked and shoot. Loved Han's hammerlock throw into the armbar attempt. Tamura seems to utilize more kicks throughout this match, staggering Han with some big shots and then working the leg with repeat low kicks. When Han falls, he's quick to get back up before he's counted down but...no dice. The struggle and desperation during the final minutes, especially from Han, elevates the entire performance and he starts throwing those palm strikes as a countermeasure to Tamura's kick. Him knocking Tamura down and flaunting afterward was priceless. Tamura really fights to hit that judo throw to set up the final armbar and with Han positioned in the middle, he's got no choice but to submit. A fucking Plus.

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Mikhail Ilioukhine (RINGS, 11/20/97)

A very good fight between these two, with Mikhail grabbing kicks and tossing or trying to go to the mat, whereas TK is rolling around, trying to avoid whilst also trying to entangle. TK plays great defense against the armbar attempts and manages some very nice takedowns and transitions. He also lets loose with the kicks and knees, trying to take Mikhail down with his strikes but Mikhail typically overpowers him on the mat. There's a real rugged quality to the matwork, in that they're working hard for each hold and counter. Nother super fancy, like Tamura/Han, but rough and tumble. The finish was dominant and looked pretty nasty. Good stuff. 

Akira Maeda vs. Mitsuya Nagai (RINGS, 11/20/97)

Look, we know who is winning this match, there's no question. But just when it seems like Nagai's here to play the Maeda game, he pops him hard with a palm strike, then very hard with an upper hand. And then he lets loose with the mini slaps and knee strike to the face. Maeda's clearly not happy with it and his response is often to smother Nagai. Nagai responds by grabbing a heel hold and sending Maeda quickly the ropes. Whenever they're on their feet, Nagai wins - he doesn't let up against the big boss and the fans are rallying behind him. Nagai tries to take his head off his shoulders with a high kick but Maeda blocks it. Ultimately, Maeda wins it with a rear choke but he takes a beating to get there. And even post-match, he's still pissed and slaps Nagai in the face. Very fun Nagai performance. 

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Christopher Haseman (RINGS, 12/20/97)

Very good opener and TK showcase over Haseman, who's been a solid hand thus far, but this was probably my favorite Haseman match. TK working holds is always a joy, and I love that when Haseman tries to get fancy with the leg scissors takedown, TK sidesteps it. The wrist control he keeps on Haseman when he's trying to squirm away was great. Even when Haseman SLAMS TK down, it's no skin off TK's back and he's still able to outmaneuver Haseman on the mat and send him scrambling. Haseman's able to land big back-to-back-to-back head kicks to take down TK but in the end, TK grabs that high leg lock and Haseman tries his best to get out, including a double wristlock counter, but TK's pressure is too great. Very cool finish. Good stuff all around!

Fighting Network RINGS (1996)

Akira Maeda vs. Yoshihisa Yamamoto (RINGS, 1/24/96)

Probably Maeda's last good match. Nowhere near the level of the 12/16/94 match but still a lot of fun, with Yamamoto being the aggressor and Maeda going after the leg with less and less energy as the match progresses. Yamamoto earns himself a yellow card when he went for a kick or knee to the grounded Maeda. While Yamamoto's able to escape Maeda's submission attempts, by the end of it, he's shot and Maeda just has to hold on long enough for the submission. Some nasty hands from Yamamoto to down Maeda but he couldn't quite finish him off on the mat. Good stuff.

Mitsuya Nagai vs. Mikhail Ilioukhine (RINGS, 3/25/96)

The crowd loves Nagai. I love Nagai. He's scrappy as fuck and he's able to survive and squeeze out submission attempts between the random heavy strikes. Mikhail is a good submission aggressor and gets a few neat attempts, like the early shoot STF or stepover armbar. But Nagai is just a pain in the ass with his leg kicks and palm thrusts. Low kicks, mid kicks, high kicks - Nagai doesn't let up but Mikhail keeps trying to slam and submit. The slams are mostly fails and while the submissions look good, Nagai is too pesky. I just wanted a Mikhail powerbomb, which I thought was happening for half a second...but then Nagai keeps popping him in the face with shoteis and finally busts his nose open for the KO. Best match of an otherwise underwhelming card.

