Mr. Gannosuke
Masashi Honda (本田雅史, Honda Masashi, born June 20, 1968) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW) under the ring name Mr. Gannosuke (ミスター雁之助, Misutā Gannosuke).
| Mr. Gannosuke | |
|---|---|
Mr. Gannosuke in March 2011. | |
| Birth name | Masashi Honda |
| Born | June 20, 1968 Nagasaki-shi, Nagasaki, Japan |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Mr. Gannosuke Hayabusa Masashi Honda Riki Ganshu |
| Billed height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Billed weight | 100 kg (220 lb) |
| Trained by | Takashi Ishikawa Tarzan Goto |
| Debut | November 2, 1987 |
| Retired | April 15, 2018 |
Honda was quickly pushed as "Mr. Gannosuke" due to his resemblance to the actor Ashiya Gannosuke and he began competing as Atsushi Onita's tag team partner in main event matches during his rookie year. He left the company in 1995 with his trainer Tarzan Goto due to differences with Onita and worked in International Wrestling Association (IWA) for nearly two years. He returned to FMW in 1997 and became the main rival of Hayabusa for the next four years. He was the company's most popular villain from 1997 to 1998 and the second top villain from then onwards. He would be a member of villainous groups Funk Masters of Wrestling, ZEN, Team No Respect and Shin Fuyuki-gun.
He held many titles in his FMW career including being a one-time Brass Knuckles Heavyweight Champion and a two-time Independent Heavyweight Champion. He was also the winner of Over the Top tournament in 1999. He headlined many pay-per-view events for FMW including the company's flagship event Anniversary Show in 1998, 1999 and 2001.