Shoichi Funaki (船木 勝一, Funaki Shoichi?) (born August 24, 1968) is a Japanese/American professional wrestler best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Hardcore Champion.
Funaki started as a shoot style wrestler in Yoshiaki Fujiwara's Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi promotion and moved to its successor promotion, Battlarts. He later found the lucha libre style more to his liking, so he moved to the Great Sasuke's promotion, Michinoku Pro Wrestling. In that promotion, he joined with Taka Michinoku, Dick Togo, Men's Teioh and Shiryu in the Kai En Tai stable. Funaki also wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Association (UWA) where he won the UWA World Middleweight Championship from El Pantera on March 19, 1997, in Japan.
In March 1998, Funaki, along with Teioh and Togo, joined the World Wrestling Federation. Initially, they feuded with Taka Michinoku and defeated him and his partner Justin Bradshaw in a 3-on-2 handicap match at Over the Edge: In Your House. They lost to Michinoku and The Headbangers at King of the Ring 1998 in a six-man tag team match.
Sho may refer to:
Shō may refer to:
SHO may refer to:
Peter Alan Gruner, Jr. (born May 11, 1974) is an American professional wrestler, trainer, and wrestling producer, better known by his ring name Billy Kidman. Kidman is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and his current workplace of the WWE throughout the late 1990s, early to late 2000s, and now into the early 2010s. He trained the likes of Wade Barrett in Florida Championship Wrestling.
He joined World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and ultimately gained fame as a key member of several strong wrestling factions. In addition to being a member of Raven's Flock, he also was a member of the Filthy Animals and later New Blood. As a member of these factions, Gruner participated in memorable rivalries with top WCW names, including Hulk Hogan, Jeff Jarrett, and Rey Mysterio. Kidman wrestled for WCW for many years and won tag team gold with partner and real life friend Mysterio. After leaving the group, he won the WCW Cruiserweight Championship three times. Gruner also met his now ex-wife Torrie Wilson while the two were working in WCW.
Shigeki Sato (佐藤 茂樹, Sato Shigeki?) (born August 17, 1969) is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Dick Togo (ディック 東郷?).
Sato has performed for numerous Japanese promotions as well as American promotions such as Extreme Championship Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and Ring of Honor. While in Michinoku Pro he formed a stable called Kaientai DX with Taka Michinoku, Funaki, Men's Teioh and Shiryu.
He was briefly a member of the bWo in Extreme Championship Wrestling. Throughout his career, Togo has been a part of several stables in the Japanese independent circuit: the original "Kaientai" in Michinoku Pro Wrestling with Taka, Shiryu, and; "LOV (Legion of Violence)" in Osaka Pro Wrestling, with Black Buffalo and Daioh Quallt (Masaru Seno), the "Far East Connection" with Gedo, Jado, Masao Orihara, and Ikuto Hidaka as a freelancer stable; and now the "Super Crew", with Hayate, Tsubo Genjin, Nobutaka Moribe and Osamu Inoue.
In early 2011 Togo announced the start of his retirement tour as part of which he returned to the United States in April to take part in Chikara's 2011 King of Trios tournament, where he would team with Great Sasuke and Jinsei Shinzaki as Team Michinoku Pro. On April 15, Team Michinoku Pro defeated Team Minnesota (1-2-3 Kid, Arik Cannon and Darin Corbin) in their first round match and followed that up by defeating Jigsaw, Manami Toyota and Mike Quackenbush in the following day's quarterfinals. On April 17, Team Michinoku Pro was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinal stage by F.I.S.T. (Chuck Taylor, Icarus and Johnny Gargano).
Daniel Christopher Covell (born March 24, 1971) is an American professional wrestler, best known in the United States by his ring name "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels. He is also known for performing under the ring name Curry Man. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he is currently one half of the TNA World Tag Team Champions, while also working for several independent promotions. He has also worked with Ring of Honor (ROH) in the past, and between TNA and ROH has won 14 total championships, nine of which being tag team titles (seven in TNA, two in ROH).
He is known as The King of Indies for his work with independent promotions all over the world, including Frontier Wrestling Alliance (FWA), International Wrestling Cartel (IWC), and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG).
Daniels began his professional wrestling career at Windy City Pro Wrestling in Chicago during the early 1990s. In 2000, he tagged in the World Wrestling Federation with Aaron Aguilera as "Dos" one half of Los Conquistadores. He also challenged Taka Michinoku for the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship in a losing effort in his Fallen Angel gimmick on WWF Shotgun Saturday Night. He also wrestled for hardcore wrestling promotions XPW and ECW.