"Ashita no Joe" has been considered one of the most influential manga, with many anime and manga referencing it. For the animated adaptation of the manga "Naruto", animator Atsushi Wakabayashi from Pierrot said he was influenced by "Ashita no Joe". This was mostly because the staff members were fans of the series and felt the character Naruto Uzumaki to be close to the type of archetype they rooted for when watching the series. As a result, Wakabayashi and the rest of the staff members made Naruto stand out in episode 133 where there was too much focus in his fight against Sasuke Uchiha, whom he shared an intense rivalry. The opening sequence of Osamu Dezaki's film also influenced anime director Gorō Taniguchi during the production of '. Joe was also a major influence in Kyo Kusanagi, the main character of SNK's fighting game series, "The King of Fighters". Anime director Kenji Kamiyama, most known for the ' series, cited the original anime among the 15 best anime of all time.