A Tribute To Jushin Thunder Liger
The legendary junior heavyweight retired at Wrestle Kingdom 14.
On Sunday, one of the greatest professional wrestlers ever to lace up a pair of boots retired at the Tokyo Dome. Jushin “Thunder” Liger’s incredible 35-year career is coming to an end in Japan’s capital, 30 years after he debuted in the same building under his most famous moniker.
When our Editor-in-Chief John Corrigan sent out an email asking if anyone would like to compose an article celebrating Jushin “Thunder” Liger, I leapt at the opportunity, and thankfully, I was granted the approval of my colleagues to work on this important piece. I feel truly privileged to be able to work on this article, so I want to thank everyone for your faith in letting me write it.
A large part of the reason why myself and so many others are wrestling fans is because of Jushin “Thunder” Liger. The spiritual successor to Tiger Mask, Liger’s anime inspired attire and move set immediately caught the attention of fans in 1989, and has continued to do so every year since. But let’s go back slightly and talk about his early days as Keiichi Yamada.
Amazingly, when he started out in puroresu, Yamada was declined by the New Japan Pro Wrestling Dojo because of his small stature, even though he was a seasoned and highly successful amateur wrestler. Instead of losing sight of his dream, Keiichi travelled to South America and trained in Mexico under El Halcón and Rafael Salamanca until he was finally recruited back to NJPW in 1984.
For the next two years, Yamada wrestled in numerous highly received matches against the likes of Black Tiger I, Shunji Kosugi (who Yamada faced in his debut match) and Naoki Sano, while also training in martial arts to add an extra layer to his offense. Alongside these matches, Keiichi also took part in the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship League, in which he was unsuccessful, but won the 1986 Young Lions Cup defeating Tatsutoshi Goto in the finals. It was after his success in the Young Lions Cup that Keiichi went on an international excursion to Great Britain and All-Star Wrestling.
While part of All Star Wrestling, Yamada took the name “Flying” Fuji Yamada, and had several great matches with Mark “Rollerboy” Rocco for the World Middleweight Title (a title Yamada would hold twice). Liger would later say in an interview that he “[Liked] England a lot and it was great to get so much support.” Before heading back to NJPW, Yamada went on another excursion, this time to Canada where he wrestled for Stampede Wrestling in 1987, briefly training under Stu Hart.
It was also during this time in Canada that Yamada had his first interactions with future opponents and tag partners, Owen Hart and Brian Pillman. After his time overseas, Yamada returned to NJPW where he debuted the “Shooting Star Press”, a move he reportedly innovated after reading the popular manga series Fist of the North Star. With a strong move set and even stronger match quality, Yamada was finally approached by NJPW officials in late 1988 to take up his most legendary gimmick change: Jushin “Thunder” Liger.
So now we come to the genesis. It was a change that immediately altered people’s perceptions of junior heavyweight wrestling in Japan, as Tiger Mask I had done a decade prior.
Jushin Liger debuted in the Tokyo Dome on April 24, 1989, against Kuniaki Kobayashi, emerging victorious. From there, he went on to win his first championship in NJPW, defeating Hiroshi Hase for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title (his first of a record 11 reigns) and began ushering in a new era for junior heavyweight wrestling.
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7pefl5
Liger was an immediate success with his attire and ring style helping him become a firm fan favorite. In the years following his debut, and much like his manga counterpart, he evolved and “powered up” to become Jushin “Thunder” Liger, his most famous gimmick transformation, and the name he holds to this day. It was during this period between 1989-1992 that Liger had incredible junior heavyweight matches against a multitude of opponents such as Pegasus Kid (Chris Benoit), El Samurai and most important of all, the aforementioned “Flyin” Brian Pillman.
Heading into the ‘90s, both men had become established stars for their respective companies, WCW and NJPW. They had their first tussle in August 1991 at the Kokugikan Hall, which was met with a great response. As a result, WCW officials introduced the Light Heavyweight Championship, and in turn, shone a spotlight on these high flyers.
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2s6ic7
Their series of matches on the house show circuit were once again received highly, with Liger winning the championship from Pillman on Christmas Day. This led into their most highly acclaimed and influential match at WCW SuperBrawl II for the Light Heavyweight Championship.
For those of you who have not seen this match, it is an absolute masterpiece. The sentons, maneuvers, drama and psychology all aligned, producing a spectacle that immortalized both men. If you have read Crazy Like a Fox: The Definitive Chronicle of Brian Pillman, this match is recapped in explicit detail and it is really a great read if you want to see how this match influenced the future cruiserweight division in WCW.
