On the 1st of November 2014 during a Wrestle-1 event celebrating his 30 years in professional wrestling, Keiji Mutoh defeated Masayuki Kono to become the Wrestle-1 champion. It was a night of victory and career reflection, far from the New Japan Dojo where it had all started.

As we looked at in part one 1984 was a special year for the New Japan Dojo, seeing the emergence of future legends Keiji Mutoh, Masahiro Chono, Shinya Hashimoto, Keiichi Yamada (Jushin Liger) and Akira Nogami. It was in the Dojo that Mutoh already a judo black belt, began to perfect a hybrid martial arts-pro wrestling style that he would later help to popularise worldwide. Mutoh’s official debut came on the 5th of October 1984 against his fellow future musketeer Masahiro Chono and by 1985, Mutoh was ready for his first excursion to the US.

Mainly wrestling in Florida as the “White Ninja”, Mutoh learned the ropes by teaming with Kendo Nagasaki before returning to New Japan with a sci-fi themed gimmick and the nickname “Space Lone Wolf”. In March 1987, Mutoh won his first major championship when he and Shiro Koshinaka lifted the IWGP Tag Team Championship. Although the short-lived tandem would drop the titles to Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada just six days later, the win showed that NJPW management saw big things for Mutoh.

Although phenomenally talented, Mutoh was still developing his style and in January 1988, Mutoh ventured to Puerto Rico to wrestle for the World Wrestling Council.

It was in Puerto Rico that Mutoh would reunite with fellow NJPW Dojo graduates Chono and Hashimoto unofficially forming. The Three Musketeers. Eager to progress and develop his character, in late 1988, Mutoh moved to. Texas to join the Von Erich’s stronghold World Class Championship Wrestling. Working in WCCW Mutoh reunited with former partner Kendo Nagasaki and had a series of matches with Kevin Von Erich. Whilst his WCCW feuds were not particularly memorable Mutoh’s personality, skills and ring psychology began to win him fanfare within the National Wrestling Alliance. The admiration of the NWA would ultimately lead Mutoh to his greatest creation, one of wrestling’s most colourful characters, his alter ego, The Great Muta.

On the 18th of March 1989, on an episode of WCW Saturday Night, the legendary manager Gary Hart unveiled his latest client, The Great Muta. Muta would eventually go on to lift the NWA World Television Championship defeating Sting, Muta’s flashy in-ring style and colourful face paint made him fascinating to North American fans and would be many people’s introduction to Japanese wrestling. After dropping the TV title to Arn Anderson Mutoh returned to New Japan, now a man of dual identity, the brilliant Keiji Mutoh and the terrifying Great Muta.

In 1990 the ever entwined paths of the three musketeers crossed once again in NJPW. Mutoh and. Masahiro Chono defeated Saito and their fellow musketeer Hashimoto ending the prior seven-month IWGP Tag Team Championship reign. Mutoh & Chono would hold the titles for over six months, before losing them to Hiroshi Hase and Kensuke Sasaki. Back in the US. at Starrcade ‘90 The Great Muta teamed with Mr Saito as part of the Pat O’Connor Memorial Tag-Team Tournament. The Japanese duo were toppled by. The Steiner Brothers in the final.

Throughout the 1990’s Mutoh would continue to work full time in NJPW whilst making sporadic trips to the US as The Great Muta in WCW. Now officially dubbed The Three Musketeers of New Japan Pro Wrestling Mutoh, Chono & Hashimoto were dominating the main event scene.

The best was yet to come…

In part three of The Three Musketeers of NJPW, we will look at the continued success and evolution of Keiji Mutoh.

Puroresu-Gaijin