Nickname: "Hot-Tempered Samurai"
Birthplace: Mine, Yamaguchi
Birthdate: June 12, 1980
Theme Music: "Re-Birth"
Weight: 103kg (230lbs)
Height: 182cm (6'0")
Debut: October 10, 2003 (w/ Shinsuke Takahashi & Takeshi Fukuda vs. Hiroyuki Jukodo, Saboru Yomura, Hisaki Kubota & Tango Motoori)
Physical Appearance:
Riki has an athletic, if a bit muscular, body type. His hair is black;
cut short. While being clean shaven for most of his career, Riki has
been sporting a goatee in the last year.
Ring Costume:
Riki wears long black tights, with a unique belt/skirt combination
resembling that of Samurai armor. For accessories, Riki wears white
wrist tape, along with white boots.
Title History:
* WWA National Heavyweight Title (2)
- Hiroaki Nakata (2010/03/27) /Katsumi Gakusha (20/13/05/19)
- Katsumi Gakusha (2013/10/25) / Norihiro Akashi (2015/05/31)
* HEC Tag Team Titles
- (w/ Naoki Fukuda) Seiji Ebisawa & Katsumi Gakusha (2013/05/31) / James Goodwin Jr. & Jon Goodwin (2013/11/08)
Tournament History:
* GRAND PRIX OF CHAMPIONS (DYNAMITE - 2010): Riki Ichiro beat Tatsumichi Akamatsu (14:38) with an inside cradle.
Trademark Moves:
* Texas Clover hold
* Riki Lariat (Powerful lariat inherited by Kazuma Fujita, done with Riki's own style.)
* Northern Light Bomb
* Aramusha (Cross-Armed Northern Light Bomb)
Biography:
Hiroki Ichiro was a stand out in both amateur wrestling and kendo
during his high school days. Ichiro pursued pro-wrestling after
graduating from community college, before ultimately being taken under
the instruction of Kazuma Fujita. In the dojo, Fujita gave Hiroki the
name of "Riki," meaning "Strength" due to his powerful spirit and drive.
Ichiro benefited from training in both Japan and the United States.
Riki was scouted by several American companies while in America, but
Ichiro yearned to return home and find a proper battlefield.
Unfortunately,
it would take Riki several years of wandering the independents before
finding a ring he could call home. In 2007, he joined Kanagawa-based
FREEDOM promotion, which would eventually become Pro-Wrestling DYNAMITE.
Ichiro was a constant threat to any wrestler on the roster. However, it
wouldn't be until the dying days of the company would he ascend to the
top, after winning the WWA National Heavyweight Title from Pro-Wrestling
FURY's Hiroaki Nakata. Ichiro would defend the title until the
company's final show, and is still the holder of the belt to this day.
Upon
the formation of KJPW, Riki Ichiro declared his intentions to join, and
vowed to finally carve a place for himself among the greatest
pro-wrestlers in the world. While sometimes quick to lose his temper, Riki Ichiro an
immensely popular wrestler, and certainly has all of the tools to
accomplish his goal.
