10 Wrestlers Who Took The Fall To Make Others Look Good
4. Tomohiro Ishii
Ladies and gentlemen, may we present Tomohiro Ishii! He's the one on the left, getting the living sh*t slapped out of him.
In many ways, that screenshot is the perfect encapsulation of Ishii's career. Of all the wrestlers on this list, Ishii has had by far the least success in the ring. He's had flirtations with the main event, but they inevitably end up with Ishii staring at the lights before sliding back down the card.
Despite this - nay, because of this - Ishii is almost universally adored by wrestling fans. Everyone watching Ishii knows he has next to no chance of winning the big one, but his tenacity and fighting spirit make him one of the greatest underdogs in wrestling history. (Not for nothing is his nickname The Stone Pitbull). Combined with his world-class selling, where he manages to articulate the pain he's in with every twitch of his facial muscles, and you have the perfect character for generating audience sympathy.
Ishii may never be a heavyweight champion, but he'll always be the people's champion. (No offense to The Rock, but let's face it - most people have more in common with Tomohiro Ishii than they do with Dwayne Johnson).