Puroresu Central

Yuji Nagata

Birthdate: April 24th, 1968
Height: 6'0''
Weight: 238 lbs.
Debut: September 14th, 1992
Background: Amateur Wrestling
Promotion History: New Japan (1992 to present)
Alliances: New Japan Pro-Wrestling Sekigun
Ring Attire: Blue trunks
Card Position: Upper Mid-Card
Major Tournaments Won: G1 Climax (2001), G1 Tag League (2000), and the New Japan Cup (2007)
Current Title Held: World Heavyweight Championship (Zero-One MAX)

IWGP Heavyweight Championship (Held 2 Times):
- Defeated Tadao Yasuda on 4/5/02 and lost to Yoshihiro Takayama on 5/2/03
- Defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi on 4/13/07 and lost to Hiroshi Tanahashi on 10/8/07

IWGP Tag Team Title Championship:
- Defeated Goto and Ohara on 8/28/99 and lost to Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima on 7/20/00

All Japan World Tag Team Championship with Kendo Kashin:
- Defeated Kojima and Kaz Hayashi on 6/12/04 and Vacated on 12/17/04

GHC Tag Team Championship with Hiroshi Tanahashi:
- Defeated Kobashi and Honda on 11/30/03 and lost to Misawa and Ogawa on 1/10/04

World Heavyweight Championship (Zero-One MAX):
- Defeated Masato Tanaka on 10/13/08

Biggest Matches:
- August 28th, 1998 with Nakanishi vs. Goto and Ohara (title win)
- November 30th, 2000 with Iizuka vs. Tenzan and Kojima (tournament win)
- August 12th, 2001 vs. Keiji Mutoh (tournament win)
- April 5th, 2002 vs. Tadao Yasuda (title win)
- April 13th, 2007 vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (title win)

Pictures:
- Against Angle, Nagata applies the Nagata Lock II
- Nagata with the Nagata Lock II against Tomko
- Killer Nagata's Seated Armbar
- An Exploder by Nagata
- Nagata uses one of his patented Nagata Locks
- Nagata wins the New Japan Cup
- Nagata with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Signature Moves:
- Armbreaker
- Backdrop Suplex Hold
- Exploder
- Kneel Kick
- Nagata Lock
- Nagata Lock II (HQ)
- Nagata Lock III
- Nagata Lock IV
- Thunder Death Driver
- Wrist-Clutch Exploder

Super Signature Moves:
- Avalanche-Style Belly to Belly Suplex
- Avalanche-Style Exploder
- Brainbuster on the Floor

2005 Recap:
A very popular New Japan wrestler, Nagata did not see any major singles success in 2005 but found success teaming with the likes of Nakanishi and Fujita. 3-2 at the Tokyo Dome Shows (he had three matches on 1/4 as part of the Ultimate Royal), Nagata came in third in his block during the G-1 Climax. At the end of 2005, Nagata began tagging with Nakamura and they are considered one of the stronger tag teams.

2006 Recap:
Nagata continued trying to make his way back to the top in 2006. He lost to Tanahashi in February, but avenged the defeat when he beat Tanahashi in the New Japan Cup in April. Giant Bernard would defeat Nagata in the finals, however, and once again Nagata would fall short of getting a title shot at Brock Lesnar. At the 2006 G1 Climax, Nagata came in 3rd place in his bracket. In the G1 Tag League he teamed with Iizuka, and the pair would win their bracket before falling to Tanahashi and Kanemoto in the semi-finals.

2007 Recap:
Nagata had a great year in 2007. After starting the year with a loss to Minoru Suzuki at the Tokyo Dome, Nagata quickly catapulted back to the title picture by winning the New Japan Cup. Nagata defeated Togi Makabe in the finals, earning himself a shot at Tanahashi's IWGP Heavyweight Championship the following month. On April 13th, in what was considered one of the best matches of the year Nagata defeated Tanahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, the first time he had held the belt in almost four years. In the G1 Climax that summer, Nagata would reach the finals after defeated Nakamura in the semi-finals, but he would lose to his nemesis Hiroshi Tanahashi to prevent him from winning his second G1 Climax. This earned Tanahashi another title shot, which he received on October 8th. Tanahashi would prove his G1 Climax victory wasn't a fluke by defeated Nagata, taking back his IWGP Heavyweight Championship. In the G1 Tag League Nagata teamed with Nakanishi, but the pair would come in 7th place, only ahead of Takashi Iizuka and Naofumi Yamamoto.

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