(JAPAN PRO) His specialty is the neck lock - Primo Carnera
15th August 1955
The Moving Alps
"Moving Alps" is a nickname that has been familiar to Japanese fans for over twenty years.
Primo Carnera, known as "The Moving Alps," first made his name known worldwide twenty three years ago on June 29, 1933, at the Garden Hall on Long Island, USA, when he defeated the reigning champion, Jack Sharkey, with a spectacular knockout and captured the World Heavyweight title.
Kanto's Champion(?)
However, Carnera, who became the 12th Heavyweight World Champion, lost his title the following year to Max Baer, who knocked him out in the 11th round. While steadily preparing to regain his title, he faced "The Brown Bomber" Joe Lewis, who was on a roll following a winning streak in Detroit.
Covered in blood, he kissed the canvas for a grand total of 2 minutes 32 seconds. After that, his name gradually faded and he left America, and after his final bout in Budapest in 1937, he hung up his gloves and retired to his native Italy. However, shortly after the end of World War II, news spread that Carnera, "The Moving Alps", had returned to the ring as a pro wrestler and was taking the US by storm.
After becoming a wrestler, Carnera quickly rose to stardom thanks to his lethal punches (he knocked out Ernie Schaaf, just before challenging Sharkey) and his massive, "moving Alps"-like body, an absolute requirement for a wrestler.
A former world heavyweight champion, his status as a professional wrestler is rock solid, he is said to earn hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, and he lives a luxurious and happy life in a mansion in Westwood with his wife and three children. But, after his loss to Joe Louis, he fell into a downward spiral. He was constantly exploited and used, and the shabby image he had when he left the United States is now a far cry from his former self, but I knew he would be big, since he was called the "Moving Alps," but when Carnera arrived at Haneda Airport he was even more monstrous than had been imagined. Azumafuji, who greeted him, looked like an ordinary person shaking hands with a giant. Azumafuji has become a wrestler and is said to have become so toned that he weighs 35 kan, but he hasn't become that small; the fact that he looks small is what makes him so great. He is about one inch shorter than Ouchiyama and weighs 35 kan, about three kan lighter, but strangely enough he looks bigger than Ouchiyama. Anyway, whoever came up with it, "The Moving Alps" is a brilliant nickname.
His special moves are headlocks followed by neck throws and chokeholds using both his log-like legs, but his throwing techniques such as Kakaenage* and hip tosses are also spectacular thanks to Carnera's size, and when he gets angry he has a right straight that is known as a "deadly punch." Of course, grabbing and thrusting are not allowed, but the fun of pro wrestling lies in the fact that foul play is allowed up to five times. After becoming a wrestler, Carnera became enraged when an opponent repeatedly committed fouls, causing him to instinctively throw a lethal punch, which sent all of his opponent's front teeth flying onto the mat and left him unable to get up. This makes for an interesting comparison with Rikidozan's Karate that knocked out Masahiko Kimura.
A Hard Expansion
Carnera was born on October 26, 1906, in the village of Carsas in the foothills of the Northern Italian Alps, to a family of stonemasons, which makes him forty-eight this year. His parents were shocked at his birth, as he weighed just 2.6 kan (approx. 1.6 lb). After some discussion, they decided to name him "Primo" (meaning "first" in Italian) since he was their firstborn. By the age of eight, he had grown to about the size of a normal adult. Because his family was poor, he had to work, but he didn't like the stoneworking he inherited from his parents, so he was sent to work as an apprentice at a furniture store. When World War I began in 1918, the family's poverty worsened, and his father went to Egypt, while Carnera went to France to work. While working as a laborer, Carnera's physique grew to a magnificent, supple figure by the time he turned 17, measuring over 6'5". His massive build caught the eye of Leon See, a French boxer, who coached him*. Carnera made his boxing debut in 1928, at the age of 21. Carnera, who easily knocked out Leon Sebilo, had an impressive record of 17 wins and one disqualification over the course of just over a year and a half, with 11 of those wins being by knockout. His talented manager aggressively promoted "Moving Alps" and he went to the United States in the hopes of winning the world heavyweight title, but in October 1931 he was knocked out by a powerful blow from John Sharkey and returned to Europe. He later made a fresh start and finally declared his ambition, but as a boxer Carnera was by no means a better boxer than previous champions. This actually helped him become a professional wrestler, and he has achieved the fame he enjoys today, but his 2000 boxing appearances as a boxer and over 1,000 as a wrestler make for a long career of over twenty years. However, Carnera is still in top form and the claims that he is coming to Japan for a retirement show are "completely false. I will decide how many more years I can do after consulting with my body."
Notes
Kakaenage: Sumo move
Leon See: He would drug Carnera's opponents, as he had very little faith in Carnera's abilities.
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