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Yoshihisa Yamamoto (RINGS, 4/26/96)

At this point, Yamamoto is positioned as the successor to Maeda and TK has been working his way up the ranks. The frantic, back-and-forth scramble and struggle on the mat early on was excellent, and then Yamamoto takes the advantage in terms of successfully grabbing holds and forcing TK to react. Or, you know, slapping the shit out of him. TK turns this around with a beautiful takedown into the calf slicer and then he turns the pressure on Yamamoto with the holds and knee strikes. Good peppering of stand-up strikes throughout to supplement the solid groundwork. The final couple of minutes are sluggish but Yamamoto's able to use the double leg takedown into the heelhook to tap TK. Great match. 

Volk Han vs. Nikolai Zouev (RINGS, 4/26/96)

Love this match-up. Han continues his more aggressive approach, coming out of the gate with knees to Zouev. But when it comes to the submissions, it's largely a stalemate and the struggle for position throughout is exactly what you'd expect from two submission masters. Zouev is quick to grab the ropes whenever Han snaps something off, and vice versa. At one point, Zouev turns up the heat and you don't see Han scramble often but he does here. Zoeuv's shoot snap suplex was cool and his leg scissors into the kneebar was a thing of beauty. Of course, Han pulls out the leg extension leglock, the single leg>STF>sleeper combo, the general octopus defense and offense. In the end, Zouev is able to block the hammerlock takedown and turn Han's attempt into a modified wakigatame for the big tap out. Great stuff as usual from these two. 

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Mikhail Ilioukhine (RINGS, 5/25/96)

Mikhail is wilding out with the kicks and airplane spins and single leg crabs and big open hand slaps, and the Russian crowd is loving every minute of it. He throws TK with a belly-to-belly into a neck crank and TK is trying to get something going, throwing knees, grabbing holds, but Mikhail blows right through them. At one point, he's clearly just showing off, trying to deadlift TK off the mat. Mikhail pummels TK with palm strikes for a knockdown but TK is quick to pop up and drops Mikhail with a pretty sick uranage. Good back-and-forth struggle toward the end, although Mikhail stays aggressive throughout with the strikes and straight armbar attempts. But TK ends up tapping him with the rear choke. Good stuff. 

Masayuki Naruse vs. Todor Todorov (RINGS, 6/29/96)

The returning Naruse has got a hot crowd behind him and boy, do they both swing for the fences throughout this match-up. Tons of strikes, some great suplex takedowns, and good groundwork as Naruse tries to re-assert himself back in the landscape. Early on, Naruse snags the heel and doesn't let go as Todorov tries to squirm his way out of it and eventually has to roll over for a rope break. Some sweet takedowns, like the chickenwing from Todorov and the flying armbar from naruse. Todorov also delivers a pretty dope armtrap suplex. At one point, poor Todorov gets dick punched and then eats some nasty shoteis but he fires back with knees and kicks. But Naruse is relentless with his strikes and after Todorov seemingly expels his last energy with a semi-powerslam, Naruse takes him to the corner and pummels him until he gets the KO. Great stuff. 

Volk Han vs. Mitsuya Nagai (RINGS, 6/29/96)

While not at the level of their 1993 match, I enjoyed this more than the 1994 match. Nagai delivers yet another top-notch underdog performance and nearly has you (the viewer) convinced that he can beat Han at his own game...or via strikes, which he stuns Han with on a number of occasions. Han goes from his standing leglock to the single leg crab but Nagai counters with the heel hook, albeit briefly, before Han regains control and slaps on a neat cross heel hook. Loved him pulling Nagai down with the rear choke...only for Nagai to fight his way and send Han reeling after the ropes with a modified leglock. Han utilizing the full nelson hold with the legs for added leverage is another key Volk Han characteristic. Great armbar transition out of Nagai's rear waistlock and the finish was great, where you've got Nagai trying to transition his hold into something fancy and Han turning around, looking at him, grabbing the choke and tapping him. Enough playtime. Terrific match. 

