Hisako Uno Sasaki is a former professional wrestler better known as Akira Hokuto. She is married to wrestler Kensuke Sasaki. She was an incredibly tough wrestler, sustaining several severe injuries during her career. She is considered by some to be the best female wrestler in the history of All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling never to have won the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Born Hisako Uno, Sasaki became a professional wrestler in the wake of the enormous popularity of tag team the Crush Gals (Chigusa Nagayo and Lioness Asuka). Debuting for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) shortly before her eighteenth birthday, Sasaki immediately stood out from the crowd, winning AJW's Rookie of the Year award for 1985. The next year, she won the AJW Junior Championship, and participated in AJW's Match of the Year, paired with Yukari Omari in a losing effort against Chigusa Nagayo and Yumiko Hotta in the final of the annual Tag League Tournament.
In 1987, her star still rising, Sasaki won the AJW's top tag team belt, the WWWA World Tag Team Championship paired with Yumiko Hotta. Twelve days later, however, the two lost the titles to the Red Typhoons (Kazue Nagahori and Yumi Ogura) in a two out of three falls match. During the finish of the second fall, Sasaki took a tombstone piledriver off the top rope and broke her neck. Incredibly, she wrestled the entirety of the third fall holding her head in place with her hands. This gained Sasaki a reputation for toughness.
After a year of recovery, Sasaki returned with a new persona. She had bleached her hair blonde, and now called herself Akira Hokuto, after popular wrestler Akira Maeda. Teaming with Suzuka Minami as the Marine Wolves, she won the WWWA Tag Team belts twice more.
In 1990, Sasaki was booked to win the Japan Grand Prix, AJW's annual tournament to determine the number one contender to the top singles belt, the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship. Tragically, she once again suffered a severe injury. During a Grand Prix match against Manami Toyota, Sasaki performed a plancha and crashed her knee into the ringside metal barrier. She tore open her knee, and was rendered unable to walk; nevertheless, she once again exhibited her famous toughness. Crying, she tied a bandage around her leg, pulled herself back into the ring, and attempted to continue the match. It was clearly impossible, however, and she was removed from the tournament.
Sasaki returned to singles competition during the early 1990s. She won the All Pacific Championship in 1991 and 1992, and sustained many more injuries. She earned the nickname 'the Mummy' since she so often came to the ring wrapped in bandages. In 1993 she was granted another shot at the WWWA Championship, against champion Aja Kong on October 9. Unfortunately, Sasaki was again injured in August of that year, and requested that the match be made a non-title match, since she felt wrestling in her injured state would insult the prestige of the belt.
Later that year, having married Mexican wrestler Máscara Magica, Sasaki moved to Mexico. She continued her career in her new home, adopting the persona Reina Jubuki. On July 30, 1994, she defeated La Diabolica for the CMLL World Women's Championship, and carried it for over two years. Later that year, having divorced her first husband and returned to Japan, she defeated Aja Kong in the final of the interpromotional V*Top Woman Tournament, an event which drew a gate of 42,500 to the Tokyo Dome.
In November, 1995, Sasaki participated in WCW's World War 3 pay-per-view event. She teamed with Bull Nakano and defeated the team of Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki. A year later, she competed in a tournament to crown the first WCW Women's Champion. She defeated Madusa Miceli in the final on December 29, 1996 in Nashville, Tennessee. She vacated the belt on September 8, 1997 due to injury and pregnancy.
In 1996, she left AJW and joined Chigusa Nagayo's new promotion, GAEA Japan, winning their AAAW Tag Team Championship in 2000. Also in 2000 she was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in recognition of her skill and contributions.
