Your MT Rushmore of 80s/90s Heels (wrestlers only)

Your Mt Rushmore of 80s/90s Heels

  • Randy Savage

  • Ric Flair

  • Rick Rude

  • Million Dollar Man

  • Roddy Piper

  • The Iron Sheik

  • Jerry Lawler

  • Shawn Michaels

  • King Kong Bundy

  • The Undertaker

  • Hollywood Hulk Hogan

  • Terry Funk

  • Jake The Snake Roberts

  • Nikolai Volkoff

  • Dory Funk

  • Sgt Slaughter

  • Harley Race

  • Vader

  • Curt Hennig

  • The Fabulous Freebirds

Results are only viewable after voting.
The Good The Bad The HBK

The Good The Bad The HBK

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Million Dollar Man
Rick Rude
Shawn Michaels
Ric Flair


HM: Piper who is considered by many the greatest heel of all time
 
Randy Savage, his run in Memphis in 83 and 84 and then WWF from 85 through 87 is one of the greatest runs in wrestling history
His intensity in the ring and on the mic were unmatched and his elbow drop was a thing of glorious beauty

Nikita Koloff
His run may have only been a few years but he was such a vicious monster sent straight from the USSR with one mission, to destroy Ronald Reagans America with his devastating Russian Sickle clothesline
He was the perfect heel for that time


Road Warriors
They didnt have any skills other than rushing the ring and beating the shit outta their opponents with slams and punches but thats all they needed
They were post apocalyptic beasts with a look that had never been seen before and they changed tag team wrestling forever with the countless imitation Warriors that followed
Powers Of Pain, Demolition, Star Riders, Blade Runners, Master Blasters, etc.
Every promoter needed their own Road Warriors


Ric Flair
The limousine ridin, jet flyin, kiss stealin, whealin, dealin, son of a gun
Flair had a legendary feud against the Von Erichs in the early 80's and then, later in the decade, Flair and the Horsemen ran roughshod over Jim Crockett Promotions, dominating the hottest territory in the country, beating some of the most beloved babyfaces in all of wrestling and giving some of the best interviews in the history of the business

Honorable Mentions : Nick Bockwinkel, Jake The Snake Roberts, Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase
 
Ric Flair: He was so pompous and so over the top...but had so many championships. I was such a mark for him growing up.

Million Dollar Man: I always saw him as the WWF's answer to Flair. He had great wrestling chops too so he's deservent. I used to love him paying fans and whatnot.

Hollywood Hogan: He flipped the wrestling world on its head in the 90's with his heel turn. You can't leave him off for his work with NWO. I can't think of any wrestler that has done such a 180.

Jerry Lawler: He was popular in Memphis so I almost kept him off but he was so over I'm the WWF with his program with the WWF's top face at the time Bret Hart. I loved his character.
 
Hogan was a heel for only a few years in the 80s/90s right? He might have been a heel in the early 80s and I know he was a heel in 96-98 I think, I wasn't watching much WCW after 98 but I'm certain they kept switching his character a lot.

Also Rick Rude I think is the only wrestler listed who was a heel his entire career. I'm not sure how anyone can exclude him.
 
Michael Scott said:
Hogan was a heel for only a few years in the 80s/90s right? He might have been a heel in the early 80s and I know he was a heel in 96-98 I think, I wasn't watching much WCW after 98 but I'm certain they kept switching his character a lot.

Also Rick Rude I think is the only wrestler listed who was a heel his entire career. I'm not sure how anyone can exclude him.
Click to expand...

Even if Hogan wasn't a heel long, he was a face for so many years it was HUGE news. He was also excellent at getting people to hate him. The NWO were so unfair at the time and he was behind it. If it was ANY other third man at that PPV I don't think the NWO would have been as huge as it was.
 
What constitutes a heel is open for interpretation. Some of these guys may be considered tweeners(vs true heels). Also, some guys are great heels for only a year or two(e.g. Mach), and comparing them to guys who were lifelong good heels is almost apples and oranges.

That said, I went Piper, Jake, Hollywood Hogan, and Flair. Though there's probably about a dozen workers you could make a case for being on the list.

On a side note, I was hesitant to submit a list devoid of any monster heels. Vader doesn't quite belong. Taker was a good monster heel, but most of his legacy is born out of his work as a face. Andre, Sid, and Yoko should all be options if Vader is as well. Austin could arguable be on there as well(his heel work is what catapulted him to prominence IMO).
 
