Nanfu Kenzo - 南富 健三 (born January 3, 1970) is a former American professional sumo wrestler from Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii. He made his debut in September 1990 and wrestled for Takasago stable. His highest rank was makushita 1 and he retired in September 1996.
Early Life[]
Pierson Kekauoha attended Kailua High School where he played as a linebacker for the school's football team. He was teammates with future stablemate Eric Gaspar (Koryu). After graduation from high school, Kekauoha was personally requested to join sumo by fellow Hawaiian Konishiki who was an ozeki at the time. He joined Takasago stable in September 1990 alongside fellow Hawaiians Sunahama and Koryu.
Career[]
He was given the shikona "Nanfu" (南富) and had a strong start in the first two divisions. He was promoted to sandanme in May 1991, but struggled in the divison. He finally earned promotion to makushita in September 1992 after eight tournaments in sandanme. Nanfu would bounce between makushita and sandanme for several years before establishing himself as a makushita regular in September 1993. He pulled out of the March 1995 due to injury and fell back down to sandanme. In oder to redeem himself, Nanfu won all seven matches and claimed the sandanme yusho. As a result, he was promoted to the highly competitive rank of makushita 10. He continued to impress and posted four consecutive winning records which sent him to the top of makushita. However, he struggled in this tournament and produced a losing record of 1-6.
Retirement from Sumo[]
After his losing record at the top of makushita, Nanfu was clearly dejected and wrestled only two more tournaments before announcing his retirement after the September 1996 tournament. He returned to the United States and currently resides Waimanalo, Hawaii.
MMA Career[]
He became a MMA fighter after retirement and fought as Kaleo "Suzuki" Kekauoha. He made his MMA debut on October 30th, 2004, at the DEEP 16 Impact event in the Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan) where he lost to Anthony Netzler by knockout in the first round.
Fighting Style[]
Nanfu is a oshi-sumo wrestler who prefers pushing and thrusting techniques to fighting on the mawashi. His most common kimarite used was a straightforward oshidashi, or push out. He also regularly wins by yorikiri, or force out.
Record[]
Division Results[]
- Total: 132-106-14/238 (37 basho)
- Makushita: 58-68-14/126 (20 basho)
- Sandanme: 57-34/91 (13 basho)
- Jonidan: 11-3/14 (2 basho)
- Jonokuchi: 6-1/7 (1 basho)
Championships[]
- 1 Sandanme Championship (May 1995)
Shikona History[]
- Nanfu Kenzo (1990.09 - 1996.09)
Gallery[]
