10 Times WWE Tried (And Failed) To Make You Cheer For Former Heels

4. Yokozuna

Nia Jax Total Divas
WWE.com

Yokozuna was a physical phenom in the years before WWE gave the word mythologised the term for The Undertaker.

A morbidly obese giant that had it in him to move with the grace and technique of a man more than half his size, he was the type of performer that was actually too good for the company to effectively reflect.

Yes he was big and yes he got the same height on his legdrop as Hulk Hogan, but what more can you espouse other than that? It makes sense now why Vince McMahon would see him as such a draw - surely you'd have to go look for yourself if Yokozuna came to town?

History has proven this not particularly the case of course, and after McMahon grew tired of his original Samoan bulldozer waving the Japanese flag with Mr Fuji, he elected to forcibly turn the former WWE Champion babyface the only way he really knew how - having him embrace 'Old Glory'.

After leaving Jim Cornette's stable in early-1996, Yoko cut his first promo as a free man, implying that he'd been kept a silent monster by the 'Prince Of Polyester' all this time.

It didn't reinvigorate the gimmick, but the sight of Mr Fuji spending his last WrestleMania waving the stars and stripes was a bizarre alternate universe moment for the few New Generation fans still watching from the long-dead golden era.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett