Why The Great Muta Is Actually Japan’s Wrestling GOAT
Puroresu Legends
8,365 views
The Great Muta wasn’t just another Japanese wrestling legend. He was a character, an aura, a mystery, and one of the most influential performers the industry has ever seen.
In a country that gave wrestling icons like Antonio Inoki, Giant Baba, Rikidozan, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jumbo Tsuruta, Keiji Muto still found a way to stand apart.
This is the story of how Muto became The Great Muta, took his strange, dangerous, unforgettable character to America, and helped introduce a new kind of Japanese wrestling star to the world. While legends like Inoki and Baba shaped the business, Misawa and Kobashi defined greatness in the ring, and Okada and Tanahashi carried the modern era, Muta became something different: a global icon built on mystique, style, violence, and reinvention.
From the poison mist and face paint to the moonsault, the Muta Lock, the Shining Wizard, and unforgettable battles with names like Sting, Ric Flair, Jushin Thunder Liger, Masahiro Chono, Hiroshi Hase, Vader, and Tetsuya Naito, The Great Muta created a legacy that reached far beyond Japan.
Was The Great Muta actually the GOAT of Japanese wrestling? That depends on how you define greatness. But if the conversation is about influence, aura, creativity, global impact, and becoming one of the coolest wrestlers who ever lived, Muta’s case is impossible to ignore.
16 Comments
And then of course there was the "Muta-lock" where he'd grapevine the opponent's legs and then bend all the way backwards to grab a chin-lock. It looked as painful for Muta as his opponent!
Muta/Chono my favorite Japanese tag team
Why The Great Muta Is Actually Japan’s Wrestling GOAT
Puroresu Legends
8,365 views
The Great Muta wasn’t just another Japanese wrestling legend. He was a character, an aura, a mystery, and one of the most influential performers the industry has ever seen.
In a country that gave wrestling icons like Antonio Inoki, Giant Baba, Rikidozan, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jumbo Tsuruta, Keiji Muto still found a way to stand apart.
This is the story of how Muto became The Great Muta, took his strange, dangerous, unforgettable character to America, and helped introduce a new kind of Japanese wrestling star to the world. While legends like Inoki and Baba shaped the business, Misawa and Kobashi defined greatness in the ring, and Okada and Tanahashi carried the modern era, Muta became something different: a global icon built on mystique, style, violence, and reinvention.
From the poison mist and face paint to the moonsault, the Muta Lock, the Shining Wizard, and unforgettable battles with names like Sting, Ric Flair, Jushin Thunder Liger, Masahiro Chono, Hiroshi Hase, Vader, and Tetsuya Naito, The Great Muta created a legacy that reached far beyond Japan.
Was The Great Muta actually the GOAT of Japanese wrestling? That depends on how you define greatness. But if the conversation is about influence, aura, creativity, global impact, and becoming one of the coolest wrestlers who ever lived, Muta’s case is impossible to ignore.