The Life and Career of Yokozuna

Wrestling Bios Presents - The Life and Career of Yokozuna
Rodney Anoaʻi, better known to the wrestling world as Yokozuna, achieved a high level of success during his run with the WWE. Although he wrestled as a representative of Japan, Yokozuna was actually Samoan and part of the famous Anoaʻi family. Relatives of Yokozuna include Umaga, Roman Reigns, Rikishi and The Usos.
The Yokozuna debut in the WWF / WWE would shake up the entire roster. In his second pay per view appearance, Yokozuna won the Royal Rumble match. In his third PPV appearance, Yokozuna won (and quickly lost) the WWF Championship at WrestleMania IX due to circumstances that are still talked about today.
Yokozuna recaptured the heavyweight championship and began a dominating run. The Undertaker vs Yokozuna feud was memorable, and he had the oppurtunity to work twice at WrestleMania X. As time went on though, Yokozuna would have problems that put his WWE to a halt.
This video looks at the life and career of Yokozuna. Topics covered include:
01:28 - Yokozuna and the Anoa'i Dynasty
02:17 - Yokozuna before the WWF, working as The Great Kokina
03:34 - Yokozuna WWF Debut
04:45 - Bret Hart vs Yokozuna at WrestleMania 9
06:00 - Hulk Hogan vs Yokozuna at King of The Ring 1993
06:54 - Lex Luger vs Yokozuna
08:23 - Yokozuna vs The Undertaker Casket Match at Royal Rumble 1994
09:18 - Yokozuna at WrestleMania X
11:07 - The last days of Yokozuna in the WWF
- Much More!
#wrestling #wwe #documentary

[@rickatoni]

I haven't watched wrestling for 25 years but I still love these bios.

[@markkinrade2739]

I feel stupid now thinking he was Japanese when I was growing up 😂

[@jokercoronado5344]

Me too 😅

[@llegacy1870]

That's because he played the character so well. Rip big man.

[@MrAhmes2001]

It’s cool... I thought Undertaker was actually a dead man💀

[@gparker1667]

I did too

[@heretic600]

@@MrAhmes2001 He is if I ever see him again.

[@camrose2032]

Yoko and Owen are still one of my favorite tag teams Rip Yoko and Owen

[@American-Zero]

They were totally opposite..yet somehow they gelled together. Yoko came back and was heavier than ever..so he was paired with Owen so there wouldn't be as much work fro him. Their feuds with Shawn Michaels and Diesel and The Smoking Gunns were one of the best of 95.

[@camrose2032]

@@American-Zero back then random pairings worked if the wrestlers put in the effort

[@American-Zero]

@@camrose2032 Exactly..it didn't matter if they were different..as long as they had chemistry in the ring and put effort into it, they worked out fine. I still consider Owen and Yoko a good underrated team.

[@outlawrip-offartist4161]

American Zero That’s what makes them a great thing.

[@ii9714]

Yoko and Owen worked well together shame there resting in peace

[@TheoAndHisPedals]

He was 34?! Man, that's tough. Great video, as always.

[@Machete87]

That is very young. I am almost 33.

[@WVSuspect]

I never realised he was that young, he looked old because being fat ages people

[@TherealRNOwwfpooh]

@@melaniel.4269 Also, him wanting to reach the record of the heaviest wrestler ever meant that he was killing himself health-wise & likely knew it.

[@blackmantis3130]

@JV Harbin the wasn't fat because he wanted entertain people . He was fat because he chose to be.

[@jameson3500]

I guess that's why he was agile as he was.

[@JonnyAugz]

Yoko had the best belly to belly suplex.

[@jonathangeary1879]

Damn right!

[@NotAGarage]

Close but I'm gonna have to give that award to Scott Steiner

[@badreligionbomb]

belly to bellies*

[@brad8606]

He was an incredible villain in a time when the wwe was in the toilet I look back today at his feud with the hitman and i remember being at the edge of my seat with butterflies in my stomach wondering, How is the hitman going to beat this beast?

