The True "Total Package" of Wrestling?

[The Mandarin 0]

I can't say for certain myself, but I know a VERY strong candidate is "Double A", Arn Anderson. Arguably the best mic worker in the business and he was very well-rounded in his prime.

 

The only reason I don't think he got the NWA title is because he doesn't exactly look like a superstar. He's got more of a "heavy-drinking uncle" thing going on.

[Guest Ray]

Surely "total package" includes drawing money?

 

Steve Austin takes the cake for me. Great wrestler, great promo, great draw.

[Si82 0]

Steve Austin.

 

The guy can and has pretty much done it all.

[TheOriginalOrangeGoblin 0]

I'll go for Flair. Better mic worker than Austin, no worse in the ring but didn't draw as much money. Still Flair.

[razazteca 0]

Steve Austin, the proof is in the TWO~ sigs above.

 

What is the criteria? Promo/interview skills, drawing power, workrate, MOTY?

[Guest Ray]

"I'll go for Flair. Better mic worker than Austin"

 

That's highly argueable. I'd say Austin had more range than Flair.

[Guest Rrrsh]

I think if we are talking about Total Package as a wrestler, its Flair. He drew, his promo's are better than guys like Austin, Rock and Hogan because of its range. Plus all of his MOTY's.

 

If its worker, then I say Michaels. He is the only guy who can do a high paced match, a technical match a brawl and a gimmick match as a face and as a heel very well.

[LucharesuFan619 0]

Austin, IMO. Flair's close, though.

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

"I'll go for Flair. Better mic worker than Austin"

 

That's highly argueable. I'd say Austin had more range than Flair.

WHAAAA? NOBODY had more range than Flair, tell Austin to get a *** match out of fucking EL GIGANTE. Nobody in the history of wrestling could have great matches with such a variety of workers.

 

Flair's promo work is a tad better than Austin's. Both are TRUE greats... but Flair could get the entire promotion with a single interview so he gets the edge with me.

 

And will anyone argue that Austin was as consistant a draw as Flair was for so long?

[Guest Ray]

WHAAAA? NOBODY had more range than Flair, tell Austin to get a *** match out of fucking EL GIGANTE.

Read before you post. I said Austin had more range in PROMOS. Which he did. Austin played richer characters. Austin's psycho heel promos are completely different from his face promos. Flair's are generally the same Nature Boy limo ridin' stuff. Not that that's bad, but still...

 

 

Nobody in the history of wrestling could have great matches with such a variety of workers.

Jumbo Tsuruta. Bob Backlund. Bret Hart.

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

WHAAAA? NOBODY had more range than Flair, tell Austin to get a *** match out of fucking EL GIGANTE.

Read before you post. I said Austin had more range in PROMOS. Which he did. Austin played richer characters. Austin's psycho heel promos are completely different from his face promos. Flair's are generally the same Nature Boy limo ridin' stuff. Not that that's bad, but still...

 

 

Nobody in the history of wrestling could have great matches with such a variety of workers.

Jumbo Tsuruta. Bob Backlund. Bret Hart.

Ah OK, I didn't see the mic part. I thought it just said "worker." Flair's still better on the mic, though.

 

Oh and of the three you mentioned...

 

Backlund has his share of absolute stinkers. Hell, he and Razor Ramon worked a negative star match at Mania 9 while Flair was having four star plus classics with Steamboat back in WCW. Not to mention that his Cage Match with Jimmy Snuka was barely more than a star and a half. Plus, Flair's match with El Gigante was better than Bob's with Jesse Ventura. So Flair was a better man to carry bad talent.

 

Hart? Nah, Hart could never get a match above four stars with HBK when HBK was arguably the best worker America had produced since Ric Flair himself. Hart was also pretty notorious for dogging it when he didn't feel that the match was worth it. It's funny that people always mention how Hart made Austin, but Flair MADE Steamboat, DiBiase, Sting, Luger, Magnum TA, Windham, Butch Reed, and BRET HART himself and to a lesser extent anyone in the Horsemen who got over by osmosis from Flair.

