10 "Foreign" Wrestlers Who Were Actually Born In America

3. Masahiro Chono

"Black Charisma" Masahiro Chono is one of the biggest Japanese wrestling stars of the past thirty years. Though he's mostly familiar to American fans from a couple of runs in WCW (including as an nWo member from 1996-1997 €“ fitting, as he lead the Japanese chapter of the infamous stable), he's a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion and a record five-time winner of New Japan Pro Wrestling's G1 Climax tournament. Though his hall of fame career has wound down, Chono is a celebrity in Japan, appearing on game shows and the like, with millions of viewers following his exploits. Although he was raised in Japan, Chono was actually born in Seattle, Washington, which is particularly interesting given the nationalistic nature of wrestling in Japan. The sport blew up in the 1950s when a babyface named Rikidozan fought against gaijin (foreign) heels such as Freddie Blassie and The Destroyer, restoring Japanese pride after WWII. As a result, Rikidozan became a national icon and hero, far bigger in Japan than Hulk Hogan ever was in the U.S. Japanese heroes defending against foreign invaders is a formula that has continued through the years, with gaijin such as the Funks, Vader, Stan Hansen, Scott Norton, and current IWGP Heavyweight Champion AJ Styles threatening traditional puroresu. That makes the Chono's birth all the more notable. On the other hand, though, Rikidozan himself was born in Korea.