is a Japanese

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority sha ...

(NJPW) and in the United States with

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

(WWE), where he was a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion in the latter company. He currently performs for

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established on October 21, 1972 when Giant Baba split away from the Japanese Wrestling Association and created his own promotion. Many wrestlers had left with Baba ...

(AJPW) under the ring name Kenso, where he is a one-time World Tag Team Champion and a one-time Gaora TV Champion.

Early career

Suzuki was a

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player, playing at the international level for

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

prior to his professional debut as a wrestler in January 2000.Famous Ruggers by Wes Clark and others
retrieved 19th August, 2009

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2000–2003)

Suzuki debuted on January 4, 2000, at

(NJPW)'s

Wrestling World 2000 Wrestling World 2000 was a professional wrestling event produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). It took place on January 4, 2000 in the Tokyo Dome. Wrestling World 2000 was the ninth January 4 Tokyo Dome Show held by NJPW. The show drew 53,500 ...

event at the Tokyo Dome, losing to

Manabu Nakanishi is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler, who was primarily associated with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is a one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, one-time G1 Climax winner and three-time IWGP Tag Team Cha ...

. Later that year, Suzuki won NJPW's Young Lion Cup tournament, defeating

Shinya Makabe , better known by his ring name is a Japanese professional wrestler, trained by and currently performing for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a former one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion, two-time NE ...

. He also won Rookie of the Year honors from NJPW in the same year. Following this, he would go on to win the Young Lion Tournament after defeating Hiroshi Tanahashi in the finals, later forming a tag team with Tanahashi known as The Kings of the Hills. In 2003, Suzuki resigned from NJPW, choosing to follow his mentor and trainer,

Riki Choshu , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler who is best known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as both a wrestler and a booker. He is considered one of Japan’s most influential wrestle ...

, to Choshu's

World Japan Fighting of World Japan Pro-Wrestling, frequently shortened to World Japan or WJ was a professional wrestling promotion formed in Japan in 2002 by former New Japan Pro-Wrestling employees Riki Choshu and Katsuji Nagashima, who also served as chairm ...

promotion. Later in the year, he left to wrestle in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. It is speculated that he was forced to resign because a wrestler he was helping to train, Giant Ochiai, died while training on his watch. As a result, this led to Suzuki venturing to the

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indie circuit is the collective noun, collective name of independent professional wrestling promotions which are smaller than major televised promotions. It is roughly analogous to a minor lea ...

, where he worked for the Major League Wrestling (MLW) and

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the prom ...

(TNA) promotions during 2003 before ultimately quitting World Japan, citing a lack of competition within the latter promotion.

World Wrestling Entertainment (2004–2005)

In 2004, Suzuki signed a developmental contract with

(WWE) and was assigned to their

developmental territory In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a highe ...

Ohio Valley Wrestling Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow and Matt Jones and Louisville mayor elect, Craig Greenberg. ...

(OVW) in February. Originally, Suzuki was scheduled to debut on the Raw

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

in May under the ring name ''Hirohito'', a Japanese patriot who held anti-American views. However, the gimmick was dropped, and Suzuki as well as his valet and legitimate wife

Hiroko is a common feminine Japanese given name. Name meanings Hiroko can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *裕子, "kind child" *弘子, "Beautiful child" *寛子, " small child" *浩子, "large child" *博子, "wise child" *� ...

were instead moved to the SmackDown! brand. Together, they made their television debut on the June 10 episode of ''SmackDown!'', where Suzuki defeated Scotty 2 Hotty. Suzuki then began a short

feud A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one par ...

with Billy Gunn, which ended with Suzuki defeating Gunn at The Great American Bash. On the July 15 episode of ''SmackDown!'', Suzuki, René Duprée, and

Booker T Booker T or Booker T. may refer to * Booker T. Washington (1856–1915), African American political leader at the turn of the 20th century ** List of things named after Booker T. Washington, some nicknamed "Booker T." * Booker T. Jones (born 1944 ...

defeated

John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied ...

in a 3-on-1 elimination match. on the July 29 episode of ''SmackDown!'', Suzuki competed in an 8-man elimination match for the vacant United States Championship, which was won by Booker T. On the September 2 episode of ''SmackDown!'', Suzuki, Duprée and Booker T lost to Cena, Rob Van Dam and Rey Mysterio. On the September 9 episode of ''SmackDown!'', Suzuki and Duprée defeated Paul London and Billy Kidman to win the

WWE Tag Team Championship WWE (formerly the WWF, the WWWF, and Capitol Wrestling) has maintained at least one primary tag team championship for its male performers since 1958 (except for a two year interim between 1967 and 1969). During periods of brand division, separat ...

