Who is WWE's Tough Guy?

[ramblinroy682]

Throughout the years, wrestling promotions have always had a staple of tough guys. Guys that maybe weren't pretty boys, had the most muscles, or were the most technical but you believed would just kick your ass. I think back to NWA/WCW and I think about guys like Ole Anderson, Arn Anderson, Dick Murdoch, Ron Simmon, etc in the NWA days. In WCW, Anderson, Scott Norton, Rick Stiener, Steve McMichael, Perry Saturn etc. The WWE had guys like Greg the Hammer Valentine, Jim Neidhart, Big Bossman, up through Bradshaw and Steve Austin.

Who fills the tough guy role for them now? Recent guys were let go that were of that mold in guys like Mike Knox, Luke Gallows, and Shad Gaspard. Maybe I am forgetting someone, but I don't really see any tough guys on the roster. Everyone now seems to be this corporate, super inflated ego, fancy dressing guy? Where have they gone? Is this persona not sellable anymore?

 

[hdchz013]

I realize he's a huge name in WWE. But when I think of a wrestler that just puts the "I'm gonna get my ass kicked" thoughts in my head...I gotta go with The Undertaker. No matter him being the American Badass or the "man from the darkside". In my opinion, Mark Callaway has always given that vibe....Yes, I'm even talking about his WCW days as well.
Another person that my girlfriend brought up that I have to agree with....Husky Harris. He seems to me like a guy that will just kick your ass for the fun of it....and laugh during.

 

[Cleavo77]

I don't know that they have one currently, but i have a few thoughts on who could fill the shoes.

Mark Henry:
He may be a loveable giant right now, but given the right circumstances, he could be a brute and just wreck everyone. Henry was a badass as ECW Champ, and i think he could easily throw ALL of his weight around if he wanted to turn heel again.

Sheamus:
His current role in the WWE is none other than "the bully". He took out Jaime Noble just to be a dick. Just to say "I ended his career". now he still brags about beating up HHH. He can talk trash and back it up. UNLESS he has to fight Santino hahaha

And now for my personal favorite

Ezekial Jackson:
When he first came to the WWE, he was just a bodyguard for that punkass Kendrick. But as soon as he started wrestling, he was Dominant. Hence his intro song, Domination. As king likes to say, "He's got BOWLING BALLS on his shoulder's!" or "He's got Muscles in places you don't even have places Michael!" But in all seriousness, I wish he'd get a huge push, because with his physique and his in ring ability, he makes for one of the Biggest and Baddest dudes on WWE TV. He could easily fill the shoes of the guy you said, "Looks like he could just kick your ass". My pick is Big Zeke. Cuz he could sure as hell be a badass with little effort.

What do you guy's think?

 

[shogunsrampage]

I don't know that they have one currently, but i have a few thoughts on who could fill the shoes.

Mark Henry:
He may be a loveable giant right now, but given the right circumstances, he could be a brute and just wreck everyone. Henry was a badass as ECW Champ, and i think he could easily throw ALL of his weight around if he wanted to turn heel again.

Sheamus:
His current role in the WWE is none other than "the bully". He took out Jaime Noble just to be a dick. Just to say "I ended his career". now he still brags about beating up HHH. He can talk trash and back it up. UNLESS he has to fight Santino hahaha

And now for my personal favorite

Ezekial Jackson:
When he first came to the WWE, he was just a bodyguard for that punkass Kendrick. But as soon as he started wrestling, he was Dominant. Hence his intro song, Domination. As king likes to say, "He's got BOWLING BALLS on his shoulder's!" or "He's got Muscles in places you don't even have places Michael!" But in all seriousness, I wish he'd get a huge push, because with his physique and his in ring ability, he makes for one of the Biggest and Baddest dudes on WWE TV. He could easily fill the shoes of the guy you said, "Looks like he could just kick your ass". My pick is Big Zeke. Cuz he could sure as hell be a badass with little effort.

What do you guy's think?

i think u kinda veered off of what the OP meant... all the guys the op listed were legit tough guys, that even the business recongized were tough/stiff workers.... mark henry was always a gentle giant who played a monster heel and imo. sheamus as well doesnt strike me as a anderson/valentine type. he seems to be a "forced" monster than a legit bad ass guy. zeke is the only guy who could potentially be it.... as i said theres a difference in todays guys and the guys op listed... all op listed had a reputation throughout the business of if ur gonna work with them be ready for a rough night. with todays iwc we would of heard if so and so was to stiff . i think the last time we heard about wrestler being to stiff was bob holly and bubba ray.

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

For me the one that stands out as the legit tough guy, the man that doesn't always win but makes any loss look like an upset, and has an all-out aggressive brawler style would have to be sheamus. Zeke and mark henry come accross in some part as legit tough guys but sheamus is so high up the card that it makes him more believable as well as the host of names of guys he has beaten and injured/retired without using heel tactics, just plain nasty aggression.

But thats a very convention route of picking out the right guy. Going along with the terminology of tough, as in a guy who doesn't give up easily then your more like to produce a different result such as cena, orton, rey mysterio or even john morrison.

But going back to what I think you mean, the legit nasty aggressive guys that come accross to me are sheamus, zeke and drew mcintyre, with sheamus heading the list.

 

[dannynandez]

I feel Skip Sheffied would be the perfect fit for this role, think about it, he doesnt play the pretty boy fancy dressed role at all, he isnt the biggest guy in the 'E (not even in the Nexus), he just looks like he want to kick some ass and hurt people...i can see him be this kind of character perfectly....I also agree wit Husky Harris, just that kick your ass vibe with him too.

