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Yokozuna was great

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#1 ·
I read that some people here wrote that Yokozuna did not deserve to be champion and that he just was there to hand the title to Hogan.

I thought Yokozuna was great. Very intimidating and a great wrestler.

It hurt my heart then he later became more or less some kind of midcarder and jobber.

Maybe it was partly his fault because he became to fat but the early Yokozuna was a really great heel.
 
#2 ·
He was an awesome heel, and regardless of whether or not you think ('you' as in the generalisation) he was crowned champion too early, he stayed over as a monster heel for years right until he turned face in 1996. You could tell by the middle of that year though he was having problems.

The last match I remember him having was at Survivor Series 1996, and he was only in the ring for about ten seconds. What did he do in that short space of time? He injured Vader.

Loved the big lug to bits though. Just a shame he didn't control his weight issues.
 
#3 ·
Disagree, very boring and not intimidating at all IMO. He was just there to make the dunbfuck look good and take the title from him all the way.
 
#4 ·
He sucked. He was, maybe, the worst WWE champion ever. In Israel, Yoko is considered to be some kind of Hulk Hogan because his push happened as the wrestling became popular here.

It's wrong. He is the worst in any catagory.

Was he a good wrestler? Fuck no. He sucked ass in the ring.

Was he charismatic? No, he never talked. When he needed to talk by himself- He sucked. And his two managers weren't good enough: Fuji and Cornette never had the charisma to make him the top heel.

Was he a star? If he was a star, then why did he became nothing more then a midcard act after his storyline was over?

Was he a profitable champion? No... The WWE lost tons of money in his time.

Yokozuna's character was based on his title and on his size. After he lost his title, nobody cared...

He was a faliure by every way possible. He was a gimmick character in a time where the "Anti American monster" character wasn't relevant. He was worst as Ludvig Borga.

All in all, Yoko was the worst WWE champion ever.
 
#80 ·
He sucked. He was, maybe, the worst WWE champion ever. In Israel, Yoko is considered to be some kind of Hulk Hogan because his push happened as the wrestling became popular here.

It's wrong. He is the worst in any catagory.

Was he a good wrestler? Fuck no. He sucked ass in the ring.

Was he charismatic? No, he never talked. When he needed to talk by himself- He sucked. And his two managers weren't good enough: Fuji and Cornette never had the charisma to make him the top heel.

Was he a star? If he was a star, then why did he became nothing more then a midcard act after his storyline was over?

Was he a profitable champion? No... The WWE lost tons of money in his time.

Yokozuna's character was based on his title and on his size. After he lost his title, nobody cared...

He was a faliure by every way possible. He was a gimmick character in a time where the "Anti American monster" character wasn't relevant. He was worst as Ludvig Borga.

All in all, Yoko was the worst WWE champion ever.

:lol

Wow im sorry.
 
#5 ·
Anyone saying Yoko was a bad wrestler, knows nothing about wrestling.

People talk about weight issues concerning guys like yoko, and those people know absolutely nothing about dealing with a 4-500 pound problem.

In his earlier WWF days he was doing amazing stuff for a guy his size. His matches looked legit. And when it boils right down to it wrestling is about larger than life figures. dean ambrose, cm punk, danielson, and on down the line, I see people more impressive and awe inspiring than them at the grocery store, let alone the gym. There is nothing special about looking at them.. nothing. Yokozuna was a 400 pound well over 6 foot behemoth Samoan, in Japanese garb. from his entrance, to the pairing with Mr. fuji to the Banzai bomb he was an incredible character, a very good wrestler (especially at his size) and a quite deserving champion.

To me it sounds like there's at least a couple people above me that need to call a whaambulance because someone they would have liked to be champion wasn't because Yoko was.
 
#6 ·
You're so wrong.

Yokozuna did amazing stuff "For his size". That's the excuse I love to hear. Mae Young does amazing stuff for an 80 year old women- Does that make her the champ? And about Yoko's size- A guy in his size should be dead, so the fact that he moves alone makes him pretty good for his size. That doesn't mean he helped anything.

Yokozuna was the worse star ever. He wasn't a star at all- If he was such a deserving champ and a big star and a great character, explain to me why he never got any other main event run after his title run ended?

The thing is simple- Yoko was a stupid character. He was an undeserving champion because he sucked.

He was a champ at a time where wrestling was dead. If the same Yokozuna would come today, you will hate the guy. Tell me one feud or match of Yokozuna that you've liked! And by the way, if you'll say the casket match, then I'll just say anyone could've been there instead of Yoko.

Yoko had a dry character and his managers improved it a bit- But it didn't help. You know what? If he was 250 pounds lighter, he wouldn't be an uppercarder, nevertheless main eventer!

It's right that initially you see Yoko and his size is interesting, but what other qualities he had? He had nothing. Yoko was one of the factors to the most dark time at Wrestling.

And you're the one who needs a whaambulance because you start defending on your beloved Yoko, who... Yup, sucked.
 
