Erika Shishido
Encyclopedia
is a professional wrestler
, better known by the stage name Aja Kong, and the founder of the ARSION all-women professional wrestling promotion
. Shishido has won several championships in both singles and tag team divisions throughout her career, primarily while with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
.
and African American
heritage. Her father was a military serviceman.
stable the Atrocious Alliance, along with fellow classmate and tag team partner Nobuko Kimura. After the stable dissolved in 1988 due to Matsumoto's retirement, Shishido and Kimura went their separate ways, but re-formed in 1990 as Jungle Jack. Now called Aja Kong and Bison Kimura, they entered a two-year feud against their former allies Bull Nakano and her heel stable Gokumon-to. During their partnership they won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship
twice, and participated in some memorable matches. The most famous of these was a hair versus hair match on January 11, 1991, which was lost by Jungle Jack, resulting in both women being shaved bald.
Kong herself also pursued Nakano for the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship
during the early 1990s. She failed in several attempts before finally achieving her goal on November 15, 1992, ending Nakano's three-year reign.
Kong made a notable wrestling appearance in the United States. She was the sole survivor of a women's elimination match at the World Wrestling Federation
pay per view Survivor Series 1995
pinning all 4 members of her opposing team, including WWF Women's Champion, Alundra Blayze. Kong also appeared on two episodes of Monday Night Raw
and was victorious in both bouts, including one vicious bout where she broke the nose of Chaparita Asari. Kong was being built up as a challenger for the WWF Women's Championship
, which was held at the time by Alundra Blayze
. Kong was scheduled to face Blayze at the Royal Rumble
pay per view in 1996, but Blayze was fired before this match up could occur.
In 1997, Kong left AJW and started the independent promotion Hyper Visual Fighting ARSION (usually referred to as simply ARSION). She led the organization until 2001, when, on February 12, she walked out of a tag team match, and announced she was quitting ARSION. This dramatic event was televised.
Shishido continues to wrestle as a freelancer for various promotions in Japan. Recently she formed a tag team with Amazing Kong, called Double Kong, and held tag team championships in Japanese women's promotions AJW, GAEA, and Ladies Legend Pro Wrestling. On June 6, 2006, wrestling as Erika and Margaret, the team defeated Wataru Sakata
and Ryoji Sai for the HUSTLE Super Tag Team Championship. They lost the titles on October 9, 2006 to American tag team Bubba Ray and Devon
in a three-way match which also included the team of Sodom
and Gamora.
Presently, Aja wrestles for Mayumi Ozaki
's promotion, Oz Academy. She has previously held the promotion's championship title and is currently leading a stable which includes AKINO
, Manami Toyota
, and Hiroyo Matsumoto
. Kong and Toyota will be competing in the June tag team tournament for the newly-created Oz Academy Tag Team Championships.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
, better known by the stage name Aja Kong, and the founder of the ARSION all-women professional wrestling promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
. Shishido has won several championships in both singles and tag team divisions throughout her career, primarily while with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
, nicknamed Zenjo was a joshi puroresu promotion established in 1968 by Takashi Matsunaga and his brothers. The group held their first card on June 4 of that year...
.
Early life
Shishido is of mixed JapaneseJapanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
and African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
heritage. Her father was a military serviceman.
Career
Shishido was trained by AJW, and graduated as part of their class of 1986. She made her debut that summer, and immediately joined Dump Matsumoto's heelHeel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
stable the Atrocious Alliance, along with fellow classmate and tag team partner Nobuko Kimura. After the stable dissolved in 1988 due to Matsumoto's retirement, Shishido and Kimura went their separate ways, but re-formed in 1990 as Jungle Jack. Now called Aja Kong and Bison Kimura, they entered a two-year feud against their former allies Bull Nakano and her heel stable Gokumon-to. During their partnership they won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship
WWWA World Tag Team Championship
The World Women's Wrestling Association World Tag Team Championship was the top doubles championship in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling from 1970 until it closed in 2005...
twice, and participated in some memorable matches. The most famous of these was a hair versus hair match on January 11, 1991, which was lost by Jungle Jack, resulting in both women being shaved bald.
Kong herself also pursued Nakano for the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship
WWWA World Heavyweight Championship
The WWWA World Heavyweight Championship was the top singles championship in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling from 1970 until it closed in 2005. It was also known in Pro Wrestling Illustrated and other London Publishing wrestling magazines as the All-Japan Women's International Championship...
during the early 1990s. She failed in several attempts before finally achieving her goal on November 15, 1992, ending Nakano's three-year reign.