. During the title reign, Suzuki adopted a comedic pro-American

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...

that saw him poorly sing popular songs. At No Mercy, Suzuki and Duprée successfully defended their titles against Rob Van Dam and Rey Mysterio. After continued weeks of feuding, Suzuki and Duprée lost the titles to Van Dam and Mysterio on the December 9 episode of ''SmackDown!''. They failed to regain the titles in a rematch at Armageddon. Suzuki entered a feud with John Cena over the United States Championship. On the January 6, 2005 episode of ''SmackDown!'', Suzuki challenged United States Champion John Cena to a battle rap. He then challenged Cena for the championship on the January 13 and January 27 episodes of ''SmackDown!'', but was unsuccessful in both attempts. Suzuki entered the Royal Rumble match at Royal Rumble as the sixth entrant, but was eliminated by Rey Mysterio. His final WWE match came on the February 26 episode of ''

Velocity Velocity is the directional speed of an object in motion as an indication of its rate of change in position as observed from a particular frame of reference and as measured by a particular standard of time (e.g. northbound). Velocity i ...

'' where he lost to Booker T. In the following months, Suzuki suffered a collapsed lung. He returned to Ohio Valley Wrestling to continue his recovery. Suzuki and Hiroko were traded to Raw during the 2005 Draft Lottery. However, the pair were released from their contracts on July 6, 2005 before ever making an appearance on the brand.

Hustle and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (2005–2006)

After leaving WWE, Suzuki returned to Japan, where he began performing for Hustle and wrestled in a number of humorous matches against the likes of Liosazer and Razor Ramon HG. In addition to Hustle, Suzuki also began performing for

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...

(CMLL) alongside fellow WWE alumnus Mark Jindrak, who began performing as Marco Corleone. Together, they were put into a feud with Shocker and Universo 2000, which led to Suzuki and Corleone losing a hair vs. hair match on June 12 and thus being forced to have their heads shaved. Following this, Suzuki was used sparingly before eventually leaving CMLL.

AAA (2007–2010, 2015)

On March 13, Suzuki was seen on AAA after jumping from the rival CMLL. He is a part of the Legion Extranjera with Konnan as the ring leader. On July 7, Suzuki lost his hair in the main event of AAA's Triplemanía XV.

Sean Waltman Sean Michael Waltman (born July 13, 1972) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under a legends contract. He is best known for his appearances for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) under the ring names 1–2– ...

was also in the match with his fiancee,

Alicia Webb Alicia Nicole Webb (born May 4, 1979) is an American retired professional wrestling valet and occasional professional wrestler. She is best known for her appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in 1999 under the ring name Ryan Shamro ...

. Suzuki has been an active member of Konnan's Legion Extranjera since his debut and he had an opportunity for the AAA Mega Championship against

Cibernético Octavio López Arreola (born April 12, 1975) is a Mexican professional wrestler who is best known under the ring name Cibernético and for working for the Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA) promotion in Mexico. During AAA's short partnership with t ...

. He has teamed up with the returning Electroshock who is also a member of the Legion Extranjera. They have feuded with La Parka and Octagón. As of Triplemania XVI he has received a mini who accompanied him to the ring for a six-man tag match teaming with Electroshock and Bobby Lashley to take on Chessman, La Parka, and the returning Silver King. Suzuki's team won in the end. Suzuki was part of the 2009 Rey de Reyes, losing to La Parka on March 15. After Triplemania XVII, Konnan's Legion Extranjera lost control of AAA; Konnan was suspended from Mexican wrestling for an indefinite time. At this time Legion Extranjera was dissolved leaving only Electroshock, Chessman, and Suzuki. Suzuki made an alliance with El Oriental and they formed their own team with Sugi San getting victories in their debut. They would lose to the Psycho Circus at Verano de Escandalo. In December 2009, Suzuki re-joined La Legión Extranjera before leaving the promotion in mid-2010. Suzuki returned to AAA on May 24, 2015, when he, Masamune and Tiger Mask III formed a trio for the

Lucha Libre World Cup The ''Lucha Libre'' World Cup was an annual professional wrestling tournament and event organized by Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) from 2015 until 2017. The first two tournaments, which featured three-man ...

. They were defeated in the first round of the tournament by Team MexLeyendas (

Blue Demon Jr. Blue Demon Jr. (born July 19, 1966) is a Mexican professional wrestler. He is the adopted son of the original Blue Demon and is the first Mexican and the second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship thus making him a one-t ...

Dr. Wagner Jr. Juan Manuel González Barrón (born August 12, 1965) is a Mexican ''luchador'' (Spanish for "professional wrestler") who is best known under the ring name Dr. Wagner Jr., having used that name since 1987. He is the son of Manuel González Rivera ...

and El Solar).

Dragon Gate (2007)

On November 7, 2007, Suzuki made his debut in Dragon Gate as the surprise member of the Muscle Outlaw'z unit. He came out to

Anthony W. Mori is a retired Japanese professional wrestler. He is best known for working for Dragon Gate, under the ring name Anthony W. Mori, where he is a one-time Open the Brave Gate Champion, one-time Open the Owarai Gate Champion and two-time Open the ...

