For Eastside freshman Grayson Sloan, wrestling is in his blood.
Just not the type of wrestling one might think.
Sloan has had a great freshman season for the Eagles, racking up a winning record and placing second in Greenville County for the 127-lb weight class.
His background in the sport is, to say the least, unique.
Sloan’s grandpa was also a wrestler — quite a famous one.
“Grandpa Fuji is what he and his brothers always called him,” said Grayson’s mom, Kelli. “To them, he was always just grandpa.”
Grayson’s grandfather was legendary WWE Hall of Fame wrestler and manager, Mr. Fuji.
Mr. Fuji — whose real name was Harry Fujiwara — had a career in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) that spanned over a decade and a half. He was an in-ring competitor until 1985, but after giving up the wrestling aspect of his career, he became one of the most successful heel managers in federation history.
Mr. Fuji, during his managerial days which he was most famous for, was rarely seen without his cane. He'd hit opponents with it, along with often blowing salt in their eyes.
Fujiwara managed some of the most popular wrestlers of the day, including “The Magnificent” Don Muraco and Yokozuna.
Grayson was just five years old when his grandfather passed away in 2016. But Fujiwara’s legacy lives on for the freshman Eagle. Grayson has watched many of his grandfather’s best wrestling matches and highlights. He’s an avid WWE fan today, with his favorite current wrestler being Roman Reigns.
Grayson’s memories with Fujiwara are limited. But Kelli has shared many of her favorite memories with him, keeping his legacy alive for her second-born son.
“I know he liked to eat a lot,” said Grayson, laughing. “And I know he loved to go to expensive, fancy restaurants all the time.”
Kelli’s twin brother, Kevin, shared a story of when he was younger, and Fujiwara took him to a sushi restaurant in Knoxville, TN. Fujiwara spent over $500.
It was “all you can eat” sushi. That is, until restaurant employees saw just how much sushi the 270-lb wrestling legend could devour.
“I’ll never forget, they came up to me and dad [Mr. Fuji] and said, ‘No more sushi! Just all you can eat Chinese from now on,” said Kevin. “That man could absolutely tear through food.”
But for as good a father — and eater of food — Fujiwara was, he was an even better father to Kelli and Kevin. He was that good of a person, too.
Kevin Fujiwara (left) sits with twin sister Kelli with their father, Harry Fujiwara aka Mr. Fuji.
“In wrestling, he always played the heel, the bad guy,” said Kevin. “But in real life, he was the type of guy who would take his shirt off his back and give it to you.”
“He had a big, big heart. And to me, it seemed weird,” said Kelli. “Because to us, he was just our dad. But to the rest of the world, he’s this super famous guy. But he was just a very generous, very charismatic person. I don’t think we truly knew growing up just how special it was, what he was doing in wrestling.”
It’s not often the Sloan family brings up its family wrestling royalty. Kelli’s married now, to Chris Sloan, but she’s still got the Fujiwara middle name. Unless it comes up in conversation, it’s rare that she mentions who her father is to people.
The same goes for Grayson, who isn’t actually sure if any of his wrestling teammates know his granddad is a WWE legend. It’s not something he brings up.
“If I did tell them,” said Grayson. “I’m not sure if they’d even believe me.”
Grayson is busy forming his own wrestling path, anyway.
He was once an Eastside youth wrestler, looking up to the high school Eagles and watching all their matches. He gave then-Eastside star wrestlers fist bumps after pins and tech falls.
Now, Grayson wears the uniform he always dreamed of putting on.
“For Grayson to be a part of Eastside wrestling, he was so excited,” said Kelli. “This has always been a dream of his. It’s been a learning curve, but a blessing for him to be part of the program.
“When he was little, this is who he wanted to be. Now he gets to live it out.”
He’s got the individual state qualifiers coming up. He already has his mind set on what he wants to accomplish to finish the season.
“I really want to place at the [individual] state championships,” he said. “That’s my goal for the year.”
Grayson Sloan (second from left) smiles with Bennett Hyde, Ean Johanning, and Bennett Brame after a match. The four of them are all freshman for Eastside this year.
“Grayson seems to be comfortable already just as a freshman,” said Eastside wrestling head coach Jack Kosmicki. “He’s been strong in practice. He’s been strong in matches. He has the technique and can give six hard minutes. He’s a confident, confident kid.”
Grayson shrugged when asked if he could ever see himself following in Fujiwara’s footsteps — trading the pin for the powerbomb and pursuing a legacy WWE career. He sees himself wrestling in college at a Division I program. After that, who knows?
For the time being, his next big goal awaits on the mat starting this weekend. Individual upper state qualifiers begin on Friday.
No matter what happens for Grayson, however, he can be confident that someone is watching over him, smiling at who he’s become.
“I know, without a doubt, my dad would be so proud of Grayson and who he’s become,” said Kelli. “He would have loved getting to see him wrestle and continue on that legacy.”
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