Who's the best professional wrestler ever?
- Thread starter DeaconKnowledge
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I think the rock is only second to HBK in regards to the amount of 4 star match ratings he got in one year. The Rock made everyone he worked with look like a million bucks. He put over Jericho in the WWE and had Hurricane getting legit pops. Trips buried both of them though.
The Incarnation
Member
The Miz....
Seriously though..
My personal fav,, Big Bossman.
DonasaurusRex
Online Ho Champ
I think theres definitely a top 5 at this point, Flair, HBK,Austin, Rock, and Hogan , i would say overall or best for business wrestlers. Now maybe youd say how great one is based on how many lists they made
for instance I think HBK would also be top 5 on in ring skills top 5, Hogan definitely top 5 for gimmick, Rock and Austin top 5 for mic skills. Flair would be top 5 for all of em. With wrestling i think its fair to say the all time top five are decided by their overall popularity because thats the name of the game , if these guys really used the moves on each other they'd all have 8month or less careers. Its all about drawing crowds. So whos the greatest based on
In ring
Mic skillz
Gimmick
drawing power
and icon status
That opens it up for other people , for instance Undertaker may be the all time greatest gimmick ....how it works and resonates with fans for 20 years i dont know but it does , even gave another guy a 15 year career.
Drawing power, in his day goldberg could fuckin draw a crowd, as could other sensational wrestlers that may not have been the best at well anything but people wanted to see them in the ring destroying someone or something. cough Road Warriors cough.
Icon status, you know this is all about Macho Man, we owe the attitude era to him and other icons like rody piper, mr perfect, jake the snake, Ravishing rick rude!!! they were good soldiers in that era of hogan, most just held the int title never the main event wwe title but their characters became classic, every era has them.
Mic skillz austin , and rock can overwhelm anyone on the mic cept for Macho Man he was the OG on the mic.
In ring, Bret Hart was like a super car in the ring, sean was great too, they both were but i like bret ever so slightly more than sean in ring. You could kinda see it on seans face that he felt other people thought so too.
for instance I think HBK would also be top 5 on in ring skills top 5, Hogan definitely top 5 for gimmick, Rock and Austin top 5 for mic skills. Flair would be top 5 for all of em. With wrestling i think its fair to say the all time top five are decided by their overall popularity because thats the name of the game , if these guys really used the moves on each other they'd all have 8month or less careers. Its all about drawing crowds. So whos the greatest based on
In ring
Mic skillz
Gimmick
drawing power
and icon status
That opens it up for other people , for instance Undertaker may be the all time greatest gimmick ....how it works and resonates with fans for 20 years i dont know but it does , even gave another guy a 15 year career.
Drawing power, in his day goldberg could fuckin draw a crowd, as could other sensational wrestlers that may not have been the best at well anything but people wanted to see them in the ring destroying someone or something. cough Road Warriors cough.
Icon status, you know this is all about Macho Man, we owe the attitude era to him and other icons like rody piper, mr perfect, jake the snake, Ravishing rick rude!!! they were good soldiers in that era of hogan, most just held the int title never the main event wwe title but their characters became classic, every era has them.
Mic skillz austin , and rock can overwhelm anyone on the mic cept for Macho Man he was the OG on the mic.
In ring, Bret Hart was like a super car in the ring, sean was great too, they both were but i like bret ever so slightly more than sean in ring. You could kinda see it on seans face that he felt other people thought so too.
Basileus777
Member
Flair. Hell, he was like 80 at WMXXIV. Flair turned 40 in 1989.
Yep. In-ring performance is about selling and making your opponent look as as much as anything else. Hell look at Flair, the guy had no offense and no one ever submitted to the figure-four, but look at the matches he put on.
Master Thespian
Member
This is something a lot of people seem to forget when discussing The Rock. The Rock consistently had great matches, and not just because of the guys he was working with. It's even more impressive when you consider the fact that he was only around as a full time wrestler for...what...five or six years?
If being a draw was included in the OP's criteria then Rock would have gotten my vote.
SpideySenses
Member
My personal all-time fave five...
