As great as professional wrestling can be, it is an industry which has seen some truly tragic moments. Unfortunately, fans have witnessed many wrestlers pass away far too young, and WWE Hall of Famer Yokozuna is one of them. The former WWE Champion and Royal Rumble winner was presented as a huge name in WWE throughout some of the 1990s, but his career was cut short as his health depleted, resulting in a truly sad death. There may be some fans who may not be fully aware of how and why Yokozuna passed away, as it happened over two decades ago.
UPDATE: 2023/12/28 07:30 EST BY ANDREW KELLY
Several Wrestlers Have Looked Back On Yokozuna’s Life
Yokozuna is one of many wrestlers who unfortunately passed away far too early, joining a lengthy list of younger deaths in the industry. In the time Yokozuna spent in wrestling, even though it was ultimately too short, he left a strong legacy as a multi-time WWE Champion and one of the more impressive big men of all time, putting himself in the conversation with names like Andre the Giant and The Big Show. Yokozuna was someone who did in fact leave a mark on the business, and it is interesting to see what many of those in the industry thought of him, whether that be colleagues or friends.
UPDATE: 2025/02/17 17:00 EST BY ANDREW KELLY
Yokozuna Had A Career Before WWE
Before making a big splash in the world of WWE, where he would go on to become an unstoppable WWE World Champion, Yokozuna trained hard and worked around the globe, earning experience and success before making it to the “big time”. When assessing the life and legacy of Yokozuna, it is important to also look back at where it all began, and the several different countries and promotions he initially competed in. We will take a look at Yokozuna’s early career and potential in the professional wrestling business, including one angle in particular that elevated him to the next level, and ultimately helped him catch the eye of Vince McMahon.
Yokozuna Became A Big Star In WWE
Yokozuna Climbed To Ranks To Become WWE Champion
- Yokozuna won the Royal Rumble mere months into his WWE career.
- Yokozuna went on to become a two-time WWE Champion.
- Yokozuna was presented as an unstoppable force in WWE.
Yokozuna is a member of the legendary Anoa’i family, with him being yet another member of the tree which has produced several incredible talents over the years. He initially rose the ranks in NJPW, before joining WWE in the early 1990s, immediately making an impression due to his huge build, which was surprisingly mixed in with great speed and agility for someone of his stature. He rose to the top of the card in a remarkably quick rise, similar to only those such as Diesel and Brock Lesnar.
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He went on an undefeated streak which saw him win the Royal Rumble, and topple Bret Hart at WrestleMania 9 to become the WWE Champion. From there, he would have another reign, and main event WrestleMania 10 too, where he lost to Hart. From there, Yokozuna was still fairly dominant, but he was much more beatable, with his only notable moments really being his Tag Title reign and feud with The Undertaker. His position as a top star did dwindle over the years, but much of this was down to his health and physique, which unfortunately played a role when looking at his passing.
Yokozuna Battled Problems With His Weight
WWE Released Yokozuna Because Of His Growing Size
- Yokozuna’s gimmick was being a sumo wrestler.
- Yokozuna was famous for his size, but it eventually grew to be a problem.
- Yokozuna’s increased weight caused health issues.
Yokozuna undertook a sumo gimmick in WWE, donning traditional garments and walking to the ring with a Japanese flag. Much like sumo wrestlers, Yokozuna tried to make himself as big as possible at times, which meant crazy diets and oftentimes unhealthy tendencies. At one stage, both Yokozuna and Vader were reprimanded by WWE, and taken off TV to try and better their physique, though this ended up with them both sneaking off at times to eat fast food. When it gets to that point, it is fair to say that it is an addiction, and it should be treated as such, though at the time, awareness of things like that weren’t as apparent.
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This all led to Yokozuna’s WWE release in 1998. Jim Ross had stated on his podcast that this was partly due to Yokozuna’s weight, but also due to the potential heart issues that it could cause, especially after the passing of Brian Pillman not long before.
“Yoko’s weight kept increasing.” “The more he weighed, the less his cardio was prominent. He gained 100 pounds; he got huge. When you get out of breath or fatigued and you’re starting to lose strength in the ring, sometimes you just can’t execute. Somebody as large as Yokozuna, a minor miscue could be very devastating.” (h/t Wrestling Inc.)
Vince McMahon didn’t want to take any chances from a liability perspective when it came to Yokozuna. Following his WWE departure, he continued to wrestle sporadically on the independent scene, leading him to a show in England, which is where tragedy would unfortunately hit.
Yokozuna Passed Away At The Age Of 34
Yokozuna Is One Of Countless Wrestlers To Lose Their Life Early
- Yokozuna died in 2000 during a wrestling tour in England.
- The official cause of Yokozuna’s death was pulmonary edema.
- Yokozuna was one of WWE’s best big men wrestlers.
Whilst touring in England, Yokozuna was found dead in a hotel room on October 23, 2000, at just 34 years of age, which is such a young age to lose one’s life. The cause of death was one which was uncertain at first, with many debating about whether it had been a heart attack. However, it was revealed that the cause of death was from pulmonary edema, where the fluid around his body became blocked, leading to fluid building up in his lungs, which was further brought on by his weight. Yokozuna had tried to cut down, but unfortunately it was too late.
