Martyn Nolan: "Only casual fans will name Hulk Hogan as the greatest of all time."

[Slyfox696]

So after writing his ridiculously stupid editorial on John Cena, I engaged in a debate with this Martyn Nolan, where he continued to show how little he understands pro wrestling. But, in his last comment to me three days ago, he let loose this gem.

Just how ignorant to pro wrestling does one have to be to say Hulk Hogan is not the greatest pro wrestler of all time? Is there anyone who even comes close? On what level can someone justify his position?

I need this to be explained to me, because all I see when I read that statement is someone who clearly has VERY little understanding of pro wrestling.


Thread Discussion question: Is Hulk Hogan the greatest of all-time, and if you (wrongly) think not, why?

 

[Waylon Mercy]

It's actually a pretty vague question. What criteria are we basing it on? Drawing power? Cross-over appeal? Actual wrestling skills? If we are basing it on strictly drawing power and cross-over appeal, then perhaps an argument could be made for The Rock or Stone Cold Steve Austin as well. There is no doubt that at one time, Hogan transcended the sport (as it was then known as). If it weren't for Hogan, there might not have been a Rock or Stone Cold. I do not argue that point. I was a huge Hogan mark for a long time, and then he lost me when he jumped ship to WCW. At that point, he was still passing himself off as a role model to kids, playing the same tired and cliched character. He became stale, and his star was fading due to the steroids scandal, and the awful movies and tv shows he was doing at the time. He disappeared for a while, and when he came back, he did the unthinkable and turned on his fans by joining the New World Order. It was a breath of fresh air, and once again he was bigger than life as a heel. For a short period of time he was compelling to watch again. It didn't last a long time, though, and I lost all interest when it became obvious he was only interested in furthering himself and not the industry he owed his success to. His personal life has literally been an open book as of late, and the glimpses we see into it demonstrate how desperate he is to cling on to past glory. He is no longer relevant in this day and age, yet he continues to bask in the spotlight rather than putting younger talent over. TNA desperately needs to stay fresh, yet week after week he hobbles down to the ring and inserts his daughter and himself into the middle of story lines.

 

[The Butcher]

My opinions never have jibed with Martyn or IWC members of his ilk. Full disclosure, I used to take part in the VOW chat back before it got crappy, and BeansontoastUK always came across to me as a whiner. Every show was the worst.

That said, he's entitled to his opinion. I'm of the mind that there is no "greatest ever" in pro wrestling. Now, if I had to choose one, it would indeed be Hulk Hogan. I'm terribly biased, though, because that was my dude growing up. Other than my fandom and the fact that his visage is iconic, though, there's no stat or grade that I can definitively use to back up my opinion.

Wrestlers used to say that the internet was the worst thing to happen to pro wrestling, but really it was the worst thing to happen to wrestling fans. There isn't and can't be a consensus "greatest ever." Let Martyn have his opinion.

 

[TheBottomLine]

In terms of him being a house-hold name across the world, how he carried the promotion on his back for years during the 80's-early 90's. And the fact he's still around today in TNA( I don't watch too much of TNA so I'm unsure of his role,whether he still wrestles or not). But I'd also put Ric Flair up there too, although I'm not a fan of him outside of wrestling, he comes across as arrogant and a one-upper IMO. But that guy is an absolute legend in my eyes, definitely up there amongst the best!.

 

[D-Man]

Gotta agree with Sly here. NO ONE shuffled in the modern era of pro-wrestling like Hulk Hogan. He led the charge for WWE to monopolize the industry. He was in focal point that drew larger crowds than wrestling ever had in the US market, thus making them global. He took TWO promotions from TWO different eras and made them #1.

If anything, only casual or smarky fans would say Hogan wasn't the greatest of all time.

 

[Poop Master Flex]

I think very few guys in wrestling history could even remotely be in the argument for greatest of all time, you could make a case for Austin for example but I gotta go with Hogan.

In essence Hogan laid the groundwork for what wrestling is today. He was the 1st true megastar who became bigger than the sport he was in. He brought wrestling into popular culture and is the one name everyone knows regardless of age and interest in wrestling. He still to this day has drawn the largest crowd in North America with Andre and made a nonsensical amount of money in the process.

An argument can be made that Hogan hurt wrestling over the last 15 years but in my eyes no one has come close to doing so much for it. He wasn't my favorite but Hogans the man, end of story.

 

[Slack]

This is kind of vague. I think it depends on what you by greatest of all time. If you mean for wrestling skill, noone ever accused Hulk Hogan of being a technical master. In the words of Gorilla Monsoon, Hulk Hogan doesn't know the difference between a wristwatch and wristlock.

But as far as drawing power, mainstream appeal and so forth, then Hogan is the greatest of all time. It was because of Hulk Hogan, that the WWE went from basically a territorial organization to a world wide organization. Even when Hogan went to WCW, he bumped WCW up a level and made them competitive with the WWE. Remember Ric Flair was in WCW/NWA when Hogan was with the WWE, and Flair never really had the drawing power that Hogan did.

