TALE OF THE TAPE
Dynamite Kid vs Tiger Mask
| Category | Dynamite Kid | Tiger Mask |
|---|---|---|
| Real name | Tom Billington | Satoru Sayama |
| Wrestling debut | 1975, in the British halls | Mid-1970s, New Japan Pro-Wrestling |
| Signature promotion runs | Stampede, New Japan, All Japan, WWF | New Japan; later founded the hybrid fighting organisation Shooto |
| Championships | WWF Tag Team Champion as one half of the British Bulldogs | WWF Junior Heavyweight Champion as the original Tiger Mask |
| Signature move | Snap suplex and diving headbutt | Tiger Suplex |
| Style legacy | The template for hard-hitting junior heavyweights | The high-flying masked ace who redefined the division |
Real name
Dynamite Kid
Tom Billington
Tiger Mask
Satoru Sayama
Wrestling debut
Dynamite Kid
1975, in the British halls
Tiger Mask
Mid-1970s, New Japan Pro-Wrestling
Signature promotion runs
Dynamite Kid
Stampede, New Japan, All Japan, WWF
Tiger Mask
New Japan; later founded the hybrid fighting organisation Shooto
Championships
Dynamite Kid
WWF Tag Team Champion as one half of the British Bulldogs
Tiger Mask
WWF Junior Heavyweight Champion as the original Tiger Mask
Signature move
Dynamite Kid
Snap suplex and diving headbutt
Tiger Mask
Tiger Suplex
Style legacy
Dynamite Kid
The template for hard-hitting junior heavyweights
Tiger Mask
The high-flying masked ace who redefined the division
Between 1981 and 1983 the Lancashire-born Dynamite Kid and the original Tiger Mask traded matches in New Japan that are still cited as the blueprint for modern junior heavyweight wrestling: faster, stiffer and more aerial than anything on television at the time. Neither man was the same after the series, and neither was the division.
The archive's exclusive on Billington's life after wrestling is restored atEx-Wife Michelle On Her Life With The Dynamite Kid, and a later generation's debt to him is discussed inDavey Richards Talks Dynamite Kid.