Trivia / Keiji Mutoh

• Hostility on the Set:
  • Both in kayfabe and real life, Nobuhiko Takada has been a lifelong enemy to Mutoh, starting on the times where Takada was his sempai at the NJPW Dojo (Mutoh later said he was glad that Takada, Akira Maeda and other seniors left for UWF, because they were scary bullies who only wanted to beat people up). After Takada's return, the now experienced Mutoh was unwilling to stomach any more crap, and they had an infamous Bar Brawl as a result; and things didn't improve when Takada departed again, as they became bitter rivals in the feud between NJPW and UWF International. They finally reconciled before Takada's retirement, though continued playing opposing characters in HUSTLE.
  • Genichiro Tenryu was another real life foe, as he didn't forgive Mutoh for receiving the spot of AJPW chairman instead of him. Tenryu would ended up leaving due to this.
• Screwed by the Network: There was a push to make him NWA World Heavyweight Champion since he first started in the member promotions but someway or another, there was always someone influential enough to keep it from happening.
• What Could Have Been:
  • There is a rumor that he was originally chosen to do the Jushin Liger gimmick instead of Keiichi Yamada, but that he disapproved of the decision and refused.
  • He was actually the original choice to run the SWS promotion, but Seiji Sakaguchi made a call and blocked the signing.
  • With his growing popularity in the NWA during his 1989 stint, there was talk about turning him face. Jim Cornette has mentioned that the one thing he wholeheartedly agreed with Head Booker Jim Herd about was that he had enormous potential of being a top face, but was talked into refusing the turn by his manager Gary Hart.
  • After returning from WCW in 2000, for some reason he apparently wanted to fight Naoya Ogawa under Vale Tudo rules, but it never happened since Ogawa was not interested.