What was the coolest face turn in wrestling history?

[The Great King]

I have to go with Hulk Hogan turning face at Wrestlemania X8. It was cool to see the old Hulk Hogan for the first time.

 

[thebarber]

Brutus Beefcake, after being left behind by the Dream Team and Johnny V at Mania 3, he came out later in the show at Mania 3 and shaved Adrian Adonis head, turning face automatcially

 

[IrishCanadian25]

Luger turning face on board the Intrepid was amazing. Yokozuna seemed unstoppable at the time - he had beaten everyone he'd faced, including beating Bret Hart @ Mania and ending Hulkamania until X8. The Yokozuna bodyslam challenge was gripping, and when Lex Luger arrived in his helicopter and turned - shoving Boddy Heenan aside - slammed Yokozuna and turned the wrestling world upside down.

Second is Mr. Perfect turning on Ric Flair and Bobby Heenan on Prime Time Monday Night. Randy Savage and Ultimate Warrior were set to face Flair and Razor Ramon at Survivor Series, but Warrior went bat shit and Savage needed a replacement. He asked Mr. Perfect, which seemed odd, but when Heenan ran his mouth once too much, Perfect accepted, and the face turn was amazing.

 

[HBsam31]

I thought about this one for a few days, and I just read the posts and know one has mentioned this one. It is fresh in my mind because I just bought the ppv on DVD. The only thing I am not sure of is how long he stayed face after this. It was Survivor Series 2001 in the winner take all team Alliance vs. Team WWE. Kurt Angle had been eliminated earlier as a member of team Alliance, and it came down to Rock/Austin when Angle made his way back down to ringside. He made it look like he was going to help the Alliance win, and he took out Austin giving The Rock and Team WWE the win. I know the invasion angle sucked but this was a really cool face turn and the crowd popped huge for it.

 

[pepentorresHHH]

ive read the threads for a long time and everybody loveeees to say whats their favorite heel turn, how hulk joined the nwo and how stone cold sold his soul for the title at wm 17 etc etc but what about your favorite face turn...very simple just saw which one and why?

you can go old school or you can choose recent. Lets see some famous examples:

The Macho King turns face and returns to the Macho Man Randy Savage and gets back together with Miss Elizabeth!.... I loved that turn because the Macho King had been so effective in his heel run, sensational sherri put him over the top, at wm 7 he did everything in his power to retire the ultimate warrior but he lost at the end and sherri started assaulting him and out of the crowd comes sherri and fights off sherri and in one moment all was good with the world and savage hugged elizabeth!!!!

Stone cold´s face turn was a long time coming but the crowd was behind him 100% after he refused to tap out at wrestlemania 13. i know he was kind of cheered but thats where he surpassed the king of the ring 96 level into the stone cold we know today!

the rock turns face in 1999, after the corporation the guy was too good to stay heel and finaly turned face and became the people´s champion!

kudos to Triple H´s turn in 06 ane Hulk's in 02

Discuss.....

 

[bigbootydaddyV]

I kind of liked Undertakers because it was so unexpected, Lex Lugar's as well when he became the All American hero. Both of those were so unexpected and pre-internet so I definitely had no way of finding out before they happened. Those would be my two favorite turns bc at the time I remember losing my mind.

 

[Spack]

My all time favorite face turn will always be when Raven came back to ECW and helped Tommy Dreamer win the tag team championships. It was one of the few moments that actually had me jumping with excitement.

 

[HenryOGodwin]

Easy! In 1994, Henry Godwinn was kicking ass and taking names in the WWF. The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase was so impressed he enlisted the services of HOG for the Million Dollar Corporation. Eventually DiBiase began insulting the superstar and and Henry slopped him!! I marked out hardcore. This was the best face turn ever because it lead to the introduction of Henry's cousin, Phineas I. Godwinn and the greatest tag team in the history of sports entertainment was born - The Godwinns.

 

[Kliq69]

ive read the threads for a long time and everybody loveeees to say whats their favorite heel turn, how hulk joined the nwo and how stone cold sold his soul for the title at wm 17 etc etc but what about your favorite face turn...very simple just saw which one and why?

you can go old school or you can choose recent. Lets see some famous examples:

The Macho King turns face and returns to the Macho Man Randy Savage and gets back together with Miss Elizabeth!.... I loved that turn because the Macho King had been so effective in his heel run, sensational sherri put him over the top, at wm 7 he did everything in his power to retire the ultimate warrior but he lost at the end and sherri started assaulting him and out of the crowd comes sherri and fights off sherri and in one moment all was good with the world and savage hugged elizabeth!!!!

Stone cold´s face turn was a long time coming but the crowd was behind him 100% after he refused to tap out at wrestlemania 13. i know he was kind of cheered but thats where he surpassed the king of the ring 96 level into the stone cold we know today!

the rock turns face in 1999, after the corporation the guy was too good to stay heel and finaly turned face and became the people´s champion!

kudos to Triple H´s turn in 06 ane Hulk's in 02

Discuss.....

