Tiger Mask

Yoshihiro Yamazaki debuted in July 1995, trained by Satoru Sayama and The Great Sasuke, beginning his career in Michinoku Pro Wrestling before joining NJPW in 2002. His accomplishments include six reigns as IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion and winning the Best of the Super Juniors tournament in both 2004 and 2005. He was the first man to win the Best of the Super Juniors in back-to-back years. Throughout his NJPW tenure, he carried on the legacy of the character’s rivalry with Black Tiger, competing against multiple wrestlers who used that gimmick, including Rocky Romero and Tatsuhito Takaiwa.

July 7, 2026, marks Tiger Mask IV’s retirement show at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo. The 31-year career of the six-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion will be celebrated with singles matches against CMLL talent Magnus (the current Black Tiger) and AEW/ROH talent “Dynamite Kid” Tommy Billington. Rocky Romero will also don the Black Tiger mask one final time — a callback to their heated mid-2000s rivalry that culminated in a 2009 Ryogoku Hall title-vs-mask match, where Black Tiger was unmasked as Romero.