[@ariesmichaelsayan4013]

He was one of their only big villains in 93

[@jokerswank6082]

It wouldve been better imho if wwe had kept some talent from the golden era

[@ariesmichaelsayan4013]

Not many could beat Yoko in this time period.. only Savage, Bret, Taker, and Luger.

[@vuthearithkeary4704]

Man if only he took better care and was there in the attitude era. Can you imagine feuding with the rock?? Oh and I have his name tattooed bc his kind nature made him an inspiration.

[@mikesmith2718]

Loved yokos early days in the wwf he was surprisingly agile for such a big guy and teaming him with Cornette was great

[@k-black2385]

Until watching this I never considered how Yokozuna felt after losing his first title reign to Hogan really in a matter of seconds. I just thought about Bret Hart but in all honesty the ending was messed up all together.

[@Monada79]

Understandable. I hated the ending.

[@aheard1788]

Hogan sucks

[@ii9714]

Hogan gets what he wants brother sadly

[@patrickmcgrath726]

Yup hogans ego wins out no matter what, that was the very sad reality at the time unfortunately

[@2490debrick]

I was so glad to find out that the Undertaker and Yoko were good friends outside the ring!

[@TheWazperviz]

Good to know they also worked a decent feud together

[@seanshannon6314]

Didn't everyone Yoko

[@seanshannon6314]

Love yoko

[@scarface7142]

They were really close

[@darkchris66]

They were the best of friends. Very close. Part of the BSK group. Undertaker even acknowledged him during his hall of fame speech

[@arturkarpinski164]

Yokozuna was awesome!!! May he rest in peace.

[@chrisreid688]

He's a true legend , only man to have 4 wrestle mania matches in first two years !

[@royconrad7668]

D

[@Sabu8000]

Damn, you are right! I had never thought about this before, but it is an awesome fact.

[@tonymontana1179]

2 of those, in fact 3 of them main events, as the Hogan match was impromptu

[@tonymontana1179]

Melanie L. Wow I bet you’re fun at parties

[@chrisreid688]

@@melaniel.4269 well yoco was at the time winning his world title the youngest champion ..... He worked with Bret Hart ,Hogan , undertaker , Vader, tagged with Owen Hart , beating most of them at one point , not like that matters but clearly he was a great worker in his short time in the big leagues , so he worked with so many legends and so many of his family our legends I proclaime he's not just in company of legends he's a legend his dam self!

[@JakesMetalChat]

The Casket Match at Royal Rumble 1994 was a really great match. Such a brilliant wrestler, still a legend and should have had more recognition back in the day. R.I.P. Yokozuna. You'll never ever be forgotten!

[@Vladpryde]

Fun fact: I was 10 years old and saw Yokozuna live at the Royal Rumble in Sacramento with a bunch of other people: my father, some friends, my sister, and a now-late family friend of ours named James Benoit (no relation to Chris Benoit). We had some absolutely amazing seats, and James took some extraordinary pictures with a high-end camera that I still have to this day. After the Rumble, we all went into Old Town, and there was Brian Knobbs of the Nasty Boys eating ice cream at the ice cream parlor. We all shook his hand and sat down and had ice cream with him. It was quite a surreal experience, and not one that I'll ever forget. RIP Rodney, James, and so many others.

[@juanmmendez449]

Yokozuna looked about the same size as Umaga earlier in his career.

[@seany84uk]

I saw yokozuna few months before he died at a wrestling show at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Oldham UK. He tagged with Rikishi

[@beefgravystudios]

One of the few guys that was liked by all his peers

[@lexbeltran1354]

Samoan people are friendly, but don't piss them off. Samoa!

[@enricoflamingo]

Hogan was like a cancer in every era and promotion he touched. Sheesh

[@enricoflamingo]

Joel also true

[@marcusisrealious1255]

I love the Respect you show these Athletic Performers

[@ryublueblanka]

Yokozuna was AWESOME! Great guy too. Respects to him and his family.

