10 Most Unprofessional Wrestlers Ever

9. The Great Antonio

Ultimate Warrior
New Japan

While he barely qualifies as a professional wrestler, the Great Antonio was not exactly a model pro.

At the best of times, it is not a particularly advisable idea to treat pro wrestling as a joke and make a mockery of the form. Virtually any wrestler in that situation would, at a minimum, aim a barely-worked stiff shot in a "safer" place. Just to let that person know not to take the piss.

The last person you want tagging you for "real" is Antonio Inoki, whose entire modus operandi was to present pro wrestling as a branch of martial arts.

Enter the Great Antonio, an "eccentric" strongman who dabbled in wrestling throughout the 1960s. He even did a couple of jobs for Bruno Sammartino. Dredged up for a tour of New Japan in 1977, much of it passed by without incident as he was steadily built up for Inoki as the foreign menace du jour by winning a series of three-on-one handicap matches.

It was during the singles match, on December 8, that the Great Antonio made his bid for infamy. He decided to no-sell Inoki's strikes with a face best summed up as "ner ner ner ner ner" and touched his belly as if it to say "You fake wrestler, you cannot get past me and my strength!"

In response to this thoroughly obnoxious display, Inoki kicked seven bells of sh*t out of him.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champion Kenny Omega, present AEW World Champion MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!