ミスター雁之助
Originally a trainee for George and Shunji Takano's Pro Wrestling Crusaders, Tanaka transferred to Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling where he trained under Atsushi Onita. Tanaka debuted on July 23, 1993 in Saga City, facing Ricky Fuji. He quickly began moving up the card in FMW, widely regarded as the top hardcore professional wrestling promotion in Japan. Wrestling in matches featuring explosions and barbed wire, Tanaka earned a variety of scars, and the nickname "Dangan", which he would often shout during his matches. By 1996 he was one of the promotion's major stars, and had feuded with fellow wrestlers Mr. Pogo, Mr. Gannosuke, Terry Funk and Mike Awesome. His feud with Awesome would eventually span ten years and two continents. In December 1999, he left FMW for ECW, after he and Tetsuhiro Kuroda lost to H and Mr. Gannosuke.