Former WWE Wrestler Ryan Sakoda Passes Away
He was 48-years-old
Sep 28, 2021
Former WWE and Wrestling Society X star Ryan Keiji Sakoda has sadly passed away.
Sakoda, according to an obituary posted on Fukui Mortuary, passed away on September 2 2021 at 48 years old. There has been no word or confirmation on the cause of death.
Perhaps best known for his brief run in WWE, Sakoda initially worked for the promotion as an enhancement talent in 2003 before signing in 2004, aligning with Akiro - who would become known as Jimmy Wang Yang - and acting as back-up for Tajiri on SmackDown.
The duo worked in the tag-team division on the blue brand, competing with the likes of Paul London and Brian Kendrick, The Dudley Boyz, Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty and The FBI.
Sakoda was released in August 2004. After his time in WWE, he returned to ZERO-1, where he was a member of Team Emblem along with Shinjiro Otani and Masato Tanaka.
Sakoda was also part of the MTV Wrestling Society X series that aired for a single season. After WWE and WSX, Sakoda continued to wrestle in the California wrestling scene until September 2007.
At the time of his passing, Ryan was working at a restaurant in Disney's Grand California Hotel.
The thoughts and sympathies of everyone at Cultaholic are with the friends, family and fans of Ryan Sakoda at this difficult time.
