If you guys enjoyed this video then watch some other interviews from the same event. The links are ua-cam.com/video/ybOuHGyANCY/v-deo.html , ua-cam.com/video/9M5ae4zZmuA/v-deo.html and ua-cam.com/video/6uwT7VckZ_o/v-deo.html
+Michael DeFilippi Ricky Steamboat is a 1/2 white/1/2 Asian from New York. So naturally he became "The Dragon" and used karate moves. Wrestling was a stereotype based spectacle at its best. Now everything is hyper 'real' even when people know the matches are predetermined and it sucks.
thanks for uploading this! It pains me to hear the interviewers know absolutely nothing about who they're interviewing, or wrestling in general. Cool to hear Yokozuna, a year before passing. RIP
I've literally just been watching your new episode and seeing his interview on the big breakfast on your show brought me here, full circle, mind blown, thanks for all your hard work.
+MusicDude86 He spoke a few times on television after he split with Fuji and Cornette (during his feud with Vader). That would be spring of '96 if I'm not mistaken.
I still remember when WWF made a big deal when he says something to mr. Perfect in his regular speaking voice they even show the video clip of it might be on here
@@Nostalgicguy2242 Are you talking about when the undertaker told gorilla "it'll be a cold day in hell before diesel gets another title shot" I remember that like yesterday because it was the 1st time he talked out a character that's when diesel was turning heel
I miss Yokozuna. He was an amazing wrestler to watch. How many 500-600 pound men do you know who are that agile? He was the longest reigning heel to be the WWF Champion in the 1990s. When he was a heel, he made it easy to hate him. They turned him face in early '96 and it wasn't the same but I still liked Yoko. Rest in Peace, Rodney Anoai aka Yokozuna.
@@tomb9420I think undertaker when he was asked about him said that there were 2 ways that he did the banzai drop 1) where he standing on his feet 2) where he kicks his heels out so his entire weight is on you and undertaker got the latter which he was not happy about 😂😂
it’s unfortunately he didn’t manage his weight better. He always had problems with his weight and WWE tried to get his to lose it but he couldn’t and was fired
He knows she's inexperienced as a interviewer but not letting it bother him even though you can tell he's kinda annoyed he just laughed it off he was a true professional .
this dude seemed very chill, he talks about his job in a very casual manner which is really great, he died two years before i was born RIP yokozuna, your legend lives on
RIP Yokozuna and thanks for the memories! With today's wrestling being as it is, that's all we got are memories! He was also a nice guy and gentle giant as seen in this interview!
Yokozuna won the WWF World Heavyweight Championship twice, beating Bret Hart and then he beat Hulk Hogan, Yoko held the WWF Belt for 280 days, thats 9 months.
Imagine if Yokozuna stepped away around 1995, went on a life changing weight loss journey, and returned a healthy , ripped 225 lb in 2000. That would have been epic. I loved him and his character but his weight took him so early.
i miss Yokozuna he was so talented and i always cheered for him. He is very much missed i know that he could teach these newbies a thing or two about the ring.
He was also loved by the other competitors also, for a man of his size you would expect him to make a mistake here or there, but apparently he was awesome to work with & never injured anyone, a WWE HOF induction is way overdue for Yokozuna.
It's cool that new people are still finding this video, over four years after it was uploaded. It could have sat in the archives of a public access show but I'm happy to have shared it with the world. This show's producers also love that over 218,000 people have seen it as well. I did not realize at the time of the upload that Rodney Agatupu Anoaʻi aka Yokozuna didn't give many interviews in English. Some have said this is the only one they've seen where he spoke English on camera.
You have a true priceless treasure here, a Real Shoot interview with Yokozuna out of Keyfabe. Shoot in the Wrestling terms means off script and Keyfabe means he was in character. Another cool fact that most people do not know about Yokozuna that his cousins are The Rock, Roman Regins, The Usos and To honor his old Gimmick Rikishi. But this is really cool that you happen to get such a true gem of a Shoot Interview with one of the Legends in the Pro Wrestling Business & one of the best big men along the lines of Andre the Giant, Bam Bam Bigelow and Big Van Vader.