[@joesmoe1347]

Undertaker is such a damn legend...... He's in everybody's bio even tho it isnt about him lol. My man

[@HyperActive7]

It's really sad to know his weight is what put him out of WWF and that it eventually led to an early death. What if he hadn't been so heavy? We'd still be talking about him today.

[@GrassValleyGreg]

One of the all-time great Bigs. Yoko was incredibly light on his feet for a 500+ lb dude

[@tarheel2539]

Imagine the difference if WWF would've signed him back after he lost 100 pounds that motivation could've lead to him losing more weight or caring about his health going forward instead of giving up and wanting to become a 900 lb wrestler

[@chperezjr]

Modern fans don't like Jimmy Cornette because he tells it like it is and BTW the Yokozuna Owen Hart tag team was unlikely great

[@Lenoh]

I wonder if, in an alternate timeline, it would have been Yokozuna trying to push Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania instead of The Rock.

[@taydafranklin7800]

Imagine Yoko and Umaga vs Rock and Reigns

[@mrvice308]

I actually lived across the street from fatu in Pensacola Florida who was his family and met Yoko on. Several occasions he was very nice guy rakishi also is his family and lives in Pensacola florida

[@mrowley7300]

900 pounds??? How would he have lost weight when he reached his goal

[@MrJobelp]

He never reached 900lbs

[@superlex611]

@@MrJobelp then he died

[@mrowley7300]

Hence why I said "how would he have"

[@VertigoGTI]

Well... flossing would probably take off 6-7lbs with him. It's a start.

[@shittalkerskywalkertm9430]

Cornette is the man tho. Lovem or Hatem. Do a Cornette vid. ❤🤘

[@at0micwerew0lf]

Yaaas! I second that. I met Cornette when I was in 3rd, maybe 4th grade...just bumped into him at a gas station down south, and even thoygh this was the 80s and he was 110% in heel Cornette character, he was VERY gracious and classy...signing my PWI and taking a few pics with me. Very cool guy.

[@cliffwaltz8223]

Man with his career...that would be a long video. Lol. Corny is the man

[@gumdeo]

Corny is a legend.

[@BlueHero112]

My dad did some security work for USWA when they did shows in Kentucky, of all the stories he would tell the wildest centered on Yokozuna. Yokozuna got arrested for assault or some other druken behavior as my dad put it the problem as the cops would find was that yoko was so large there wasn't a cop car around that could actually fit him in without scraping the pavement. They ultimately had to comendeer a flatbed truck to take him to the station.

[@aheard1788]

Oh wow

[@chrisiannuzzo6896]

Once saw the mighty Yoko wrestle Bret Hart for the title circa 1993 at the Westchester County Center in White Plains. What a spectacular show they put on considering it was a non televised relatively small venue. Yoko was the champ and for a while I actually thought that maybe it would switch hands and they would mention it on TV in the coming days (remember, it was a non televised show). Fuji (in the corner of Yoko) hit Bret with the Japanese flag causing him to fall from the top rope and of course everyone knows the rest.

[@tommym7626]

I just found this YT channel and I'm finding it to be very entertaining!! In this, societys darkest hour, we need more channels like this to pass the time. Great work guys!

[@beezy22]

Yoko was also a member of the BSK along with taker savio the Godwinns The Godfather And rikishi...R.I.P. yoko..

[@cchisolm92cc]

Forgot Brian Adams

[@beezy22]

Christopher Chisholm yes indeed Brian Adams was also a member of the BSK...R.I.P.

[@Antihero297]

Was so funny when Savage tried to pin him in the Royal Rumble

[@ladyofwisdom2]

I was shocked when I learned that Yoko is not really Japanese as a kid, lol. He was definitely one of my favorites. May he RIP. 💔🙏🏻

[@kuma1388]

He was CCW tag champ with my friend Pretty Kurt Adonis. He was a genuinely very nice person.

