After a long career as an amateur wrestler Hashimikov and Victor Zangiev travelled to Japan training for a professional wrestling career in the NJPW Dojo, specifically by NJPW founder Antonio Inoki.[1] Hashimikov made his debut against his friend Zangrief on February 22, 1989 in a five-minute exhibition match that ended in a draw between the two former amateur world champions. On May 25 of that year Hashimikov defeated Big Van Vader to become the first European to hold the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.[2] His reign was short lived as he lost the championship in his first defense only 48 days later, to Riki Choshu.[2] Hashimikov was the first actual Russian-born to win a professional wrestling title in the capitalist countries before the Cold War ended, at the time most "Russians" in North America and Japan were in fact characters played by either Russian descendants or wrestlers with no Russian connection.[3] In December, 1990 Hashimikov and Zangriev travelled to the United States for their first, and only wrestling show, the 1990 Starrcade.