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{{short description|Japanese professional wrestler (born 1978)}}
{{Infobox professional wrestler
|name = Genki Horiguchi
|image = 堀口元気2016.jpg
|caption = Horiguchi in November 2016
|names = '''Genki Horiguchi''' H.A.G.E. Horiguchi Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!!<ref name=DGProfile>{{cite web|title=Genki Horiguchi Dragon Gate Profile Page|url=http://www.gaora.co.jp/dragongate/data/prfl/horiguchi.html|publisher=[[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]]|access-date=30 April 2012}}</ref> Genki Horiguchi S.U.M.O<ref>{{cite web | url=http://battle-news.com/?p=16260 | title= ドラゴンゲート11.6後楽園大会スモーズvs.ヴェルセルク全面対抗戦3番勝負、Over Generation後楽園初登場 | date=November 7, 2015 | access-date=November 6, 2015 | work=Battle News | language=ja}}</ref>
|height = {{convert|1.73|m|ftin|0|abbr=on}}<ref name=DGProfile/>
|birth_name = Hiromasa Horiguchi
|weight = {{convert|75|kg|lb|abbr=on}}<ref name=DGProfile/>
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1978|9|15}}<ref name=DGProfile/>
|death_date =
|birth_place = [[Kumamoto]], Japan<ref name=DGProfile/>
|death_place =
|resides =
|billed =
|trainer = [[Último Dragón]] [[Dos Caras]]
|debut = October 17, 1998<ref name=DGProfile/>
|retired =
|website =
}}
{{nihongo|'''Hiromasa Horiguchi'''|堀口博正|''Horiguchi Hiromasa''|born September 15, 1978}} is a Japanese [[professional wrestler]], better known by the ring name {{nihongo|'''Genki Horiguchi'''|堀口元気|Horiguchi Genki|}}. He is currently a full-time wrestler for [[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]]. He has also competed in [[Wrestling Society X]] and [[Ring of Honor]].

When Horiguchi's hairline began receding, the fans began to chant H-A-G-E ({{nihongo||禿|hage}} being [[Japanese language|Japanese]] for "baldness") at him. He managed to use this to gain a sort of cult popularity, and his catchphrase, "Who has called me hage?", is one of the best known in Japan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dragongate.shiningwizard.com/df.html|title=Do FIXER: Genki Horiguchi|year=2004|publisher=[[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031160856/http://dragongate.shiningwizard.com/df.html|archive-date=2006-10-31}}</ref>

''Hiromi Horiguchi'', a wrestler currently working for [[Toryumon (Último Dragón)|Toryumon Mexico]], was thought for some time to be Genki's brother, but the relationship was only a gimmick.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wrestling.insidepulse.com/2009/04/23/puroresu-pulse-issue-147-more-with-jae|title=Puroresu Pulse, issue 147|date=2009-04-23|access-date=2009-04-23|last=Ditch|first=David|publisher=InsidePulse.com|quote=Turns out Hiromi is only his gimmick brother. Guess that explains why he was never brought in.}}</ref>

==Career==

===Toryumon===
Horiguchi debuted in Toryumon as a face wrestler with a surfer gimmick. In 2001, he began to lose his hair, and in November he turned heel, cast away his surfer gimmick, and he joined the original M2K as a replacement for Chocoflake K-ICHI. He was the last wrestler to be added to the group.

During his days in the M2K stable, he held the NWA World Welterweight Title twice, defeating [[Ryo Saito (wrestler)|Ryo Saito]] to win it, vacating the title after a no-contest match with Dragon Kid, defeating Ricky Marvin to win it again, and finally losing it to M2K stablemate Darkness Dragon. As part of Do FIXER, he won the UWA World Trios Titles with [[Susumu Yokosuka]] and Ryo Saito.

He was responsible for bringing in [[Magnum TOKYO]] to lead the remnants of M2K after the name was sealed. In 2002, he would team with Magnum TOKYO and Darkness Dragon in a three-way trios tag team match against Ryo Saito, [[Masaaki Mochizuki]] & [[Dragon Kid]] and [[Nobuhiko Oshima|CIMA]], [[Don Fujii]] & [[Yoshikazu Taru]] and was pinned by CIMA.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://411mania.com/wrestling/the-smark-rant-for-the-best-of-japan-2002-volume-4/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230218081036/https://411mania.com/wrestling/the-smark-rant-for-the-best-of-japan-2002-volume-4/ |archive-date=February 18, 2023 |title=The SmarK Rant For The Best Of Japan 2002 – Volume 4 |work=411Mania |last=Keith |first=Scott |date=December 27, 2003 |access-date=February 18, 2023}}</ref>

In Spring 2003, he scored a series of upset wins, most of them via backslide. This led to the rise of his finisher, the Backslide from Heaven.