#7 ·
I personally feel he wasn't the best idea for a heel but he wasn't the worse. Would have served better (but less successful) 10 years prior, as I feel his character had 1980s heel written all over, especially as a challenger to Hogan.

Can anybody tell me a decent match of his that didn't involve Bret? Not bashing him but it seems to me that after 1994, he just gave up.

Sent from my SPH-M830 using VerticalSports.Com App
 
#9 ·
I personally feel he wasn't the best idea for a heel but he wasn't the worst....

Can anybody tell me a decent match of his that didn't involve Bret?
Couldn't agree more.
He could move impressively for a man his size, he wasn't afraid to put anyone over & could sell.
However, I can't think of a match of his that didn't involve Bret that was all that good.

I always had the feeling that Hogan had Vince's ear, convinced him that a Hogan vs. Yokozuna feud would draw money, Vince pushed the panic button & went with it.
 
#11 ·
I never liked Yokozuna. He just never did it for me. He just wasn't interesting, at all. I always thought that 1993 should've been buit around a Perfect/Savage feud for the title. They could've built it brilliantly, starting with their friendship collapsing and then moving on to a bitter rivalry between them.
 
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#17 ·
Why on here does it always descend into "I'm right, your opinion is wrong" deal. It's getting like Youtube.

I, also, find the argument that he did impressive things for his size a double edged sword. Yes, some of the things he did were impressive for a man that large, but they weren't anything that somebody smaller but still huge (Vader, Bam Bam) could do, however to contradict that, Yoko was also capable of the strength moves and executed them well. He had a great belly to belly that looked legit. His superkick was decent, the Banzai drop was a good finisher. He wasn't horrible in the ring, and what he did do was executed very, very well.

Should he have been champion? Yes. At the time, yes definitely. WWE was in the midst of losing stars and/or there current stars were dwindling. Hogan won the belt from him but he was never going to reach the heights he had before then, and then he ended up moving on. Yokozuna's character helped Bret get massively over as a world champion, and like it or not, Luger's American Express was somewhat over, not massively, but over enough.

Is it true that those in WWE wanted him to get even bigger? I've read that but couldn't believe it.

He seems well-liked, a lot of people have said nice things about him, and I don't think it's just because he's passed. Kevin Nash tells a story of Yoko ripping Shane Douglas apart backstage because Douglas wouldn't wrestle on a UK tour because he was injured, and HHH had to work twice. Apparently Yoko, in front of everyone, told Shane that he was basically a piece of shit for doing it and, for the fans, unless you're about to die you get out there and work.

I liked his tag team with Owen, too.

He died practically over the road from me too in the Adelphi Hotel. Well, 5 minutes from my house. I play pool in a pool hall over the road from it at least once a week, and every singly time I go past the Adelphi I think of Yoko. I don't say a prayer or anything, of course not, but it is a bit sad.
 
#18 ·
Yokozuna lost money. He was a stale champion. He got Bret over? LOL. Bret became over by the feuds with Perfect, Piper, Bulldog, Shawn and Owen. And especially by Flair. But by feuding with Yoko? Yoko was an Anti-Star.

About him being a good guy backstage- So what? Kane was a nice guy as well. Al Snow was. Do you want them to be the champions?

Yokozuna shouldn't be champion because his character was so outdated. And even if the WWE were losing stars- Why to use YOKO to replace those stars instead of someone that was actually good?
 
#22 ·
Ahh, really? Thanks for the info, mate. I think it must have been Mark Henry I read they asked to put the mass back on. It's a scary thought someone would want to be that big. He was probably about six foot tall, give or take a few inches, anything over 300lb would push it and I remember reading he was nearing double that. Shocking that it was his goal to try and keep getting bigger.

I remember he was on morning television in the UK what must have been just before he died, and he was on a bed with the co-presenter as the set was apparently a house, and he just dwarfed the bed completely.
 
#20 ·
Yokozuna shouldn't have been a success – he didn't have many of the normally essential ingredients save size – but somehow everything he lacked worked for him. He had zero charisma, yet that made him more intimidating; a big, silent monster type. His girth gave even simple moves a sense of power and his character had a comedy aspect to it as well, being a stereotype sumo, after all.

He wasn't the greatest ever, but he played the role he had well for a period of time, until he became too large to move properly. It's a shame he didn't keep his weight in a safer range.
 
#25 ·
Yep, agree with that. Don't know if Yoko was athletic as the other two in their prime, but definitely up there overall. Would be a hell of a triple threat! Haha.
 
#27 ·
Can't believe there are actually people here on this site trying to bash Yokozuna. First thing I think about is though the man was absolutely HUGE he actually COULD wrestle. If you are one of the people bashing Yoko without acknowledging this, you need to learn how to discuss instead of argue. Yoko's in ring moves were very solid. A crescent kick to the throat is damn inmpressive when you are 400 pounds. Yoko could actually move. Did he deserve the title? What kind of question is that? Sure he deserved the title. He did a great job at playing the Heel and that of course puts over his opponents because the fans want the face to win sooo badly.

