| Name | Stan Hansen |
| Style | Hard-hitting, brawling |
| Legacy | Influential gaijin (foreign) wrestler in Japan, cemented the legacy of the Never Openweight title |
| Rivalries | |
| Occupation | Professional wrestler |
| Nationality | American |
| Active years | Late 20th century |
| Championships | Never Openweight Championship |
| Greatest success in |
Stan Hansen was an American professional wrestler best known for his prolific career in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), one of the most prestigious and influential promotions in Japanese puroresu. Though he never achieved the same level of fame in the United States, Hansen became a legendary figure in Japan due to his hard-hitting, brawling style, intense persona, and major accomplishments, including winning the promotion's prestigious Never Openweight Championship.
Stan Hansen was born in Pemberton, Ohio in 1949 and had a successful amateur wrestling career in high school and college. He began his professional wrestling training in the early 1970s, working for regional promotions in the American Midwest before joining the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in 1973.
During his time in the NWA, Hansen developed a reputation as a rugged, no-nonsense brawler with a penchant for using a lariat (or "Hammer Throw") clothesline as his signature move. He found some success, but never quite broke through to the top echelon of American professional wrestling in this period.
In 1976, Hansen made the fateful decision to travel to Japan and try his luck in the country's thriving puroresu scene. He soon signed with the prestigious All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) promotion, which was founded by legendary wrestler Giant Baba.
Adopting the persona of a wild, unstoppable gaijin (foreign) wrestler, Hansen quickly became a major draw in AJPW. His hard-hitting, stiff wrestling style and aggressive, no-nonsense demeanor made him an immediate standout, and he soon found himself in high-profile feuds with some of the promotion's top stars.
Over the next two decades, Hansen established himself as one of the biggest draws and most influential wrestlers in AJPW history. He won the NWA International Heavyweight Championship three times and the AJPW Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship on two occasions, cementing his status as an all-time great in the promotion.
However, Hansen's most significant accomplishment was winning the Never Openweight Championship, AJPW's premier title. In 1983, he defeated Genichiro Tenryu, the inaugural champion, in a hard-fought match that kicked off a legendary rivalry between the two men. Hansen would go on to hold the Never Openweight title three times, his reigns helping to establish the championship's prestige and importance.
Hansen's battles with Genichiro Tenryu for the Never Openweight Championship are considered some of the greatest matches in AJPW history. The two men's contrasting styles - Hansen's brawling, power-based approach against Tenryu's more technical, high-flying offense - produced several epic clashes that are still remembered fondly by puroresu fans.
Their trilogy of Never Openweight title matches in the mid-1980s is particularly acclaimed, with Hansen's victories in 1983 and 1986 bookending Tenryu's lone reign. The intensity and drama of these contests helped cement the Never Openweight Championship's status as one of the most prestigious prizes in all of Japanese wrestling.
Though he never achieved the same level of mainstream fame as some of his American contemporaries, Stan Hansen is revered in Japan as one of the greatest gaijin wrestlers of all time. His influence and contributions to AJPW and the Never Openweight title's legacy are immense.
Hansen's hard-hitting, no-nonsense approach inspired countless younger wrestlers, who sought to emulate his intensity and toughness. Many of AJPW's top stars of the 1980s and 1990s, such as Jumbo Tsuruta, Mitsuharu Misawa, and Kenta Kobashi, credited Hansen as a major influence on their development.
Even after his retirement in 1993, Hansen's legacy continued to shape the direction of Japanese wrestling. The Never Openweight Championship, in particular, remains an important part of AJPW's identity, with wrestlers still eager to capture the title that Hansen helped make famous.
While he may not have achieved the same level of stardom outside of Japan, Stan Hansen is undoubtedly remembered as one of the all-time greats of puroresu - a true icon whose impact on the sport in the Land of the Rising Sun is unlikely to be forgotten.
