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10. “The Ultimate” Warrior
There has been a lot of negativity surrounding the Ultimate Warrior, and honestly a lot of it is justified. His detractors point to his lack of wrestling ability and incoherent interviews. They are right, as the vast majority of his matches were not wrestling clinics and more often than not, you really didn’t have a clue what he was talking about. With all of that said, there was a huge population of wrestling fans that made the Ultimate Warrior one of the most popular wrestlers of the late 80’s and early 90’s.
11. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
The highlight of a Jake Roberts match wasn’t usually what happened inside the ring, but often what happened before it. His bone chilling, cerebral interviews would set him apart from the traditional bellowing that most wrestlers would do.
12. Paul Heyman
Is it possible that the most influential figure in the world of Professional Wrestling during the last half of the 90’s was not even a wrestler? The statement is a bold one, but it is not impossible to make that case for Paul Heyman; the “mad scientist” responsible for the creativity of the original ECW.
13. Bruiser Brody
Bruiser Brody may not be known by a lot of wrestling fans today; but he should be. Much of the Hardcore style that is popular today was originated by the man born as Frank Goodish.
14. The Fabulous Freebirds
(Michael Hayes, Terry “Bamm Bamm” Gordy & Buddy Roberts)
16. Ivan Koloff
A quick way to get heel heat in the world of Professional Wrestling is to declare your hatred for the United Sates and take on the persona of one of their enemies. More often than not, these performers were not from those countries, but back in the 70’s and 80’s had you told anyone that Ivan Koloff was not really a Russian, it would be hard to find anyone to believe you.
17. Owen Hart
At one point wrestling prognosticators predicted that Owen would be the first Hart brother to be a World Champion. Needless to say, that didn’t happen, but when fans say that he was just as talented as his older brother Bret, few can argue.
18. Carlos Colon
Pedro Morales may be the most known wrestler from Puerto Rico, but we openly question if the people from Puerto Rico view Morales in the same high regard as they do Carlos Colon. Our bet is that Colon would get the nod.
19. Arn Anderson
It seemed throughout his career; Arn Anderson has always seemed to be in someone else’s shadow. His first large profile role was as Ole Anderson’s nephew due to his wrestling style and appearance. As part of the original Four Horsemen, “Double A” became the “Enforcer” of the group whose stellar no nonsense ring work and intelligent promos were one of the highlights of any show he was on.
20. Jim Cornette
It was very tempting to include Jim Cornette with our Midnight Express entry, but upon further review the vast repertoire of Jim Cornette’s non Midnight Express accomplishments were too vast and he deserves an entry all his own.
21. The Destroyer
The enshrinement of Gorgeous George to the WWE Hall of Fame made us think it was time to look at the man who inducted him. The Destroyer was not just another masked wrestler; he may very well be the most important masked wrestler in American Professional Wrestling history.
22. Ray Stevens
If the old Yankee Stadium is the house that Ruth built than the Cow Palace in San Francisco might be called the house that Ray Stevens built. Seriously, he was that big in that region’s wrestling world.
23. Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash may not have been the darling of the internet community, nor was he ever confused with being one of the great workers of the business. Quite often his critics forget that he never had to be and possesses one of the more solid resumes on this list for Hall of Fame induction.
24. Stan Hansen
The state of Texas has given wrestling superstar after superstar, though none of them could have been a better brawler than Stan “The Lariat” Hansen. Nobody played the part of a deranged cowboy better than he did either.
25. Barry Windham
As the son of current WWE Hall of Famer, Black Jack Mulligan, Barry Windham was a natural for the business. Virtually from the start of Windham’s career, he was able to put clinics in the ring. Almost everything Barry Windham did seemed so effortless. He was a natural worker and his underappreciated athleticism gave him the ability to put on strong matches every night.
26. “Ravishing” Rick Rude
It used to be that if you were a good looking wrestler that you would automatically be a babyface. “Ravishing” Rick Rude may have had the body of a painting and the face of Magnum P.I., but he was the farthest thing from a “good guy”.
27. Giant Baba
Trained by the legendary Rikidozan, Shohei “Giant” Baba was a true groundbreaker. His huge size (6 ft 10) made him stand out and break the stereotype of the smaller Asian athlete. Baba became the first Japanese wrestler to win the coveted NWA World Heavyweight Title and his status as a national hero was well deserved.