I also need to add here that he was one of THE KINDEST "wrasslers" i've ever had the pleasure to talk with face to face. Despite his massive size many folks will never know the man "behind the curtain". And how gentle and respectful he truly was towards everyone.
God bless this massive man. IMHO he was one of THE BEST super heavyweights to ever grace a squared circle. And i'm FULLY convinced that if he had lost some weight he'd not only still be alive. But most likely he'd still be wrestling as well either in the WWE or TNA. So that all said, and on behalf of ALL your fans thank you Rodney for the great memories you left us. You may be gone but you will NEVER be forgotten or replicated ever again.
Damn! Lately I’ve been watching videos on Yoko, there was one where Rikishi talks about his humility & generosity & when I saw this interview I appreciate Yoko even more. Rest in peace Rod Agatupu Anoa’i 🙏🏾
Yoko had a school in vegas!? i think I'm going to go cry in a corner by myself for a while... I could have met and even been trained by one of my favorite wrestlers of all time...
Yoko was very agile in the ring for a man of his size... and was a legend, and Hall of Famer... the gimmick era was great... the golden era of wwe start in the latest 70's and finish in the late 1996...After with the attitude era start the end of wwe, with shame storyline and brutal ideas
You guys ain't knowing. Yoko is all hood. Meet him a long time ago in SF with Rukisi listing to some NWA. One of the most big giant dude's with a heart of gold. Miss you bro....rip!
I heard one time in a interview bret hart saying when yokozuna was champion he used to lend out money to wrestlers who fell on hard times. he was a gentle giant and a nice person.
Huh, it's kind of odd to hear Yokozuna speaking English, because of course in character he never did. Neat to see this interview though, thanks for uploading. :)
What an amazing talent he was. I remember as a kid hating him because of what he did to the Undertaker, but that's what a great heel does. Everyone says he was just the sweetest guy you could know, and for that I wish he was still here.
Man it's so sad to see how wonderful of a person he was with such an outgoing personality cause if you grew watching him he was a heel and you would have thought he was a mean guy if you were a kid and didn't know any better. This makes me really wanna tear up cause from everything that been said about him he was just the nicest guy you could ever wanna meet and would do anything for anybody. He was gone too soon way before his time was up The wrestler he was was not who he really was. Such a tremendous loss for the WWF/WWE family when Yoko passed away. RIP Rodney Anoa'i aka Yokozuna. Fly high up there in heaven and thanks for all the memories you gave so many to remember you by!!!!!!! Banazai!!!!!!!!!
Yokozuna is probably one of the greatest big men to have graced the wrestling ring, never was a huge fan of his but he was super agile for a man of his size.. seemed like a real cool dude in interviews like these
I heard there was a backstage court when there was a problem, there was 3 people who would hold backstage court, Yokozuna, ron simmons (farooq) and The Undertaker. Taker has a tattoo on his stomach 'BSK' stands for Broken Skull Krew. Yoko also had this tattoo as part of the group.
@@misternatural1338 roman even mentioned that some might not have anoi’i like rikishi Roman and rock said the ones that’s not there last name is in there 2nd middle name like rocky mavia anoi’i johnson lol
Damn Yoko seemed like an awesome guy! And he was very entertaining to watch. Royal Rumble 1993 was the first wrestling show I ever watched and he won it..
Yoko could have been a whole lot bigger, (not speaking literally here). When he debuted the gimmicks were so over the top, and he looked so good as a sumo wrestler that it made sense, but had he continued on in the WWF during the attitude era? Things would have been drastically different than how they turned out. Yoko was a multi-time WWF champion and had "come out" as Samoan, not Japanese. If that story had progressed, who do you think would have held power? The Sultan would not have been around that's for damned sure, Rikishi Fatu would have debuted (or rather he would have been repackaged as himself) a lot sooner. This was going on during the time of 4-man stables too, so who else is related to the Anoa'i family that could have benefited from joining his stable? How 'bout Rocky Maivia, joining his family instead of joining a racist black panther type group? Just imagine how different the WWF would have been had The Rock embraced his Samoan heritage instead of his black heritage. You can't tell me it wasn't likely to happen had Yokozuna still been a WWF title contender like he most likely would have been had he kept his weight down.
