He [Rikidozan] was also heavily tied in to the Yakuza, which ultimately led to his murder. Over disagreements about money and control of the wrestling business, Rikidozan had angered the wrong people. A Yakuza member urinated on a knife, to make sure it would cause an infection, and stabbed Rikidozan in the stomach in a night club hallway. After the stabbing, Rikidozan beat the shit out of the guy who stabbed him while the crowd cheered and then threw the guy out of the club. He then got on stage, announced he'd been stabbed and acted like it was no big thing and continued partying and drinking with a crowd of adoring fans. But he made a fatal mistake by not getting medical attention, contracted peritonitis from the dirty knife, and got an infection and died a week later. His death nearly killed the entire wrestling industry in Japan, especially after the real stories about his life became known to the public (they all worshiped Rikidozan as a sports hero and in reality, he was basically a merciless mob boss who was into a lot of shady shit). Most major arenas no longer allowed pro wrestling and with the biggest star ever dead, the business nearly died with him until Giant Baba and, later, Inoki revived it during the JWA years in the late-1960s.

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