Kingdom, was a professional wrestling

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...

 company in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 from 1997 to 1998. It was essentially a continuation of UWF International

UWF International

Union of Wrestling Forces International, better known as UWF International, U-Inter, or simply UWFi, was a shoot style professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1991 to 1996. Although the matches were worked , the UWF-i was very convincing for its time, promoting a more hard-hitting, realistic...

, having most of its former roster: Nobuhiko Takada

Nobuhiko Takada

Nobuhiko Takada is a Japanese mixed martial arts fighter and professional wrestler. He is best known for helping to popularize shoot-style professional wrestling, as one of the biggest stars of the Universal Wrestling Federation and Union of Wrestling Force International in the '80s and '90s. He...

, Yoji Anjo

Yoji Anjo

, is a Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He was born in Suginami, Japan on December 31, 1969.-Professional wrestling career:...

, Kazushi Sakuraba

Kazushi Sakuraba

is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist and former professional wrestler. He has competed in pro-wrestling for New Japan Pro Wrestling, UWFi and Kingdom Pro Wrestling. He has fought in MMA competition in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, PRIDE Fighting Championships, K-1 Hero's and Dream...

, Daijiro Matsui

Daijiro Matsui

Daijiro Matsui is a Japanese mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division. He has fought in a number of organizations including the Pride Fighting Championships and the Cage Rage Championships.-Career:...

, Naoki Sano

Naoki Sano

is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He currently goes by the name Takuma Sano.-New Japan Pro Wrestling :...

, Masahito Kakihara, Yoshihiro Takayama

Yoshihiro Takayama

is a Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Takayama is well known for his ability to endure massive amounts of punishment, especially after his fight at PRIDE 21 against Don Frye...

, Kenichi Yamamoto

Kenichi Yamamoto

was a Japanese cross country skier who competed in the 1950s. He finished 22nd in the 18 km event at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo.-References:...

 and Hiromitsu Kanehara

Hiromitsu Kanehara

is a Japanese mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division.Although starting as a professional wrestler in 1991, Kanehara did not have much success as such, and eventually abandoned professional wrestling when his then-home circuit, Fighting Network RINGS, abandoned the...

.

History

Kingdom did not draw the huge crowds UWF International did in its heyday, and most of its major cards were at Korakuen Hall

Korakuen Hall

is an arena in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan, which has hosted many boxing, professional wrestling and mixed martial arts matches. Part of Tokyo Dome City, it is one of Tokyo's biggest attractions. It opened on April 16, 1962 and has a capacity of approximately 1,800 people. The venue hosted the boxing...

 in Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, which could seat 2,000 fans on average. Kingdom attempted to rectify this by inviting talent from other promotions, including Battlarts

BattlARTS

was a professional wrestling promotion based in Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan. The promotion was formed in 1996 by Japanese wrestler Yuki Ishikawa and featured all of the wrestlers from the Fujiwara Gumi promotion, who had abandoned the promotion in favor of Battlarts...

, but it did not have much effect. In the eyes of the Japanese fans the era of shoot-style wrestling was dead.

Kingdom folded in March 1998. Takada (who had given up on the concept in mid-1997 and began competing for the PRIDE martial arts

Martial arts

Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....

 circuit), Sano, Matsui, and Sakuraba formed Takada Dojo

Takada Dojo

The Takada Dojo is a mixed martial arts academy in Tokyo, Japan. The dojo takes its name from Nobuhiko Takada its founder. Many members, including Takada, have participated in both professional wrestling and mixed martial arts...

, a stable associated with PRIDE; Yamamoto and Kanehara jumped to RINGS; Kakihara and Takayama joined All Japan Pro Wrestling

All Japan Pro Wrestling

is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. All Japan Pro Wrestling still remains one of the most popular puroresu promotions still in operation.-The Giant Baba Era :...

 as free agents; and Anjo dabbled in the K-1

K-1

K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...

 kickboxing

Kickboxing

Kickboxing refers to a group of martial arts and stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate, Muay Thai and western boxing....

 circuit, slipping into obscurity due to his bad record (he later reappeared with Dream Stage Entertainment's HUSTLE pro wrestling organization as "Commander ANJOE".)

A former trainee of the Kingdom dojo, Hidetada Irie, who debuted in 1999, formed a promotion called Kingdom Ehrgeiz, with himself as the top star. The promotion, however, is very obscure and rarely draws above 100 fans in the few cards it periodically holds.

External links

• KINGDOM history, stats, results, & more