From the Archives, Misawa Week: Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Mitsuharu Misawa

The second in our series of matches posted in honor of the late Mitsuharu Misawa takes us back to 6/8/90. Misawa had just recently unmasked as Tiger Mask II and was beginning his ascent into Japanese wrestling prominence. At the time, there really wasn't a bigger native star than the beloved Jumbo Tsuruta. You could say this was the match that cemented Misawa's status as a main event player. Thanks to A1 poster T-Y (Todd Yates) for finding this on Youtube. Let's watch:

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Misawa really plays up being a cocky prick, doesn't he? His look with the collar popped and the scowl on his face, refusing to shake Jumbo's hand at the beginning and then twice during the match slapping Jumbo in the face during breaks. He really played up the chip on his shoulder, and he got Jumbo riled up at several points. Jumbo by this point was bigger and a bit slower, but my God, he could still go. He had a lot behind his elbows and knees, still a crisp, credible offense going. Misawa showed a lot of high-flying stuff. He takes flight three times from the inside of the ring to the out, including a really sweet Tiger feint into a dropkick from the apron, which was the first high-spot.

While Tsuruta and Misawa would have a couple more matches after this, one of them that Tsuruta would get his win back, this was the match that really set Misawa's career ablaze. It was rare for someone to get a pinfall win over Jumbo, and Misawa got one on a pretty smooth finish, a reversal of a reversal of a back suplex. Misawa gets the Rudy treatment and thus, a star is born. Misawa would never look back.