Friday, March 25, 2011
Joshi Puroresu in the USA
But thanks to Shimmer Women Athletes, ROH and Chikara, we are actually getting to see female Japanese wrestlers here in the US in action.
If you can make it to the Berwyn Eagles Club in Berwyn, Illinois (just outside Chicago), on Saturday and Sunday, March 26th and 27th, 2011 you'll get to see Ayako Hamada, Hiroyo Matsumoto, Misaki Ohata, Ayumi Kurihara and Tomoka Nakagawa
More info here: http://shimmerwrestling.blogspot.com/
If you can get to Ring of Honor's "Honor Takes Center Stage" on April 2nd, 2011 at the Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, you will get to see Hiroyo Matsumoto, Ayumi Kurihara and Tomoka Nakagawa there as well.
More info here: http://www.rohwrestling.com/news/atlanta-ga-april-2nd/
And on April 15,16 and 17th, if you can get to The Asylum Arena in South Philadelphia, Pennslyvania, you'll get to see joshi legend Manami Toyota team up with Mike Quakenbush and Jigsaw at Chikara's King of Trios 2011 tournament.
More info here: http://www.chikarapro.com/events.php
I havent said anything about the tragedy in Japan here, but I have been praying for the people there.
I am also glad to hear that just about all the wrestlers I have spoken with in the past are okay.
The hard times arent over in Japan yet people.
If you can help out, here's the Red Cross website:
https://american.redcross.org/
And if you cant afford it (I know times are tough), there's no price tag on prayers, positive energy and well wishes.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Manami Toyota Wrestling Kyoko Inoue
This is a really high quality video, and it's part 1 of 2.
You know...I know both Manami and Kyoko are highly skilled athletes, but when I saw Manami going to the ring at the beginning of the video, the only thing I could thing was "My God...her hair is beautiful!"
Anyway, both of these women are Joshi legends.
Manami made her pro wrestling debut in 1987...
and Kyoko debuted the next year in 1988.
This match is a sequel to Manami and Kyoko's match in 1995, which won the Wrestling Observer Match of the Year.
And this match takes off like a rocket with a missed dropkick, a giant swing and a kiwi roll all in rapid succession.
Coming up from that, they go into the classic test of strength...
Which leads into Kyoko unleashing an array of submission moves on Manami...


Here is part one of this amazing match...
To see part two, go to DoubleMiz's channel and check it out, and subscribe while you're there.
Manami Toyota Wrestling Kyoko Inoue, posted to http://joshipuroresu.blogspot.com/ on November 13th, 2010
Monday, August 3, 2009
Manami Toyota Takes on Everybody!
This is one of the most amazing joshi puroresu matches I have ever seen.
It was posted on YouTube by nagashimark with credits to DoubleMiz and Uncle Oni.
In this match, Manami Toyota takes on every girl on the AJW roster.
Yes, that's right, every girl on the AJW roster.
Some of the wrestlers she takes on are Takako Inoue, Aja Kong, Mima Shimoda and Mariko Yoshida.
Can you see a WWE Diva or TNA Knockout doing this?
Okay, maybe Beth Phoenix or Awesome Kong.
This is only part one of the match, and I would love to know the set up behind this.
Did Manami do something wrong?
Anyway, here is part one....
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Sonoko Kato vs. Manami Toyota

I think this is Sonoko Kato trying to lock in a crippler crossface on Manami Toyota.
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Thursday, September 27, 2007
Miho Wakiwaza wrestling Manami Toyota in Japan
Here's a photo of the legendary Manami Toyota corner kicking the crap outta Miho Wakiwaza.
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Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Toshio Yamada
Japanese female wrestler Manami Toyota applying a bridging supplex pin to Toshio Yamada.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Momoe Takahashi

Manami Toyota wrestling Momoe Takahashi
Manami Toyota delivering a brutal dropkick to Momoe Takahashi while she's hung over the ropes.
Judging from her position when the dropkick hit, I imagine she became " Air Takahashi" afterwards.
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Monday, August 20, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Kayo Noumi, part 2

The wily ring veteran Manami Toyota continues to torture Kayo Noumi.
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Thursday, August 16, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Kayo Noumi


