Kota Minoura
| Kota Minoura | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 30, 1998[1] Hashima, Gifu, Japan |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Kota Minoura |
| Billed height | 177 cm (5 ft 10 in)[2] |
| Billed weight | 88 kg (194 lb) |
| Trained by | Masato Yoshino |
| Debut | 2018 |
Kota Minoura (箕浦康太, Minoura Kōta) is a Japanese professional wrestler currently working for the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate where he is a former Open the Twin Gate Champion and Open the Triangle Gate Champion.[3][4]
Professional wrestling career
[edit]Dragon Gate (2018–present)
[edit]Minoura made his professional wrestling debut in Dragon Gate on June 11, 2018, on the eleventh night of the Rainbow Gate 2018 where he teamed up with Natural Vibes (Punch Tominaga and Yasshi) in a losing effort against MaxiMuM (Ben-K, Jason Lee and Masato Yoshino) as a result of a six-man tag team match.[5] Being mainly a tag team wrestler, Minoura began chasing various tag titles, and won his first one, the Open the Twin Gate Championship alongside his "Team Dragon Gate" tag partner Jason Lee at Memorial Gate In Wakayama on August 2, 2020, by defeating R.E.D. (BxB Hulk and Kazma Sakamoto).[6] He joined his first faction, the now-defunct stable of "Masquerade" where he succeeded in winning Open the Triangle Gate Championship for the first time in his career by teaming up with stablemates Jason Lee and Shun Skywalker and defeating R.E.D. (Eita, Kaito Ishida and H.Y.O) at Fantastic Gate 2021 of January 12.[7] Minoura switched factions at the beginning of 2022 by joining the newly created unit of "Gold Class", succeeding in winning the triangle titles for the second time, alongside Naruki Doi and Kaito Ishida by defeating Natural Vibes (Kzy, U-T and Jacky Kamei) at Champion Gate in Osaka on March 5.[8]
Minoura is known for competing in various of the promotion's signature events, such as the King of Gate tournament, making first appearance at the 2021 edition where he won the "A Block" with a total of ten points after competing against BxB Hulk, Diamante, Takashi Yoshida, Naruki Doi and Ben-K. He then moved to the semifinals where he defeated Yamato but unfortunately fell short to Kzy in the finals from June 3.[9] Next year at the 2022 edition, Minoura made it to the finals again where he fell short to Yuki Yoshioka.[10]
Minoura preponderantly competed in the Gate of Destiny series of pay-per-views, which is considered to be the promotion's top yearly event. He made his first appearance at the 2018 edition of the event where he teamed up with Tribe Vanguard (Kagetora, U-T and Yosuke Santa Maria) in a losing effort against Daga and R.E.D. (Eita, Kazma Sakamoto and Yasushi Kanda).[11]
Independent circuit (2018–present)
[edit]Minoura rarely competed for several promotions from the Japanese independent scene. One of them was the NPH Legacy II, an independent event produced on October 10, 2022, where he teamed up with Kento Miyahara and Shiro Koshinaka to defeat Hideki Suzuki, Madoka Kikuta and Yuma Aoyagi.[12] He once competed in an event produced by All Japan Pro Wrestling on December 17, 2019, the AJPW AJP Prime Night where he teamed up with Tribe Vanguard (Kai, Yamato and Yosuke Santa Maria) to defeat Hokuto Omori, Jake Lee, Koji Iwamoto and Naoya Nomura.[13]
Championships and accomplishments
[edit]- Dragon Gate
- Open the Twin Gate Championship (2 times, current) – with Jason Lee[14]
- Open the Triangle Gate Championship (4 times) – with Shun Skywalker and Jason Lee (1), Kaito Ishida and Naruki Doi (1), Ben-K and BxB Hulk (1) and Naruki Doi and Minorita (1)[15]
- King of Gate (2023)
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- Ranked Minoura No. 82 of the top 100 tag teams in the PWI Tag Team 100 of 2023 with Ben-K and BxB Hulk[16]
References
[edit]- ^ Saalbach, Axel. "Kota Minoura • General Information". wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Kota Minoura/Career Data". cagematch.de (in German). Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ InternetWrestling Database (IWD). "Kota Minoura Profile & Match Listing". profightdb.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ DRAGONGATE：ドラゴンゲート公式サイト 箕浦康太. Dragon Gate (in Japanese). Retrieved February 27, 2021.
- ^ Dark Angel (July 10, 2018). "Dragon Gate: "Rainbow Gate 2018" Over Generation Disintegrates". superluchas.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ Toro, Carlos (August 3, 2020). "Dragon Gate Memorial Gate 2020 In Wakayama (8/2) Results: Multiple New Champions Crowned". fightful.com. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
- ^ Dragon Gate (December 15, 2021). FANTASTIC GATE 2021.12.15 東京・後楽園ホール 観衆：714人(札止め). gaora.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ Williams, Xavier (March 4, 2022). "Preview: Dragon Gate – Champion Gate 2022 in Osaka Day 1 and 2 (3/5/22 and 3/6/22)". lastwordonsports.com. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
- ^ Williams, Xavier (May 13, 2021). "Preview: Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling – King of Gate 2021". lastwordonsports.com. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- ^ Lowe, Case (June 3, 2022). "DRAGONGATE KING OF GATE FINALS (JUNE 2) RESULTS & REVIEW". voicesofwrestling.com. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ Dark angel (November 12, 2018). "Dragon Gate: »The Gate of Destiny 2018 ″ 3 Mexicans in action". superluchas.com. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ Dark Angel (October 20, 2022). "NPH: «Legacy II» New inductees to the Hall of Fame". superluchas.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ Di Trolio, Gerard (December 18, 2019). "AJPW PRIME NIGHT (DECEMBER 17) RESULTS & REVIEW". voicesofwrestling.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ Wrestling Titles. "Open the Twin Gate Title". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
- ^ Wrestling Titles. "Open the Triangle Gate Title". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
- ^ "PWI Tag Team 100 2023 Full List". wrestlingtravel.com. Wrestling Travel. 22 November 2023. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
External links
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