Who are the greatest wrestlers of all time in WWF history? A just as important question is why does Old-Wizard even care? What, has Old-Wizard become Old-Wrestler now? Our love for Retro extends past video games, it even extends to wrestling! In this list, we will place who we think are the top 10 wrestlers of all time. This isn’t just some arbitrary list. This is a list created with passion for the pseudo-sport of professional staged-wrestling. We spent the past weeks getting ripped watching old Royal Rumbles and Summer Slams arguing who was more perfect, Mr. Perfect himself, or the Undertaker? We compared stats as if the stats actually meant something; like how long a Royal Rumble participant lasted, and how many times The Intercontinental Belt was won by a certain wrestler. Finally we came down to a list that was partially based on stats and partially based on fame. Here then is Old-Wrestler’s (sorry, I meant Old-Wizard’s) top 30 wrestlers of all time.
30. Razor Ramon
The Machismo made an impact on the WWF bigger than just being a representative of the Hispanic culture. He had one of the greatest finishing moves of all time in the razors edge. He was the perfect heel for the WWF coming down to the ring with an arrogance only matched by Mr. Perfect and flicking his toothpick at opponents and ringside viewers alike. Not only did he have a strong finishing move and confidence before a fight, he had endurance to last through long matches that showed him to be one of the more underrated pure wrestlers in the faux-wrestling business. He tagged with Diesel and fought on his own. In both modes, he was a spectacle.
29. Ravishing Rick Rude
Ravishing Rick Rude was an arrogant master of wrestling who showed off his muscles to lady Elizabeth more than wrestling in a match. His tights were absurd. They were plastered shots of himself with massive lips insinuating a kiss towards all the women he thought were into him. I guess the mustache was still in style back then. Rick Rude was at the negative end of his battles mostly because he played heel to all the protagonist main carders in the WWF whether it be The Macho Man or Jake the Snake Roberts. Regardless, he had some good wrestling moves. He was quick and agile and could do some nasty moves from the top rope. He was a conspicuous figure and would be recognized by any fan of early wrestling.
28. Tito Santana
ARIBA! Tito Santana was actually one of the best pure wrestlers of all time. He was quick, actually executed real wrestling moves (not just dropped on people from turnbuckles) and roamed the ring before a match like someone who was in the real wrestling format before coming to the McMahon dynasty. Tito Santana was a high flying Mexican who always had the crowd begging for more. It’s unfortunate that his status didn’t fly higher though. He never had a shot at the main carder slot. He was deserving of it though. He has just as much skill and intestinal fortitude as Bret Hart for example but never had the chance to show it off. Watch one of his matches though and you’ll wish there was a ring you could fly into from the ropes with.
27. Sid Justice
Sid Justice was a physical phenomena being a pain in the ass to Hogan in his later career in the WWF. If it wasn’t for Sid, Hogan would have won Royal Rumble 1992 instead of Flair, but Sid let Hogan know that “there are no friends in the rumble”! Sid Justice went on to dominate opponents much the same way The Undertaker did. Jobbers would get one blow in on him and mid-carders were beaten in less than 5 minutes. He was a true powerhouse and was setup for domination which he accomplished for a period in-between Wrestlemania 7 and 8. His lack of longevity as a force is what he keeps him at the lower end of this list. Still, his impact in the WWF was mythological.
26. Diesel
Diesel was a train. His finest form was in the WWF where he casually dominated wrestlers of much smaller stature. He was big and strong, not fat like Tugboat. He also showed a sizable amount of mettle too enduring long matches and kicking out of finishing moves. He was a force to be reckoned with in his time in the WWF. The tag team of him and Razor Ramon would prove to be volatile. You had the dirty play of Razor and the pure power of Diesel. Diesel was a great wrestler on his own and in a tag team. Everyone remembers the ease in which he entered the ring without having to go under the ropes because of his height. Embodying much of the physical attributes of The Undertaker, he just didn’t have the star power of the later. Regardless, he will always will be remembered for what he was. A virulent wrestler with an inordinate amount of endurance.
