Given the rarity of his major appearances outside of Japan, there's a good chance that many people had never really heard the name Hayabusa before his recent death. But even though his exposure was limited, his influence most certainly was not. Though many of his moves and mannerisms were influenced greatly by ECW star Sabu, Hayabusa managed to stand out by being a hardcore high flyer who wasn't just trying to shock people with his death-defying antics. Hayabusa took as many risks as any performer on the hardcore scene and somehow almost always managed to hit his moves cleanly even when they seemed too risky to work. He was an all-around great performer that so happened to have a complete lack of fear. Never before had someone as crazy as Hayabusa took such care in performing his craft with as much skill and professionalism as the most respected technical wrestlers in the world. We may never see someone like that again.
