Top 10 TALENT of all time

[Goulet]

Ok, I assume this has been done before, nonetheless. I want to know who you guys list as the best ever. OVERALL!

For instance....

Chris Benoit is a very gifted and talented technical Wrestler, yet I don't care what anyone says he sucks the big one on the mic. And I know this may hit a bad spot with people too, but Owen Hart was terrible on the mic too... Hogan and Rock were fantastic on the mic but sub-par in the ring, so I ask.... who is the 10 best TOTAL PACKAGE wrestlers of all time (I don't mean Luger :shifty: )

[Skippord]

Ric Flair
Austin
Jake Roberts
HHH
Ultamite warrior :shifty:

[James Steele]

(in no particular order):

Chris Jericho
Eddie Guerrero
Kurt Angle
Triple H
Ric Flair
Shawn Michaels
Chris Daniels
Rick Rude
Steve Austin
Christopher Daniels

[McLegend]

I only went with 8

8. The Undertaker
7. HHH
6. The Rock
5. Steve Austin
4. Ric Flair
3. Bret Hart
2. Kurt Angle
1. Shawn Michaels

[The Naitch]

terrible list NM. The Rock should be on there

[What Would Kevin Do?]

The list is just my thoughts on the matter. Also, as far at the Japanese names, I can't vouch for mic skills persay, but I judged them instead by general charisma in and out of the ring, along with fan reaction.

1. Kurt Angle
2. Shawn Micheals
3. Ric Flair
4. Mitsuharu Misawa
5. Chris Jericho/Eddie Guerrero
6. Masahiro Chone
7. Keiji Mutoh/Great Muta
8. Bret Hart
9. Toshiaki Kawada
10. Steve Austin (pre injury)/ or The Rock

[FourFifty]

In no order... From what I've seen as it comes to what they can do in the ring, to the crowd, and behind the mic, here's my top 10.

Bret Hart
Triple H
Jake Roberts
Ric Flair
Steve Austin
Hayabusa
Kurt Angle
AJ Styles
Raven
The Undertaker

[Nowhere Man]

(Deleted the list and am re-posting it with a little more detail)

10) Kerry Von Erich- Was extremely solid in the ring, had a great look, and wasn't half bad on the mic. Had he not made so many poor business decisions, he could have been one of the wrestling world's foremost stars in the 80s, instead of emerging onto the national scene as a midcarder years after his peak.

9) Ricky Steamboat- Steamboat has a tendency to fly under most people's radar, but considering he took part in one of the matches that laid the groundwork for modern wrestling (vs. Savage at FM3) and possibly one of the greatest feuds of all time (vs. Flair), I think the guy deserves his fair shakes.

8) Randy Savage- Could put on a helluva match back in his day, and did pretty well as Hogan's replacement for WWF's top guy before they decided to push Warrior. What stood out most though was, obviously, that instantly recognizable voice.

7) Mick Foley- Not exactly someone who would be on many people's top 10 lists simply for the fact that he was more of a brawler than a grappler, but Mick brought great character and psychology to his matches. (God, I sound like Sadistic) Foley was a garbage-wrester, but he was the best damn garbage-wrestler there ever was.

6) Terry Funk- Actually, scratch that; this guy was the best garbage-wrestler there ever was. Terry could brawl, he could work a solid mat game, he could do the ridiculous super-hardcore shit, the Funker was a jack-of-all-trades. More than that, the guy was a consumate professional, and wasn't afraid to hand over his spotlight to someone new.

5) Kurt Angle- What's there really to say? Angle's a fantastic worker, has impeccable psychology, and is one of the best mic-workers in the WWE today.

4) Sting- You've gotta give it up for the ultimate babyface. Sting had a great moveset of power and high-flying moves, could work the stick like no tomorrow, and most of all, just always looked and acted like he really wanted to be there. There are lots of wrestlers that I look forward to watching to, but one of the very few who got me legitimately excited was always the Stinger.

3) Chris Jericho- Ahhhh, the beloved Y2J. Despite years of losing matches, sabotaged main-event runs, and various other instances of douchebaggery in general, Jericho always managed to stay afloat and get the crowd going for him, and why? Because he's one hell of a showman, that's why! Always great in the ring, always fantastic on the mic, and always just a ton of fun to watch. Too bad Hunter and Steph ruined him.

