Independent circuit
Encyclopedia
In professional wrestling
, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions
which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league
for pro wrestling, or community
or regional theatre
.
Specific promotions on the independent circuit are referred to as indy promotions or indies. A wrestler is said to be in the indies or working the indies if he or she is wrestling in one of the independent promotions, or working the indy circuit if he or she is performing in different independent promotions.
sanctioned territory, they were often called an outlaw territory. This is considered by some to be a forerunner to indies since some stars of the past got their start in these low quality local rivals to the big regional territories.
The modern definition of the independent circuit came about in the middle to late 1980s and fully formed and flourished after 1990. These promotions initially sought to revive the feel of old school territorial wrestling after former territories either went national, such as WWF and WCW, or went out of business. Several indies did in fact manage to tour different towns within a region and maintain a consistent schedule.
After Vince McMahon
gave a 1989 testimony in front of The New Jersey State Athletic Commission where he revealed wrestling was in fact entertainment, many state athletic commission stopped regulating wrestling for promoters and wrestlers. After the business was exposed, just about anyone could be a promoter or a wrestler. Many thought they could save money by holding shows in lesser towns and smaller arenas with little to no televised exposure, leading to many shows being held only once a week or once a month in local towns.
Wrestlers in the territories could afford to make a good living in the wrestling business for years at a time (despite still needing a day job for insurance and retirement benefits) while current day indie wrestlers struggle to pay their bills, much less risk living out of their car. Territories also had weekly television shows on local stations in each town while most indies cannot afford such exposure.
Many of today's wrestlers learn their trade in a wrestling school, but scrape by learning their craft on occasional indie bookings with no consistency in developing their skills the way many wrestlers during the era of the territories had been able to do. Many wrestlers would learn the basics by setting up the ring or having a job at the arena setting up chairs and selling merchandise, refereeing matches, or some other way of being trained and entering the business.
They would then wrestle night after night in a different town wrestling in front of the same crowd each week when they debuted, and then go to other territories to learn something new from experience. Many young wrestlers in this era do not have this kind of tough education in the business or that luxury of learning their craft from experience.
contracts, are much more dependent on revenue from house show
attendance. Due to their lower budgets, most independent promotions offer low salaries (it is not unusual for a wrestler to be paid only $5 to $20 per match). Most cannot afford to regularly rent large venues, and would not be able to attract a large enough crowd to fill such a venue.
They have to make use of any open space (such as fields, ballrooms, or gymnasiums) to put on their performances. Some independent promotions are attached to professional wrestling schools, serving as a venue for students to gain experience in front of an audience.
As independent matches are usually not televised, indy wrestlers who have not already gained recognition in other promotions tend to remain in obscurity. However, scouts from major promotions attend indy shows, and an indy wrestler who makes a good impression may be offered a developmental or even a professional contract.
The advent of the internet
has allowed independent wrestlers and promotions to reach a wider audience, and it is possible for wrestlers regularly working the indy circuit to gain some measure of fame among wrestling fans online. Additionally, some of the more successful indies have video distribution deals, giving them an additional source of income and allowing them to reach a larger audience outside of their local areas.
,, Lucha Libre USA
,, World Xtreme Wrestling
, CHIKARA, Combat Zone Wrestling
, Heartland Wrestling Association
, Maryland Championship Wrestling
, Memphis Wrestling
, Chaotic Wrestling
, Women Superstars Uncensored
, East Coast Wrestling Alliance, Ohio Valley Wrestling
, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla
, Ring of Honor
and its sister promotions Full Impact Pro
and SHIMMER Women Athletes
.
There is some debate over whether or not Ring of Honor
should even be called an indie promotion, since it is not restricted to holding one monthly show in a local town. Some believe it to be a modern day regional territory, considering they have several shows a month across The Northeast and The Midwest. There are those who even dare to call it a national or worldwide promotion on a niche level due to their presence on DVD, in merchandising, The Internet, and exchanges with talent from Great Britain and Japan. Furthermore, ROH has recently been bought out by a major company (The Sinclair Broadcasting Group), leaving it in the possession of another business, much like TNA (Panda Energy), and World Championship Wrestling
(Time Warner).
