The Top Ten Moves of Antonio Inoki

Time for a brand new, never before seen video, and the first of three to highlight former World Heavyweight Champions, and legends in their own right.


Antonio Inoki got his start in wrestling at the age of seventeen, under the watchful eye of the Godfather of Puroresu, Rikidozan himself. Eventually, Inoki would leave the Japan Wrestling Association(JWA), after being fired, and he formed New Japan Pro Wrestling, and the rest is history. It was at this time that Inoki innovated "Strong Style," which is NOT centered around headdrops and stiff striking. Strong Style is about presenting a more realistic form of pro wrestling, with harder strikes and submissions being the focal point of the style. It was this style that gave Inoki some victories over the likes of Bob Backlund(under controversial circumstances), Dick Murdoch, Great Muta, Tatsumi Fujinami, and many others over the course of his career. In 1988, he commissioned the IWGP Heavyweight Title, and won a tournament to become the first champion, holding the belt for ten months before losing it. Ironically, he would never hold the title again. He would eventuallly go into the Japanese government for some time before coming back to pro wrestling, and he embarked on his Retirement Countdown. He retired from the ring in 1998, but continued to be involved in the sport behind the scenes, both in New Japan and his new fed, Inoki Genome Federation(IGF). Inoki's style was very new for its time, and it wasn't out of the ordinary to see him finish with different moves almost every match. Eventually, the Enzugiri(his creation), the Manjigatame, and the Choke Sleeper would eventually become his finishing moves.

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[Skeeto9]

So, SD, what's your take on Inoki being inducted in the WWE HOF? I, for one, think it's pretty cool that they're starting to induct true legends of the sport, regardless of whether they actually spent any time in WWE or not. Plus, maybe the exposure helps draw American fans to check out puro - or, at the very least, this vid will pick up a few thousand hits. haha

[TheSuicidalDragon]

Definitely a surprise, and a pleasant one at that.

[Elementa2006]

@TheSuicidalDragon I wish they would do the same for Jumbo, he was a former AWA champion and WWE hold the rights to the AWA footage, don't they?

[TheSuicidalDragon]

The difference between Jumbo and Inoki is that Inoki co-promoted with WWF/WCW, while Jumbo held a title that WWE would eventually gain ownership of. That's not to say that Jumbo doesn't deserve it, but he just didn't work with the WWF all that much in his life.

[daddievic]

great vid dragon.all the vids i have seen of yours are top notch,plus you have great knowledge on wretling history. what is your take on hogan in tna?

[TheSuicidalDragon]

Appreciate it, man. Glad you like the vids.

I am not excited, to say the least.

[cyclonejokeroniisama]

he will be inducted in to the wwe hall of fame

[12x12surface]

LOL! I recognize all the moves from SNES's Super Fire Pro Wrestling!

I only came to know Inoki recently (because of the fight with Ali) , but played the game a long time ago!

[carlos3salas]

Cobra twist is the shit and it works in real life.

[KWAxChamp]

@kelloggcerealxoxo Nope.

[jskyl14]

@scrowisnice Well what do you expect it was back then...one of the first people to do these moves

[brottarnacke]

@ProWrestlingDynasty I'm pretty sure it can mean cut. I believe it's the same word as kiri in harakiri (cutting the stomach). I actually have heard the enzuigiri being referred to as a "back brain kick", but I didn't know enzui actually means that, thanks.

[ProWrestlingDynasty]

@brottarnacke I thought Giri meant chop and Enzui is the japanese translation of the lower part of your brain.

[DexterHaven49]

He deserves an Oscar for that acting.

[brottarnacke]

Funny that they always write enzuiGIRI. GERI means kick. Giri means to cut.