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Tiger Masks & Masked Tigers

LillaThrillaPosted on 08/24/03 at 07:02:19

Who is Tiger Mask IV?  Does he still wrestle as Tiger Mask IV or is he back to his real name?

Does the original Tiger Mask, Sintoru Sayama, still wrestle?

Who is/was Masked Tiger I?

Who is/was Masked Tiger II?

DragonShirasayaPosted on 08/25/03 at 21:20:08

Ah, the ever-popular Tiger Mask question, though with a twist.

The identity of Tiger Mask IV is still unknown. He has wrestled his whole career (as far as anyone knows) under the TM gimmick. It is believed that Sasuke wanted to use the currently inactive Tiger Mask gimmick and thus went to Sayama to see what could happen. Somehow, Sayama found this guy and shared in his training. He has had the gimmick since 1995 - and at this point, will probably retire under the gimmick. So, yes he still has the gimmick. He has since moved from Michinoku to New Japan, where he is the current IWGP Junior Heavyweight champion.

Sayama's career as Tiger Mask was very brief - he quit pro-wrestling in 1985. Sayama has had a handful of matches since that time. In those matches, he wrestles more of a shoot-style. However, he is scheduled to wrestle the Great Sasuke on a Michinoku Pro show, in which he is promising to return to his old style. He also runs his own shows occassionally, promoter under the name Seikendo. Its mainly a shoot-style thing in the vein of UWF.

Masked Tiger was Takeshi Ono. He was the regular tag partner of Masao Orihara in Michinoku Pro - until they both disappeared. After that time, two guys named Masked Tiger and Sasuke the Great showed up. Masked Tiger was eventually unmasked as revealed to be Ono. Eventually, Masked Tiger II showed up and if my memory serves me right, this was also Takeshi Ono. Weird, eh?

Y2p731Posted on 08/26/03 at 01:46:37

Tiger Mask I was Sayama
Tiger Mask II is Mitsuharu Misawa
Tiger Mask III is Koji Kanemoto
Tiger Mask IV has not revealed himself yet!!!
DragonShirasayaPosted on 08/26/03 at 17:44:54

Yes, but there was no need to go into all that since he didn't ask it.

Some day I should post the "Behind The Tiger Mask" piece I wrote which covers the history of the Tiger Mask gimmick and its significance.
LillaThrillaPosted on 08/27/03 at 21:32:03

Yes, that would be nice if you did.
Y2p731Posted on 08/28/03 at 04:16:07

Ah I just felt like doing it if anyone who is still new to Puroresu.