Truth be told, drawing ability and the ability to make the company money is more important than wrestling ability

 

[D-Man]

This is kind of vague. I think it depends on what you by greatest of all time. If you mean for wrestling skill, noone ever accused Hulk Hogan of being a technical master. In the words of Gorilla Monsoon, Hulk Hogan doesn't know the difference between a wristwatch and wristlock.

Any true journalist would never use "wrestling skill" as a definition when referring to the greatest wrestler of all time. Outside of the internet smarks and casual fans, no one gives a shit about how "technical" a wrestler is. People who analyze the industry are looking for overall star power. Can anyone argue anyone besides Hulk Hogan to monopolize that position?

Truth be told, drawing ability and the ability to make the company money is more important than wrestling ability

True story.

 

[SinCityBlitz]

Someone being the greatest of all time is subjective. Now no one can argue with someone saying that Hogan has done more for wrestling than anyone else because that would be true. No one can argue that Hogan is one of the most popular wrestlers ever because he is. But there are too many different variables when it comes to greatest of all time. I can't blame someone if they don't consider Hogan the greatest of all time.

I look at greatest in wrestling similar to how I look at greatest in acting. The highest drawing doesn't always equal the best. The top guy is only as good as his surrounding cast. That said my top three are Hogan, Austin and the Rock. If I had to pick one....I couldn't.

 

[The Dragon Saga]

Hulk Hogan is the greatest of all-time.

People are arguing for people based off their in-ring ability - here is something I know, my two favorite wrestlers, number one and two are Bret Hart and Chris Jericho. Neither are big names. Neither has ever drawn huge money. Bret Hart never attracted a huge crowd other than Wembley and that was primarily promoted around Bulldog and the fact WWE were even doing the pay-per-view in England. Chris Jericho is hilarious, below few people such as Bryan, Nigel McGuinness, Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle and William Regal I rate him as a fantastic in-ring performer, but Chris Jericho never truly drew people in off who he was.

Hulk Hogan transcended wrestling. He made professional wrestling which today is not very cool or mainstream exactly that for several years, cool and mainstream. People ask what is WWE's obsession with being mainstream? Why wouldn't they want the world focusing on what they do like it does with National Football or the World Cup when its held. Any platform of entertainment that doesn't want that is nuts. But Hulk Hogan gave it that status, he had help but it was primarily him. He made the money, his name drew the crowds, his character got people off their feet and he reinvented himself in WCW to take a small, at the time pretty crappy company and make it grow into actual competition to Vince McMahon's empire.

He wasn't the greatest wrestler, he wasn't a fantastic technician, he probably doesn't know the difference between an arm lock and key lock but he is the greatest of all-time within professional wrestling because of what he did and who he was/is. Martyn Nolan can argue this all day, but he can't ignore facts and figures.

 

[Optimist Prime]

Not only is Hulk Hogan the greatest Face of all time, he's ALSO the greatest Heel of all time as well. No other wrestler in the history of the industry can make that claim. You can argue details of whether nearly 2 decades of Hogan's greatness as a good guy is as legitimate as Steve Austin's small sample size of 5-6 years but that's just ridiculous. Austin was extremely popular and he helped WWF survive against WCW. But Hulk Hogan literally helped CREATE the WWF. Without Hulk Hogan (yes, and Vince McMahon Jr.), wrestling could still be individual circuits in different areas around the country.

Look at Wrestlemania 18 for example. Hulk Hogan was a Heel, the biggest in the industry at the time. The Rock was the biggest face of the time. The crowd BOOED The Rock and CHEERED emmensely for the Immortal Hulk Hogan. Go back and watch the video. I remember getting chills watching it live on TV. It was surreal. That's how much this guy has meant to people in the industry. He represents so much to people.

Was he the greatest technical 'wrestler', no. But as we all know that doesn't matter. People can talk about how technically awesome a Chris Benoit vs. Eddie Guerrero match was all they want...nobody will ever talk about it like a Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant (two infinitely worse technical wrestlers) because it's so much more than just flips and summersaults. And while Hulk Hogan couldn't perform flips or summersaults, he mastered literally every other area needed to succeed.

And that is why he's the greatest of all time and always will be.

 

[dman1373]

Just how ignorant to pro wrestling does one have to be to say Hulk Hogan is not the greatest pro wrestler of all time?

Shawn michaels says ric flair is the greastest wrestler of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRRNMVJkwM8 at 1:48

Chris Jericho says shawn michaels is the greatest of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq48YZwHL4Y at 3:50

if i could find it i would put up the clip of vince saying stone cold is the greatest superstar of all time.

I don't know, but they don't seem like people ignorant to pro wrestling.

 

[HBKperfect23]

IMO Hogan would have to been considered the greatest of all time. At least from the perspective of what we are looking at it from. I think it was Arn Anderson who said something along the lines of: even if someone knows nothing about wrestling, has never seen the show, they hear the words pro wrestling and think, oh that's the thing Hulk Hogan does. Also, as the poster above has stated, Hogan had the huge run as a face and as a heel. Plus this was done during the hottest times. Hogan was the top face during the rock and wrestling era and arguably the best heel during the attitude era.

