Top 10 Greatest Wrestlers of All Time

There has to come a time where a site that talks about wrestling has to make a good argument to who’s the greatest wrestler of all time. There just wouldn’t be wrestling without the wrestlers, but who really deserves all the praise? Every wrestling fan has their own personal favorite wrestling that they mark out to, so thetoplister has to make a credible pick in deciding who really is the best grappler/performer in professional wrestling. Here on thetoplister, we do really care about giving so many people recommendations, but it has to be the best recommendation, not the most popular one. Otherwise, having Hulk Hogan, The Rock, John Cena, Brock Lesnar, and Shawn Michaels would have been too predictable to the point where we’re being dishonest. When you’ve been wrestling as long as we have (watching so many different promotions and all) you should know that there are better out there. So what really is the criteria to be an all-time great wrestler? Here are your criteria.

If a wrestler has three or more of these qualities, then they deserve to be on the list. Notice that we didn’t include number of victories here? Otherwise, Goldberg & Dr. Death Steve Williams would have made it on the list, but in wrestling, it’s not how many wins you make, it’s how many times can you get yourself back up in every defeat without losing relevance. It takes years to hone your skills, have the right booking to keep you relevant in your career, and the challenge of getting the fans’ approval in order to reach that level of credibility. This is a tough business to stay in but these ten wrestlers (and a few honorable mentions) managed to prove to us that they are deserving of such praise.

Honorable Mentions

Macho Man Randy Savage

I take back nothing in what I said about Macho Man is much better than Hulk Hogan in every aspect. To me, he is the best WWF main eventer in the 1980s and he proved to Vince that he could still go in WCW. However, I can’t help but think that Savage wouldn’t make it on his own without Miss Elizabeth’s sympathy and Hulk Hogan’s support. Whenever Macho Man is without either one of the two, he starts to expose his shortcomings. And if you’re really worth as your last match… well, Macho Man is responsible for having the worst final match that any wrestler has ever had (TNA Turning Point 2004). I’m still salty about how lackluster that match was.

Rob Van Dam

I cannot express how impressive RVD was when he was in his prime. No doubt he was ECW’s biggest attraction and he kept impressing me with so many of his matches from 1994 – 2010. If only he was booked well in WWE, I think he would have that long and overdue push. Yes, he did beat Cena for the WWE championship, but has trouble with the law and only making his peak a brief one, it just went downhill. He did show some motivation in TNA, but after having nowhere to go within his career, he just lost all motivation. I still love RVD no matter what.

Shawn Michaels

Perhaps it’s just me, but I don’t think the Heartbreak Kid would ever survive in any other promotion besides the WWF/WWE. Vince McMahon has protected Michaels for the longest time, but Shawn (despite his amazing talent) is no box office draw and has so many embarrassing moments in his career that I cannot put him on the list. Stuff like asking sympathy for his fake concussion in ’95, losing his smile because he didn’t want to drop the belt (or any belt for that matter), the Montreal Screwjob, tag-teaming with “god,” the Kliq burying talents, and so many more. Shawn is an amazing talent in the business, but his matches feel the same and he has more downs than ups in his career.

The Undertaker

Seems like blasphemy to not put Undertaker in the top 10 when he’s lasted as long as he has and earned everyone’s respect. It’s thanks to his necro-character that every promotion tries to rip-off time and time again. Mark Calaway should count his blessings that he got Vince McMahon’s radar for so long because other promotions just see him as another big guy. I respect all of the bumps and injuries he’s put himself through decades of punishment just to make him the legend that his. If it weren’t’ for the list being overcrowded as it is, he would have been on it.

Brock Lesnar 

I can’t seem to bring myself to put Brock in the list of all-time best wrestlers, even despite having the BEST rookie run in wrestling history. Since he made his return in 2012, all of Lesnar’s appearances have been a one-trick pony. Seeing too many German suplexes and throwing in F-5 all the time… this isn’t as fun as seeing Brock in 2002 – 2003. Being a part-timer and have little motivation to put out anymore good matches is what keeps him from being on the list. Hell, he’s responsible to partaking in the worst Wrestlemania match of all time! Plus, Paul Heyman did most of the work to keep Lesnar from showing everyone his shortcomings, so there you have it! Let’s get on with the list!

