Taichi Ishikari

Taichi Ishikari

Taichi in November 2011
Birth name Taichiro Maki (牧 太一郎 Maki Taichiro)
Born (1980-03-19) March 19, 1980[1]
Ishikari, Hokkaido, Japan[1][2]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Hokkaido[3]
Taichi[2]
Taichi Ishikari[3]
Billed height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1][2]
Billed weight 85 kg (187 lb)[1][2]
Trained by Hiroshi Hase[2]
Toshiaki Kawada[2]
All Japan Pro Wrestling[2]
Debut December 2, 2002[3]

Taichiro Maki (牧 太一郎 Maki Taichiro) is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Taichi Ishikari (石狩太一 Ishikari Taichi) or simply Taichi (タイチ Taichi). He is signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), but is currently working for Pro Wrestling Noah as part of an interpromotional invasion storyline involving the Suzuki-gun stable. In NJPW, he is a former one-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion and in Noah a former one-time GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion. Throughout his career he has competed in various promotions including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, Hustle and Ultimate Pro Wrestling.

Professional wrestling career

Early life

Wanting to be a pro-wrestler since high school he competed in Amateur Wrestling while in high school, and was ranked second in the 63 kg class in the 1997 Hokkaido high school championship conference.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (2002–2005)

In December 2002 Ishikari made his debut for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). He would pick up his first singles victory over heavyweight prospect Masayuki Kono about six months into his career on May 12, 2003. He got a huge opportunity by representing AJPW in the 4th Stage Super J-Cup hosted by Osaka Pro Wrestling in 2004, but came up short after losing to Osaka Pro ace Takehiro Murahama in the first round. Teaming with Toshiaki Kawada in the Autumn Festival Tag Tournament, he earned both victories in their finals matches to win his first tournament. He was AJPW's first junior heavyweight prospect in a long while, being a very quick and fiery youngster who was coming along well. Ishikari began 2005 by challenging for the World Junior Heavyweight Championship against champion TAKA Michinoku in a losing effort, then continued wrestling in the lower mid-card.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004)

On May 26, 2004, Taichi Ishikari appeared as a member of Team Japan in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's 2004 World X Cup, competing in both a battle royal and a ladder match.[4] He was rumored to be a part of 2008's Team Japan, but the spot was filled by Puma.[5][6]

Freelance and New Japan Pro Wrestling (2005–2010)

In early February 2005 Ishikari followed his mentor, Toshiaki Kawada and ended his affiliation with AJPW to become a freelance wrestler. Ishikari bounced around trying to find a new permanent home, competing for Hustle and the short lived Kings Road promotion. In mid 2006 Ishikari started to appear on New Japan Pro Wrestling shows and his activity with the company then increased in 2006 and 2007 and finally in 2009 he became an official member of the NJPW roster.[7] He would find himself a tag team partner in Milano Collection A.T. and together they would challenge for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, held by Prince Devitt and Ryusuke Taguchi, but were unable to win the title.[7]

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (2010)

After Milano Collection A.T. announced his retirement in January 2010, New Japan announced that Taichi would be leaving for Mexican promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) to seek a new direction in his career.[8] The plan was for him to remain with CMLL for at least five months.[2] Taichi made his CMLL debut on February 19, 2010 in Arena México, Mexico City where he teamed up with Naito and Ray Mendoza, Jr. to defeat John Strongman, Mr. Niebla and Máximo in two straight falls.[9] On May 7, 2010 Taichi and Okumura teamed up with former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi to defeat El Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara and Héctor Garza to win the CMLL World Trios Championship in the main event of the weekly Friday night Super Viernes show.[10] La Ola Amarilla's reign as Trios champions only lasted two weeks as they were defeated by La Máscara, La Sombra and Máscara Dorada on May 21, 2010.[11] Through the trios matches Taichi has developed a rivalry with La Máscara who challenged Taichi to a Lucha de Apuesta match where Taichi would put his hair on the line against La Máscara's mask. Taichi later announced that he accepted the challenge, making it the main event of CMLL's 2010 Sin Salida show.[12] On June 6, 2010 Máximo defeated Taichi two falls to one and had his hair shaved off after the match.[13] Afterwards Taichi returned to New Japan, before returning to CMLL for a two-month stint in early October 2010.

