4 Reasons WWE Should Have Hired The Great Muta

The Great Muta is one of wrestling’s biggest legends, but sadly he has never wrestled in a WWE ring. Imagine what could’ve been if he did.

There’s a very good reason why you’ll find the Great Muta’s biography on WWE’s web page, even though Muta himself never wrestled in a single WWE match. For over thirty years, the man behind the gimmick, Keiji Mutoh, has been wrestling around the world, bouncing back and forth between wrestling under his real name and under his legendary gimmick.

The Great Muta is a legendary character, one whose popularity in Japan can be considered akin to the Undertaker’s mythos in North America. He really is that popular.

So popular, in fact, that he continues to get huge reaction wherever he goes, even if he’s wrestling well into his 50s. Muta has become a legend in Japan, and is still revered by American fans. Most people know him from his work in WCW and NWA, but believe it or not, there was a time when Muta was considering signing with WWE.

After WCW misused him completely in the tail end of 1999 and much of 2000, Muta was contemplating a career change. He was interested in working for Vince McMahon, and actually, would have signed a contract if possible. However, his WCW contract included a strict no-complete clause, which legally prevented him from signing with Vince, even after he was released.

So instead of working for WWE, Mutoh went back to Japan and contemplated his future even more. But instead of calling it a career, he shaved his head, adopted a more technical wrestling style, and invented the Shining Wizard. Since then, he has become a bona fide puroresu legend, even as he struggles somewhat to enter the ring at his age.

But despite that overwhelming success, there are some who wonder what would’ve happened if Muta signed with WWE. Would he have been a success, or would he have followed in the footsteps of WWE’s earlier attempts with Japanese wrestlers?

There are many people that think Muta would’ve become another version of Tajiri or Yoshi Tatsu, an ethnic stereotype without much character. But that wouldn’t have happened with Muta. Had he signed with WWE, he’d be coming in with a gimmick he created and knew how to play. If anything, Muta would’ve been a great success, and WWE lost a huge chance at success by not giving him a second thought.