For her retirement match on April 7, 2002, Sasaki teamed up with Meiko Satomura to face Ayako Hamada and Chigusa Nagayo. Sasaki scored the pin on Hamada with the Northern Lights Bomb. In the post-match retirement ceremony, some of Sasaki's colleagues, including Toshie Uematsu and Aja Kong entered the ring, gave her flowers, hugged her, and bowed to her. She even slapped a few of them, including Satomura, and Sakura Hirota (Slapping is considered a way to transfer part of her fighting spirit). This was followed by a ten-gong salute before Sasaki was showered with streamers. She then walked up the walkway where she was met by husband, Kensuke Sasaki, and their son.
technorati tags: wrestling ,pro wrestling,wrestling news,woman wrestling,female wrestling,japanese wrestling
Born Hisako Uno, Sasaki became a professional wrestler in the wake of the enormous popularity of tag team the Crush Gals (Chigusa Nagayo and Lioness Asuka). Debuting for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) shortly before her eighteenth birthday, Sasaki immediately stood out from the crowd, winning AJW's Rookie of the Year award for 1985. The next year, she won the AJW Junior Championship, and participated in AJW's Match of the Year, paired with Yukari Omari in a losing effort against Chigusa Nagayo and Yumiko Hotta in the final of the annual Tag League Tournament.
In 1987, her star still rising, Sasaki won the AJW's top tag team belt, the WWWA World Tag Team Championship paired with Yumiko Hotta. Twelve days later, however, the two lost the titles to the Red Typhoons (Kazue Nagahori and Yumi Ogura) in a two out of three falls match. During the finish of the second fall, Sasaki took a tombstone piledriver off the top rope and broke her neck. Incredibly, she wrestled the entirety of the third fall holding her head in place with her hands. This gained Sasaki a reputation for toughness.
After a year of recovery, Sasaki returned with a new persona. She had bleached her hair blonde, and now called herself Akira Hokuto, after popular wrestler Akira Maeda. Teaming with Suzuka Minami as the Marine Wolves, she won the WWWA Tag Team belts twice more.
In 1990, Sasaki was booked to win the Japan Grand Prix, AJW's annual tournament to determine the number one contender to the top singles belt, the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship. Tragically, she once again suffered a severe injury. During a Grand Prix match against Manami Toyota, Sasaki performed a plancha and crashed her knee into the ringside metal barrier. She tore open her knee, and was rendered unable to walk; nevertheless, she once again exhibited her famous toughness. Crying, she tied a bandage around her leg, pulled herself back into the ring, and attempted to continue the match. It was clearly impossible, however, and she was removed from the tournament.
Sasaki returned to singles competition during the early 1990s. She won the All Pacific Championship in 1991 and 1992, and sustained many more injuries. She earned the nickname 'the Mummy' since she so often came to the ring wrapped in bandages. In 1993 she was granted another shot at the WWWA Championship, against champion Aja Kong on October 9. Unfortunately, Sasaki was again injured in August of that year, and requested that the match be made a non-title match, since she felt wrestling in her injured state would insult the prestige of the belt.
Later that year, having married Mexican wrestler Máscara Magica, Sasaki moved to Mexico. She continued her career in her new home, adopting the persona Reina Jubuki. On July 30, 1994, she defeated La Diabolica for the CMLL World Women's Championship, and carried it for over two years. Later that year, having divorced her first husband and returned to Japan, she defeated Aja Kong in the final of the interpromotional V*Top Woman Tournament, an event which drew a gate of 42,500 to the Tokyo Dome.
In November, 1995, Sasaki participated in WCW's World War 3 pay-per-view event. She teamed with Bull Nakano and defeated the team of Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki. A year later, she competed in a tournament to crown the first WCW Women's Champion. She defeated Madusa Miceli in the final on December 29, 1996 in Nashville, Tennessee. She vacated the belt on September 8, 1997 due to injury and pregnancy.
In 1996, she left AJW and joined Chigusa Nagayo's new promotion, GAEA Japan, winning their AAAW Tag Team Championship in 2000. Also in 2000 she was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in recognition of her skill and contributions.
For her retirement match on April 7, 2002, Sasaki teamed up with Meiko Satomura to face Ayako Hamada and Chigusa Nagayo. Sasaki scored the pin on Hamada with the Northern Lights Bomb. In the post-match retirement ceremony, some of Sasaki's colleagues, including Toshie Uematsu and Aja Kong entered the ring, gave her flowers, hugged her, and bowed to her. She even slapped a few of them, including Satomura, and Sakura Hirota (Slapping is considered a way to transfer part of her fighting spirit). This was followed by a ten-gong salute before Sasaki was showered with streamers. She then walked up the walkway where she was met by husband, Kensuke Sasaki, and their son.
technorati tags: wrestling ,pro wrestling,wrestling news,woman wrestling,female wrestling,japanese wrestling
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