Kensuke Sasaki

Kensuke Sasaki (August 4, 1966) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler who currently wrestles for various promotions through his own agency, Diamond Ring. He is the first of two men ever to hold all three of puroresu's major heavyweight titles (the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, the AJPW Triple Crown Championship, and the GHC Heavyweight Championship), the other being Yoshihiro Takayama.
== Career ==
==Wrestling facts==
*Finishing and signature moves
**Ipponzei
**Strangle Hold Alpha
**Strangle Hold Beta
**Strangle Hold Gamma
**Northern Lights Bomb -adopted from his wife
**Lariat
**Tornado Bomb
**Volcano Eruption
**King Buster
**STK
**Sasaki style forearm
*Tag teams and stables
**Diamond Ring
**Florida Express
**Hell Raisers
**Kensuke Family
**Kensuke Office
**Pirates Gundan
**Samurai Warriors
**SWING-LOWS
*Wrestlers trained
**Hiroshi Tanahashi
**Hiroyoshi Tenzan
**Jun Nishikawa
**Katsuhiko Nakajima
**Katsuyori Shibata
**Kazuyuki Fujita
**Kendo Kashin
**Kenshin
**KENSO
**Kento Miyahara
**Koji Kanemoto
**Manabu Nakanishi
**Masa Kitamiya
**Ryuji Yamaguchi
**Satoshi Kajiwara
**Satoshi Kojima
**Shinjiro Otani
**Tadao Yasuda
**Takashi Okita
**Tatsuhito Takaiwa
**Togi Makabe
**Too Cold Scorpio
**Toru Yano
**Wataru Inoue
**Yuji Nagata
**Yutaka Yoshie
*Managers
** Sonny Onoo
** Akira Hokuto
*Entrance themes
** "Hot Point" (1986–1987)
** "Hurricanes Bam" (1987–1988)
** "Power" (1990–1995)
** "Hellraiser" by Ozzy Osbourne (1992–1995; used while a part of the Hell Raisers)
** "Take The Dream – Senko" (1996–1998)
** "Take The Dream – Infinity" (1998–2001)
** "Take The Dream – The World" (2001–2014)
** "Hellraiser"/"Iron Man" megamix by Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath (2007–2014; used while a part of the Hell Warriors)
==Championships and accomplishments==
*All Japan Pro Wrestling
**AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Katsuhiko Nakajima (1)
**AJPW Triple Crown Championship (1 time)
**Champion Carnival (2005)
**January 2 Korakuen Hall Heavyweight Battle Royal (2007)
**SAMURAI! TV Cup Triple Arrow Tournament (2007) – with Katsuhiko Nakajima and Seiya Sanada
**BAPE STA!! PRO-WRESTLING a-k-a Tournament (2004)
*DDT Pro Wrestling
**KO-D Six Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Danshoku Dino & Makoto Oishi (1)
*Fighting Of World Japan Pro-Wrestling
**WMG Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**WJ Strongest Tournament (2003)
*Hawai'i Championship Wrestling
**HCW Kekaulike Heritage Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Kenjiro Katahira
*Michinoku Pro Wrestling
**MPW Tohoku Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Katsuhiko Nakajima (1)
*New Japan Pro Wrestling
**IWGP Heavyweight Championship (5 times) 
**IWGP Tag Team Championship (7 times) with Hiroshi Hase (2), Hawk Warrior (2), Riki Chōshū (1), Kazuo Yamazaki (1), and Shiro Koshinaka (1)
**G1 Climax (1997, 2000)
**G1 Climax Special Tag Team Tournament (1997) with Kazuo Yamazaki
**Japan/United States All Star Tournament (1996)
**MVP Award (2000)
**Singles Best Bout (2000) vs. Toshiaki Kawada on October 9
**SKY PerfecTV! Cup (2001)
* Nikkan Sports
** Match of the Year (2000) vs. Toshiaki Kawada on October 9
** Match of the Year (2005) vs. Kenta Kobashi on July 18
** Outstanding Performance Award (1997, 2004, 2008)
** Fighting Spirit Award (2004)
* Pro Wrestling Illustrated
** PWI ranked him #10 of the best 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2000
** PWI ranked him #27 of the 100 best tag teams during the PWI Years with Hiroshi Hase in 2003
** PWI ranked him #103 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
*Pro Wrestling NOAH
**GHC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**GHC Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Takeshi Morishima (1)
**One Night Six Man Tag Tournament (2012) with Kento Miyahara and Takeshi Morishima
**Global Tag League Outstanding Performance Award (2013) – with Katsuhiko Nakajima
*Stampede Wrestling
**Stampede International Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Sumu Hara (1)
* Tokyo Sports
** Lifetime Achievement Award (2014)
** Match of the Year (2000) vs. Toshiaki Kawada on October 9
** Match of the Year (2005) vs. Kenta Kobashi on July 18
** Outstanding Performance Award (2008)
** Wrestler of the Year (2004)
*World Championship Wrestling
**WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
*Wrestling Observer Newsletter
** Match of the Year (1991) with Hiroshi Hase vs. Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner at WCW-New Japan Supershow I
** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2013)
==External links==
* Kensuke Sasaki profile at CAGEMATCH.net
* Profile
Category:Japanese wrestlers
Category:1966 births
Category:1986 debuts
Category:All Japan Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Big Japan Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Big Mouth Loud alumni
Category:Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre alumni
Category:Diamond Ring alumni
Category:Dragon Gate alumni
Category:Dramatic Dream Team alumni
Category:Fighting Of World Japan alumni
Category:Hawaii Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:Inoki Genome Federation alumni
Category:IWA Japan alumni
Category:Kaientai Dojo alumni
Category:Michinoku Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:New Japan Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Osaka Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling NOAH alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling ZERO1 alumni
Category:Ring of Honor alumni
Category:Stampede Wrestling alumni
Category:Tenryu Project alumni
Category:Toryumon Mexico alumni
Category:Universal Wrestling Federation (Herb Abrams) alumni
Category:World Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:World League Wrestling alumni
Category:World Wrestling Council alumni
Category:WCW United States Champions
Category:Living people
Category:2014 retirements
Category:Canadian National Wrestling Alliance alumni
Category:Catch Wrestling Association alumni
Category:Kyushu Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:LEGEND Promociones alumni
Category:Pro Wrestling KAGEKI alumni
Category:Tokyo Gurentai alumni
Category:Toryumon Japan alumni
Category:Wrestling Marvelous Future alumni
Category:Mixed martial artists
Category:IWGP Heavyweight Champions
Category:IWGP Tag Team Champions
Category:Male wrestlers
Category:All Asia Tag Team Champions
Category:AJPW Triple Crown Champions