10 Wrestlers Who Became Successful Bookers

Riki Choshu was a proficient amateur wrestler during his university days, even representing Korea at the 1972 Summer Olympics (Japan disqualified his participation based on his mixed ethnicity), but it was nothing compared to his career in the professional discipline.

During the '80s, Choshu was an innovative mat wrestler with few equals. An intricate technician in direct contrast to the 'Strong Style' which would later characterise NJPW, Choshu became one of the company's breakout stars following feuds with Jumbo Tsuruta and Genichiro Tenryu. When New Japan's chief Antonio Inoki became embroiled in an embezzlement scandal, Choshu briefly migrated to AJPW. It only served to consolidate his surging stardom.

When Choshu returned to New Japan, he was followed by a flock of talent acutely aware of his value. Inoki knew it too, and after election to the Japanese Diet, he promoted his superstar into his vacated head booking position. His judgement couldn't have been better.

One of Choshu's first contributions was the establishment of an annual round robin tournament to follow in the tradition of the International Wrestling Grand Prix. In the inaugural G1 Climax, the head booker laid down for a host of burgeoning talent, preparing them as his future stars in the process.

Under Choshu's guidance, NJPW regularly sold out the Tokyo Dome, claiming a mammoth 63,000 attendance for the 1993 January 4th show. Even during the Gedo & Jado led revival, Wrestle Kingdom has yet to match such numbers.