 

Jumbo? Weren't most of his matches King's Road style?

[Guest Ray]

Backlund has his share of absolute stinkers.

And Flair hasn't?!

 

Hell, he and Razor Ramon worked a negative star match at Mania 9 while Flair was having four star plus classics with Steamboat back in WCW.

Backlund was far past his prime at the time and the match was four minutes long! That's a horrible, horrible comparison to make.

 

Not to mention that his Cage Match with Jimmy Snuka was barely more than a star and a half. Plus, Flair's match with El Gigante was better than Bob's with Jesse Ventura. So Flair was a better man to carry bad talent.

Why, why, and why? Backlund's match with Rhodes is better than Flair's. Backlund works his ass off to make Dusty's restholds look good, providing a boatload of neat counters to keep things interesting. Backlund, four years out of wrestling, was able to keep up with Nobuhiko Takada (who many consider to be the best worker in his style) and have a MOTY. I doubt Flair could do that.

 

Bret dragged good matches out of Diesel. Unlike Flair, he could get good matches out of stiffs without resorting to bumping/stooging like a maniac to make it entertaining.

 

Hart? Nah, Hart could never get a match above four stars with HBK when HBK was arguably the best worker America had produced since Ric Flair himself.

Survivor Series 1992 is a great match. And Michaels isn't the best North American worker since Flair. Bret was better. Austin was better. Benoit and Guerrero were better.

 

Hart was also pretty notorious for dogging it when he didn't feel that the match was worth it.

I've seen Flair "dog it" many times. I've also seen him rely on comedy schtick over and over and over again, instead of doing anything to make a match good.

 

Jumbo? Weren't most of his matches King's Road style?

Jumbo's 70's work isn't anything like 90's Kings Road.

[Guest JMA]

I'm also going to have to go with Steve Austin.

 

1: He was a great brawler.

2: He cut excellent promos.

3: He could work a technical style.

4: He had incredible endurance during matches.

5: He was very over with the fans.

6: He was an absolutely AMAZING draw.

7: He was the biggest reason the WWF surpassed WCW.

8: His character was nothing short of revolutionary.

9: He had a lot of charisma.

10: He had the intestinal fortitude to work through numerous injuries.

 

All of these factors and more make Austin the TRUE "Total Package," IMO. I would rank Shawn Michaels the second best in terms of being the "Total Package." Shawn was great, but he was never anywhere near Austin's drawing power (to be fair, few wrestlers are or have been).

[RHR 0]

If we are going to ask who is the total package, you could group them into the following categories:

 

 

BRAWLING

PROMO

WRESTLING (TECHNIQUE) STYLE

ENDURANCE

OVER (AS HEEL/FACE)--Mark Factor

DRAW POWER

UNIQUENESS

CHARISMA

ABILITY TO OVER COME INJURIES/RELIABILITY

 

As far as each of these agoes, I figure that Steve Austin has to be the best package...I'd put him Top 3 in most of those categories...I'd put Flair and

Hart in there...personally, I like Jericho in that list somewhere...good to great promo, good style, good endurance and reliable as hell, with outstanding charsima. His only real problem has to be drawing power, which he's never gotten to prove. I'd say Triple H needs some consideration here, even if we don't like him, and of course Eddie, Angle, Benoit, Steamboat, etc...

 

But, Austin does factor more of each of these things then the others do.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

I agree that Austin & Flair are 1 and 2, but nobody has mentioned my #3 guy who I believe deserves it...Randy Savage.

 

He was a great brawler. He could wrestle nice technical matches. He was charismatic. He was a good draw (circa 1988). He could carry slugs (ex. Warrior) to great matches. He was certainly unique and remains one of the most well known stars of the 80s. He wrestled through injuries constantly. He also had longevity. He was wrestling great matches as early as 1986 in the WWF and as late as 1997 against DDP in WCW. I see him as the best performer in Wrestlemania history (Steamboat at III, Four Matches in One Night at IV, Hogan's best ever match at V, Warrior's best ever match at VII, great match with Flair at VIII) as well.

 

Savage could do it all.