 

[Mike D]

Funny story with Shemus.. He was roomates with Yoshi and continued to use his protein shaker cup, even after being asked not to. Of course Shemus THOUGHT he was a tough guy because he was a bigger guy. Finally Yoshi beat the heck outta him.. continuing to embarrassingly beat him till he legit cried. Shemus is a SISSY, wanna be tough guy who will only fight if he thinks he can win.. a bully type. Yoshi, like lots of other japanese wrestlers, trained legit (which is mandatory in Japan) and probably is the most capable fighter in WWE.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Funny story with Shemus.. He was roomates with Yoshi and continued to use his protein shaker cup, even after being asked not to. Of course Shemus THOUGHT he was a tough guy because he was a bigger guy. Finally Yoshi beat the heck outta him.. continuing to embarrassingly beat him till he legit cried. Shemus is a SISSY, wanna be tough guy who will only fight if he thinks he can win.. a bully type. Yoshi, like lots of other japanese wrestlers, trained legit (which is mandatory in Japan) and probably is the most capable fighter in WWE.

HAHAHA where did you read that?

If thats true then its hilarious, kind of like the Joey Styles v JBL fight again!

I couldnt imagine Sheamus being a legit tough guy, the persona seems forced. To me it has to be Big Zeke, the guy just looks mean and hasthe size to back it up. I could see him being a dominant force backstage once he establishes himself on the roster

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I think that the wrestler in the WWE who looks like a legit tough guy is Ezekiel Jackson. And the way he has been booked so far helps too. He has just been destroying the lower level talent on Raw so far with a shoulder block followed by his finisher. That screams "tough guy" to me.

I think Sheamus has been booked a lot like Triple H was back in 1999-2000 that is like a heel who talks big but has to cheat in most cases to win a match. That does take away the "tough guy" feel from him, in my opinion.

I cannot think of anyone else though. Orton is being booked like a badass but he does not look that tough, in my opinion. The fact that he gets injured pretty often does not help in showing him as a tough guy, either.

 

[Remix]

For legit tough guys there's a long list that probably starts with Wade Barrett (seeing as the whole bare knuckle fighting aspect is based on him actually doing that in Uni and has shootfighting experience in addition to that) and includes the guys who spend their spare time training with MMA guys (DH Smith and Daniel Bryan), a bunch of other guys who I can't think of or be arsed to justify and finishes up with Brodus Clay.

As for who could portray one as a character, I'll go with Barrett. Most of the guys I didn't list were guys who've gotten established personas which are slightly more defined than "I'm tough and I'm going to show it by beating you up", and the other guys I did list have issues which would go against their gimmick. In Bryan's case, he's kind of small to be beating the holy hell out of someone who's got a whole lot of size and muscle; Smith wrestle like a tough guy. Sure he throws his opponents around, but he does it in a way that makes him look more skillful than tough; Clay has the size, credability and probably the moveset to play the role, but looks like a guy who's slow enough that his opponent could get out of the way which doesn't help his cause. Which leaves Barrett as the only "legit" guy who could portray one on screen.

Of course, anybody could be made into a tough guy on WWE TV. It's a matter of booking more than anything else.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

I agree with the majority saying that Sheamus really seems like a forced tough guy. Its true though he tries too hard to be so powerful and dominant, it just does not flow well with him for some reason. He isn't the biggest guy ever to step foot in the ring, and I can't take him as a seriously legit power guy with the whole "Mayo" comments and I still have that image of him running with his tail between his legs from Nexus.

Really the only option here is Big Zeke. He hasn't proven much, but hes HUGE and I would think to myself "I might as well commit suicide now before he gets his hands on me". With the proper build up and direction I can see Zeke becoming that monster we all know he can be

 

[Xemmy]

The tough guy. Brawlers. You actually have a few.

First and foremost- The Undertaker. Though mindgames are his play of the day- his in-ring style SCREAMS "I'm gonna get my ass kicked". When ever he he has a match, you never see him start out the first couple of minutes just "wrestling". You see him immediately move a guy into the corner, and start pounding away.

Next- and this guy sells it completely- Sheamus.
EVERYTHING about Sheamus is the blueprint of Tough Son of a Bitch.
He's the Celtic WARRIOR. His in ring style and finisher are just testaments to that.

The last guy I'm not really sure about, but Randy Orton certainly has that, "I'm gonna beat the hell out of you." look. He's the PG Stone Cold Steve Austin. Yeah, he's a pretty boy. But he's so menacing and snake like that you don't notice it that much.

 

[nachoman13]

I have comprised a list of who I think could be the mid-card and eventually main event 'Tough Guy'

Ezekiel Jackson
He has to be No.1 on my list because of his physique and the fact that he doesn't have too much going on right now.

Wade Barrett
They could really play on the Bare-Knuckle boxing aspect of him. I think this will work because people will think, wow his a genuine tough guy.

Chris Masters
It's a shame WWE haven't kept pushing him really because he does portray a tough guy at the minute with his possible Cody Rhodes feud. I'm amazed out how he was only re-hired because of Randy Orton's suggestion though because he is so good at selling himself as a tough guy.

Dolph Ziggler
It would be a great storyline if he became over confident because of holding the Intercontinental Championship and started beating up everyone. It could then end with someone big saying they need to stop him and beating him.

I think Sheamus wouldn't be a good man to have as 'Tough Guy' because he has to cheat to win quite a bit.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

I may be reading the post wrong but I get the feeling that we're being asked to list the non-body builder/ male models. Husky Harris definitely has the potential to fill this role as he appears to have the speed to go with the build. I'm not a fan of Mark Henry because strength doesn't guarantee toughness and he is just to slow in the ring. Chris Benoit always came across as a badass in WCW before he blew his physique up so much in WWe and I can see similarities in Daniel Bryan and Kaval (it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of fight in the dog).