Would they have made it?

[BestWrestlingOpinions]

Austin, Rocky, Jericho, Taker, Angle, Hogan, Hart, Savage, Flair. So many huge pro wrestling names that were on the screen mainly up until 2002. Would these names have made it in today's WWE?

Tough question really. No one can deny that talent and charisma of each one of these guys. Incredible, each one of them, in their own ways. But what would the fans of today think about them? The common denominator is that most of the IWC don't like the big guys (not because of their size, but because they can't wrestle), or that they are getting a big push while other guys deserve it more.


Austin: In an era where swearing isn't allowed, I don't know where Austin would be. His over-the-top edgy character was the #1 point that made him what he turned out to be. Ever since his neck injury, he wasn't a ring general and if he didn't have that freedom in his character, I don't know where he would be. To top it all off, he probably wouldn't have any consistent booking. Most probably, he would turn out to be a mid carder, like he was in WCW, because his true attributes wouldn't be able to be shown.


Hogan: We have been talking about Hulk on this topic ever since he came back and most people think that he would have been the exact same thing as Cena, only worse in the ring, which means people wouldn't like him. Same old shit all the time, eat your vitamins-rise above hate, say your prayers-hustle loyalty respect etc. You see where I'm going. His character is so overplayed that he would get booed in the end.


Rock: His excellence on the mic wouldn't be hidden, even in today's era. He was decent in the ring, he was moving fast, and even though he wasn't the greatest technician, he could move around well and deliver. He would definitely make it in today's WWE, since his character doesn't clash so much with today's standards, both from the fans and management.


Jericho: Fans would definitely want him to be the face. Amazing on the mic and in the ring, with a good look. What else does the IWC want?


Undertaker: Typical example of a guy that would solely depend on his gimmick to get over. Taker is amazing for his size in the ring, but he is weak on the mic and his presence and gimmick brought him to where he is now. Taking WWE's incosistent booking into consideration, I don't know where Taker would be, but I think he would have made it big, because he is a very unique talent.


Angle: One of the best wrestlers ever, I think there is no doubt about whether or not the fans would be behind him. I will include Bret Hard and Ric Flair in this category, as they both seem to have the same attributes as Angle.


What is your take about these guys? You can also discuss about any other guys you wish, I'm interested in reading your thoughts.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

What else does the IWC want

Who cares? That's maybe 10% of wrestling fans.

The answer to your question is most likely every one of them. Wrestling ability has very little to do with getting over, even now. Just because you're dumb enough to think the IWC has some major influence doesn't mean it does. The IWC, in general, likes Cesaro. How's he doing? The IWC, in general, likes Swagger. How's he doing? I could go on and on.

Charisma is what's important. Getting the fans to like and care about you. Everyone there you mentioned has it. Some in spades. If you think Hogan wouldn't have gotten over, you're a lost cause.

The most intriguing thing for me to think about with most of these guys is how they would've done on scripted promos. It limits everyone. I imagine at least some of these wrestlers would've earned enough pull to start improvising more like some can today.

 

[Jonyboyuk2]

Every single one Austin, Rocky, Jericho, Taker, Angle, Hogan, Hart, Savage and Flair would have made it today. Hogan would not have nor maybe would Savage if they got subjected to the wellness policy. Did you ever see how RIPPED savage was in 1985-1991? WOW!

That said; Savage was a great technical and high flying wrestler so maybe he still would have as he was charasmatic. I see Hogan would be the similar mold to Cena now; so probabaly would still make it.

Austin, Jericho, Angle, Hart and Flair were all so talented that they were the Daniel bryans of their eras. People forget that before Austin became the whoop ass machine who everyone bounced like crazy for in 1998; he was a super technical wrestler and only had to change style when he damn near broke his neck.

The Rock was always atheletic enough to be a big guy wrestler and he would have made it in the ring in terms of skill, but remember Rock only got over when he got the Mic time and the chance to be The Rock and not Rocky Maivia. Perhaps the Rock would not have been so big or even made it on the mic if he wasnt allowed to script his own promos and deliver them with passion.

The same with Taker - he is a top wrestler; and he excelled even as Mean Mark Callous in WCW, but his 1990-1995 deadman character would fail today. Post that period he would be over big time so it depends what character version he played today.

You raise an interesting point because WWE scripts wrestlers promos for them word for word and style of delivery. It is difficult for the wrestlers to know what to do; so I think Vince could do with having a 6 month trial period of letting wrestlers script their own promos as they did during the attitude era. Start the 2nd Monday Night Raw after WM31, and monitor it and the crowd response and the ratings and see what happens.

