Dragon Kid

Dragon Kid
Ring name(s)	Dragon Kid Little Dragon Hayabusa Kid
Billed height	1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)[1]
Billed weight	70 kg (150 lb)[1]
Born	February 2, 1976 (1976-02-02) (age 35)[1] Tokai, Aichi, Japan[1]
Trained by	Último Dragón[2]
Debut	01997-11-04 November 4, 1997[1]

Dragon Kid (real name Nobuyoshi Nakamura; born on February 2, 1976 in Tokai, Aichi, Japan) is a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestles for Dragon Gate.

Professional wrestling career

Nobuyoshi Nakamura wanted to be a wrestler for a long time, but he was told that he was too small to become one. He started out as a referee for Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1996, but he never gave up his dream of being a wrestler. He was eventually introduced to Último Dragón by Jinsei Shinzaki, who told him that his wrestling school had no size restriction, so he entered the Último Dragón Gym.^[3]

Toryumon / Dragon Gate

Nakamura debuted in 1997 as a 1st term student, and was given the gimmick of Dragon Kid, Último Dragón's pupil. He was perceived as the heir of Último Dragón, but he has never reached the level of ace.^[4] He spent 1998 wrestling in Mexico, but he did some spot participation with Michinoku Pro and also had a short run with World Championship Wrestling working as "Little Dragon." His only appearance on Monday Nitro would be a victory over Eddie Guerrero via rollup after interference^[5]

In 1999, he debuted in Japan along with the rest of Toryumon.^[4] In February, he captured his first title, defeating Dr. Cerebro to win the vacant NWA World Welterweight Title. He would lose the title two months later to SUWA, and in that match, he suffered a bad knee injury that put him out of action for the remainder of the year.^[6] He would return to action on the first show of 2000 and proceeded to feud with SUWA. Though he failed to win the NWA World Welterweight Title back from SUWA, he did defeat him in a Mask vs. Hair match on August 24.^[4] Shortly after winning, he was attacked by a debuting Darkness Dragon, and they started a feud that would last for a little over two years. It ended on September 8, 2002, when he defeated Darkness Dragon in a Best of Three Falls Mask vs. Mask Match, forcing Darkness to unmask.^[4]

Darkness Dragon was booted out of M2K following the loss. He announced the formation of a new stable dubbed Do FIXER, and he invited Kid and Ryo Saito to join him, and they both accepted. On October 28, after Magnum TOKYO dissolved M2K, he announced that he and the remnants of M2K were the real Do FIXER, and that Darkness Dragon - now re-named K-ness - was still a member of the group and was sent into the home army (Seikigun) to cause problems within it. It worked in that Ryo Saito was not welcomed back into Seikigun, but Dragon Kid, however, was.^[4]

When Seikigun disbanded at the end of 2002, he joined Masaaki Mochizuki's Shin M2K stable at the start of 2003.^[4] He stayed with the group until it dissolved in December, after Mochizuki lost a match to stablemate Keni'chiro Arai. After that, Kid would go unaligned until mid-2004, and in May he won that year's El Numero Uno Tournament to the surprise of everyone.^[2] In mid-2004, he became a member of Do FIXER, and would stay in it until the very end. During his tenure with them, he won the Open the Brave Gate Title from inaugural champion Naruki Doi in November 2005, and would hold the Open the Triangle Gate Titles with Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi on three separate occasions in 2005 and 2006.^[2] During the last few months of 2006, he contracted appendicitis, forcing him out of action for several months.

2007 he won his first non-Japanese promotion's championship, wXw's Lightweight Championship, in Essen, Germany after defeating the British wrestler PAC.^[7]

When Dragon Kid returned in early 2007, Saito decided to end Do FIXER activity following the betrayal of Genki Horiguchi, and brought him along into CIMA's new Typhoon stable. He joined them with a new look, marking the first ever change of his ring attire. When Saito and Susumu Yokosuka started teaming together, he and CIMA started teaming up exclusively with each other, calling themselves CK-1. When CIMA was out injured in mid-2008, Dragon Kid formed a team with Shingo Takagi for that year's Summer Adventure Tag League Tournament. The team proved very successful, even making it to the finals, but they lost out to the previous year's winners Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino.^[8]