[@MarcoAyr]

One of my all time favourites. I was young in his heyday & genuinely bought that he was unstoppable etc. How the Hitman was going to beat him was beyond me and his matches with the Undertaker had me on the edge of my seat. Wrestling at its best - terrific stories told with limited movesets. As an adult I've come to really appreciate performances of this ilk. Very rare in today's high flying period to see that.

[@criminalmindsgirl2936]

I love the ending with the music and pictures.

[@l.c.boogie1219]

Rest in Life and in Peace Yokozuna.

[@ThunderBunny30]

Great video and good to see some of the backstage photos of Rodney with members of BSK. I grew up watching him and was very entertaining. RIP big man.

[@abqpinkman]

The more here about Hogan's backstage politicing and personal issues, the less I like the guy. Hogan is not a good person.

[@manigje1]

Especially screwing Brett hart

[@blackbutterfly8136]

I know I remember wrestle mania 9 and thought why did he even come out in that match. I also got fed up of him winning all the time so now I’m older I now understand why🤬

[@mitchcolburn1216]

Doesn't matter. The man put butts in seats

[@cappy2282]

When I was a kid i remember going to a raw show and one of the first matches was Yoko vs Lex. Awesome 👍

[@wesleyhinman6230]

Loved yokozuna when I was a kid he could really move for as big as he was

[@kippwilson8099]

RIP to Yokozuma!!!! One of the all time favorite wrestlers!👍👍👍👍

[@mrc3rtifi3d13]

Jim Cornette is more than deserving for a bio done by you bro!!! He is more than responsible for the careers of a multitude of individuals in the wrasslin biz

[@KHaskins23]

One of my all time favorite wrestlers. For a guy his size, he moved pretty good. I miss Yokozuna.

[@Ragan31687]

I remember starting watching wrestling right before WrestleMania X and being so scared of Yokozuna as a kid. Yokozuna was the first great heel I got to see and along with Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Razor Ramon, and The Undertaker was the stars that made me fall in love with wrestling.

[@daleholbert3111]

This one was awesome but a little sad at the end

[@NormanNorthman]

One of my favorite wrestlers of all time. Rest In Peace Yokozuna/ Rodney Anoa’i

[@michaelfernandezortiz9753]

That brought tears to my eyes! 😢 Thank You Yokozuna!

[@benscott19841]

Interesting stuff, I never heard that he wanted to try to gain weight to be the heaviest pro wrestler, I had heard he had a food addiction and thats why he kept putting on weight. Great video as always.

[@mrsain19]

as much as to this day, I still think luger should have won the title at summerslam 93, yoko's professionalism in handling that entire mania 9 issue, is why he had such a long reign. and he was mega over as a heel.

[@XX-vu5jo]

One of the youngest member of BSK. Only real fans know BSK without googling. ;)

[@garethjones2746]

I remember one of the wrestlers coming back to his gym in Rhyl after wrestling in Liverpool saying that one of the wrestlers was found dead in their hotel, I was shocked when he said it was Yokozuna.

[@PrmtymeTheGamer84]

One of my favorite wrestlers up there with other greats I like like mick Foley, big show, umaga, the rock, and bo Dallas lol

[@scottcunningham3953]

oh yeah sat on bus watching this its awesome!!!

[@shottysheppard5352]

CORNETTE IS A LEGEND... THE GREATEST

[@shaneferris1043]

No man his size could float so beautifully

[@jamalsampson2096]

Yokozuna will always be my absolute favorite. Rest in peace Rodney!

[@rs3850]

I don't feel I ever appreciated Yokozuna as a kid. But I do now watching this back.

