Antonio Inoki dead at 79
 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/wrestli...as-passed-away

Just after the 62nd anniversary of his pro wrestling debut too. R.I.P.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">In which Antonio Inoki slaps everyone at Inoki Bom Ba Ye on New Year's Eve 2000 to transfer his fighting spirit to them. <a href="https://t.co/5hHZS9nQYC">pic.twitter.com/5hHZS9nQYC</a></p>&mdash; David Bixenspan (@davidbix) <a href="https://twitter.com/davidbix/status/1576018113883013121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Damn. Legend is an understatement.

RIP

One of the most culturally relevant wrestlers ever.

Trailblazer.

But damn. 79. That's young.

R.I.P.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">One of the greatest entrances in history, Antonio Inoki arrives to PRIDE Shockwave 2002 via parachute. <a href="https://t.co/CvXhFXbUTb">pic.twitter.com/CvXhFXbUTb</a></p>&mdash; Eduardo Martinez (@PharrFromHeaven) <a href="https://twitter.com/PharrFromHeaven/status/1576017589524131841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Inoki has always been fascinating to me.

I hadn't really watched much stuff from Japan until the past 5 years mainly because of the lack of English commentary. The first time I saw Inoki wrestle was actually at a 1984 WWF Madison Square Garden show against Charlie Fulton. Not the greatest bell to bell but you want to talk about ring presence. He looked important and was important.

RIP Inoki

What a success of a human being.

R.I.P. to an absolute legend

If you want to see the normaly reserved japanese fans absolutely lose their fucking shit like an american crowd watching Austin in the 90's, go on NJPW world and watch Inoki's stuff from the 80's. Especially interpromotional matches. The UWF fued in particular is fucking bonkers.

No secret i love puro. I have a real soft spot for 50s/60s stuff where it was the most grounded in shoot wrestling. There's an extra level of artistry in being able to work a style thats both entertaining and has a psychology thats that deep and rich. Its a long dead art form and Inoki was nearly peerless.