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 Title History:
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title (1):
Tournament History:
- IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title #1 Contender Tournament (2003): Ryusuke Taguchi & Hirooki Goto beat Masahito Kakihara & Masayuki Naruse (10:24) when Taguchi used a horizontal cradle on Kakihara.
Signature Moves:
- Dodon
Profile: Ryusuke Taguchi was an all-around sportsman during his school days, avidly pursuing sports such as baseball, track and field, and soccer. Yearning for a career in New Japan Pro-Wrestling as early as his high school days, he joined Tokai University's wrestling section, competing well in freestyle events (76kg class). He joined New Japan in March, 2002, after passing the stern entry test, and debuted in November of that year against Toru Yano. Taguchi revealed his ambition early, devoting himself to the junior division and saying he wanted to become a good all-around wrestler of the Jushin Thunder Liger kind. When Heat cancelled appearances and forfeited entry to the tenth annual Best of the Super Jr., Taguchi was given an early chance in his career, and stepped in as Heat's replacement. Growth was rapid, some established junior names falling to the "junior supernova", and in 2004 he overcame seven other young generation members to win the Young Lion Cup, before winning the Young Lion Toukon Tournament later that year. In January, 2005, Taguchi left for an overseas learning excursion to CMLL in Mexico, and upon returning later that year looked different and wrestled different, displaying a new hybrid of Strong Style and lucha libre. Although Taguchi's career is still young, he is one of the most gifted young wrestlers in the world, using a lively style and showing great pride in his work.
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