Ring name(s) Seiji Sakaguchi Name Seiji Sakaguchi Retired March 15, 1990 Billed height 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Role Professional wrestler Billed from Tokyo | Billed weight 130 kg (290 lb) Height 1.96 m Children Kenji Sakaguchi Debut August 5, 1967 Weight 130 kg | |
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Born February 17, 1942 (age 82) Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan ( 1942-02-17 ) Similar Jan Wilkens, Osamu Kido, Antonio Inoki | ||
Seiji Sakaguchi (坂口征二, Sakaguchi Seiji, born February 17, 1942) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and judoka, Sakaguchi holds a 7th dan red and white belt in Judo. Sakaguchi was a mainstay of New Japan Pro Wrestling and also competed for the World Wide Wrestling Federation and the National Wrestling Alliance. His sons are professional wrestler and mixed martial arts fighter Yukio Sakaguchi and television actor Kenji Sakaguchi. Sakaguchi currently works for New Japan as an advisor.
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Before becoming a professional wrestler, he was a judoka with a fifth degree black belt and won the 1965 All Japan Judo Championship. Coach Koji Sone was accused by Anton Geesink's teammates in the 1965 World Judo Championships of having Sakaguchi throw the match against the more rested Matsunaga in order to allow Matsunaga take on the weary Geesink in the final round.
He debuted in August 1967 for the Japan Wrestling Association. When JWA closed down in 1973, he joined New Japan Pro Wrestling. He retired from the ring in March 1990. He was the president of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1992 to 1993.
At age 61, Seiji Sakaguchi came out of retirement to team up with Masahiro Chono against Yoshihiro Takayama and Shinya Makabe on September 14, 2003.
Sakaguchi also appeared in the 1982 American film Forced Vengeance. His role was a minor one, though he did appear in the film's climactic fight scene, battling star Chuck Norris.
