was a Japanese

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

, better known by 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 ...

Professional wrestling career

Kutsuwada trained under

Karl Gotch Karl Istaz (born Karel Alfons Ceclie Istaz; August 3, 1924 – July 28, 2007), best known by the ring name , was a competitor and trainer in Professional wrestling, professional, Amateur wrestling, amateur, and catch wrestling, born in Antwerp, B ...

and joined

Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance The , also known as the Japan Pro Wrestling Association and the Japanese Wrestling Association (JWA), was the first professional wrestling promotion to be based in Japan. It operated from 1953 to 1973. History JWA under Rikidōzan (1953–1963 ...

(JPWA) in August 1967. In 1972, Kutsuwada left the JPWA to join the newly-formed

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 ...

promotion. He won the

All Asia Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). Originally, it was the top tag team title in the JWA, but its status became secondary once the NWA International Tag Team Championship was brou ...

with Akihisa Mera in October 1976. From 1973 to 1974, Kutsuwada wrestled for

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of National W ...

in Australia. From 1974 to 1977, Kutsuwada also wrestled for

International Wrestling Enterprise was a professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1966 to 1981. Founded by Isao Yoshihara, it was affiliated with the American Wrestling Association in the United States and also had tie-ins with promotions in Canada and Europe. In 1972, it ...

. Kutsuwada retired in 1977. All Japan Pro Wrestling held a ceremony in his honor during an event on 16 October 2004 in

Iida, Nagano is a Cities of Japan, city in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , Iida had an estimated population of 101,536, and a population density of 154 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Iida is an , a municipalities of Japan, municipality designa ...

Championships and accomplishments

( 1 time) – with Akihisa Mera *

NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Championship The NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Championship was the top tag team professional wrestling title in the Australian World Championship Wrestling promotion from 1972 through the promotion's 1978 closure. WCW joined the National Wrestling Alliance in A ...

( 3 times) – with Hito Tojo (1),

Waldo Von Erich Walter Paul Sieber (October 2, 1933 – July 5, 2009) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for performing under the ring name Waldo Von Erich, playing the character of a villainous Prussian Nazi. He was billed as the brother of ...

(1), Les Roberts (1)

References

External links

* Japanese male professional wrestlers 1947 births 2004 deaths People from Ebetsu, Hokkaido All Asia Tag Team Champions NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Champions 20th-century male professional wrestlers 20th-century Japanese professional wrestlers 20th-century Japanese sportsmen {{Japan-prowrestling-bio-stub