I would say Rikishi was the attitude era version of Yokozuna since they're had similar gimmicks (Rikishi being another sumo term) and also since they were related
Yeah if Yoko could have lost some weight and be around around Rikishi's weight. Near the end of Yoko's life he was around 750 lbs. He was around that weight when he appeared on that god awful PPV The Hero's of Wrestling.
RicoLen1 once Yoko started rocking the scruffy beard, you can tell he was going for a gimmick change. Casually talking in promos... No more 1 word promos (Banzai!!!) really he was still here, man.
There is a video on UA-cam where Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji had invited Mean Gene to this Asian restaurant and Yokozuna ate SO MUCH FOOD!!!!! It was crazy. You have to see it for yourself.
Wow you're a true Mark. You can look at him and see that he is Samoan. He is apart of the famous Samoan family. The headshrinkers, Samoan swat team, The Rock etc.
am on my wifes acct but not many can say a wwe superstar died in his home city that said and yes am From Liverpool England my wifes american Rest in peace yoko thanks for the memories as a kid hope your wrestling in heaven
His family is Samoan.Every Samoan wrestler is either someway related in this family in WWE.Just like today with the Usos(Rikishis sons)and Roman Reigns(thier cousin)Umaga and Rosey and i believe Umaga was Rikishis brother.
the whole Samoan Wrestling Family = nothing but CLASS. Never met Yoko personally but was trained by his 2nd cousin Tai Fanene, also met and worked with Barbarian several times.
seems like a really cool guy. I would have liked to met him. I will have to say it is odd seeing him speak clear English when his character is Japanese LOL.
If you guys enjoyed this video then watch some other interviews from the same event. The links are ua-cam.com/video/ybOuHGyANCY/v-deo.html , ua-cam.com/video/9M5ae4zZmuA/v-deo.html and ua-cam.com/video/6uwT7VckZ_o/v-deo.html
What an interesting person
Damn he seemed like he was actually a pretty cool dude RIP
I know right. And he and the Rock were cousins.
Rapid Rate bsk group, him undertaker godfather savio vega were all boys
Jezahbael Yoko bad where da where u?
Why wouldnt he seem like a cool dude? Yokozuna was just a character
Jezahbael Ya and he was an awesome wrestler too! One of the best! A legend.
Sad to have lost Yokozuna. He was a nice guy, loved by other wrestlers behind the scene.
Just one scene?
@@NikateeNbrother really thought he could grammar-check a then 7-year old comment
Do you think he was a good person who was a good person was Giant André
This lady didn’t know how lucky she will be to interview this legendary. We are dying to hear Yokozuna’s speaking.
Who is she
@@Ajib30 your mama
@@noelwilliams2165 what?
wow so weird to see him talk normal! I love how they pulled off a Samoan guy as Japanese!
Polynesians came from Asia so of course he can pull it off.
God0ptimusPrime Polynesians are not Asian there Pacific islanders silly
Eru Waikawa Poly's and Micro's migrated from Asia thousands of years ago. Just like the Eskimo's.
+Michael DeFilippi Ricky Steamboat is a 1/2 white/1/2 Asian from New York. So naturally he became "The Dragon" and used karate moves. Wrestling was a stereotype based spectacle at its best. Now everything is hyper 'real' even when people know the matches are predetermined and it sucks.
He looks Asian they gave hem a character that can match hem
Now the business has at least 50 members of the Anoai Family
I thought he was Japanese when I was a little kid
We all did lol
It's OK so did I.
angelinaramon me tttttttt
me too :D
I thought he was Chinese
thanks for uploading this! It pains me to hear the interviewers know absolutely nothing about who they're interviewing, or wrestling in general. Cool to hear Yokozuna, a year before passing. RIP
I've literally just been watching your new episode and seeing his interview on the big breakfast on your show brought me here, full circle, mind blown, thanks for all your hard work.
Ye fookin animals yis!
Never heard him speak before...well, other than saying "BANZAI!!!!"
+MusicDude86 He spoke a few times on television after he split with Fuji and Cornette (during his feud with Vader). That would be spring of '96 if I'm not mistaken.