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Number 10. –  Stone Cold Steve Austin

In the late 1990s, it seemed that nobody could ever stop hyping Austin. The moment he made that he introduced Austin 3:16 after winning King of the Ring in 1996, the whole wrestling world turned. Austin began the philosophy of Attitude by breaking his silence and cursing out on television and show nothing but aggression. Everything he did in WCW and ECW didn’t even matter because in this moment in the WWE, he won Generation X’s approval, not just wrestling fans. The man who withstood the Hart family’s best performers (passed out at Bret Hart’s sharpshooter and broke his neck from Owen Hart), shows how legitimate he is as a badass. He was the right person to lead the WWF in 1998 because we all hated Vince McMahon and we grown tired to seeing the nWo over at WCW. We empathized with him because many of us hate our bosses and wish that we could do to our boss what Austin did to McMahon. Watching Austin raise hell was our wish-fulfillment and we couldn’t lay our eye off the television whenever he’s on. His rivalries with everyone in the WWF/WWE were captivating. He even elevated other performers’ careers in just kicking their asses – Undertaker, HHH, The Rock, Kane, and so many more. If it weren’t for his neck injury at Summerslam ’97, Austin’s career would have last as long as John Cena’s. Since that injury, Austin had to miss a lot of dates in his career and had to change his wrestling style from a fast technical master into a straight out brawler. Thankfully that style was complimentary to his character. Austin is living proof that you don’t have to have the best moveset to be the greatest wrestler. You can do hundreds of flips and still get nowhere. And when you look at Austin’s accomplishments – Winning the Royal Rumble three times, winning the WWE championship six times, headlining four Wrestlemanias, and even drew in the most money in 1998 – 1999 it felt like he was unstoppable. And his road to Wrestlemania X7 after winning the Royal Rumble and facing Triple H at No Way Out 2001 is truly a remarkable run. However, not all of his career is perfect because he was so much a fan favorite that turning heel was the biggest mistake of all time. Turning heel at Wrestlemania X7, his is Two-Man Powertrip with Triple H, and leading the Alliance during the Invasion Angle is some of the worst things to ever happen in wrestling. Not to mention, I’ve grown tired of seeing him make a special guest appearance so many times only to predictably give someone a stunner because he can’t wrestle anymore. I think everyone would just rather just look at Austin’s peak in fondness. Even rewatching Austin’s days from 1996 all the way to Wrestlemania X7 was proof that he once was the best wrestler of that era. Now that he’s out of fuel, there’s nothing for Austin to prove anymore.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Lou Thes Press (not the stunner it’s been done to death)
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Austin 3:16 in King of the Ring ’96 & beating Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania 14
• Wrestler’s Best Match:  vs. Bret Hart – Submission Match – Wrestlemania 13
• Why Wrestler Is On Here: 

      

Number 9. –  Manami Toyota

It’s such a shame that I couldn’t bring myself to put more women wrestlers on the list. There were just too many women in wrestling that either has yet to prove their greatness, had a short reign, or were used as eye candy. It’s such as shame, really because it’s only lately women wrestling has received the respect that they long deserved. As great as Becky Lynch, Charlette Flair, and the rest are they still have a lot of proving their sustainability as headliners. And Trish, Lita, and Chyna didn’t have much competition to prove that they’re the best. Manami Toyota, on the other hand, has already achieved what other women have or have yet to accomplish. She’s the best woman in wrestling for good reason! She’s a woman who isn’t afraid of anything; not even high risk moves, most painful submissions, and receiving the worst pain could even intimidate this individual. Manami just has that relentless spirit of keep going and keep coming back like a widow out for revenge. She’s just capable of doing some of the most ridiculous stunts and gives you an impression. Manami Toyota has one hell of a reputation in Japan; she’s been the main event in Dreamslam I & II, had 10 five-star matches, and multiple championships from so many Japanese wrestling promotions. No other woman wrestler has accomplished what Manami has done in the wrestling world. Sure she only won the AJW singles World Title and she’s been booked as a tag team expert, but how many female wrestlers do you know where her loss really effected you in an emotional level? Never has there been such intensity and excitement from a singular wrestler. Regardless of size, gender, or race, she will still take you down and does it all with raw emotion. You can just feel what she’s going through and we route for her like she’s the female Rocky Balboa. She made this grappling sport look like art and that’s all I want from all my wrestlers, if not 100% the effort. I’m not just putting Manami Toyota on the top of the list because of her accomplishment (which is the most important part) but I can even put my money where my mouth is that she can actually take on all of these women if she ever had the chance. It’s really a shame that All Japan Women’s Pro Wrestling (AJW) is no longer in business and who knows how much they would put their talents such as her’s to its full potential. Still to this day, no other female wrestler (let alone most male wrestlers) could ever match her skill level during her peak from 1989 -1998.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Missle Dropkick out to the ring
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Deciding to not cut Toshiyo Yamada after defeating her in a hair vs hair match.
• Wrestler’s Best Match: vs. Aja Kong, AJW 3/26/1995, Kamikiri Match IWA Joshi Title 8/15/92
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

