PUNQ Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 RIP Umanosuke Ueda (1940-2011) Â Â Â Â The passing of Umanosuke Ueda seems to have generated little publisity on the net. Here is a guy that was a major part of the Japanese wrestling world as one of the greatest native heels in history of Japan. Maybe it's because he's been out of the spotlight for so long or that he wasn't a typical 'great-match' type wrestler. But he was a TRUE character! It was all about the cheating using foreign objects choking and bloodying your oppoent and that type of thing usually ending with a screw job finish. His style was very similar to that of the two great foreign heels of his time; Abdullah the Butcher and Tiger Jeet Singh. He was a regular tag partner of Singh and the two caused chaos where ever they fought. And few looked more badass then Ueda with his bleeched hair and nasty Yakuza-like grin on his face. Â While a super heel, I think my favourite Ueda moment was a babyface one. In one of those big and legendary elimiation matches in the New Japan vs UWF feuds where Ueda was aging veteran on the home New Japan side looking very out of place against the brutal shooters on the UWF team. And he knew it and did the best thing he could have done for his side and sacrificing himself to eliminated the top UWF guy Akira Maeda taking him over the ropes with him to make the job easier for the New Japan guys left! That was a classic moment! But you also have such matches as the heel vs heel bout he had with Singh in '78 with Inoki as referee as a match that seals his legacy. Â Another thing thats different about Ueda is that he moved about a lot. He wasn't the kind of wrestler that'll stay in a company just for the sake of loyalty. He was kind of a hired assassin. Half-freelancer. He started out in the old JWA when it was the only company in town and wrestled a lot abroad in North-America during his youth. When JWA folded he jumped to AJPW, then to IWE, then to NJPW, then back to IWE, then returned to NJPW, then AJPW again and yet again to NJPW before becoming a veteran name when the indy scene started blooming in the early 90's mainly known for the time working for NOW along with being a freelancer until a car accident ended his career in 1996. And he won belts in all the main three promotion. Tag titles in NJPW and AJPW and the main singles belt in IWE trading it back and forth with Rusher Kimura in 1976. Â I'll miss the character! RIP Ueda! Â Â --PUNQ-- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwo Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 I never knew anything about his wrestling career, but he will always be known to me as Blondie from Takeshi's Castle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted December 23, 2011 Paid Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 I never knew anything about his wrestling career, but he will always be known to me as Blondie from Takeshi's Castle. Â Holy shit, I knew I recognised him! I don't remember ever seeing him beaten on Sumo Rings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyWanderer Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 Holy shit, I knew I recognised him! I don't remember ever seeing him beaten on Sumo Rings. Â Holy shit indeed, that guy was surely Count Takeshi's most able henchman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted December 23, 2011 Paid Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Holy shit, I knew I recognised him! I don't remember ever seeing him beaten on Sumo Rings.  Holy shit indeed, that guy was surely Count Takeshi's most able henchman  He was better than Porker. He was bigger but he always used to fall over. He was even better than Animal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninevisions Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 crikey! I thought that was Takayama for a moment. Â I too remember his as Blondie from the ol' Takeshi's castle, RIP big man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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