25. The Model Rick Martel
The Model Rick Martel was very much in a Ravishing Rick Rude type of wrestler. More interested in showing off himself to ladies than actually wrestling, but like Rude, don’t discount his wrestling ability, especially on the Royal Rumbles he participated in. He has some of the best times out of any wrestler in Royal Rumble history. He was a true survivor. Martel was most known for temporarily blinding one of Jake the Snakes eyes by blowing perfume into it. They would have some intense matches that carried over to sub-plot fights in the Royal Rumble; the kind where one of the wrestlers would rush down to the ring looking for the wrestler he wanted to beat up at the cost of losing the rumble. Martel was a dirty wrestler with a dirty mind. You always needed these types of fighters to get the degenerates pumped as the person they wanted to be beaten on.
24. Superfly Jimmy Snuka
Superfly Jimmy Snuka fought for a long time; al the way from Captain Lou Albano to The Undertaker in Wrestlemania 7. From the Fiji Islands came Jimmy Snuka who represented for the first time in the WWF a figure who came from a diverse territory. If with Snuka that wrestlers like Kamala, Papa Shango and other subaltern wrestlers would have their chance at WWF fame. Snuka could also wrestle in case anyone forgot. This guy was pure speed. He had one of the greatest finishing moves of all time which was a massive head butt off the time ropes. Wrestlers would lay unconscious after this. The idea behind the move was that Snuka was from the jungle where he used his head to break open coconuts. Snuka started a diverse trend for the WWF that would eventually put the WWF on the path to worldwide glory.
23. Big Boss Man
The WWF needed someone to lay down the law. This man was The Big Boss Man. The Boss man really had no muscle to lay down the law but he had his club that he would smash people in the stomach with (or phantom smashes usually 1 foot away from the body). Big Boss Man was most explosive on teams with Hulk Hogan and Jim Duggan. He provided that binary protagonist quality that tipped the protagonist club overboard into fan idolization. Unfortunately, his showing at Royal Rumble 1992 put him below in this list. Forcing himself over the ropes was certainly an embarrassing moment in Royal Rumble lore. Still, when he came down to the ring in his uniform facing a jobber, you knew the jobber was going to have the law laid down on him.
22. The Texas Tornado
The Texas Tornado was an explosion every time he was in the ring. He was almost as explosive as the Ultimate Warrior, certainly not as solipsistic or egotistic, but still with a load of confidence upon entering the ring. Who could forget Royal Rumble 92’ when he came in the ring and tornado punched Ric Flair who marched to the center of the ring and dropped flat down on the ring. Texas Tornado’s tornado punch was one of the more devastating moves of all time. He mysteriously never got mid-carder status considering the fact that he could raise a crowd to their feet just by walking to the ring. He was ripped which was probably because of the use of steroids. He was a loose cannon regardless who enjoyed the open road, probably a little too much though as his motorcycle crash left him without his right foot which probably led to his 44 caliber suicide. He lived fast and expected nothing less than an explosive existence. Better to burn out than fade away, this was The Texas Tornado epitomized.
21. Earthquake
Fat Ass Earthquake is sort of irritating to watch because he’s such a loaf. He is incredibly slow and runs out of breath immediately after stomping in the ring for a few seconds. It’s strange that he was actually an amateur sumo-wrestler. He must have been beat a lot, which is probably why he entered into the WWF. Regardless of his exaggerated vice of sloth, he could command an audience into reprisal. He gave Hogan some difficult fights and was a constant thorn in Hacksaw Jim Duggan’s side. Earthquake was a beast. The kind of beast you’re scared of until you see how slow he is (like a 500 pound lineman in high school football). For his “bigman” status though, he is remembered as one of the great figures in WWF history.
Joe: I never responded to you simply because it would be a waste of my time.
I have given enough information on my side to legitimize it. I have simply done it to other posters and not yourself.
And do you honestly believe I would “debate” with someone that starts by calling me an idiot? Let alone someone who takes the side of someone who knows nothing about wrestling.
Ive probably been watching wrestling since before you were born, I know and talk to wrestlers, I read wrestling news on a daily basis and have for years and years, I know a hell of a lot more about it than you.
