澤宗紀

EVOLVE5と同会場で行われたレッスルリユニオン主催のレスリングコンベンション。藤波辰巳、アブドーラ・ザ・ブッチャー、ミル・マスカラス、ドス・カラス、ザ・デストロイヤー、アイアン・シーク、サージェント・スローター、ジミー・スヌーカー、カーロス・コロン、バロン・フォン・ラシク、タリー・ブランチャード、マグナムTA、トミー・リッチという超スーパースター達に混ざって格闘探偵団バトラーツ所属の澤宗紀が何故だかエントリー。そこで今回は澤宗紀と一緒に潜入取材をしてみることに。

9月11日　Wrestling Reunion Presents Wrestling’s Greatest Feuds @ラーウェイ・レックセンター　ニュージャージー州ラーウェイ

会場入口にはブルーノ・サンマルチノとハルク・ホーガンの絵のゆるーいトラックが止まっていた。入場するなりプロレスファンの熱気がムンムン。

澤宗紀の大ファンだという彼、手製のボードにはブラジャー蝶野とランジェリー武藤の写真まで貼り付けるというマニアックぶり。澤宗紀新作Tシャツやバトラーツのポースターなども販売。

隣のブースではTNAを辞めたばかりのホミサイドがZERO1での思い出ばなしに夢中。偶然通りかかったサミ・キャラハンに突撃インタビューする澤。サミと澤は、今年3月ドイツのwXwでホテルが同室という仲。いつかこの2人が対戦するときが来るのだろうか。

澤宗紀が携帯を打っている向こうにはドーン・マリーの後ろ姿が。ミニスカートにもほどがある。

謎のアフリカンレスラー、ナイジェリアン・ナイトメアと意気投合する澤。全く言葉が通じないけれども「ウンバボ！パピプペポ！」といいながらトランス状態に入る3人。

でたっ！飛鳥仮面ドス・カラス！

アメリカにはいろんなミル・マスカラスがいる。

スーツ姿がカッコいい本物のミル・マスカラス登場！

ショーン・ウォルトマン（X-Pac）と「サックイット！」。ケビン・ナッシュでかすぎ。

映画『ザ・レスラー』のワンシーンに出てくるような閑散としたサイン会を想像していたらとんでもない規模のコンベンションでびっくり。ファンのマニアっぷりも凄かったが往年のスーパースター達のオーラも半端なかった。ただ座っているだけでも絵になると実感した。澤宗紀もすっかり子供心に戻って往年スーパースターを見つけては「オー！」とか「ワーオ！」の連発。プロレスファンにとってプロレスコンベンションは想像を遥かにこえたとんでもなく楽しいものだった。

EVOLVE 5: Danielson vs. Sawa
Sept. 11th, 2010
Rahway, NJ
Rahway Rec Center
275 E. Milton Avenue, 07065
Belltime: 4pm

Tickets now on sale in the EVOLVEwrestling.com Shop of by calling 267-519-9744. Make sure to check out our Ticket Packs and get GA tix for as low as $11 each!!!

EVOLVE 5: Danielson vs. Sawa
Sept. 11th, 2010
Rahway, NJ
Rahway Rec Center
275 E. Milton Avenue, 07065
Belltime: 4pm

Tickets now on sale in the EVOLVEwrestling.com Shop of by calling 267-519-9744. Make sure to check out our Ticket Packs and get GA tix for as low as $11 each!!!

The Main Event
Bryan Danielson (1-0) vs. Munenori Sawa (1-0)

WSU World Title Match (if Martinez is still Champion)
Mercedes Martinez defends vs. Amazing Kong

Special Challenge Match
Jimmy Jacobs (3-1) vs. Adam Cole (1-1)

Battle For 3
Sami Callihan (2-0) vs. Drake Younger (2-0)

Chuck Taylor (3-0) vs. Mike Quackenbush (0-0)

Also signed:
-Cheech & Cloudy (2-0)
-Brad Allen (2-1)
-Johnny Gargano (2-2)
-Gran Akuma (1-1)
-Frightmare (0-0)
-Ricochet (1-2)
-Flip Kendrick & Louis Lyndon (1-3)
-Jon Moxley (0-1)
-Rich Swann (0-1)
-Plus others!!!

