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The Fire Festival is an annual professional wrestling round-robin tournament held by Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX to determine the top wrestler in the promotion, typically contested in late July/early August. In addition to ZERO1-MAX members, it has frequently included outside stars, including 2003 winner Satoshi Kojima, Kensuke Sasaki and TAKA Michinoku. Shinjiro Ohtani is the only person to win the tournament more than once, having won three times, including the first two.
Since 2002, it has featured two blocks, each with five participants, with the two block winners facing off in the final to determine the overall champion. The 2001 Fire Festival only featured four in each block, but held the same principle. The winner of the tournament is presented with the Fire Sword, which they carry for the following year until the next Festival.
[edit] Results
[edit] List of winners
The 2001 Fire Festival was held from September 1 to September 15, over three weekly events on September 1, 8 and 15; four tournament matches were held at each, including the finals on 9/15.
The 2002 Fire Festival expanded the tournament to include 10 participants, and was held from July 28 to August 4 over five shows, each featuring four tournament matches.
| Block A |
Kintaro Kanemura |
King Joe |
TAKA Michinoku |
Shinjiro Ohtani |
Masato Tanaka |
| Kintaro Kanemura |
X |
Joe (6:09) |
Kanemura (9:55) |
Ohtani (0:03) |
Draw (15:49) |
| King Joe |
Joe (6:09) |
X |
TAKA (6:38) |
Ohtani (7:15) |
Tanaka (9:24) |
| TAKA Michinoku |
Kanemura (9:55) |
TAKA (6:38) |
X |
Ohtani (15:11) |
TAKA (7:57) |
| Shinjiro Ohtani |
Ohtani (0:03) |
Ohtani (7:15) |
Ohtani (15:11) |
X |
Tanaka (14:06) |
| Masato Tanaka |
Draw (15:49) |
Tanaka (9:24) |
TAKA (7:57) |
Tanaka (14:06) |
X |
| Block B |
Steve Corino |
Yuki Ishikawa |
Tetsuhiro Kuroda |
Kohei Sato |
Hirotaka Yokoi |
| Steve Corino |
X |
Ishikawa (9:02) |
Kuroda (9:46) |
Corino (9:56) |
Corino (7:17) |
| Yuki Ishikawa |
Ishikawa (9:02) |
X |
Kuroda (11:52) |
Sato (6:53) |
Ishikawa (8:43) |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda |
Kuroda (9:46) |
Kuroda (11:52) |
X |
Kuroda (7:42) |
Yokoi (8:45) |
| Kohei Sato |
Corino (9:56) |
Sato (6:53) |
Kuroda (7:42) |
X |
Yokoi (7:02) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi |
Corino (7:17) |
Ishikawa (8:43) |
Yokoi (8:45) |
Yokoi (7:02) |
X |
The 2003 Fire Festival was held from July 25 to August 1, with four matches on July 27 being contested in All Japan Pro Wrestling. The winner, Satoshi Kojima, is to date the only "outsider" to win the Fire Festival, representing AJPW.
The 2004 Fire Festival was held from July 27 to August 1, over five shows.
| Block A |
Satoshi Kojima |
Tetsuhiro Kuroda |
Takao Omori |
Wataru Sakata |
Hirotaka Yokoi |
| Satoshi Kojima |
X |
Draw (13:02) |
Omori (19:06) |
Kojima (14:52) |
Kojima (14:35) |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda |
Draw (13:02) |
X |
Kuroda (11:16) |
Sakata (15:10) |
Yokoi (11:10) |
| Takao Omori |
Omori (19:06) |
Kuroda (11:16) |
X |
Omori (7:17) |
Draw (30:00) |
| Wataru Sakata |
Kojima (14:52) |
Sakata (15:10) |
Omori (7:17) |
X |
Sakata (9:50) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi |
Kojima (14:35) |
Yokoi (11:10) |
Draw (30:00) |
Sakata (9:50) |
X |
| Block B |
Kintaro Kanemura |
Shiro Koshinaka |
Shinjiro Ohtani |
Kohei Sato |
Masato Tanaka |
| Kintaro Kanemura |
X |
Draw (5:34) |
Kanemura (1:18) |
Sato (9:14) |
Tanaka (11:07) |
| Shiro Koshinaka |
Draw (5:34) |
X |
Ohtani (10:56) |
Koshinaka (8:32) |
Koshinaka (Forf) |
| Shinjiro Ohtani |
Kanemura (1:18) |
Ohtani (10:56) |
X |
Sato (17:32) |
Ohtani (Forf) |
| Kohei Sato |
Sato (9:14) |
Koshinaka (8:32) |
Sato (17:32) |
X |
Sato (Forf) |
| Masato Tanaka |
Tanaka (11:07) |
Koshinaka (Forf) |
Ohtani (Forf) |
Sato (Forf) |
X |
The 2005 Fire Festival was held from July 29 to August 7, over five shows.
The 2006 Fire Festival was held from July 20 to July 29, over six shows. Due to a tie for first place in Block A, a four-way elimination match was made on the night of the finals to determine the winner of the block, with that man facing Block B winner Ryouji Sai later in the night. This would end up being Masato Tanaka, who also went on to defeat Sai and win the tournament. The top 4 in Block A are ranked below by order of elimination, with the first eliminated, Kazunari Murakami, ranked lowest.
| Block A |
Tomoaki Honma |
Kazunari Murakami |
Shinjiro Ohtani |
Masato Tanaka |
Yutaka Yoshie |
| Tomoaki Honma |
X |
Murakami (5:58) |
Ohtani (11:57) |
Tanaka (11:08) |
Yoshie (10:41) |
| Kazunari Murakami |
Murakami (5:58) |
X |
Murakami (9:15) |
Tanaka (8:23) |
Draw (11:18) |
| Shinjiro Ohtani |
Ohtani (11:57) |
Murakami (9:15) |
X |
Draw (30:00) |
Ohtani (10:18) |
| Masato Tanaka |
Tanaka (11:08) |
Tanaka (8:23) |
Draw (30:00) |
X |
Yoshie (11:27) |
| Yutaka Yoshie |
Yoshie (10:41) |
Draw (11:18) |
Ohtani (10:18) |
Yoshie (11:27) |
X |
| Block B |
Tatsutoshi Goto |
Takao Omori |
Ryouji Sai |
Kohei Sato |
Daisuke Sekimoto |
| Tatsutoshi Goto |
X |
Omori (7:29) |
Goto (7:44) |
Sato (6:42) |
Goto (9:40) |
| Takao Omori |
Omori (7:29) |
X |
Sai (14:20) |
Draw (30:00) |
Omori (11:50) |
| Ryouji Sai |
Goto (7:44) |
Sai (14:20) |
X |
Sai (12:18) |
Sai (14:14) |
| Kohei Sato |
Sato (6:42) |
Draw (30:00) |
Sai (12:18) |
X |
Sekimoto (14:06) |
| Daisuke Sekimoto |
Goto (9:40) |
Omori (11:50) |
Sai (14:14) |
Sekimoto (14:06) |
X |
[edit] References