On December 28, he, Ryo Saito and Susumu Yokosuka fought a Unit Split Survival Three-Way Six-Man Tag Match against teams from WORLD-1 and Real Hazard, and they lost, bringing about the end of Typhoon. However, he did not remain unaligned for very long, for on January 11, 2009, he joined Shingo Takagi's new unit, KAMIKAZE. On February 15, he, Shingo, and Taku Iwasa won the Open the Triangle Gate titles, but they lost them two months later.^[2]

At the end of the year, when the Generation War was going on, the Veteran Army extended an invite to him to join their ranks. He did not accept nor reject the invitation, which eventually caused his KAMIKAZE stablemates to question where his loyalties lied. After Akira Tozawa interrupted a Ultra Hurricanrana attempt in a six-man tag match on January 11, 2010, causing them and YAMATO to lose, Kid decided to leave KAMIKAZE and side with CIMA, Gamma Susumu Yokosuka and KAGETORA in the WARRIORS-5 group, and by default the Veteran Army.^[2]

Dragon Kid turned heel on January 14, 2011, along with the rest of WARRIORS, when they attacked Masato Yoshino and World-1, and joined forces with Naruki Doi's group.^[9] On January 18 the new group was named Blood Warriors.^[9] On May 15, the rest of Blood Warriors turned on Dragon Kid and kicked him out of the group, despite the fact that he still held the Open the Triangle Gate Championship with CIMA and Ricochet. He then joined Masaaki Mochizuki's new stable, Junction Three, to battle his former group. As a result, the title was declared vacant.^[10] On June 19 Dragon Kid gained a measure of revenge on Blood Warriors, when he and PAC defeated Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi to win the Open the Twin Gate Championship. They would lose the title to Blood Warriors representatives CIMA and Ricochet on July 17.^[11]

Music career

On November 11, 2007, Dragon Gate Records (a subsidiary of Dragon Gate Wrestling) released a CD featuring music from Nakamura and Eiji Ezaki (Japanese singer and retired wrestler, also known as Hayabusa).

In wrestling

• Finishing moves

• Dragonrana (Diving front flip hurricanrana pin) – innovated^[2]
• Ultra Hurricanrana (Springboard hurricanrana pin)^[2]

• Signature moves

• Bermuda Triangle (Springboard moonsault from the inside middle turnbuckle to the floor)^[2]
• Bible (Crucifix driver into a crucifix pin)^[12][13]
• Christo (Tilt–a–whirl headscissors armbar)^[2][13]
• Déjà Vu (Multiple revolution headscissors takedown)^[2][13]
• Dragon Stunner (Stunner, as a vertical suplex counter)^[12]
• Hallelujah (Headscissors twisted into a figure four necklock)^[14]
• Jesus Walks (Springboard Arabian press)^[12]
• Messiah (Headscissors takedown twisted into a tilt-a-whirl DDT)^[12]
• Springboard Diamond Dust^[12]
• Tiger feint kick to the an opponent's head^[12]
• Top-rope cutter^[15]
• Top-rope frankensteiner^[13]
• Top-rope reverse frankensteiner^[16]

Championships and accomplishments

• Dragon Gate

• Dragon Gate Open the Brave Gate Championship (1 time)^[2]
• Dragon Gate Open the Triangle Gate Championship (5 times) - with Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi (3), Shingo Takagi and Taku Iwasa (1), and CIMA and Ricochet (1)^[2]
• Open the Twin Gate Championship (1 time) – with PAC

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him #160 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2001^[17]

• Toryumon Japan

• El Numero Uno: 2004^[2]
• NWA World Welterweight Championship (1 time)^[6]
• UWA World Trios Championship (3 times) - with Magnum Tokyo and Ryo Saito (1), with Masaaki Mochizuki and Keni'chiro Arai (1) and with Keni'chiro Arai and Second Doi (1)^{[18][Note 1]}

• westside Xtreme wrestling

• wXw World Lightweight Championship (1 time)^[19]

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter

• 5 Star Match (2006) with Genki Horiguchi and Ryo Saito vs. CIMA, Naruki Doi, and Masato Yoshino (ROH Supercard of Honor, March 31^[1]
• Best Flying Wrestler (2001)^[1]
• Best Wrestling Maneuver (1999, 2000) Dragonrana^[1]
• Match of the Year (2006)with Genki Horiguchi and Ryo Saito vs. CIMA, Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino (ROH Supercard of Honor, March 31^[1]

