Togi Makabe

Shinya Makabe (born September 29, 1972), better known by his ring name Togi Makabe, is a Japanese professional wrestler trained by and performing for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is a former one-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion, two-time NEVER Openweight Champion and one-time NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champion. Known as the "Unchained Gorilla", Makabe's wrestling style and character is heavily influenced by the late Bruiser Brody, and he is known for his violent, bloody style of wrestling, often illegally employing steel chairs and chains into his offense.

Quick Facts

Birth name

Shinya Makabe

Ring names

Shinya Makabe
Togi Makabe
SweetGorilla Maruyama

Weight

110 kg / 243 lb

Born

29 September 1972

Birthplace

Sagamihara, Kanagawa

Trainer

Joe Daigo
NJPW Dojo
Shinjiro Otani

Debut

February 15, 1997

Lore & Background

Makabe debuted in 1997, originally wrestling under his birthname as a junior heavyweight at 100 kilograms (220 lb). He gained several kilograms during a global excursion in 2001 and 2002, and changed his given name to "Togi" during the 2004 G1 Climax tournament. His status in New Japan rose significantly in 2007, making it to the finals of the New Japan Cup and the semifinals of the G1 Climax, and challenging Yuji Nagata for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. After a number of unsuccessful challenges, Makabe finally won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship on May 3, 2010, by defeating Shinsuke Nakamura. He also uses Bruiser Brody's Japan theme "Immigrant Song" (a cover by Tomoyasu Hotei) as his own.

Reader's Guide

Makabe made his Tokyo Dome debut on January 4, 2001, teaming with Tatsuhito Takaiwa in a loss to Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka. He then began competing amongst heavyweights, teaming with Riki Choshu to challenge Satoshi Kojima and Hiroyoshi Tenzan for the IWGP World Tag Team Championship. On June 8, 2001, he and Yuji Nagata entered All Japan Pro Wrestling to challenge for the vacant All Asia Tag Team Championship, losing to Masahito Kakihara and Mitsuya Nagai. In August 2001, he left Japan to wrestle overseas in Canada, Great Britain and Puerto Rico for 14 months, gaining considerable muscle. He returned to NJPW on October 14, 2002 as a heavyweight. In January 2003, he suspended his contract with NJPW, wrestling under his own terms. On July 2, 2006, Makabe teamed with Shiro Koshinaka to win the interim IWGP Tag Team Championship, though they lost the title 15 days later to Manabu Nakanishi and Takao Omori. On September 24, 2006, he defeated Kintaro Kanemura to revive the WEW Heavyweight Championship, his first official Japanese title.

Did You Know?

He debuted in 1997 at 100 kg (220 lb) as a junior heavyweight, then gained several kilograms during a 14-month global excursion in 2001-2002.
Makabe finished first in the group stage of the 2000 Young Lion Cup, defeating all five opponents including Hiroshi Tanahashi in his debut match.