There is no reason for debate, as there is no debate on this.
Where the fuck is brock lesnar???? I’m sick of hearing about old washed up cunts like shawn michaels and bret hart. Brock was a bigger star than any of these fuckers.
James: Ratings DROPPED during his big run as champ, and during his whole era.
He was the champion during the transition era, between Attitude and the New Era. WWE built him up huge, they put him over EVERYONE, they gave him the belt and made him, at the time, the youngest champion in history. What did he do? He turned around and left.
In the long run he didnt have a huge impact on the business, not like Michaels or Hart. And while they were shit at drawing as well, they did much more than Lesnar ever did during his short time in WWE.
Lesnar was a monster heel then a monster face, he had squash matches and maybe put on a few good ones with other wrestlers. He was on top a few years then left. He doesnt qualify as one of the greatest ever.
Another reason why I’m hating on Hulk Hogan, the fingerpoke of doom, if you even have to ask, you’ve never seen the incident. It’s truly the worst championship match I’ve ever seen, including any and all title matches involving the Great Kali, and even David Arquette.
As for Brock Lesnar, he’s not on here because, at Wrestlemania XX no less, he fought Goldberg, and gave what is quite simply the worst match in professional wrestling history. It’s even worse than the Hulk Hogan fingerpoke of doom match, and if anyone can sit through the whole thing without skipping to the end, where Stone Cold mercifully stunners both of those assholes, they could watch paint dry.
Another reason why I’m hating on Hulk Hogan, the fingerpoke of doom, if you even have to ask, you’ve never seen the incident. It’s truly the worst championship match I’ve ever seen, including any and all title matches involving the Great Kali, and even David Arquette.
Everyone will acknowledge this wasnt all that great but it was a “match” it was an angle, shit like this happens all the time. And it served its purpose, which was putting the NWO back together. Now we all know it wasnt the best thngs to do and was one of the things that lead to the downfall of WCW, but a much worse thing happened earlier in the night, and that was a bigger part in all of this.
Earlier in the night Eric Bishoff made THE SINGLE BIGGEST mistake in the Monday Night Wars, and in wrestling history when he told everyone Mick Foley would win the belt. This cause a large group of viewers to switch over to see this, after they switched back and saw the Fingerpoke of Doom, which pissed them off even more and alienated them. The combined two is what gave WWF/E their big push and helped them to win.
But even as all of this is considered, This should in no way sully the INCREDIBLE wrestler that was Hulk Hogan, and the AMAZING and UNTOUCHABLE impact(no pun intended) he had on the industry. The man lead 2 or even 3 booms in the business, he is easily the most famous wrestler in history, and he is easily the best as well, the only one who comes close is Austin, but hes still on a level below Hogan because as big as he was it lasted NOWHERE near as long as Hogan, and it still wasnt as big or all encompassing as the man who lead 2 companies to become the greatest ones the world has ever seen.
As for Brock Lesnar, he’s not on here because, at Wrestlemania XX no less, he fought Goldberg, and gave what is quite simply the worst match in professional wrestling history.
You apparently dont know any of the events that surround this match. Brock Lesnar ans Goldberg both were leaving at the time, they decided to give one last match at Mania before leaving the business. This leaked and the fans found out, and they let them have it.
Didnt you notice the crowd chanting”Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye!”? They knew they were leaving so they booed the shit out of them the entire match. This pissed the two of them off. And Austin was beside himself at what was going on, he was really shocked. Didnt you see his face? They started to just fuck around and then scream at the fans, mostly Lesnar who was saying “fuck you” to them. However when the match finnally got going it was hardly the worst match ever, and it wasnt half bad. The corwd made it seem much worse. But when you get past the 20 minute face off it wasnt all that bad. Anything Ric Flair is in now a days is infinitely worse.
Make no mistake, Lesnar and Goldberg were leaving no matter what, it had nothing to do with them being fired for having a bad match or something like that, because people have had MUCH WORSE and still kept their jobs.
It’s even worse than the Hulk Hogan fingerpoke of doom match, and if anyone can sit through the whole thing without skipping to the end, where Stone Cold mercifully stunners both of those assholes, they could watch paint dry.
