Dragon Gate (wrestling)
Dragon Gate Inc. (DRAGONGATE株式会社, Doragon Gēto kabushiki-gaisha) operating as Dragon Gate Pro-Wrestling (ドラゴンゲートプロレス, Doragon Gēto Puroresu) and often referred to as Dragon Gate (ドラゴンゲート, Doragon Gēto), is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion formerly known as Toryumon Japan. Most of Dragon Gate's wrestlers are graduates from Último Dragón's Toryumon Gym, and thus the promotion is based on a Junior Heavyweight style with varying emphasis on high flying maneuvers, flashy technical grappling, and submissions.
 | |
| Founded | July 5, 2004 |
|---|---|
| Style | Professional wrestling Puroresu Lucha Libre |
| Headquarters | Kobe, Japan |
| Founder(s) | Takashi Okumura |
| Owner(s) | Takashi Okumura |
| Parent | Gaora |
| Sister | Dragon Gate USA (2009–2015) Dragon Gate UK (2009–2014) |
| Formerly | Toryumon Japan |
| Website | www |
History
On July 4, 2004 Último Dragón left the Toryumon Gym in Mexico and took the name and trademarks with him. The promotion subsequently changed its name to Dragon Gate and declared Cima (the last one to hold the Último Dragón Gym Championship) its first Open the Dream Gate Champion.
Wrestlers from the promotion have also made appearances on the United States independent wrestling scene, including Ring of Honor which held a Dragon Gate Invasion show on August 27, 2005, in Buffalo, New York, Dragon Gate Challenge on March 30, 2006, in Detroit, Michigan and Supercard of Honor and Better Than Our Best in Chicago, Illinois on March 31 and April 1, 2006, respectively. A six-man match pitting Cima, Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino against Dragon Kid, Ryo Saito and Genki Horiguchi at Supercard of Honor is one of only a handful of North American matches that wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer has given a five-star rating. Both Ring of Honor's All Star Extravaganza III on March 30 and Supercard of Honor II on March 31, 2007, in Detroit, Michigan featured Dragon Gate in the main events.
In 2008, Dragon Gate promoted their first set of shows in the United States. The first show took place in Los Angeles on September 5 and featured El Generico, Necro Butcher, and Kendo. Their second show was in Hawaii on September 8. In 2009, Dragon Gate debuted in the United Kingdom. Their first show was held on November 1, 2009, in Oxford, England.
Japan's Dragon Gate promotion announced its expansion into the United States with Dragon Gate USA on April 14, 2009, at the Korakuen Hall event in Tokyo.
Also in 2009 it was announced that they created another branch promotion Dragon Gate UK.
On March 21, 2018, Dragon Gate announced the creation of Dragon Gate Network, an on-demand service similar to WWE Network and New Japan Pro-Wrestling World.[1] The service officially launched on April 1, 2018.[2] On May 7, 2018, Okamura left his job as President. Toru Kido became the new President and Nobuhiko Oshima (professional wrestler Cima) became the President of Dragon Gate Inc., the international department with the HQ in Shangai, China.[3] In 2019, the promotion celebrated its 20th anniversary. As part of the celebration Ultimo Dragon returned to the promotion in July as a senior advisor. Afterwards, the promotion changed its logo and Dragon Entertainment would be known as Dragon Gate Inc.
On February 1, 2020, Dragon Gate announced a working relationship with American promotion Major League Wrestling (MLW), which would include a talent-exchange between the two promotions.[4]
Dragon Gate Network
| Dragon Gate Network | |
|---|---|
| Launched | April 1, 2018 |
| Owned by | Dragon Gate |
| Website | dragongate |
Dragon Gate Network is a subscription-based video streaming service owned by Japanese professional wrestling promotion Dragon Gate. Development of the on-demand service was announced on March 21, 2018.[5] Dragon Gate Network was officially launched on April 1, 2018. Dragon Gate Network operates similarly to WWE Network and New Japan Pro Wrestling's NJPW World and most notably Ring of Honor's Honor Club, in that pay-per-view events are available to stream through the service, but unlike its aforementioned competitors, some membership tiers must pay extra for these events.[2]
The service currently has two tiers. The regular tier, which includes Dragon Gate PPV archive and past pay-per-view events and access to all future pay-per-view events and the Dragon Gate Studio which includes the Prime Zone events with no additional costs for monthly subscription price of ¥1500. The Light tier costs ¥999 monthly and contain access to the Dragon Gate and Toryumon Japan video tape archive.[6]
Dragon Gate Nex
Dragon Gate Nex is a project of Dragon Gate, which gives young wrestlers the promotion of more experience.