Heres a couple of pictures of Manami Toyota wrestling Kayo Noumi.
It looks like the ring veteran has Kayo pretty well tied up here.
technorati tags:pro wrestling rumors pro wrestling news pro wrestling pro wrestling history all japan pro wrestling women pro wrestling sports wrestling wrestling move professional wrestling wrestling wrestlers wrestling moves wrestling wrestling news japanese wrestling women's wrestling
Monday, August 13, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Dynamite Kansai
Here's a photo of Manami Toyota wrestling Dynamite Kansai in Japan.
I think thats an octopus hold ( manji-gatame ) Manami has on Dynamite.
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Sunday, August 12, 2007
More Manami Toyota wrestling Ayako Hamada in Japan.
Heres another photo of Manami Toyota wrestling Ayako Hamada.
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Saturday, August 11, 2007
Manami Toyota wrestling Ayako Hamada in Japan


Here's a couple of photos of Manami Toyota wrestling Ayako Hamada in Japan.
It looks like Manami has her pretty well tied up here.
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Thursday, July 26, 2007
Hikari Fukuoka wrestling Manami Toyota

I'm pretty sure this is Hikari Fukuoka applying a surfboard to Manami Toyota.
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Monday, June 11, 2007
Manami Toyota, part 2

Soon after this match the two stars once again teamed up to win their first WWWA World Tag Team Championship in March 1992, defeating the evil Jungle Jack (Aja Kong & Bison Kimura) in Tokyo. On November 26, at AJW’s Dreamrush show Toyota and Yamada defended their WWWA Tag Team titles against Dynamite Kansai and Mayumi Ozaki in a legendary 2/3 Falls match, considered one of the best wrestling matches ever, and rated 5 Stars by Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
In April of that year Toyota furthered her singles career by defeating rival Kyoko Inoue on April 25 in Yokohama for the IWA Singles Championship. Toyota defended that title eight times over the course of three years, before losing it to Reggie Bennett on May 15, 1995.
At Dreamslam II, on April 11, 1993 Toyota and Yamada fought a rematch against JWP Project's Kansai and Ozaki in yet another highly-rated 2/3 Falls encounter. This time, however, Toyota and Yamada were on the losing side, and Kansai and Ozaki got their revenge. The feud concluded at AJW’s St. Battle Final event, on December 6, 1993, where Toyota and Yamada regained their tag titles.
On August 24, 1994 Toyota once again squared off against Kyoko Inoue, and defeated her to unify the IWA and All Pacific Singles Championships. Toyota’s run with the two titles was not to last long. On October 9, 1994, Inoue gained a measure of revenge against Toyota, as Kyoko and her partner Takako Inoue (no relation) won the WWWA Tag Team Championship from Toyota and Yamada. Toyota then vacated her All Pacific Championship, prior to her first WWWA Heavyweight Championship match against the monstrous Aja Kong at AJW’s Queendom III show, on March 26, 1995. The match saw Toyota reach the summit of AJW when she won and became the 39th WWWA Champion.
On May 7, Toyota defended her crown against arch-rival Kyoko Inoue at the Korakuen Hall, where the two fought to a 60 minute time limit draw.Despite piledrivers on the floor, German suplexes off the top rope, and multiple finishers, neither combatant was able to secure outright victory. Nonetheless, Toyota retained, and the match was voted Match of the Year for 1995 in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
The following month, Toyota lost the WWWA Championship to former champion Aja Kong, on June 27.
Toyota soon recovered from the loss. In 1995, she won the AJW Grand Prix tournament, securing her position as the number one contender for the WWWA Championship. Before she received her title opportunity, she faced the legendary Akira Hokuto at AJW's Destiny show on September 2, 1995. On December 4, she finally received her title shot, and defeated then-champion Dynamite Kansai to become a two-time world champion.
Over the next 12 months Toyota made three successful defenses of her WWWA title. In December of 1996 she came up against long term rival Kyoko Inoue and lost in a match that saw the All Pacific and IWA Women's World titles unified with the WWWA Title.
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Manami Toyota, part 1