No, you just couldnt really understand the significance in what was going on. Maybe if you go back and watch it now you will understand. Youll laugh at how incredible it is that they were chanting that song and booing them the whole match, Austins faces, and then if you can get past the boos you can see it wasnt as bad as you make it out to be. There have been worse matches, and even worse Wrestlemania ones. Like pretty much every Diva “Match”.
Of course I knew about the Lesnar/Goldberg joint retirement, but here’s the thing, that doesn’t mean that they should half ass their last performance. People paid 60 bucks for the Wrestlemania Paperview, ticket prices were astronomically huge, and they spent the entire time before the match as the top wrestlers of the company. They weren’t some jobbers, or old burned out has beens, they were giants, and they delivered nothing.
I expect nothing from Divas, Jobbers, or wrestlers I know will suck (I’m looking at you, Vladimir Kozlov), but when you’re a legitimately talented wrestler like Lesnar and Goldberg, you should put effort in your matches, particularly when they’re the biggest matches of your career. How am I supposed to respect either of them after a match that irredeemably bad?
As for Hogan, even though the fingerpoke match was an angle, it was still a stupid fucking angle. Hollywood nWo vs. the Wolf Pack was WCW’s most interesting concept since the nWo first came about, and that match not only killed the entire concept, it made the WCW championship so worthless, David Arquette won it. While Arquette later redeemed himself by donating all the money WCW gave him to the family of Owen Hart, Hogan went on to keep the tired nWo gimmick on life support just as it started to get interesting again, started a reality show, his music career and his daughters music career, and foolishly set TNA up in a 3 month re-enactment of the Monday Night Wars just to satisfy his bloated ego. That, and the man can’t wrestle anymore. He takes too many breaks to stay in shape, and moves stiffer than a board in his latest matches.
Just because somethings the “most famous” or “most popular” doesn’t make it good, do you realize that the most popular anime in the country is fucking Naruto, that England’s most popular band is Oasis, that the most popular books in America is the Twilight series.
If quality equaled popularity, Berserk would be the most popular manga in America, A Song of Ice and Fire would be the most popular book series, and England would have found something else to listen to by now.
It has nothing to do with being “the most popular” although that certainly did play into it.
Hogan is the most accomplished wrestler in history, lead 2(I actually think it was 3) wrestling booms, changed history on multiple occasions, held the belt for years on end. This is the man that made wrestling what it is today. He brought WWF from a territory to a national and word wide phenomenon.
He was beloved in Japan, and one of their greatest pure wrestlers, puting on awesome matches with Andre, Stan Hansen, Antonio Inoki, and everyone under the sun.
Hogan made not one but 2 companies a national success, and changed history with multiple angles and things such as NWO, where he orchestrated the greatest heel turn in wrestling history, Wrestlemania which was built around him from the beginning, and so much more. He dwarfs everyone else. Vince knows this, everyone does.
Dont let shitty angles obscure your view of this man. And TNA was a valiant effort, and who is to say it will fail just yet(even though everything is horrendous). Its not about him putting on 5 star matches right now, its about drawing interest to a company. And dont think this is all Hogans fault, unlike earlier news stories hes not in charge, TNA has ALWAYS been known for horrible writing, booking, and angles, so you cant put all of that on Hogan. This is the company that pushed a bunch of talentless hacks from ROH. Dont think the second he steps into the company that everything that is still terrible will go away, or is his fault.
But it just goes to show how great this man is, Hogan was so great that even today a company will bring him in to try and get over, to be legitimate, and become a big one.
Also about Lesnar and Goldberg. What were you expecting? They were both monsters and had no clue what else to do, so not only were they mispaired(in matched that rarely are good) but they lost their cools and just said fuck it. This isnt an excuse, I think the way they acted was ridiculous and unprofessional. But that match wasnt that horrible, and really, if you were expecting a 5 star, or anything more than a 3 star with not just Goldberg but Brock Lesnar then youre delusional.
Also of course Naruto is the most popular in the nation, its targeted towards kids on Cartoon Network. Kids wont watch or read Berserk, and theres no way in hell parents would allow it.You think parents will let kids will watch something with demons, rape, and murder? My household wasnt even allowed to have M games until I could buy them themselves.
