7 Best Ever NJPW Gaijin Wrestlers

The Lariat was far more decorated in rival All Japan than he was in New Japan, and it is his exploits in Giant Baba's organisation that he is most revered for. Despite that, Hansen still had a damn fine career in NJPW, wrestling hundreds of matches for the organisation in the late '70s and early '80s. True to form, most of these were wild brawls which usually involved Hansen punching guys really hard in the face and head.

The WWE Hall of Famer wrestled all of the big names of the day, including Inoki, Andre the Giant, Adbullah the Butcher, and later Vader. He also formed a team with a young Hulk Hogan, entering into the 1980 MSG Tag League. Amazingly, Hansen didn't win any championships or tournaments in New Japan. That, along with an improved financial offer, prompted him to move to the competition in 1981.

Hansen did have another short NJPW run as an All Japan competitor in 1990, the highlights of which were a couple of matches with Vader, a huge Tokyo Dome match with Hogan (who was then full-time with WWE) and an untelevised affair teaming with the Pegasus Kid against Keiji Mutoh and Masahiro Chono (guess who took the fall in that one).

An All Japan legend, but a man with a hell of a New Japan career as well, he is one of few that have found immense success in both companies.