Past vs Present: Kevin Nash or Braun Strowman

[Wildcat66]

All right, this is going to be an attempt of creating a sort or series here on the WrestleZone forums; i'm not sure if this is allowed or something, but if it ends up turning out to be a success or something, then I might end up doing more of these in the future.

So, this is Past vs Present; where i'm going to take two wrestlers, one from the old days of wrestling and the other from the current era and pit the two together. I will list their strengths and their weaknesses for you to think about and then i'll let you decide who you think would win a potential match. So, yeah; let's have some fun shall we?

On this installment, we have a battle between one of the most intimidating, charismatic wrestlers of his generation Kevin Nash taking on former Wyatt Family member and perhaps one of the bigger success stories of the Brand Split; Braun Strowman.


Kevin Nash
Birth Date: July 9, 1959
Wrestling Debut: 1990

Positives:
+ Looked like a monster every time he appeared on WWF and WCW.
+ With the right opponent he could have really good matches.
+ He was part of some of wrestling's greatest moments. (NWO, The Kliq, Curtain Call, etc)
+ Had a mysterious charisma to him that propelled him to the top.

Negatives:
+ Not the best wrestler and had to carried sometimes.
+ His runs in WWE and TNA since 2002 have not exactly been the best.
+ His WWF title run is highly considered to be amongst the worst in WWF's history.
+ Had a reputation for being a politician outside the ring.

Braun Strowman
Birth Date: September 6, 1983
Wrestling Debut: December 18, 2014

Positives:
+ Seemingly improving with every appearance.
+ A legitimate monster, the guy looks like he could kill you.
+ The most agile big man since Kane.
+ Surprisingly more entertaining than people give him credit for.

Negatives:
+ Started wrestling slightly late in life.
+ His microphone skills may need a little more polishing.
+ Untested in long singles matches, (Except for Sami Zayn)
+ Despite improvements, he's not that great in the ring.

Voting ends around one week from today, so; let's see if this gamble ends up paying off.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

Voted for Strowman just because one thing: He still has time to improve and has probably not any decision in booking while "Big Sexy" or whatever they called him was perhaps worst main event draw WWE has ever got and one of the reasons WCW felled flat. Other then backed up by Vince and in time he is perhaps only believable monster there aside of veterans(meaning at right place despite that he is green more then vegans breakfast), Strowman has nothing else. While Kevin had

+ He was part of some of wrestling's greatest moments. (NWO, The Kliq, Curtain Call, etc)

Oh look, most influential groups in WWE and WCW that propelled him into a star by sheer influence . And still felled flat on his ass as one of the worst draws and Champs of modern wrestling eras.

 

[Navi]

I voted for Strowman for a couple of reason. First of all he is fairly green but will improve, and has done since he debuted. Secondly he isn't that bad on the mic, not as bad as some have made him out to be in other groups. I think part of the reason they don't let him talk much is because he is genuinely a nice guy and comes across that way. The WWE doesn't want their new monster heel seeming like that do they?

And last because Nash was good because of who he surrounded himself with. He always seemed to be with a group of some sort. Strowman on the other hand is better off by himself, he didn't need the Wyatt's in the way that Nash needed the NWO. Nash on his own would have been dismal.

Sorry forgot to add. We've seen the best Nash had to offer, we haven't hopefully seen the best that Strowman has yet.

 

[ShinChan]

Braun Strowman is way more interesting and entertaining than Kevin Nash for me.

So, Strowman.

 

[sikkbones]

Nash, crackle, quad, pop!!! Or Wyatt's baby faced lackey?

I'm gonna go with baby faced lackey just based on the factbhe can walk across the ring without snapping a quad.

 

[BaconBits]

Strowman, simply because he actually looks like a monster. Nash is huge, no doubt, but he never really had that monster vibe to me.

 

[Navi]

Strowman, simply because he actually looks like a monster. Nash is huge, no doubt, but he never really had that monster vibe to me.

Yea he came across more of a bouncer type in strip club type of vibe.

 

[Stormtrooper]

Why is this even a conversation? This is a super-easy choice here. Who you like more is irrelevant.

One man is an impressive newcomer who is still ridiculously green and a long ways away from being memorable. Sure he may get there, but he isn't there yet. If he were to retire tomorrow nobody will remember him in 5 years. His biggest win is over The Big Show and Mark Henry in 2017, 20 years after their debuts, and 6 years after they've been relevant.