Shawn Michaels
Mr. Perfect
Macho Man
Daniel Bryan
Eddie Guerrero
Shawn Michaels
Mr. Perfect
Macho Man
Daniel Bryan
Eddie Guerrero
Dark Ninja
Member
Well if you wanna create a criteria
-Merchandise Sold
-Arenas sold out
-Companies carried
-PPVs headlined
-Make-A-Wish wishes granted
-Crowd appeal
-Charisma
-Gimmick
-Mic Skills
-Wrestling ability
-Merchandise Sold
-Arenas sold out
-Companies carried
-PPVs headlined
-Make-A-Wish wishes granted
-Crowd appeal
-Charisma
-Gimmick
-Mic Skills
-Wrestling ability
Basileus777
Member
Then it's Austin. Once you put money into the equation he's going to win. Unless someone wants to argue for Hogan.
LanceVance
Member
The great khali
the rock
DeSo
Banned
Fucking loved this guy back in the day. His original theme song... fuck yeah.
The majority of Flair's best matches were in the 70s and 80s though. Most WCW and WWE era Flair was taking that fucking backdrop spot 50 times and doing the Flair cliches.
British Monsoon
Member
Jumbo Tsuruta is just about the best in-ring performer I've ever seen. An incredibly versatile wrestler who, throughout the 70s and 80s, put on one classic bout after another and worked with some of the best the world had to offer. Though his career (and life) were cut short, Jumbo was around long enough to see Misawa well placed on the road to superstardom. It's a crying shame that more people aren't familiar with this fantastic wrestler.
Some other notables would have to include Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada who carried All Japan on their backs throughout the 90s, defined what strongstyle wrestling should be and put on a dizzying number of superlative matches. Also, on the New Japan side, Tatsumi Fujinami deserves a mention. What a fantastically gifted technical wrestler.
A big personal favourite of mine is Stan 'The Lariat' Hansen and, as far as I'm concerned, he's the best big man in wrestling ever (with all due respect to the legendary Andre the Giant). Stan's no technical wizard, but he understood ring psychology so well and did such a great job of protecting his image and character that he managed to stay on top in Japan as the no.1 gaijin for 20+ years!
Some other notables would have to include Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada who carried All Japan on their backs throughout the 90s, defined what strongstyle wrestling should be and put on a dizzying number of superlative matches. Also, on the New Japan side, Tatsumi Fujinami deserves a mention. What a fantastically gifted technical wrestler.
A big personal favourite of mine is Stan 'The Lariat' Hansen and, as far as I'm concerned, he's the best big man in wrestling ever (with all due respect to the legendary Andre the Giant). Stan's no technical wizard, but he understood ring psychology so well and did such a great job of protecting his image and character that he managed to stay on top in Japan as the no.1 gaijin for 20+ years!
Master Thespian
Member
Hogan broke the big gates record in 1984, 1985, and 1986. Austin did it in 1998. But The Rock did it in 1999 and 2000 and still holds the record. The Rock was a slightly bigger draw than Austin, but Austin kills him on the merchandise front.
Ban Puncher
Member
YOSHIHIKO from DDT
abstract alien
Member
I loved this belt.
HBK for me.
Loved the Rockers when I was a kid. When Shawn put Marty's head through the Barbershop window I was well angry with him. Absolutely hated him at the Royal Rumble that year.
The guy was an awesome heel, so fucking cocky!
The way he came back after fucking his back up and was still able to do his thing is just amazing.
Loved the Rockers when I was a kid. When Shawn put Marty's head through the Barbershop window I was well angry with him. Absolutely hated him at the Royal Rumble that year.
The guy was an awesome heel, so fucking cocky!
The way he came back after fucking his back up and was still able to do his thing is just amazing.
Lionel Mandrake
Member
No wrestler was ever as much of a joy to watch as Macho Man.
Basileus777
Member
Professional wrestling is right in the title.
GhaleonQ
Member
My favorites are mostly because they are unique and fill a niche that needed to be filled.