The Macho turn has always been my favorite. In my mind's eye I've always seen the two of them standing in the ring for moments like that. I prefer to not remember Gorgeous George, Liz being a catty ****e in WCW, and all the other BS. But you picked that one so I thought of my second favorite...

Tommy Dreamer.

ECW fans loathed him during the first part of his career. He got heat on par with Vickie, Cole, and Xpac. I mean it was rough and unwarranted. Then came the fateful day where Dreamer lost a very unique (for the time) match. When he lost to the Sandman and per the stipulation was forced to take 10 whacks with a singapore cane. This moment changed all of ECW forever with Dreamer becoming if not the top star, the guy who was the backbone of the company. Many great feuds, many great moments, and none of them would have happened without this match.

Thank you sir, may I have another.

 

[HBsam31]

Going to have to agree with the Macho Man turn as my favorite. A great wrestling moment when Liz saved him from Sherri, and they got back together. Even the Brain on commentary had to admit it was great lol. From heel to face with just one hug. Good stuff.

 

[TheChosenOne]

Call me new school, but one of my favorite face turns was Batista's in 2005, when he turned on Evolution and went after the WHC. The thumbs going down shocked me and everyone.

 

[Wolf Pac]

My original answer was DDP's face turn in 97 but I want to be original and go with a different answer, so I'll go with Stone Cold Steve Austin's face turn during the WWF vs. Alliance feud, where Stone Cold was out drinking at a bar after Vince asked him to bring back the old Stone Cold but he refused then later in the night, the WWF & WCW/ECW guys fight in the ring, backstage and in the Parking Lot before Austin arrives at the scene and takes all of the WCW/ECW guys out and joins Team WWF in the ring at the end of Raw, bringing back the old Stone Cold. I know he had just turned heel back at WM and turned back to heel at Invasion but just that one night where he brought the old Austin back was just epic, it sent shivers down my spine especially when I watch the whole face turn in the Invasion video promo.

 

[Moneyinc]

Gotta say Bret Hart turning face was great. Hart Foundation used to be hated. Then next thing you know they were tag champs and loved. Not sure how it happened. Then Bret went solo and the match against Roddy Piper really showed what he could do.

As someone else mentioned Undertaker turning face was awesome. Tombstoning Jake the Snake outside of the ring at Wrestlemania 8.

 

[Bone For Tuna]

As far as coolness goes, when the Undertaker first rolled in on a motorcycle I remember thinking that was unbelievably awesome.

I probably watched that video a hundred times.

 

[MINISTRYrising]

I would say the Randy Savage Face turn after he lost his match to Warrior at Wrestlemania VII. everybody wanted to see Savage and Miss Elizabeth reunited one more time and after he lost to the Warrior (which ment he could no longer wrestle inc the wwe) people started to think we would never see it. But as it happens Miss Elizabeth jumped the rail after the match to come to his aid, when sherri attacked him for lossing the match. This in turn made Savage a face again and gave everybody what they wanted to see.

 

[BigThunder]

I've got to go with the Nikita face turn -- so unexpected, yet it made so much sense and Dusty sold it perfectly in the interview afterwards. I have to say the Savage face turn was pretty damn awesome too.

Also... Lawler's face turn when he came to JR's defense for the first time. You just knew Lawler really liked JR down deep. That was a great moment.

 

[Moneyinc]

I liked the Hart Foundations turn as well. It was Wrestlemania 7 I believe that they were champs all of the sudden and came out to a HUGE pop. Then lost to the Nasty Boys which was very disappointing.

Macho Man at Wrestlemania 4 was cool because the crowd didn't seem too sure on him at first. Obivously he was Hogans partner at the time, but he still had the crowd more and more behind him as the night went on. Most of that was due to his exciting style of wrestling back then. Loved the way he would scurry to the turnbuckle and climb it real fast trying to get off his elbows...

I might have already mentioned Undertaker turning face which happened partly because of the Tombstone to Jake the Snake at Wrestlemania 8. People were right in the middle of realizing how great he is. The way the story line worked out with Jake slamming Takers hand in the casket played to Takers favor as well. Fans started to turn on Roberts a little bit and cheer for the Taker. Then of course you put him up against the very hated and easy to hate Giant Gonzalez in Wrestlemania 9, and you've got the face turn.