 

Number 8. – Bryan Danielson/Daniel Brian

So who was the best wrestler in independent wrestling? I can’t think of a better grappler than “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson. Yes, he’s known as Daniel Brian in WWE, but what he accomplished in ROH and breaking away from making wrestling all about hardcore is something worth arguing about. Ring of Honor was never the same without Danielson because of his impeccable technical wrestling skills that are awe-inspiring. Bryan is really the best wrestler in ROH history and his one-year reign as champion is the BEST reign in all of indie wrestling. Hell, he even captured the ROH World title and the Pure championship at once after that brutal match with Nigel Mcguinness. When he made it to WWE as Daniel Bryan, I thought that he would never make it considering that Vince McMahon wanted to shove John Cena down our throats and he didn’t want any of his talent to wrestle any other style than the mundane WWE style. Bryan’s technical marvel was too technical and too dangerous for WWE so he had to compromise. With a positive attitude and excellent work performance, it wasn’t enough to put him on top. His debut in NXT, inconsistency as member of Nexus, and underwhelming World Heavyweight Championship run was done in poor taste. He’s been stuck into the upper to low midcard with poor material given to him. If it weren’t for wrestling fans everywhere, we would never have seen him get that push. There wasn’t a night in 2012 – 2014 where you didn’t have an entire stadium that didn’t have people should “Yes!” with their fingers pointed up, whether or not he cheered with the audience or screamed “No!” at the crowd. Either way, you couldn’t hate Daniel Bryan, on the power that is that puts him down. After that horrible response at Royal Rumble 2014, this was going to affect the 30th Wrestlemania and Vince had no choice but to compromise to fan’s demands. Daniel Bryan single-handedly saved Wrestlemania XXX from being a travesty and proved to surpass Shawn Michaels (his mentor) and Chris Benoit (his inspiration). Winning both the WWE & World title that night was a better moment than seeing Beniot’s victory at Wrestlemania XX. Bryan was everything that Beniot is and is not; most importantly a good role model. But the style he wrestled in almost ruined his career and sent him in retirement. After a long hiatus, he makes his comeback in 2018 after making his recovery. His return is the sole reason why I came back to watching WWE again because he’s the only talent that stuck out from the rest. Now as a four-time WWE champion, has accomplished so much and is wrestling with the WWE’s best offering. Where ever Bryan is and where his career heads as long as he keeps that positive attitude of his, Bryan Danielson has every right to call himself one of the most accomplished grappler.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Multiple elbow strikes to the side of the opponent’s head while holding the opponent in a crucifix position
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Pulling double duty and beating the Breakfast Club at Wrestlemania XXX & Having Therapy with Kane when he was Team Hell No
• Wrestler’s Best Match: Bryan Danielson Vs. Nigel McGuinness – ROH Unified
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

