MAX-J Ambassadors

A punishing fighter, Hirata most certainly lives up to the "Battleship" moniker. With his background in Judo as well as combat sambo, this native of Toyotomi in Japan's far north is an expert in throwing his opponents around with all sorts of suplexes and slams. Given his height, no one wants to be a recipient of his attacks, because it's certainly a long way down! His finishers are the Buster Wave (wrist-clutch pumphandle slam into sit-out piledriver) and a snap powerbomb, the latter of which is claimed by analysts to rank as one of the deadliest moves in the business.

Fans of the Laurentide-affiliated Shining Road may remember Hirata's MMA debut against the massive KRAKEN, a match that he won via submission with a kimura. Seen as a rising star at the time, he would quickly sign with his current promotion, Ōkinasaru Championship Wrestling, where he continues to wrestle to this day and is considered one of the top performers in the company, perhaps on the verge of becoming the ace of the promotion.

Perhaps due to his upbringing in a small town in northern Japan, Hirata is accustomed to taking on the role of the giant standing up to villainous invaders and has therefore developed a no-nonsense personality and something of an isolationist streak. It should come as no surprise that Demon Lord Zenki was able to recruit him to join Shin Demon Brigade as their superheavyweight enforcer. Hirata is committed to Zenki's mission of showing the world that Japan is the best and doesn't require help from the outside world.

(1-0) MMA record

Something of an impromptu teaming of these two individuals, this duo had not competed alongside one another before the inaugural World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title Tournament at the CRUISERWORLD! show in July 2023. Despite being a longshot to become the first champions, the duo managed to win. Defending the title around the world, they train extensively with one another and have formed a legitimate partnership. Although they have something of an Odd Couple dynamic, they are united in their shared vision to save the planet.

Rumored to be the product of Manhattan Project experiments during World War II, his abilities seem to defy age. The “Atomic Assassin” relies on his shootboxing skills, seemingly cerebral plans of attacks targeting opponents’ weaknesses, and a killer instinct that strikes fear into opponents. His finishers include the Metallic Kick (running heavy Yakuza kick) and the Kujira Blaster (running vertical-drop brainbuster) in addition to various kicks.

He suddenly emerged as a figure late in Shining Road/SEKAI Pro-Wrestling to win the GPWS Heavyweight Championship and joined MAXIMUM Japan and briefly held the MAX Jr. Heavyweight Championship, making him one of the top cruiserweight superstars of the late 2010s. He disappeared and abruptly as he appeared once MJPW closed its doors and has not been seen until a few weeks ago. He claims that he only appears when the Earth is in mortal danger and he is required to save its inhabitants from themselves as the iron-fisted guardian of the planet.

Despite being considered one of the top MAX ambassadors, he remains a freelancer.

- MAX-J Jr. Heavyweight Champion (1)

- GPWS Heavyweight Champion (1)

- GPWS Jr. Heavyweight Champion (1)

- World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champion (1) (w/Earth Warrior)

- World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Tournament winner (w/Earth Warrior)

An environmental activist and former gymnast, he initially pursued a career in pro-wrestling to bring attention to climate change, donating all his winnings to a non-profit organization. His finishers include a diving leg drop into cross armbreaker, senton bomb, various hurricanranas.

After a year-long excursion to Mexico, he joined MJPW as one of the most promising high-flyers of his class. While many believed his elite-level athleticism would forge a successful career, he was often defeated at the hands of superior opponents with many pundits alleging that he lacked focus on his craft due to trying to balance his pro-wrestling training with his activism. With MAX’s closure, he returned to protesting over-fishing and joined the tournament in order to raise awareness for environmental causes. He has mixed feelings regarding his teammate METAL HERO, who claims to be powered by a nuclear reactor, a technology that has a mixed sentiment among environmental activists. When asked by a member of the media, he reportedly claimed, “at least he isn’t powered by coal”.

Recently, he has signed to the POSIEDON-1 promotion based out of southern Japan so that he can experience more professional wrestling styles throughout Asia and also continued to promote his pro-environmental message.

- World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1) (w/METAL HERO)

- World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Tournament winner (w/METAL HERO)

- "J9" Fighting Spirit Invitational runner up

A Muay Thai kickboxer who traveled to Thailand at the age of 16 and has traveled the world over in competitive formats. With a sterling 17-1 record, Sniper Izumi uses his impressive reach to control opponents and his knockout skills are second to none. While he is not highly cross-trained in grappling or pro-wrestling, his size and weight combined with his excellent striking are often enough for him to win matches. This fact gives him a high degree of arrogance as he believes that Muay Thai is the strongest art and tends to let his opponents know before, during, and after the match. He tends to finish matches with repeated successions of kicks.

Izumi signed a contract as a MAX-J ambassador due to his association with the All-Japan Sports and Wrestling Commission, with many believing that he was brought in to provide an MMA presence to the brand. While he is signed to BLIZZARD Pro, he also competes in shootfighting matches around the company.

