document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Hold the Drama! Best of Luke Harper RELATED: The 11 Worst SummerSlams, According To Cagematch.net. The Undertakers feud with Yokozuna seems emblematic of these statistics. [2] Wrestling as a Samoan superstar, he was managed by Sheik Adnan El Kassey. The two competed in a worked sumo match in which Earthquake actually got the best of Yokozuna, only for Yokozuna to crush his big foe with Banzai Drops shortly thereafter. [43] He appeared at Free for All just before SummerSlam, facing off against Stone Cold Steve Austin. As they celebrated afterwards, however, a mysterious figure appeared on the Titantron, looking like the Undertaker inside the casket. By late spring 1994, Yokozuna was already on the decline of his WWF run, but nonetheless regained some momentum and asserted himself as the alpha-super heavyweight in a short feud with. [29] Yokozuna then had to deal with the "rebirth" of the Undertaker, who immediately came after the foe who had taken him out of action. He also spent some time in Mexico, learning the craft and gaining the experience necessary to be a star in the sport. Former Editor-In-Chief of Sound On Sight, and host of several podcasts including the Game of Thrones and Walking Dead podcasts, as well as Sound On Sight. Best of Asukas Undefeated Streak [2] In May 1994, on a Monday Night Raw episode, Yokozuna was challenged by Earthquake to an actual sumo match. Free shipping for many products! The reigning WWE Champion managed to contribute to one elimination by taking out Scott Steiner with a leg drop. However, a photographer appeared on the apron, and he flashed a fireball in Hogan's face. February 27, 2023 Monday Night RAW results, IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, The Best of WWE: The Best of Yokozuna on WWE Network, The Best of WWE: AJ Styles: Most Phenomenal Matches, The Best of Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa, Best of United States Championship Matches, Drew McIntyres Road to the WWE Championship, Halloween Havoc's Most Hellacious Matches, Forever Flair: Ric Flair's Defining Matches. Best of Extreme Rules: Part 2 10 Best Matches of 2020 [2][31][32] Following the match, Jim Cornette stated, "Michael Jordan's back and so is Yokozuna", in reference to Jordan's first return to the NBA. Im not sure if a more extended program was planned beyond that pointI can imagine one-on-one bouts being entertaining enough spectacles if the WWF kept them shortbut the attack, instead, marked the end of Earthquakes run with the WWF before he headed off to WCW, not to return until after the end of the decade, under a mask. He was largely dominant over the WWF main event scene for the length of 1993 when, after just a few months on the roster, he won a Royal Rumble, won two world titles (one at WrestleMania, one over Hulk Hogan) and held the strap for half the year. The Best of Mickie James Yokozuna got tired, and the match finished prematurely. The Ortons closed the casket for the win and set it ablaze afterward. I write, I blog, I podcast, I edit, and I design websites. It was a humbling defeat and a loud, clear message from management about his health and weight. A Tombstone was enough for Undertaker to put Henry into the casket and to go 14-0 at WrestleMania. The Best of WWE: Best of United States Championship Matches is an episode of WWE Specials which was added to the WWE Network on June 30, 2020. Best of Rob Van Dam Luger vs. Yokozuna was largely paint-by-numbers booking, with the super strong American hero going after the foreign menace, and all signs suggest the WWF intended to crown Luger at WrestleMania until the fans started cooling on him, and it became apparent Bret Hart was at least equally over (not to mention significantly better in the ring). Anoai's career in professional wrestling began as he grew up in a family full of wrestlers, the Anoai family. The two-time WWE champion dominated the main event scene, combatting the likes of Bret Hart, Hulk Hogan, Lex Luger and The Undertaker to considerable success while establishing himself as the lead villain of the era. In the process, Yokozuna and his finisher were established as killers, and Yokozuna was geared up for higher tier patriotic threats over the year to follow. Previous He was a two-time world champion. Pro Wrestling is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. [48], After his WWF career ended, he performed for various independent promotions. Next Theres little argument that Lex Luger was Yokozunas most famous rival, and I was tempted to push him all the way to the top of this countdown, just like the WWF pushed him all the way to the top of the card the summer of 1993. Since the winner of the Royal Rumble was to become the number one contender to Yokozuna's title, it was decided that