Nanae Takahashi
Encyclopedia
Nanae Takahashi is a Japanese
professional wrestler from Japan
. She has wrestled for prominent Japanese promotions All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
and Pro Wrestling SUN, and has held multiple world championships. Currently she belongs to Stardom as the playing manager.
's (AJW) training class of 1996, and rose to prominence at a time when AJW was beginning its decline. Early on, she achieved the most fame as part of the tag team
Nanamomo with classmate Momoe Nakanishi. Together, Nanamomo won four tag team championships, the AJW Tag Team Championship twice (on November 23, 1997 and August 23, 1998) and the WWWA World Tag Team Championship
twice (on July 16, 2000 and July 6, 2002). Concurrently, Takahashi was making a name for herself as a singles competitor, winning the AJW Championship
on March 1, 2000, and the junior division competition at that year's Japan Grand Prix
. Having established herself as a major competitor, Takahashi won the 2002 Japan Grand Prix, and won her first WWWA World Heavyweight Championship
on December 12, 2004. During AJW's final years she won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship three more times (each time with a different partner), and the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship once more. She was the last WWWA champion, handing over the belt to promoter Takashi Matsunaga immediately after winning it on March 26, 2006.
At an independent show held on July 14, 2006 to celebrate her tenth anniversary in professional wrestling, Takahashi announced her intention to start her own promotion
. Her stable, the Dream Catchers, held their final show on the following September 3.
On October 1, 2006, Takahashi defeated Africa 55 for the resurrected AWA World Women's Championship
at the debut of her new promotion, Pro Wrestling SUN. The promotion is a sister promotion to Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX
, and at the time an affiliate of the revived American Wrestling Association
. On January 14, 2007, Takahashi lost her world championship to Amazing Kong, but regained it again on May 13 of the same year, in Los Angeles, California
. She became recognized as the first AWA Japan Women's Champion on June 19, 2007, after the AWA World Women's title was retired out of respect for four-time former champion Sherri Martel
, who had died on June 15.
After SUN closed on March 3, 2008, Takahashi formed a unit called "Passion Red" with Natsuki*Taiyo and Kana
. They were active mainly with NEO Japan Ladie's Pro Wrestling.
On October 4, 2008, Takahashi beat Kyoko Inoue
to win NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles Championship
. On October 10, 2009, she won NEO Tag Team Championship with Kana.
From January 25, 2009 to December 29, 2010, Takahashi was also aktive with Ice Ribbon
and held International Ribbon Tag Team Championship three times (with Minori Makiba, Kazumi Shimouma and Emi Sakura) and Triangle Ribbon Championship once.
On April 18, 2010, Takahashi beat Kayoko Haruyama to win JWP Openweight Championship. She became the second champion from outside since Manami Toyota
in 2006.
On September 7, 2010, Takahashi announced with Fuka and Rossy Ogawa that they founded a new promotion called Stardom. They had their first card on January 23, 2011.
On December 15, 2010, Takahashi won Women's Award of Tokyo Sports Grand Prix.
1Takahashi won the Junior Division of the tournament, not the Main League, in 2000.
Japanese 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...
professional wrestler from 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...
. She has wrestled for prominent Japanese promotions 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...
and Pro Wrestling SUN, and has held multiple world championships. Currently she belongs to Stardom as the playing manager.
Career
Nanae Takahashi graduated from 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...
's (AJW) training class of 1996, and rose to prominence at a time when AJW was beginning its decline. Early on, she achieved the most fame as part of the tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
Nanamomo with classmate Momoe Nakanishi. Together, Nanamomo won four tag team championships, the AJW Tag Team Championship twice (on November 23, 1997 and August 23, 1998) and 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 (on July 16, 2000 and July 6, 2002). Concurrently, Takahashi was making a name for herself as a singles competitor, winning the AJW Championship
AJW Championship
The 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...
on March 1, 2000, and the junior division competition at that year's Japan Grand Prix
Japan Grand Prix
The 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...
. Having established herself as a major competitor, Takahashi won the 2002 Japan Grand Prix, and won her first 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...
on December 12, 2004. During AJW's final years she won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship three more times (each time with a different partner), and the WWWA World Heavyweight Championship once more. She was the last WWWA champion, handing over the belt to promoter Takashi Matsunaga immediately after winning it on March 26, 2006.
At an independent show held on July 14, 2006 to celebrate her tenth anniversary in professional wrestling, Takahashi announced her intention to start her own 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...
. Her stable, the Dream Catchers, held their final show on the following September 3.
On October 1, 2006, Takahashi defeated Africa 55 for the resurrected AWA World Women's Championship
AWA Japan Women's Championship
The AWA Japan Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling title in the AWA Superstars of Wrestling Promotion...
at the debut of her new promotion, Pro Wrestling SUN. The promotion is a sister promotion to Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX
Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX
Pro Wrestling Zero1 , formerly known as Pro Wrestling Zero-One and Pro Wrestling Zero1-Max, is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded in 2001. It was affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance from 2001 until late 2004 and again from 2011 onwards...
