Horst Hoffmann

[Grimmas]

PeteF3 said: "We have so little hard info on the continental Europe scene pre-1980, but all indications are that he was the biggest star of that era, in a time when you pretty much had to bring the goods from a technical standpoint to get pushed as hard as he did. As good of a pure mat technician as anyone who worked in Japan in the 1970's. Inventor or at least popularizer in a pro wrestling sense of the gutwrench suplex. Supposedly the inspiration for Misawa to sport long green tights."

[Jetlag]

All too little footage of him. He looks like a beast in his one French appearance. The AJPW stuff was right before he quit wrestling. In Germany, he was arguably the most succesful promoters golden boy and wrestled in front of millions each year, a golden era of which we have nothing. I like him in the AJPW stuff, but it feels like judging Lawler without Memphis.

[EnviousStupid]

I feel confident calling him the best I've ever seen with too limited amount of footage to consider on my list. But I'd implore everyone not familiar with him to seek out all his available matches.

vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (December 9th 1975)

vs. Dory Funk Jr. (December 15th 1975)

vs. The Destroyer (December 17th 1975)

vs. Giant Baba (December 18th 1975)

w/ Billy Robinson vs. Akihisa Takachiho & Mighty Inoue (December 2nd 1977)

w/ Billy Robinson vs. The Funks (December 6th 1977)

w/ Billy Robinson vs. Abdullah the Butcher & The Sheik (December 14th 1977)

[El McKell]

I think you're just missing one of his available matches: