10 Best Wrestling Giants
2. Giant Baba
One of the true elder statesmen of Japanese wrestling, Giant Baba began his career in the Japan Wrestling Association, teaming with another legendary name, Antonio Inoki.
After Inoki formed New Japan Pro Wrestling, Baba formed All Japan Pro Wrestling, becoming the first Japanese wrestler to ever hold the NWA World Heavyweight Title, which he held on several occasions. (One of the men he lost the title to? An up-and-coming Ric Flair.)
He went on to shepherd AJPW to incredible heights, entrusting the future to names like Jumbo Tsuruta, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and many others, leaving behind a legacy of world-class wrestling and hard-hitting action that still influences modern Japanese wrestling.
(He also inspired a wrestler who calls himself Small Giant Baba, which is simply too funny not to mention.)