Someone who was both helped and eventually hurt by Inokism was Bob Sapp.
He probably wouldn't have appeared in New Japan without Inokism, but the way his only run with the IWGP Heavyweight Title ended wouldn't have happened without the worst type insanity we got out of Inokism. Sapp being forced to drop the title because he lost a really big MMA match is a choice on Inoki's part that gets my head shaking to this day. Within context of pretending that pro wrestling is real, the MMA loss shouldn't have had any effect on Sapp holding a title in New Japan.
Was Sapp a great pro wrestler? I wouldn't claim that he was, but I would claim that he was absolutely fun to watch in the ring. Had he managed to last in New Japan until the rise of Tanahashi I fully suspect that he would be looked back on with a lot of fondness by a lot of fans. Unlike a lot of other MMA guys who went into pro wrestling, Sapp seemed to understand what made pro wrestling work. More importantly he seemed to understand what his own strengths and weaknesses were when it came to being in a pro wrestling ring and how to deal with both.
by Wizardknee