Akira Raijin
| Akira Raijin | |
|---|---|
Kawabata as Kiyoshi at an MPW event in October 2011
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| Birth name | Akira Kawabata |
| Born |
July 17, 1978 Takarazuka, Hyōgo |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Akira Raijin Akira Kawabata Kowabata Kiyoshi Suicide Sushi |
| Billed height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
| Billed weight | 105 kg (231 lb) |
| Billed from | Osaka, Japan |
| Trained by | Masanobu Kurisu Animal Hamaguchi Arashi Kaz Hayashi Scott D'Amore Shigeo Okumura Keiji Mutoh |
| Debut | February 1, 1998 |
Akira Kawabata (川畑 顕 Kawabata Akira?) (born July 17, 1978) is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for All Japan Pro Wrestling under the ring name Sushi (SUSHI). He is a two-time holder of the Gaora TV Championship. He is best known for his work in AJPW under the ring name Akira Raijin (雷陣 明 Raijin Akira?) and is also known for working in North America for the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling promotion under the ring names Kiyoshi and Suicide.
Trained by former junior heavyweight contender Masanobu Kurisu, Kawabata made his debut in 1998, using the ring name Akira Raijin, working primarily on the independent circuit.
On August 28, 2004, Raijin debuted for All Japan Pro Wrestling losing to Ryuji Hijikata. His early years with All Japan would be mostly uneventful which is normal for a new wrestler in a Japanese promotion. On June 17, 2005, Raijin teamed with Nobukazu Hirai in a tournament to determine the number one conders for the All Asia Tag Team Championship but lost to Katsuhiko Nakajima and Tomoaki Honma. In November, Raijin and Kohei Suwama participated in the 2005 Real World Tag League but would not pass the round robin stage. On January 4, 2007, Raijin along with Kikutaro and Nobutaka Araya took on, and lost to, El Samurai, Masanobu Fuchi and Ryusuke Taguchi at New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom in Tokyo Dome. On May 13, All Japan said farewell to Raijin along with Brute Issei, who both went on overseas training excursions.
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