Fighting Investigation Team Battlarts (Kakuto Tanteidan Battlarts), sometimes spelled as BattlARTS, was a Japanese independent Professional Wrestling promotion active from 1995-2011. It was founded with Yoshiaki Fujiwara's approval by the last batch of wrestlers of the dying Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi, led by Yuki Ishikawa.
Unlike traditional promotions from the U-system, Battlarts didn't adhere to maximum realism in its wrestling style. Instead, it added a weird flavour which mixed shoot-style with lucha libre and ECW-like (the Japanese would probably think FMW instead) craziness, which they referred to as "Bati-Bati".
Endowed with a cult fandom, it survived for more than a decade and produced some puroresu stars who are still active, along with some very minor offsprings promotions that are a part of what they refer to as "B-kei" ("B-System").
Not to be confused with Battle Arts, the related dojo founded by Battlarts alumni Santino Marella.
Tropes associated with Battlarts:
- Anti-Hero Team: Sort of, the founders left PWFG on good terms with Yoshiaki Fujiwara, they only left because the promotion's sponsors planned to massively restructure the roster and change the landscape of the entire promotion to something they could not get behind.
- Denser and Wackier: Even more so than the last days of PWFG.
- Distaff Counterpart: Sort of had one in Hyper Visual Fighting Arsion, as they sent some of their wrestlers to the Battlarts Dojo to learn shoot wrestling and also had working agreement with JWP Joshi Puroresu. They had a more official one in the short-lived Queen Bee.
- Elite Four: Yuki Ishikawa, Daisuke Ikeda, Alexander Otsuka, and Katsumi Usuda as the Battlarts Big Four.
- Faction Motto: "Dream Will Come True".
- Insistent Terminology: The Battlarts wrestlers called their wrestling style "bati-bati" or the punishment style. They also stated they aren't part of the U-System, but are the "B-kei" ("B-System").
- Let's Get Dangerous!: While the promotion's wrestlers are probably the least successful MMA fighters of the U-system (at least they can say they tried), they didn't make it easy for their opponents and its dojo had guys that trained exclusively for MMA with some success.
- Lighter and Softer: Battlarts also promoted numerous matches contested under B-Rules. B-Rules prohibits the use of any striking. These matches were heavy on chain wrestling, suplexes, and submission holds. They typically end via submission and truly test the grappling ability of those involved.
- Mascot: A cat that wandered into the Battlarts office at the start of the promotion was used as their mascot, which they named "Catchy" and had merchandise of its own like the other wrestlers. Hilariously, Catchy's merchandise sold better than the others because the wrestlers were not well known at the time. It unfortunately disappeared after the office relocated in 1999.
- Non-Indicative Name: As Battlarts's Japanese name was "Kakuto Tantei Dan Battlarts," which literally translates (and is always translated as such in the West) as "Fighting Detective Team Battlarts," you would be pardoned for thinking this promotion ran theatrical storylines about detectives and hardboiled guys in fedoras. Actually, a more accurate translation would be "Fighting Investigation Team Battlarts," refering to scientific yuxtapositions of wrestling styles on the ring instead of fighting detectives.
- Pro Wrestling Is Real: In a different way compared to the other promotions in the U-System. While the other promotions treated pro wrestling as a legit and real martial art/fighting style, Battlarts treated pro wrestling itself as the realest thing in life.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The founders and almost everyone that worked there.
- Special Guest: Yoshiaki Fujiwara was present for their debut show.
- Lou Thesz of all people showed up at one of their shows to praise their work.
- Kotetsu Yamamoto was present at one of their shows as a Combat Commentator.
- Spin-Off: Is one to PWFG and has its own with Daisuke Ikeda's promotion; Futen.
-
Spiritual Successor: The Canadian wrestling promotion and academy; Battle Arts, that was founded by Yuki Ishikawa, Anthony Carelli (also best known as Santino Marella, and as Joe Basko in Battlarts), and George Terzis (also known as George "Dynamite" Silva in Battlarts). - Ur-Example: The short-lived Queen Bee events were the first time joshi wrestlers used shoot style wrestling exclusively for those events (Bati-Bati rules of course).
- Wrestler in All of Us: Battlarts wrestlers were not ashamed to throw all sorts of pro wrestling moves like dropkicks, European uppercuts, powerbombs, piledrivers, etc, in their Bati-Bati rules matches.