===Dragon Gate===
While in Do FIXER, he formed a friendship with [[Ryo Saito (wrestler)|Ryo Saito]] that would endure for several years. He teamed with Saito to defeat [[The Florida Brothers]] at the 2004 Revolucion ppv event on January 31, 2004.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wrestling101.com/101/article/PuroR/487/ |title=Toryumon January 2004 Revolucion PPV Review |author=Chedy, Jason |date=2004-09-28 |publisher=Wrestling101.com }}</ref> He, Saito and Dragon Kid would win the [[Dragon Gate Open the Triangle Gate Championship|Open the Triangle Gate Championship]] three times while teaming together in Do FIXER. The three of them would travel to [[Ring of Honor]] to take part in a match against Blood Generation's [[Nobuhiko Oshima|CIMA]], [[Naruki Doi]] & [[Masato Yoshino]].

[[File:Doi, Kanemaru, and Horiguchi.jpg|left|thumb|Horiguchi (far right) with [[Naruki Doi]] (far left) and [[Yoshinobu Kanemaru]] (second from the right) in July 2007.]]
In January 2007, he betrayed Saito and Do FIXER to join heel stable [[Muscle Outlaw'z]]. He underwent a radical transformation in appearance, and added blue mist to his arsenal. This turn lead him to an [[Open the Brave Gate]] title run, and a pinfall victory over CIMA in an 8-man elimination match (incidentally not his first direct win over CIMA). He feuded with gaijin [[Matt Sydal]] over the title before dropping it to [[Yasushi Kanda]]. After dropping the title, his push was not maintained. He began wrestling mainly early on the cards, taking the falls in multi-person matches, and was winless during all of March 2008. He began to develop kleptomania, stealing Tozawa-juku's pants and Anthony W. Mori's ring costume.

During the unit turmoil in the early parts of 2008, Horiguchi remained firmly on the heel side of Muscle Outlaw'z, and followed them to Real Hazard. He acted as secretary to the Brave Gate belt commissioner [[Yoshito Sugamoto]], which was actually the Brave Gate champion (and his fellow MO'z stablemate) Gamma himself, enforcing the outrageous rules randomly put in place by him that allowed Gamma to win title matches or retain his title if he lost the match.

On July 27, 2008, Horiguchi defeated [[m.c.KZ]] to win the vacant Open the Brave Gate title for a second time. Despite the title win, his push was not increased, as he did not score any wins over any wrestler in higher standing than he had been previously. He defended it twice before losing it to Masato Yoshino on October 12, and then went right back to taking the falls in most multi-person matches for the remainder of 2008 and into 2009.

[[File:Genki Horiguchi.jpg|thumb|Horiguchi in 2009]]
When Ryo Saito turned heel in February 2009 and joined Real Hazard, he and Horiguchi began teaming again. On May 5, they won the [[Dragon Gate Open the Twin Gate Championship|Open the Twin Gate Championship]] from Susumu Yokosuka & Gamma in a Three-Way Match, which included fellow Real Hazard stablemates Kenichiro Arai & Yasushi Kanda. They would hold them until September 17, when they lost them to Shingo Takagi & YAMATO. Afterwards, Horiguchi was relatively quiet again. He unsuccessfully challenged [[Naoki Tanizaki]] in the fall of 2009 for the Open the Brave Gate Championship.

On January 10, 2010, Horiguchi put out a blog where he stated that Real Hazard would win more matches via teamwork instead of illegal tactics and weapons play in 2010. He would prove to be a man of his word that day when he stopped Yasushi Kanda from using a blue box in a tag team match they had. Though they still won, his actions caused him and Kanda to begin bickering. The bickering intensified the following day, when Kanda made him lose a tag team match by accidentally hitting him. Five days later, Horiguchi would be backed up by Susumu Yokosuka and K-ness in his quest for clean matches, after they all refused help from Kanda in a six-man tag match they were involved in. However, the new clean fight trio suddenly found themselves winless in every match they were in, with Horiguchi taking the fall every time. Also, their mission caused a divide to slowly form in Real Hazard, with them on one side and Kanda, Kzy, and [[Takuya Sugawara]] on the other. (Kenichiro Arai and [[Fumiyuki Hashimoto|KAGETORA]] remained neutral).