Number 7. Tessa Blanchard

One of the most important things I’ve read about Tessa Blanchard’s path to success is her saying that “it’s thanks to intergender wrestling that I improved my skills to be the best female wrestler of all time. There are other female contemporaries that are just as talented, but the fact that they’re not giving it their all against their male counterparts is why they’re lacking behind in what women’s wrestling should be.” That got me thinking about why women’s wrestling, despite how far they’ve come, ended up in the same position where they always been in. Sure Becky Lynch main evented Wrestlemania, women are no longer used as sex objects, and the quality of female wrestling in North America has significantly improved. However, these female talents have yet to be the best based on male standards. The only other female wrestler that went as far was Chyna winning the Intercontinental Championship twice and she had so much more accomplish. After twenty long years of waiting for that one female talent to go far in a mainstream male’s division, along came Tessa Blanchard. A wrestler that won every woman’s title in every promotion she’s been in – American Pro Wrestling Alliance, The Crash East Coast Wrestling Association, Exodus Wrestling Alliance, Lucha Libre AAA, RISE, Women of Wrestling, to Shimmer, to her run in Impact Wrestling (formally TNA Wrestling). Not since the Road Warriors have I seen a talent dominate and won championships ever where she went. The willingness to wrestle a huge diversity of opponents is what made her better than even the likes of Charlotte Flair. You cannot be a great wrestler without the opponents that will help elevate you to the next level. It has been a long time since we’ve seen female performer willing to wrestle the guys on a consistent just to hone her skills on the mat. Everyone has mixed feeling about intergender wrestling saying that it’s not believable for a woman beating a man. Well, you haven’t been with legit badass women who have more balls and muscled than grown as men if you make such a sexist statement. Tessa Blanchard is the most impressive in-ring talent since Mamami Toyota. Only five years of wrestling, accomplished so much by consistently improve and rose herself to main event status. The fact that she’s the first and only woman to win a the most prestigious title in a male’s division, as the Impact World Champion, is more than well-deserved. Just look at how diverse her movesets are from strong style stiffness, powerhouse, luchador, to even brawling. Tessa Blanchard maybe the most varied styled female wrestler I’ve ever seen. She’s so skilled in the ring that it’s believable that she’s able to take on any opponent, regardless of opponent’s gender. I’ve seen grown men cry over moves applied to them from her. Most of all Tessa isn’t an athlete that was pushed based on nepotism. Instead she’s a generational wrestler that surpassed her ancestry. Both Joe Blanchard, Tully Blanchard, and Magnum T. A. (stepfather) wished they could accomplished as much as she did. It’s such a shame that Tessa became a victim of cancel culture where as reactionary as Impact wrestling is, they fired their World Champion. Accusations are just that; accusations. Without evidence all I can say is that this is a case of they-said-she-said. Even if they were true, Shawn Michaels was nasty towards everyone backstage throughout the 1990s and people everywhere considers him the best of all time. While so many argued Trish Stratus, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch are to be the best women’s wrestler, they only were able to remain in a single promotion’s radar while Tessa was able to prove her worth in multiple organizations. Intergender wrestling has a purpose in wrestling and it should be encouraged if female wrestlers were to be taken more seriously as an art form. Who knows where Tessa Blanchard’s career lies next because already in five years of her career, she went further than any female talent has ever gone. Tessa Blanchard stands tall as the greatest wrestler to have never worked for the WWE. It’s inspirational that she went further than any female wrestler as gone.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Magnum (Diving double knee facebreaker)
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Winning the Impact World Championship and being the first female to win a major male’s title in wrestling history
• Wrestler’s Best Match: vs. Mercedes Martinez – RISE 10: INSANITY – Iron Woman Match
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

