10 Things You Need To Know About Kazuchika Okada
3. He Retired Genichiro Tenryu
Genichiro Tenryu was one of the greatest stars in the history of Japanese wrestling. Though he first broke into the spotlight competing in sumo, he retired from that sport at age 26 to pursue pro wrestling. He would spend the next 39 years as a grappler, winning titles in New Japan and All Japan, running his own promotions, and even competing at WrestleMania 7.
In 2015, Tenryu announced that he was undertaking a retirement tour, and even though he was 65 years old, it was still huge news. A greater bombshell was dropped at the 2015 G1 Climax Finals, when he challenged Kazuchika Okada to face him in the very last match of his career.
The bout took place at a special show on November 15, and while it wasn't the most crisp contest (Tenryu's singles matches were few and far between at that point), Okada's win spoke volumes. After all, Tenryu could have picked anybody to retire him, and by selecting "The Rainmaker," he showed that he had faith in Okada to lead pro wrestling in the years to come.