They also had a development league in Florida called Full Impact Pro
, which although is still active as an independent promotion, has been somewhat replaced by Pro Wrestling Respect. The promotion has also experienced limited coverage on television such as The Fight Network
in Canada, the now defunct TWC Fight! in the United Kingdom, and Samurai TV in Japan along limited pay per views every two months in addition to a TV deal with HDNet Fights
in the United States.
and Japan
, which have recognized major circuits, the concept of independent circuits also exists. The reliance on major promotions to acquire talent from them, however, varies widely from each other and from the North American system.
has many more independent wrestlers in proportion than the rest of North America, because of the weight classes prevalent in the Mexican league system as well as its emphasis on multiple person tag matches; just about anyone with ability can emerge from an independent promotion into either Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
or Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
and be a champion there. Independent Mexican wrestlers may use a lot of gimmicks, including some that may be based on copyrighted characters from American television shows, such as Thundercats
and X-Men
. (These gimmicks are often changed if the wrestler playing them makes it into AAA or CMLL; the most prominent example of non-compliance with this method is midget wrestler Chucky from AAA, whose gimmick is based on the Child's Play
movies.)
or All Japan Pro Wrestling
. (International Pro Wrestling
also was a third-party promotion until 1981.) The advent of the Japanese UWF
offered a long-sought third alternative.
From 1986 to 1988 the Japanese system went back to the two-promotion system, but then the UWF was reformed and another promotion Pioneer Senshi
, was started. Because of Japanese societal mores
which implied that a wrestler was a lifelong employee of a company and thus identified with it wherever he went, neither AJPW nor NJPW made an effort to acquire wrestlers trained in other promotions; wrestlers from the major promotions who left, such as Genichiro Tenryu
, Gran Hamada
, Yoshiaki Fujiwara
, Akira Maeda
, Yoshiaki Yatsu
, Atsushi Onita
, and Nobuhiko Takada
had to start their own independent promotions in order to keep themselves in the limelight.
As the 1990s ended, though, things began to change. Independent promotions began gaining more prominence as they were featured in major specialized media such as Shukan Puroresu and Shukan Gong magazines. With the death of Giant Baba and retirement of Antonio Inoki
, which effectively broke their control over the promotions they founded, the major promotions began looking to the smaller promotions for talent.
In 2000, the first major signing from an independent, Minoru Tanaka by NJPW from BattlARTS
, took place; soon after NJPW stocked the junior heavyweight division
with independent talent such as Masayuki Naruse
, Tiger Mask IV
, Gedo
, and Jado
. On the same year, following the Pro Wrestling Noah
split, AJPW was forced to fill its ranks with independent talent; Nobutaka Araya, Shigeo Okumura
and Mitsuya Nagai signed up (Araya is the only one who remains, but other signings since then have been Kaz Hayashi
, Tomoaki Honma
, Hideki Hosaka, and Ryuji Hijikata
.)
Noah admitted one wrestler from the independents, Daisuke Ikeda
, to its ranks as well (Ikeda has since left, but other wrestlers from the independents that were signed included Akitoshi Saito
, Takahiro Suwa
, and Taiji Ishimori
). Although AJPW, NJPW, and Noah remain committed to their dojos, the reliance on independents is growing as obscure talent is recognized for its ability.
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...
, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions
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...
which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league
Minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in...
for pro wrestling, or community
Community theatre
Community theatre refers to theatrical performance made in relation to particular communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community...
or regional theatre
Regional theatre in the United States
Regional theaters, or resident theaters, in the United States are professional or semi-professional, theater companies that produce their own seasons. The term regional theatre most often refers to professional theatres outside of New York City...
.
Specific promotions on the independent circuit are referred to as indy promotions or indies. A wrestler is said to be in the indies or working the indies if he or she is wrestling in one of the independent promotions, or working the indy circuit if he or she is performing in different independent promotions.
Origins
The indie scene in the United States dates back to the days of regional territories. When a promoter ran opposition in even one town controlled by a National Wrestling AllianceNational Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
sanctioned territory, they were often called an outlaw territory. This is considered by some to be a forerunner to indies since some stars of the past got their start in these low quality local rivals to the big regional territories.
The modern definition of the independent circuit came about in the middle to late 1980s and fully formed and flourished after 1990. These promotions initially sought to revive the feel of old school territorial wrestling after former territories either went national, such as WWF and WCW, or went out of business. Several indies did in fact manage to tour different towns within a region and maintain a consistent schedule.
After Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
gave a 1989 testimony in front of The New Jersey State Athletic Commission where he revealed wrestling was in fact entertainment, many state athletic commission stopped regulating wrestling for promoters and wrestlers. After the business was exposed, just about anyone could be a promoter or a wrestler. Many thought they could save money by holding shows in lesser towns and smaller arenas with little to no televised exposure, leading to many shows being held only once a week or once a month in local towns.
Differences between "the old territories" and the current independent scene
Territories held shows in a certain town each week while also going to a different town night after night with several towns covering a certain region. Most of today's indie promoters struggle to hold a show on a monthly basis in a single town. Promoters in those days could fill big arenas up into the thousands, while indie promoters struggle to draw a few hundred people at a high school gym or local fairground.Wrestlers in the territories could afford to make a good living in the wrestling business for years at a time (despite still needing a day job for insurance and retirement benefits) while current day indie wrestlers struggle to pay their bills, much less risk living out of their car. Territories also had weekly television shows on local stations in each town while most indies cannot afford such exposure.
Many of today's wrestlers learn their trade in a wrestling school, but scrape by learning their craft on occasional indie bookings with no consistency in developing their skills the way many wrestlers during the era of the territories had been able to do. Many wrestlers would learn the basics by setting up the ring or having a job at the arena setting up chairs and selling merchandise, refereeing matches, or some other way of being trained and entering the business.
They would then wrestle night after night in a different town wrestling in front of the same crowd each week when they debuted, and then go to other territories to learn something new from experience. Many young wrestlers in this era do not have this kind of tough education in the business or that luxury of learning their craft from experience.
Focus of U.S. indies
Independent promotions are usually local in focus and, lacking national TVTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
contracts, are much more dependent on revenue from house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
attendance. Due to their lower budgets, most independent promotions offer low salaries (it is not unusual for a wrestler to be paid only $5 to $20 per match). Most cannot afford to regularly rent large venues, and would not be able to attract a large enough crowd to fill such a venue.
They have to make use of any open space (such as fields, ballrooms, or gymnasiums) to put on their performances. Some independent promotions are attached to professional wrestling schools, serving as a venue for students to gain experience in front of an audience.
As independent matches are usually not televised, indy wrestlers who have not already gained recognition in other promotions tend to remain in obscurity. However, scouts from major promotions attend indy shows, and an indy wrestler who makes a good impression may be offered a developmental or even a professional contract.
The advent of the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
has allowed independent wrestlers and promotions to reach a wider audience, and it is possible for wrestlers regularly working the indy circuit to gain some measure of fame among wrestling fans online. Additionally, some of the more successful indies have video distribution deals, giving them an additional source of income and allowing them to reach a larger audience outside of their local areas.
Growing national exposure
Such promotions are Jersey All Pro WrestlingJersey All Pro Wrestling
Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion based in New Jersey.-1997:Jersey All Pro Wrestling is an independent wrestling promotion that was founded by "Fat" Frank Iadeavia on April 19, 1997. This promotion was born out of a dream of "Fat" Frank. He wanted to take the promotion...
,, Lucha Libre USA
Lucha Libre USA
Lucha Libre USA: Masked Warriors was a television program on the MTV2 broadcast channel, chronicling the rise of Mexican-style wrestling, or lucha libre, in the United States. The first episode was aired on July 16, 2010. The second season premiered October 1, 2011. However, after only four...
,, World Xtreme Wrestling
World Xtreme Wrestling
World Xtreme Wrestling is a Northeastern-based independent professional wrestling promotion which has held events across the United States and have toured in Japan, the Middle East and South Pacific region including American Samoa and Guam....
, CHIKARA, Combat Zone Wrestling
Combat Zone Wrestling
Combat Zone Wrestling is a independent wrestling promotion. In 1999, John Zandig and four of his students, Ric Blade, Lobo, Nick Gage and Justice Pain began to run backyard wrestling shows in New Jersey and Delaware, showcasing a brand of hardcore wrestling dubbed as "ultraviolence"...
, Heartland Wrestling Association
Heartland Wrestling Association
The Heartland Wrestling Association is a Midwestern independent professional wrestling promotion based in Cincinnati, Ohio. A former developmental territory for both World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation during the 1990s, it was listed as one of the top independent...
, Maryland Championship Wrestling
Maryland Championship Wrestling
Maryland Championship Wrestling is a regional independent wrestling promotion based in Dundalk, Maryland, and has regularly run events in the Mid-Atlantic region since the late 1990s as well as participating in numerous fundraising events throughout the state.Rivaling other east coast independent...
, Memphis Wrestling
Memphis Wrestling
Memphis Wrestling is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee.-History:Memphis Wrestling evolved from an earlier short-lived promotion called Memphis Championship Wrestling.-Television:...
, Chaotic Wrestling
Chaotic Wrestling
Chaotic Wrestling is an American independent wrestling promotion based in North Andover, Massachusetts owned by Jamie Jamitowski and formerly Killer Kowalski prior to his death in August 2008. In addition to the promotion is the Chaotic Training Center, a professional wrestling school where...
, Women Superstars Uncensored
Women Superstars Uncensored
Women Superstars Uncensored is an American, New Jersey based female independent professional wrestling promotion which held its first event in 1996. Shows combine wrestling interspersed with both serious and comedic storylines. The company tapes two DVDs worth of material during weekend shows...
, East Coast Wrestling Alliance, Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla
Pro Wrestling Guerrilla
Pro Wrestling Guerrilla is a professional wrestling promotion that is run by wrestlers themselves as it was created by Southern California wrestlers Disco Machine, Excalibur, Joey Ryan, Scott Lost, Super Dragon, and Top Gun Talwar...
, Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
and its sister promotions Full Impact Pro
Full Impact Pro
Full Impact Pro is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Florida. Their shows are taped and then sold as DVDs. Full Impact Pro was the sister promotion of Ring of Honor until 2009...
and SHIMMER Women Athletes
SHIMMER Women Athletes
Shimmer Women Athletes is an American, Chicago based female independent professional wrestling promotion which held its first event on November 6, 2005...
.
There is some debate over whether or not Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor ' is an American professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2002 by Rob Feinstein and Gabe Sapolsky. From 2004 to 2011, the promotion was under the ownership of Cary Silkin before being sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in May 2011...
should even be called an indie promotion, since it is not restricted to holding one monthly show in a local town. Some believe it to be a modern day regional territory, considering they have several shows a month across The Northeast and The Midwest. There are those who even dare to call it a national or worldwide promotion on a niche level due to their presence on DVD, in merchandising, The Internet, and exchanges with talent from Great Britain and Japan. Furthermore, ROH has recently been bought out by a major company (The Sinclair Broadcasting Group), leaving it in the possession of another business, much like TNA (Panda Energy), and World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(Time Warner).
They also had a development league in Florida called Full Impact Pro
Full Impact Pro
Full Impact Pro is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Florida. Their shows are taped and then sold as DVDs. Full Impact Pro was the sister promotion of Ring of Honor until 2009...
, which although is still active as an independent promotion, has been somewhat replaced by Pro Wrestling Respect. The promotion has also experienced limited coverage on television such as The Fight Network
The Fight Network
Fight Network is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel devoted to airing programming related to wrestling, boxing, mixed martial arts, and other combatant styles...
in Canada, the now defunct TWC Fight! in the United Kingdom, and Samurai TV in Japan along limited pay per views every two months in addition to a TV deal with HDNet Fights
HDNet Fights
HDNet Fights is a US based mixed martial arts promotion and a television outlet for various other MMA and combat sports promotions. Its broadcast lineup included DREAM, Sengoku, K-1 and K-1 Max, Strikeforce, Adrenaline MMA, SportFight, Ring of Fire, Ring of Combat, M-1 Global, Ring of Honor,...
in the United States.
Independent promotions in other countries
In MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and 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...
, which have recognized major circuits, the concept of independent circuits also exists. The reliance on major promotions to acquire talent from them, however, varies widely from each other and from the North American system.