Red Beard said:
Even if Hogan wasn't a heel long, he was a face for so many years it was HUGE news. He was also excellent at getting people to hate him. The NWO were so unfair at the time and he was behind it. If it was ANY other third man at that PPV I don't think the NWO would have been as huge as it was.
Click to expand...
Hollywood Hogan was probably the best heel on the business from about '96-'99(until the Mr. McMahon character really took off).
 
gspieler said:
Hollywood Hogan was probably the best heel on the business from about '96-'99(until the Mr. McMahon character really took off).
Click to expand...

The business was down before Hogan and the NWO started the Monday Night Wars. I couldn't leave him off the list for that reason alone.
 
gspieler said:
What constitutes a heel is open for interpretation. Some of these guys may be considered tweeners(vs true heels). Also, some guys are great heels for only a year or two(e.g. Mach), and comparing them to guys who were lifelong good heels is almost apples and oranges.

That said, I went Piper, Jake, Hollywood Hogan, and Flair. Though there's probably about a dozen workers you could make a case for being on the list.

On a side note, I was hesitant to submit a list devoid of any monster heels. Vader doesn't quite belong. Taker was a good monster heel, but most of his legacy is born out of his work as a face. Andre, Sid, and Yoko should all be options if Vader is as well. Austin could arguable be on there as well(his heel work is what catapulted him to prominence IMO).
Click to expand...

I kinda agree with you but to be honest, Vader almost made my list. He was such a good heel IMO and a personal favorite. He didn't get the heat in the WWF but he was a great heel in the early 90s WCW and especially Japan.
 
Pliny Pete said:
Randy Savage, his run in Memphis in 83 and 84 and then WWF from 85 through 87 is one of the greatest runs in wrestling history
His intensity in the ring and on the mic were unmatched and his elbow drop was a thing of glorious beauty

Nikita Koloff
His run may have only been a few years but he was such a vicious monster sent straight from the USSR with one mission, to destroy Ronald Reagans America with his devastating Russian Sickle clothesline
He was the perfect heel for that time


Road Warriors
They didnt have any skills other than rushing the ring and beating the shit outta their opponents with slams and punches but thats all they needed
They were post apocalyptic beasts with a look that had never been seen before and they changed tag team wrestling forever with the countless imitation Warriors that followed
Powers Of Pain, Demolition, Star Riders, Blade Runners, Master Blasters, etc.
Every promoter needed their own Road Warriors


Ric Flair
The limousine ridin, jet flyin, kiss stealin, whealin, dealin, son of a gun
Flair had a legendary feud against the Von Erichs in the early 80's and then, later in the decade, Flair and the Horsemen ran roughshod over Jim Crockett Promotions, dominating the hottest territory in the country, beating some of the most beloved babyfaces in all of wrestling and giving some of the best interviews in the history of the business

Honorable Mentions : Nick Bockwinkel, Jake The Snake Roberts, Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase
Click to expand...
Good call on Bockwinkel. AWA stuff especially seems to get get forgotten.
 
This is tough since so many guys spent their time 50/50 face and heel.

Hollywood Hogan is a no brainer since that eliminates The Immortal One side of the equation.

Ric Flair for sure since he was heel more than face.

Mr Perfect was almost always a heel and eliminates the Curt Hennig face runs.

Rick Rude would round out my list since I don't remember him having much of a face presence while Ravishing.
 
Michael Scott said:
The only time Andre was a heel was to build up Hogan which was maybe 2 years at the most. He spent the majority of his career as a face.
Click to expand...
Yeah for sure but when he was a heel he was tremendous. Thats how 6 year old me remembers him. Riding out of Wrestlemania 3 getting garbage thrown at him.
 
Hitman81 said:
Yeah for sure but when he was a heel he was tremendous. Thats how 6 year old me remembers him. Riding out of Wrestlemania 3 getting garbage thrown at him.
Click to expand...

Pretty sure this was around the time he was in agony and could barely move or lift anyone. I remember watching commentary on the princess bride and they said the had to use cables for the princess when she falls and Andre catches her because he could barely hold her without extreme pain.
 
Michael Scott said:
Pretty sure this was around the time he was in agony and could barely move or lift anyone. I remember watching commentary on the princess bride and they said the had to use cables for the princess when she falls and Andre catches her because he could barely hold her without extreme pain.
Click to expand...
Yep but they booked it to perfection. Great build starting on Piper's pit. Put the black onesie on Andre which made him look slimmer and more intimidating. Made Heenan his mouth so Andre just had to stand there and look scary. Basic match but filled with story telling. It all worked.
 
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