10 Dream Wrestling Matches That Were Huge Disappointments

10. Muhammed Ali vs Antonio Inoki - 1976

Many will argue Inoki vs Ali wasn't a wrestling match, but technically wasn't a boxing match either. It starred a wrestler, was a dream match and was massively disappointing, so that warrants an inclusion in our book. In 1976, both Muhammed Ali and Antonio Inoki were huge in their respective worlds of boxing and wrestling. The initial plan was to have a worked match as agreed by the two men, but Ali and his management feared that Inoki would deceive them and turn the match into a shoot - secretly planning to embarrass Ali in comical fashion. The rules were announced two months in advance, but were revised two days before the fight. The new rules dictated that Inoki couldn't grapple Ali, which of course was his major strength as a fighter. Because of the stupid stipulations, all fifteen rounds of the fight saw Ali backed into a corner while Inoki used his size to hit Ali with low kicks repeatedly. Ali only landed six punches on Inoki, while Ali suffered severe bruising, two blood clots and an infection on his knees. Somehow the fight was deemed a 3-3 draw, even though it was hilariously one-sided. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQcium20Cdk The match had potential to go down as an amazing cross-promotional bout, but what we actually got wasn't really a fight at all. It's hard to blame Inoki for the match, it's as if Ali expected him to stand up and just take his punches. This match was undoubtedly a shame, but boxing/wrestling crossovers rarely go well.