28. Vader
Generally, Vince McMahon has been known to make professional wrestlers bigger stars than his competitors in the South. This wasn’t the case Vader who may have been kicking ass in WCW but was remembered by some in his WWE stint for declaring himself “a fat piece of shit”.
30. The Crusher
Before there was “Stone Cold” Steve Austin chugging beer and identifying with the every man, there was the man who made Milwaukee famous, the barrel chested Reggie “Crusher” Lisowski.
31. Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith had it all. He had the strength, the speed, the technical skills, stamina and could cut a promo. He was equally adept at playing a face or a heel and could always be counted on to put on a solid match.
33. The Honky Tonk Man
The Honky Tonk Man proclaimed himself the “Greatest Intercontinental Champion of All Time”. Considering that he held the title for fourteen months and was one of the greatest heat generators it is really hard to argue that statement.
34. King Kong Bundy
When the late Gorilla Monsoon called King Kong Bundy “a condominium with legs” he wasn’t far off. Bundy looked liked he was created on an easel. His 450 pounds were spread over a very wide frame, a hairless body and pale white skin. Bundy looked like a movie monster come to life.
35. The Midnight Express
(“Beautiful” Bobby Eaton, “Sweet” Stan Lane & “Loverboy” Dennis Condrey)
36. Dick the Bruiser
The world of wrestling has had its share of combatants who looked mean. Yet we doubt that there was anyone who looked meaner (even if he tried not to) than William Affis; A.K.A. Dick the Bruiser.
37. Booker T
We held back on ranking Booker T in our inaugural list as felt that despite being in his mid 40’s we thought the “spinaroonie” master had another run left in him in the WWE. When he came back this year and returned to the WWE as a broadcaster, we felt it was time to list the five time WCW World Heavyweight Champion.
39. Ken Patera
Before there was Kurt Angle, there was another legit Olympian who competed in the squared circle. Ken Patera competed for the United States in weightlifting at the 1972 Munich games (he did not medal) and was one of the first to use the moniker as “the world’s strongest man” while competing in wrestling.
There has been a lot of negativity surrounding the Ultimate Warrior, and honestly a lot of it is justified. His detractors point to his lack of wrestling ability and incoherent interviews. They are right, as the vast majority of his matches were not wrestling clinics and more often than not, you really didn’t have a clue what he was talking about. With all of that said, there was a huge population of wrestling fans that made the Ultimate Warrior one of the most popular wrestlers of the late 80’s and early 90’s.
11. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
The highlight of a Jake Roberts match wasn’t usually what happened inside the ring, but often what happened before it. His bone chilling, cerebral interviews would set him apart from the traditional bellowing that most wrestlers would do.
12. Paul Heyman
Is it possible that the most influential figure in the world of Professional Wrestling during the last half of the 90’s was not even a wrestler? The statement is a bold one, but it is not impossible to make that case for Paul Heyman; the “mad scientist” responsible for the creativity of the original ECW.
13. Bruiser Brody
Bruiser Brody may not be known by a lot of wrestling fans today; but he should be. Much of the Hardcore style that is popular today was originated by the man born as Frank Goodish.
14. The Fabulous Freebirds
(Michael Hayes, Terry “Bamm Bamm” Gordy & Buddy Roberts)
16. Ivan Koloff
A quick way to get heel heat in the world of Professional Wrestling is to declare your hatred for the United Sates and take on the persona of one of their enemies. More often than not, these performers were not from those countries, but back in the 70’s and 80’s had you told anyone that Ivan Koloff was not really a Russian, it would be hard to find anyone to believe you.
17. Owen Hart
At one point wrestling prognosticators predicted that Owen would be the first Hart brother to be a World Champion. Needless to say, that didn’t happen, but when fans say that he was just as talented as his older brother Bret, few can argue.
18. Carlos Colon
Pedro Morales may be the most known wrestler from Puerto Rico, but we openly question if the people from Puerto Rico view Morales in the same high regard as they do Carlos Colon. Our bet is that Colon would get the nod.