Kong made a notable wrestling appearance in the United States. She was the sole survivor of a women's elimination match at the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
pay per view Survivor Series 1995
Survivor Series (1995)
Survivor Series was the ninth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
pinning all 4 members of her opposing team, including WWF Women's Champion, Alundra Blayze. Kong also appeared on two episodes of Monday Night Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and was victorious in both bouts, including one vicious bout where she broke the nose of Chaparita Asari. Kong was being built up as a challenger for the WWF Women's Championship
WWE Women's Championship
The WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
, which was held at the time by Alundra Blayze
Debra Miceli
Debrah Ann Miceli is a Monster truck driver and former professional wrestler. She is best known under her ring names Madusa or Alundra Blayze. Her early career was spent in the American Wrestling Association, where she held the AWA World Women's Championship one time...
. Kong was scheduled to face Blayze at the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (1996)
Royal Rumble was the ninth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on January 21, 1996 at the Selland Arena in Fresno, California....
pay per view in 1996, but Blayze was fired before this match up could occur.
In 1997, Kong left AJW and started the independent promotion Hyper Visual Fighting ARSION (usually referred to as simply ARSION). She led the organization until 2001, when, on February 12, she walked out of a tag team match, and announced she was quitting ARSION. This dramatic event was televised.
Shishido continues to wrestle as a freelancer for various promotions in Japan. Recently she formed a tag team with Amazing Kong, called Double Kong, and held tag team championships in Japanese women's promotions AJW, GAEA, and Ladies Legend Pro Wrestling. On June 6, 2006, wrestling as Erika and Margaret, the team defeated Wataru Sakata
Wataru Sakata
is a Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He has a professional MMA record of 11-13-0 as of December 31, 2003.He started his career in Akira Maeda's Fighting Network RINGS in 1994 after being trained by Animal Hamaguchi. He made the transition to mixed martial arts in the late...
and Ryoji Sai for the HUSTLE Super Tag Team Championship. They lost the titles on October 9, 2006 to American tag team Bubba Ray and Devon
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
in a three-way match which also included the team of Sodom
Mark Jindrak
Mark Robert Jindrak is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
and Gamora.
Presently, Aja wrestles for Mayumi Ozaki
Mayumi Ozaki
is a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a tag match in August, 1986. In her career, she held the WWWA tag titles with Dynamite Kansai from April 11, 1993 to December 6, 1993 (born October 28, 1968) is a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a...
's promotion, Oz Academy. She has previously held the promotion's championship title and is currently leading a stable which includes AKINO
AKINO
, better known as AKINO, is a female Japanese joshi wrestler. Billed from Honshū, she started late in the sport and didn't debut until the age of 24...
, Manami Toyota
Manami Toyota
is a professional wrestler best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling wrestling promotion. Following AJW's closure she has continued to work in other joshi promotions such as GAEA and NEO...
, and Hiroyo Matsumoto
Hiroyo Matsumoto
is a joshi puroresu wrestler in Japan who wrestled for Mariko Yoshida's Ibuki promotion. Emi Sakura gave her the nickname of Lady Destroyer because Hiroyo broke a wall in the Ichigaya arena during her Ice Ribbon debut...
. Kong and Toyota will be competing in the June tag team tournament for the newly-created Oz Academy Tag Team Championships.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Uraken (Spinning backfist)
- BrainbusterBrainbusterA brainbuster is a professional wrestling throw in which a wrestler puts his/her opponent in a front facelock, hooks his/her pants, and lifts him/her up as if he/she was executing a vertical suplex. The wrestler then falls onto his/her back so that the opponent lands on his/her head while remaining...
- Signature moves
- Northern Lights superplex
- Package piledriver
- PowerbombPowerbombA powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
- Back suplex
- Standing seated senton, as a counter to a sunset flip
- Piledriver
Championships and accomplishments
- All Japan Women's Pro-WrestlingAll Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling, nicknamed Zenjo was a joshi puroresu promotion established in 1968 by Takashi Matsunaga and his brothers. The group held their first card on June 4 of that year...
- AJW ChampionshipAJW ChampionshipThe AJW Championship was a secondary belt contested in the Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling . The first champion, in 1980, was Rimi Yokota. During the title's history, no one held the belt more than two times. The belt was abandoned in 2005, after...
(1 time) - AJW Tag Team ChampionshipAJW Tag Team ChampionshipThe AJW Tag Team Championship was the secondary tag team title in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. The title was introduced in 1986 and was retired in April 2005 when the promotion closed.-Title history:...
(1 time) – with Naboko Kimura - All Pacific ChampionshipAll Pacific ChampionshipThe All Pacific Women's Championship was the secondary singles title in the wrestling promotion All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling, or AJW. The belt was started as the Hawaiian Pacific Championship in 1977, and was renamed the All Pacific Championship in 1978.-History:...
