Video link to the match on YouTube : https://imgur.com/a/3PPkgWY



Cagematch page for this match(Some matches won’t have this because they aren’t listed on Cagematch)

Who’s Who?

Tatsumi Fujinami

Tatsumi Fujinami is has been covered in the last few days so I’m not going to go too into him here. Like mentioned in previous days 1983 is when he went from being a Junior Heavyweight to Heavyweight. He would capture the WWF International Heavyweight title in August of 1983 a few months after this. Of course Fujinami is one of the most recognized IWGP Heavyweight Champions holding that belt on 6 separate occasions the 2nd most next to contemporary champion Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Antonio Inoki

It may sound like a cliche, but when talking puro this man should need no introduction. Founder of NJPW and it’s first major star and ace. Antonio Inoki was the king of NJPW for most of the 1970′s and even into the early 1980′s, but by the time IWGP Heavyweight Championship was a thing Inoki wasn’t really the right age to lead a company being in his mid 40′s.

Tatsumi Fujinami would be the one who became associated with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship since he is about a decade younger. Inoki was the Fujinami of his era the 70′s and early 1980′s, making his debut in 1960 and working in the original wrestling company of Japan JWA. He didn’t retire until 1998, but wasn’t booked as champion after his inaugural IWGP Championship reign in 1987.

Fishman

Fishman is a luchador who was most well known for working in UWA/CMLL. Though he worked in AAA as well in the 1990′s. It was not uncommon for UWA/CMLL to share talents because they didn’t have the antagonist relationship that AAA/CMLL have. In fact CMLL/UWA would run joint cards.

Before this match in the 70′s and early 80′s Fishman had captured various belts the Mexican National Welterweight Championship(x3), NWA World Welterweight Champion, WWF Light Heavyweight Champion and was currently in his 3rd reign a UWA World Light Heavyweight Belt… which is the title he’s most associated with.

It was a very important belt in the 1980′s lucha scene held by Fishman like it was in 1983, originally held by lucha legend Ray Mendoza(father of Villano Brothers). The UWA World Light Heavyweight Belt was introduced in 1975 when UWA was founded. It was also held by Perro Aguayo who Fishman was teaming with here. Fishman’s first reign coming when he beat then champion Perro Aguayo in ‘81.

Fishman has also… of course been in various betting matches by this point. The most important being at EMLL 44th Anniversary show in 1977 which was a 2 night event in which Fishman unmasked a person each night. Sangre Chicana on night one. Who Fishman was feuding with for his UWA World Light Heavyweight Championship the two trading it back and forth. At this point Fishman had won 9 betting matches one of them was a tag match with Anibal.

Sadly we lost Fishman in 2017 when he passed away at the age of 66.

Perro Aguayo

Making his debut in 1968 Perro Aguayo got his start in CMLL and much like Fishman worked with both CMLL/UWA throughout the 1980′s.

Before this match in the 70′s and early 80′s Perro Aguayo had captured various belts the NWA World Middleweight Championship(3x), Mexican National Middleweight Championship, UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Champion, UWA World Light Heavyweight Champion, and WWF Light Heavyweight Champion(x3). That last title being the one he is most well known to carry by the end of the 80′s having held it 7 times.

He also had his fair share of betting matches his record being good : 38-12-0

His record at this time was 7-6-0, so basically tied winning 1 more than he has loss. Though the people he lost to are a literally who’s who of Lucha Legends. Having loss to El Santo(the original) at EMLL 42nd Anniversary, El Faraón at 43rd and El Solitario. So he was losing, but in high profile matches and hair grows back. At EMLL 49th Anniversary(September 1982) Perro won a big one at Anniversary shaving Tony Salazar in the main event. Over the spring/summer of 1983 Perro would win 2 more hair vs hair matches vs El Texano & Negro Navarro before losing in the fall to Villano III. So that’s where Perro Aguayo was at this time. As said about the 80′s for Perro was all about that WWF Light Heavyweight Title as well. He would drop it to Gran Hamada in UWF in 1984… in a bit of a strange detour for the mostly Mexican touring belt.

We may see Perro Aguayo again in this series so I don’t want to dump all the info about him right here. This was a hot time for Perro Aguayo it’s probably the best time of his career. Though, he had highs before this too. Working with El Santo is obviously a big deal and being in a betting match at Anniversary is a notch on your belt, having it 3 times is a huge notch. Many great and notable luchadores don’t even get one.

How is the match?

Did you actually make it to this section? I can get long winded.

(Date on the video was wrong, but not going to retype all this for 1981)



This is a good match and an interesting contrast from the more junior style we have seen thus far in the series with this being a more Heavyweight style match. While I do enjoy this match, there is a segment which is very similar to the other lucha vs puro match we watched from 1981. Where a lucha guy holds a puro guy and his buddy dives, but puro guy escapes so lucha dives on lucha. It’s not a bad spot, but it was done better/more exciting in the Tiger Mask tag cause there were just more dives in that one. It’s understandable though since this is more heavyweight and grounded. Inoki doesn’t do dives.

Perro Aguayo was a treat in this and might make this series again. He is very expressive and fun in this match. His finish is a double footstomp… which we sorta see in this match, when he breaks up a pin. Though, I’m not sure that’s what it was suppose to be or not. As normally it’s to a prone opponent on their back not someone making a pin attempt. He and Inoki have a fun bit and that’s really all Inoki did in this match. He seemed very in the background, not sure if he was injured or perhaps saving himself for something right around the corner?

I’d recommend this match for Perro Aguayo antics alone. I’d say it’s pretty on par with the other tag match we have looked at. It was a pretty fun era of NJPW working with UWA. Inoki draw with Bob Backland in his only 1981 UWA match for the WWF Heavyweight Title. We will continue this UWA trend when tomorrow we look at Tiger Mask in UWA. In a traditional 2/3 falls title match with Fishman. (Which actually did happen in 1983)