Sadly, the WCW Light Heavyweight Championship became nothing more than a distant memory following this outstanding contest. Liger and Pillman would not face one another again until 1995, when they had the distinction of opening the debut episode of WCW Nitro in another phenomenal match.
Liger returned to Japan following his series with Pillman. The masked marvel not only reclaimed the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship several times, but won his first of three Top of the Super Jrs. Tournaments. It was during this time that Liger began thinking about something very special, conceiving the Super J Cup.
For those of you who have not seen the 1994 Super J Cup, words cannot do justice to how important this event was to the industry. The amount of talent the event showcased, the quality of the matches presented on the show and the significance this show brought to the junior heavyweight division is truly historic. For comparisons sake, the Cruiserweight Classic of 2016 is probably the closest thing you will find to the 1994 Super J Cup in terms of construction and match quality.
Stars from NJPW, Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, CMLL and more all met at the Kokugikan Hall on April 16 for a one-night tournament to determine the best junior heavyweight wrestler in the world. Keep in mind that up to this point, there had never been a whole show devoted to junior heavyweight wrestling produced by NJPW.
This show broke so many barriers and influenced so many wrestlers it is unbelievable the scope it covered. Add in the fact that this show happened around the same time the internet and international tape-trading was becoming prominent; it is no surprise the show has become legendary. And with it, many wrestling fans’ first foray into Japanese wrestling came from watching the inaugural Super J Cup, myself included.
Jushin Liger had a fantastic showing in the tournament, but surprisingly was not victorious. Instead it was Wild Pegasus who won the Super J Cup, and with it, helped deliver “the most incredible single night of wrestling ever,” according to Dave Meltzer. Out of all the matches that took place on that night, one stood out to me the most.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q0imZ4NyDk
In his opening round matchup, Liger faced the debuting Hayabusa of FMW and what a match it was. Up to this point, I have been objective for this article, but here I will become highly subjective. This is literally my favorite Japanese wrestling match of all-time. It is a spectacle of high-flying, technical wizardry and hard-hitting strikes. I love this match and it is something you need to see to believe!
Following on from the huge success of the Super J Cup, throughout 1994 Liger continued to revolutionize in NJPW, and even had one match in Mexico for AAA, continuing his international excursions.
When 1995 rolled around, along with him wrestling more for WCW, the second Super J Cup took place (this time hosted by Wrestle Association-R) and once again Liger was one of the 14 international competitors brought in to find the best junior heavyweight wrestler in the world. While not as well-received as the first tournament, the second Super J Cup was still an enormous success, mostly due to the wonderful matches of Liger, who went on to win the whole thing.
All three of his matches were very different in style and content. His match against Ultimo Dragon is my favourite of his from the tournament, which then led into several great matches between the two throughout the rest of the decade. Fellow Jushin Liger fan and former host of the Six-Sided Podcast the Taxman [@six_podcast] fondly remembers this period in Jushin Liger’s career adding:
“I’ll never forget watching mid ‘90s WCW and seeing Liger for the first time. The look, the athleticism, the aura was incredible. To think that was 10 years into his career is mind blowing. His matches with Rey Mysterio, Ultimo Dragon, Psychosis and others stuck with me for a long time. Being able to go backwards and forwards throughout his career on NJPW has given me an even bigger sense of respect. I don’t think we’ll ever see a true junior heavyweight with a career such as his ever again.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrQOeiApH6E
The following year was probably the most important. In August of 1996, Liger announced another junior heavyweight tournament: “The J-Crown,” a four-day series that took place at the same time as the annual G1 Climax heavyweight tournament, with the aim to unify eight individual light-heavyweight championships across Japan, Mexico and North America. The tournament was again well-received, but not without shock and controversy.
In a rematch from their 1995 Super J Cup Semi-Final, Liger faced Ultimo Dragon in the opening round, but shockingly lost in under five minutes! The reason was he had been diagnosed with a brain tumour, putting his legendary career in jeopardy. Thankfully, he found out that his tumour was benign and underwent successful surgery in the summer. When he returned to competition in late September, his in-ring style drastically changed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBbA5zdyY8g
Gone were the Shooting Star Presses, athletic planchas to the outside and daredevil bumps. In their place came more technical maneuvers, grappling stances and a style that harked back to traditional puroresu. A lot of wrestlers may have struggled completely altering their wrestling style, but for Liger, the change was all but flawless. For almost 25 years, he has been putting on technical (and at points humorous) masterclasses ever since. But we are still not done discussing the impact 1996 had.
