Yoshikazu YAZ
From the eWrestling Encyclopedia.
| Yoshikazu YAZ | |
|---|---|
| [[Image:{{{image}}}|{{{image_width}}}px|Image of Yoshikazu YAZ]] | |
| Statistics | |
| Real name | Yazo Yoshikazu |
| Ring Names | {{{names}}} |
| Height | 6'3" |
| Weight | 213 lbs. |
| Date of birth | January 28, 1979 |
| Place of birth | Nagasaki, Japan |
| Date of death | {{{death_date}}} |
| Place of death | {{{death_place}}} |
| Resides | unknown |
| Billed from | Nagasaki, Japan |
| Trainer | John Yamamoto |
| Current federation(s) | NEOTOKYO |
| Previous federation(s) | Old Line Wrestling (January 2006 - September 2008) |
| Handled by | JeffOLW |
| Win/Loss Record | {{{winloss_record}}} |
| Debut | 1996 |
| Retired | {{{retired}}} |
Yazo Yoshikazu, best known under his gimmick names Yaz Illika and Yoshikazu YAZ, is a Japanese professional wrestler.
Contents |
[edit] Career
[edit] Japan
Yazo Yoshikazu came into wrestling through the Euro-Asian Wrestling Coalition dojo, where he was trained by John Yamamoto, EAWC President and Head Trainer. Although he graduated the training camp with honors, he floundered. His tall, lanky physique was too different from the standard stocky brawlers of the EAWC. He left EAWC and went to smaller independent fed Sapporo Iron, where he was trained by Alex Markham. There he invented the Yaz Illika gimmick, loosely based on a comic book demon-samurai anti-hero. Under a mask and a gimmick he found the success he'd been previously lacking, and he returned to EAWC. He feuded with Paco "Ultra Raptor" Losantio over the Junior Heavyweight Title, and held the belt on two seperate occasions. His rivalry with Ultra Raptor turned into a friendship. Despite the fact that the two fought regularly, they became a part time tag team, representing EAWC in other promotions.
[edit] Old Line Wrestling
When the EAWC obtained a sponsor who disliked junior heavyweight wrestling, the junior heavyweights, excluding Paco Losantio who was holding the Heavyweight Title at the time, were all fired. Paco Losantio was friends with Jeff Andrews, and for various reasons had loaned the Ultra Raptor gimmick to Andrews to great success, enabling Andrews to climb to the top of the wrestling world while disguised as someone else, avoiding the attempted blacklisting he'd received. Andrews and Losantio both attempted to convince Yoshikazu to loan the Yaz Illika gimmick to Kai Scott. Yoshikazu's reluctance to do so turned out to be irrelevant when Scott backed out of the plan. Andrews then invited Yoshikazu to OLW himself.
Working under his Yaz Illika gimmick, Yoshikazu joined the Andrews-lead stable The Unforgiven II, and formed a three-man team with Andrews and Losantio. Although he'd been a face in Japan, he worked heel in OLW, and made a rather good one. He began carrying sais and a garrotte with him to the ring.
When EAWC sued Yoshikazu and Losantio for their gimmicks, Losantio responded by burning Ultra Raptor's mask in an OLW ring and having the live video streamed over the internet. Yoshikazu, however, decided to tweak the gimmick enough to avoid the lawsuit. He renamed to Yoshikazu YAZ, using his last name as a first name and spelling "YAZ" in all caps to denote achievment.
As the Unforgiven II went through a roster shift, with Keep It Real Kid and Avarice forming one faction and Jeff Andrews forming another, YAZ split with Andrews and Losantio, aligning himself with Avarice's side. This stable was soon renamed The Iconoclasm. Losantio left OLW, but YAZ stayed on. He brought in the Kurosawa Sisters, Mariko and Yukio, to replace Losantio and Andrews. This team actually found more success than the previous one, although they never won the OLW Trios Tag Titles. YAZ was promoted to second-in-command of the stable, and began using his sais to inflict a ritual wound on The Iconoclasm's opponents. Despite their heel position, a feud with The Conspiracy, a team of detestable cheater type heels, as well as the hated Untouchables, caused an inadvertent face turn for YAZ and the Kurosawas. A deliberate injury to Yukio's knee inflicted by The Untouchables cemented the turn.
Paco Losantio returned to replace Yukio. He had re-donned the Ultra Raptor mask, but turned the entire look black, and dubbed himself the Black Raptor. The team of YAZ, Black Raptor and Mariko Kurosawa became known as the Black Dragons. Although the team remained in the OLW Undercard, they remained extremely popular with the fans primarily due to their superior in-ring ability.
[edit] After OLW
Yoshikazu YAZ tried a few different feds after OLW closed, but did not last in any of them. He eventually returned to Japan. John Yamamoto, having been ousted from the EAWC, had opened a smaller independent fed called NEOTOKYO. Yoshikazu joined it under his Yoshikazu YAZ gimmick, and remains there as of April 2009.
[edit] In Wrestling
- Finishing and Signature moves
- Trunk lift brainbuster DDT
- Shotei
- Knuckle lash (Whiplash hand strike to the chest)
- Reprisal (Quick Stunner, used as a counter)
- Corner Yakuza kick
- Left Arm Lariat
- Asian Mist
- With The Black Dragons
- Vaulting Curb Stomp
- Tandem missile dropkicks
- Lariat/Sweep Kick combo
- YAZ (or Raptor) back drops Mariko, who then executes a 450 splash
