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(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
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