Who has the best defense in a WWE ring?

[CM Steel]

Offense & Defense. Things can go either way in sports (entertainment). And in wrestling there is alot of offense displayed. Moves like the AA, the RKO, GTS, and the 619. But who in the WWE of all it's superstars has the best defense inside a WWE ring during a match?

If I could choose one WWE superstar, I would choose Christian. He'a an all-around wrestling veteran. And is a underrated worker! WWE fans say that Christian is filling in the Fit Finlay-role currently in the WWE as a veteran wrestler helping bring up the new generation of young & hunger WWE superstars.

Christian has alot of good defense! But in your own opinion. Who has the best defense in a WWE ring?

 

[Silver Fox]

I always thought Chris Jericho came up with some superb counter's, and generally had a great defence. Some of the ways he hit the Codebreaker as a counter move or applied the Walls of Jericho were genius.

However if we are going with someone on the regular roster, i have to to go with Daniel Bryan. Not only is he the most technical wrestler in the WWE, he also has a great strike arsenal that can counter anybody at anytime. He is pretty much a great all round guy in terms of offence and defense.

 

[Wally Dangerously]

"Defense" doesn't really pop into my head when I think of any wrestlers. This speaks to your statement, Mack, that we mostly see offense, or at least that's what most fans look for when they watch wrestling.

As far as guys on the current roster, Rey Mysterio and Big Show come to mind. Rey, because he reverses a lot offense from his opponent via hurricanranas and other aerial maneuvers. Big Show, because he can level an oncoming opponent with one kick or strike.

All-Time, I immediately think of Haku and early Undertaker. Haku, because of his invincible forehead, and early Undertaker because he was pretty much invincible during his first year in the WWE. If you can't be hurt, that's a pretty good defense IMO.

Good topic.

 

[keehlnate]

Defense? You mean covering up when punched? Or evading strikes like Floyd Mayweather? Well, there is no such thing as "defense" in the WWE. If you mean countering maneuvers, then that is preworked by the wrestlers themselves. Like for example, you can't say that CM Punk has the best defense because Orton can't pull the RKO on him. What I mean is, defense is an ambiguous term and you can't really say that one wrestler has better defense than the other.

btw OP, how can you say that Christian has the best defense anyway?

 

[Kris Benwa]

I'd say Chris Jericho also he can counter almost anything and it's always amazing. Also on the old gamecube game Day of Reckoning 2 his Reversal and counter ability was so good it pissed me off I could barely hit my finisher, the always awesome Burning Hammer, on him it was annoying but that's who i think of as best defense Y2J.

 

[Mustang Sally]

"Defense" doesn't really pop into my head when I think of any wrestlers.

True. After all, pro wrestling's M.O. is "You pound on me for awhile, then I'll pound on you"......which hardly lends itself to the concept of defense. Further, a valuable skill for a performer to possess is the ability to sell the offense of his opponent (who is really his partner, no?). Given that, defense doesn't figure into the equation.

If you want to look at the concept of defense as a wrestler's ability to use technical moves to reverse an opponent's momentum, there are many people you can name. But when you consider that the job of a performer is to get himself into position to receive the high flying moves of Sin Cara, or walk directly into drop-kicks that are telegraphed from a mile away, there's not much use in talking about defense in pro wrestling.

 

[Playboy Stevie V]

Personally I think right now, from what I've seen Damien Sandow has the best defensive ring psychology. Just look at his matches with Sheamus and everyone else. He picks his spots, runs and out smarts.

Of all time for me it would have to The Nature Boy Ric Flair. Dirtiest player in the game and can find a way to win or hold on to his belt. A guy has momentum and just like that, a quick eye poke, nut shot etc Flair has control again.

 

[TempestH]

Alex Riley

Despite being reduced to a jobber over the year, he has a lot of high energy, high impact offense that makes you think he may have a chance at winning. When he's going up against upper card guys like Dolph Ziggler, he actually manages to look like their equal despite being near the bottom of the barrel.

