The Best SHW's or Big Men of All Time

[SavageTaker]

So who do you guys think are the best SHW's or Big Men of all time? In case you don't know SHW means Super Heavyweight.

Im going to choose The Undertaker as one of the best. He can do things that some other wrestlers that are smaller than him would not dare do. How many men that weight in at or near 300 pounds have you seen actually do a suicide dive over the top rope without messing up? I haven't seen many do it that's for sure.

He other than being able to do moves that are not usually seen by men his size is a very agile. He can be quick and still be coordinated. Sometimes when other wrestlers try to be more quick they mess up moves or they look award and sluggish because they can't do them very good when they have to do them faster or aren't used to a quicker pace. But not The Undertaker, he rarely messes up his moves when he decides to start speeding up the pace of the match.

Other than being able to perform moves that aren't usually seen by men his size and being agile he can also do power moves and submission. So not only is he able to perform moves that people way smaller than him do but he can also do moves that people his size would normally do.

These are some of the reasons why I think The Undertaker is one of the best big men of all time.

Who do you guys think are the best SHW's or Big Men of all time and why?

 

[Big Sexy]

It's a tough question because there are so many things you can judge it on, but I'm going to go with one of the original shw's Andre the Giant. You can't have a conversation about the best shw's without mentioning his name. He is a legend in every sense of the word. The man didn't lose a match in the US by pinfall or submission for 15 years until Hulk Hogan pinned him at Wrestlemania 3. He has fought and defeated some of the biggest names in wrestling including Hulk Hogan. Of all the shw's wrestling has had over the years Andre is really the only one who was always main eventing and always in high profiled matches.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

Well, there is no question that my top 5 rankings, in order, are Vader, Andre, Bigelow, Yokozuna, Wight. I've made that quite clear.

Now you're adding "big men" into the equation, and I'll add a vote for Bill DeMott. He played some shit characters, but as a big man he was equally in talent by few others. He was a ring general - called many of his matches - and a tough but effective mentor for young wrestlers. He was amazingly agile - similar to Vader - and also very serviceable on the mat.

Let's also give some props to Charles Wright. Whether he was Papa Shango, The Godfather, Kama Mustafa, etc., he was a guy who worked his character well in the ring and played his size based on that character. It's hard to believe the evil, sadistic, odd brawler in Shango was the same man who would later charismatically come to the ring n colorful, flashy outfits with local strippers.

John Tenta. I am not talking about WCW Tenta with 14 different identities - I am talking early 90's Earthquake, from his Hogan feud to his days with The Natural Disasters. He came off as a dominant big man, and it worked. Yet still, he was talented enough to work well with the likes of DiBiase and IRS and the Beverly Brothers, and make it look realistic.

And one of my all-time favs. Scott Norton. The guy was a bus. He was a multi-time champion in Japan, a decent tag wrestler in the states, and a massive presence in the ring. He only really played one character, to his detriment, but he was the nWo's enforcer and his work in Japan is worth a look.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

I'm going to leave Vader to IC 25..simply because I can't do Vader justice.


As far as Super Heavyweights go...I can think of someone who many might not think of as a SHW. But he is, and he was BIG SEXY! Kevin Nash! Say what you want about the political bullshit and the things he did backstage, but the man lived through two horrible gimmicks to become Big Daddy Cool Diesel.

I remember his first match as Oz. What a messed up gimmick that was. Munchkins and shit all around him. Crazy stuff. Then as Vinnie Vegas. Which was more likable, but equally as cheesy. His Snake Eyes finisher was bad though.

Then we know what happens next. He goes to the WWF/E...becomes the 'bodyguard' of the Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels. As his bodyguard, he helped HBK win Intercontinental gold and keep it around his waste. And in the process, Nash even won the IC title AND WWE Title. He was in Wrestlemania main eventing with the Undertaker in a very underrated match. He did the job and became a notch in the Deadman's Wrestlemania belt.

After much success in the WWE, he moved on to the WCW as the 'Outsider' along with Scott Hall. Seeing him show up behind Bischoff on Nitro made my jaw drop. I was like, "FUCKIN' DIESEL'S ON NITRO!' I marked out like a kid who just had Bret Hart shades put on his face. But in this instance, Nash become one of the founding members of one of wrestling's all time greatest factions, the N-W-O! Nash was a Tag Champion with Hall, and made sure the strap stayed on Hogan when he was around and eventually, Nash would end up champion himself. Nash, to me, was a main eventer and a very underrated Superheavyweight.

Then we have the TNA, grey beard of Nash. I've watched one match he was in, and was like, "Is Spike showing an episode of Nitro?" Nash is great and eventually, he'll make it into the Hall of Fame. Because he's just toooo sssssssssweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!