Masayuki Naruse vs. Sergei Sousserov (RINGS, 7/16/96)

Sousserov is spin kicks and suplexes, which he quickly re-establishes within the first minute of this match. He comes off as this big Russian brute, strong right out of the gate, but as the match progresses, his offense usually falls apart with weak takedowns and plenty of whiffed spin kicks. It didn't necessarily happen here - although he whiffed earlier rather than later - and he gor some cool late game takedowns, including a dope German-style uranage. This definitely had more of the pro-wres feel to it, with Naruse playing the scrappy doo, hanging onto Sergei's neck with chokes as Sousserov continually tries to spin him off to no avail. At one point, Naruse hits a SHOOT DRAGON SCREW to set up the heel hook>single leg crab finish.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Willie Peeters (RINGS, 7/16/96)

This was Willie Peeters' best performance since 1992 (the '95 Nagai match was pretty good too) but basically, it's Peeters as his shitty best, throwing full rotation suplexes and being aggressive with the strikes. Tamura almost looks lost in there at times as he tries to get stuff going on the mat but Peeters is always near the ropes. Loved Willie's shit-eating grin when Tamura tells the referee to count him down on a missed kick attempt. Of coruse, Willie mocks Tamura's kicks and it becomes clear that Tamura really wants to submit him. Peeters wants none of ti, taps even after he manages an escape, and finally gives up the ghost to a triangle.

Volk Han vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (RINGS, 7/16/96)

Tons of compelling matwork, with each trying to pretzel the other and win out on the ground. But the strikes added something visceral to the match, especially that final catfight flurry from Han in the corner with the palm shots and knees that end up busting TK open and winning Han the match. We've already established that Han is a master of unique holds and transitions and reversals, as showcased in this match -- I mean, his hammerlocked necklock is so cool. But TK has answers for him and Han has to go to the ropes more times than he's usually used to. Neat rolling necklock from TK and toward the end, he keeps going back to the choke, since Han would turn any leg submission attempt against him. Great stuff. 

Masayuki Naruse vs. Egan Inoue (RINGS, 8/24/96)

The last thirty seconds of this match are worth the price of admission alone. Things are slow going initially, as they test the waters with kicks, which leads to some messy scrambling and some hesitancy on Inoue’s part,  having never worked a “worked” match before.  But after Egan takes a shot to the eye, he comes back into this match SUPER pissy and the chaos of the final strike exchanges is awesome. Tons of nasty knees and palm strikes, especially from Naruse, and then Egan gets himself disqualified by pounding a grounded Naruse with body shots. Fun stuff.

Volk Han vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (RINGS, 8/24/96)

Yup, this one ruled, right from the opening. TK's initial counter to Han's armwhip takedown was the chef's kiss and then Han is like, okay, let me fuck with the leg now, to which TK works his way into control and we're presented this great sequence of them vying for control. Beautiful counter submission wrestling and if that's your thing, welcome. Han is just so good at adapting to his opponent's movements and escape attempts. He'll snap off an armbar but if there is too much squirming, he'll shift his attention to the leg. Love TK's rolling necklock and there's a great moment where Han tries his "step on the foot" extension leglock but gets caught off guard with a heel hook. They pretzel each other with hold, twisting and twerking limbs to try and gain the advantage. Han dragging TK down with the choke was great but then, of course, TK turns the tables with the leglock and sends Han scrambling for the ropes. Beautiful arm takedown into the hammerlock by Volk and he does such a good job of preventing the escape…although it happens, barely. The end was great - Han with the little cat slaps and again another armlock takedown but when TK counters with the kneecrusher, Han is like "shit, I just need to grab the arm and bend it to win." And he does it. Awesome match.

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka vs. Mitsuya Nagai (RINGS, 9/25/96)

Nagai was very aggressive throughout, battering TK with nasty head kicks and face palms and knee strikes in the corners. TK's trying to find a way to the mat, where he excels, and at one point, he usues a quasi-capture suplex but Nagai continues dominating up top, targeting TK's midsection and popping him in the head with more palsm and knees. TK manages a nice scissors takedown into the kneebar, a front necklock, and some slick maneuvering to set up the armbar, but Nagai manages to escape each attempt, finally kneeing TK for the KO. TK's poor gut couldn't take it anymore. 