WWE does stupid things- like fire 3 of their MVPs in one night and then the fans are supposed to think "oh they are indisposable"? no - they will think "they mean less than Cena cos he was not fired" . Then the same goes for when they turn up on Raw next week; people just wont buy PPV's/ Network because they do not believe in match stipulations anymore.

That is the point the original poster is making; with the crap booking going on in WWE; would even the best have made it?

Who knows; I would hazzard a guess to YES. Purely because - look at Rocky Mavia, Bret Hart, look at Stone Cold, HHH, Mankind, New Age Outlaws and even the Undertaker : ALL circa late 1996/early 1997 *. WWE (WWF) at the time was producing their worst programming ever. It was abysmal; the matches meant nothing, the tag belts meant nothing, the IC belt had been swapped between Dean Douglas, a departing Razor Ramon and Jeff Jarrett, too much to mean anything and the WWF title was all over the shop and Sid had become WWF champion twice in that time and he wasnt the best worker.

All those names from 1996/1997 i mentioned all came through that bad booking stage the better for it and all became MUCH bigger stars after than what they were before. So yeah - they would have made it; the major problem today is Cena dominating and Lesnar being off tv for TOO long.

*I didnt include HBK there as he missed a lot of 1997 injured, and retired a year later. When he returned he was a made man aleady (and HBK is the best WWE wrestler EVER in my opinion; and Bret Hart is my Favourite).

 

[Bockwinkel's Class]

Who cares? That's maybe 10% of wrestling fans.

I was about to say. The IWC is maybe 10% of the audience and while they are loud and overrate their own importance, they really have nowhere near the influence of the casuals that make up the vast majority of the audience. The casuals have no problems with power guys and don't share the IWC's rabid hatred of them, nor do the share the IWC's obsession with spot monkeys. So yeah, guys like Hogan, Savage, and Hart would do just fine with the bulk of the audience.

 

[Kidpolean]

Um yea all of them would have. They are pretty much better than every current wrestler in the WWE. Charisma alone, would have pushed them all to the upper mid card at the very least.

 

[FromGlasgow]

I think those sort of guys could of made it in any era, Especially in todays era where I think big name talent is seriously lacking, Every single one of the names you mentioned I think would get over well today.

 

[kadroan]

Good topic! Yeah they would have made it. They're larger than life characters. They got the "It" factors.

 

[Navi]

Just the fact that they're still over and they're names are spoken with such reverence tells you they would have done fine. All of them were larger than life characters, and they way they handled themselves then and now, would have transcended whatever era they were in.

The bigger question is take some of today's superstars Cena, Orton, Reigns, Bryan, Ambrose, Ziggler and the rest, and ask yourself this. Would they have made it big back in Hogan and Savage's time? That's the real question that should be asked. The answer might shock you.

 

[stingray11214]

I think that Hogan might NOT have made it. You need to remember that Hogan was floundering around as Sterling Golden and Hulk Hogan (He used both names under VJM) under Freddie Blassie when he was in the WWWF. What made Hogan, and people seem to always forget this, was his appearance as Thunderlips in Rocky III. He floundered in the AWA, and then VKM picked him up, and pushed him to Saturn, never mind the Moon. And, it was ONLY because of Thunderlips that Hogan got pushed the way he did.

Austin would have been huge in Japan and the Indies. His stuff would never have been tolerated on RAW today. He would have to either clean it up, or go elsewhere.

Savage would have been like Devitt: Gigantic in ROH, Japan and the Indies. He would have been like Matt Sydal when it comes to the Wellness Policy. He was too much on the juice to have lasted long in today's WWE. And remember, they kept Chris Hero out from the Performance center because his testosterone level seemed too high for it to be natural. Now, Hero is no Macho Man, but we are asking if Macho Man would have made it in TODAY'S WWE.

People also seem to forget that Flair was a 300+ brawler when he first started out, and his "Nature Boy" persona did not become fruition until 1976 months after he was nearly killed in a plane crash. It was because of that crash that he had to change his ENTIRE repertoire. So, would he have been over as Ric Flair "pre-crash" or "post-crash"? Pre-crash I would say he would have been just another big brawler in the guise of Ryback or Rusev. As the Nature Boy we all know and love, I do not know if the kids could get it, or would VKM allow it, in this day and age.

