(JAPAN PRO) International Pro Wrestling Match Depiction - Azumafuji scoop throw...the same old skills he used to use in the past

Weekly Pro

15th August 1955

It's Obon. On the 15th, despite the sweltering heat, both streams of tears and cars continue to flow through Kuramae Kokugikan...

Carnera arrives, as does the former sumo, Azumafuji, who is making his first wrestling appearance. The cheers of "Riki-Riki" rise in the air as the big international match featuring Rikidozan takes place.

Fans are roaring with excitement.  

Although the Kuramae Kokugikan is a bit of a standstill, a crowd of young people, unlike those at sumo wrestling, was thronging the area in front of the museum.

In front of the general seating (300 yen) counter, I saw the huge Carnera smoking a cigarette, but he looked just like a normal person lighting a match...

- Azumafuji has been training hard -- he's lost 10 kan. Apparently, he's even been able to reach his butt for the first time in ten years. 

- It must have been a very difficult time for Keiko.

- Ortega's head is literally a big kettle.

Apparently there were a river of fans, who couldn't wait for today, and they came to watch the open practice.  

The Rashomon gate appears.

The Japanese, American, Italian, and Mexican flags hang at the front of the arena. The temple-like ceiling is shifted to one side, revealing the ring and a rectangular shade for lighting above the sumo ring. 

It's already 6pm and there's no sign of improvement.

"Hurry up!" a voice typical of a wrestling fan yells impatiently. It seems there's an undercard match that won't be in tonight's show.

 After about twenty minutes, the announcement finally comes: "The show will now begin." 

The first match was between Rashomon Tsunagoro and Higa Kinichi. Oh, I've never heard of him.

Is that Shintakayama? The the tall guy, Higa, is Azumafuji's favorite disciple - yeah, I think his name was Koichi Fuji, a former makushita wrestler from Okinawa who worked as a farmer at Takarazuka. When he was a new apprentice, the sleeves of Azumafujji's ready-made jacket were missing, so he sewed them on. He made the transition from makushita to pro wrestling early on, following the rank of sekitori.

The referee is the familiar Kyushuyama, with a slightly tipped head.

The impatient crowd cheers enthusiastically on the opening bout between the 19.7-inch Rashomon and the 5.75-inch Higa, the tall and short.      

Small but strong.

Rashomon in black stockings, Higa in yellow stockings

As expected, Rashomon applied a headlock, but Higa slipped through the tall Rashomon gate (both his legs) and jumped out the other side, causing everyone to erupt in laughter.

- 13 minutes and 27 seconds later, the little guy was defeated by the Rashomon hold.

Next up, a wrestler resembling a small cow appeared, wearing the gown of a Catholic priest, his head and beard shiny.

-Wow, it's Fujitayama*! He was popular! --He put emphasis on his chin instead of his head! That cap is amazing.

There is a flash of pink as he flips over, and now he's facing Takeo Kaneko*, a graduate of Meiji University*. 

The match lasts twenty minutes. 

Fujitayama is cheered, "Go for it, old man!"

Kaneko goes for a neck throw, grabs Fujiyama's shiny head, and smacks it with a refreshing smack. Both men seem a bit taken aback, and the whole crowd erupts in laughter before the old man is defeated by Kaneko with a body hold at 15 minutes, 27 seconds.  

The next bout between Yoshinosato and Tomio Miyajima* (5th rank Judo) was a brisk affair, as they were evenly matched in weight. 

Yoshinosato, clad in purple tights, immediately went for a kick, sending the entire crowd into a frenzy. Not only were his hands sweating, but the arena felt like a steam bath, as if he was wringing the sweat out of his entire body. That kick is what wrestlers call a "fly kick".

At 13 minutes and 23 seconds, the spotlight goes up on Yoshinosato's defense. 

First match: Surugaumi lost.

The match between former makuuchi wrestler Toyonobori and the former Takasago stable's Osamu Abe, also known as Kaze no Taisei, featured the bearded Abe. Who had his beard pulled. while Toyonobori, one of the Four Heavenly Kings at the Riki Dojo, often takes the audience's breath away with his bridge. 

This too ended in Toyonobori's pinfall in 13 minutes and 19 seconds.

Large beads of sweat dripped from his beard.

Now it's finally time for Ortega to appear.

He appears in a vibrant Mexican-woven gown and cap, which he quickly takes off - big, big, huge! Ortega landed 30 pounds, Surugaumi landed 21 pounds. The referees announcement caused everyone to gasp. 

Ortega attacked like the popular Turkish King Kong*. Surugaumi ran away, clutching his chest with his left hand after a series of punches.     

"Bring Riki!" came the tragic cheers!

- You're going to get killed.

- Please be gentle.

Surugaumi counterattacked with a reverse hand, but was hit with a flying throw and then, sprawled across the ring, he was pinned down like an elephant and finally defeated after 11:30 seconds. Surugaumi was saved by his second and left the ring, a complete defeat that left me speechless. The noise in the arena eased a little, knowing that only genuine foreigners would be appearing from now on.

The match between the brown-haired Curtis* and Endo*, who is an equal in weight, was a three-round, 45-minute bout. 

Curtis sometimes grabs Endo's hair, and he gets yelled at for not talking properly.

Endo often has his left arm grabbed, giving him a hard time.

-He's a really nice guy--It's a shame he lost, and he puts a lot of effort into his wrestling uniform.

Endo tucks Curtis's legs under him and mounts him. 

Don't accept "One, two"— do it again, heavily — "That's what they mean when they say belittled," the husband, apparently a henpecked man, grins at his wife.

