Who's your favorite wrestler?
All time? Hulk Hogan. I started watching the WWF right about the time Hogan won the WWF title from the Iron Sheik, and, like many, many others my age, we were drawn in by Hulkamania. He was a cartoon superhero brought to life. As I have gotten older, the #2 through #5 spots have evolved, and I really, really wish I could say that as a kid I was smart enough to have preferred Savage or Steamboat or Flair, but while I absolutely love those guys now (in fact, I am one of the bigger Steamboat marks at Wrestlezone) I have to be true to history, and as a child, Hulk Hogan was by far the most influential wrestler in regards to my continual fandom.
If you meant current wrestlers only, that's a little tougher. Now I am a fan of the entire product more than of a single individual, but if I had to choose only one wrestler that is currently active on a professional wrestling roster, it's probably CM Punk, despite the crap I am giving the little inbreds in the Official John Cena thread who think that Punk is the freaking messiah. Not thinking Punk can replace Cena as the top face of the WWE is not the same thing as saying I don't love what Punk does anyway. I like the snarkiness to his promos, and I like the fact that the rough and tumble lifestyle of being a pro wrestler hasn't comprised his values. I am not 100% straight edge, I do drink alcohol occasionally, but I like the fact that he is sticking to his guns, despite the constant pressures. Punk is a breath of fresh air, in a world where more wrestlers end up doing drugs and having drinking problems than not. It's TOUGH to avoid those pressures to "fit in" somehow, but Punk does it. I have a lot of respect for Phil Brooks, the man. Now, if the January promo thingie ends up being Chris Jericho afterall, my answer will immediately change to Jericho as my favorite current wrestler. I love the smart heel concept that men like Nick Bockwinkel perfected, that Jericho pretty much copied.
What's your favorite wrestling match of all time?
Savage/Steamboat from Wrestlemania III, without any hesitation whatsoever. I always say if I had ONE match to convince a wrestling skeptic why they might give pro-wrestling a look, that would be the one match I would choose. You had two of the greatest technical wrestlers of all time, two absolute perfectionists in the ring who didn't settle for half-assed efforts going at it, you had the non-stop movement fast pace of the match, the multiple pinfall attempts, the tremendously well done feud that led up to it. On a scale of 1-5, that match would be a 4.9999999. The ONLY complaint I have with that entire match was the involvement of George the Animal Steele at the end. The quality of the match itself merited a 100% clean ending, without anything at all to even hint at marring it. If Steamboat had been allowed to win it without Steele's presence at all, it would have been quite possibly a perfect match. But, that is a very minor complaint, that has taken over 20 years of hindsight to mature.
