Patrick Tanaka is a renowned American professional wrestler, best known for his extensive career spanning nearly three decades, which has taken him to various prominent wrestling promotions, including the American Wrestling Association, World Wrestling Federation, World Championship Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, Continental Wrestling Association, and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
As the son of the esteemed Duke Keomuka, Tanaka was trained by his father, Hiro Matsuda, and the New Japan Pro Wrestling Dojo, before making his debut in 1984 for NJPW. During his time in Japan, he had the opportunity to wrestle against a range of notable opponents, including Keiichi Yamada, Shunji Kosugi, Black Cat, Naoki Sano, Tatsutoshi Goto, Shinichi Nakano, and Hirokazu Hata.
Following his year-long stint in New Japan, Tanaka began working as a jobber in Jim Crockett Promotions in 1985. The following year, he relocated to Memphis, Tennessee, where he joined the Continental Wrestling Association, a promotion owned by Jerry Lawler and Jerry Jarrett. Early on, Tanaka formed a successful tag-team with Jeff Jarrett, winning the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship.
Tanaka's partnership with Paul Diamond, another tag-team specialist, led to the formation of Badd Company, a duo that achieved considerable success in the CWA and AWA. They won the CWA/AWA International Tag Team Championship on December 15, 1986, defeating Tarzan Goto and Akio Sano. Although they lost the titles to The Sheepherders just a month later, Badd Company regained the championship on February 5, 1987, only to lose it again to Tarzan Goto and Akio Sano.
The duo's third and final reign with the International Tag Team Championship came on May 9, 1987, when they defeated Mark Starr in a handicap match. However, they lost the titles to Starr and his new tag-team partner, Billy Joe Travis, just a few weeks later. Badd Company went on to win the vacant International Tag Team Championship on May 25, 1987, and held it until July 6, 1987, when they were defeated by Bill Dundee and Rocky Johnson.
In addition to their success in the International Tag Team Championship, Badd Company also won the CWA's main tag-team title, the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship, by defeating Jeff Jarrett and Billy Joe Travis on August 8, 1987.
