WRESTLER PROFILES

	Wrestler: Hiro Matsuda Real Name: Yasuhiro Kojima Birthday: July 22, 1937 Hometown: Marital Status: Married (Judith) w/Children) Height & Weight: Trained by: Rikidozan Karl Gotch Debut: Previous Gimmicks: Finishing Move: Favorite Moves: Notable Feuds: Danny Hodge Johnny Weaver Dusty Rhodes
Wrestlers Hiro Matsuda Has Trained: Hulk Hogan Ray "Hercules" Hernandez Scott Casey Lex Luger Scott Hall Ron Simmons Paul Orndorff Mike Graham Mike George Brian Blair Steve Keirn
NWA (Florida) Southern Heavyweight title defeating Eddie Graham (Febuary 19, 1963); NWA (Florida) World Tag Team titles w/Duke Keomuka defeating Alberto & Ramon Torres (June 6, 1963); NWA (Florida) World Tag Team titles w/Duke Keomuka defeating Brute Bernard & Skull Murphy (March 19, 1964); NWA (Florida) World Tag Team titles w/Duke Keomuka defeating Brute Bernard & Skull Murphy (April 10, 1964); NWA World Junior Heavyweight title defeating Danny Hodge (July 11, 1964); NWA (Florida) World Tag Team titles w/Duke Keomuka defeating Fred Blassie & Tarzan Tyler (March 22, 1965); NWA (Florida) World Tag Team titles w/Dick Steinborn defeating Skull & Kurt Von Stroheim (November 24, 1965); NWA (Mid America) World Tag Team titles w/Kanji (Antonio) Inoki defeating Sam Steamboat & Eddie Graham (January 24, 1966); AJPW All Asian Tag Team titles w/Michiaki Yoshimura defeating Joe Carrolo & Killer Karl Kox (May 28, 1966); NWA Florida Tag Team titles w/Missouri Mauler defeating The Gladiator & Lester Welch (May 27, 1969); NWA Florida Tag Team titles w/Missouri Mauler defeating Jack Brisco & Cyclone Negro (August 5, 1969); NWA (Florida) Southern Heavyweight title defeating Dale Lewis (June 16, 1970); NWA (Florida) Southern Heavyweight title defeating Great Mephisto (October 2, 1970); NWA (Florida) Southern Heavyweight title defeating The Zodiac (July 3, 1972); NWA Florida Tag Team titles w/Tim Woods defeating Taurus (aka Dennis Hall) & The Zodiac (aka Bob Orton Sr.) (July 5, 1972); NWA Florida Tag Team titles w/Bob Orton Sr. defeating Ray Stevens & Nick Bockwinkel (August 15, 1972); NWA World Junior Heavyweight title defeating Ken Mantell (June 14, 1975); NWA (Los Angeles/Japan) North American Tag Team titles w/Mr. Saito defeating Strong Kobayashi & Seiji Sakaguchi (April 5, 1979);
Kojima played baseball in Japan but came to the United States in 1961 because wrestling was his first love.. Kojima, who was known by his stage name as Hiro Matsuda.. Kojima started wrestling on a circuit that took him through Texas, Oklahoma and Florida. Matsuda had two reigns with the NWA World junior heavyweight championship, including a win over the legendary Danny Hodge. Matsuda wrestled all over the world, including Japan, Mexico and Peru. Matsuda appeared in the NWA for a short time as the manager of the Four Horsemen.. Matsuda last really "big" American program happened in '87 or '88 when he and Johnny Weaver had a "sleeper vs. Weaver Lock" competition. Matsuda put Weaver in the sleeper hold and wouldn't let go, which led Dusty Rhodes into the ring to try to break it. Matsuda is probably most famous for training some of wrestling's biggest stars: Hulk Hogan, Paul Orndorff, Scott Hall, Ron Simmons, Brian Blair to name a few.. Everybody that ever went through a Matsuda training session described it as one of the most brutal things they have ever endured.. Even in his 60s, he could do hundreds of pushups and squats. November 27, 1999: Hiro Matsuda dies of colon and liver cancer. He was 62. Kojima is survived by his wife, Judith; daughters Heather Kojima of Venice, Calif., and Stephanie Kojima of San Francisco; and a sister, Hatsue Yokotsuka of Yokohama, Japan.