Yokozuna Rodney Agatupu Anoa ' i ( October 2 , 1966 – October 23 , 2000 ) was an American professional wrestler . He was best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) where he wrestled under the ring name Yokozuna . The term " yokozuna " refers to the highest rank in professional sumo wrestling in Japan . Although the " Yokozuna " character was portrayed as a champion sumo wrestler , Anoa ' i had never competed as an actual " sumotori " . Though Yokozuna wrestled as a representative of Japan , he was of Samoan origin and was accordingly billed as hailing from Polynesia ( although he was managed by Mr . Fuji , who would follow Anoa ' i to the ring with a wooden bucket of salt , and waving a Japanese flag ) . In the WWF , Anoa ' i was a two - time WWF Champion and two - time Tag Team Champion ( with Owen Hart ) , as well as the winner of the 1993 Royal Rumble . Anoa ' i was the first wrestler of Samoan descent to hold the WWF Championship as well as the first Royal Rumble winner to receive a world title shot at WrestleMania , as a result of a direct stipulation . Career . American Wrestling Association ( 1984 – 1992 ) . Anoa ' i ' s career in professional wrestling began as he grew up in a family full of wrestlers . His uncles were the Wild Samoans , Afa and Sika , who trained him from an early age in the family business . Anoa ' i took on the name of the Great Kokina while wrestling overseas in Japan . He also spent some time in Mexico learning the craft and gaining the experience necessary to be a star in the sport . His first major exposure in the United States came in the American Wrestling Association ( AWA ) as Kokina Maximus . Wrestling as a Samoan superstar , he was managed by Sheik Adnan El Kassey . His biggest achievement at that time was the kayfabe breaking of Greg Gagne ' s leg and ending his career . At the time , he weighed less than 400 lb ( 180 kg ) , which was lean in comparison to his weight later in life ( during his WWF career , he weighed between 500 lb ( 230 kg ) and perhaps as much as 800 lb ( 360 kg ) at his heaviest ) . World Wrestling Federation ( 1992 – 1998 ) . Early Push ( 1992 – 1993 ) . In 1992 , Anoa ' i was contacted by Vince McMahon of the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) and was offered a new gimmick : Yokozuna . Managed by Harry Fujiwara ( Mr . Fuji ) , Yokozuna debuted on the October 31 , 1992 edition of Superstars , defeating jobber Bill Jordan , and was announced as a sumo wrestler competing under the Japanese flag . He made his pay - per - view debut at Survivor Series , easily defeating the much smaller Virgil . Yokozuna ' s career soon took off , and he headed into 1993 ' s Royal Rumble , where he was billed as a potential favorite . He eliminated Randy Savage to win the Rumble , cementing his movement towards main event status . Soon after , Yokozuna further solidified his status as a monstrous villain by crushing the American hero " Hacksaw " Jim Duggan with four Banzai Drops , the fourth being with the American flag draped over Duggan . WWF Champion ( 1993 – 1994 ) . At WrestleMania IX , Yokozuna faced off against Bret Hart for the WWF Championship . Hart had the match won with Yokozuna about to submit to the Sharpshooter , when Mr . Fuji threw salt into the champion ' s face . Blinded , Hart was then pinned by Yokozuna , who won the WWF Championship in a major upset , officially becoming the seventeenth WWF Champion . As he and Mr . Fuji celebrated , Hulk Hogan came to the ring to help Hart and was challenged by Mr Fuji to take on the champion for his newly won crown . After Fuji accidentally threw salt in Yokozuna ' s eyes , Hogan came through with the win and captured his fifth WWF title . At King of the Ring 1993 , Yokozuna , whose billed weight increased from 500 lb ( 230 kg ) to 550 lb ( 250 kg ) , challenged Hogan for the title . Once again , Hogan seemed to be in control , but the champion underestimated the deceitful tactics of Mr . Fuji . A " Japanese photographer " posing as a member of the legitimate Japanese wrestling press and planted at ringside by the group , aimed his lens at Hogan and pressed a button , shooting a blast of fire into his face . This allowed Yokozuna to take Hogan out with