10 Wrestlers Who Died In 2016
4. Hayabusa
His legacy isn’t always recognised, but Hayabusa was a trailblazing Japanese junior heavyweight in his prime. Combining strong grappling skills with spectacular athletic ability, Hayabusa is best down for his work in FMW, where he was regarded as the company’s top high-flier.
Debuting for FMW in 1991, Hayabusa embarked on an 18-month excursion to the United States and Mexico in 1993, and returned as one of the industry’s most exciting wrestlers. He worked a series of highly dangerous matches involving barbed wire and explosives, and was once hospitalised after incurring severe burns during an “Exploding Cage” match.
His most famous matches came against Mr. Gannosuke and Atsushi Onita, from whom he inherited the role of FMW’s company ace. Hayabusa appeared alongside Jinsei Shinzaki in an unsuccessful attempt at wresting the ECW Tag Team Championships from Rob Van Dam and Sabu at Heatwave ‘98, and famously suffered a career-ending injury in October 2001.
Hayabusa botched a springboard moonsault and landed on his head, cracking two of his vertebrae, leaving him paralysed. FMW slowly folded without him, and Hayabusa remained wheelchair-bound until 2015, when he was finally able to walk with the aid of a cane. He died of a brain hemorrhage on 3 March, aged 47.