Wrestlers from Japan

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Japanese Wrestlers of all time. This list of famous Japanese Wrestlers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Japanese Wrestlers.

1. #1

   

   Antonio Inoki

   1943 - 2022

   HPI 72.3433 langs

   Antonio Inoki is a Japanese professional wrestler, politician, and mixed martial artist. He is most famous for his mixed martial arts fight...Read moreShow less

   Antonio Inoki is a Japanese professional wrestler, politician, and mixed martial artist. He is most famous for his mixed martial arts fight against Muhammad Ali in 1976.

2. #2

   

   Masahiko Kimura

   1917 - 1993

   HPI 66.7134 langs

   Masahiko Kimura was a Japanese judoka and professional wrestler. He is most famous for defeating Helio Gracie with a reverse ude-garami...Read moreShow less

   Masahiko Kimura was a Japanese judoka and professional wrestler. He is most famous for defeating Helio Gracie with a reverse ude-garami armlock at the 1951 World Judo Championships in Tokyo.

3. #3

   

   Isao Inokuma

   1938 - 2001

   HPI 61.4919 langs

   Japanese judoka

4. #4

   

   Giant Baba

   1938 - 1999

   HPI 59.7116 langs

   Japanese professional wrestler

5. #5

   

   Chiyonofuji Mitsugu

   1955 - 2016

   HPI 59.3527 langs

   Japanese sumo wrestler

6. #6

   

   Yasuhiro Yamashita

   b. 1957

   HPI 58.8035 langs

   Japanese judoku

7. #7

   

   Takehide Nakatani

   b. 1941

   HPI 58.7123 langs

   Japanese judoka

8. #8

   

   Osamu Watanabe

   1940 - 2022

   HPI 56.5118 langs

   Japanese wrestlers (1940–2022)

9. #9

   

   Shozo Sasahara

   1929 - 2023

   HPI 56.4117 langs

   Japanese olympic wrestler (1929–2023)

10. #10

    

    Shinobu Sekine

    1943 - 2018

    HPI 55.5522 langs

    Japanese judoka