I still remember when WWF made a big deal when he says something to mr. Perfect in his regular speaking voice they even show the video clip of it might be on here
Me either until now
@@krlm2280 it's actually on the same Raw where Undertaker talks to Gorilla Monsoon in a more human manner instead of his usual undead zombie voice
@@Nostalgicguy2242 Are you talking about when the undertaker told gorilla "it'll be a cold day in hell before diesel gets another title shot" I remember that like yesterday because it was the 1st time he talked out a character that's when diesel was turning heel
I miss Yokozuna. He was an amazing wrestler to watch. How many 500-600 pound men do you know who are that agile? He was the longest reigning heel to be the WWF Champion in the 1990s. When he was a heel, he made it easy to hate him. They turned him face in early '96 and it wasn't the same but I still liked Yoko. Rest in Peace, Rodney Anoai aka Yokozuna.
Dan Hanna when was his last match with wwe/wwf
storm fighter, I believe his last match was in either 1996 or 1997 with the WWF.
Whats impressive is that he didnt injure alot of people with his size. The banzi drop looked brutal.
@@tomb9420I think undertaker when he was asked about him said that there were 2 ways that he did the banzai drop 1) where he standing on his feet 2) where he kicks his heels out so his entire weight is on you and undertaker got the latter which he was not happy about 😂😂
@@mohammedashian8094 you should check out doink the clown 🤡, now he straight up hurt people !
RIP YOKO!! Miss you was a great entertainer in wrestling.
Sad that he died. He seemed like the chillest guy ever. Would have been cool to hear him do a shoot interview.
RIP
it’s unfortunately he didn’t manage his weight better. He always had problems with his weight and WWE tried to get his to lose it but he couldn’t and was fired
He sounds like Roman Reigns and resembles him a little.
TheLNashProject roman regins is Samoan and he is related to the rock and rikkini
themonkboy123 lol I know. They're The Anoa'i Family.
themonkboy123 i love that rikkini guy
apikope
rikkini approves this message and he loves you back ^_^
TheLNashProject There cousins bro
RIP Yokozuna! Gone, but never forgotten.
He knows she's inexperienced as a interviewer but not letting it bother him even though you can tell he's kinda annoyed he just laughed it off he was a true professional .
So weird seeing him talk and project himself out of character. Cool though! He seemed like an awesome dude.
Vincent Sellers he dead
this dude seemed very chill, he talks about his job in a very casual manner which is really great, he died two years before i was born
RIP yokozuna, your legend lives on
You young lucky mf.
RIP Yokozuna and thanks for the memories! With today's wrestling being as it is, that's all we got are memories! He was also a nice guy and gentle giant as seen in this interview!
I never seen an interview of him. I've seen this and was so in awe. Man, I miss Yokozuna
The world misses legends like yoko.Godbless him and his Samoa 🇼🇸 family
Yokozuna won the WWF World Heavyweight Championship twice, beating Bret Hart and then he beat Hulk Hogan, Yoko held the WWF Belt for 280 days, thats 9 months.
281 if you count the day he won and lost it the first time ;)
Fayez Fawzi youre right
At the time he was the longest rated heel champion in WWF history.
eres latino contesta español
The first time he held it for 128 seconds.
Imagine if Yokozuna stepped away around 1995, went on a life changing weight loss journey, and returned a healthy , ripped 225 lb in 2000. That would have been epic.
I loved him and his character but his weight took him so early.
WWE wanted him to lose 300 lbs
I think he did the polar opposite. After being released from WWE due to weight issues, he set his sights on becoming the world's heaviest man.
i miss Yokozuna he was so talented and i always cheered for him. He is very much missed i know that he could teach these newbies a thing or two about the ring.
I bet that is why Rikishi and the Uso's are so awesome
He was also loved by the other competitors also, for a man of his size you would expect him to make a mistake here or there, but apparently he was awesome to work with & never injured anyone, a WWE HOF induction is way overdue for Yokozuna.
I know what you mean Yokozuna was one of a kind no one can ever replace him no matter how much they try.
Mettin Mehmed He is in the Hall of Fame.
Simply Subliminal is he?, when was he inducted?