Number 6. –  Bret “Hitman” Hart

Just like Daniel Bryan provided the best matches in the WWE today, Bret Hart did the exact same thing for WWE in the 1990s. When Bret broke away from the Hart Foundation into a singles career, WWE’s undercard became much more technical. No longer was WWE going to continue these boring, slow matches from the 1980s and soon brought in smaller guys (thanks to Vince’s steroid scandal). The moment Bret beat Ric Flair for the WWF Championship, the New Generation began. Yeah, it was an era full of bad gimmicks, but you can’t argue that wrestling became more physical and Bret was the forerunner of this era. What’s so inspiring about Bret Hart is that he has never seriously injured a wrestler and he’s that rare ingredient that can put a good match to even the worst wrestler. What made Bret Hart stick out from the crowd was his pink and black outfit and how human he really felt. Bret didn’t cut the craziest promos to get himself over, he just made himself a heroic figure to all audiences, no just kids. With this much likeness with his character, Bret convinced Vince that he’s deserving of all of these accomplishments as long as he can keep up with the work. And my god, the work he put in the ring is among the best performances in company history. Bret is a two time King of the Ring winner, a Royal Rumble winner, a five-time WWF Champion, and four-time WCW Champion. Above those accomplishments, my highlights with Bret Hart will always be his rivalry with Owen Hart. The brotherly rivalry was among some of the most emotional in wrestling history and for Bret to put Owen over at Wrestlemania X was perfect. It was an emotional family feud that really gets to you in the feels. That’s how great of a storyteller Bret has always been. And when Kevin Nash couldn’t draw or convince the crowd that he was anything good, Bret made him look like a million bucks because he sold well at his tactics. And don’t get me started with his rivalry with Stone Cold. As much as Bret doesn’t like to admit it, turning him heel (or tweener for Canada) was the best thing that ever happened to him. What was great about that supposed heel run is that he was able to be patriotic to his country Canada and also show the hypocrisy of WWE’s Attitude era of celebrating villains. Of course, the Montreal Screwjob is not his fault, but entirely Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahons (and Triple H’s as well) and his transfer to WCW… just stunk. There were already too many top tier wrestlers in WCW and it was inconsistent if Bret Hart was a member of nWo or not. Because Bret’s time in WCW was lackluster, it’s why I can’t place him higher on the list. It even saddens me that the concussion he had with the stiff Goldberg at Starrcade 2000 was the end of Bret’s wrestling career. It sucks to see him go out like that (and also having that Wrestlemania 26 match with Vince McMahon) but since then Bret has been everyone’s radar whenever he speaks out about wrestling today. Bret deserves to be in everyone’s list for what he’s done to the business and how he made audience emotional when he’s telling a story, both in and out of the ring.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Victory roll and pin
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Heel turn at Wrestlemania 13 after making Austin pass out in the Sharpshooter
• Wrestler’s Best Match: vs. Owen Hart – Wrestlemania X
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

Number 5. –  The Road Warriors
(Hawk & Animal)

I don’t think there is a point for thetoplister to make a list of the best tag teams in wrestling because the only tag team managed to have both members together as one entry in the list. Never has there been a tag team that easily dominated and won every tag team belt in every promotion that they are in. Everyone went absolutely insane for duo of Hawk and Animal. This gimmick is definely inspired by the Mad Max movies, but it worked as it’s own thing. Hawk and Animal knew that the best way to get yourself over is to be a complete monster in a freak show like wrestling. And my god, they took full advantage of it completely. Everyone was immediately intimidated but we couldn’t look away. This of a hell of a two-man powertrip if I ever saw one! What the Road Warriors don’t get enough credit for is their versatility. I never have seen a pair of big guys that move so fast and wrestle in various styles – powerhouse, technical, hardcore, brawl, and high flying. Tag team champions everywhere can enjoy their titles all they want, but when the Road Warrior sign a contract in your territory, you’re already dead. There’s not another tag team in wrestling that is as exciting as Hawk and Animal and they don’t need to separate to singles wrestlers because they completely dominate. There is no other tag team that is moreover than Road Warriors.  Even when Vince tried to bury them in their return in 1997 – 1998, the fans knew better than Hawk and Animal are better than D-Generation-X and all of WWF’s tag teams that look like jobbers in comparison. With props that make them so over and hard-hitting stiffness that make anyone weep, Road Warriors (or Legion of Doom) completely destroys the competition. Even tag teams today wish that they were half as over as the Road Warriors because not only Hawk and Animal were meant for each other but they were always better together than separated. If you argue that the Road Warriors don’ deserve to be on the list, think of it this way. The Road Warriors are like two Brock Lesnars but are full-timers (not part-timers). They were like a walking apocalypse out to destroy whoever is in the ring. I REALLY enjoy watching any Road Warriors match (except for their run in WWF 1998). Sure, the only reason they can’t go any higher is that they couldn’t last in their singles career. However, you can argue how great Brock Lesnar is all you want, but you must also remember that Hawk and Animal met each other in a bar fight and everyone else and became best friends when the fighting was done. You too should watch a Road Warrior match and see the true definition of domination.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Doomsday Device
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Chosen to join Dusty Rhodes to face the Four Horsemen for the War Games
• Wrestler’s Best Match: 10-Man WarGames Match: WCW Great American Bash 1989
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