I can't honestly say that William Regal, Shinsuke Nakamura, Chris Benoit, Big Van Vader, Kanyon, or Cody Rhodes are the best ever. They're just among my favorites. Bret Hart's underrated in some areas, but was still not perfectly well-rounded.
Of the rest, is it Jushin Liger, Mister Perfect, or Ultimo Dragon?
...Ultimo Dragon.
Cosign.
I can't honestly say that William Regal, Shinsuke Nakamura, Chris Benoit, Big Van Vader, Kanyon, or Cody Rhodes are the best ever. They're just among my favorites. Bret Hart's underrated in some areas, but was still not perfectly well-rounded.
Of the rest, is it Jushin Liger, Mister Perfect, or Ultimo Dragon?
...Ultimo Dragon.
Cosign.
Don't Laugh
Banned
macho man
Ranger Taffles
Member
I'll list my personal favourites:
- HBK
- Stone Cold Steve Austin
- Sting
- Y2J
- CM Punk
But if it comes down to the best, well it's Shawn Michaels for me. The guy elevated wrestling to newer heights. And this is in terms of everything.
- HBK
- Stone Cold Steve Austin
- Sting
- Y2J
- CM Punk
But if it comes down to the best, well it's Shawn Michaels for me. The guy elevated wrestling to newer heights. And this is in terms of everything.
Skid 4 Dead
Member
Undertaker is the correct answer.
Y2J is my favorite
Wolves Evolve
Member
I thought Bull Nakano had amazing intensity.
Marvel
could never
Holy shit how could I forget Ultimo... also imo has the best ring gear and mask of all time.
Marauder Shields
Member
Total package wise Kurt is probably the best I've seen.
He's a terrible wrestler and has zero charisma. I really don't see why people like him.
Then. Now. Forever.
Brooklyn Brawler never headlined a PPV.
What does that have to do with anything? Randy Savage is the most awesome wrestler of all time and he never called matches in the ring. All of his matches were planned out move by move in the back. Way too much stock is put into something like that. All that matters is the execution.
Marauder Shields
Member
I don't really buy the whole terrible wrestler thing. Cena is a very good worker imo. He's been in too many great matches to just totally discount his wrestling chops. Sure he's no Ric Flair, but he's good enough to put on quality matches when paired with the right opponent.
Regarding his popularity, he is immensely popular with children, who really are the lifeblood of the WWE. They're the ones buying all the merch and getting their parents to buy the PPVs.
darkside31337
Tomodachi wa Mahou
Unpopular answer but I believe its Cena. Better than Austin across the board there.
Legends
Yeah loved them both
Khrysler Jerikho
Member
For me it's a toss between Macho Man and Minoru Suzuki.
lol hell naw.
Really, it comes down to a select few if you're only looking at those three things: Flair, HBK, and Perfect.
Of those, it has to be Flair.
Arrowgigantic
Member
Macho Man is simply iconic. Mick Foley and CM Punk are fellow masters of the art who have fallen just short of Savage. The Rock and Austin rule the crowd but were at best on the peripheral of great in-ring moments, and Dwayne Johnson has overshadowed The Rock. Kurt Angle and various others have great technical skills and are hugely entertaining but fall a bit short.
But when people think pro wrestler they think Macho Man.
But when people think pro wrestler they think Macho Man.
tekumseh
a mass of phermones, hormones and adrenaline just waiting to explode
There is a shocking lack of Ricky Steamboat in this thread. The best match of the favorite of many in this thread, Randy Savage, was arguably his WM 3 match against Steamboat. Further, arguably the greatest series of matches for another guy mentioned frequently, Ric Flair, also featured Steamboat and, if Flair's book is to be believed, the first match in this series from the late 80's included in its nearly 60 minutes only the finishing sequence decided in the back, with the rest of the match called on the fly. Steamboat was not the best talker or the greatest draw, but between the ropes, he was hard to beat...
djplaeskool
Member
What? What? What?
IncandescentPrecept
Banned
When people think of professional wrestling, they think of Hulk Hogan. He is the one wrestler who's truly known by people who don't watch wrestling.
Steamboat isn't the total package. If you're going by greatest babyfaces of all time, he'd be at the top.
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