2) Ric Flair- Love him or hate him, no one else has done more for the business than Flair. He had a pretty dynamic moveset for his time, and to this day is one of the best promo men in the business. He perfected the heel-Champion routine, and more or less invented stable warfare with the Four Horsemen. While Austin and Rocky and Hogan brought in more money, the art of wrestling is still very much the house that Flair built.

1) Steve Austin- Judging through the entire span of his career, not just his time in WWF as Stone Cold, Austin is my personal pick for the best all-around wrestler of all time. He was solid as a tag worker in WCW, and his "Monday Nyquil" skits from ECW were hysterical. Although he spent most of the time in the spotlight as a pure brawler, he also had an extremely sound technical game (see Austin vs. Benoit from fall of '00), and was excellent on the mic. Oh, and the whole "1 of the 3 most successful wrestlers ever" thing doesn't hurt his case.

Honorable Mentions:
Rowdy Roddy Piper
Curt Hennig
Shawn Michaels
Bret Hart
Harley Race
Jake Roberts
Dynamite Kid

[ThruTheWire]

The Rock was far from sub-par moron.

[Zen v.W.o.]

No Order really:

Bret Hart
Brian Pillman
HBK
Piper
Austin
Owen
Hogan
Rock
Taker
Flair

[Zen v.W.o.]

Add on for the rock and Angle

[BlackDawn2024]

In no real order...

Jericho
Angle
Rock
Hunter
Flair
HBK
Undertaker
Austin
Eddie
Bret

[FourFifty]

My list- V2.0, in no real order
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Bret Hart
The best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be. Let’s face the facts: He earned that title. Now I’m not a huge Bret Hart fan, nor am I going to point fingers about the Montreal Screw Job, he is arguably the best. We all know Vinnie Mac Daddy has a big man fetish. If he lets someone smaller hold the title they better be able to back it up in the ring. Much like the late Eddie Guerrero, I swear Bret Hart could work a good match with a bowl of pudding.

Triple H
Say hello to Vince’s favorite son. Triple H was handed the ball and he ran with it. I’ve enjoyed every single one of Triple H’s Hell in a Cell matches, every single elimination chamber, and I pop when he comes down to the ring knowing there’s going to be a 20 minute promo. If Triple H didn’t get any reaction from the fans then, family or not, I don’t think Vince would have pushed him as hard as he did. And it’s not like Brock Lesnar when it a feud here and there then a title push. Triple H earned almost everything he has.
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Jake Roberts
You can never trust a snake without being bit. I believe that this man paved the way for The Undertaker, Kane, The Boogeyman, Bill Goldberg, Sting (with the Crow gimmick), and any other wrestler that came out with a lot of fanfare and mystique. Jake Roberts doesn’t know how to work a crowd. He knows how to play them like damn fiddle. Maybe I need to a little bit of homework but he all but introduced modern day ring psychology.
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Ric Flair
If I REALLY need to say why he’s on my top 10, then you REALLY need to do your fuckin’ homework.
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Steve Austin/The Rock
At their primes they were both the same. More catch phrases than wrestling moves, and overall totally solid performers. I’m going to go out on a limb and say if you want to compare primes Austin is a cut above The Rock.
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Hayabusa
Oh damn, this dude is freakin’ AWESOME! Okay, I don’t speak Japanese, and I’ve never seen him cut a promo… But this one goes out to all you goddamn London/Kidman/Rey/Juvi marks… This is high flying wrestling at its best. For every Mick Foley/Terry Funk/Al Snow fan out there… This is hardcore wrestling at its best. No, he’s no longer at his prime after he broke his neck, but look at the reactions Hogan got after his prime was waaaay behind him.
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Kurt Angle
Oh it’s true, it’s true! I’m not sure what I like more- His matches or his promos. Face, heel, talking about milk, celibacy, or how he’s going to break your freakin’ ankle! Okay, I’d like to see Angle call it the Olympic Slam and the Ankle Lock as opposed to The Angle Lock/Slam. Aside from that Kurt Angle is next to perfect.
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AJ Styles
Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce you to perfect.
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Raven
Without out a doubt the most under worked wrestler in WWE history! He’s a solid performer who has been awesome in TNA, WCW, and ECW. I really don’t know why Vince didn’t allow him to get on the mic before. I think Raven could have made a great WWE Heavyweight Champion if he was pushed the right way.