Manami Toyota is a professional wrestler best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) wrestling promotion. Following AJW's closure she has continued to work in other joshi promotions such as GAEA and NEO. Toyota is a member of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame.
Manami was born March 2, 1971 in Masuda, Shimane.She was trained by Jaguar Yokota.
Manami Toyota made her professional wrestling debut on August 5, 1987, in a singles match against Sachiko Nakamura. Her big break came in her second year, on the first Wrestlemarinpiad show from Yokohama Arena, on May 6, 1989. Teamed with Mima Shimoda, she defeated Etsuko Mita and Toshiyo Yamada in a lightning-paced match that nearly stole the card from the more established veterans. The bout had all the basic ingredients that made Toyota a star, including flashy moves, fast and frequent tags, double-team moves, and a long series of dramatic near falls. When the bout was released as part of a four-hour commercial tape, Toyota became recognized as a wrestler to watch.
Toyota won her first title on November 18, 1989 in Matsuda, when she defeated Mika Takahashi for the AJW Championship. She defended the title three times, including one defense against her future rival Kyoko Inoue (on August 1, 1990), before vacating it on September 1, 1990. The following month (October 7 in Tokyo) she challenged Bison Kimura for the All Pacific Championship and emerged victorious. However she only managed to defend the title once before losing to Suzuka Minami on March 17, 1991.
Parallel to this success ran Toyota’s famous feud with future tag-team partner Toshiyo Yamada. Initially, following Toyota’s success teaming up with Shimoda, the AJW braintrust felt they could well be the new Beauty Pair or Crush Gals, but that was not to be. Toyota's real chemistry came not with Shimoda but with Yamada, whose style was unlike Toyota's and provided more of a contrast. Yamada was a slightly built, short-haired, kicking specialist, who idolized both Chigusa Nagayo and Akira Maeda. Unlike other wrestlers who rely on kicks and submissions, Yamada could also work the rapid-paced matches, and was accomplished at building to near-falls with repeated kick-outs at the last possible moment.
To begin with, however, Toyota and Yamada were opponents rather than partners. Between 1989 and 1991 they wrestled many times, producing bouts that rivaled the quality of the main events that AJW's champions were presenting. At the start of 1992, the two won their first tag team championship when they defeated KAORU and Lady Apache in Tokyo on January 19 for the UWA titles.
However, their singles feud was not yet over, and it reached a climax on August 15, 1992 at Korakuen Hall in a Hair vs. Hair match. The bout was a dramatic one, not least due to what occurred after the match was over. Toyota, even though she had won the match, did not want Yamada to get her head shaved, and had to be forcefully restrained by four prelim girls, who eventually forced her back to the mat. In respect of the match conditions Yamada wanted her head shaved and went ahead with the stipulation.
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Sunday, February 25, 2007
Manami Toyota - Part 2
However, the feud between Manami and Toshiyo Yamada was not yet over.
It reached it's climax on August 15th, 1992 at Korakuen Hall in a Hair vs. Hair match. The bout was a very dramatic one, but what made the event was what occurred after the match. Manami, even though she had won the match, did not want Toshiyo to get her head shaved, and had to be forcefully restrained by four preliminary girls, who eventually forced her back to the mat. In respect of the match conditions Toshiyo wanted her head shaved and went ahead with the stipulation.
Soon after this match the two women once again teamed up to win their first World Women's Wrestling Association (WWWA) World Tag Team Championship in March 1992, defeating "Jungle Jack" (Aja Kong and Bison Kimura) in Tokyo. At AJW’s Dreamrush shown on November 26th, Manami and Toshiyo defended their WWWA Tag Team wrestling titles against Dynamite Kansai and Mayumi Ozaki in a legendary two out of three falls match, which is considered one of the best wrestling matches ever.
In April of 1992 Manami furthered her singles career by defeating Kyoko Inoue on April 25th in Yokohama for the IWA World Women's Championship. Toyota defended that title eight times over the course of the next three years, before losing it to Reggie Bennett in Niigata Prefecture, Japan on May 15th, 1995.
At Dreamslam II, on April 11th, 1993 Manami and Toshiyo fought a rematch against JWP Project's Kansai and Ozaki in yet another highly-rated two out of three falls encounter. This time, however, Manami and Toshiyo were on the losing side, and Kansai and Ozaki got their revenge. The feud concluded at AJW’s St. Battle Final event, on December 6th, 1993, when Manami and Toshiyo regained their tag titles.
