Antonio Inoki, famed combat sports trailblazer, dies at 79

Antonio Inoki, a combat sports trailblazer, influential politician and larger-than-life figure in his native Japan, died Friday at the age of 79, it was announced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the promotion he founded.

The cause of Inoki's death was not released, but he had fallen ill in recent years and was relegated to a wheelchair.

Inoki retired from politics in 2019. Though he touched many parts of Japanese culture in his lifetime and became one of the most famous people in the country, Inoki was most known for his work in combat sports as a pro wrestler, promoter and fighter — most notably, his bout with Muhammad Ali.

Inoki was the most important professional wrestler in the history of Japan, selling out countless arenas and stadiums from the 1970s and on. He was also the first Japanese wrestler to win the WWF championship (though the reign is not currently recognized by WWE) and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010.

On June 26, 1976, Inoki fought Muhammad Ali in perhaps the highest-profile mixed-rules bout ever. Inoki had a background in amateur wrestling and judo and trained under catch wrestler Karl Gotch, developing a methodology of fighting he called «strong style.» Ali, of course, was one of the top boxers in the world at the time and incredibly well-known globally.

Ali vs. Inoki was a direct ancestor to what we know now as mixed martial arts, which has become a global sport led by the UFC, founded in 1993. Ali vs. Inoki was one of the most watched fights of its generation. In addition to the sell-out crowd of more than 14,000 at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, it aired on closed-circuit across the world.

Shea Stadium in New York aired the bout on its big screen and drew a crowd of 32,897 with an