Volk Han vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (RINGS, 9/25/96)

Incredible. The two of them slip slidin' in and out of submission attempts, the drama built around the escapes and counters, Han's usual attempts being thwarted by the younger, quicker Tamura. I mean, right out of the gate, you've got Han carrying Tamura around in a hammerlock before he throws him down and the scramble begins. Loved Han slipping under the kicks to grab the choke and drag Tamura down, only for Tamura to snag a heel hook to force the break. Han's armbar out of the knee crusher attempt was so slick but Tamura doesn't let it breath and fights his way into his own armbar. Tamura's straight kick to the gut ruled. By the end of it, they're both fairly exhausted and missing their executions, and Han seems fed up when he starts peppering Tamura with face palms and knees. Great finish too, with Tamura's last choke effort and Han extending the arm with the double wristlock for the win. What a match. 

Todor Todorov vs. Gogitidze Bakouri (RINGS, 10/25/96)

Bakouri rules. He throws Todorov with a great suplex early on and follows that up with a big Karelin lift. The ground stuff in this match is whatever but when they're throwing slaps and throws, it's a lot of fun. Poor Todor gets kneed in the nuts but Bakouri is sorry, it's all good. Todorov's gut punch > armbar takedown was pretty cool and rhe finish was neat, with Bakouri hitting a necklock suplex and holding on for the submission.

Volk Han vs. Masayuki Naruse (RINGS, 10/25/96)

One of Naruse's best RINGS performances thus far and another feather in Volk Han's ushanka. So many cool moments throughout. There's a really great counter-for-counter exchange in the first minute - loved when Naruse tries to set up the STF and Han says "nuh-huh" and grabs the arm. And then Naruse straight punches Han in the gut, which is, of course, Han's kryptonite. You've got Naruse's 2019-esque flipout of the armbar, which was unexpected, and then Han immediately throws him over his shoulder with a gnarly looking hip throw into the leglock. Han's inverted STF is always a thing of beauty and the hammerlock>hammerlock suplex>rear necklock. There's a great spot where Han has Naruse in an armbar and he's using his feet to keep Naruse from escaping. Naruse gets some neat offense in - I liked his gator roll and him blasting Han with the palm strike and rolling backhand. A fed up Han flipping him over the ropes was another great moment, which leads to the back-and-forth finish before Han traps him within inches from the ropes...and Naruse passes out. Terrific match.

Volk Han vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka (RINGS, 11/22/96)

Much more aggressive than their previous match-up, with TK breaking out the nifty counters - the shoot-Exploder to escape the straight armbar and later the belly-to-back throw. Of course, they both pull off some impressive submissions - I liked TK's ankle hold and how he maintains it through Han's struggles. And Han's kneebar transition was a thing of a beauty, fluid like water. Also the small moments flesh this thing out, like Han punching the hands to try and break off the jujigatame, and TK's kryptonite gut punch. Han keeps going for the double wristlock but TK's able to escape each attempt, which leads to the final submission struggle and Han being able to get the extension on the arm for the tap out. Great stuff! 

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Yoshihisa Yamamoto (RINGS, 12/19/96)

Yamamoto has a major chip on his shoulder. He was the golden boy of RINGS pre-Tamura but post-Tamura, he's been losing all his matches, he's fed up and he takes that frustration out on Tamura. I mean, Tamura is just trying to survive and not get choked out. The opening is intense, with Yamamoto palm striking the hell out of Tamura, pelting him in the corners, with Tamura trying to grab something to take him down but Yamamoto is way too aggro. Tamura manages a few cool takedowns, including a beautiful kneebar counter, while Yamamoto keeps trying to climb on with his backpack choke. I thought some of the grounded sections of the match were sluggish - maybe they were just resting in between all the striking. At one point, Tamura rocks Yamamoto with some nasty slaps and somewhere in the mix, Tamura's nose gets busted open. The finish, with Tamura looking battering but then pulling out the  beautiful flying armbar with that extension for the immediate tap out. Chef's kiss. Very good stuff overall.