There were a lot of heavy hitters in All-Japan in the late 90’s but Akira Taue, a former sumo turned pro wrestler may have been the “heaviest”.

It felt that for a decade that Jun Akiyama was always in the shadow, and it was true as he competed in All Japan where Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, Akira Taue and Stan Hansen dominated throughout the 1990’s.  This isn’t to say that he didn’t have his moments, as Akiyama received title shots at the Triple Crown and had a successful tag team with Misawa and later Kenta Kobashi.

A superstar in the All Japan Promotion, Tommy “Jumbo” Tsuruta was the man who unified the three major champions in the promotion and was the first ever “Triple Crown” Champion.  As impressive as that was, it was just a portion of what he would accomplish in professional wrestling.

Like Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi rose up the ranks to become of the top stars of All Japan, and subsequently one of the most respected wrestlers in the world.  The tough grappler was credited with the invention of many high impact offensive moves that have been liberally stolen in the States.  Despite the high regard he is held in, the current draw of Pro Wrestling NOAH is like Misawa in another regard; he never plied his trade in the States and is thus unknown to the average North American wrestling fan.

Another of the great wrestlers who cut their teeth in All Japan, Toshiaki Kawada was a bit of an unsung superstar in Puroresu. Although he would win multiple championships in All-Japan and other promotions, he was in the shadow of bigger names like Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi. Kawada had multiple five star matches and is considered one of the toughest men ever to lace up the boots. Still, without anyone else from All-Japan getting in, what chance is there for Kawada?