 

[supersayian]

top 5 all time
5 Umaga really moves well in the ring and is like a mad truck looking to destroy anything at all cost i hope he gets a rub from Taker soon

4 Vader this guy was strong as hell and could work with greats such as HBK or Bret hart or Taker he moved descent

3 Nash yeah his gimmicks sucked but he could really carry a match with almost anybody

2 Taker there is no debate against the big man as he has written history itself and is most respected in the locker room by younger stars. strong agility and corridnation and can really fly around the ring

1 No Debate Who is Best Andre the Giant went undefeated for 15 years i find it bullshit Vince let Hogan and his ego get in the way to beat Andre like that. Andre should have been a high main eventer then he was at the time.

 

[Sasori]

Hmmm every ones talking about the already established big time SHW's and big men, but what about the future? Samoa Joe is what I am talking about! The dude can pull of all of 'Taker's moves! He is FAST, powerful, has A LOT of submission holds, he can counter very well, an excellent high flyer who can pull of every one of Mysterio's high flying moves more effectivly, hes the total package when it comes to in-ring ability! He was undefeated in TNA for nearly 20 months! THATS ALMOST 2 YEARS! He ended Christian's 2 year TNA undefeated streak! He's, I think the longest reigning ROH champ! And don't believe me? Go check out his matches with Christian, AJ, Daniels,ROH,Kurt Angle, etc!

 

[Hacksaw Highway]

1 No Debate Who is Best Andre the Giant went undefeated for 15 years i find it bullshit Vince let Hogan and his ego get in the way to beat Andre like that. Andre should have been a high main eventer then he was at the time.

Yeah, I'm sure Hogan beating Andre was all about ego and not an aging wrestler passing the torch to the man who became the biggest superstar of all time... not to mention I think WWE may have made some money from the angle.

Anyways, on topic, I'd have to say Taker. Unfortunately for me, although I've watched wrestling my whole life I'm only 17 so even though I grew up watching guys like Vader, Yoko, and Bigelow I was like 5 and I don't remember it well. Taker however has been constant through ym whole life as one of the best guys on the show. Not only is he one of the best wrestlers today, he's is one of them all-time greats, and not just for big men. Especially nowadays with his expanded moveset, he's pretty much phenominal in every aspect:
Strength: Obviously being such a huge guy, he can overpower just about anybody and can pull off some impressive moves
Flying: Sure he's not exactly AJ Styles, but he can move in there. The suicide dive over the top rope is amazing, old school requires some solid balance and he's been known to pull off some big moves from the top from time to time
Submissions: Taker in recent years has added a whole new level of depth to his game with submissions: triangle chokje, hells gate, dragon sleeper, arm bars, etc. He's been influenced by MMA without being too MMA oriented, unlike people suhc as Samoa Joe
Brawling: Granted this isn't exactly difficult, he's one hell of a brawler who can effectively use weapons.
Longevity: He's used a high impact style with lots of gimmick matches and near constant tourning (not as much in the last 5-6 years, but still) for quite some time.
For those reasons, Taker is once and forever the best IMO.

 

[jmt225]

I can't claim he's the "best" or "greatest", but my all time favorite big man is without a doubt, Big Daddy Cool Diesel.

In the mid-nineties... I was the biggest Diesel mark on the face of the planet. I enjoyed every second of his run in the WWF back then. As Kevin Nash in WCW, he was cool too, but it wasn't the same for me. There was just something about Diesel that attracted me to that character. He had charisma out this World, and seemed like a legit bad ass. I don't know, as a kid, how anyone could not like this guy. Plus, he was best friends with Shawn Michaels, so that automatically made him awesome from the start.

As far as my favorite SHW... Bam Bam Bigelow, with a doubt, and I WOULD claim that he is the "best" and greatest" SHW of all time. You look at his work in Japan, the fact that he headlined a Wrestlemaina and got such a good match out of someone who never wrestled a match in their life, and also his spectacular ECW run... I don't see how anyone could say this guy wasn't the greatest SHW of all time.

 

[JenovasWitness]

The Undertaker is, by and large, arguably the best SHW wrestler still active today. In the ring, his skills are diverse as he mixes power moves, brawling, a little aerial ability and submission wrestling. He is a well decorated champion and is easily one of the most respected men in the WWE locker room, if not the most respected. He understands the business and he changes his character often to keep from becoming stale. He has my vote as the best right now.

Vader also has my vote. He was just so dominating in Japan and in WCW and his agility for such a huge man really startled me.

Second to last, I have a soft spot in my heart for Bam Bam Bigelow. I loved watching him come flying off that top turnbuckle with the headbutt, doing cartwheels in the ring, beating up Shane Dougles and catching RVD as he went flying into the crowd head over heels. I think Bam Bam was very underrated.

Lastly, the greatest SHW of all time is Bob Holly. LOL I loved that portion of his career when he was billing himself as 6 foot 6 and weighing over 400 pounds. It showed that he actually had a drizzle of humor in him. And who can forget that gash he got in his back on WWECW when he suplexed RVD through that table? The man was tough as nails.