Who is the greatest world champion of all-time

[thebarber]

Got to be Bruno Sammartino. From 1963 until 1971, he was pro wrestling. And he only lost the belt because HE demanded Vince Snr take it from him so he could rest up injuries, spend time with his family. Bruno would have had a reign probably like Fabulous Moolah (1956-1984 allegedly). The second Bruno felt he was healthy to return to wrestling, Vince Snr immediately took the belt of Morales, who had a three year run I believe, putting the belt on Stan Stasiak for a few days as a caretaker champ so a face could beat a heel for the belt. He held it for another few years then until he had enough. Bruno sold out Madison Square Garden over what, 200 times, didnt have any fanciness, just raw power. Arenas country wide couldnt get enough of him.
Bruno came along at the perfect time and got out at probably the perfect time. Backlund vs Sammartino would have been ugly match ups

 

[InstantAttitude]

Ric Flair by far, he's won titles from all types of promotions all over the world.
Dubbed 16 Time World Champion and that means something.
Unlike today in WWE where there's 2 World Titles and Cena's the top guy and those reigns keep on adding up because of that.

 

[TheLittleOne]

Randy Savage deserves to always be considered when making lists for " greatest of all time, or greatest champion of all time"...

now i loved Macho Man, but his best work wasn't as champion..

i voted for Bret The Hitman Hart, please let me tell you why.

we saw BRET HART debut for WWE in 1985... by 1986, Bret and the anvil were a top tag team giving MATCH of the NIGHT at msg house shows against the BULLDOGS, or Killer Bees, or Rougeaus...
by 1989, we began seeing BRET in singles matches, many airing on tv especially PrimeTime Wrestling.. it was obvious everything he did looked PERFECT, and he could make even Dino Bravo look Good ( tough!)....

in 1990 along with only the ROCKERS, the Hart foundation were the only tag teams to be featured heavily in ads, magazine covers, toys, maybe add Demolition in there ( b4 Lod Debut)... by the end of 1990 Jim Neidhart had too many personal problems and BRET BEGAN A SOLO CAREER... he made you believe each match he was truly TRYING to win, made it appear like a tough battle, was amazing at SELLING whether for big guys like BARBARIAN or guys like Henning WHOM HE HAD MAGIC IN THE RING WITH...
Then came SUMMERSLAM 1991... months leading up to the event, we saw BRET on almost every episode of SUPERSTARS battling "evil mid card heels"... then came MSG SummerSLam 1991 in a 5 star match Bret Hart defeated the OVER Mr.Perfect and won the Intercontinental title.. i never forget when he first held the belt.. HE KISSED IT!.. and it was an obvious monumental moment in his personal life....

now here comes the BOTTOM LINE.. every wrestler in that list, even Flair treated the Title Belts like a Gimmick, a Prop.. because it really is.. but they mostly all knew winning it meant they were VERY good or the Best at what they did along with the trust from your boss.. BUT still ...come on, i heard NASH, FLAIR, HBK all mock BRET and say he truly carried the belt like it was a real championship he earned... nash worded it something like " Bret believed in his head had to be a leader, because he carried the strap"...

HELLO! this is the proof that BRET HART WAS THE BEST CHAMPION OF ALL TIME... in 1992, Hulk was in the midst of a wwf vs government trial and guys like hulk & warrior looked like typical steroid guys... even thought BRET was on JUICE, prob less then them, probably took it in more safe cycles then abuse levels like warrior.... plus he could work, and the fans loved him and believed him, so once Vince knew flair would not be renewing in early 93 he had flair drop the belt to BRET... go back and watch... you'll see Bret once again Kiss the belt, then there was the post match interview with mene gene Bret responded " this is proof that the biggest dreams can still come true.!"...
i feel BRET needed money not only to live, but for his family.. but i think him being the WORLD CHAMPION meant more than Money to him...and i dont feel any other wrestler on that list shared that feeling with BRET...

i'm not here to talk about me, but i did wrestle from 2000-2008, i recall being in a locker room with xpac when he was "feelin very good and talkative" he was sharing some good stories to all of us young lions and i asked about his raw match with BRET... he became real emotional ( could have been some R/X effects too ,but) and said" damnit when i worked that match with bret, of course the paper on the wall had a time and brets name circled.... but from the moment the bell rang he made even ME believe i might win the match and more importantly win the TITLE!! plus everytime he hit me with punches or forearms he hit me with 100% force"... another good example..

BRET The Hitman HART... the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be... until some one changes that and brings not only a GREAT LOOK, and GREAT WORKRATE BUT a HUGE REAL HEART..

bret would have never slapped his leg when he used any type of kick!!!

 

[CenaFan2014]

I don't understand how people are voting for anyone other than Cena on this poll. He has been the most consistent. Most innovative. And most creative wrestler of all time. Just look at his career. One of his best matches ever was his first against angle. Happy to debate anyone on this, however there really is no debate. Just look at his championships. #Cenation

 

[Bobbywoodhogan]

Hogan for me, biggest star in the history of wrestling. Beating the Iron Sheik for the title with the birth of Hukamania is the most important moment in wrestling history. My opinion of course.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

It has to be Hulk Hogan for me. The single most important professional wrestler in history.

Hogan was the catalyst for the WWF's growth into the phenomenon it became. He was THE man, and even today the most influential performer the industry has ever seen. Ask a random person on the street to name a wrestler, and most will say Hulk Hogan. He is synonymous with the WWF Title, and headlined the biggest shows for the biggest company on the planet. Not only that, but he performed the biggest reinvention in wrestling history when he became the heel "Hollywood" Hogan, once again becoming the top star in the business in WCW.

I 100% understand why people voted for Thesz, or Sammartino. The contributions of both men to the business are immense. Similarly, I can't really disagree with anyone who voted for "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair- the man with more World Title's than anybody else. A man who travelled the world as the NWA Champion and carried himself with the prestige of Champion better than almost anybody else. But Flair didn't make wrestling what it became. That was Hogan.

There is no single wrestler more important to wrestling history than Hulk Hogan. The title immediately meant more when it was around his waist, and Hulk rightfully dominated the title picture in the WWF in his prime. He had the connection with the fans like no other, always eventually overcoming the evil heel to send the fans home happy, with the hero standing tall.