Return to NJPW (2010–present)

Taichi with Suzuki-gun in February 2012

On December 11, 2010, Taichi returned from his latest stint in CMLL and aligned himself with IWGP Heavyweight Champion Satoshi Kojima as part of Kojima-gun, which would later also come to include MVP, NOSAWA Rongai and Taka Michinoku.[14][15] On April 8, 2011, Taichi defeated Madoka in the finals of a two-day tournament to earn a spot in the 2011 Best of the Super Juniors tournament.[16] On May 3, Taichi and Taka Michinoku turned on Kojima and revealed the returning Minoru Suzuki as their new leader.[17] After losing his first six round robin stage matches in the 2011 Best of the Super Juniors, Taichi came back to win his last two matches and finish eighth out of the nine wrestlers in his block.[18] Since then, Taichi has formed a regular partnership with Taka Michinoku, with the two unsuccessfully challenging Prince Devitt and Ryusuke Taguchi for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship on September 11, 2011.[19] On June 16, 2012, at Dominion 6.16, Taichi and Michinoku received another opportunity to wrestle for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, but were defeated by Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask, after Taichi unmasked Liger and unintentionally turned him into "Kishin Liger", a more violent version of himself.[20] In August, Taichi began blaming Michinoku for his recent losses, which led to the two agreeing to a match, where the loser would be expelled from Suzuki-gun.[21] The match took place on August 22 at Michinoku's Kaientai Dojo promotion, but ended without a winner as Minoru Suzuki interrupted the match and got the two men to make peace with each other.[22] On September 5, Taichi returned to Mexico for another tour with CMLL and instantly turned down an offer to rejoin La Ola Amarilla, pledging his loyalty to Minoru Suzuki and Suzuki-gun.[23] In his first match back in CMLL on September 7, Taichi teamed with Hiroshi Tanahashi, Namajague and Okumura in a Japan vs. Mexico torneo cibernetico, where they faced Black Warrior, La Máscara, Negro Casas and Valiente. After being eliminated by La Máscara, Taichi interfered in the match and helped Tanahashi pick up the win for the Japanese.[24][25] Taichi returned to Japan on October 14.[26]

Taichi in September 2014

In January 2013, Taichi was sidelined with a knee injury, suffered in a traffic accident.[27] When he returned in April, he was wearing a knee brace, which he began using as an offensive weapon behind the referees' backs, dubbing his new knee strike finisher, "Jage Koroshi".[28][29][30] On May 24, Taichi entered the 2013 Best of the Super Juniors tournament, where he got off to a flying start, winning his first four matches, albeit through cheating, including interference from Taka Michinoku and locking Jushin Thunder Liger out of the building for a countout victory.[30][31] His win streak ended in his fifth match on June 1, when he was defeated by CMLL representative Titán.[32] Taichi also ended up losing his three remaining matches in the tournament, narrowly missing advancement to the semifinals.[33] On July 20, Taichi and Michinoku received another shot at the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, but were defeated by the defending champions, the Forever Hooligans (Alex Koslov and Rocky Romero).[34][35] On July 26, Taichi began another tour with Mexican promotion CMLL, once again reigniting his rivalry with Máximo.[36][37] Back in New Japan on September 29 at Destruction, Taichi and Michinoku failed to earn another shot at the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, when they were defeated in a number one contender's match by Time Splitters (Alex Shelley and Kushida).[38] However, when Shelley was sidelined with an injury,[39] Taichi and Michinoku were given the title shot and, on October 14 at King of Pro-Wrestling, defeated the Forever Hooligans to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, Taichi's first title in New Japan.[40] Taichi and Michinoku made their first successful title defense on November 1, defeating Gedo and Jado at their self-produced independent event.[41] After a reign of only 26 days, Taichi and Michinoku lost the title to The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) on November 9 at Power Struggle.[42]

In May 2014, Maki was caught cheating on his wife, which resulted in him announcing he wanted to retire from professional wrestling. New Japan, however, announced on May 28 that, for the time being, he was still under contract with the promotion.[43][44] According to New Japan's chairman, Naoki Sugabayashi, the promotion was launching an investigation into Maki's actions and hinted at a possible pay cut and suspension.[45] Despite his issues outside the ring, Taichi did well in the 2014 Best of the Super Juniors tournament, finishing with a record of four wins and three losses. Despite finishing tied with the leader and runner-up of the block, Taichi failed to advance to the semifinals due to head-to-head match results.[46] Taichi was, however, later granted entry into the semifinals, after the block's winner, Alex Shelley, was forced to pull out of the tournament due to a shoulder injury.[47] On June 8, Taichi was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals by Kushida.[48] The following day, New Japan suspended Maki for two months with a 30% pay cut.[49][50] Taichi returned from his suspension on August 10 and wrestled his return match on September 5, forming a new tag team with Suzuki-gun's newest member, El Desperado.[51][52] At that time, Taichi would take up a mic and would sing his way to the ring. Taichi and El Desperado received a shot at the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship on September 23 at Destruction in Okayama, but were defeated by the Time Splitters.[53] On November 8 at Power Struggle, Taichi received a shot at the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, but was defeated by Ryusuke Taguchi.[54]

