 Kashin in July 2017 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Tokimitsu Ishizawa (1968-08-05)August 5, 1968 (age 57)[citation needed] Minamitsugaru, Aomori, Japan |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Dragon Soldier B Kendo Kashin Kendo Ka Shin Tokimitsu Ishizawa |
| Billed height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Billed weight | 92 kg (203 lb) |
| Trained by | Antonio Inoki NJPW Dojo |
| Debut | September 21, 1992 |
| Mixed martial arts careerMartial arts career | |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Height | 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Weight | 92 kg (203 lb; 14 st 7 lb) |
| Style | MMA Shooto,Pankration |
| Team | NJPW Dojo |
Tokimitsu Ishizawa (Japanese:石澤 常光Ishizawa Tokimitsu, born August 5, 1968), better known by hisring nameKendo Kashin (ケンドー・カシン,Kendō Kashin), is a Japaneseprofessional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his time inNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was atwo timeIWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, aone timeIWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion, and the winner of the 1999Best of the Super Juniors. He is also known for his forays intomixed martial arts, most notably forPride Fighting Championship (Pride), where he defeatedGracie Jiu Jitsu fighterRyan Gracie atPRIDE 15. He currently wrestles forPro Wrestling Noah.
Ishizawa was an outstandingAmateur wrestler fromWaseda University before being scouted and initiated into theNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion on September 21, 1992, wrestling againstTiger Mask. During the NJPW vs. UWFi feud, he was taught the shoot style byKazuo Yamazaki. After defeatingYuji Nagata to win the 1996 Young Lion Cup, he left on a learning excursion to Austria's CWA promotion, where he disguised himself under a mask and called himselfKendo Kashin.
He returned to New Japan as Kashin in May 1997 at theOsaka Dome, facing his mentor, Kazuo Yamazaki. Kashin quickly rose up the ranks of the Junior Heavyweight division, utilizing a cross armbreaker and otherarmbar techniques to quickly submit opponents. After defeatingKoji Kanemoto to win the 1999 Best of the Super Juniors Tournament, he defeated Kanemoto again in August of that year to capture theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship for the first time.
In August 2000 Ishizawa ventured into themixed martial arts world and fought under his real name and without the mask in PRIDE 10. He lost his match with Ryan Gracie by TKO in little more than two minutes. Continuing to suffer many losses, Kashin took several months off from New Japan to train. In July 2001 Ishizawa challenged Ryan for a rematch at PRIDE 15. This time he TKO'd Ryan in under 5 minutes. That same month he returned to New Japan as Kendo Kashin and won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title for the second time by defeatingMasayuki Naruse.
In January 2002, while he was still champion, he followed fellow New Japan starsKeiji Mutoh andSatoshi Kojima to rival promotionAll Japan Pro Wrestling. In All Japan, Kashin quickly established himself as the Junior ace, submittingMasanobu Fuchi to win the vacantWorld Junior Heavyweight Championship. He also won theWorld Tag Team Championship withYuji Nagata.
In 2004 Kashin split from All Japan to become a freelancer, taking one of the two World Tag Team Championship belts with him, with Nagata taking the other. The championship was later declared vacant by AJPW six months later.
In 2005 he returned to New Japan as a regular for a few months, working through the Inoki Office agency. The agency and New Japan's association ended in late 2005. On April 2, 2005, Kashin competed under a mask asDragon Soldier B inRing of Honor'sBest of the American Super Juniors Tournament.
After a long hiatus from wrestling, Kashin returned on December 20, 2007, at theInoki Genome Federation's show in Tokyo and faced off againstKurt Angle for IGF's version of the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in a losing effort.
Kendo returned to the ring for IGF in 2012. In March 2014, Kashin returned to All Japan Pro Wrestling, announcing his participation in the 2014Champion Carnival. Kashin faced 2 Cold Scorpio for the WPW title in a losing effort at Cheltenham Town Hall on February 18, 2018, at SuperClash.
On 14 August 2019, it was announced that Kashin has joined the WWE Performance Centre as a coach.[1] He was released on April 15, 2020.[2]
On July 19, 2020, Kashin returned to the ring in Japan and appeared forPro Wrestling Noah for their 'In the Spotlight' series.[3]
| 7 matches | 1 win | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 1 | 4 |
| By submission | 0 | 1 |
| By decision | 0 | 0 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1–5–1 | Katsuyori Shibata | TKO (punches) | Dream 12 | October 25, 2009 | 1 | 4:52 | Osaka, Japan | |
| Loss | 1–4–1 | Taiei Kin | KO (head kick) | K-1 PREMIUM 2006 Dynamite!! | December 31, 2006 | 1 | 2:48 | Osaka, Japan | |
| Loss | 1–3–1 | Carlos Newton | TKO (punches) | Hero's 7 | October 9, 2006 | 1 | 0:22 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Loss | 1–2–1 | Yoshihiro Akiyama | Submission (ezekiel choke) | Hero's 4 | March 15, 2006 | 2 | 1:41 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Draw | 1–1–1 | Shingo Koyasu | Draw | Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye 2001 | December 31, 2001 | 5 | 3:00 | Saitama, Japan | K-1 vs. Pride rules |
| Win | 1–1 | Ryan Gracie | TKO (injury) | Pride 15 | July 29, 2001 | 1 | 4:51 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Loss | 0–1 | Ryan Gracie | KO (punches) | Pride 10 - Return of the Warriors | August 27, 2000 | 1 | 2:16 | Saitama, Japan |
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