Tag: pacific rim
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Pacific Rim: New Japan 2022, new release opportunities
Image: NJPW Pacific Rim is back. On this episode, Fumi Saito and I talk about NJPW’s plans for the Tokyo Dome. 2022 is also their 50th anniversary so they are bringing back The Golden Series. Fumi discusses the history and whether we might see Antonio Inoki make an appearance in New Japan for the first time in many years. There’s…
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Pacific Rim: Wrestle Grand Slam, Jake Lee, Debbie Malenko, more
Pacific Rim is back! Fumi Saito gives Jim Valley his firsthand account of NJPW Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome, the matches, the results, crowd reaction, and what non-COVID related situation could affect the upcoming Wrestle Kingdom in Tokyo Dome event in 2022. In addition, Fumi offers his thoughts on Shingo Takagi as NJPW World Heavyweight Champion,…
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Pacific Rim: Hana Kimura tribute show thoughts, Will Ospreay situation
Pacific Rim is back as Fumi Saito and I talk about being him in attendance for the Hana Kimura Memorial ‘Matane’ card at Korakuen Hall: the participants, their relationships with either Hana or Kyoko Kimura, the different companies, how the event came together and if could become an annual event. We also talk about Will Ospreay’s…
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Pacific Rim: Looking at the 2020 & 2021 WWE Hall of Fame classes
On a new episode of Pacific Rim, Fumi Saito and I look at the 2020 and 2021 inductees of the WWE Hall of Fame and ttalk about the careers of JBL, Kane, Jushin Liger, and more. Even though the WWE Hall of Fame doesn’t have a set criteria to be inducted, both of us see…
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Pacific Rim: Stardom recap, fake Inoki death rumors, New Japan title merger
On a new Pacific Rim, Fumi Saito talks with me about the Stardom All-Star Dream Cinderella card at Nippon Budokan, the false rumor that Antonio Inoki passed away and the famous wrestler who confirmed Inoki is still alive. Additionally, we go over the recent news of the merger of the IWGP and Intercontinental titles in…
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Pacific Rim: Hana Kimura, Hiroshi Tanahashi, New Japan Cup
On a very personal episode of the Pacific Rim Pro Wrestling Podcast, Fumi Saito talks to Jim Valley about his memories of Hana Kimura and his experiences following her tragic passing. Fumi met Hana when she was a seven-year-old kid who went with her mom Kyoko Kimura to the matches. He tells a great story about…
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Pacific Rim: Bridge of Dreams
Pacific Rim is back with Fumi Saito and Jim Valley. With little new wrestling taking place in Japan, Fumi talks about what some companies are doing to produce content, create new revenue streams, and find work for wrestlers. Weekly Pro Wrestling’s 1995 Bridge of Dreams card featuring 13 promotions on one show was recently uploaded to YouTube. Fumi…
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Pacific Rim: 30th anniversary of the Wrestling Summit
On April 13, 1990, the WWF, New Japan, and All Japan Pro Wrestling came together at the Tokyo Dome for an interpromotional card called the Wrestling Summit. It featured Hulk Hogan vs. Stan Hansen, Genichiro Tenryu vs. Randy Savage, and Bret Hart vs. Tiger Mask (Mitsuharu Misawa) in a matchup of future legends. My co-host Fumi Saito not…
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Pacific Rim: Uncertainty, empty arenas and the Island Death Match
From Seattle to Tokyo, this week the Pacific Rim Pro Wrestling Podcast updates you on how Fumi Saito and Kiki are coping with social distancing. Believe it or not, he’s watching even more wrestling. Fumi has some interesting thoughts on the Fujita-Shiozaki match and its 30-minute staredown. Rather than see the empty venue as a negative, they looked…
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FREE SHOW! Pacific Rim: The life and career of Kazuo Sakurada
On this week’s Pacific Rim, Fumi Saito and I bring you a free episode entirely dedicated to the life and career of Kazuo Sakurada, also known as Japanese wrestler Kendo Nagasaki. Fumi grew up watching Sakurada and spent time with him years ago in Japan and Florida. While you may know just the basics about…