[@brendanh44]

I was there at the Royal Rumble 94. Providence Civic Center, Undertaker rising to the rafters was awesome as a 12 year old. All I remember from the match is this drunk guy behind us screaming repeatedly: “Put him in the caaasket!” RIP big fella

[@rfk223]

I loved Yokozuna he was so intimidating when I was a little kid. Glad his legacy is better recognized.

[@JoeChillton]

I feel like after 95, it was done. By late 95 it was time to hang it up, he was way way too big and would only get bigger.....tough break for him as is size got him into the business and now it's his albatross. I'll always have a soft spot for Yoko, he was the man in 92-95, turning him was a major mistake. For a guy with a short shelf-life in this gimmick, I dug him, he was the perfect heel for the 90s. Rip

[@superlex611]

But it was at the right time to have a push

[@Christmas-dp2mt]

To be the honest i loved the Way Wrestlemania 9 ended. In my opinion Hogan made the whole Show a must see at that time. They kind of repeated the angle by having Cena losing the title to Batista (who helped Vince before) in a second match after the Main Event (Elimination Chamber) At the night of Wrestlemania 32 Where Roman def. HHH they could have done the same with Undertaker leaving his Home State Texas with the Gold. Because he fought for Vince and won. It would have saved the day. Now today where they randomly choose a Challenger for the Title it made more Sense Back then.

[@chrisxavier3147]

One of the best big men in the business period, RIP Rodney

[@MattieDiesel]

i grew up on pro wrestling in the early 90s and I really enjoy channels with so much information. This is time well spent to me.

[@peterdonato4854]

Awesome Bios! Harvey Whippleman was the guy who took that picture.....

[@mangamegs]

Damn is every Samoan in wrestling but joe rocks cousin? What was the point of even mentioning many "modern" fans don't like jim cornette? That's irrelevant.

[@twistedgamerfromhellreborn9959]

One of the greatest big men in all of professional wrestling R.I.P big man you are missed

[@Itsgamermushy_YT85364]

I hated Yokozuna when I was a kid and that's why he is one of the greatest monster heels of all time. Certain heels I would start to like or just wouldn't care about them anymore but I always wanted to see Yokozuna lose.

[@lossiiburns]

I seen yoko vs bret in a cage match at the cow palace in San Francisco ca the night b4 summer slam 93 I knew bret wasn’t going to win cause they was pushing yoko vs lex

[@ViraL_FootprinT.ex.e]

I forgot about Virgil's hideous striped tights, lol 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@mrsain19]

Cornette is easily a top 10 all time manager, but arguably top 5 and maybe even top 3. he is in the discussion though.

[@Large23collectibles]

Thank you for making this video and not mentioning that horrible Heroes of Wrestling PPV. Your videos are always great, again thank you.

[@bricktop.]

@FieryReign Check out the documentary about it on Kim Justices channel. What an absolute bus crash of a ppv ha ha

[@ShanAli-sq4rs]

Imagine if WWF didn't released him, he would have lose more weight

[@deejaysyn420]

Wow so young yet did so much so quickly in wwe

[@droc6927]

Cornette was the greatest manager ever... Period. Agreed, do a Cornette video!

[@blackbutterfly8136]

Derrick jay I enjoyed him Cornette on the 🎤

[@BeyondDaX]

Derrick jay You know you can just go to his official youtube channel if you want more cornette

[@HyperActive7]

Cornette's managerial work is gold and hilarious!

[@tylers7048]

Man you just dont stop the quality content, you must be saving Regal pt 4. Thanks for being my favorite KZbin channel

[@NinjaStudent-yo5ws]

I could imagine him in the attitude era

[@TheWazperviz]

Yokozuna as a heel with an updated attitude during the attitude era really could had worked

[@NinjaStudent-yo5ws]

Wasim Perviz good feud’s with Kane

[@TheWazperviz]

@@NinjaStudent-yo5ws would had been interesting

[@ironman2326]

I saw him team with king Mabel and Bulldog against Bret, Diesel, and Shawn Michael's back in 95 at a house show.