 

Number 4. –  Ric Flair

Can you think of another wrestler that could spew out so many memorable lines and still get quoted to this very day? Ric Flair is without a doubt the most impressive performers of our time! While WWF’s biggest star was Hulk Hogan, WCW’s/Jim Crocket Promotion’s star was Ric Flair. Flair is just like Rowdy Roddy Piper, in which he’s all over the map in his wrestling career. He’s very good at being the main event, help the mid-cards to become a bigger star, he was a really good heel, a very good babyface, his interviews were incredibly intense, and his wrestling skills were gold. Flair just did a lot better things than Hogan did. He was a pioneer of main eventing StarCade before Hogan even started a Wrestlemania, he created and lead the Four Horsemen, and he never stopped fighting his spot in the World Heavyweight Championship. Flair also is iconic for his wrestling abilities for the Figure Four Leg Lock, turning upside down when running into a turnbuckle, and slapping his opponents in the chest to shout “Woo!” This is a man with class and style and throughout his career, people want to see it again and again. He continues this trend for over 4 decades and he became successful for it. Even more important, Ric Flair just had very good rivalries with many of the best talents in the WCW & Jim Crockett Promotions like Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Dusty Rhodes, Terry Funk, and so many more. When he made the switch to WWF, he won the best Royal Rumble match ever in 1992 for the WWF Championship! He withstood an entire WWF roster being place as number 1 entry and managed to eliminate both Hulk Hogan and Sid. And when Flair returned to WCW in Starrcade 1993, his victory over Big Van Vader for the World Heavyweight Championship was the best main even victories of all time! Hell, when nWo invaded WCW, Flair was a formidable foe and his return to WCW in 1998 was one of the highest-rated episodes in WCW! How can you even doubt Flair’s staying power? There’s no doubt in my mind that because Ric Flair has accomplished so much in the wrestling world, he has to argue as the best wrestler in any category, no question. Hell, he even put more buts into seat than Andre and Hulk Hogan when he wrestled Antonio Inoki in North Korea selling 350,000 in the biggest crowd compacity! when wrestlers began to drop like flies when they reach fifty years old, Ric Flair kept making accomplishments, wrestled, and took bumps like there were no age restrictions. Ric Flair even made so many sayings that are still being followed to this very day. He’s a natural babyface and a loveable/believable heel. It’s required viewing if you want to be in the industry to see Flairs matches and understand what all the talk about him is about.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Knife fist chop
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: vs. Jay Lethal in Ric Flair impersonations in TNA
• Wrestler’s Best Match: vs. Big Van Vader – Starrcade 1993
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

Number 3. –  Kenta Kobashi

You will not have any arguments out of me whenever someone claims that Kenta Kobashi is the greatest Japanese wrestler who ever lived. Forget Atonio Inoki and Giant Baba, or Kazuchika Okada for a second and think about a wrestler that surpassed and withstood Mitsuharu Misawa at his prime. All Japan Pro Wrestling had the toughest roster of wrestlers imaginable and for the fact that Kobashi earned being the promotion’s headline and at least beat everyone there shows how special he truly is. He has a longer list than of great matches than Ric Flair, more longevity than Genichiro Tenryu, and ultimately peaked higher than any of his temporaries. You have to remember that this was a league where stiffness was prevalent on a nightly basis and since he was like wrestling with other pro wrestling gods at the point is truly incredible! And let’s not forget that Kobashi had the best wrestling maneuvers – Brainbuster, Orange Crush, Diamond Head, Burning Lariat, and the one move nobody has ever broken out of – The Burning Hammer! With a moveset like his, Kenta Kobashi was able to go very hard in his wrestling career winning every championship in All Japan Pro Wrestling and even became headliner in NOAH with Mitsuharu Misawa. I argue that his time free from All Japan Pro Wrestling got him to wrestle in all sorts of territories. When he wrestled for the first time in America against Samoa Joe in Ring of Honor, Kobashi made indie wrestling’s biggest badass look like a bitch after he beat him. And if you thought Ric Flairs “supposed” final match at Wrestlemania 24 was emotional, Kobashi’s Final Entrance & Ring Introduction At Final Burning tore the roof down. This, more than anything else, is Kobashi’s legacy: being an outstanding and incredibly decorated wrestler who stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of quality performances throughout his career, which included both the highly-competitive 1990s decade and early 2000s periods that many people consider the best era ever for pro wrestling.  Above all else, Kenta Kobashi is that rare performer that has everything (except for being a great heel) that you can imagine. Give me a Kenta Kobashi match over Kenny Omega or Kazuchika Okada any day of the year.

