Tiger Hattori

Tiger Hattori
Birth name	Masao Hattori
Born	(1945-07-20)July 20, 1945 Chūō, Tokyo, Japan
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Tiger Hattori Masao Hattori Rising Sun
Debut	1978
Retired	February 19, 2020 (as a referee)

Masao Hattori(Phục bộ chính nam,Hattori Masao,born July 20, 1945),known asTiger Hattori(タイガー phục bộ,Tāiga Hattori)is a Japanese retiredprofessional wrestler,refereeandmanagerbest known for his work as a referee inNew Japan Pro-Wrestling(NJPW). Hattori is the current foreign liaison officer of NJPW.

Hattori has been active in pro wrestling since the 1970s, and is one of the longest tenured members of the New Japan roster, having made his first appearance in 1982. He has also worked for other companies, includingJapan Pro Wrestling,Fighting of World Japan Pro Wrestling,andPro Wrestling Noah.Hattori retired from refereeing on February 19, 2020.

Career

Early career

Hattori excelled in amateur wrestling during his time atMeiji University,winning the 1966Greco-RomanAll Japan Wrestling Championship in thebantamweightcategory. The following year, he travelled toRomania,where he won the World Wrestling Championship as a bantamweight. Hattori would move to theUnited Statesafter graduation, and was bought in byprofessional wrestlerHiro Matsudato work as a coach at his pro wrestling school, where Hattori taught would-be wrestlers the fundamentals of amateur wrestling. His students includedHulk Hogan.Through his work with Matsuda, Hattori began working as a manager for Japanese wrestlers working in America, managing the likes ofMasa SaitoandKiller Khanin the 1970s. He would also briefly work as a wrestler in the late 70s, working asRising Sunfor a handful of matches inChampionship Wrestling from Florida.While in Florida, he was nicknamed "Tiger"by promoterBill Watts,which he later adopted as his permanent ring name.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1982–present)

After a number of years in America, Hattori returned to Japan in 1982, signing with Antonio Inoki'sNew Japan Pro-Wrestlingas a referee. His first run would be short lived, as he followed longtime associateRiki ChoshutoJapan Pro-Wrestling,his new offshoot promotion in 1984. While working there, he also briefly appeared inAll Japan Pro Wrestling,where he received more advanced referee training under highly respected senior officialJoe Higuchi.

After the collapse of JPW, he returned to New Japan in the late 1980s and became a permanent referee. He was considered the second highest ranking behind senior refereeMr. Takahashiin the 1990s, but began to referee more high-profile matches towards the end of the decade, including the controversialShinya Hashimotovs.Naoya Ogawamatch on January 4, 1999. In 2001, he was named head referee for New Japan, but stepped down from this position the following year due to poor health.

He would again follow Choshu in leaving New Japan in 2003, joining his newFighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling(WJ) as head referee. After the promotion collapsed after less than a year in operation, he returned to New Japan in 2004, working as a foreign liaison officer and occasional referee.

Due to age and poor health, Hattori has only refereed minor matches since 2011, including an appearance forPro Wrestling Noahin 2015, refereeing theGHC Heavyweight Championshipmatch betweenMinoru SuzukiandTakashi Sugiura,as well asRiki Choshu's retirement match in 2019.Later that year, Hattori announced his own retirement in 2020, scheduled for February 19 inKorakuen Hall.He officiated his final matches in America in September 2019, which included a farewell ceremony where he thanked the American fans.The final match he refereed wasChaos(Hirooki Goto,Kazuchika OkadaandTomohiro Ishii) againstLos Ingobernables de Japón(Sanada,Shingo TakagiandTetsuya Naito).On February 21, 2023 Hattori came out of retirement to referee an impromptu match betweenMasahiro ChonoandKeiji Mutoat theKeiji Muto Grand Final Pro-Wrestling "Last-Love"event.