both wrestlers would get a shot at the title at WrestleMania X. Some people take my heart, others take my shoes, and some take me home. Please help us serve you better, fill out our survey.Use of this site signifies your agreement to our terms of use. Show didn't make life easy for Undertaker who was celebrating 18 years with WWE. Yes, this rivalry was one-sided, but as such it completed its purpose, getting Yokozuna over. [2][26] Afterwards on television, Cornette would blame the fall on a concussion suffered from Luger's forearm plate. A monster heel, he embarked on a series of squash victories, including a memorable one against Virgil at the 1992 Survivor Series, before arriving at the 1993 Royal Rumble match as a heavy favorite to win the popular gimmick match. In 1996, Yokozuna was on his final legs as a WWE performer. Perfect had a closer look at proceedings as the special guest referee. Their battle was brilliant, and both had excellent chemistry together against each other. This storyline was used to allow the Undertaker to rest for several months to recover from lingering real-life injuries.[2][23]. 182 minutes You see, Yokozuna was billed as an unstoppable monster but so was the Undertaker and WWE needed an ending that would allow Mark Calloway to rest for several months to recover from lingering real-life injuries while not harming his reputation as a dominant force in wrestling. They destroyed the casket, and the pair could not be separated. Yokozuna was, in so many ways, a throwback character as the WWF leaned upon a combination of conventional ways of pushing monster heels to get this guy over. [2] He wore a mawashi as part of his ring attire, but wore long tights underneath the loincloth, something that Vince McMahon and Yokozuna's own cousin Rikishi later felt wasn't needed and that he should've worn the traditional mawashi without the tights to expose his buttocks. Mr. Fuji blinded Hart by throwing salt in the Hitman's eyes, and Yokozuna covered Hart to capture his first WWE Championship although his joy was short-lived as Hogan beat him in an impromptu WWE Championship match. Kane chokeslammed Triple H, and he stuffed him into the casket. Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Goomba Stomp and Tilt Magazine. The match itself may have left fans wanting more, but the overall spectacle is impressive, technically astounding, and emotionally resonant seriously, I was devastated as a kid watching Mr. Fujis army destroy one of my favourite wrestlers. [25] To obviate the risk of outside interference, both title matches were scheduled to have special guest referees. At In Your House 3 on September 24, 1995, Yokozuna teamed up with Davey Boy Smith to take on Shawn Michaels and Diesel (the back story being that Hart was with his wife as she gave birth to one of their children) with Diesel's WWF Championship, Shawn Michaels' Intercontinental Championship and Hart and Yokozuna's Tag Team Championship on the line. He clashed with Mark Henry in a casket match, and Undertaker was 13-0 on the Grandest Stage of Them All. Shortly after he was offered a new gimmick: Yokozuna. For this match, Roddy Piper was the special referee. [2][22], Yokozuna's next challenger was The Undertaker. The answer is no. The Best of Halloween Havoc Hart got the pinfall victory, finally taking the title away from the long-running champion who reigned for 280 days. Click here for our privacy policy. A member of the storied Anoa'ifamily, his relatives and loved ones were on hand for the ceremony, including The Usos, who inducted their uncle. The Extreme [2][20], At SummerSlam, Yokozuna, now weighing in at 568lb (258kg), and the newly reborn patriot Luger fought it out for the WWF Championship. )[11] He made his pay-per-view debut at Survivor Series, easily defeating the much smaller Virgil with his huge weight advantage. The feud took a painful turn a couple weeks later (April 8), when Vader jumped on Yokozuna's leg, (kayfabe) breaking it. Thus, there were few better candidates for Yokozuna to flatten on his way to the main event than Duggan, whose gimmick had become marginally less about carring a two-by-four, and more and more about waving an American flag and getting the crowd to chant USA with him. Best of Stone Cold Steve Austin The finish was bogus as Luger pushed Perfect, and Perfect abused his power by disqualifying Luger for pushing him which allowed Yokozuna to retain the WWE Championship. The best of WWE Hall of Famer Yokozuna | WWE This video is either unavailable or not supported in this browser Error Code: MEDIA_ERR_SRC_NOT_SUPPORTED Technical details : The media could not be loaded, either because the server or network failed or because the format is not supported. Forever Flair: Ric Flair's Defining Matches On that night, his weight became the centerpiece of his match. However, outside interference from Kane aided Michaels in a successful WWE Championship title defense. In 1992, Anoai was contacted by Vince McMahon of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and offered a roster spot along with The Samoans (Fatu and Samoan Savage). Yokozuna was deathly afraid of caskets, and his WWE Championship was under grave danger at Royal Rumble 1994 as The Undertaker was determined to beat him for the WWE Title. 