Jericho was everything VKM would want: Clean living, great on the stick, a solid ring general. The only thing that is missing is size. However, everything else would have covered.

Rock had to be repackaged to make it. Rocky Maivia was going nowhere fast until VKM allowed Rock to come out. If he was brought up today as Rocky Maivia, he would have gotten a push via his familial connections. Rock? They would have had to clean him up a piece on the stick. He could get as raw and raunchy as Austin.

Angle would have probably been even BIGGER now than when he came in, and he would have been given the "Orton Treatment" aka saying "injured" instead of "Strike 3". Angle was an AMERICAN Olympic hero, and it would have mattered even more now post-9/11. Even though it was Heyman's booking stupidity that chased Angle from signing with ECW (Angle's first time at an ECW event was the night Raven crucified Sandman), it did not sour him on the squared circle. VKM would have pushed the American hero to the Moon.

Undertaker was a character that was perfect for the period. Today, he would terrify too many kids and shareholders. The biker gimmick MIGHT have gone over well, but it would have to have been packaged right. I do not know if the Performance Center would have done that. Mark Callous MIGHT have been solid Cena food. But, in any incarnation, would never have been the icon as he is today.

What people need to understand is that these people came up at a time where kayfabe still had somewhat of a place in wrestling. You did not have shareholders, hedge funds and Nancy Grace. When what Eddy Mansfield did caused minor scandal, and Bruiser Brody's murder was a blip on the screen, compare that to Chris Benoit murder/suicide which was on the national media for weeks, and the former two looked like business as usual.

Now, to answer Navi: Bryan would have been AWA Champion for sure. Verne Gagne loved people like him. However, Don Owen would have done everything humanly possible to keep him in the Northwest. A great technician who was decent on the mic. He would have been Owen's top guy as he was home-grown. Thing might have been very different had Bryan been around during the territories.

Orton would have been a star in the South, and quite possibly got something in WWF because of who is father was. Would he have been as big as he is now? More than likely yes, but as a heel. I actually see RKO in somewhat a cross between Dory Funk, Jr. and Ron Bass: A great technician with a vicious mean streak back in the day.

Cena? He would be wrestling people like The Grim Reefer and Habib from the Car Wash in the preliminaries at the Ludus Wrestling School promotion in Brooklyn's Sunset Park. He would NEVER have made it during the 80's. Cena fits the modern-day WWE wrestler to a T: Non-threatening, kiddie humor, five moves of doom, a complete and total actor. He MIGHT have been effective in the era where kayfabe ruled. However, I doubt he would have become big enough to execute.

Reigns would have been a bodyguard for someone, then become a monster heel. I could see him under someone like King Curtis Iaukea or Tojo Yammamoto. Would he have been remembered fondly today? Quite possible, especially if he filled the brawler mold left open by the death of Bruiser Brody. Perhaps you might have seen an epic Hogan-Reigns match at WM?

Ziggler? I can see him as a star in places like Calfornia, World Class and the AWA. Quite possibly Florida as well. He would be an upper mid-carder in those places. He is a good technician, and decent on the mic. Would he be remembered? Probably at the Cauliflower Alley Club.

Ambrose I see in the Terry Gordy mold. Great brawler, good on the mic, and highly adaptable. He would have been a star anywhere he went. Would he have made it in WWF? Yes. But, I think he would have done what Gordy did and gone to Japan and the NWA, where he would become far more respected.

 

[chicagokmc]

Austin, Rocky, Jericho, Taker, Angle, Hogan, Hart, Savage, Flair. So many huge pro wrestling names that were on the screen mainly up until 2002. Would these names have made it in today's WWE?
.

Great post. While all of these wrestlers would be roster-worthy in today's WWE based on talent and/or mic skills, I don't know if it is a slam dunk that all of them would have "made it" in today's wrestling. Everyone on this list has been a world champion at least twice (I believe), most had numerous title reigns. A lot of the gimmicks for these wrestlers were dated, they allowed for success in wrestling of the past but not necessarily today. Also, fair or not, Vince's vision of wrestling today is that size matters and that you look good as a brawler. Technical wrestling was big in the 70's thru early 90's, but overlooked today. Based on that Taker, Hogan and probably Rock would stand the best chances of truly making it, maybe Austin as well. The others might sniff a championship, but would most likely not be "the franchise" of WWE.

