- Rikidozan vs. Jess Ortega [CLIPPED]

2 Out of 3 Falls 1955 Mainichi Cup Decision Match Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance International Big Competition Series 1955 Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium The big singles match after the prelude tag. This Ortega fellow mainly worked in the midwest of the US, wrestling for very regional titles and having multiple names. Like Jesse Ortega, or Jesus Ortega, or The Great Ursus, so on and so forth. To me, him being chosen as a Rikidozan opponent gives an insight into how JWA had their finger on the pulse of what was going on in America, that people whose legacy would not make it into the modern canon of the territories were seen as good choices to fly in and build up. It wasn’t just hey lets fly in Lou Thesz, they had many eggs in the basket for Rikidozan to pin. Okay maybe that analogy is a bit tortured Anyway, in this match Rikidozan does a chop and it sounds like a crack of thunder