The other held the WWE Championship for a year, then went to WCW and helped make it the #1 promotion for a short while, and won the Worlds Championship there 4 times.

Kevin Nash wins this easily. Kevin Nash defeated guys like Mabel and The Giant, who were physically bigger than Strowman; and he has defeated prominent superstars like Goldberg, DDP, and AJ Styles. Nash is a much smarter worker, who would come to this match prepared for someone like him, even if that means having some help from a cattle prod and Scott Hall.

Strowman is in over his head here, and it would show. Nash wins hands down.

 

[Wildcat66]

Why is this even a conversation? This is a super-easy choice here. Who you like more is irrelevant.

One man is an impressive newcomer who is still ridiculously green and a long ways away from being memorable. Sure he may get there, but he isn't there yet. If he were to retire tomorrow nobody will remember him in 5 years. His biggest win is over The Big Show and Mark Henry in 2017, 20 years after their debuts, and 6 years after they've been relevant.

The other held the WWE Championship for a year, then went to WCW and helped make it the #1 promotion for a short while, and won the Worlds Championship there 4 times.

Kevin Nash wins this easily. Kevin Nash defeated guys like Mabel and The Giant, who were physically bigger than Strowman; and he has defeated prominent superstars like Goldberg, DDP, and AJ Styles. Nash is a much smarter worker, who would come to this match prepared for someone like him, even if that means having some help from a cattle prod and Scott Hall.

Strowman is in over his head here, and it would show. Nash wins hands down.

Convincing argument for Nash. Will it be enough for Nash to make a comeback? We'll see in four days.

 

[Tastycles]

What has Strowman ever done ever to warrant this conversation? Kevin Nash has been a main event player in the two biggest wrestling companies in the history of the business and Braun Strowman has beaten a few people in the midcard.

Maybe it's because I'm not really watching wrestling religiously at the moment, but the irony of people wanting Strowman to win the Royal Rumble etc. whilst saying that 5 year veteran Roman Reigns isn't ready for it is astonishing.

 

[Bernkastel]

Wait, so this isn't rookie Kevin Nash versus rookie Braun Strowman? Kevin Nash has a hall of fame career. Strowman is still a relative nobody. It would be silly to think that Kevin at his best couldn't beat Strowman right now. Kevin at his best beat Goldberg. Fucking Goldberg.

 

[Khalifa]

I think people are letting their hate for Nash get in the way. Strowman has done absolutely nothing. Seriously what has he done in his short career so far? Eliminated a few people from the Royal Rumble. Kayfabe you could make the argument that Strowman destroys his opponents in seconds however non kayfabe it doesnt give us the ability to see if Strowman can go for even 10 minutes in the ring. Nash has beaten the best in better matches. Apart of the biggest stable in history, champion for a year, first man to ever beat Goldberg, in main event after main event and actually work a decent match. Let's not take away from Nash,s athleticism as well. He was pretty good for a 7 footer, didn't mind taking a bump either.

If we are being real, then it would be hard to say Strowman will be anything more than a Khali when comparing to Nash. Strowman hasn't proven anything yet. Has potential for sure but let's not take away from Kevin Nash because he was a politic.

 

[Wildcat66]

Wait, so this isn't rookie Kevin Nash versus rookie Braun Strowman? Kevin Nash has a hall of fame career. Strowman is still a relative nobody. It would be silly to think that Kevin at his best couldn't beat Strowman right now. Kevin at his best beat Goldberg. Fucking Goldberg.

The purpose of Past vs Present is for users to look at the overall career of two wrestlers and based off of their past accomplishments, decide who would be the likely victor in a 'dream' match.

If it was let's say a rookie Kevin Nash vs rookie Braun Strowman, or Nash as Diesel and Strowman as a Wyatt Family member; You would have different results because these moments came at different points of their career.

But we're talking about Nash and Strowman overall, so based on their accomplishments in and out the ring and the impact on the business they had i'm asking people to choose who they feel wins when you put their whole career together.

 

[Bernkastel]

The purpose of Past vs Present is for users to look at the overall career of two wrestlers and based off of their past accomplishments, decide who would be the likely victor in a 'dream' match.