[@runningsuperska]

Jim Cornette is brilliant

[@eastcoastandloveit3857]

So glad I found this Chanel !. It’s becoming one of my faves

[@imogenaris1697]

Excellent tribute video. Rodney's weight was always a health issue. No one should weigh 500+ lbs. For the mass he carried though, Rodney was freakishly agile in his initial run. Being chosen to be world champion for a year is an accomplishment. He was a legit, dominant, monster heel, which made him a great champion. He looked good with the world title over his shoulder. He made his family & nation proud.

[@robertcullen7042]

One take away from when zuna took the title off of Hogan was, zuna kicked out of the leg drop. Nobody kicks out of the immortal leg drop. Then That guy came with the fire ball

[@Phoenix7786]

Don't forget the infamous Papa Shango botch, although that was more out of neccesity than booking.

[@at0micwerew0lf]

Thanks for this. You know...Im not a huge(har-dee-har-har)Yokozuna fan, and not a big fan of WWF or WCW at this time...but I enjoy all of your videos and looking at this man and era in a greater context is interesting. So thanks for another great video!! Wrestling Bios is my favorite non-humor wrestling nostalgia channel.

[@richardrichard9303]

Loved yoko, just the sort of heel missing from the wwe these days

[@TheWazperviz]

I miss Yokozuna. He is still a big part of the WWE Network and many can relive his classic moments and matches

[@meligoth]

He accomplished so much in such a short time that most wrestlers would in three times the amount. Finding out how young he was, the would've, could've and should'ves just once would have given him many more years of success, maybe a long life to enjoy retirement.

[@GeordieGunner96]

He also ironically beat hogan with a leg drop.

[@jeremy.802.]

Rest in peace big yoko we miss you 😔

[@bradleyparker4035]

For that brief moment in time, he was the man, nobody could touch him. It's sad he is so often overlooked, the man was an amazing God gifted wrestler, just pure natural talent! He beat both Bret Hart and Hogan in their prime. Enough said

[@TheWazperviz]

Yokozuna on his rise defeated Undertaker later Bret and Hogan is so rewarding just to have as a career highlight

[@jasonmerced718]

R.I.P. YOKO BSK Original

[@HouseOldSkoolRaver]

What a cool youtube page I thought I'd google tatanka to see what was on youtube. now going through your vids dude ha.

[@df78574]

He reached 600Ib and would wrestle at a fast pace. It caused a lot of pressure on his heart...

[@arslaanpasha3334]

But in 1996 he failed to pass medical test and was fired

[@TG5455]

I remember listening to a podcast called The New Generation Project Podcast about the 1997 Survivor Series that he was going to come back a feud with Vader and have the match at Montreal but couldn't get pass a test by the commission because he was at 600 pounds. Sad ending to a wrestler that had a good leg drop for a guy of his size.

[@kutulukutu]

Hm. One dislike? Hi Hitmeng! Been looking forward to this one

[@TheLastSunDevil]

LoL a Hadukan fireball.

[@winnebagonutshot8137]

Wasn't there all kinds of heat during that feud with Duggan when he laid the american flag across him and banzai dropped him a couple times? I thought I heard something about that. Interesting fun fact: That reporter who shot the fireball out of the camera was none other than Downtown Bruno aka Harvey Wiffleman.

[@richardcamacho2675]

Great video, mate, keep up the good work!😀

[@jessvolina6007]

34??? Jesus he was a young man! When I was in my early teens and it was all about PPV and Royal Rumble on SNES he was THEE heel! Obviously his size has much to do with who he was but in retrospect, he didn’t need to be the big. The guy could wrestle. Sad loss,thanks for the memories. Great video as always!!

[@mrsain19]

great stuff. and a very believable champion, whether it was the WWF title or the tag titles, with owen or anyone else. Yokozuna in the 90s video games was fun too.

[@runningsuperska]

Great big man heel. RIP Yoko