History
In mid-2006, the NEX project was announced. It would be a series of shows and events that would focus primarily on the recent graduates of the Dragon Gate Dojo, allowing for them to further gain experience in ability while also being seen as the main attraction of a show. Virtually all of the shows take place in the Dragon Gate Arena, the main training ring at the Dragon Gate offices in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan.
In addition to the recent graduates, comedy characters, gaijin talent, and any freelance wrestler currently on tour in Japan will also compete on these shows. The occasional main card member of the roster will compete as well. This is done to further enhance the experience to be gained for the trainees and teach the outsiders how to compete in the Dragon System of wrestling.
The vast majority of NEX shows are called "Sanctuary" and are held twice a month. They generally draw an attendance of around 90 fans due to the limited size and space of the venue. There are also special event shows called "Premium," which are the equivalent in atmosphere to a pay-per-view. These shows involve the main card members of the roster and will draw up to 100 in attendance. Early in NEX, they ran two anniversary shows at Shin-Kiba 1st RING in Tokyo, Japan, although this has since been discontinued.
Dragon Gate Trueborn (Dragon Gate Dojo)
The following is a list of Japanese wrestlers who have graduated from the Dragon Gate Dojo in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan, along with the USA Dojo in Houston, Texas. Graduates are regarded as Dragon Gate Trueborn, having been trained in the Dragon System exclusively through Dragon Gate as opposed to the Ultimo Dragon Gym. They are listed in alphabetical order.
List of wrestlers graduated
| Ring name | Real name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Akira Tozawa | Akira Tozawa | |
| Big R Shimizu | Yuki Shimizu | |
| BxB Hulk | Terumasa Ishihara | |
| Cyber Kong | Takashi Yoshida | |
| Eita | Eita Kobayashi | |
| Katsuo | Yūki Ōno | |
| Kenshin Chikano | Kenshin Chikano | |
| Kotoka | Kotoka Shiiba | Retired |
| Jackson Florida | Kouji Shishido | Retired |
| Kzy | Kazuki Sawada | |
| Lupin Matsutani | Kei Matsutani | Retired |
| Mondai Ryu | Daisuke Kimata | |
| Punch Tominaga | Chihiro Tominaga | |
| Shingo Takagi | Shingo Takagi | |
| T-Hawk | Takuya Onodera | |
| U-T | Yūta Tanaka | |
| Yamato | Masato Onodera | |
| Yosuke♥Santa Maria | Yosuke Watanabe | |
| Yo-Hey | Yohei Fujita |
Roster
Wrestlers
| Ring name | Real name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ben-K | Futa Nakamura | |
| Big R Shimizu | Yuki Shimizu | |
| "brother" YASSHI | Yasushi Tsujimoto | |
| BxB Hulk | Terumasa Ishihara | Open the Twin Gate Champion |
| Diamante | Open the Triangle Gate Champion | |
| Don Fujii | Tatsuki Fuji | |
| Dragon Dia | ||
| Dragon Kid | Nobuyoshi Nakamura | |
| Eita | Eita Kobayashi | Open The Dream Gate Champion |
| Gamma | Yoshito Sugamoto | |
| Genki Horiguchi | Hiromasa Horiguchi | |
| HYO | Hyou Watanabe | Open the Triangle Gate Champion |
| Jason Lee | Freelancer | |
| Kagetora | Fumiyuki Hashimoto | |
| KAI | ||
| Kaito Ishida | Kaito Ishida | Open the Brave Gate Champion |
| Katsumi Takashima | Katsumi Takashima | |
| Kazma Sakamoto | Kazma Sakamoto | Open the Twin Gate Champion |
| Kenichiro Arai | Kenichiro Arai | Sporadic appearances |
| K-ness | Makoto Saitō | |
| Kono Mama Ichikawa | Kanji Ichikawa | Sporadic appearances |
| Kota Minoura | ||
| Kzy | Kazuki Sawada | |
| Masaaki Mochizuki | Masaaki Mochizuki | |
| Masato Yoshino | Masato Yoshino | |
| Mondai Ryu | Daisuke Kimata | |
| Naruki Doi | Naruki Doi | |
| Oji Shiiba | ||
| Punch Tominaga | Chihiro Tominaga | |
| Ryo Saito | Ryo Saito | |
| Shachihoko Boy | Unknown | |