 

[chuckmdubya]

Austin gets a really bad wrap for "not being good in the ring." As far as I'm concerened this is an absurd claim. Those who remember him before Stone Cold remember Stunning Steve and Dibiase's Ringmaster. The reason he was brought to WWE and called the ringmaster is because of his excellent in ring technical skills. He was billed as the most technically sound young talent in WCW and early WWF. If you go on the network, for just $9.99, you can watch his old matches, particularly as the ringmaster and you'd think he was gonna be the next Bret Hart or Bob Backlund. After the new world order started gaining popularity by acting like bad asses and beating people up by striking, WWE needed a guy like him. He changed everything when he went to stone cold, including his in ring style that was more appropriate to a redneck bar fighter guy.

 

[BestWrestlingOpinions]

Reading your replies, I have to add this:

Would they get over during this era's limitations and starting from zero? It is basically the problem for Reigns. He started from zero and the IWC complains too much about him and are not really giving him a chance. Imagine if let's say Stone Cold, who at 1998 wasn't a ring master, was forced to go with 3 moves in the ring and scripted promos. Reigns has a good look and maybe ha charisma, but WWE's limitations and fans' responses make him look bad. Maybe Stone Cold would get the same treatment.

That to clarify the air. The main question is if they would have made it starting from zero.


Also, I know IWC isn't more than 15-20% of the fans, but the IWC actually matters a lot. Maybe not financially, but in the arenas, the IWC fans are those who are heard louder than anyone. If it wasn't for the IWC, Daniel Bryan wouldn't be where he is today. Casual fans just followed the IWC chants like sheep. If IWC get behind a guy, and start giving him reactions, the casuals will follow along. Same for negative reactions. Batista got booed last year and casual fans started booing for no reason at all. So yea, IWC actually does matter as fan as live TV reactions go.

 

[Vader]

When I first started posting on forums the IWC community was embracing the Ruthless Aggression era around 2001. Guys like Benoit, Angle, Guerrero, Jericho, and misguided souls who liked Triple, preferred the in-ring talent of guys over the microphone and storyline dominated stuff from the late 90s from guys like Austin, Hogan, and The Rock. Now most would agree the story-lines and the action sucks.

If you look at who the WWE is marketing to, it's not a far cry from the market they were trying to hit in the late 80s and early 90s. So I don't see an issue with most of the golden era guys getting a push.

Flair-I'd say his character was more mature then most of what's on TV today. In the late 80s he was wrestling matches much longer than what's on TV now.

Savage-Entertaining all the time in and out of the ring. While he wouldn't be considered a high flyer by today's standards, he had a good move set considering the risks he took in the air and on the mat.

Taker-His time began around the mid 90s. Taker has always been able a versatile character. He has a good in ring move set considering his size. Could he have attempted to sacrifice Stephanie McMahon to a "higher power?" Probably not, but the Ministry of Darkness days aren't what his character was built on.

Jericho-I've always felt like he was talented but a bit overrated. I was surprised when he became the first undisputed champion. Good in ring and on the microphone so I don't see why not.

Angle-Great promo guy, great wrestler. Wish he had spent a bigger part of his career in the WWE. He would have worked at any era.

Hart-Same as above with Angle. His gimmick was better when he made a heel turn, but he's always had great wrestling ability.

The Rock-Although he came up in the Attitude era, I don't think his charisma depended on him being able to go over the line with his promos. I think he would have thrive now as well.

The two in question are Hogan and Austin. While I think they would be over, I'm not sure if they would be as big.

Austin-Definitely has a lot of charisma but without the broad limits of the Attitude era I don't see his gimmick working as a watered down version in the PG era. Austin was good in the ring as well and exciting to watch, although he slowed down after Owen broke his neck.

Hogan-Has a lot of charisma and it's worked for him in the 80s and into the grittier late 90s. However, his move set is limited and I don't think fans are as big on smash wrestlers as they were.

 

[rmp0012002]

I would say yes for most of them but have reservations about Hogan, Angle and Taker. The others could wrestle but also had the mic skills but haven't seen enough of Angle where he stands out as a yes or no. Bray Wyatt kind of died out and he has good mic skills but a limited skill set so I don't know if Taker would go over with the deadman gimmick. The streak helped him and he had some great talent to help him. I have never had any use for Hogan as he was an entertainer not a wrestler but he was 100% marketed to kids and it took off. Only since WWE is kiddie marketed would hogan be able to get over today. It would be embarrassing for him to try and out talk Austin, Rock or Jericho.