Something people are forgetting...

Remember the body slam competition?

I know everyone remembers it because it was really one of the BEST moments of the post Golden Era and pre attitude era. Lex Lugar flying in after Macho Man and a few others failed and slamming Yokozuna for a shot at the Belt!! Lugar giving Yoko the elbow to daze him and then legitally body slamming him?

Are you really trying to sit here and say that isn't good heel work???

This was a very memorable WWE especially when you talk about the time span of after Hogan left.

Yoko deserved to be champion and he catapulted Lugar to WWF stardom while doing it. You might dispute this by saying "lugar sucked blah blah" but as a kid watching the WWE in the mid 90s, Lugar was pretty fun to watch and Vince definitely made money off of kids like me who wanted to see the VHS Summerslam 1993 with Lugar and Yoko on the cover. It has actually been awhile since I've seen that match but Isn't that where Lugar was hoisted on the shoulders of the WWE faces as they celebrated his victory??
 
#29 ·
No, he didn't deserve the title.

I'm sorry, but he didn't make any money. YOU maybe paid to see him, but the WWE lost money those years. Yoko was just not relevant to the culture!

Luger was a star when he came in to the WWE. People knew him from WCW.

And Yoko's "Good heel work" was the same as Honky Tonk Man's work as an IC champ. Doesn't mean he was fit as a champ. Yoko lost everytime, against everyone- He just never lost his title because he got counted out or DQed. That's why he sucked.

And About Summerslam- Celebrating after you win by Count out and won't have another title shot until Wrestlemania, doesn't make you look so good.
 
#28 ·
I've always been a Yokozuna fan. He had a very interesting ring style for a guy that size. Not as good as Bam Bam Bigelow or Vader, but he was right below them. (Plus, keep in mind, Yokozuna was significantly bigger than Bam Bam. Vader was just a freak of nature in general). He played the role of the silent monster very well, and I liked the dynamic between him and Mr. Fuji.

Was he the best possible choice to hold the title at the time? By no means. But imo, he's far from the worst champion ever. I'd take his reign over Diesel's any day of the week.
 
#35 ·
Always a big fan of just seeing him. Was fine with him either briefly on top or in the mid card. You're going to need a few oversized fellas on a wrestling show eventually and he was a good one. Also, always was a huge deal to watch someone lift him which just makes the matches a little more fun. I'm sure as an adult now though I would complain about his work rate or something pointless.
 
#36 ·
Yes, he was.
 
#37 ·
I wonder how many of the post here are from people in the late 30's-40's who would've been teens or adults then vs people looking at it retrospectively. That could be a factor in so many negative post. Anyway, I'm 23, so I am looking back at it with an altered view, but one thing that people need to realize is Wrestlemania 9 was the first 'Mania to be booked nearly without Hogan. Given Hogan's last minute show closing appearance I'm going to assume he wasn't apart of the build. Now, If you're WWE I can see why they'd pick such a massive human being to main event. Hogan had been such a huge part of Wrestlemania, main eventing 7 outta 8 shows, they probably looked at Yoko and decided this had to be the attraction moving forward just because of sheer size. People ask why wasn't they pushing someone "better", WWE wasn't there yet as a company. They weren't going with who now would be IWC favorites, they we're going with who they thought could be an attraction. Rumor is Luger talked too much and that's why they didn't give him the belt, but I'm almost surprised they didn't go with him to over Bret. Maybe it's a testament to how good Bret is that they went with him as main eventer.

Anyway, I don't think Yokozuna should be discredited, PLENTLY of big men have come and gone and for every success, theirs 10 massive failures.
 
#38 · (Edited)
I WISH that one day the WWE will get better and then someone will say that the current times had to be bad because "The WWE wasn't there yet".

Yokozuna was a bad attrection. Vince thought "Yeah, he will be big!" but he didn't because CULTURE wasn't there. The WWE failed to realize that those weren't the eighties anymore, and therefore Yoko shouldn't be there.

His "Success" means nothing. He got ONE big storyline. Giant Gonzales came for ONE big storyline as well. Their "Success" is because Vince thought that they will draw. Obviously he was wrong.
 
#46 ·
He was an awesome heel. I think he drew the most heat in the New Generation Era too. the guy was a heat magnet, especially with Mr Fuji by his side. He also had a lot of stamina for a guy his size, the guy would sweat buckets but could work a match and sell very well.
 
#49 ·
The guy had heat like Miz and Sheamus had heat.

He had heat from a small crowd.

Which is to say- He sucked.

By the way- Fuji wasn't enough, so they decided to put Cornette in as well.

"Had a lot of stamina"- Oh, so that's why Bret told that Yoko wanted to finish their match early?

Says the 19-year-old? Real.
Yeah, but I didn't watch back then so I can judge Yoko by REAL standards.
 
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