's entrance theme to trick the Typhoon unit into believing one of their own betrayed them. Suzuki competed in a six-man tag team match with new teammates Genki Horiguchi and

Yasushi Kanda is a Japanese wrestler currently performing for the Dragon Gate wrestling promotion in Japan. He is considered one of Toryumon's greatest heel characters, and was a founding member of the M2K stable. In his pre-injury days, he was famous for h ...

against Cima, Dragon Kid, and Ryo Saito that resulted in a disqualification loss for his team after assaulting the referee. Afterward, he and the rest of the MO'z assaulted Dragon Kid and removed the ring ropes to be used against him. This set up a match between Suzuki and Dragon Kid at the big November 25 show in Osaka. He faced on November 18 Kenichiro Arai in Fukuoka in his first match for the promotion.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (2010–present)

On July 25, 2010, Suzuki, disguised under a La Parka mask, made his debut for

(AJPW), helping the Voodoo Murders put Keiji Mutoh through a table. Afterwards, Suzuki unmasked himself, adopted the ring name Kenso and joined the heel group, which also included his former tag team partner René Duprée. On November 20, 2010, Kenso entered the

World's Strongest Tag Determination League __NOTOC__ The , more commonly known in the West as the Real World Tag League, is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by All Japan Pro Wrestling since 1977, usually, run on the first weeks of December. The first tournament was actually ...

, teaming with fellow Voodoo Murders member Kono. After winning six out of their eight round robin stage matches, Kenso and Kono finished first in the group and on December 7 defeated Ryota Hama and

Suwama is a Japanese professional wrestler better known simply as . He is best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he is a former record eight-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion and a seven-time World Tag Team Champion. He is also ...

in the finals to win the 2010 World's Strongest Tag Determination League. Kenso and Kono received their shot at the

World Tag Team Championship The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championship (professional wrestling), championships in professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotions, promotions. Nomenclature The name of the promo ...

on January 3, 2011, but were defeated by the defending champions, Akebono and Taiyō Kea. Shortly afterwards Kenso left the Voodoo Murders, turning face and on February 13, 2011, defeated Kono and Akebono in a three-way match to become the number one contender to the

Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Japanese All Japan Pro Wrestling promotion. History The championship was established after the unification of its then-flagship title the PWF World Heavyweight Championsh ...

, held by

. On March 21 Kenso failed in his challenge for the AJPW Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. On June 19, Kenso and The Great Muta defeated Akebono and Ryota Hama to win the vacant World Tag Team Championship. After losing the title to Dark Cuervo and Dark Ozz on October 23, Muta turned on Kenso. The turn was part of a storyline, where other AJPW wrestlers did not take Kenso seriously and refused to team with him as part of his Kenso Kakumei ("Kenso Revolution") stable. After failed attempts to form new partnerships with Kaz Hayashi and

Great Sasuke , born July 18, 1969), is a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and politician, currently wrestling for Michinoku Pro Wrestling (MPW) under the ring name . Aside from professional wrestling, he is also a former Iwate Prefectural Assembly ...

, Kenso announced on November 18, 2013, that he had decided to join Go Shiozaki's new Xceed stable. However, in the two's first match together three days later, Kenso turned on Shiozaki and announced he was forming a new heel stable named Dark Kingdom (DK) with foreigners Bambi Killer and

D'Lo Brown Accie Julius Connor (born October 22, 1970), better known by his ring name D'Lo Brown (also formatted as D-Lo Brown), is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Impact Wrestling and WWE. Brown is also known for his ...

. On April 23, 2014, Kenso introduced AJPW outsiders Bear Fukuda, Kengo Mashimo, Kenichiro Arai, Mitsuya Nagai and Takeshi Minamino as the newest members of DK, proclaiming this the "real beginning" of the stable. On December 14, Kenso won his first singles title in AJPW, when he defeated Kotaro Suzuki for the Gaora TV Championship. He lost the title to

Sushi is a Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is "sushi rice," also ...

in his fourth defense on June 4, 2015. On July 31, it was announced that Kenso would begin freelancing following the expiration of his AJPW contract. He would, however, continue working for AJPW as a freelancer.

Personal life

Suzuki married Hiroko Suzuki in 2003, who acted as his valet during their time in WWE.

Championships and accomplishments

:* Gaora TV Championship ( 1 time) :*

( 1 time) –with The Great Muta :*

(

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

) –with KONO * DDT Pro-Wrestling :* KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) –with Danshoku Dino and Super Sasadango Machine :* King of Dark Championship ( 1 time) * Ganbare☆Pro-Wrestling :* World's Strongest Ganbare Tag Tournament (2017) – with Kazma Sakamoto *

Young Lion Cup __NOTOC__ The is an infrequent professional wrestling tournament promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as a means of showcasing the younger talent on their roster. The tournament is the successor to the Karl Gotch Cup that NJPW promoted in t ...

( 2000) :*Young Lion Tournament (2002) *

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

:*PWI ranked him #392 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2010 * Tokyo Sports :* Rookie of the Year (2000) *VKF Battle Entertainment :*VKF Championship (1 time) *

( 1 time) –with René Duprée

Luchas de apuestas record

References

Notes

External links

All Japan Pro Wrestling profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suzuki, Kenzo 1974 births Japanese male professional wrestlers Japanese rugby union players Living people People from Hekinan Sportspeople from Aichi Prefecture Japan international rugby union players 21st-century professional wrestlers World Tag Team Champions (AJPW) Gaora TV Champions King of Dark Champions KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions