Hayabusa (wrestler)

Hayabusa
Born (1968-11-29)29 November 1968
Yatsushiro, Kumamoto, Japan
Died 3 March 2016(2016-03-03) (aged 47)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Darkside of Hayabusa
Eiji Ezaki
H
Hayabusa
Billed height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Billed weight 75 kg (165 lb)
Trained by Tarzan Goto
Debut May 5, 1991
Retired October 22, 2001

Eiji Ezaki (江崎 英治 Ezaki Eiji) (29 November 1968 – 3 March 2016)[1] was a Japanese professional wrestler, better known as the masked Hayabusa (ハヤブサ Hayabusa, "Falcon"), who worked primarily for Atsushi Onita's Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling (FMW) promotion.

Career

Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (1991–1993)

Eiji Ezaki began his wrestling career training in the FMW dojo. He made his FMW debut on July 19, 1991, where he teamed up with Amigo Ultra to defeat Akihito Ichihara and Yukihido Ueno. As is customary in professional wrestling, especially puroresu, Ezaki lost the majority of his matches for the early years of his career. Ezaki debuted for New Japan Pro Wrestling at Super J Cup 1994 where he was defeated by Jushin Thunder Liger in the first round.

North American excursion (1993–1995)

Ezaki adopted the Hayabusa gimmick in 1993 while in Mexico. While there, he learned the lucha libre style from wrestling instructor Rey Misterio, Sr.[2] Ezaki wrestled for the World Wrestling Association, Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre during his time in Mexico. He then returned to Japan to face Jushin Thunder Liger in a well received first round match during the Super J Cup tournament.

Between January 1995 and April 1995, Ezaki wrestled in the United States, mainly in the Florida area.

Return to FMW (1995–2001)

Upon his return to FMW in May 1995, Hayabusa wrestled very dangerous matches involving barbed wire and explosives. After one "Exploding Cage" match, he was rushed to the hospital due to severe burns. Hayabusa's rivals included Mr. Gannosuke, The Gladiator, and Onita himself, and he frequently teamed with Jinsei Shinzaki. Ezaki occasionally altered his character to the "Darkside of Hayabusa" or the maskless "H."

Ezaki wrestled one match in Extreme Championship Wrestling at Heatwave in 1998. He and Jinsei Shinzaki unsuccessfully challenged Rob Van Dam and Sabu for the promotion's World Tag Team Championship.

In October 2001, Ezaki suffered a career-ending injury during a match against Mammoth Sasaki. Ezaki attempted a springboard moonsault off the middle rope and lost footing, landing on his head, cracking two of his vertebrae and leaving him paralyzed. The injury provoked a high fever and required surgery. Ezaki was considered the heart and soul of FMW, and after his departure, the company slowly folded.[3]

Post-retirement

Ezaki later pursued a career as a singer. He promoted a new wrestling company called WMF (Wrestlings Marvelous Future) that contained up-and-coming wrestlers. The name was chosen since, spelled backwards, the initials are FMW in honor of the late company. He traveled to a few WWE events where he met old friends such as Sabu, Rob Van Dam, and Rey Mysterio backstage. He also took photographs with Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon, and Triple H, and spoke with Jeff Hardy.[4]

Ezaki attended the PWU (Pro Wrestling Unplugged) FAHRENHEIT: 3RD DEGREE event on August 19, 2006 at the New Alhambra (formerly known as ECW Arena). This was his first appearance in the USA since 2000, the last time being at E3 in Los Angeles, helping promote TOKYOPOP's FMW DVDs by having a 6-man tag match. He also participated in a shoot interview with RF Video.

Ezaki was active in working with the Dragon Gate promotion. He recorded a debut album with Dragon Kid titled Trust![5] which came out in November 2007. He partook in the company's first US tour, joining them in their appearance in Los Angeles on September 5 and Hawaii on September 8, 2008.[6] Ezaki also designed the tour's T-shirt.[7] When asked about his career in an interview, Ezaki said that one never knows what the chances are of a return to the ring.

On 3 April 2015, Hayabusa was part of a press conference announcing the return of FMW. He served as the executive producer of the promotion.[8]

Other media

Personal life

Ezaki was married and had two children. He and his wife divorced in 2004. He kept in touch with his wife and children since the divorce.

Ezaki was close friends with Jushin Thunder Liger. The two had a falling out in 1996 after Ezaki turned down a deal with NJPW, but they mended their friendship in 2005.

In 2015, Ezaki regained the use of his legs and could stand on his own and walk with a cane.[9]

Death

Ezaki died of a subarachnoid hemorrhage on 3 March 2016, at age 47.[10] He was found dead at his home. The owner of a nearby tavern, whom he was supposed to meet about an upcoming concert on March 7, went to his home when he did not arrive for the meeting, and there found his body.[11]

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. ↑ ハヤブサオフィシャルブログ「愛と勇気とあるこーる」 (in Japanese). the official blog of Hayabusa.
  2. ↑ "Hayabusa's Bio". Fmwwrestling.us. Retrieved 2012-07-04.
  3. ↑ "BAHU's Hayabusa Bio Part 2". fmwwrestling.us. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
  4. ↑ "BAHU's Hayabusa Bio Part 2". Fmwwrestling.us. Retrieved 2012-07-04.
  5. ↑ "ドラゴン・キッドオフィシャルブログ「Trust!」powered by SPORA". Spora.jp. Retrieved 2012-07-04.
  6. ↑ "Image: l_49758bcc5ce0b5d4b21ec1d0e1637556.jpg". a319.ac-images.myspacecdn.com. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
  7. ↑ "Image: l_1ad541f6b70f22747442fdde63f3fb74.jpg". a269.ac-images.myspacecdn.com. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
  8. ↑ "ＦＭＷ復活　ハヤブサ復帰リングを用意". Daily Sports Online (in Japanese). 2015-04-03. Retrieved 2015-04-03.
  9. ↑ Caldwell, James (2015-04-03). "Japan news: 1990s FMW promotion looking to make a comeback". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 2015-04-03.
  10. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (2016-03-03). "FMW star Hayabusa passed away at 47". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 2016-03-04.
  11. ↑ "ハヤブサさん「急死の詳細」を関係者明かす". Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-03-04.
  12. ↑ "Hayabusa « Wrestlers Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". cagematch.net. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
  13. ↑ "Purolove.Com". Purolove.Com. Retrieved 2012-07-04.

External links

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