Notes via Justin:
Fumi and I are back with Part Two of our profile series on “Mr. Puroresu” Genichiro Tenryu. We first talked about Tenryu’s involvement in the short-lived “straight and strong” SWS run by Megane Super executives, but we also backtracked a bit speak in more detail about Tenryu’s pretty successful sumo career before transitioning into pro wrestling. The conversation moved back into the ’90s, when we discussed Tenryu taking after Baba and Inoki and becoming a wrestling promoter with WAR. Finally, we went over his return to AJPW in the late ’90s after the death of Giant Baba and his classics with Keiji Muto in All Japan, his work in the critically maligned HUSTLE and his retirement match in 2015 against NJPW’s Kazuchika Okada.
Here are some of the matches Fumi recommended, plus a few others we discussed on today’s show:
Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu, JPW 2/21/1985
Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu, AJPW 6/1985
Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu, AJPW 9/3/1986
Tenryu and Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Riki Choshu and Yoshiaki Yatsu, AJPW 2/5/1987
Tenryu vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, AJPW 10/10/1987
Tenryu vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (Triple Crown), AJPW 6/5/1989 (Observer 5* match)
Tenryu vs. Ric Flair, AJPW 10/6/1981
Tenryu vs. Ric Flair, AJPW 9/12/1984
Tenryu vs. Ric Flair, SWS 4/18/1992
Tenryu vs. Keiji Muto (Triple Crown) AJPW 6/8/2001
Tenryu vs. Keiji Muto (for vacant Triple Crown) AJPW 4/13/2002