The Undertaker
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> If you’ve been a wrestling fan for at least 5 years you have marked out to this guy. Be it you jumped off your seat to cheer for him or you’ve literally feared for his opponent’s life. This man took the idea of a “gimmick” and turned it into over 10 years of being one of the top stars. He took the in ring psychology from Jake Roberts and the monstrous size of Andre, half assed both of them in a hoss shaped package. I’d like to see this man get one more good title run before he calls it quits.

[Jordan]

The Rock
Ric Flair
Bret Hart
Shawn Micheals
Sting
Steve Austin
Eddie Guerrero
Kurt Angle
Chris Jericho
Chris Benoit

[Mr. JL]

Honestly, Hayabusa should be nowhere near the top ten talent of all time list. I respect his effort and passion. I respect the love he shared for the fans. The man gave his thanks and goodbyes to the wrestling fans only a few minutes after being paralyzed, while still laying on his back in the middle of the ring for God's sakes. Still, he was nowhere near the top ten.

[CharismaInjection]

1. Eddie Guerrero - He WAS Smackdown, when he was face he made you laugh your socks off, when a heel, he could really get you angry, lol. Eddie Guerrero was the whole package.

2. The Rock - Never has a guy got the crowd so into a feud and wrestling matches, one of the best performers ever.

3. Chris Jericho - He can talk great, wrestle great, and should be at least a three time WWE champion.

4. Christian - This guy alone, set up his main event push, WWE had no plans for Christian and Cena, but Christian kept insulting Cena and getting the crowd excited, but after that WWE dumped him on SD, where they could edit his words. Should've been a 2 time WWE champion.

[The Cerebral Assassin]

1. Farmer Burns
2. Frank Gotch
3. Ed Lewis
4. Lou Thesz
5. Gorgeous George
6. Buddy Rogers
7. Johnny Valentine
8. Jack Brisco
9. Nick Bockwinkel
10. Harley Race

[Pinnacle Charisma]

No.10 -HHH.

Yeah he was pushed more than his talent would suggest but he excels in everything a good wrestler should. Good mic skills, good wrestling ability, he had the look and enough charisma.

No-9- Rowdy Roddy Piper- He was a fantastic heel with brilliant mic skills and had enough wrestling ability. He was almost too good for his era imagine what he could do if he was in his prime in the last few years with the more easier censorship standards we have these days.

No.8 Bret Hart
He is recognised by the whole wrestling community as one of the greatest wrestlers of the modern era. His feats in the wwe where so great that it completely overshadows his lacklustue wcw run. I feel sorry for him that almost whenever he is mentioned so to is Montreal.

No.7 The Rock.
Everyone man, woman and dog on the planet knows about his charisma and mic skills but his wrestling was very good too. In his prime his matches more than anyone.

No.6. HBK
Again he excels in everything a wrestler should. Kind of a nobrainer.

No.5- Ric Flair- If you don’t know why he is mentioned you shouldn’t call yourself a wrestling fan.

No.4- Christain

He had everything. Could have been huge.

No.3- Steve Austin

Amazing talent. He is underrated a bit because when he was Stone Cold he had to use a style that didn’t showcase his true in-ring abilty. Just watch his work in WCW or as the ringmaster. Brillant showman with a crapload of charisma.

No.2- Kurt Angle/Eddie Guerrero

Two brillant talents that where born to wrestle. I probably don’t need to explain why these two men are considered to be in the upper echelon of wrestling talents of all time.

No.1. Chris fucking Jericho.

Three Words.

The

Fucking

Man

[DaVe]

He is underrated a bit because when he was Stone Cold he had to use a style that didn’t showcase his true in-ring abilty. Just watch his work in WCW or as the ringmaster. Brillant showman with a crapload of charisma.

Or that broken neck may have had an effect?

[Pinnacle Charisma]

He is underrated a bit because when he was Stone Cold he had to use a style that didn’t showcase his true in-ring abilty. Just watch his work in WCW or as the ringmaster. Brillant showman with a crapload of charisma.

Or that broken neck may have had an effect?

No because as Stone Cold he was required to wrestle a brawling style that did not showed off his real abilty

[addy2hotty]

Austin
Jericho
Rocky
HHH
Flair
Foley
Pillman
Bret
Owen
Eddie

Benoit is off my list MAINLY due to the mic skills thing. All of the above could make a compelling promo.

[DaVe]

No because as Stone Cold he was required to wrestle a brawling style that did not showed off his real abilty

Erm, Stone Cold had amazing technical matches up until Owen broke his neck. He wasn't as good after. (Read other posts like LC's on this topic.)