- (17-1) Kickboxing Record

Fukudome is significantly cross-trained as a kickboxer and has a freestyle wrestling background from his university days while he studied abroad in Italy. He is quoted saying that he could “beat any opponent with blocks and knees” and has a proven track record of doing just that. He became good friends with Takeda Izumi when both of them trained in Bangkok. However, he has a much deeper affinity for pro-wrestling and tends to be the "good cop" in the duo's friendship. His finishers include the Tuscan Laser (spinning Yakuza kick) and a Dragon suplex hold.

After Shining Road's closure, Fukudome stepped away from the pro-wrestling scene and up north to Sapporo where he became mostly a commentator. However, he kept his skills sharp and with the return of the MAX-J brand is excited to compete once again as he is still young. Like his comrade Takeda Izumi, he is signed to BLIZZARD Pro but he is not quite as active on the pro-wrestling scene due to committing to kickboxing events throughout Asia and elsewhere.

- (9-4) Kickboxing record

A competitive swimmer in his youth, studying Karate and Jiu-jitsu during his university days gives him a complete background in both striking and grappling. Graduating from Fujiyama dojo in May 2017, he soon thereafter began fighting in Shining Road Pro-Wrestling where he developed a rivalry with Katsuhiko Himura from their days in Shining Road's NOVA division for young fighters, finishing as the runner-up in the first annual NOVA Cup. He is known for his fluid wrestling style and his seemingly infinite endurance. His primary finishers are the Kappa Lock (sitting arm triangle chokehold; often transitioned from a standing hold a/l/a Anaconda Vise) and the Gauss Cannon (spinning Northern Lights Bomb) but also makes use of various strikes and submissions.

After Shining Road's closure, Nakamura continued to wrestle in the Hokkaido-based promotion Pro-Wrestling BLIZZARD where he teamed with former NOVA alumnus Shinzo Takamori, winning the GPWS Tag Team Championship from Hajime Tanaka and Zen Hayashi, becoming the 26th champions and solidifying their spot as one of the top tag teams in Japan.

Fiercely competitive, Nakamura is not afraid to let his emotions display during a match and is the type of wrestler who believes he should win every match and has a tendency to become combative and complain to referees when things don't go his way. He was pursued by MAX-J to become a brand ambassador along with his tag team partner Takamori shortly after the company established the World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. It did not take long for him to bring other members of the SHYc faction with him.

- 2017 Nova Cup (MMA) Tournament Runner-up

- (1-1) MMA record

Getting somewhat of a late start in his pro-wrestling career has not deterred this former professional ice hockey standout. While not as technically proficient as his tag team partner Akira Nakamura, his toughness and ability to absorb punishment makes him highly respected. His primary finishers include the Colossal Duster (wrist-clutch Olympic slam) and a high-angle release German suplex.

Along with Nakamura, after Shining Road he became a top tag team competitor. Despite being the older of the two, he plays more of an equal role due to switching careers later in life. He became a MAX-J ambassador so that he could pursue the World Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship alongside his friend and teammate as well as enjoy the pro-wrestling adventure with the other members of his team.

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With a 7-5 record in MMA, he has an extensive combat fighting background and is trained primarily as a catch wrestler trained in Hungary though he has better strikes than one might initially imagine. While technically a cruiserweight, he tends to tip the scale right along the border. He tends to enjoy fighting more among the heavyweight classes, though given that he's a freelancer he tends to accept any job that helps him make ends meet. That being said, he is quite successful and has a no-nonsense and brutal style with strong elbow strikes and punishing suplexes threatens to put any opponent's lights out. His finishers are a vertical-drop brainbuster, Burning Elbow (think Kobashi's Burning Lariat but with a heavy elbow strike instead), and a guillotine chokehold.

Kamakura is a freelancer by choice, preferring not to be tied down to any particular company or locale. It is said that he lives in a converted Mercedes sprinter van which gives him the freedom to travel all over the country, which in the past has made it difficult for some companies to get a hold of him. He works out in public gyms for the most part, though he is not the most easily approachable as he tends to have his guard up. The MAX sponsorship to him was highly coveted as it is a great badge for freelancers to wear in order to continue to get pro-wrestling work in the country.

- GPWS Jr. Heavyweight Champion (1)

- (7-5) MMA Record

While not the strongest or the fastest or the most agile, the Akita prefecture native makes up for all of it with his tenacity and faith. Half-Japanese and half-Korean, Yamashita is a bit late to the pro-wrestling game as he was a police officer for nearly a decade before making the switch from the squad car to the squared circle. He is a man of deep religious zeal, growing up in a Baptist home in Korea, and tends to give credit to divine intervention for his wins. Personality-wise, he tends to have a bit of a paranoid streak about him and is not one to keep quiet if he feels a match is not being officiated correctly. His finishers are the Prosperous Weapon (Sliding D), shining wizard, and various chokeholds.

He earned a MAX-J sponsorship for his workman-like attitude. He is never one to back down from a confrontation and is willing to experience new and interesting match types. While he is not always the most pleasant teammate, he is only interested in success and the MAX-J organization expects nothing less.

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Perhaps the smallest member of the roster, he has a rather theatrical backstory of a mummified warrior from 10,000 years in the future who was sent back in time to acquire new fighting skills. His skills in the ring match the drama of his alleged origins, as he is a noted high-flyer who is always willing to take a big risk. His finishers are a 450 splash, various moonsaults, and hurricanranas.

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This Tokyo-native was a professional jazz rock musician fronting Jōkamachi Groove Machine, a group leading a City Pop revival during the late 2000s. In the music world he achieved brief notoriety with a Top 40 hit "Edo State of Mind" hitting the airwaves. He is something of a renaissance man, with a PhD in physics and is a nationally ranked chess player. As a result, he is the only MAX-J sponsor who officially represents the Japan Chessboxing League (though he is much better as a chess player than kickboxer). He sees pro-wrestling as a physical embodiment of music and he uses athleticism and finesse in his matches, preferring to almost endlessly chain-wrestle and improvise. As a result, his matches tend to have a slow start but become increasingly more dynamic as times goes on. His primary finisher is the Edo Fermata (RKO/Diamond Cutter variation that tends to involved more flourishing, spinning, and other motions).

It is believed that Saitoh accepted a MAX sponsorship in parts due to produce a musical album that is inspired by pro-wrestling. As a result, despite his varied interests, he does take pro-wrestling seriously and has developed something of a cult following due to his significant crossover appeal. While he is not necessarily a top fighter each night, his finisher is one of the most feared in the business and he is a threat to upset higher-ranking opponents.

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Hailing from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Jeremias Garza is the fourth iteration of the legendary El Refresco lineage, a wrestling family with roots dating back to the early 20th century. A dedicated surfer in his youth, Garza's athletic prowess led him to amateur wrestling during his secondary schooling, eventually earning him a scholarship to the University of Arizona. After completing his education, he returned to Mexico to undergo the rigorous training required to don the mask and mantle of El Refresco IV.

This version of El Refresco blends traditional lucha libre with contemporary elements and MMA influences, creating a no-nonsense, unpredictable style. While he maintains some showmanship, his approach is more grounded, focusing on strength, technique, and strategic execution. His signature moves include the fan-favorite Tornado Alley, where he traps an opponent in the corner and delivers repeated spinning knife-edge chops, and his finishers, the Caffeinator (Test Drive) and the Mineral Bomb (Fisherman-Buster into powerbomb).

Born to Italian parents who moved to Argentina during his teenage years, Giovanni Marino, known as Il Ladro, has a rich background in combat sports. Competing in Pan-American Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitions during his youth, he traveled extensively through South and Central America. During his travels, he encountered the lucha libre style in Mexico, which forever changed his career trajectory. Il Ladro combines acrobatic pins from lucha libre with flash submissions from jiu-jitsu, making him a master of surprising opponents with stunning and unexpected maneuvers.

Il Ladro is known for his flying armbars and rolling kneebars, as well as his innovative aerial finishers, the Italian Moonsault Press (high arcing Moonsault press) and the Espresso 450 (450 splash, executed facing backward and jumping backward). His hard-hitting strike, the Venetian Drill (spinning running knee strike, typically to a downed opponent), adds to his arsenal of unpredictable moves.

As a native of the small town of Taki in Mie preferecture, he studied judo while he was a student and quickly developed an interest in pro-wrestling. Yamada has an interesting history with MAX-J. He was one of the first individuals accepted to train at the MAX-J Dojo founded in 2018. However, Yamada's competitive side became something of a curse as he found the pressure of both city life and the training to be mentally overwhelming, having never struggled in an athletic context. As a result, he dropped out of the Dojo and moved back to Taki where he resumed his judo studies and embarked on a life of teaching in a rural secondary school.

But as the years went by, he could not escape the shame that he felt as a result of abandoning an opportunity to wrestle in MAX-J. When the brand reemerged in May 2023, he became obsessed with it and weighed the possibility of somehow returning to the company and requesting a second opportunity. In July 2024, this obsession led him to encroach upon the secret J1 Training Camp in Nagano where he planned to spy on the training so that he could emulate it should MAX-J ever issue a public tryout and thus have an advantage over the other participants. However, he was discovered in the facility by J1 Training Camp Head Coach Mike Musket, who made him a deal that he could serve as the lead ringside attendant for the tournament where he would be evaluated. Yamada performed diligently and Musket put in a good word with the company to accept him as a MAX sponsor.

Yamada's judo makes him a fearsome opponent and while he is a bit too young to have any proper finishing moves, we've seen him use an osoto gari to great effect when breaking up a scuffle during the tournament. So, we expect to see to see this move. Additionally, given that he is being mentored by Mike Musket, we should expect to see some catch wrestling and suplexes eventually be added to his arsenal.

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