(born May 17, 1978) is a Japanese professional wrestler also known under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons ...

. Hijikata is best known for his tenure in Battlarts and

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Puroresu, Japanese professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded on October 21, 1972, by Giant Baba after he left the Japanese Wrestling Association to create his own promotion. Ma ...

since 2002 where he is a former World Junior Heavyweight Champion.

Professional wrestling career

BattlARTS (1998–2002)

After a

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

career in high school, Hijikata joined professional wrestling promotion BattlARTS in 1998. He feuded with Junji Tanaka before rising through the ranks and wrestled extensively in Michinoku Pro Wrestling,

Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling-Explosion (FMW-E) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded on July 28, 1989, by Atsushi Onita as (FMW). The promotion specializes in hardcore wrestling involving weapons such as barbed wire and fir ...

and Toryumon Mexico as part of working agreements. However, despite teaming up with his mentor and promotion ace Yuki Ishikawa at several points, he never reached top status. In 2001, Hijikata signed up full-time with AJPW.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (2001–2017)

Hijikata wrestled in AJPW as a junior heavyweight for years, with mixed success. In 2004, he adopted a mask and the name of Toshizo (歳三), inspired on the historical Toshizo Hijikata. He challenged Taka Michinoku for the AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship in June 2005, but he lost, after which he took off his mask as a sign of respect for Taka. In 2008, Hijikata managed to win the Junior Tag League alongside Katsuhiko Nakajima on March 23. A little over a month later, Hijikata continued his success by defeating Silver King for the World Junior Heavyweight Champion on April 29. He held the championship for nearly five whole months before losing it to Naomichi Marufuji on September 28. Following his title reign, Hijikata took part in the All Asia Tag Team Championship tournament in January 2009, where he teamed up with former Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion Suwama, but they were unsuccessful in winning the tournament and the title. Following this, Hijikata resumed using his Toshizo ring name and gimmick and, alongside Minoru, joined Voodoo Murders after betraying his partner Kaz Hayashi. Soon after joining VDM, Toshizo managed to his second consecutive Junior Tag League alongside Minoru, giving both an opportunity to compete for the World Junior Heavyweight Title, although they were unsuccessful in defeating Kaz Hayashi for the title. Following this, Hijikata left AJPW in August 2010. He eventually returned in 2013, working as a freelancer.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004)

In 2004, Hijikata made his

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busines ...

debut as he competed as a member of Team Japan with Mitsu Hirai, Jr., Taichi Ishikari, and Nosawa in TNA's World X Cup Tournament.

Wrestle-1 (2017–2020)

In November 2017, Hijikata debuted in

Wrestle-1 was a Japanese ''puroresu'' or professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, founded in July 2013 by Keiji Mutoh following his resignation from All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). The core of the promotion's roster was formed b ...

Championships and accomplishments

** All Asia Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Minoru **

Gaora TV Championship The is a professional wrestling championship owned by the All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) promotion. On August 28, 2012, AJPW and Gaora TV announced that AJPW would introduce a new championship called the Gaora TV Championship. A tournament for ...

( 1 time) ** World Junior Heavyweight Champion ( 1 time) ** Junior Tag League (

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

) – with Katsuhiko Nakajima **Junior Tag League (

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

) – with Minoru *

Tenryu Project is an independent Japanese professional wrestling promotion. The promotion was founded by and is owned by puroresu legend Genichiro Tenryu, who has owned and operated it since its creation in 2010. The Tenryu project is the successor to Tenryu's ...

Tenryu Project International Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion Tenryu Project. The title was established in 1995 in Wrestle Association R (WAR). In the revived Tenryu Project, the title is also referr ...

( 1 time)

References

External links

Profile at Purolove
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hijikata, Ryuji Japanese male professional wrestlers 1978 births Living people Japanese sportsperson-politicians 20th-century male professional wrestlers 20th-century Japanese professional wrestlers 21st-century male professional wrestlers 21st-century Japanese professional wrestlers All Asia Tag Team Champions World Junior Heavyweight Champions (AJPW) Gaora TV Champions Tenryu Project International Junior Heavyweight Champions