a leg drop and reclaim the WWF Championship , after which Yokozuna proceeded to hit Hogan with the Banzai Drop in the corner . Soon after , Hogan left the WWF to pursue other interests ( WCW ) , which left Yokozuna and Fuji to claim that they had ended " Hulkamania " ( to wit , that would be Hogan ' s last appearance in the WWF for nine years ) . To celebrate , he held a " Bodyslam Competition " aboard the USS Intrepid on Independence Day . Many wrestlers and athletes alike tried to slam Yokozuna , with no success . As Yokozuna thought that there would be no one left to challenge him , Lex Luger flew in by helicopter , stepped forward , and slammed him on the deck . It was claimed by announcer Bobby Heenan that the move pulled by Luger was a hip toss rather than a bodyslam as Yokozuna was running at Luger when he slammed him , but the slam was ruled legitimate . This made Luger the next major challenger to Yokozuna ' s title reign . At SummerSlam , Yokozuna and the newly - reborn patriot Luger fought it out for the WWF Championship . Luger took control late in the match , scoring on Yokozuna with a bodyslam and flying forearm . Luger had metal plates put into his arm following an injury from a motorcycle accident , making it a formidable weapon ( it was stipulated that Luger had to wear a protective pad over it , but it was torn off in the course of the match ) and Yokozuna was knocked out of the ring , unconscious , and lost via countout . The title did not change hands , but the match ' s result made it seem like Luger had a chance against his gigantic foe . The contract Luger had signed for the match , as orchestrated by Yokozuna ' s new spokesman and advisor Jim Cornette , stated that if he did not win the championship , he would not get another shot at the title . Yokozuna and Luger continued to feud until Survivor Series , where each chose a team of allies for an elimination match . The match was billed as an All - Americans ( Lex Luger , The Undertaker and Steiner Brothers ) vs . Foreign Fanatics ( Yokozuna , Quebecer Jacques , Ludvig Borga and Crush ) contest . Yokozuna ' s next challenger was The Undertaker . The two first squared off against each other as parts of their respective teams at Survivor Series . Prior to the match starting , the two stood nose - to - nose as a tease to the crowd as to the possibility of those two facing each other . The Undertaker , however , was not tagged into the match until after it was just him and Luger on the American Team . When the Undertaker entered , he beat down on Ludvig Borga but was knocked down by Yokozuna . Yokozuna then gave the Undertaker a Banzai Drop , but the Undertaker sat up when Yokozuna went for a second Banzai Drop . The two then brawled outside , where Yokozuna seemed to be completely over - matched . They were both eliminated by double countout . Eventually , Yokozuna was forced to accept a Casket match with the Undertaker . The match occurred at Royal Rumble , where all the odds looked to be in the Undertaker ' s favor . However , after a lengthy match , Mr . Fuji called out the troops , bringing a dozen heel wrestlers out to aid Yokozuna in attacking the Undertaker . After a lot of struggle ( as well as damaging the Undertaker ' s " magic " urn ) , the group managed to shove the Undertaker into the casket , giving the win to Yokozuna . As they celebrated afterwards , however , a mysterious figure appeared on the Titantron , looking like the Undertaker inside the casket . He opened his eyes and said the Undertaker would not rest in peace ; he then disappeared in a smoke and light show , rising to the top of the Titantron and seemingly levitating all the way to the arena ceiling . He then vanished . This storyline was used to allow the Undertaker to rest for several months to recover from lingering real - life injuries . In the 1994 Royal Rumble match , the last two competitors , Lex Luger and Bret Hart , fought and eliminated each other simultaneously . Since the winner of the Royal Rumble was to become the number one contender to Yokozuna ' s title , it was decided that both wrestlers would get a shot at the title at WrestleMania X . By virtue of winning a coin toss , Luger got to wrestle Yokozuna first at the event . The winner of that match would go on to face Bret Hart later in the evening with the title on the line . To obviate the risk of outside interference , both title matches were scheduled to have special guest referees . Mr . Perfect was the special guest referee for the Luger / Yokozuna bout . Luger seemed to have the match well in hand and had knocked out Yokozuna with a running forearm smash in the middle of the ring . He also knocked out Mr . Fuji and Jim Cornette , who tried to enter the ring . However , when Luger went for the pin , Perfect occupied himself with the unconscious Fuji and Cornette who were still lying on the ring apron . When Luger got angry and pushed Mr . Perfect , he was disqualified , thus making Yokozuna the first villainous champion to successfully defend the WWF Championship at a WrestleMania . Later in the night , Yokozuna defended the championship again , this time against the former champion Bret " Hitman " Hart , who had lost earlier in the night to his brother Owen Hart . For this match , Roddy Piper was the special referee . When Cornette tried to interfere to break a pinfall , Piper decked him . At the end of the match , Yokozuna seemed ready to hit his finishing maneuver , the Banzai Drop , when he lost his balance and took a fall from the ropes . Hart got the pinfall victory , finally taking the title away from the long - running champion who reigned for 280 days . Afterwards on television , Cornette would blame the fall on a concussion suffered from Luger ' s forearm plate . Tag team competition and The Undertaker ' s return ( 1994 ) . Yokozuna began tagging briefly with Crush , another Mr . Fuji charge . In May 1994 , on a " Monday Night Raw " episode , Yokozuna was challenged by Earthquake to an actual sumo match . On May 16 , 1994 , Earthquake beat Yokozuna in the only ( worked ) sumo match until WrestleMania 21 , between The Big Show and an actual " yokozuna " , Akebono . At King of the Ring 1994 , Yokozuna and Crush failed to win the WWF Tag Team Championship from The Headshrinkers ( Samu and Fatu ) . Yokozuna then had to deal with the " rebirth " of the Undertaker , who immediately came after the foe who had taken him out of action . The two met in another casket match at the Survivor Series , this time with actor / karate expert Chuck Norris as the special enforcer to keep the other heel wrestlers away from ringside . Without their help ( although Irwin R . Schyster did successfully interfere on Yokozuna ' s behalf ) , Yokozuna could not win and eventually ended up locked inside the casket . Yokozuna continued to wrestle briefly before taking some time off . Teaming with Owen Hart ( 1995 ) . In April 1995 , Owen Hart began promising that he would have a great tag - team partner to face off against The Smoking Gunns ( Billy and Bart ) at WrestleMania XI for the WWF Tag Team Championship . At the event , Yokozuna was revealed as his partner , and the team managed to defeat the Gunns and win the WWF Tag Team Championship . Following the match , Jim Cornette stated , " Michael Jordan ' s back and so is Yokozuna " ( a reference to Jordan ' s first NBA return ) . The two would remain a tough tag team for a few months , defending against teams like the Allied Powers ( Lex Luger and Davey Boy Smith ) , and others . Still , by this point it was obvious that Yokozuna was no longer in great shape , having gained too much weight ( he was estimated to be at around 700 lb ( 320 kg ) at this point , although he was billed at 641 lb ( 291 kg ) . At In Your House 3 on September 24 , 1995 , Yokozuna teamed up with Davey Boy Smith to take on Shawn Michaels and Diesel ( the back story being that Hart was with his wife as she gave birth to one of their children ) with Diesel ' s WWF Championship , Shawn Michaels ' Intercontinental Championship and Hart and Yokozuna ' s Tag Team Championship on the line . During the match , Hart came to the ring , only to be pinned by Diesel . The next day , due to protests from the team and the legal help of Clarence Mason , President Gorilla Monsoon reluctantly returned the belts to Yokozuna and Hart , since Hart was not an official part of the match . Their second reign was shorter , as the Smoking Gunns defeated them that