It’s a shame that he was on this Earth for a short time. One of the best big men ever.
It's cool that new people are still finding this video, over four years after it was uploaded.
It could have sat in the archives of a public access show but I'm happy to have shared it with the world. This show's producers also love that over 218,000 people have seen it as well. I did not realize at the time of the upload that Rodney Agatupu Anoaʻi aka Yokozuna didn't give many interviews in English. Some have said this is the only one they've seen where he spoke English on camera.
AR7271 That's great
AR7271 wow. Grew up with an idea of yoko but as a kid did not know if wrestling gimmicks. Good to see him giving small interview in English. .
What other language would he give an interview in
@AR271 who are this girl who interviewed Yokozuna ?
@@davidvaughn9 Samoan
He was an excellent champ. It was fun to see him defeating Hogan for the belt.
Can not believe how nice he is. Great character. R. I. P. Yoko
You have a true priceless treasure here, a Real Shoot interview with Yokozuna out of Keyfabe. Shoot in the Wrestling terms means off script and Keyfabe means he was in character.
Another cool fact that most people do not know about Yokozuna that his cousins are The Rock, Roman Regins, The Usos and To honor his old Gimmick Rikishi.
But this is really cool that you happen to get such a true gem of a Shoot Interview with one of the Legends in the Pro Wrestling Business & one of the best big men along the lines of Andre the Giant, Bam Bam Bigelow and Big Van Vader.
I also need to add here that he was one of THE KINDEST "wrasslers" i've ever had the pleasure to talk with face to face. Despite his massive size many folks will never know the man "behind the curtain". And how gentle and respectful he truly was towards everyone.
God bless this massive man. IMHO he was one of THE BEST super heavyweights to ever grace a squared circle. And i'm FULLY convinced that if he had lost some weight he'd not only still be alive. But most likely he'd still be wrestling as well either in the WWE or TNA. So that all said, and on behalf of ALL your fans thank you Rodney for the great memories you left us. You may be gone but you will NEVER be forgotten or replicated ever again.
Very sad to watch this. He died not too long after. RIP champ!
Legend..What entertainment he provided in his wwf days..thank you so much Yokozuna..RIP
We miss Yokozuna like crazy! What a legend! RIP
rest in peace yokozuna
DJ Lawrence also axl rotten
Damn! Lately I’ve been watching videos on Yoko, there was one where Rikishi talks about his humility & generosity & when I saw this interview I appreciate Yoko even more. Rest in peace Rod Agatupu Anoa’i 🙏🏾
The one video about Rikishi struggling to get some heat in the house for a newborn Solo Sikoa though… 🙏🏽
Yoko had a school in vegas!? i think I'm going to go cry in a corner by myself for a while... I could have met and even been trained by one of my favorite wrestlers of all time...
A ruthless monster in the Ring
An amazingly cool dude outside of it. RIP big Yoko❤️
Yoko was very agile in the ring for a man of his size... and was a legend, and Hall of Famer... the gimmick era was great... the golden era of wwe start in the latest 70's and finish in the late 1996...After with the attitude era start the end of wwe, with shame storyline and brutal ideas
I miss this guy. I used to hate him so much, and as an adult, I now appreciate how good he was at his job.
RIP, this was the first time I've ever heard him speak. Dude moved pretty well in the ring for a guy his size.
Terrible questions lol she seems to know nothing
+mikeykm1993 He kept his cool.. LOL!
It's for the audience dipshit
Shes a terrible interviewer
This was 1999. Wrestling knowledge wasn't all that prevalent among common people.
just like nxt fans
Yoko seemed like a cool guy R.I.P Yokozuna
Much respect to my favorite wrestler Yokozuna
R.I.P bonzi.
You guys ain't knowing. Yoko is all hood. Meet him a long time ago in SF with Rukisi listing to some NWA. One of the most big giant dude's with a heart of gold. Miss you bro....rip!
I heard one time in a interview bret hart saying when yokozuna was champion he used to lend out money to wrestlers who fell on hard times. he was a gentle giant and a nice person.
I didn't actually think he sounded like this, r.i.p.
