Write That Down! Antonio Inoki, Part Three: BOM-BA-YE

In the next installment of their profile series on Antonio Inoki, Fumi Saito & Justin Knipper continued covering Inoki’s full in-ring career, this time focusing on years 1974–1980. After Inoki’s (and Seiji Sakaguchi’s) NJPW and Giant Baba’s AJPW established deals with television channels, the rivalry between the two companies began heating up. Fumi & Justin talked about the hot time it was for pro wrestling Japan during the mid-’70s, the influence of television and print media at the time.
The two also went over Inoki’s inventive and bloody December 1974 vs. IWA champion Strong Kobayashi, Inoki’s year-long feud with Tiger Jeet Singh, his famous hour-long bout with Karl Gotch-trainee Billy Robinson, and his series of matches with Andre the Giant. 
They also talked about Vince McMahon Sr.’s involvement with and appearances for NJPW at around this time, which subsequently led to NJPW and the WWWF’s 11-year working relationship. The partnership would also lead to Inoki’s international breakout bout against Muhammed Ali in what many would call the world’s first MMA fight, which Fumi & Justin also covered in detail towards the end of the show.
The next episode will focus on Inoki becoming WWWF World Heavyweight champion after beating Bob Backlund, which was never recognized by the WWWF, plus his rivalries with Stan Hansen, Hulk Hogan, Bruiser Brody, Rusher Kimura and a lot more.
Fumi Saito on Twitter: @fumihikodayo
Justin Knipper on Twitter: @ justinmknipper
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