For someone as young as Yokozuna, this can be seen as nothing other than a huge tragedy for his family and for professional wrestling. As mentioned, the lifestyle Yokozuna led was detrimental to his health, with him struggling to battle his demons when it came to trying to maintain a healthy weight. Like many others in wrestling, the intense and draining schedule in WWE can lead many down a dark path as they try to cope with the demands of life on the road.
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Yokozuna retains a strong legacy though, as being one of the more impressive big men performers of all time. Sure, there were ups and downs to his time in WWE, with his position on the card dropping as time went on, but he was presented as the number one heel in the company in the main event of two consecutive WrestleManias, and he is a member of the lucrative list of performers who have been crowned as the WWE Champion, holding the belt twice by beating Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan. His success doesn’t make the entire situation any less devastating, as he was lost far too early.
The Undertaker Had A Close Bond With Yokozuna
Yokozuna And Undertaker Were Real Life Friends And Kayfabe Rivals
- Undertaker has shared backstage stories about Yokozuna.
- The Undertaker played cards with Yokozuna backstage.
- The pair used their friendship to help create a memorable rivalry.
The Undertaker is someone who was close to many wrestlers backstage, though these relationships only came to the forefront in later years due to his commitment to kayfabe and his gimmick. He was someone who was not only a notable opponent of Yokozuna on-screen, but he was a close friend off-screen too, with the pair sharing a lot of time together with their respective families and such. On the Out of Character podcast with Ryan Satin, Undertaker spoke on his friendship with the big man.
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“Yeah, Yoko and I were very close and there’s not a day I don’t think about him. That’s not always the case, there’s a lot of guys that you don’t like, that you don’t play cards with. It just happened to be that Yokozuna and I were really close and we spent a lot of downtime playing dominoes and playing cards.” (H/T 411Mania)
Undertaker went on to note how sometimes the loser of cards would dish out a little more punishment in the ring, with Yokozuna giving more weight on his Banzai Drop. The Undertaker got quite emotional when recounting his time with Yokozuna, which just goes to show the close personal bond they shared.
Many Wrestlers Shared Stories About Yokozuna
Yokozuna’s Family Have Offered Up Stories
- The Usos have told stories about their uncle.
- Yokozuna was part of the famous Anoa’i family.
- Yokozuna was so big that he had to sleep sitting up.
Yokozuna was a notable wrestler for his sheer size, and that comes into play in a lot of the stories recounted by those close to him. Two of his nephews, Jimmy and Jey Uso, talked about spending a lot of time with their dad, Rikishi, and Yokozuna when they were off the road during an interview on Talk Is Jericho. They were barbecuing and dancing, and even taking Leg Drops from him at the age of just 8! They spoke about the special arrangements made for his sleep.
“When [Yokozuna] would sleep, he would have to sit up. He couldn’t lie down. That’s how big he was. He would sit up against the couch. He would sit on the floor, and then he’d put his back up against the couch, and that was how he would sleep. And we would know, dad would go, ‘Rodney’s coming home.’ So we would get all the blankets and all the pillows and put them in the den. We would make him a little bed on the floor where he would just lay back on the couch.” (H/T ProWrestlingStories)
Those aforementioned barbecues would also host fellow wrestlers, as the Godwinns described on In Your Head Radio several years back:
“What was Yokozuna like as a person? He was awesome, in the ring and out. He would invite us to huge barbecues where he lived in California, and we always felt invited and comfortable around his family.”
Many other wrestlers over the years have shared stories about Yokozuna, with Bret Hart being someone who had a lot to share given that they were big rivals in the 90s. Hart spoke about several ribs, with laxatives being involved, and a broken toilet courtesy of Yokozuna too. Yokozuna was someone who, outside of his intense demeanor in the ring, had a lot of great friends in the business.
Yokozuna’s Wrestling Potential Was Clear Early On
- Yokozuna wrestled around the world before making it to WWE.
- He debuted in the ring at 19 years of age.
- He gained recognition in the US during his time in the AWA.
Yokozuna already had the professional wrestling business in his blood, but there was no guarantee he would be a success. However, after training with his uncles, The Wild Samoans, Yokozuna was someone who looked set for a big career in the industry. He debuted at the ripe age of 19, and spent the next few years traveling around the globe and honing his craft – competing in the likes of the U.S., Germany, and Japan. He had several stints in NJPW as part of The Samoan SWAT Team, and mixed it up both as partners and opponents with notable names like Vader, Masa Saito, Masahiro Chono, Keiji Muto, Owen Hart and many more, providing him with invaluable experience at a young age.
The potential of Yokozuna began to really shine during a short spell in the AWA – a promotion that housed so many of the names that WWE would pluck and create major stars out of, one notably being Hulk Hogan. The AWA ran a big angle to get Yokozuna over – reminiscent of one WWE used to help elevate Bronson Reed in 2024 – in which the Samoan hit a big splash time and time again over Greg Gagne, ending his career inside the ring. This proved to be a big rub for Yokozuna (who was wrestling under the name of Kokina Maximus at the time), and it helped to cement his name in the US, bringing about attention from Vince McMahon and WWE. He was brought into the company alongside family members Fatu and Samoan Savage, though he was kept away from them and pushed under the sumo Yokozuna gimmick.
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