| Shun Skywalker | Shun Watanabe | |
| Super Shisa | Yoshiyuki Saito | Sporadic appearances |
| Super Strong Machine F | ||
| Super Strong Machine G | ||
| Super Strong Machine J | ||
| Susumu Yokosuka | Susumu Mochizuki | |
| Takashi Yoshida | Takashi Yoshida | Open the Triangle Gate Champion |
| Ultimo Dragon | Yoshihiro Asai | |
| U-T | Yūta Tanaka | |
| YAMATO | Masato Onodera | |
| Yasushi Kanda | Yasushi Kanda | |
| Yosuke Santa Maria | Yosuke Watanabe | |
| Yuki Yoshioka | Yuki Yoshioka |
Staff
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Eiichi Fujimoto | Photographer |
| Katsuya Ichikawa | Play-by-play commentary and backstage interviewer |
| Mr. Nakagawa | Referee |
| Naoto Kikuchi | Ring announcer |
| Takashi Okamura | President |
| Takayuki Yagi | Referee and general manager |
| Toru Kido | Senior managing director and commissioner |
| Último Dragón | Senior advisor Also wrestler[7] |
| Yatsuka Nakazawa | Dragon Gate Records |
Championships
| Championship | Current champion(s) | Reign | Date won | Days held | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open the Dream Gate Championship | Eita | 1 | August 2, 2020 | 12+ | Wakayama, Japan | Defeated Naruki Doi at Memorial Gate in Wakayama. |
| Open the Brave Gate Championship | Kaito Ishida | 1 | November 4, 2019 | 284+ | Osaka, Japan | Defeated Susumu Yokosuka at Gate of Destiny 2019. |
| Open the Twin Gate Championship | Team Dragon Gate (Jason Lee and Kota Minoura) |
1 (7, 1) |
August 2, 2020 | 12+ | Wakayama, Japan | Defeated R.E.D. (BxB Hulk and Kazma Sakamoto) at Memorial Gate in Wakayama. |
| Open the Triangle Gate Championship | Team Dragon Gate (Dragon Dia, Ben-K and Super Strong Machine J) |
1 (1, 2, 2) |
February 29, 2020 | 167+ | Osaka, Japan | Defeated R.E.D (HYO, Diamante and Takashi Yoshida) at The Champion Gate. |
Defunct Championships
| Championship | Last champion(s) | Date won |
|---|---|---|
| I-J Heavyweight Championship | Masaaki Mochizuki | November 23, 2006 |
| I-J Heavyweight Tag Team Championship | Muscle Outlaw'z (Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino) |
October 12, 2007 |
| Open the Owarai Twin Gate Championship | Don Fujii and Kikutaro | April 12, 2009 |
| Open the Freedom Gate Championship | Timothy Thatcher | July 10, 2015 |
| Open the United Gate Championship | Rich Swann and Johnny Gargano | May 30, 2015 |
| Open the Owarai Gate Championship | Shingo Takagi | March 7, 2018 |
(I-J Heavyweight Tag Team Championship unified with Open the Twin Gate Championship on October 12, 2007)
Annual tournaments
| Tournament | Last winner | Last held |
|---|---|---|
| King of Gate | Eita | July 7, 2020 |
| Summer Adventure Tag League | Over Generation (Eita and Dragon Kid) |
September 10, 2016 |
Affiliates
| Promotion name | Location | Partnered on | Ref. | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dragon Gate USA | United States | 2009 | Closed in 2015 | |
| Dragon Gate UK | United Kingdom | 2009 | No events since 2014 |
References
- http://puroresuspirit.net/2018/03/dragon-gate-results-for-march-21-2018/
- "Dragon Gate streaming service debut2". Twitter. 2018-03-21. Retrieved 2018-03-21.
- https://www.solowrestling.com/new/70822-cambios-en-la-presidencia-de-dragon-gate-y-apertura-de-la-division-internacional-en-china
- "MLW announces working relationship with Dragon Gate". WON/F4W - WWE news, Pro Wrestling News, WWE Results, UFC News, UFC results. February 1, 2020.
- "All Japan, Dragon Gate Streaming Services Updates". Pro Wrestling Insider. 2018-03-21. Retrieved 2018-04-01.
- "Dragon Gate streaming service debut3" (in Japanese). 2018-03-22. Retrieved 2018-03-22.
- https://www.facebook.com/DragonGateEN/photos/a.1005452869569988/2425194714262456/?type=3&theater
External links
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