The match ends with one win and one loss, resulting in a draw in the West Corner.

—Ah, good thing, Endo is evenly matched.

Foreigner sings to the Japanese team

Carnera appeared in a green gown, followed by Kruskamp in a crimson jumper, and then Azumafuji and Rikidozan, both in green gowns, came from the west side. 

It's 9:01 and they are heading to the nostalgic sumo ring.  

"Azumafuji looks good," he exclaimed. He cut off his topknot and became the pro wrestler Azumafuji, stepping into the ring at Kuramae Kokugikan for the first time today.

Carnera is 285 pounds, Azumafuji is a fake big pounder, they may not be that different, but Carnera and Krusamp are like father and son. 

Azumafuji still has the same glow as sumo. Rikidozan supported the yokozuna and then came on stage. Azumafuji in black pants, Rikidozan in the same tights, and Carnera, who is 6'6" and nicknamed "The Moving Alps," stood in one corner of the room as if he were commanding everyone.

The first match is between Rikidozan and Kruskamp. 

Kruskamp immediately grabs Rikidozan's left arm. It's really clever. If he can turn around and get Rikidozan in a chokehold, it's no problem - the heckling is humorous.

Rikidozan tags in Azumafuji, who immediately executes a finger lock with ease. Kruskamp applies a kettle* headlock on Azumafuji, making it look like he has three breasts.  

In the left corner, Kruskamp catches Azumafuji throwing an illegal punch, causing the referee, to raise his hand. 

Now, Carnera and Rikidozan are in a tight spot. Carnera and Rikidozan are facing each other, but as they're using the ropes to press down on each other, Carnera lands a powerful punch from behind. In just 29 seconds, Rikidozan is in the hole and completely taken by surprise.

Rikidozan finally uses his karate chops to push Carnera into the corner. 

Carnera and Azumafuji grapple and begin some ground fighting, wanting to get back on the ring. Thus, the international tournament

went into a frenzy of cheering for the underdogs, Rikidozan, Azumafuji and Carnera. 

Notes

Scoop throw : a throwing technique in Sumo, in which the opponent is scooped up from under the armpit without grabbing the mawashi

Tadayoshi Fujitayama: Former sumo wrestler. He was only 167cm tall, something that would have meant that later he would never have entered sumo, and obsese and bald. He was famous for his mannerism of throwing salt high into the air, and then rubbing his pot belly after a win. He was also known for frequently changing his name, repeatedly adding and removing the character "Yama" from his real name, Fujita, and alternated between "Fujita" and "Fujitayama" six times, which led to a scolding by the chairman of the sumo board, and a demand that he stick to one name. He had a good sense of humor, often getting the crowd to chant, "Fujitayama, leads women astray". He became a wrestler in the late 1950s, but died in May 1969 at the young age of forty-five. 

Takeo Kaneko - http://www.showapuroresu.com/bio_j/ka/kaneko_takeo.htm.

Meiji University: Other wrestling alumnai includes Kenoh.

Tomio Miyajima: See his bio at Showa Puroresu.com http://www.showapuroresu.com/bio_j/ma/miyajima_tomio.htm 

Surugaumi (Mitsuo): He retired from sumo in 1945, but entered wrestling after being approached by Rikidozan in the early 1950s. He left wrestling in 1956, after disagreements with Rikidozan, the same year as Azumafuji. He died at the ripe old age of ninety in November 2010. 

Toyonobori: Michiharu Toyonobori, a former sumo wrestler, he had wanted to join the Imperial Japanese Navy, but being born in 1931 meant that by 1947 when he was old enough, the war was over an Japan's army was disbanded. He joined Japan Pro, but fell into the murky world of gambling. Appointed a director after Rikidozan's death, and after spending a period of time as the ace, he left the running of the company (which he had no interest in) to others. He was finally fired, and given the 20 million yen he had gambled away as a severance pay, which means he didn't receive it, it was just used as it. Out of revenge, he persuaded Antonio Inoki not to return to Japan Pro, where he would be second to Baba, but to join his Tokyo Pro Wrestling, but the company collapsed within three months due to a lack of television coverage, weak marketing, and of course, his compulsive gambling with all the proceeds at the Bicycle track, which he basically snatched. His gambling debts grew, he was fired from International Pro Wrestling too, and while Rikidozan might have protected his gambling problem in the 1950s, this was now the 1970s and his creditors were after him, and he had to take jobs in manual labor just to escape them. After leaving wrestling in 1974 (seemingly following a reconciliation with Inoki) he vanished and no one knew what had become of him, saying that he was either a Yakuza bodyguard or was homeless. The sad truth was that he had developed diabetes, and was being cared for by monks at a temple. He died in 1988 of myocardial infarction at the age of 67. The funeral was private, and the general public did not know of his death until a couple of months later. 

Osamu Abe http://www.showapuroresu.com/bio_j/a/abe_osamu.htm

Turkish King Kong: A ride in Aktur Park in Turkey

Curtis: Curtis: Either Bud Curtis or King Curtis Iaukea (whose nephew is/was Maunakea Mossman, who wrestled for All Japan in the Baba era.)  

Endo: Kokichi Endo. At the time of writing, Kokichi is one of the few people in this article who is still alive, probably because he was a Judoka and was not subject to the health conditions of the sumo wrestlers. After the collapse of Japan Pro, he chose New Japan over All Japan, and worked as a commentator following his retirement in January 1956. His pro wrestling career lasted only from November 1951. 

Kettlehead: Showa era term for a bald smooth head, Kruskamp was known for being bald. 

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