In January 2015, Suzuki-gun entered a storyline, where the entire stable invaded the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion.[55] As part of the storyline, Taichi won the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship on March 15 by defeating Atsushi Kotoge.[56] Taichi held the title for the rest of the year, successfully defending it four times, before losing it to Taiji Ishimori on December 23.[57] On June 24, 2016, at a show produced by Taichi and Taka Michinoku, Taichi was one of two winners of a four-man round-robin tournament to earn a spot in the 2016 Super J-Cup.[58] On July 20, Taichi returned to NJPW to take part in the Super J-Cup, defeating AJPW's Yuma Aoyagi in his first round match.[59] On August 21, Taichi defeated Jushin Thunder Liger in the second round of the tournament, before being eliminated in the semifinals by reigning IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Kushida.[60]

Personal life

Maki is married to retired professional wrestler Ofune and has two children.[45][61]

In wrestling

Taichi in June 2011

Championships and accomplishments

  • PWI ranked him #337 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2016[71]
  • Super J-Cup Qualifying League (2016)[58]

Luchas de Apuestas record

Winner (wager) Loser (wager) Location Event Date Notes
Máximo (hair) Taichi (hair) Mexico City, Mexico 2010 Sin Salida June 6, 2010 [13]
Taiji Ishimori (hair) Taichi (title) Tokyo, Japan Destiny 2015 December 23, 2015 [72]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 タイチ. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Gutiérrez, Aan (February 17, 2010). "Taichi talento nato de la NJPW" (in Spanish). Fuego en el Ring. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Cagematch profile". Cagematch. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  4. ↑ Csonka, Larry (2004-05-30). "Best Damn TNA Recap 05.26.04: World X Cup Edition". 411Mania. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  5. ↑ Csonka, Larry (2008-05-26). "TNA World X-Cup Update". 411Mania. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  6. ↑ Csonka, Larry (2008-07-13). "411's TNA Victory Road Report 7.13.08". 411Mania. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  7. 1 2 "Puroresu Central profile". Puroresu Central. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  8. ↑ "Young warriors head overseas, ex-NOAH stars on 1/31, Chono absent". Strong Style Spirit. 2010-01-19. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  9. ↑ Rivera, Manuel (February 20, 2010). "Resultados Arena México (19 de febrero 2010): Con ayuda de Sombra, Volador Jr. recupera el cinturón robado por Místico". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). Retrieved February 21, 2010.
  10. 1 2 Velazquez, Israel (May 7, 2010). "Resultados Arena México (7 de mayo 2010): ¡Tanahashi, Taichi y Okumura, nuevos Campeones de Tríos CMLL!". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  11. ↑ Rivera, Manuel (May 21, 2010). "Resultados Arena México (21 mayo 2010): ¡Sombra, La Máscara y Máscara Dorada, nuevos campeones!". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  12. ↑ Cantú, Héctor (May 21, 2010). "La Ola Amarillo inundó Yahoo! México" (in Spanish). Yahoo! Mexico Deportes. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  13. 1 2 Velazquez, Israel (June 6, 2010). "CMLL -Arena México (Resultados Domingo 06 junio 2010)- Taichi pelón y Sin Salida". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). Retrieved June 7, 2010.
  14. ↑ "(Results) New Japan, 12/11/10 & Liger wins another title in USA". Strong Style Spirit. December 11, 2010. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  15. ↑ "12/16, 12/17, 12/18 & 12/26 full cards". Strong Style Spirit. December 13, 2010. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  16. 1 2 "(Results) NEVER.6 Part II, 4/8/11". Strong Style Spirit. April 8, 2011. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  17. ↑ "(Results) New Japan, 5/3/11". Strong Style Spirit. May 3, 2011. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
  18. ↑ "(Results) New Japan, 6/8/11". Strong Style Spirit. June 8, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2011.
  19. ↑ "(Results) New Japan, 9/11/11". Strong Style Spirit. September 11, 2011. Retrieved December 9, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Dominion 6.16". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  21. ↑ "【負けたら鈴木軍追放!?】8月22日K-Dojo 新宿Faceで、Taka vs タイチがホントに決定!!". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). August 8, 2012. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  22. ↑ "「おまえら何やってんの？」タイチvsTakaの鈴木軍追放マッチは、"鈴木みのる預かり"でまさかの無効試合!!". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
  23. ↑ 鈴木軍のタイチがメキシコ入り。しかし......。. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). September 6, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
  24. ↑ Salazar López, Alexis A. (September 8, 2012). "Viernes 7 de Septiembre '12". Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (in Spanish). Archived from the original on September 8, 2012. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
  25. ↑ "【CMLL】棚橋メキシコ遠征最終戦は、日本人タッグチームが勝利！". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). September 9, 2012. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  26. ↑ "Takaみちのく20周年記念大会で"鈴木軍対決"が実現!! Takaは外道とも激突!!". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). October 14, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  27. ↑ 【対戦カード変更のお知らせ】タイチ選手が交通事故で負傷欠場、ヒロ・トウナイ選手が代打出場. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). January 29, 2013. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  28. 1 2 "Road to レスリングどんたく 2013". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved May 7, 2013.