7 WWE Champion For Several Minutes In the WWF, Anoai was a two-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion[4] and two-time WWF Tag Team Champion (with Owen Hart),[5] as well as the winner of the 1993 Royal Rumble. Most of Yokozuna's stuff still looks good, but the man himself just didn't have the cardio for fast-paced matches anymore. When The Undertaker returned, it was only fitting the two would pick up where they started, and they staged a Casket Match rematch at Survivor Series 1994 to blow off their issue with Taker putting away Yokozuna with the aid of Chuck Norris to keep interloping heels at bay. Their match lasted over 15 minutes which was longer than it needed to be. The Best of WWE: The Best of Yokozuna The Best of WWE Backlash The Undertaker's uninspiring rivalry with King Mabel finally came to an end in a casket match in the final WWE PPV of 1995. The Phenom has been involved in the majority of casket matches that have been staged in WWE. The Undertaker - Royal Rumble 1994 Yokozuna defended the WWE Championship against The Undertaker at the 1994 Royal Rumble. It wasnt the most satisfying finish to a WrestleMania main event, but worked in the sense that it created doubt as to whether Yokozuna could beat Hart on his own, in addition to whether Hart ever could have actually bested Yokozuna (would his Sharpshooter have won the day, or would Yokozuna have powered out of it anyway in short order?). King Kong Bundy distracted Norris, and IRS assaulted the Deadman. This was an intense brawl and Undertaker managed to hit the Ortons with a steel chair. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. [3] The two first squared off against each other as parts of their respective teams at Survivor Series. That was the last word many of WWE's top Superstars heard when they faced the imposing Yokozuna. Raw's Snitsky got involved, and he gave Heidenreich a helping hand. October 13, 2020 Best of Womens Evolution The One and Only Ricochet Neither booking nor work rate were top-notch in the period between Hulkamania and Attitude, when Yokozuna was in the limelight. To celebrate, he held a "Bodyslam Competition" aboard the USSIntrepid, a decommissioned aircraft carrier, on Independence Day. Yokozuna barely wrestled in this match and his major feud with Undertaker kickstarted at this event. One week before his WWE Championship showdown with Sycho Sid at WrestleMania 13, The Undertaker and Vader collided in a casket match. The feud took a painful turn a couple weeks later (April 8), when Vader jumped on Yokozuna's leg, ( kayfabe) breaking it. Watch every Premium Live Event and enjoy some of your favorite WWE content on Shahid. The Undertaker - In Your House 8: Beware Of Dog, 1996, The Undertaker Vs. Chavo Guerrero - SmackDown (10/31/08), The Undertaker Vs. Mark Henry - WrestleMania 22, The Undertaker Vs. Big Show - Survivor Series 2008, The Undertaker Vs. Kama Mustafa - SummerSlam 1995, The Undertaker Vs. Yokozuna - Survivor Series 1994, Daniel Bryan Vs. Kane - SmackDown (1/29/15), The Ortons Vs. The Best of Mick Foley The Best of Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa Best of SummerSlam of the 2010s By the time his career in WWE was over in 1996, he had been at the top of the industry, traveled the world as the top dog in Vince McMahon's company and established himself as a locker-room leader. Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 06:51, List of premature professional wrestling deaths, "WWE World Heavyweight Championship history", "World Tag Team Championship (WWE) history", "Bruce Prichard Reveals Who Came up with Rikishi's Stink Face Gimmick", "Yokozuna's first WWE Championship reign", "The 10 fastest rises to the WWE World Heavyweight Title", "Yokozuna's second WWE Championship reign", "Owen Hart and Yokozuna's first World Tag Team Championship reign", "Owen Hart and Yokozuna's second World Tag Team Championship reign", August 19, 1996 RAW Shawn Michaels vs. Yokozuna, "Jim Ross shoots on Yokozuna's last matches in the WWF", "Matches " Yokozuna " Wrestlers Database " CAGEMATCH - the Internet Wrestling Database", "This Day in Wrestling History (October 23): Cross the Line to HD", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yokozuna_(wrestler)&oldid=1140883009, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 06:51. 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