Chigusa Nagayo

image


Real Name - Chigusa Nagayo
Birthdate - 12/8/64
5'5" 192 lbs. - Omura, Japan

Aliases - Zero

Athletic background - Karate

Teachers - (AJW Dojo)

Professional background - AJW(`80-`89), Free(`93-`94), GAEA(`94-)

Peak Years - `83-`89

Career Highlights -
- Teams with Lioness Asuka (Crush Gals) and the two take off as crossover superstars with hit songs, high TV ratings and great matches
- Meets her rival Dump Matsumoto in a pair of hair matches that pull in huge gates
- Defeats Matsumoto to win her first of two All Pacific titles
- Feuds with Asuka to have a number of high-caliber matches in the late 80s
- Comes out of retirement to form GAEA and becomes the company's top star

Finisher(s) -
- Superfreak (Tiltawhirl Powerbomb)
- Running Three Powerbomb
- Pinning Powerbomb
- Scorpion Deathlock

Favorites -
- Superplex
- Piledriver
- German Suplex
- Spin Wheel Kick
- Mid Kick

Ringwork Rating -
move set - 7
science - 4
aerial - 2
power - 8
strikes - 8

Intangible Rating -
entertainment - 10
selling - 10
bumping - 9
carrying - 7
heat - 10
legacy - 10

Place in History - "Chigusa Nagayo is joshi puroresu" is an accurate statement according to many. The more popular half of the Crush Girls, Chiggy was able to play the babyface underdog role better than nearly anyone who has ever stepped in a wrestling ring. She'd bleed and scream and make these mighty comebacks during her feuds with numerous heels, namely Dump Matusumoto. Like her partner, Lioness Asuka, she retired in 1989 only to return a few years later as a freelancer. Never the worker that Asuka was, Nagayo was never quite the same in the 90s up through recent times. She started GAEA Japan in `94 when Zenjo was hugely successful due to the interpromotional shows and in a few years had a major threat to AJW's place. Chiggy had a solid base of young workers and was continually bringing in past-their-prime superstars and by the turn of the century GAEA had taken over as the premier joshi company. Nagayo has lived off her legacy as well as anyone and still keeps herself strong, but thankfully not a top star (so to speak). Her accomplishments both in the ring and outside of it certainly make her as important a figure in joshi puroresu as anyone and amongst the biggest stars Japan has ever seen.