10 Things Wrestling Fans Should Know About Japanese Legend Rikidozan
Fans of Japanese wrestling promotions like New Japan Pro-Wrestling, All Japan Pro-Wrestling, Stardom, and various others likely know about some of the major figures who made wrestling in the country what it is today: talents like Antonio Inoki, Giant Baba, Karl Gotch, and more. But before them came Rikidozan, one of the most crucial figures in the development of the sport in Japan, if not the most crucial.
But Rikidozan’s career lasted from 1951 to his death in 1963, so it’s likely that many fans aren’t aware of the legend as they should be. Let’s take a look at the life and career of Rikidozan, from his surprising origins to his tragic, untimely death.
10 Originally From Korea
One of the most surprising things about Rikidozan is that, despite being essentially the foundation of Japanese puroresu, he was actually Korean — which would come into play when his protege Antonio Inoki organized the infamous Collision in Korea. Born in 1924 in what is now North Korea, Jim Sin-rak was the son of a farmer who practiced a Korean folkstyle wrestling known as ssireum. His success in the sport caught the attention of a man named Minosuke Momota, who was looking to recruit young Koreans to the sumo wrestling stable Nishonoseki. However, young Jim Sin-rak was taking care of his ill father, and declined until his father’s death in 1939, after which he traveled to Japan at around the age of 15.
9 Started Off In Sumo
It was in 1940 that Jim Sin-rak debuted in sumo, and soon began to experience discrimination due to his being Korean. However, he found a solution to avoid prejudice — adopted by Momota, Jim Sin-Rak changed his name to Mitsuhiro Momota, claiming Japanese birth. As he continued in sumo, he was given a ring name (or shikona), as is standard practice in the sport: Rikidozan. He would prove to be a success in the sport until a financial dispute with his stable-master would result in his abrupt retirement in 1950.
8 Became A National Hero In Japan
Following stints working in the black market and in construction, Rikidozan was tapped to participate in a pro wrestling tour of Japan organized by Western promoters, debuting in mid-1951 after about a month of training. After excursions to the US for further training, Rikidozan would return to Japan, where he’d soon become a megastar.
This being post-World War II Japan, there was a lot of anti-American sentiment, and Rikidozan’s tendency to take on gaijin wrestlers from the West made him increasingly popular with the Japanese fans. His televised tag team match with Masahiko Kimura against brothers Ben and Mike Sharpe — Canadian wrestlers billed as Americans — is a pivotal bout, one deemed responsible for popularizing pro wrestling in Japan.
7 Founded Japan’s First Wrestling Promotion
Rikidozan’s newfound fame and fortune as a pro wrestler resulted in him putting money into not only properties like clubs and hotels, but also his own wrestling promotion — the first ever in Japan. Founded in 1953, the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance (or JWA) became Japan’s premier source of the increasingly popular sport, with Rikidozan as its top star. Events were broadcast on television, with people crowding around TV screens in storefronts to watch. Desire to watch Rikidozan perform reportedly directly led to skyrocketing sales of color TVs.
6 Shoot Incident With Masahiko Kimura
The aforementioned Masahiko Kimura is a legend himself, considered one of the greatest judo practitioners of all time and a major figure in the development of MMA (the Kimura Lock is named after him). But he also trained in pro wrestling, and took on Rikidozan to determine the first-ever Japanese Heavyweight Champion in December 1954. However, there was tension between the two, possibly over Rikidozan’s success, and their bout — which was booked for a time limit draw to necessitate rematches — resulted in Rikidozan breaking script and shooting on Kimura, delivering legitimate strikes until he won via knockout in what’s considered one of wrestling’s earliest shoots.
5 Legendary Feuds
After the incident with Kimura, Rikidozan spent the rest of his career only ever taking on gaijin in singles bouts, furthering his standing as a national hero. One of his biggest feuds was with “Classy” Freddie Blassie, whose tendency for biting his opponents with sharpened teeth made him a major heel in Japan, with reports that people fainted and even died when they watched him sink his teeth into Rikidozan. His last feud would be against masked legend The Destroyer (a.k.a. Dick Beyer), with him Rikidozan would have his final singles match, defending the NWA International Heavyweight Championship in a 2/3 falls match.
4 Defeated Lou Thesz
Rikidozan’s most important rivalry, however, would be against Lou Thesz, NWA World Heavyweight Champion and one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all time. Reportedly, their title match was such a huge draw that Japanese TV ratings for the bout were a whopping 87.0, meaning that 87% of the country tuned in for it.
Outside of the ring, the rivals had a tremendous mutual respect for one another, and Thesz’s success in Japan resulted in the National Wrestling Alliance awarding him a new NWA International Heavyweight Title to defend in Japan, which he graciously agreed to drop to Rikidozan in 1958. Rikidozan would hold the belt until his death in 1963, and it would eventually become one-third of All Japan Pro-Wrestling’s prestigious Triple Crown Championship in 1989.
3 Killed By A Yakuza
On the night of 12/8/1963, Rikidozan was partying in a Tokyo nightclub when he got into an altercation with a member of the yakuza, Katsushi Murata. The scuffle led to Murata stabbing Rikidozan in the stomach, with the wrestler reportedly requiring two surgeries and eventually succumbing to peritonitis — an inflammation of the stomach lining — a week later at the age of 39. There are numerous conflicting stories about the details of Rikidozan’s death, however, with some saying that the knife was soaked in urine and that the incident was an orchestrated mob hit.
2 There’s a Movie About His Life
Rikidozan’s Korean roots of course were of interest to his home country, and so the year 2004 saw the release of the South Korean film Rikidozan, a biopic following the legend’s life. The role of Rikidozan himself is played by award-winning actor Son Kyun-gu, who had to put on muscle for the role as well as deliver most of his lines in Japanese. Much of the wrestling-related cast is made up of actual pro wrestlers including Japanese stars Keiji Mutoh (a.k.a. The Great Muta), Shinya Hashimoto, Go Shiozaki, and Jun Akiyama, with gaijin performers played by Rick Steiner and Bart Gunn.
1 His Students Started Major Promotions
Rikidozan isn’t just a foundational figure in Japanese pro wrestling due to his in-ring success and popularization of the sport. He’s also responsible for discovering and training two of the legends that would carry on in his wake: Giant Baba and Antonio Inoki. Following his death, JWA continued on, albeit while facing competition from new promotions. Backstage power struggles would result in both of Rikidozan’s proteges departing the failing JWA in 1972 to found their own promotions, with Giant Baba founding All Japan Pro-Wrestling and Antonio Inoki establishing New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
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