On August 24th, 1994 Manami once again squared off against Kyoko Inoue, and defeated her to unify the IWA and All Pacific Singles Championships. Manami’s run with the two titles was not to last very long, because on October 9th, 1994, Inoue gained a measure of revenge against Manami, when Kyoko and her partner Takako Inoue (no relation) won the WWWA Tag Team Championship from Manami and Toshiyo. Manami then vacated her All Pacific Championship, prior to her first WWWA Heavyweight Championship match against the monstrous Aja Kong at AJW’s Queendom III show, on March 26th, 1995. The match saw Manami reach the summit of AJW when she won and became the 39th WWWA Champion.
On May 7th, Manami defended her crown against arch-rival Kyoko Inoue at the Korakuen Hall, where the two fought to a 60 minute time limit draw. Despite piledrivers on the floor, German suplexes off the top rope, and multiple finishers, neither combatant was able to secure outright victory. Nonetheless, Manami retained, and the match was voted Match of the Year for 1995 in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
The following month, Manami lost the WWWA Championship to former champion Aja Kong, on June 27.
Manami Toyota vs Kyoko Inoue (May 7, 1995)
Manami Toyota ,Part 1
Height, 167 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight, 150 lb. (68 kg)
Birthday, March 2, 1971
Hometown, Masuda, Shimane, Japan
Trained By, Jaguar Yokota
Professional Debut, August 5, 1987, vs. Sachiko Nakamura
Real name , Toyota Manami
Manami Toyota is a japanese professional wrestler best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) wrestling promotion. Following AJW's closure she has continued to work in other joshi promotions such as GAEA and NEO. Toyota is a member of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame.
Manami Toyota made her professional wrestling debut on August 5, 1987, in a singles match against Sachiko Nakamura. Her big break came in her second year, on the first Wrestlemarinpiad show from Yokohama Arena, on May 6, 1989. Teamed with Mima Shimoda, she defeated Etsuko Mita and Toshiyo Yamada in a lightning-paced match that nearly stole the card from the more established veterans. The bout had all the basic ingredients that made Toyota a star, including flashy moves, fast and frequent tags, double-team moves, and a long series of dramatic near falls. When the bout was released as part of a four-hour commercial tape, Toyota became recognized as a wrestler to watch.
Toyota won her first title on November 18, 1989 in Matsuda, when she defeated Mika Takahashi for the AJW Championship. She defended the title three times, including one defense against her future rival Kyoko Inoue (on August 1, 1990), before vacating it on September 1, 1990. The following month (October 7 in Tokyo) she challenged Bison Kimura for the All Pacific Championship and emerged victorious. However she only managed to defend the title once before losing to Suzuka Minami on March 17, 1991.
Parallel to this success ran Toyota’s famous feud with future tag-team partner Toshiyo Yamada. Initially, following Toyota’s success teaming up with Shimoda, the AJW braintrust felt they could well be the new Beauty Pair or Crush Gals, but that was not to be. Toyota's real chemistry came not with Shimoda but with Yamada, whose style was unlike Toyota's and provided more of a contrast. Yamada was a slightly built, short-haired, kicking specialist, who idolized both Chigusa Nagayo and Akira Maeda. Unlike other wrestlers who rely on kicks and submissions, Yamada could also work the rapid-paced matches, and was accomplished at building to near-falls with repeated kick-outs at the last possible moment.
To begin with, however, Toyota and Yamada were opponents rather than partners. Between 1989 and 1991 they wrestled many times, producing bouts that rivaled the quality of the main events that AJW's champions were presenting. At the start of 1992, the two won their first tag team championship when they defeated KAORU and Lady Apache in Tokyo on January 19 for the UWA titles.
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Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Manami Toyota - Japanese Women Wrestlers

Wrestler: Manami Toyota
Real name: Manami Toyota
Nicknames: Flying Angel, Manamana
Name History: Manami Toyota (Pro wrestling debut: - )
Trained by: Jaguar Yokota
Born: March 2nd, 1971 in Masuda City, Shimane, Japan
Pro wrestling debut: August 5th, 1987 at Tokyo Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
Height 5'6"/168 cm
Weight 159 lbs/72 kg
Signature wrestling moves: Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex, Dropkick, Rolling Cradle, Manami Roll, Moonsault Press
Titles: AJW All Japan Singles Champion, AJW All Pacific Champion (twice), UWA World Women's Wrestling Tag Team Champion (with Toshiyo Yamada), WWWA World Tag Team Wrestling Champion (three times) (twice with with Toshiyo Yamada, once with Mima Shimoda ), IWA Women's World Champion, WWWA World Singles Champion (four times), JWP Tag Team Champion (with Kaoru Ito), AAAW Singles Champion, AAW Tag Team Champion (with Carlos Amano)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/manamitoyotarules/


