10 Best Male Japanese Imports In WWE History
4. Tatsumi Fujinami
While the name may not be familiar to younger WWE fans, those with a wealth of WCW knowledge will be well aware of Tatsumi “Dragon” Fujinami’s credentials.
Innovator of the Dragon Suplex, Fujinami has a long list of accolades outside of WWE, not least of which includes defeating Ric Flair for the NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship. However, the Japanese legend also had his fair share of accomplishments under the WWE umbrella.
Fujinami became the first Japanese man to hold the WWWF Junior Heavyweight Championship in January 1978 and would hold the title twice before moving up to the Heavyweight Division. Fujinami went on to win the WWF International Heavyweight Championship in 1982, a belt he held a record three times. The title was abandoned in 1985 when New Japan Pro Wrestling and WWF went their separate ways, also making Fujinami the last man to ever hold that title.
Fujinami also holds the distinction, alongside Kengo Kimura, of being the last ever WWF International Tag Team Champion. The Japanese duo won the championships in a tournament in 1985, defeating Dick Murdoch and Adrian Adonis in the finals. Sadly, these titles were also abandoned when WWF and New Japan parted company.
With a golden tenure and a lasting influence on WWF history, Fujinami took his rightful place in the WWE Hall of Fame in 2015.