Tensions finally boiled over on February 10, after KAGETORA accidentally cost Sugawara a shot at becoming the next challenger for the Open the Dream Gate Title. Horiguchi left Real Hazard, along with Susumu and K-ness, and was put in a match against Sugawara, scheduled for March 3. However, K-neSuka and Horiguchi decided to not team together anymore, since they all did not like how he was losing constantly, and they all agreed that this was preventing K-neSuka from getting to the top of the tag team division. Genki remained a lone wolf up until the 27th, when Dragon Kid suggested him to CIMA and Gamma as a new member of the WARRIORS stable, and he was welcomed into the fold. On May 13, 2010, Horiguchi, CIMA and Gamma defeated Don Fujii, [[Masaaki Mochizuki]] and [[Akebono Tarō|Akebono]] to win the Open the Triangle Gate Championship. On October 25, 2010, Horiguchi, CIMA and Gamma lost the Open the Triangle Gate Championship to Naoki Tanizaki, Yasushi Kanda and Takuya Sugawara.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1288376845 |title=Viva La Raza! Lucha Weekly |date=2010-10-29 |last=Boutwell |first=Josh |access-date=2010-10-31 |work=WrestleView |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101030211328/http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1288376845 |archive-date=2010-10-30 }}</ref>

Horiguchi turned heel on January 14, 2011, along with the rest of WARRIORS, when they attacked Masato Yoshino and WORLD-1, and joined forces with Naruki Doi's unnamed group.<ref name=VivaLaRaza20110121>{{cite web |url=http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1295648558 |title=Viva La Raza! Lucha Weekly |last=Boutwell |first=Josh |date=2011-01-21 |access-date=2011-01-22 |work=WrestleView |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410054824/http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1295648558 |archive-date=2011-04-10 }}</ref> On January 18 the new group was named Blood Warriors.<ref name=VivaLaRaza20110121/> On February 6, 2011, Horiguchi and his Blood WARRIORS stablemate Ryo Saito defeated Don Fujii and Masaaki Mochizuki to win the Open the Twin Gate Championship. They would lose the title to rival group Junction Three representatives, Dragon Kid and [[PAC (wrestler)|PAC]], on June 19, 2011. On February 9, 2012, new Blood Warriors leader [[Akira Tozawa]] kicked Horiguchi and Saito out of the group.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1328780215&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120712062018/http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1328780215&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-07-12|title=2/9 TRUTH GATE, Blood Warriors vs. Junction Three Finale – 09 Feb 2012|date=2012-02-09|access-date=2012-02-10|work=iHeartDG}}</ref> On March 3, after Horiguchi teamed with Yasushi Kanda and Ryo Saito to win the vacant Open the Triangle Gate Championship, he renamed himself '''Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!!''' and formed the Jimmyz stable with Jimmy KAGETORA, Jimmy Kanda, Ryo "Jimmy" Saito and Jimmy Susumu.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1330766526&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|title=3/3 Champion Gate in Osaka – 03 Mar 2012|date=2012-03-03|access-date=2012-03-04|work=iHeartDG|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120331225842/http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1330766526&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|archive-date=31 March 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Jimmyz lost the Open the Triangle Gate Championship to World-1 International (Masato Yoshino, Naruki Doi and Pac) on May 6.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1336287214&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715232715/http://iheartdg.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1336287214&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-07-15|title=5/6 Dead or Alive 2012 – 05 May 2012|date=2012-05-06|access-date=2012-05-06|work=iHeartDG}}</ref> On May 19, Horiguchi defeated Akira Tozawa in the finals to win the [[King of Gate#2012|2012 King of Gate tournament]].<ref name=KingofGate2012>{{cite web|url=http://iheartdg.com/index.php?start_from=&ucat=&subaction=showfull&id=1337418750&archive=1338333386& |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130126124846/http://iheartdg.com/index.php?start_from=&ucat=&subaction=showfull&id=1337418750&archive=1338333386& |archive-date=January 26, 2013 |title=5/19 King of Gate – 19 May 2012|date=2012-05-19|access-date=2012-05-19|work=iHeartDG}}</ref> On September 29, 2013, Horiguchi defeated Kzy in the finals of a tournament to win the Open the Brave Gate Championship for the third time.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.gaora.co.jp/dragongate/data/result/2013/0929.html | title=Summer Adventure Tag League 2013 | access-date=October 1, 2013 | work=[[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]] | language=ja}}</ref> He lost the title to [[Flamita]] on March 16, 2014.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.gaora.co.jp/dragongate/data/result/2014/0316.html | title=Memorial Gate 2014 in 和歌山 | access-date=March 16, 2014 | work=[[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]] | language=ja}}</ref>

===Outside the Dragon System===

Appearing in [[Aja Kong]]'s '''"Yo! All the Members Set"''' 20th anniversary card, he teamed with Ryo Saito and [[Naoki Tanizaki]] against CIMA, [[Naruki Doi]] and [[Masato Yoshino]] at [[Korakuen Hall]] in [[Tokyo, Japan]] on August 21, 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joshipuro.com/cutenews/show_archives.php?archive=1122167476&subaction=list-archive& |title=First matches announced for Aja's show |date=2005-07-11 |publisher=JoshiPuro.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011020625/http://www.joshipuro.com/cutenews/show_archives.php?archive=1122167476&subaction=list-archive& |archive-date=2007-10-11 }}</ref>

At the beginning of 2007, he was briefly affiliated with the [[Wrestling Society X]] company that was run by MTV. He and [[Masato Yoshino]] were a tag team known as Team Dragon Gate, despite the fact the two were in rival stables at the time; Horiguchi was still aligned with face stable Do FIXER while Yoshino was in heel stable Blood Generation. They would only win an exploding cage timebomb deathmatch in their time in this promotion.