[addy2hotty]

No because as Stone Cold he was required to wrestle a brawling style that did not showed off his real abilty

Just to confirm, he didn't change his name just because of a broken freaking neck.

Austin, had he not suffered a broken freaking neck, would be regarded as one of the greatest mat wrestlers of all time. IMO.

[Schoenauer]

In no order

Eddie Guerrero
Ric Flair
Chris Jericho
Christian
Chris Benoit
HBK
Kurt Angle
Bret Hart
Steve Austin
The Rock

[Loose Cannon]

not even thinking or looking at anybody else's. No order. I'm also only doing guys from American feds

Hogan
Bret
HBK
Flair
Andre
Savage
Dibiase
Austin
Rock
Jericho
---------
Taker
Angle
Piper

[Loose Cannon]

btw, anyone without Hogan on thier list, I would love to hear the reason why

[What Would Kevin Do?]

btw, anyone without Hogan on thier list, I would love to hear the reason why

Well, like the first post said, it was based off " total package." IMO, Hogan was never the total package. His actual in ring skill lacked, and that drops him in my book. If it wouldn't have been total package, but most popular, most influential, or basically any list disregarding in ring skill, I would have added him.

[Extreme Angle]

1,Mick Foley
2,Angle
3,Rock
7,HHH
4,Christian
6,Jericho
8,Taker
10,Orton
9,Benoit
5,Eddie

[Loose Cannon]

what's your definition of lacking "in ring skill?" Doing "pretty" and a variety of moves does not make you have good in-ring skill. Hogan understood what he had to do every night in the ring and that made the business millions.

[94 SVT Cobra]

not a SINGLE mention of CM punk...this makes me want to watch more then 2of his matches beacuse you pepole arent swining from his nuts so hard in this thread....o and btw in no order

Rock,Austin,Hart,Undertaker,Savage,Roberts,Warrior(BITCHES),Flair,hogan,your mother

[94 SVT Cobra]

what's your definition of lacking "in ring skill?" Doing "pretty" and a variety of moves does not make you have good in-ring skill. Hogan understood what he had to do every night in the ring and that made the business millions.

Agreed, and in addition to that...what the hell type of moveset was there avaliable in the 1980s? although i wish hogan did do ONE top rope hurricarana....just once

[Cool King]

In no order.

Hulk Hogan
The British Bulldog
Owen Hart
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper
The Undertaker
Triple H
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin
Chris Benoit
Eddie Guerrero
Chris Jericho

[What Would Kevin Do?]

what's your definition of lacking "in ring skill?" Doing "pretty" and a variety of moves does not make you have good in-ring skill. Hogan understood what he had to do every night in the ring and that made the business millions.

Actually, by the modern definition, having a variety of moves does make you good in the ring. In his day, yes, Hogan cut it in the ring. However, wrestling has evolved. If you look at wrestlers without taking the era into consideration, but instead, view it as a constant rank, then Hogan no longer breaks the top ten for total package. 20 years from now, some of the people on my list may not cut it. Comparitively though, all around, Hogan does not compare to the people on my list as being a total package.

If you want to break it down in eras, that's different. Since I'm not taking the state of wrestling when they wrestled into account, I'm not taking into account that Hogan "cut it" for his time period.

Also, one other thing, when I rank wrestlers, I don't consider how much money they made. Goldberg made WCW a lot of money, but I don't see people ranking him.

[Stickman]

No order

HHH
HBK
Hart
Flair
Rock
Austin
Piper
Eddie G
Mr Perfect
Hogan
Savage

[Loose Cannon]

you got to consider how much money they made. Wrestling is a business where the ultimate goal is to make money. If we're doing this list from a "wrestling is a sport" standpoint, then I can't really say anything about anybody's lists. But to me, it's more of a business then a sport. And I also consider who has had mainstream appeal and brought together fathers, mothers, daughters, and sons to watch a wrestling show.

And Goldberg didn't last long enough to put him there, but I would if he was on top making money for at least 5 years.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

you got to consider how much money they made. Wrestling is a business where the ultimate goal is to make money. If we're doing this list from a "wrestling is a sport" standpoint, then I can't really say anything about anybody's lists. But to me, it's more of a business then a sport. And I also consider who has had mainstream appeal and brought together fathers, mothers, daughters, and sons to watch a wrestling show.

And Goldberg didn't last long enough to put him there, but I would if he was on top making money for at least 5 years.