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: The Burning Hammer
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Whenever He Uses The Burning Hammer
• Wrestler’s Best Match:
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

  

Number 2. –  Kurt Angle

Kurt Angle was already an overachiever before became a professional wrestler. Why you may ask? How dare you not know that Kurt Angle is a 1996 Olympic gold medalist in amateur wrestling who won it with a broken freakin’ neck! I followed Kurt Angle’s wrestling career since day one in Survivor Series 1999 and he had the best rookie run in pro wrestling history (eat your heart out Brock and Orton). I’ve never seen a celebrity that decided to be a wrestler and somehow outperforms an entire roster. That’s saying a lot because WWF’s roster in 2000 was massive and Kurt rose to the top in less than a year. Fuck, he beat Undertaker, The Rock, Stone Cold, Triple H, and Rikishi in the company’s only 6-man Hell in a Cell match! If that didn’t scream the greatest wrestler of all time, then I don’t know what will. And not only that, his gimmick of being an out of place typical hero in WWF’s Attitude era made him stand out from all the raunchy humor. If Bret Hart became a good heel for going against Attitude era’s philosophy of celebrating the antihero, Kurt Angle embraced it all. Everyone LOVED to hate on Angle because he was a natural heel. Everything you have about your typical American patriot, he embodies it and it’s up to you to decide if you like it or not (based on your political beliefs). Hell, Kurt Angle was the most hilarious wrestler because of this gimmick of not wanting to be the antihero and he was the crowd’s biggest target. And no matter how loud you tell him, “You Suck” the more he becomes motivated to prove you wrong. Some of the best matches in WWF from 2000 – 2006 had Kurt Angle in it. Lookup any best wrestling match in the WWE and you’ll end up finding Kurt Angle in there. There are just so many of them that I lost count. Best of all is how Kurt Angle continues to get better and better in the ring as his career moved on. The fact that one of WWE’s greatest matches with Kurt Angle vs Undertaker at No Way Out 2006 is still talked about to this very day speaks volumes. Just when WWE was going to bury Kurt Angle into ECW, Angle made the wise decision to go to TNA. I argue that his run in TNA is actually BETTER than his time in WWE. Kurt Angle came in and defeated Samoa Joe’s undefeated TNA streak and rose to the main event. Kurt Angle was TNA’s biggest moneymaker where he continues making phenomenal matches, over the top storylines, and elevate the promotion. One thing I admire about Kurt Angle the most is his professionalism. He has dealt with some personal issues in his life – drug addiction problems, issues with his wife off-air, recurring neck injury – but he always bounces back, keeps his head high, and always remains professional. I applaud Kurt Angle for being the best and giving his best every time he stepped out into that ring. He has poured his heart, soul, and life on the line just to give the wrestling fans something to remember. And he has given us SO MANY MEMORIES. And I believe his career is far from the finish as he has a few more memories left to give the fans. 10 time World Heavyweight Champion (in both WWE, WCW, TNA, and NJPW). More importantly, what Kurt Angle brought to the table is that he reintroduced technical wrestling that was from the New Generation era to return to the Attitude era. We were getting tired of hardcore wrestling and high spot bumps, but Kurt came in and made that style an attraction again. All of the laughs, the tears, and excitement he provided. The next time you ever use the word “most decorated wrestler of all time” it better be Kurt Angle you’re talking about!

