The Champion Futo

(from amazon.jp):

"Please make me your disciple!"

Tai Daito, a boy who has won all the national titles with his exceptional athletic talent, joins Rikidozan as his apprentice to prove that he can defeat even a big man with his techniques. With the encouragement of his younger brother Goro, a young girl named Ruriko who takes care of orphans, and Rikidozan, Tai makes a successful debut.

However, in order to become a top-class wrestler, he develops a special move called "Knockout Q."

In front of him, strong opponents such as Chief Shinigami, Mr. 50 Megaton, Smiley Akatsuki, a practical judo master, and other villainous wrestlers, challenge Tai, Rikidozan and the rest of the Japanese wrestling world.

Will Tai be able to defeat his opponents in the world of Japanese wrestling with "Knockout Q"?

It is the debut work of manga writer Ikki Kajiwara, and was serialized in Kodansha's "Weekly Shonen Magazine" in 1962. With art by Tatsuo Yoshida, the duo would later team up once more for "Harris Mudan".

"Champion Futo" features real-life characters, including Rikidozan, the king of professional wrestling, who was a national hero at the time, as major characters, and uses scientific evidence for the special moves in "Champion Futo".

This technique can be seen in Kajiwara's later works as well, and "Champion Futo" can be regarded as a model for Kajiwara's works.

After this work, Ikki Kajiwara went on to become a popular writer, writing many masterpieces such as "Tommorow's Joe", "Star of the Giants", and "Karate Master".

Also adapted into a very popular J-Drama, link to the series box set on Amazon here.