  29. 1 2 "Road to レスリングどんたく 2013". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved May 7, 2013.
  30. 1 2 3 "Best of the Super Jr. XX". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  31. ↑ "Best of the Super Jr. XX". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  32. ↑ "Best of the Super Jr. XX". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  33. ↑ "Best of the Super Jr. XX". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  34. ↑ "吉野家Presents Kizuna Road 2013". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  35. ↑ Namako, Jason (July 20, 2013). "7/20 NJPW iPPV Results: Akita, Japan (Devitt vs. Okada)". WrestleView. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  36. ↑ Salazar López, Alexis A. (July 27, 2013). "Resultados Arena México Viernes 26 de Julio '13". Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (in Spanish). Archived from the original on July 27, 2013. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
  37. ↑ "タイチがメキシコ・CMLLに再上陸!! いきなりメインに登場!!　マキシモとの抗争再燃か!?". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). July 29, 2013. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
  38. ↑ "Destruction". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  39. ↑ "アレックス・シェリーが負傷欠場、10月14日両国大会のIWGPジュニアタッグはTaka&タイチが挑戦へ!!". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). October 7, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  40. 1 2 "King of Pro-Wrestling". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  41. ↑ "Taka&タイチが自主興行でジュニアタッグ王座防衛！ 次の防衛戦の場所はなんと会場規模200人の北千住。相手はヤングライオンを指名！". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). November 1, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  42. ↑ "Power Struggle". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved November 9, 2013.
  43. ↑ 新日が不倫トラブルのレスラー処分へ　タイチ「このまま引退したい」. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). May 29, 2014. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  44. ↑ 【新日本プロレスリングからのお知らせ】. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). May 28, 2014. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  45. 1 2 不倫騒動のタイチに新日が出場停止も考慮. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 31, 2014.
  46. ↑ "Best of the Super Jr.XXI". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  47. ↑ 【お知らせ】アレックス・シェリー選手が負傷、代々木大会を欠場へ. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  48. ↑ "Best of the Super Jr.XXI". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  49. ↑ 菅林直樹会長が、タイチ選手の処分を発表. New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). June 9, 2014. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  50. ↑ Caldwell, James (June 9, 2014). "NJPW news: New Japan suspends Jr. Hvt., announces full line-up for "Dominion" featuring big U.S. stars". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  51. ↑ Caldwell, James (August 10, 2014). "Caldwell's New Japan G1 Climax finals results 8/10: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of Okada vs. Nakamura tournament finals, Styles vs. Tanahashi, Jeff Jarrett, ROH tag champs, more". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  52. ↑ "Road to Destruction". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  53. ↑ "Destruction in Okayama". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved September 23, 2014.
  54. ↑ "Power Struggle". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved 2014-11-08.
  55. ↑ "衝撃! なんと鈴木軍フルメンバーがノアのリングを占拠!　みのるが宣戦布告!　小島はGHCに手が届かず......丸藤の前に轟沈!【1.10ノア結果】". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). 2015-01-11. Retrieved 2015-03-15.
  56. 1 2 "Great Voyage 2015 in Tokyo". Pro Wrestling Noah (in Japanese). Retrieved 2015-03-15.
  57. ↑ "Destiny 2015". Pro Wrestling Noah (in Japanese). Retrieved 2015-12-23.
  58. 1 2 Taka&タイチ興行 in 新木場. Kaientai Dojo (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-06-24.
  59. ↑ "Super J-Cup 2016". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-07-20.
  60. ↑ "Super J-Cup 2016". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-08-21.
  61. ↑ 浮気の代償は大きかった！ 新日本プロレスのタイチが不倫相手との騒動で処分へ. Excite (in Japanese). May 30, 2014. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  62. ↑ "NJPW 40th anniversary Tour Best of the Super Jr. XIX ～The door to the glory～". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  63. ↑ "NJPW 40th anniversary Tour Best of the Super Jr. XIX ～The door to the glory～". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  64. ↑ "NJPW 40ｔｈ anniversary Tour Road to Power Struggle". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  65. ↑ "NJPW 40ｔｈ anniversary Tour Road to Power Struggle". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  66. ↑ "Road to Destruction". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  67. ↑ "World Tag League 2013". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  68. ↑ "World Tag League 2014". New Japan Pro Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  69. ↑ "The Second Navig. 2015". Pro Wrestling Noah (in Japanese). Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  70. ↑ http://www.wrestlingdata.com/index.php?befehl=turniere&turnier=350
  71. ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2016". The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  72. ↑ Pro Wrestling Noah (December 23, 2015). "【プロレスリング・ノア 旗揚げ15周年記念大会】" (in Japanese).

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