Antonio Inoki vs. Hulk Hogan, 02.06.1983
Match #5 of the Thank you Antonio Inoki project.
NJPW IWGP Championship League 1983 - Tag 28
IWGP Heavyweight Title IWGP League 1983 Final Match
Kuramae Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan.
This next match takes us to the finals of the 1983 IWGP League, a precursor to what would be better known as the G1 Climax tournament, for the initial version of New Japan’s IWGP Heavyweight title. It’s also the first time on this site where I get to talk about Hulk Hogan.
There’s been a sort of myth amongst the wrestling community online as it pertains to Hogans work in Japan. I think most fans would generally agree that despite his fame and accolades, Hogan was less a “great wrestler” and more a great showman during his time in WWF. Some might not wish to see a difference between the two (it’s all a work anyways), but the aspects that Hogan accentuated during this period were more theatrical than mechanical. Being an expressive, larger-than-life personality who could make the most out of doing fairly little. Someone whose comeback comprised of relatively basic moves that still captivated the masses. This isn’t a bad thing inherently; he was by far the biggest wrestling star in America for years while doing this. Fans just weren’t going to see much in the way of technical ability from his matches. That’s where the myth comes into play, because while Hogan might be a man of few moves in his home country, Japan sees him wrestling in entirely different ways: submissions, matwork, snug lariats, the works.
That said, I’m still not convinced I’m seeing Hogan as a great wrestler
Along with his match with the Great Muta in 1993, this is the most common example I see brought up online for how good Hogan could be when he’s trying. It’s a fairly basic technical match in structure; both guys go hold for hold in front of a hot crowd, with each grapple being hard-fought in the way you’d expect from an Inoki match. Hogan is surprisingly quick off the mark to engage, however it’s while applying and transitioning between holds where I feel he lacks a certain edge. His work ranges from headlocks to toeholds, but it never looks like he’s tightening or applying great pressure to them, which is very noticeable from a larger guy like Hogan. Those pythons aren’t being put to good use. Add to this how Hogan doesn’t follow up on any worked body part, just trying to keep up with Inoki’s style despite his own limitations, and it makes a lot of his technical ability seem perfunctory in comparison. I wouldn’t say he was lacking effort in a big match like this, just that its missing enough detail and a large enough part of the overall match to put a ceiling on it.
Luckily, this is a great crowd and Inoki performance, and it’s enough to circumvent those issues.
Whereas Hogan could be called somewhat unfocused in his approach, Inoki is fully locked in on immobilizing Hogan’s biggest strengths. He isolates the arm off the first chance he gets, and it becomes a consistent target for him half the time he counters Hogan’s maneuvers. Moreover, he’s constantly drawing the larger, stronger opponent down to the mat, where he has the clear advantage. Ropebreaks keep the match from ending early, but you get the sense that Inoki is gradually widening the gap between them, moving closer and closer to victory. Even a surprise Axe-Bomber can’t keep him down for long; at best working as a reset spot that gets the live crowd further behind him. Inoki’s big on spectacle and it’s moments like that which he makes feel huge, despite more or less being a throwaway spot in hindsight. Soon after they enter a finishing stretch full of striking and big moves, where Hogan is able to overwhelm with his signature offense. There’s a big near-fall off of his Leg Drop, and multiple Axe-Bombers to eventually grant him the win, but it’s Inoki who remains at the heart of it all, captivating everyone in attendance with his selling, pushing back with all his might until the official called it. Even in defeat, Inoki embodied the will of a hero to all those who came and saw.
Verdict: Recommended. Far from the best match I’ll cover on this project, but one that still displays the kind of aura and drama you’d want from a big Inoki matchup. The psychology is also strong, as it takes an entire stylistic shift in the match before Hogan is able to pull ahead off of pure horsepower. Treat it more like an exhibition between two of the biggest draws at the time. I’d like to think that’s how the fans thought of it going in.