In October, a dream match took place in NJPW when he battled The Great Muta. While both men had faced one another earlier in their careers, by this point, they had become arguably the most popular Japanese wrestlers in the world, so this match was highly anticipated to say the least.
In front of a jam-packed crowd at the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, they battled in a heated contest that quickly turned into a brawl. During the match, Muta ripped off Liger’s sacred mask, looking to gain the victory. However, he was in for a shock!
Coming to his feet, Liger had once again transformed, this time into his infamous “Kishin Liger” persona, complete with white ghost-like paint, Oriental red inscriptions and deadly mist. While “Kishin Liger” lost the match, it was a turning point in the career of Jushin Liger, who once again proved why he is one of the most versatile and unique wrestlers in history.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-PO12dumCs
Between 1997 and 2000, his career leveled off. There were championship victories, further international excursions and countless brilliant matches. But the buzz that had come from Liger’s earlier career was gradually beginning to dwindle. Part of this was due to the eyes of the professional wrestling world being drawn to the Monday Night Wars and Attitude Era. Another factor was NJPW struggling with booking and lack of talent.
Looking to shake things up, booker Riki Chóshu decided that he needed fresh faces in the heavyweight division, therefore diminishing the junior heavyweight division. It was a move that was met with a lot of disapproval by many fans and wrestlers, and while it was a nice novelty to see Liger wrestle in the heavyweight division, his heart always belonged to the juniors. In a 2019 interview, Liger summed his career up with “I’m a junior for life.” We fans can’t agree more.
Going into the 2000s and 2010s, Liger was still tearing it up around the globe and winning championships in every promotion he wrestled in. Liger had awesome matches in Dragon Gate, Michinoku Pro, CMLL, Preston City Wrestling, UWA Hardcore Wrestling, Pro Wrestling NOAH, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and his home promotion of NJPW to name a few. Not only that, but Liger even made his MMA debut for Pancrase in 2002 against future rival Minoru Suzuki as a late stand in for Kensuke Sasaki!
In 2004, Ring of Honor approached him to take part in two special shows on the same weekend aptly named “Weekend of Thunder.” The shows were even more notable as Liger had the chance to hand-pick his opponents. He chose Samoa Joe, Low-Ki and Bryan Danielson, the latter of which drew the most attention. It is a match of technical beauty and classic storytelling, reaching dream match status. As with all early Ring of Honor crowds, the fans were electric from start to finish.
In 2005, Liger wrestled Samoa Joe in a thrilling opener at the first Bound For Glory. It was a match that led to a strong relationship between TNA and NJPW going forward, with Liger eventually captaining Team Japan in the 2006 Super X Cup. It was also during this time that he took an uncharacteristic turn and became a heel, leading CTU (Control Terrorism Unit) in NJPW. While the stable is quite overlooked now, they did lead to a regeneration in Liger’s career and his updated bodysuit and mask (now all black) helped add a new layer to his persona.
In 2015, Liger made history yet again, leaving the WWE Universe with a memory to last a lifetime. My friend Rich Stone [@stoner_uk_80] explains it a lot better than I ever could:
“My mind was blown … in 2015 when it was announced that Liger would face Tyler Breeze in a match at the first NXT Takeover Brooklyn event. The only time that Liger had performed in front of a WWF/E audience before was in a co-promoted WWF/New Japan show way back in 1990. This was going to be something worth witnessing. Neither individual disappointed. I for one am gutted that Liger has never returned to NXT or even performed on either the red or blue WWE brands. What a sight that would have been!”
Yes, Liger incredibly debuted for NXT in 2015 and as he had over 20 years prior with Pillman, wowed fans with his attire, entrance, and captivating move set. Liger said in an interview that it was always his dream to wrestle in WWE and in New York, two things he achieved in one special night!
So that about wraps up my tribute to Jushin “Thunder” Liger. Although this article has taken up over 3000 words, it still isn’t enough to do justice to the career and legacy of one of the greatest professional wrestlers ever.
His passion for the business, his selflessness at putting talent over, his devotion to all of us as fans, his inspirational story, his sensational ring attire, but most of all his love for professional wrestling, will never be replicated.
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