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WOR/Pacific Rim: AEW/NJPW, AJPW, Raw, more
It’s a special combined WOR/Pacific Rim from Tokyo with Dave Meltzer, Fumi Saito, and Jim Valley covering the latest news, including what’s going on in the relationship with AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling. Thoughts on how it can help both companies with big shows, but also help AEW’s young talent, Kenny Omega, and more. We watched AEW Dynamite on…
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Pacific Rim: Fumi’s Killer New Year’s Eve and birthday
Happy New Year from Tokyo. Spend New Year’s Eve and his New Year’s Day birthday with Fumi Saito as he and Jim Valley start the night at Killer Khan’s restaurant and wrap up around 2 a.m. in Shinjuku. Killer Khan is most famous in the United States for “breaking the ankle” of Andre the Giant, wrestling in Mid…
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Pacific Rim: Stardom at Wrestle Kingdom 14, the decade in review
It’s the last Pacific Rim of 2019 and the last before Fumi Saito, Dave Meltzer, and I begin our wrestling coverage from Tokyo next week. In this episode, Fumi gives his thoughts on Stardom’s dark match at Wrestle Kingdom 14 and the retirements of Hazuki and Kagetsu. In addition, he has a really interesting prediction for…
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Pacific Rim: Wrestling Week advice, Stardom, Muta-Aldis
Wrestle Kingdom 14 is one month away. For the first time, New Japan Pro Wrestling’s biggest show is two nights of action. On this episode of Pacific Rim, Fumi Saito offers his advice for fans visiting Tokyo during Wrestling Week. Fumi spotlights some cards, locations, stores, and restaurants to check out. Ideas include All Japan at Korakuen, Toudoukan pro wrestling store,…
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FREE SHOW: Pacific Rim with Chris Jericho
It’s a very special free edition of Pacific Rim with Fumi Saito’s longtime friend Chris Jericho. They’ve known each other since Chris’ first tour of Japan for Frontier Martial Arts in 1991. Fumi and Jericho share stories of Chris’ early tours in Japan, what it was like, what’s different now, and what was challenging in days before instant communication. In…
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Pacific Rim: Jumping Bomb Angels, Stardom, more
Pacific Rim is back with a ton of news and events to cover. Fumi Saito and Jim Valley talk about the Jumping Bomb Angels reuniting for a special interview and a look at their history in WWE and AJW. Then, we have an in-depth conversation on Stardom: the chances of Io Shirai and Kairi Sane returning after…
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Pacific Rim: Dave Meltzer, Fumi Saito & Jim Valley on Stardom, WWE, the battle in Japan
Image: Stardom On this very special episode of Pacific Rim, Fumi Saito, Dave Meltzer, and I explain how the purchase of Stardom, a small Japanese company, could end up being a very influential move in the wrestling business. You don’t need to be a hardcore joshi fan to get something out of this show. There’s…
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Pacific Rim: New Japan vs. UWFI, 24 years later
October 9th is a very special anniversary in Japanese pro wrestling history: the date of the very famous 1995 NJPW vs UWFI card in the Tokyo Dome headlined by Keiji Muto vs. Nobuhiko Takada. On this week’s Pacific Rim, wrestling journalist and historian Fumi Saito talks about the history behind one of the most famous…
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Pacific Rim: The Japanese wrestling significance of September 30th
Do you know the significance of September 30th in Japanese wrestling history? You will after listening to this episode of the Pacific Rim Pro Wrestling Podcast with myself and wrestling journalist and historian Fumi Saito. Also on the show: – We cover the Japanese career and history of the late Rick Bognar. – We talk…
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Pacific Rim: Kishin Liger, Hana Kimura, The Steiner Bros in Japan
Another packed episode of Pacific Rim. We talk about the reemergence of Kishin Liger, his history, and if Fumi thinks will lead to a Suzuki-Liger match at Wrestle Kingdom in the Tokyo Dome. With Ren Narita and Shota Umino heading out of Japan, we discuss the history of excursions for Young Lions in puroresu, what happens when they…