night for the belts . Face Turn and Departure ( 1996 – 1998 ) . Yokozuna had little continued success in 1996 . He competed in the 1996 Royal Rumble match , managing to eliminate Bob Backlund , King Mabel , and Swat Team member # 2 before being tossed out by Shawn Michaels , the eventual winner . Although Cornette had tried to make peace between him and new acquisition Vader , many observers felt Yokozuna was being relegated . After several run - ins , Yokozuna left Cornette and began a short stint as a fan favorite . He spoke English to the fans , had Mr . Fuji wave an American flag during his matches , and challenged Vader to numerous matches . It was during this feud that Yokozuna teamed up with Ahmed Johnson and Jake Roberts in a six - man tag - team match at WrestleMania XII , facing off with Vader , Owen Hart and British Bulldog . The feud took a painful turn a couple weeks later , when Vader jumped on Yokozuna ' s leg , supposedly breaking it . A forklift had to come down to ringside to lift Yokozuna out , showing how his weight had gotten out of control . He took some time off to slim down . He reappeared at the " Free for All " just before SummerSlam , facing off against Stone Cold Steve Austin . Yokozuna took the advantage near the end of the match , but when he went for the Banzai Drop , the rope broke , sending him crashing back down . Austin attained the victory . The next night on " Raw " , Yokozuna faced Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship . Despite using his big size , Yokozuna lost the match to Michaels . He would appear at one more WWF pay - per - view , still going after Vader at the 1996 Survivor Series , but that match ended with all remaining wrestlers being disqualified . Yokozuna stayed on the WWF roster for a while afterwards , as he worked to lose the weight that he had put on . Despite dropping a reported 100 lb ( 45 kg ) , he still could not lose enough to satisfy the WWF officials . He was unable to pass a physical required for professional wrestlers by the New York State Athletic Commission and was eventually released from the WWF in 1998 , although rumors persisted that he would be brought back if he lost enough weight . Independent circuit ( 1999 – 2000 ) . After his WWF career ended , he performed for various independent promotions . The last major appearance for Yokozuna was at October 1999 ' s Heroes of Wrestling pay - per - view , where he looked massively overweight compared to his WWF days . At the event , Yokozuna tagged with Jake Roberts against the team of King Kong Bundy and Jim Neidhart . Personal life . Anoa ' i was a member of the famous Anoa ' i family : The Rock , Rikishi , Samu , Rosey , Manu , and Umaga were among his cousins , and Afa and Sika were his uncles . He had two children , Justin and Keilani . Death . On October 23 , 2000 , Anoa ' i died from pulmonary edema in his room at the Moat House Hotel in Liverpool , England while on an independent wrestling tour in Europe . At the time , it was widely reported that he died of heart failure or a heart attack , but this was later found to be incorrect due to his lungs showing severe signs of blockage due to fluid . Anoa ' i ' s weight at the time of his death was 580 lb ( 260 kg ) . Legacy . The Yokozuna Memorial Show was held in Allentown , Pennsylvania in November 2001 , shortly after the first anniversary of Anoa ' i ' s death . It was presented by the independent promotion World Xtreme Wrestling , although matches included wrestlers from multiple promotions . On March 31 , 2012 , Yokozuna was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by his cousins , The Usos and Rikishi . Yokozuna is notable for being the only man to defeat both Hulk Hogan and Bret " The Hitman " Hart , two of the most popular wrestlers and biggest draws in wrestling history , for the WWF / WWE championship ; both matches occurred in the same year . He is also the first man to defeat The Undertaker in a casket match ( Undertaker ' s own specialty match ) , taking place at the 1994 Royal Rumble and successfully defending the WWF championship , although he was assisted by numerous heel wrestlers with the company at the time such as Bam Bam Bigelow , Crush , Diesel and Jeff Jarrett .