If it was let's say a rookie Kevin Nash vs rookie Braun Strowman, or Nash as Diesel and Strowman as a Wyatt Family member; You would have different results because these moments came at different points of their career.

But we're talking about Nash and Strowman overall, so based on their accomplishments in and out the ring and the impact on the business they had i'm asking people to choose who they feel wins when you put their whole career together.

Nash. It's not close.

I say if you are going to do these types of threads, pick more balanced match ups.

 

[Wildcat66]

Nash. It's not close.

I say if you are going to do these types of threads, pick more balanced match ups.

Don't worry, I plan to have more balanced ones in the near future.

 

[Dmbfantomas]

Braun Strowman just had a great match with Big Show. Kevin Nash couldn't have a great match with Shawn Michaels.

Strowman, just becauseies.

 

[Dirk]

Pretty sure this is my own subjective emotional scarring, but for the life of me I can't seperate my mental image of strowman from the mentally handicapped gladiator from Mad Max.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

Prime Kevin Nash would book himself over Braun Strowman.

 

[Wildcat66]

Last day to vote, looks like Kevin Nash has a slight edge going into this; but anything can happen, it's been quite a close one.

 

[Wildcat66]

Well, since there's no further voting; I guess i'm going to have to be the tie-breaking vote.

Based off of everything I've heard and seen up to this point, I've decided. The winner of this fantasy matchup is...

Braun Strowman. And here's why: While Braun Strowman isn't exactly a well-known quanity in the wrestling world, he has everything he needs to be a main event monster in the WWE; he has an aura not seen since the days of Kane and Show from the early 90s.

It helps that Strowman has something these two did not have going into WWE. Time. See, Big Show and Kane were thrust into main event feuds immediately into their runs; feuds that they did not and probably could not have won. While it is exciting to see new blood rise up from the cream; it is also vital to build up a monster to be a formidable competitor rather than someone plucked of the blue.

With Braun Strowman, he's gone from squashing jobbers to facing the undercard, to fighting Sami Zayn to beating two of the biggest and strongest wrestlers WWE has to offer. He also has a big PPV match against Roman Reigns coming up, whether he wins or not; it is clear that WWE has high hopes onto him.

Kevin Nash in a way is like Strowman; he started off green, but after sometime he turned into a strong main event player. Unfortunately, one of the most crucial things about being a world champion is being a sell at the box office; whether it was WWE's fault or Nash's fault is up in the air, but Nash just did not sell as world champion. Regardless, he did hold the title for a solid year.

There was one thing that separated Nash and Strowman for me; being able to carry themselves alone. And to me, Strowman has been able to carry himself to put on good matches, not just with the Wyatt Family; but also on his own.

Nash has had good matches in his own right, (His match with Bret Hart is a good example) but it always felt like he was being carried during most of these matches; and when it was time to carry a lesser wrestler, he couldn't hold up his share. And once they realized Nash couldn't draw on his own, it was clear he needed help from some friends. (From WWE and WCW)

Strowman may be green, but the greenness in him seems to be fading away with every passing appearance. And so far, his run on RAW has proven that he can handle himself in the ring all alone. That's why in my mind, Braun Strowman has won this battle of Past Vs. Present.

P.S: I'm pleased with how this ended up going. I think it's safe to say you'll be seeing more of these type of posts in the near future. Thanks for participating and hopefully we can do this again real soon. (Maybe next time, you don't force me to break the tie)

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

This is kind of a silly debate. Braun Strowman still has the new wrestler smell all over him with a full career ahead of him. Kevin Nash has a full career of heavyweight title reigns, ending Goldberg's run, fighting and aligning himself with HBK, a founding member of The NWO. Hall of Famer. I love Strowman but he has a ton of catching up to do if you want to compare two wrestlers.

Kevin Nash wins with help.

 

[Wildcat66]

This is kind of a silly debate. Braun Strowman still has the new wrestler smell all over him with a full career ahead of him. Kevin Nash has a full career of heavyweight title reigns, ending Goldberg's run, fighting and aligning himself with HBK, a founding member of The NWO. Hall of Famer. I love Strowman but he has a ton of catching up to do if you want to compare two wrestlers.

Kevin Nash wins with help.

Believe me, it was a close call. I don't expect everyone to agree with what I've said or what with everyone who supported Nash said. Same with vice versa.