EVOLVE has partnered with Wrestling Reunion to present a unique day of wrestling as the past meets the future. EVOLVE 5 and the Wrestling Reunion convention are both separate tickets. Wrestling Reunion will present a convention on September 11th from 9am-3pm. The theme of the convention is Wrestling’s Greatest Feuds. Already signed to appear are Tatsumi Fujinami, Abdullah The Butcher, Carlos Colon, Tully Blanchard, Magnum TA, Tommy Rich, Baron Von Raschke, Mil Mascaras, The Destroyer, Sgt. Slaughter, The Iron Sheik, Ryan Shamrock, Dos Caras plus vendor table guests include Kevin Nash, Candice Michelle, Jimmy Hart, Danny Davis, Judy Martin, Angelo Mosca, X-Pac, Dawn Marie, Jackie Haas and many more to be signed. Go to www.WrestlingReunion.com for more info.

Directions & Public Transit:
-The Rahway Recreation Center located at 275 East Milton Avenue Rahway, NJ 07065.
-It can be reached by train from New York Penn Station and all points in between via NJ Transit on the North East Corridor Line.
-It can be reached by train from Philadelphia Septa connection in Trenton with NJ Transit and using the North East Corridor Line.
-All schedule and fare information can be found at www.njtransit.com.
-The Rec Center is located only 3 1/2 blocks from the Rahway Train Station, through downtown Rahway, past Town Hall and the Police Station. It is a very safe well lit route.
-Point to Point bus routes can be found at www.njtransit.com
Driving Directions
-Rahway, NJ is centrally located between New York (1/2 hour) and Philadelphia (1 Hour) with easy access from the NJ Turnpike and NJ Parkway, located only a few miles from each major roadway! Check www.Mapquest.com for more directions.

-Card Subject To Change

Name : Munenori Sawa

Birthday : April 20, 1979

Birthplace : Tokyo

Height/Weight : 5’7” (174 cm), 176 lbs (80 kg)

Current affiliation : Battlarts

Debut : August 31, 2003 (vs. Nagase Kancho)

Championships and Accomplishments : NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship,  NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship, DDT Ironman Heavy Metal Championship, CMLL KO-D Tag Team Championship

Signature moves : Omanji Gatame (Octopus Hold), Shining Wizard, Irabu Punch (Wind‐up Pitching Punch), Dragon Screw

Munenori Sawa played amateur wrestling in high school. In 1998, after he was graduated from high school, he joined amateur Battlarts (called B-Club).  However he didn’t pursue wrestling in college but engaged in theater performance.In 2000, he joined Snakepit Japan. He got a job at TV ad production company but resign in 2 weeks.

In 2002, he made a MMA debut at Kibgdom Ehrgeiz. In 2003, he made a pro-wrestling debut vs Nagase Kancho at Tama prowresting. He was a maskman called Flash Third. Then he joined Pro wrestling r, and wrestled International Pro Wrestling and Asian Sports Promotion.

In 2005, he won at All-Japan Combat Wrestling Open Championship (although there were only 3 competitors including Sawa). He also returned to Battlarts in 2005, and made re-debut for Battlarts vs Daisuke Sekimoto. In 2006, he made a tag with Yuki Ishikawa (which he was longing for a long time) and wrestled at Big Mouth Loud.

In December 2006, he wrestled against Kota Ibushi at Indy Summit but he suffered at infraction fracture rib during the match. One month later, he came back from the broken rib at Zero1-Max. Also he won against Yuki Ishikawa in June 2007 at first IGF show. This is the first time he won over his trainer, Yuki Ishikawa.

In September 2009, he suffered from cervical hernia and took a month break. On his comeback match against Kohei Sato & Kamikaze, he & his tag partner, Ikuto Hidaka, retained NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship. On January 17, 2010, he made US debut at EVOLVE1 against TJP, and retained his first winning in US by Omanji-Gatame.

He has few other characters. Famous one is Lingerie Muto, which he wears skinhead wig and women’s underwewar and does Keiji Muto’s moves. Also SAWACO is another funny character which is limited to women’s wrestling matches.

He is a big fan of Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao who are very famous actors from Hong Kong.

• Blog (Japanese)　http://sawamunenori.blog.players.tv/

Kota Ibushi VS Dr. Cubes Posse from Rand Borden on Vimeo.

• 怪獣大戦闘同盟　『飯伏幸太 VS Dr.キューブ軍』①　http://www.kbbu.net/2010/08/1096
• Rand Borden Blog　http://randborden.blogspot.com/