Athletes - Rodney Anoai

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	Athletes - Rodney Anoai

Rodney Anoai (October 2, 1966 – October 22, 2000) was an American professional wrestler, most commonly known as Yokozuna.

The term Yokozuna refers to the highest rank in professional sumo wrestling in Japan. Although the "Yokozuna" character was portrayed as Japanese, Anoai was of Samoan origin and had never competed as an actual sumotori.

Career

Anoai's career in professional wrestling began as he grew up, in a family full of wrestlers. His uncles were the Wild Samoans Afa and Sika, who trained him at an early age in the family business. Anoai took on the name of the Great Kokina while wrestling overseas in Japan. He also spent some time in Mexico learning the craft and gaining the experience necessary to be a star in the sport. His first major exposure in the United States came in the American Wrestling Association (AWA) as Kokina Maximus. He was managed by Sheik Adnan El Kassey, wrestling as a Samoan superstar. At the time, he weighed less than 400 pounds, making him a lean wrestling machine, at least relative to his weight later in life. Unfortunately, Kokina Maximus was never a great success in the AWA; and when it closed, he once again left America to wrestle overseas.

World Wrestling Federation

In 1992, Anoai was contacted by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was offered a new gimmick: Yokozuna. Managed by the legendary Mr. Fuji, Yokozuna was announced as a sumo wrestler from Japan. He wore extra padding in his trunks at first, to play up his bulk, as he worked to gain the weight required for the role. His first pay-per-view victory came at Survivor Series, when he squashed the much-smaller Virgil. Soon, Yokozuna's career took off, as he headed into the Royal Rumble in 1993 billed as a potential favorite. He eliminated "Macho Man" Randy Savage to win the Rumble, announcing his movement towards main event status.

WWF Championship

At WrestleMania IX, Yokozuna faced off against Bret "The Hitman" Hart, for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. Hart seemed to have the match won as he had Yokozuna in the Sharpshooter, and Yokozuna was about to submit until Mr. Fuji threw salt into the champion's face. Blinded, Hart was then taken out by Yokozuna, who shockingly won the WWF Championship. As he and Mr. Fuji celebrated, Hulk Hogan came out from the back to protest the decision. Mr. Fuji then arrogantly challenged the Hulkster, and Hogan accepted, quickly defeating Yokozuna in less than a minute to take the belt away. This gave Yokozuna one of the shortest title reigns in WWF history.

Yokozuna and Hogan continued to feud for the next few months, leading up to the first King of the Ring. Once again, Hogan seemed to be in control, but the champion underestimated the deceitful tactics of Mr. Fuji. A Japanese photographer planted at ringside by the group aimed at the Hulkster and pressed the button, shooting a blast of fire into his face. This allowed Yokozuna to take Hogan out and reclaim the championship. Soon after, Hogan left the WWF to pursue other interests, which Yokozuna took to mean that he had killed Hulkamania. To celebrate, he held a "Bodyslam Competition" aboard the USS Intrepid on Independence Day. Many wrestlers and athletes alike tried to slam Yokozuna, with no success. Just as Yokozuna thought that there would be none to challenge him, Lex Luger stepped forward, picked him up, and slammed him on the deck, showing great strength. This made Luger the next major challenger to Yokozuna's title reign.

At SummerSlam 1993, Yokozuna and the newly-reborn patriot Luger fought it out for the WWF Championship. Luger took control late in the match, scoring on Yokozuna with a bodyslam and flying forearm. Luger had metal plates put into his arm, making it a formidable weapon as Yokozuna was knocked out of the ring, unconscious, and lost via countout. Unfortunately for Luger, the title did not change hands, but the match's result made it seem like Luger had a chance against his gigantic foe. Unfortunately, the contract Luger had signed for the match stated that if he did not win the championship, he would not get another shot at the title. Yokozuna and Luger continued to feud till Survivor Series, where each chose a team of allies for an elimination match.

This match led to a feud between Yokozuna and The Undertaker, where the sumo champion seemed to be completely overmatched. He eventually was forced to accept a Casket Match with The Undertaker at the 1994 Royal Rumble, where all the odds looked to be in the Undertaker's favor. However, after a lengthy match, Mr. Fuji called out the troops, bringing a dozen wrestlers out to aid Yokozuma in attacking the Undertaker. After a lot of struggle (as well as damaging the Undertaker's "magic" urn), the group managed to shove the Undertaker into the casket, giving the win to Yokozuna. As they celebrated afterwards, however, a mysterious figure appeared on the Titantron, looking like the Undertaker inside the casket. He opened his eyes and said the Undertaker would not rest in peace, then disappeared in a fireworks show, rising to the top of the Titantron and vanishing. This storyline was used to allow the Undertaker to rest for several months to recover from lingering real-life injuries.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Rodney Anoai ]

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