Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Tommy Rich
ALL JAPAN, United National Championship Match
Feb. 1983 Aichi-ken Taiikukan (Nagoya)
Watching old videos of pro-wrestling, I remember various things. Yesterday I found a dear image of 'The Wild Fire' Tommy Rich after a long time. In those days I was a high-school student, and I was enjoying ALL JAPAN's wrestling with all my heart. In the early 80's, many good wrestlers were belonging to ALL JAPAN, for example Brody, Hansen, the Funk brothers, Race, Nick, and it might be the most exciting days of wrestling of Japan.
Of course we had few information of American wrestling, but I knew the name of Tommy Rich. Magazines said he had got NWA world championship from Race temporally (only three days !!). He was what is called a mystery strong man. (When we see the real, we are often disappointed, but that is also a pleasure of wrestling !)
Well, then The Wild Fire visited to Japan for the first time, and challenged a young star Jumbo Tsuruta. Frankly speaking, that was a very good fight. Tommy showed nice Brain Buster and Flying Body Scissors Drop (like Lou Thesz). At the end Tsuruta defended his title with Back Drop Hold, but Tommy fought bravely as a former world champion.
I think that was the best fight of Rich in Japan. After that, he fought on the ring of ALL JAPAN several times, but he was quite lack vividness, and he looked like another man. I don't know why. At any rate, Tommy Rich in this match, a mystery strong man and The Wild Fire, is my dear wrestler.
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