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Yokozuna was one of the biggest–literally and figuratively–that the WWE, and wrestling at large, had ever seen. He was a two-time WWF Champion having beaten the likes of Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan to capture the titles, with his second reign lasting eight months.
The man behind the character, Rodney Anoaʻi, is also considered a man with a big heart. Anoa’i passed away in 2000, but his dynasty lives on in the Rock, Roman Reigns, and The Usos. Following the Royal Rumble this Sunday, WWE debuts a new original series called WWE Icons. The premiere episode is about Yokozuna. Check out the trailer below.
The Wrap also previewed a clip of the episode where Rikishi (real name Solofa F. Fatu Jr.) talked about how Anoa’i helped his entire family when he started to make it big and how everybody benefited.
“He was so level-headed, so humble,” Fatu said. “He took his platform and he shared with people that he loved, he helped people who were in need. Everybody, and I mean everybody–our whole clan, everything changed for everybody.”
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He then talked about how Yokozuna had helped him after he moved into a new home that had a faulty heating system in place. “I had no heat. Rodney…he gave me a blank check and signed it. I put in a new system. My family and my kids got heat in the house. He was around for me when times were hard for me.”
Anoai’ passed away in October 2000 and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2012. WWE Icons will have career retrospectives this season of the likes of Rob Van Dam, British Bulldog, Beth Phoenix, and Lex Luger.
Make sure to come back to GameSpot on January 31 for live coverage and a review of the Royal Rumble. Then, after the show, stay tuned for a special episode of the Wrestle Buddies podcast, where we break down the Royal Rumble and what we thought of it.