Mexico
Lucha libreLucha libre
Lucha libre is a term used in Mexico, and other Spanish-speaking countries, for a form of professional wrestling that has developed within those countries...
has many more independent wrestlers in proportion than the rest of North America, because of the weight classes prevalent in the Mexican league system as well as its emphasis on multiple person tag matches; just about anyone with ability can emerge from an independent promotion into either Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración is a lucha libre professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico...
or Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre is a Lucha Libre-style professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City while running cards in Guadalajara, Puebla and elsewhere in central and southern Mexico...
and be a champion there. Independent Mexican wrestlers may use a lot of gimmicks, including some that may be based on copyrighted characters from American television shows, such as Thundercats
ThunderCats
ThunderCats is an American animated television series that was produced by Rankin/Bass Productions debuting in 1984, based on the characters created by Tobin "Ted" Wolf. The series follows the adventures of a group of cat-like humanoid aliens...
and X-Men
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
. (These gimmicks are often changed if the wrestler playing them makes it into AAA or CMLL; the most prominent example of non-compliance with this method is midget wrestler Chucky from AAA, whose gimmick is based on the Child's Play
Child's Play (film series)
Child's Play is a horror film franchise created by Don Mancini, with its first installment, Child's Play, being released on November 9, 1988. The film has so far spawned four sequels and has gone into other media, such as comic books. The films all feature Chucky, a killer Good Guys doll with the...
movies.)
Japan
Until 1984, no independent puroresu promotion per se existed in Japan; potential talent went directly into the training dojos of either New Japan Pro WrestlingNew Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
or 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 :...
. (International Pro Wrestling
International Pro Wrestling
International Pro Wrestling , also known as International Wrestling Enterprise, was a professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1966 to 1981. Founded by Isao Yoshihara, it was affiliated with the American Wrestling Association in the United States and also had tie-ins with promotions in Europe...
also was a third-party promotion until 1981.) The advent of the Japanese UWF
Universal Wrestling Federation (Japan)
The original Japanese-based Universal Wrestling Federation was a Japanese professional wrestling promotion from 1984 to 1986, formed by wrestlers who had left New Japan Pro Wrestling. It was a pioneer in the shoot-style of pro-wrestling, which emphasized realistic moves. It was revived as the...
offered a long-sought third alternative.
From 1986 to 1988 the Japanese system went back to the two-promotion system, but then the UWF was reformed and another promotion Pioneer Senshi
Pioneer Senshi
Pioneer Senshi was the first-ever independent promotion in Japanese wrestling history. It was established on November 11, 1988 by former AJPW wrestlers Ryuma Go, Apollo Sugawara and Masahiko Takasugi....
, was started. Because of Japanese societal mores
Mores
Mores, in sociology, are any given society's particular norms, virtues, or values. The word mores is a plurale tantum term borrowed from Latin, which has been used in the English language since the 1890s....
which implied that a wrestler was a lifelong employee of a company and thus identified with it wherever he went, neither AJPW nor NJPW made an effort to acquire wrestlers trained in other promotions; wrestlers from the major promotions who left, such as Genichiro Tenryu
Genichiro Tenryu
Genichiro Tenryu , real name Genichiro Shimada , is a Japanese professional wrestler. At age 13, he entered sumo wrestling and stayed there for 13 years, after which he turned to Western-style professional wrestling...
, Gran Hamada
Gran Hamada
, better known by his ring name , is Japanese professional wrestler, the first to adopt the high-flying Mexican lucha libre style. He has wrestled for New Japan Pro Wrestling, the Universal Wrestling Federation, Michinoku Pro, and All Japan Pro Wrestling, and was the founder of Universal Lucha Libre...
, Yoshiaki Fujiwara
Yoshiaki Fujiwara
is a Japanese actor, and professional wrestler who has worked for New Japan Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, and UWF.-New Japan Pro Wrestling and Universal Wrestling Federation :...
, Akira Maeda
Akira Maeda
is a retired Japanese professional wrestler, also known as Kwik-kik-Lee for his time on the British Wrestling show World of Sport. He helped develop the shoot-style of professional wrestling during the late 1980s....
, Yoshiaki Yatsu
Yoshiaki Yatsu
Yoshiaki Yatsu is a retired Japanese professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and mixed martial artist.-1976 Summer Olympics:...
, Atsushi Onita
Atsushi Onita
Atsushi Onita is a Japanese former politician and active professional wrestler best known for his work in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling...
, and 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...
had to start their own independent promotions in order to keep themselves in the limelight.
As the 1990s ended, though, things began to change. Independent promotions began gaining more prominence as they were featured in major specialized media such as Shukan Puroresu and Shukan Gong magazines. With the death of Giant Baba and retirement of Antonio Inoki
Antonio Inoki
is a Japanese professional wrestling promoter and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist who now resides between New York City and Tokyo. He was also the founder and former owner of New Japan Pro Wrestling before selling his controlling share in the promotion to Yukes...
, which effectively broke their control over the promotions they founded, the major promotions began looking to the smaller promotions for talent.
In 2000, the first major signing from an independent, Minoru Tanaka by NJPW from 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...
, took place; soon after NJPW stocked the junior heavyweight division
Cruiserweight (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a cruiserweight is a wrestler weighing 220 lb and less, sometimes 215. The older term junior heavyweight, which was used to describe the division, is more favored in Japan, where many titles for lighter-weight competitors are called junior heavyweight titles...
with independent talent such as Masayuki Naruse
Masayuki Naruse
is a Japanese professional wrestler and Professional mixed martial artist.-Career:Naruse debuted in Fighting Network RINGS in 1992 where he was displayed as a scrappy junior heavyweight willing to take on opponents twice his size. He and other RINGS wrestlers made the transition to mixed martial...
, Tiger Mask IV
Tiger Mask IV
Yoshihiro Yamazaki , best known by his ring name Tiger Mask , is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for New Japan Pro Wrestling. Yamazaki is the fourth wrestler to portray the Tiger Mask image / persona; having used it since 1995...
, Gedo
Keiji Takayama
Keiji Takayama better known as Gedo , is a long time professional wrestler. He formed a long-lasting tag team with Jado...
, and Jado
Shoji Akiyoshi
, better known by his ring name is a Japanese professional wrestler, best known for his work in New Japan Pro Wrestling with his tag team partner Gedo...
. On the same year, following the Pro Wrestling Noah
Pro Wrestling Noah
is a major Japanese professional wrestling promotion, founded in 2000 by former All Japan Pro Wrestling ace Mitsuharu Misawa. NOAH is broadcast weekly in Japan...
split, AJPW was forced to fill its ranks with independent talent; Nobutaka Araya, Shigeo Okumura
Shigeo Okumura
Shigeo Okumura is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and is currently billed simply as Okumura. Okumura originally worked for Tokyo Pro Wrestling and later on All Japan Pro Wrestling in Japan but...
and Mitsuya Nagai signed up (Araya is the only one who remains, but other signings since then have been Kaz Hayashi
Kaz Hayashi
Kazuhiro "Kaz" Hayashi is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is working for All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is also the head booker for the company's junior division.-Career:...
, Tomoaki Honma
Tomoaki Honma
Tomoaki Honma is a freelance Japanese professional wrestler, currently touring with New Japan Pro Wrestling.-Career:Honma trained in the Big Japan dojo before debuting for the promotion in May, 1997...
, Hideki Hosaka, and Ryuji Hijikata
Ryuji Hijikata
is a Japanese professional wrestler. Born May 17, 1978. Started wrestling in 1998 for Yuki Isikawa's BattlARTS promotion and All Japan Pro Wrestling since 2002 where he was a former AJPW World Jr...
.)
Noah admitted one wrestler from the independents, Daisuke Ikeda
Daisuke Ikeda
Daisuke Ikeda is a Japanese professional wrestler who is currently wrestling in the Independent circuit in Japan.-Professional wrestling career:...
, to its ranks as well (Ikeda has since left, but other wrestlers from the independents that were signed included Akitoshi Saito
Akitoshi Saito
is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for Pro Wrestling Noah.-Before pro wrestling:Before pro wrestling, Akitoshi Saito was trained in karate by Masashi Aoyagi. Saito seconded Aoyagi in his matches against Atsushi Onita in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in 1989...
, Takahiro Suwa
Takahiro Suwa
, better known by his ring name Suwa , is a retired Japanese professional wrestler, formerly of Pro Wrestling Noah.-Toryumon and Dragon Gate:...
, and Taiji Ishimori
Taiji Ishimori
is a Japanese professional wrestler currently working for Pro Wrestling NOAH as well as making appearances for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración through a NOAH/AAA working relationship.-Professional wrestling career:...
). Although AJPW, NJPW, and Noah remain committed to their dojos, the reliance on independents is growing as obscure talent is recognized for its ability.
See also
- List of professional wrestling terms
- List of independent circuit, unaffiliated or retired wrestlers
- List of independent wrestling promotions in the United States
- List of professional wrestling memorial shows