Now I dont care for Naruto, and love Berserk, but I dont think its a “bad” series. I may even give it another chance. It appeals to the audience its targeted towards, thats all it needs to do. It doesnt have to be ultra violent to be good.
Okay, first of all, if by “talentless hacks from ROH,” you’re referring to Samoa Joe, than fuck you, man.
Why would I expect quality from Lesnar? Aside from the fact that the man gave an almost perfect match at Wrestlemania XIX (yes, he botched the Shooting Star, but the fact that he attempted it at all speaks volumes of his ability), he also fought the Undertaker, another big monster, in an excellent Hell in a Cell, fought Kurt Angle several more times in stellar matches, he beat the Rock at Summerslam in 2002 in a fine match, and lost his last championship to Eddie Guerrero in a five star match.
After that, I expected quality matches from Lesnar, him going out with such an intentional dud is hugely disingenuous to his entire career.
And if Hogan cared about drawing interest in TNA, he would have taken on an announcer position. I wouldn’t even feel as bad about his work in TNA if it weren’t for the fact that there’s both a lot of talented wrestlers at TNA, (Kurt Angle has my money for the greatest wrestler of all time) his enormous paycheck makes it harder to keep new talent, his WWE Hall of Fame ring is more important than the World Championship, (I blame Russo for that, but with Hogan’s power, he should’ve stopped it) and he brought that racist waste of fat cells, Bubba the Love Sponge, into TNA even though Bubba couldn’t tell a powerbomb from his own asshole.
He’s not doing this for TNA either, he’s doing this because of his financial troubles. It’s his own buisness what happens in his personal life, however screwed up it is, but if he needed the money that bad, couldn’t he have appeared in a few bad movies and commercials instead of sucking time away from TNA?
And you’re right, he’s not as big of a problem as Vince Russo and Dixie Carter, but that’s like saying you shouldn’t care about having gonorrhea when you have an intestinal parasite and an amputated limb as well. All three are big fucking problems, and none of them should be seen as innocent just because the others around them are just as failtastic.
It’s not enough that he was great in the past, (although even in the past, he screwed up a lot) this is about wrestling’s present as well, and Hogan’s incredibly detrimental to it at the moment. Even the WWE is being hurt from this, because the only way they’ll ever reach the majesty of the Attitude Era again is if they have some actual competition, and Hogan sunk both WCW, and is sinking TNA even further than it already sunk. For that, I have every right to be pissed off at him.
I think Liam Gallagher could kick the shit out of Hulk Hogan.
Seriously, Zeromage, some of these guys are more like the worst wrestlers of all time than the best. I’m not talking about Hulk Hogan here, what the fuck are Zeus and Earthquake doing here?
Where’s Eddie Guerrero? The Rock? Stone Cold? Chris Jericho? Edge? Randy Orton? Rey Mysterio? Rob Van Damn? Even John Cena would have more of a purpose being here than fucking Earthquake.
The Undertaker will probably retire this year, so watching wrestling has taken up a huge priority in my life right now.
Most people think his last match will be at Wrestlemania XXVII, and just thinking about it makes me well up a little.
The Undertaker is of the greatest ever, easily the greatest pre-Attitude era wrestler, even Ric Flair, who is awesome, still can’t top the sheer power of awesomeness that is the Undertaker.
“Greatest pre-Attitude era wrestler”? How old are you? 15? 18? Wrestling today sucks. Its all flash and no substance. Its more like a soap opera for boys. Go watch some old WWF Dvds, son. Greg the Hammer Valentine is 100x the wrestling someone like John Cena is or ever will be.
Dude, the Attitude era took wrestling to new levels of technical brillance and great angles. Even though nowadays, wrestling suffers due to WWE’s monopoly, ever since the attitude era, wrestling has reached new levels.
Sure, some angles have been terrible, need I mention Katie Vick? But there were plenty of awful angles and bad wrestling in the “Golden Age.” Need I mention Giant Gonzales? Fucking Earthquake?