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: 450 Knee drop on Sting
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Beating John Cena in a Rap Battle
• Wrestler’s Best Match:  vs. Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe – Turning Point 2009
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

Number 1. –  Chris Jericho

I know right? How does Jericho make it to the top of the list? Chris Jericho has everything and still to this day, he’s still developing and improving while others gave up when they went past their peak. Since my family first saw him on American television in WCW, we were all more Jerichoholic than Hulkamaniacs. I couldn’t believe that Chris was there in so many moments in wrestling – FMW, Super J-Cup 1995, Smokey Mountain Wrestling, ECW, WCW, WWF/WWE, NJPW, and AEW and throughout the years he kept honing his wrestling skills and managed to avoid any career-ending bumps. He was way ahead of his time when midcarders were high flying cruiserweights and main eventers were sluggish as ever in the 1990s. What Chris Jericho brought to the table was a rebelliousness in wrestling and every promoter (even Vince McMahon himself) wanted to keep his constraint. Remember when he mocked Goldberg in an episode of WCW Nitro and it became a high-rated episode or reading off a list of a man with 1004 holds? Because he fought Goldberg backstage, it made his jump to WWF an even bigger deal as the Millenium counted down, it was birth to the Y2J character! Despite being hated in the WWF locker room at the time, he carried out like a star keeping up with The Rock on the mic and even critiquing Undertaker’s promos as boring when ‘Taker’s character was dying out after the Corporate Ministry disbanded. The fans ate up Jericho’s hype because they knew that he was everything he credited himself as. Look at when he defeated Triple H for the WWF title on Monday Night Raw before he had it taken away from him, the crowd ROARED with delight when it happened. However, once again, Vince didn’t think Chris Jericho was worthy of that title spot.  It wasn’t until he beat the Rock for the WCW title and later on he defeated Stone Cold & The Rock to be the first-ever of the Undisputed WWF & WCW Champion, he was more than that! But that didn’t stop there. In 2003, though Shawn Michael beat Jericho at Wrestlemania 19, Jericho made him look like a bitch by kicking him in the balls. By 2008, Jericho proved to be better than Shawn Michael after beating him in a ladder match for the World Heavyweight Championship. How about making Big Show relevant again forming a tag team together as Jeri Show and capturing the unified RAW and Smackdown tag team belts? Whatever concept that came into Jericho’s mind at the point, he was able to run with it and make everyone cheering for him. Hell, when WWE creative didn’t know what to do for Jericho, he ran crazy with Dean Ambros and Kevin Owen rivalry in his final days in the WWE. What about when he made that surprised NJPW appearance and gave Kenny Omega a run for his money. And if you were going to make a new wrestling promotion credible, you had to put your World title on Jericho and that’s what they did. And the end result, Jericho became wrestler of 2019 with no one arguing with that statement! Why is Chris Jericho so damn good? It’s because he cannot settle with what’s given to him. He will always chase for more and because of it we’re not even sure when is exactly his peak, per se. He’s in his prime right now and he’s running wild. Since he’s been this good this whole time, it makes us wonder how stupid were these wrestling promoter in not seeing how special Jericho is? It’s impossible to not be entertained by Jericho’s creativity and execution. The man is a half-century-old right now and still provides the best work! What I love about Chris Jericho’s career is that he has a plethora of being an all-round wrestler suitable for being in the opener, midcard, upper midcard, main event, and headline. That’s something all wrestlers should be willing to do. Most importantly, Jericho has laid down for so many wrestlers (due to Vince’s stupid booking decisions) and Jericho is living proof that it’s not how many victories you made, it’s how many more times you can get back up in each loss and do better!

• Wrestler’s Best Wrestling Move: Lionsault & Liontamer
• Wrestler’s Best Moment: Beating both Stone Cold & The Rock to win the both WWF & WCW Championship as the first-ever Undisputed Champion
• Wrestler’s Best Match: with Benoit vs. Austin and Triple H Tag Team Championship
• Why Wrestler Is On Here:

The Top Lister’s Greatest Wrestlers of All Time

10.  9.   8. 

7.  6.  5.    4. 

3.    2.    1.