I'm not looking at it from a business standpoint, I'm looking at it from an entertainment standpoint. Personally, I don't care how much someone has made the company. Making money doesn't make someone the better wrestler. If you want to go by money, you're basically saying Hogan is better than Bret, Flair, HBK, etc, etc, and I don't believe that.

[MVP]

Hulk Hogan
Steve Austin
The Rock
Ric Flair
Bret Hart
Sting
Undertaker
Kurt Angle
Shawn Michaels
Randy Savage

I consider the top 3 as the actual "top 3". The rest are in no order.

[Y3J]

No order:

Bret Hart
Triple H
The Rock
HBK
Kurt Angle
Ric Flair
Chris Jericho
Eddie Guerrero
Undertaker
Austin

[John la Rock]

Only wrestlers from my era 1998-on WWF(E) only

1. The Rock
2. Kurt Angle
3. Chris Jericho
4. Triple H
5. Eddie Guerrero
6. Shawn Michaels
7. Stone Cold Steve Austin
8. Undertaker
9. Christian
10. Chris Benoit

[Nark Order]

I'm only doing my top four in depth.

1.) Steve Austin- I've never been a fan of SCSA by any means but I do have to say that he's done more for the business as a whole than anybody else in WWE (Even wrestling) history. He's the character that everyone wanted to be in real life. He did things that you wanted to do but previously could only dream of. Everything he did he did on his own terms and never even gave a second thought about anybody else. WWE's goldenchild. Made more money for McMahon than the entire current WWE roster has.

2.) The Undertaker- Nobody can really even think about wrestling anymore without thinking of the Undertaker. He has become a symbol of the product in a way. People associate The Undertaker with wrestling and wrestling with the Undertaker. And really THINK about his gimmick for a second. He's a guy walking around with his eyes rolled into his head that's supposedly dead and controlled by the urn that his ashes are in. It's probably one of the most ridiculous gimmicks in wrestling history when seen on paper but HE MAKES IT WORK. He makes you believe that a man could really have these powers and really rise from the dead. Anybody that can do that is a true performer.

3.) The Rock- SUB-PAR?? Are you fucking kidding me? Had he not gone off to live in his own little hollywood fatasyland, I truely believe that he would've been known as the greatest professional wrestler of all time bar none. This guy had/has it all. The look, the athleticism, the talent, the mic skills, and of course the charisma. Rocky could draw you into anything, no matter what he was saying. He could play the good guy and have people chanting his name just as easily as he could play the hardass arrogant bad guy. When he was on his massive face run and they kept pitting him against all the odds and he still came out on top (handicap matches with DX, etc) YOU COULD BELIEVE IT. You could believe that he could fight through all of those obstacles because he had a drive that nobody had. Trying to emulate that with Cena in present day is ridiculous to me...

4.) Triple H- Say what you will about Trips... but honestly, the WWE would not be what it is today if it had not been for Triple H. Obviously he's had his share of controversy with being apart of the backstage booking sessions and not wanted to put anybody over.. but all that aside, it works. Think about it. If a guy like Val Venis had the same power and backstage politics going for him and was World Champion, would it work the same for him as it did for Trips? No, it wouldn't. Triple H has the charisma and the look to pull it all off. His mic work has gotten a bit stale as of late but you know that when you see Trips booked in a match that it's a big deal. You know you're gonna see somethin sweet. Bottom line, he's made the company alot of money and is on top of the world right now.

5.) Hulk Hogan
6.) Dusty Rhodes
7.) Y2J
8.) Kurt Angle
9.) Roddy Piper
10.) Eddie Guererro

[Nowhere Man]

the WWE would not be what it is today if it had not been for Triple H.

Truer words were never spoken.

[94 SVT Cobra]

The wwe really wouldnt be what it is if not for H, i agree...but i think ANYONE would be happy to have that 1 year period of hhh Vs. Rock for the 80000th time erased from there memory....despite being a wwe fan i can remeber this quite well

[Loose Cannon]

Triple H- Say what you will about Trips... but honestly, the WWE would not be what it is today if it had not been for Triple H.

lol, not sure if that is a good thing or bad thing. Yea, forgot about Trips when I was doing my list. He should be on there. But, Austin and Rock were the two that made the WWE what it became around 98. Yes, HHH made the WWE what it is right now (which is shit IMO), but he also made the WWE shit for a while when he was on top. After 2000

[MVP]

At least Hogan did more good for the business than bad. Triple H it's almost the opposite.