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Thread: Jushin Thunder Liger to Retire

  1. #1
    Senior Member FunKay's Avatar

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    Jushin Thunder Liger to Retire

    As the title suggests, legendary junior/cruiser/light heavyweight Jushin Thunder Liger announced in a press conference yesterday that he expressed a desire to retire to New Japan Pro Wrestling officials who in turn requested he remain until next year's January 4th Tokyo Dome show (currently slated to be Wrestle Kingdom 14). Commenting in the wake of his bout with current IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori, Liger stated the following:

    Quote Originally Posted by Liger
    Thank you for joining me here. I will retire next year in January at the Tokyo Dome. Yesterdayâ??s match [against Ishimori] made me see I have nowhere else to grow. I can still do it, still get in there, but have no room for growth. I think if I do manage to get the belt and still retire in January that adds some value in itself. I still train, still have that attitude of taking out who is in front of me. Here and there hurts but I can still go. But whoever you are, Inoki, Fujiwara, whoever, you have to keep getting stronger I think, and that prompted this decision.

    I did debut in the Tokyo Dome but that had nothing to do with my decision. I said I wanted to retire and the company said â??ok, the Tokyo domeâ??. I was like â??WHAT?â?? Only Inoki has done that! [Reporter: and Choshu] Ah, ok, Iâ??m third.

    What shall I do with the next ten months? I was Liger for thirty years, all over the world. So while I donâ??t want to call this a retirement tour, I want to go all over Japan and the world and show myself to everyone one more time. There really isnâ??t anything I havenâ??t done. This company has let me do whatever I wanted. I might not be completely â??full upâ?? on wrestling. But thatâ??s the best time to stop. I have done everything I want to do but Iâ??m not sick of it. Iâ??m still mobile, Iâ??m not a complete wreck.

    A massive influence on wrestler's the world over, Liger has been wrestling for over 30 years, winning titles almost everywhere he went, though his greatest victory came in overcoming a brain tumour to return to the squared circle in the midst of his decorated career. His retirement, while anticipated for a little while now, leaves a hole in the veteran's ranks of not only New Japan, but pro wrestling in general. Liger's been slowly transitioning out of active competition for a long time now, really. He's scarcely a major element in storylines, is allowed to work wherever he pleases (which included a match in NXT a few years ago) and often works commentary at major events for New Japan. Based on his comments above, and what we know about Liger's schedule over the past few years, he will more than likely be working across the globe one final time before hanging up his boots, potentially even in a prominent story heading into his home promotion's most prestigious event.

    Thanks for everything Liger. There will never be another.

    ________________

    What are some of your favourite matches, feuds, moments etc... of Jushin Thunder Liger?

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  3. #2
    Administrator Slyfox696's Avatar

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    I do not follow the Japanese wrestling scene (and as busy as I have been the last couple years, I'm not real up on the American wrestling scene), but I never would have imagined Liger would still be working. I remember watching him in WCW in the early 90s and being absolutely enthralled with his work. Definitely a legend in my mind.

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    Senior Member Jeff Deliverer of Mail's Avatar

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    Ya, first time I saw Liger was also in the early 90's WCW in a time where Lucha Lubre was relatively unknown to old viewers of WWF 80s and late 80s WCW. It blew my mind what the guy was doing, break neck speed, flipping over the ropes, everything. Norton from the old Rock N Roll Express seemed to be the only guy on the roster near his debut that could match him speed for speed. They had some incredible exchanges on Television.
    Last edited by Jeff Deliverer of Mail; 03-10-2019 at 01:08 PM.
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    Frank: Yeah, I'm Drebin!
    Goon: I have a message for ya from Vincent Ludwig!
    Goon: Take that, you lousy cop!
    Frank: I'm sorry! I can't hear ya! Don't fire the gun while you're talking!

  6. #4
    Like a lot of American fans, the first time I saw Liger was in late 1991 when he and Brian Pillman, known as Flyin' Bryan at the time, were feuding over the short lived WCW Light Heavyweight Championship who's history would be infused with the WWE Cruiserweight Championship and eventually WWE's first Cruiserweight Championship.

    So basically, I was all of 11.5 years old and I had no exposure to the Cruiser/Junior/Light Heavyweight style that's now all the rage. I didn't know about Strong Style or shoot fighting or any of that, I just saw Liger was this very colorful, charismatic in his own way, insanely athletic guy who was doing things that my 11.5 year old eyes had never seen anyone do before. I knew that it was different, I knew that it was fun and I knew that I wouldn't mind seeing more of it but, sadly, we really wouldn't see a whole lot of it until Rey Mysterio would come along quite a few years on down the road where he was doing stuff that was even more eye popping.

    Liger is a god in Japan and has become so in the eyes of many fans around the world, including the United States and Mexico, and his influence on modern wrestling is there for anyone to see. Before Mysterio was blowing us away in WCW in the late 90s, Liger had basically been doing the same thing in Japan. Looking back today as someone who knows a bit more and is a bit more well rounded as a fan, Liger is one of the first men I can remember who truly owned being a smaller guy; I don't mean smaller as in guys like HBK or Bret Hart, who're guys who were right around 6 feet tall and weighed around 225 to 235 lbs.. I mean wrestlers who were legitimately hovering right around the 200 lbs. mark or under and/or were well under 6 feet in height. When you watch American wrestling today, whether it be WWE, NXT, ROH, Impact or the upcoming AEW, you'll see a LOT of Liger's influence inside the ring.
    "What Do I Know Of Cultured Ways, The Gilt, The Craft And The Lie?
    I, Who Was Born In A Naked Land And Bred In The Open Sky.
    The Subtle Tongue, The Sophist Guile, They Fail When The Broadswords Sing.
    Rush In And Die Dogs - I Was A Man Before I Was King."


    Conan Of Cimmeria

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