 

[TheCrusher]

I'm taking the word "defense" to mean the best moveset to look like your turning your opponent's offense into an advantage for you. The ultimate in recent years would have been Chris Benoit who almost always managed to work a moment into the match where it looked like the opponent was about to hit a signature or finisher and ended up in a sudden Crippler Crossface. It was basically a way to get his character over as supremely skilled, but also showed how well the guy was able to work with other wrestlers in calling a match. I loved to watch that guy work. To a lesser extent, I felt the same way about Malenko. Eddie was also pretty good at it. No surprise they kind of came in together.

Right now, I think Daniel Bryan might be one of the best at this sort of thing. He has a nice moveset and a good feel for it to look like he's doing genuine counters. The highflyers with hurricanranas (I never could spell that damn word) and the like do this pretty well. Some guys do really nice inside crescent kicks or enziguri type moves at times when they look like their caught. Drop toehold set-up moves can lead to this, too. Again, you're looking at smaller guys or tag division guys for a lot of this. Tyson Kidd could really develop into that niche I think.

Now, there is one group of wrestlers I hesitate to mention... the divas. Since they are always putting pretty little things over powerhouses like Beth and Natalya, their matches often are booked to end with a sudden reversal off a counter. If doing some cartwheels and flips while a big girl knocks you around and then ending up catching the big girl in a small package or something is defense, the Divas are all over that.

 

[HBKistheHOF]

Well "defense" in WWE can mean different things on different levels.

It can mean:
-Defening yourself & an opponent in the ring, so that they are safe
-There is actual human defense, like one Superstar defending against the other controlling the match or defending against a sloppy move.
-"Perceived Defense" aka a Superstar defending planned moves or choreographed defensive moves & reversals

As far as safe inside the ring I would have to go with Kofi Kingston. His moves are not normal & sometimes look hectic, yet I can't remember any of his matches coming of as sloppy or him involved in any injuries to an opponent. He seems to suit WWE perfectly as a safe, kid friendly, worker.

As fas as human defense I would have to go Brock Lesnar. He is a trained wrestler, grappler, striker, & MMA fighter. He has barely taken a punch since returning & the man legitimately knows how to protect himself.

As far as perceived defense & strategic reversals I would have to say Daniel Bryan. The man can reverse an armbar & not only make it look intelligent & interesting but turn it into an offensive maneuver & reverse that into something else. He is a genius at defensive grapplng & chain wrestling.

 

[theBec2101]

Undertaker. I noticed in the far and few in between matches he has, he covers up like a boxer. He too has an MMA background as well; I know he doesn’t do it for competition. I would also say people like Ziggler and Swagger because they do know counter moves from their armature days.

Also I do think there are defensive moves to. Like a reversal. Would the count? If so I would have go with the following;
Orton-he can hit that RKO from anywhere, ex. Evan Bourn
Jericho-he hit the code breaker a few times of a reversal, ex. CM Punk
HBK-kicks people faces off wither standing next to them or they jump across the ring, ex. Shelton Benjamin and Cena
Edge-the spear, ex almost everyone
and there are others.

 

[zakkdreamz]

Defense to me in pro wrestling was always about countering. Since I can't take any blocking or dodging seriously as they're a work, it always came down to who shot the gun first. For instance, when Randy Orton first faced Chris Benoit for the WHC at Summerslam - those last few moments of Chris trying to do a german suplex, and Orton just grabs the RKO and it's over in the blink of an eye. That's the first time Orton did something that made me say, "Whoa".

Shawn Michaels will also come out of anywhere and everywhere with his kick. Jericho will reverse anything and everything to do whatever he feels like at the time. Stuff like this is what is impressive to me. The best defense is a good offense as they say, and when moments like that happen, such as Orton's RKO to Benoit, that's a hell of a defense to come out of an attempt with a smashing finish.


Of course, if you're talking literal defense for funzies, then you'd have to say Goldberg or The Great Khali, or early Kane, and other super heavyweights. Because if you're beating on them and they look like they could care less, then that's a pretty solid defense. It's like letting your opponent tire themselves out, then smear them across the floor. However, as it's all a work and called beforehand, it's silly to take it seriously.

And if none of the above suit what you consider defense and you're referring as simply playing it safe and being a technician, then there were many. Benoit, Jericho, Kurt Angle, Bret Hart, and most recently Daniel Bryan. The ones that know the move they're in and can find their way out of them. But, I also consider this to be not applicable to pro wrestling, since such things are, again, called.