Akira Maeda (born in 1959 as Go Il-myeong) is a former Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, and promoter, best known as one of the pioneers of shoot-style wrestling, which aimed to bring a more realistic and combat-oriented approach to pro wrestling in Japan. He began his career with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in 1978 after gaining attention in karate. He wrestled in the UK under t... show more