, and at the time an affiliate of the revived American Wrestling Association
American Wrestling Association
The American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
. On January 14, 2007, Takahashi lost her world championship to Amazing Kong, but regained it again on May 13 of the same year, in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. She became recognized as the first AWA Japan Women's Champion on June 19, 2007, after the AWA World Women's title was retired out of respect for four-time former champion Sherri Martel
Sherri Martel
Sherri Schrull was an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by her ring names, Sherri Martel and Sensational Sherri....
, who had died on June 15.
After SUN closed on March 3, 2008, Takahashi formed a unit called "Passion Red" with Natsuki*Taiyo and Kana
Kana (wrestler)
is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . She is known for her stiff wrestling style, which includes various kicks and submission holds. She also works as a freelance graphic designer and video game journalist and through her work with Microsoft, she is often sponsored by...
. They were active mainly with NEO Japan Ladie's Pro Wrestling.
On October 4, 2008, Takahashi beat Kyoko Inoue
Kyoko Inoue
is 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...
to win NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles Championship
NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles Championship
The NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles Championship is a professional wrestling women's championship contested in the National Wrestling Alliance, NEO Japan Ladies' Pro Wrestling, and NEO Spirit Pro Wrestling....
. On October 10, 2009, she won NEO Tag Team Championship with Kana.
From January 25, 2009 to December 29, 2010, Takahashi was also aktive with Ice Ribbon
Ice Ribbon
is a joshi puroresu promotion established in 2006 by Emi Sakura split with Gatokunyan.-History:Ice Ribbon was founded by Emi Sakura, a professional wrestler who was active with IWA Japan and FMW in 1990s as Emi Motokawa...
and held International Ribbon Tag Team Championship three times (with Minori Makiba, Kazumi Shimouma and Emi Sakura) and Triangle Ribbon Championship once.
On April 18, 2010, Takahashi beat Kayoko Haruyama to win JWP Openweight Championship. She became the second champion from outside since 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...
in 2006.
On September 7, 2010, Takahashi announced with Fuka and Rossy Ogawa that they founded a new promotion called Stardom. They had their first card on January 23, 2011.
On December 15, 2010, Takahashi won Women's Award of Tokyo Sports Grand Prix.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Corner slingshot splash
- Nana Racker (Sitout suplex slam)
- Signature moves
- Belly to back suplex
- Elbow smash
- Lariat
- Scoop lift spun out into a stunnerStunner (professional wrestling)A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
- Shining wizard
- Superplex
- Wheelbarrow lifted and dropped into a spin–out powerbomb
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:...
(2 times) – with Momoe Nakanishi - 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...
(5 times) – with Momoe Nakanishi (2), Tomoko Watanabe (1), Etsuko Mita (1), and Ayako HamadaAyako Hamadais a female professional wrestler of mixed Japanese and Mexican descent, who is currently wrestling most notably for Pro Wrestling WAVE in Japan and Shimmer Women Athletes in the United States, where she is a co-holder of the Shimmer Tag Team Championship.She is best known for winning several...
(1) - 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...
(20001, 2002)
- AWA Superstars of WrestlingAWA Superstars of WrestlingWrestling Superstars Live is a governing body for a group of independent professional wrestling promotions and sanctions various championships. It was founded in 1996 by Dale Gagner and Jonnie Stewart.-History:...
- AWA World Women's ChampionshipAWA Japan Women's ChampionshipThe AWA Japan Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling title in the AWA Superstars of Wrestling Promotion...
(3 times)
- Ice RibbonIce Ribbonis a joshi puroresu promotion established in 2006 by Emi Sakura split with Gatokunyan.-History:Ice Ribbon was founded by Emi Sakura, a professional wrestler who was active with IWA Japan and FMW in 1990s as Emi Motokawa...
- International Ribbon Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Minori Makiba (1), Kazumi Shimouma (1) and Emi Sakura (1)
- Triangle Ribbon Championship (1 time)
- JDStarJDStarJDStar , was a women's professional wrestling promotion based in Tokyo, Japan. In the wake of the joshi puroresu boom of the early 1990s, several different groups opened with distinct approaches...
- BSJ Queen of the Ring (1 time)
- JWP
- JWP Openweight Championship (1 time)
- NEO Japan Ladies' Pro Wrestling
- NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles ChampionshipNWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles ChampionshipThe NWA Pacific Women's/NEO Singles Championship is a professional wrestling women's championship contested in the National Wrestling Alliance, NEO Japan Ladies' Pro Wrestling, and NEO Spirit Pro Wrestling....
(1 time) - NEO Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with KanaKana (wrestler)is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . She is known for her stiff wrestling style, which includes various kicks and submission holds. She also works as a freelance graphic designer and video game journalist and through her work with Microsoft, she is often sponsored by...
- Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX
- AWA Japan Women's ChampionshipAWA Japan Women's ChampionshipThe AWA Japan Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling title in the AWA Superstars of Wrestling Promotion...
(1 time)
- Stardom
- Queen of Stardom Championship (1 time, current)
- Tokyo Sports Grand Prix
- Women's Award (2010)
1Takahashi won the Junior Division of the tournament, not the Main League, in 2000.