Takeshi Minamino

Takeshi Minamino
Takeshi Minamino
	Minamino in July 2014
Born	December 24, 1985 (age 38); Kyoto, Japan
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Beetle Takeshi; Esthetic Jaguar; HAPPY MAN; Kendo Takeshi; Masked Tree-Planting Man; Takeshi Minamino; Takeshi Yamamoto
Billed height	1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Billed weight	86 kg (190 lb)
Trained by	Último Dragón; Jorge "Skayde" Rivera
Debut	November 7, 2002

Takeshi Yamamoto (山本タケシ, Yamamoto Takeshi),^[1] better known with the alias Takeshi Minamino (南野タケシ, Minamino Takeshi), is a Japanese professional wrestler. He wrestles in Michinoku Pro Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling.

Professional wrestling career

Yamamoto made his pro wrestling debut in Toryumon Mexico at only sixteen, making him the youngest debutant out of the Último Dragón Gym. He changed his ring name to Takeshi Minamino (南野タケシ, Minamino Takeshi) and joined Pineapple Hanai and Mango Fukuda to found Los Salseros Japoneses, a salsa themed heel stable led by him. Minamino established himself as a major heel and went to feud with top face Taiji Ishimori and his Sailor Boys (Kei and Shu Sato). They had their first bout in Toryumon X, where Minamino unsuccessfully challenged Ishimori for UWA World Welterweight Championship. On August 29, 2004 Minamino got a rematch in Mexico and won the title, retaining it against Taiji on October, 10 with aid from Fukuda and Hanai. The title was vacated after the match.

After the Toryumon X demise, Minamino and his colleagues were moved to Michinoku Pro Wrestling, where Takeshi dissociated himself from Los Salseros and formed a tag team with Como Leoapard, using a mask and the name Esthetic Jaguar. The team fell after the Futaritabi Tag Team League 2004 and Minamino returned to Los Salseros Japoneses, posing as the top heel team in Michinoku Pro. The trio won the UWA World Trios Championship from Solar, Ultraman and Ultraman, Jr. in a Toryumon Mexico show, and Minamino captured the Tohoku Junior Heavyweight Championship in a tournament final against Rasse, becoming double champion. His individual reign lasted until May, when he lost his title against Super Delfín. Later, Los Salseros Japoneses lost the UWA World Trios title against STONED (Maguro Ooma, Kei Sato and Shu Sato) after a misaimed attack from Minamino to Hanai. Shortly after, Los Salseros Japoneses broke up when Hanai turned on him. Minamino went solo and turned face, adopting a traditional Japanese attire with a black hakama. He also played HAPPY MAN, an alien character dressed in a Superman-like pink attire, and had a title hot against the Tohoku Junior Heavyweight Champion Yoshitsune, but he failed.

In 2008, Minamino turned heel again and became a member of the Kowloon stable, directed by Fujita Hayato. He formed a tag team with Maguro Ooma, which was called Tonery Family. Minamino and Ooma won the Futaritabi Tag Team League 2009 and beat Kesen Numajiro & Kinya Oyanagi to win the Tohoku Tag Team Championship. They retained the title during months, until they dropped it to Yapper Men (Yapper Man #1 & Yapper Man #2). After the dissension of Kowloon, Tonery Family and Ken45º turned tweener and followed Hayato to his new stable, Bad Boy.