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Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling (FMW) had a long history of providing Japan with the best in hardcore wrestling action, often imitated in the states by ECW and the WWE. While in business, the company boasted a list of famous wrestlers that elevated the small company into a juggernaut successfully competing against All Japan Wrestling and New Japan, the two biggest wrestling companies in Japan. And unlike some federations that will allow nearly anyone hold a title, FMW only allowed the best in the business to win the most important championship in FMW history-The Double Title Championship.
The Double Title Championship has only held by five people in FMW's history. This DVD, Rule the Asylum: Champions of FMW takes a look at the history of the Double Title Championship. Rule the Asylum contains five exciting hardcore matches featuring Mike Awesome, Hayabusa, Masato Tanaka, Kintaro Kanemura, Kodo Fuyuki and Mr. Ganosuke, representing the historic figures that made FMW a success. Rule and Asylum begins with the first Double Title Championship: Mike Awesome vs. Kintaro Kanemura. At the time Awesome held the Brass Knuckles Championship and Kanemura was the Independent World Champion.
This hardcore battle started with Awesome demonstrating his tremendous power with tackles and vicious Clotheslines. However, things came crashing down on as Awesome attempted to jump over the ropes, screwed up and ended up having his leg caught between the top and middle ropes. Taking advantage of the situation, Kanemura bashed Awesome's leg with a chair for literally five minutes until Awesome's leg was freed from the ropes. But Kanemura didn't let something so small stop him from continuing the assault. For much of the match, Kanemura worked on Awesome's leg with Leglocks and more chair shots. He then set up a table and slammed Awesome onto the table. Kanemura jumped from the top ropes and came down across Awesome's stomach, sending the big man through the table.
Kanemura then took a piece of the broken table and started beating on Awesome's leg outside of the ring. Kanemura mocked Awesome by going back inside the ring and draping himself between the second and third ropes lying comfortably as he waited for Awesome to make his way slowly back into the ring. Insulted, Awesome mounted a comeback, but Kanemura just went back to the leg to bring the giant down. Slamming Awesome's head with a table piece, Kanemura was only able to get a two count as Awesome decided it was time to fight back. Awesome demonstrated his power, first crushing a piece of the table across Kanemura's head before slamming a chair across it, busting Kanemura wide open Awesome then flung Kanemura outside the ring through a table and against the hard floor below. Awesome continued to smash the piece of the table across Kanemura again leaving tons of blood on the wood.
However, Awesome could not keep his opponent down and Kanemura kept fighting back, countering moves and landing some powerful moves of his own including a Nutcracker a la Balls Mahoney and a Leg Drop from the top ropes. Kanemura could only get a two count; in fact there were a lot of two counts for both men as neither could get a clear advantage. The end came when Awesome hit two Awesome Bombs both resulting in two counts. The big man then decided enough was enough, smashed a table across Kanemura's head and then hit a final Awesome Bomb to get the pin and become the First Double Title Champion.