Celo Torres I grew up in sf bay area and went to school with Samoans like Yoko, very bright sharp spoken and funny .. thugged out too
“WWF”
“WWF”
*laughs*
“What?”
STAWP ITS TOO ADORABLE!
Huh, it's kind of odd to hear Yokozuna speaking English, because of course in character he never did. Neat to see this interview though, thanks for uploading. :)
Great great man! One of the all time greats and could do some amazing moves for a big man. RIP Legend Yoko!!
I never heard him speak before lol. This is crazy. Much respect. Gone too soon.
R.I.P Yokozuna!! :( I will never forget you. You was an incredible wrestler.
He's one of my favorite champions of all time . I miss Yoko
I miss Yoko. He was such an amazing talent! Was always a big fan of his. ❤❤
Such a well chilled smooth dude.
He was so charming and laid back. My fellow Libra! #RIPYokozuna 🙏🏼🕊♎️
This was my first hearing Yokozuna having a sit down interview
Yoko played his part soo good would have never thought he was Samoan
God rest his soul! RIP YOKOZUNA!
He sounds so laid-back. He passed away too soon... RIP Yokonator!!!
Hate that we lost this guy so soon, but he absolutely ate himself to death.
What an amazing talent he was. I remember as a kid hating him because of what he did to the Undertaker, but that's what a great heel does. Everyone says he was just the sweetest guy you could know, and for that I wish he was still here.
What a totally awesome and chilled out guy!
Easily one of the most major losses in wrestling in the last twenty years.
He was so insanely talented!
Yokozuna looked like a real cool guy outside of wrestling That was awesome
Thank u for this...man he was good so agile and safe
You're welcome. I never thought 276,000 people would watch it!
WWF: Japanese bonzai
Interview: Gangsta Samoan with the shirt and chain
Loved yoko and the head shrinkers, but had no idea they were related. R.I.P yoko
Miss u yoko, Wrestling biz as a whole misses u! Rest in Peace.
Man it's so sad to see how wonderful of a person he was with such an outgoing personality cause if you grew watching him he was a heel and you would have thought he was a mean guy if you were a kid and didn't know any better. This makes me really wanna tear up cause from everything that been said about him he was just the nicest guy you could ever wanna meet and would do anything for anybody. He was gone too soon way before his time was up The wrestler he was was not who he really was. Such a tremendous loss for the WWF/WWE family when Yoko passed away. RIP Rodney Anoa'i aka Yokozuna. Fly high up there in heaven and thanks for all the memories you gave so many to remember you by!!!!!!! Banazai!!!!!!!!!
Man, he seemed to be a really nice dude. Rip
Damn I wish he was still around. We miss you!!
RIP God Bless
Yokozuna is probably one of the greatest big men to have graced the wrestling ring, never was a huge fan of his but he was super agile for a man of his size.. seemed like a real cool dude in interviews like these
Many peeps dont know he is Samoan. Most agile man for his size in history. RIP
Yoko definitly deserves props,for a man his size,he was agile and he was quick,definitly the quickest in history for a man his size,R.I.P.
I heard there was a backstage court when there was a problem, there was 3 people who would hold backstage court, Yokozuna, ron simmons (farooq) and The Undertaker.
Taker has a tattoo on his stomach 'BSK' stands for Broken Skull Krew. Yoko also had this tattoo as part of the group.
When he first arrived in WWF, I thought: Wow, that's E. Honda from Street Fighter 2.
honestly he seems like such a nice chill dude, I can see why undertaker was such close friends with him, RIP yoko
I'm surprised he didn't mention the Rock since he was red hot around this time period.
bc they aren't actually related.
@The Man That Uploads It All she aint related...shes a maivia not a anoai. Thry just call eachother family...the rock aint known at this time.
@@universalmanchild bro u r dumb lmaooo😂😂😂 the rock is in the anoi’i family so is yokuzona😂😂😂
@@misternatural1338 she is but all of them are in the anoi’i family at the end of the day
@@misternatural1338 roman even mentioned that some might not have anoi’i like rikishi Roman and rock said the ones that’s not there last name is in there 2nd middle name like rocky mavia anoi’i johnson lol
Damn Yoko seemed like an awesome guy! And he was very entertaining to watch. Royal Rumble 1993 was the first wrestling show I ever watched and he won it..
