Puroresu Central

Minoru

Birthdate: November 29th, 1972
Height: 5'9''
Weight: 199 lbs.
Debut: January 24th, 1994
Background: Shoot Boxing and Gymnastics
Promotion History: BattlARTS (1994 to 1999) and New Japan (2000 to present)
Alliances: RISE
Ring Attire: Trunks, usually white
Card Position: Mid-Card
Major Tournaments Won: Best of the Super Jr. (2006)
Current Title Held: None

Championship History:

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship (Held 4 Times):
- Defeated Tatsuhito Takaiwa on 10/29/00 and lost to Masayuki Naruse on 7/20/01
- Defeated Masahito Kakihara on 2/16/02 and lost to Koji Kanemoto on 7/19/02
- Defeated Jado on 12/14/03 and lost to Tiger Mask on 1/4/05
- Defeated Koji Kanemoto on 12/24/06 and lost to Ryusuke Taguchi on 7/6/07

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship with Koji Kanemoto:
- Defeated Otani and Takaiwa on 6/25/00 and lost to Jushin Liger and El Samurai on 3/5/01

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship with Jushin Thunder Liger:
- Defeated Jado and Gedo on 5/2/02 and lost to Kanemaru and Kikuchi on 8/29/02

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship with Hirooki Goto:
- Defeated Kanemoto and Inoue on 5/14/05 and lost to El Samurai and Taguchi on 2/19/06

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship with Prince Devitt (Held 2 Times)::
- Defeated Togo and TAKA Michinoku on 1/27/08 and lost to Jushin Liger and AKIRA on 2/17/08
- Defeated Jushin Liger and AKIRA on 7/21/08 and lost to NO LIMIT on 10/13/08

FMW Jr. Heavyweight Championship:
- Defeated Ricky Fuji on 5/5/99 and lost to Naoki Sano on 5/14/99

Independent Jr. Heavyweight Championship:
- Defeated Naoki Sano on 1/30/00 and lost to Katsumi Usuda on 5/11/00

UWA World Middleweight Championship:
- Defeated Shoichi Funaki on 3/19/97 and Vacated on 4/19/98

Biggest Matches:
- Match 19th, 1997 vs. Shoichi Funaki (title win)
- June 25th, 2000 with Kanemoto vs. Shinjiro Otani and Takaiwa (title win)
- October 29th, 2000 vs. Tatsuhito Takaiwa (title win)
- June 18th, 2006 vs. Tiger Mask (tournament win)
- December 24th, 2006 vs. Koji Kanemoto (title win)

Pictures:
- Minoru with an overhead suplex
- Minoru steals the Samurai Gym's sign
- A backdrop suplex by Minoru
- Minoru with the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship

Signature Moves:
- Doomsday Device Kick (with Devitt)
- FIREBALL Splash
- Fisherman Buster
- HEAT Clutch
- Leg Feed Cross Armbreaker
- Minoru Special
- Release Dragon Suplex
- Release Tiger Suplex
- Santa Monica Pier

Super Signature Moves:
- Avalanche Fisherman Buster
- Avalanche Wrist-Clutch Fisherman Buster

2005 Recap:
Minoru Tanaka made the official change from being known as Heat to being known as Minoru in early 2005. As Heat, he held the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship, but he lost the title to Tiger Mask early in 2005 and after the defeat was able to stop appearing as Heat (since he had won the title as Heat, he had to defend the title as Heat). In May, Minoru would team with Goto and win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship and together they would hold the title for the rest of the year. Minoru also had success at the Best of the Super Jr. Tournament, coming in first in his bracket (although he lost in the semi-finals to his old foe Tiger Mask). Usually wrestling as a "heel," Minoru is one of the brightest stars of the junior heavyweight division.

2006 Recap:
Minoru opened the year as one half of the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship with Goto, but the duo would lose the belts on February 19th to El Samurai and Taguchi. At the Best of the Super Jr. Tournament, Minoru defeated Inoue in the semi-finals and Tiger Mask in the finals to be crowned the winner of the tournament. At the CTU 2nd Anniversary show, Minoru teamed with Masaaki Mochizuki to defeat Koji Kanemoto and Wataru Inoue. After a failed attempt to win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship against Kanemoto on October 9th, Minoru would succeed in winning the title for the fourth time in his career on December 24th, ending the year on a positive note for Minoru.

2007 Recap:
Minoru held onto the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship for the first half of 2007, defeating Wataru Inoue, Taguchi, El Texano Jr., and Yujiro. On July 6th, however, he would face Taguchi again and this time Taguchi would come out the victor. At the Best of the Super Jr. Tournament Minoru reached the semi-finals but fell to Inoue. Minoru teamed with fellow CTU (then RISE) member Prince Devitt for much of the year, picking up key victories that would lead to a IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship shot in 2008 against TAKA Michinoku and Dick Togo.

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