 

[8thwotwATG]

These days, maybe because I am SOOOOO old compared to the majority of the individuals posting here at wrestlezone.com, I am extremely reluctant to post ANYTHING, even here in the old School thread, because, what I consider Old School and what most others consider old school are entirely different animals. That being said, one of the most significant and effective face turns in my opinion, was when the legendary Jimmy"Superfly"Snuka turned face in his early to mid 80's run in the WWE/WWF. For those who are not familiar with the Superfly, he entered the then named WWF as a heel with Capt. Lou Albano as his manager, and, not for nothing, was one of the most athletic, and skilled in ring performers of his era. Snuka's run as a heel included title shots at both Bob Backlund(then the WWF Champion) and a VERY serious run at the Intercontinental Championship, then held by the great Pedro Morales. As is common in the pro wrestling business, sometimes what the promoters think should occur with their talent is not always the same as what the fans are on board with, and thus was the case with the Superfly. Here in the northeast, Jimmy Snuka was SOOO beloved, even as a heel that Vince McMahon Sr. was forced to turn Mr. Snuka face, in spite of his original plans for Jimmy. This was fairly easily accomplished by having his erstwhile manager, the late, great, Capt. Lou Albano and another great former wrestler and world class manager "Classy" Fred Blassie (RIP Fred) gain the services of one of the most accomplished, and surest hands in the business by the name of Ray"The Crippler"Stevens, who had just arrived in the WWF. The stoyline behind this was that Stevens' was soooo good that both Albano and Blassie both wanted a piece of him, while at the same time, Albano began to treat Snuka like a p.o.s., and generally fed the fans his "evil" treatment of the "Fly". Bear in mind, at this time, this was before the advent of cable television, and the age of computers and the internet, so what makes the impact of this face turn even more remarkable, was that in spite of the lack of technology at the time, this very basic storyline sucked all of us fans here in the northeast completely into it. Additionally, Snuka began to make appearances on one the earliest interview segments in WWE/F history on "Roger's Corner" A segment hosted by the very first WWE/F Champion Buddy Rogers. Anyway, the "Fly" would bitch to Rogers about how Albano was screwing him out of thousands of dollars, and, of course, Rogers woudl comiserate completely with Snuka's situation, culminating in a match between Stevens and Snuka. Then it all came to a head during the match, which of course never completely occured on free TV, when seconds before the match started, Stevens held Snuka immobile while Capt. Lou pounded Snuka in the forehead with Snukas' own puka shell headband, drawing blood.
Then, adding insult and more injury to already existing injury, Ray Stevens delivered TWO of the most realistic looking piledrivers that I have EVER seen to the "Fly" on the concrete floor of the studio.
Jimmy Snuka was one of the single most reliable draws, in terms of wrestling talent, that has ever been seen in the New England area, and once he turned face, his drawing power must have tripled, to my mind. I loved watching Snuka as a youngster, and once he turned face, I loved watching him more. In my belief, not only was Snukas' face turn the coolest in wrestling, but his face turn also cemented Snuka as one of the greatest talents in Pro Wrestling history. His major face turn elevated his career to larger prorportions than what would have occurred had he not turned face. Thanks to anyone who may take the time to read this post, I Know It's a bit longwinded. Peace out.

 

[Waylon Mercy]

My recollection of the whole thing is a bit fuzzy, but I am totally on board with the Nikita Koloff face turn in the old NWA days. Nikita was a force unlike anything I had ever seen in his meteoric rise as a heel. He was powerful, fearless, and downright scary at times. He was probably the very first heel I had ever cheered for. He was that damned good. This was at the peak of the Cold War era, when Reagan was president. Over in the WWF,Hulk Hogan, with his "Real American" theme song was running wild. Concurrently, in the NWA, Nikita Koloff was threatening to take every title and bring them home to Russia. His face turn came out of nowhere, and caught the wrestling world (as it was back then) totally off guard. Suddenly, in the context of wrestling as a reflection of society in general, bitter enemies made much better friends. Koloff coming to the American Dream's rescue was akin to the Iron Curtain lifting.

 

[CrazyChicksDigger]

The Double Turn @WM13 -- half of that double turn was the coolest face turn, IMO. Austin turning face during the match vs. Bret, and then to make it cooler Bret turns heel after the match.

 

[rickyc]

The Double Turn @WM13 -- half of that double turn was the coolest face turn, IMO. Austin turning face during the match vs. Bret, and then to make it cooler Bret turns heel after the match.

I can't believe more people are NOT choosing this turn. It was, IMO, the greatest double switch in the history of professional wrestling simply because it was so unexpected. I think we forget just how universally loved and respected Bret Hart was during this time. He was THE MAN in the WWF in terms of explosive fan reactions, positive fan reactions I should say. Not only that, but Austin, during the time, was doing everything in his power to be the BIGGEST HEEL in the company. The things he was doing to Bret were down right dastardly (yes, I used that word), and for all intents and purposes, he should have been getting booed out of the building, but he wasn't. It was a floodgate that was not to be contained in that the fans just didn't want to boo for him. He was so bad, he was good. They just needed that little extra push to give them the extra incentive to cheer their heads off for him, and as it turned out, that was Mania 13 and him refusing to give up. Okay, so maybe it wasn't completely unexpected, but seriously, to see Bret turn into a villain, and to see someone so villainous turn into a hero in the matter of 2 minutes, in the matter of one hold, was something the WWF had never experienced at that point, and was absolutely the coolest face turn ever.