Yokozuna. A LEGEND. R.I.P. Yokozuna
Yokozuna was the Big Pun of wrestling.
His snarky responses to the first few questions were hilarious
I remember meeting him it was mind blowing hearing him speak in his regular voice him a Mr fiji
Was Mr Fuji not really Japanese as well?
All the wrestlers back then were great actors.
I watched a video where Bret Hart said Yoko had a soothing voice, after seeing this video I agree with him
I fucks with Yokozuna, real street nigga at heart!!
yeah u can hear it
Wow this is pure gold... Nice upload!
Yoko could have been a whole lot bigger, (not speaking literally here). When he debuted the gimmicks were so over the top, and he looked so good as a sumo wrestler that it made sense, but had he continued on in the WWF during the attitude era? Things would have been drastically different than how they turned out.
Yoko was a multi-time WWF champion and had "come out" as Samoan, not Japanese. If that story had progressed, who do you think would have held power? The Sultan would not have been around that's for damned sure, Rikishi Fatu would have debuted (or rather he would have been repackaged as himself) a lot sooner.
This was going on during the time of 4-man stables too, so who else is related to the Anoa'i family that could have benefited from joining his stable? How 'bout Rocky Maivia, joining his family instead of joining a racist black panther type group?
Just imagine how different the WWF would have been had The Rock embraced his Samoan heritage instead of his black heritage. You can't tell me it wasn't likely to happen had Yokozuna still been a WWF title contender like he most likely would have been had he kept his weight down.
you bring up some really interesting points!!
I would say Rikishi was the attitude era version of Yokozuna since they're had similar gimmicks (Rikishi being another sumo term) and also since they were related
Yeah if Yoko could have lost some weight and be around around Rikishi's weight. Near the end of Yoko's life he was around 750 lbs. He was around that weight when he appeared on that god awful PPV The Hero's of Wrestling.
RicoLen1 once Yoko started rocking the scruffy beard, you can tell he was going for a gimmick change. Casually talking in promos... No more 1 word promos (Banzai!!!) really he was still here, man.
shut up.
I'd never seen him like this before, he seemed like a really nice guy
What a cool geezer. RIP Rodney old skool legend thanks for the memories is he inducted yet in hall of fame
+Raj Nirvan Yes. The Uso's inducted him a couple of years ago.
WrestleMania 28 class of 2012
There is a video on UA-cam where Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji had invited Mean Gene to this Asian restaurant and Yokozuna ate SO MUCH FOOD!!!!! It was crazy. You have to see it for yourself.
He was just as cool and down to earth as I thought he'd be
Wow you're a true Mark. You can look at him and see that he is Samoan. He is apart of the famous Samoan family. The headshrinkers, Samoan swat team, The Rock etc.
am on my wifes acct but not many can say a wwe superstar died in his home city that said and yes am From Liverpool England my wifes american Rest in peace yoko thanks for the memories as a kid hope your wrestling in heaven
His family is Samoan.Every Samoan wrestler is either someway related in this family in WWE.Just like today with the Usos(Rikishis sons)and Roman Reigns(thier cousin)Umaga and Rosey and i believe Umaga was Rikishis brother.
i miss Yokozuna i was a childhood fan of him
He talks English!! What the hell!! Mr. Fuji did all his talking.
Lol i said too i'm said to myself i finally heard Yokozuna speak lol
Twan112785 And he talks well too. No accent or nothing.
Yea he does i always thought he had a bass voice lol
Learn something new every day.
Tru tru
the whole Samoan Wrestling Family = nothing but CLASS. Never met Yoko personally but was trained by his 2nd cousin Tai Fanene, also met and worked with Barbarian several times.
seems like a really cool guy. I would have liked to met him. I will have to say it is odd seeing him speak clear English when his character is Japanese LOL.
He is actually from Hawaii
qwe qwen he was actually from San Francisco but he was actually Samoan.
qwe qwen He's Samoan. He's part of the Anoa'i family, with the Rock, The Usos, Umaga and Roman Reigns.
Yokozona growing up is my all time favorite wrestler!