19. Arn Anderson
It seemed throughout his career; Arn Anderson has always seemed to be in someone else’s shadow. His first large profile role was as Ole Anderson’s nephew due to his wrestling style and appearance. As part of the original Four Horsemen, “Double A” became the “Enforcer” of the group whose stellar no nonsense ring work and intelligent promos were one of the highlights of any show he was on.
20. Jim Cornette
It was very tempting to include Jim Cornette with our Midnight Express entry, but upon further review the vast repertoire of Jim Cornette’s non Midnight Express accomplishments were too vast and he deserves an entry all his own.
21. The Destroyer
The enshrinement of Gorgeous George to the WWE Hall of Fame made us think it was time to look at the man who inducted him. The Destroyer was not just another masked wrestler; he may very well be the most important masked wrestler in American Professional Wrestling history.
22. Ray Stevens
If the old Yankee Stadium is the house that Ruth built than the Cow Palace in San Francisco might be called the house that Ray Stevens built. Seriously, he was that big in that region’s wrestling world.
23. Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash may not have been the darling of the internet community, nor was he ever confused with being one of the great workers of the business. Quite often his critics forget that he never had to be and possesses one of the more solid resumes on this list for Hall of Fame induction.
24. Stan Hansen
The state of Texas has given wrestling superstar after superstar, though none of them could have been a better brawler than Stan “The Lariat” Hansen. Nobody played the part of a deranged cowboy better than he did either.
25. Barry Windham
As the son of current WWE Hall of Famer, Black Jack Mulligan, Barry Windham was a natural for the business. Virtually from the start of Windham’s career, he was able to put clinics in the ring. Almost everything Barry Windham did seemed so effortless. He was a natural worker and his underappreciated athleticism gave him the ability to put on strong matches every night.
26. “Ravishing” Rick Rude
It used to be that if you were a good looking wrestler that you would automatically be a babyface. “Ravishing” Rick Rude may have had the body of a painting and the face of Magnum P.I., but he was the farthest thing from a “good guy”.
27. Giant Baba
Trained by the legendary Rikidozan, Shohei “Giant” Baba was a true groundbreaker. His huge size (6 ft 10) made him stand out and break the stereotype of the smaller Asian athlete. Baba became the first Japanese wrestler to win the coveted NWA World Heavyweight Title and his status as a national hero was well deserved.
28. Vader
Generally, Vince McMahon has been known to make professional wrestlers bigger stars than his competitors in the South. This wasn’t the case Vader who may have been kicking ass in WCW but was remembered by some in his WWE stint for declaring himself “a fat piece of shit”.
30. The Crusher
Before there was “Stone Cold” Steve Austin chugging beer and identifying with the every man, there was the man who made Milwaukee famous, the barrel chested Reggie “Crusher” Lisowski.
31. Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith had it all. He had the strength, the speed, the technical skills, stamina and could cut a promo. He was equally adept at playing a face or a heel and could always be counted on to put on a solid match.
33. The Honky Tonk Man
The Honky Tonk Man proclaimed himself the “Greatest Intercontinental Champion of All Time”. Considering that he held the title for fourteen months and was one of the greatest heat generators it is really hard to argue that statement.
34. King Kong Bundy
When the late Gorilla Monsoon called King Kong Bundy “a condominium with legs” he wasn’t far off. Bundy looked liked he was created on an easel. His 450 pounds were spread over a very wide frame, a hairless body and pale white skin. Bundy looked like a movie monster come to life.
35. The Midnight Express
(“Beautiful” Bobby Eaton, “Sweet” Stan Lane & “Loverboy” Dennis Condrey)
36. Dick the Bruiser
The world of wrestling has had its share of combatants who looked mean. Yet we doubt that there was anyone who looked meaner (even if he tried not to) than William Affis; A.K.A. Dick the Bruiser.
37. Booker T
We held back on ranking Booker T in our inaugural list as felt that despite being in his mid 40’s we thought the “spinaroonie” master had another run left in him in the WWE. When he came back this year and returned to the WWE as a broadcaster, we felt it was time to list the five time WCW World Heavyweight Champion.
39. Ken Patera
Before there was Kurt Angle, there was another legit Olympian who competed in the squared circle. Ken Patera competed for the United States in weightlifting at the 1972 Munich games (he did not medal) and was one of the first to use the moniker as “the world’s strongest man” while competing in wrestling.