==Championships and accomplishments==
*'''[[Dragon Gate (wrestling)|Dragon Gate]]'''
:*[[Open the Brave Gate Championship]] ([[Dragon Gate Open the Brave Gate Championship#Title history|3 times]])
:*[[Open the Triangle Gate Championship]] ([[Dragon Gate Open the Triangle Gate Championship#Title history|13 times]]) – with [[Nobuyoshi Nakamura|Dragon Kid]] and [[Ryo Saito (wrestler)|Ryo Saito]] (3), [[Nobuhiko Oshima|CIMA]] and [[Yoshito Sugamoto|GAMMA]] (2), [[Yasushi Kanda|Jimmy Kanda]] and [[Ryo Saito (wrestler)|Ryo "Jimmy" Saito]] (3), [[Naoki Tanizaki|Mr. Kyu Kyu Toyonaka Dolphin]] and Ryo "Jimmy" Saito (1), [[Susumu Mochizuki|Jimmy Susumu]] and Ryo "Jimmy" Saito (1), [[Fumiyuki Hashimoto|Jimmy Kagetora]] and Jimmy Susumu (1) and [[Kzy]] and [[Susumu Yokosuka]] (2)
:*[[Open the Twin Gate Championship]] ([[Dragon Gate Open the Twin Gate Championship#History|2 times]]) – with Ryo Saito
:*[[King of Gate]] ([[King of Gate#2012|2012]])<ref name=KingofGate2012/>
:*Open the Brave Gate Championship Tournament (2013)

*'''[[Pro Wrestling Illustrated]]'''
:*PWI ranked him #'''104''' of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the [[Pro Wrestling Illustrated#PWI 500|PWI 500]] in 2006

*'''[[Toryumon (Último Dragón)|Toryumon Mexico]]'''
:*[[NWA World Welterweight Championship]] ([[NWA World Welterweight Championship#Title history|2 times]])
:*[[UWA World Trios Championship]] ([[UWA World Trios Championship#Title history|1 time]]) – with [[Susumu Yokosuka]] and Ryo Saito
:*[[Toryumon (Último Dragón)#Young Dragons Cup|Young Dragons Cup]] (1998)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dgusa.puroresufan.com/toryumontitles.html |title=Toryumon System Title History |access-date=2008-09-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081122031253/http://dgusa.puroresufan.com/toryumontitles.html |archive-date=2008-11-22 }}</ref>

*'''[[Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards]]'''
:*[[Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Match of the Year|Match of the Year]] with Dragon Kid and Ryo Saito vs. CIMA, Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino {{small|(ROH – ''Supercard of Honor'' – March 31)}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
*[http://puroresucentral.com/horiguchi.html Puroresu Central: Genki Horiguchi]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080528230743/http://dgusa.puroresufan.com/genki.html Dragon Gate USA profile]
*{{IMDb name|id=2501782|name=Genki Horiguchi}}
* [http://spora.jp/horiguchigenki/ Genki Horiguchi Officialblog] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121029010643/http://spora.jp/horiguchigenki/ |date=2012-10-29 }}

{{Navboxes|
|list1=
{{Dragon Gate employees}}
{{King of Gate}}
{{NWA World Welterweight Championship}}
{{Open the Brave Gate Championship}}
{{Open the Triangle Gate Championship}}
{{Open the Twin Gate Championship}}
{{UWA World Trios Championship}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horiguchi, Genki}}
[[Category:1978 births]]
[[Category:Japanese male professional wrestlers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Kumamoto]]
[[Category:20th-century male professional wrestlers]]
[[Category:20th-century Japanese professional wrestlers]]
[[Category:21st-century male professional wrestlers]]
[[Category:21st-century Japanese professional wrestlers]]
[[Category:NWA World Welterweight Champions]]
[[Category:UWA World Trios Champions]]
[[Category:Open the Brave Gate Champions]]
[[Category:Open the Twin Gate Champions]]
[[Category:Open the Triangle Gate Champions]]
[[Category:King of Gate winners]]

Genki Horiguchi - Revision history

imported>HHH Pedrigree: no notable,