(1 time) - WWWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipWWWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe WWWA World Heavyweight Championship was the top singles championship in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling from 1970 until it closed in 2005. It was also known in Pro Wrestling Illustrated and other London Publishing wrestling magazines as the All-Japan Women's International Championship...
(2 times) - WWWA World Tag Team ChampionshipWWWA World Tag Team ChampionshipThe World Women's Wrestling Association World Tag Team Championship was the top doubles championship in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling from 1970 until it closed in 2005...
(4 times) – with Grizzly Iwamoto (1), Bison Kimura (2), and Amazing KongKia StevensKia Michelle Stevens , better known by her ring names Amazing Kong, Awesome Kong and Kharma. She is signed with WWE, but has been inactive since May 2011 due to pregnancy...
(1) - AJW Hall of Fame (1998)
- Japan Grand PrixJapan Grand PrixThe Japan Grand Prix was an annual professional wrestling tournament held by the promotion All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling to determine the number one contender for the promotion's highest achievement, the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship. The tournament was held in the summer every year from...
(1992, 1996)
- AJW Championship
- ARSION
- Queen of ARSION (1 time)
- Twin Star of ARSION (1 time) – with Mariko YoshidaMariko Yoshida, is a Japanese professional wrestler best known for her work with the ARSION wrestling promotion, where she was also head trainer.-Professional wrestling career:...
- GAEA JapanGAEA JapanGaea Japan was a Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion. Gaea Japan (trademarked as GAEA Japan) was a Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion. Gaea Japan (trademarked as GAEA Japan) was a Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion. (Japanese female professional...
- AAAW Singles ChampionshipAAAW Singles ChampionshipThe GAEA AAAW Athletic Singles Championship or AAAW Championship was a championship belt contested in the Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion GAEA Japan The belt was abandoned in 2005, after GAEA was closed down.-History:...
(3 times) - AAAW Tag Team ChampionshipAAAW Tag Team ChampionshipThe AAAW Tag Team Championship was a title in the GAEA Japan promotion. The title was abandoned when GAEA closed in 2005.-Title history:-External links:*...
(3 times) – with Mayumi OzakiMayumi Ozakiis a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a tag match in August, 1986. In her career, she held the WWWA tag titles with Dynamite Kansai from April 11, 1993 to December 6, 1993 (born October 28, 1968) is a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a...
(1), Devil Masami (1), and Amazing Kong (1)
- AAAW Singles Championship
- HUSTLE
- HUSTLE Super Tag Team ChampionshipHustle Super Tag Team ChampionshipThe Hustle Super Tag Team Championship was the tag team championship in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion Hustle.-Title history:-External links:*...
(1 time) - with Margaret
- HUSTLE Super Tag Team Championship
- Japan Wrestling Pure
- JWP Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Sachie Abe
- Ladies Legend Pro Wrestling
- LLPW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Amazing Kong
- OZ Academy
- OZ Academy Openweight Championship (3 times)
- OZ Academy Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Hiroyo MatsumotoHiroyo Matsumotois a joshi puroresu wrestler in Japan who wrestled for Mariko Yoshida's Ibuki promotion. Emi Sakura gave her the nickname of Lady Destroyer because Hiroyo broke a wall in the Ichigaya arena during her Ice Ribbon debut...
(1) and Kaoru Ito (1)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- 5 Star Match (1993) with Sakie Hasegawa, Kyoko InoueKyoko Inoueis a Japanese female professional wrestler. She has held the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship three times, and is the first woman to win a men's title in Japan. She is also the founder of the joshi promotion NEO Japan...
, and Takako InoueTakako Inoueis a Japanese professional wrestler. She wrestled primarily for the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling promotion, and held several championships, primarily in tag team wrestling...
vs. Dynamite KansaiDynamite KansaiDynamite Kansai is a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Chieko Suzuki was born on December 4, 1969, and was raised in Kyoto, Japan. In 1986 she auditioned for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling , but was unsuccessful, and instead joined the first rookie class of Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling...
, Cutie Suzuki, Mayumi OzakiMayumi Ozakiis a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a tag match in August, 1986. In her career, she held the WWWA tag titles with Dynamite Kansai from April 11, 1993 to December 6, 1993 (born October 28, 1968) is a Japanese female professional wrestler.-Career:Ozaki debuted in a...
, and Hikari Fukuoka on July 31 - 5 Star Match (1994) vs. Manami ToyotaManami Toyotais a professional wrestler best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling wrestling promotion. Following AJW's closure she has continued to work in other joshi promotions such as GAEA and NEO...
on November 20 - Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of FameWrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of FameThe Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame is a professional wrestling hall of fame that recognizes people who make significant contributions to the sport. It was founded in 1996 by Dave Meltzer, editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame is not...
(Class of 2006)
- 5 Star Match (1993) with Sakie Hasegawa, Kyoko Inoue