Notes

1. ^ The UWA Closed in 1995, since then various UWA titles have been used by promotions in Mexico and Japan, this title was promoted by Toryumon Japan at the time Dragon Kid won it.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} PWI StaffPWI Staff (August, 2006). "Pro Wrestling Illustrated 500 - 2006 :106: Dragon Kid". Pro Wrestling Illustrated (Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, USA: Sports and Entertainment publications LLC): p. 55. October 2006. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m} "Roster: Dragon Kid". Dragon Gate USA. http://dgusa.tv/roster/dragonkid.htm. Retrieved April 18, 2010. 
3. ^ Chatra, Mo (August 2003). "Enter the Dragon". Power Slam Magazine (Lancaster, Lancashire, England: SW Publishing LTD): pp. 24–25. 109. 
4. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Chatra, Mo (March 2005). "Toryumon Uncovered". Power Slam Magazine (Lancaster, Lancashire, England: SW Publishing LTD): pp. 34–35. 116. 
5. ^ Cawthron, Graham (June 29, 1998). "WCW Ring Results: 1998". The history of WWE. http://www.thehistoryofwwe.com/wcw98.htm. Retrieved April 18, 2010. "Little Dragon defeated Eddie Guerrero" 
6. ^ ^{a b} Royal Duncan and Gary Will (4th Edition 2006). "Mexico: EMLL NWA Welterweight Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 390. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
7. ^ Cagematch : Dragon Kid > Title
8. ^ "Summer Adventure Tag League 2008". ProWrestlingHistory.com. August 9–28, 2008. http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/japan/lucha/dragon/tag.html#summer2008. Retrieved April 18, 2010. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Boutwell, Josh (2011-01-21). "Viva La Raza! Lucha Weekly". WrestleView. http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1295648558. Retrieved 2011-01-22. 
10. ^ "5/15 KING OF GATE - 15 May 2011". iHeartDG. 2011-05-15. http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1305452382&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&. Retrieved 2011-05-16. 
11. ^ "7/17 Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling Festival in Kobe 2011 - 17 Jul 2011". iHeartDG. 2011-07-17. http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1310915275&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&. Retrieved 2011-07-17. 
12. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Puroresu Central Profile". Puroresu Central. http://www.puroresucentral.com/dragonkid.html. Retrieved 7 September 2011. 
13. ^ ^{a b c d} "RADICAN'S DGUSA "Untouchable" PPV review - Doi vs. Danielson, Shingo vs. Richards". Pro Wrestling Torch. http://www.pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/PPV_Reports_5/article_36476.shtml. Retrieved 7 September 2011. 
14. ^ "Puro Love Profile". Puro Love. http://www.purolove.com/dragongate/profiles/dragonkid.php. Retrieved 7 September 2011. 
15. ^ "RADICAN'S DGUSA DVD REVIEW SERIES: "Untouchable 2010" - Bryan Danielson vs. YAMATO, Shingo-Kid, Jacobs-Moxley". Pro Wrestling Torch. http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/DVDs_-_VGames_-_Books_25/article_52280.shtml. Retrieved 7 September 2011. 
16. ^ "RADICAN'S 5/14 DGUSA MERCURY RISING PPV REPORT - Dragon Gate Six Man Tag, Kendrick & London vs. Jacobs & Evans". Pro Wrestling Torch. http://www.pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/otherppvs/article_41240.shtml. Retrieved 7 September 2011. 
17. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 – 2001". Wrestling Information Archive. http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwi50001.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-01. 
18. ^ "Universal Wrestling Association World Trios Title". Wrestling-titles.com. January 24, 2010. http://www.wrestling-titles.com/mexico/uwa/uwa-6.html. Retrieved April 18, 2010. 
19. ^ "Westside Xtreme Wrestling". Online World of Wrestling. July 7, 2007. http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/results/wxw-germany/. Retrieved July 6, 2008. "Dragon Kid beat PAC to win the wXw World Lightweight title" 

External links

Professional wrestling portal

• Profile at kaz.theshoppe.com
• "Wrestlers Profiles: Dragon Kid". Online World of Wrestling. http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/d/dragon-kid.html. 

Persondata
Name	Dragon Kid
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 2, 1976
Place of birth	Tokai, Aichi, Japan
Date of death
Place of death