WrestleMania 7 Veteran & UFC Competitor Koji Kitao Passes Away

Japan’s 60th yokozuna and pro wrestling veteran Koji Kitao has passed away. Age 55, he died from a chronic renal failure on Feb. 10, 2019, although it was just announced publicly today. He had a rocky career in Japan, that resulted in him being fired from Super World of Sports after legitimately attacking the late Earthquake (John Tenta) during a match, and got a taste of his own medicine after Nobuhiko Takada legitimately knocked him out with a headkick during a UWFI bout. To US fans, he’s best known for his WrestleMania 7 match, where he teamed up with Genichiro Tenryu to defeat Demolition.

He eventually found himself competing in mixed martial arts. He lost to Mark Hall at UFC 9 and competed in the inaugural PRIDE Fighting Championship event as he faced former WWF wrestler Nathan Jones. He retired from competition in 1998.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7uL7ErKulnaqku6Z6wqikaKaVrMBwfY9wam1oZWK3orzAp5ysnV2owaK%2BjLCpnqukobKurc2imGZvXauytbHRmqVmo5%2Bftm63yK2YqGWglsC0sdJmmLCZqQ%3D%3D