10 Most Brutal Acts Of Wrestling Revenge

6. The Greater Antonio

Val Venis Kaientai
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'The Great Antonio' is described on his own Wikipedia entry as an "eccentric".

His opponent, in one of pro wrestling's most infamous ever shoots, was no eccentric. Antonio Inoki was a stoic, disciplined professional wrestler who introduced the world to and enjoyed vast celebrity with strong style.

This deeply impressed the Japanese public as puroresu recovered from the death its Godfather Rikidozan. Inoki did not impress Antonio, who no-sold his offence in such a way that begged for a slap in the face. A law unto himself, Antonio wasn't trying to get heat, but what an inadvertent heel he was. The script was adhered to in the opening minutes; Inoki attempted to subdue the flabby western villain, but the flabby western villain used his frame to counter holds.

And then, Antonio no-sold an Inoki drop-kick in an apparent attempt to test his resolve. The crowd laughed nervously. Their hero looked impotent. Foolish. Antonio began to pound his flabby gut with his fists, as if to say Inoki's strikes were no match for his sloth. Even a fat f*ck westerner was better than this pro wrestling malarkey.

This displeased the Greater Antonio.

The Greater Antonio dealt a full-force slap to his shameful namesake before leaving him a bloodied and presumably concussed mess in a legit kick festival of a beatdown.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!