Steve Austin and the Rock definitely have arguments on being up there with Hogan. Rock has popularity outside of wrestling. He is now in major movies plus he's currently the champion....he may surpass Hogan. Austin was a crossover star as well and was on top during the hottest time in wrestling. Also, for the die hard fans, Austin is the best technician out of the bunch, he was one of the top wrestlers on the planet from around 1994-1997.

 

[HBKperfect23]

Shawn michaels says ric flair is the greastest wrestler of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRRNMVJkwM8 at 1:48

Chris Jericho says shawn michaels is the greatest of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq48YZwHL4Y at 3:50

if i could find it i would put up the clip of vince saying stone cold is the greatest superstar of all time.

I don't know, but they don't seem like people ignorant to pro wrestling.

From the OPs perspective its Hogan, Rock, or Austin. From this perspective, Flair or HBK would be the obvious answers. I personally look it the same way you do. But a lot look at the question "who's the greatest ever?" as wrestlers having the most success in entertainment and not just wrestling with the criteria of selling the most merchandise, making the best movies, and making the most money.

So I think all would be acceptable answers

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Not only is Hulk Hogan the greatest Face of all time, he's ALSO the greatest Heel of all time as well. No other wrestler in the history of the industry can make that claim. You can argue details of whether nearly 2 decades of Hogan's greatness as a good guy is as legitimate as Steve Austin's small sample size of 5-6 years but that's just ridiculous. Austin was extremely popular and he helped WWF survive against WCW. But Hulk Hogan literally helped CREATE the WWF. Without Hulk Hogan (yes, and Vince McMahon Jr.), wrestling could still be individual circuits in different areas around the country.

Look at Wrestlemania 18 for example. Hulk Hogan was a Heel, the biggest in the industry at the time. The Rock was the biggest face of the time. The crowd BOOED The Rock and CHEERED emmensely for the Immortal Hulk Hogan. Go back and watch the video. I remember getting chills watching it live on TV. It was surreal. That's how much this guy has meant to people in the industry. He represents so much to people.
Was he the greatest technical 'wrestler', no. But as we all know that doesn't matter. People can talk about how technically awesome a Chris Benoit vs. Eddie Guerrero match was all they want...nobody will ever talk about it like a Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant (two infinitely worse technical wrestlers) because it's so much more than just flips and summersaults. And while Hulk Hogan couldn't perform flips or summersaults, he mastered literally every other area needed to succeed.

And that is why he's the greatest of all time and always will be.

To be fair, this match did come at a time in Rock's career when he already started to make the shift from wrestling to acting. The same thing happened to Rock about 4 and a half months later when he fought Brock at SummerSlam. Rock was booed and Brock was cheered. Had the match with Hogan been in 99, or 2000 things would have been different. Also keep in mind the match was in 2002. This was about 3 years since Hogan last fought. There was also a nostalgia factor at play.

All of that plays into why Hogan was cheered so much and Rock was booed so much.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I'd want to know how Nolan defines "casual fans" and "greatest".

I'm also not sure how he defines "of all time". Can we properly compare the pre-television era to today? I can't. But I'm also a casual fan, maybe, I don't know. Anyway, seems like a troll comment to get one's name out there and to get people to be more likely to click on your articles. Until someone can provide a better case for someone else without ignoring Hogan's accomplishments, it is perfectly reasonable for anyone to name Hulk Hogan as the GOAT.

Another argument could be greatest WWE superstar of all time. In that regard I may argue against Hogan since his time with WCW did some significant short term damage to WWE. But I'd quickly lose interest once someone challenged me on it and I'd go find something else to do other than argue in circles.

Now I'm going to turn on the TV and yell at it for an hour while Stephen A. Smith and the even more delusional guy rant about something emotionally that doesn't matter. I hate those guys and prove it every day by watching their show and disagreeing with them. Suckers!

 

[FlairFan2003]

This question is so vague. For most fans who closely follow wrestling Ric Flair is considered #1, major drawing power that lasted 3 decades, the sum total of main event matches against virtually every top star from three different eras, and in ring performance. There are those that argue for Brett Hart and Kurt Angle, ackowledging they dont quite equal Flair's longevity and drawing power but were competitive and were better in ring performers.

If you look at based strictly on superstar status then Hogan is No. 1. Fact is, Austin never surpassed Hogan as a true cross over star, although retiring early due to injury hurt him, just as quitting wrestling to go to Hollywood at the height of his career hurt The Rock. You could argue that Rock has been an all around bigger star in entertainment than Hogan, though much of that was not directly related to wrestling, and he hasnt been a top guy in wrestling nearly as long as Hogan.

Its like measuring the greatest quarterbacks of all time. Joe Montana has the best combination of regular season and post season success but the sheer sum of Peyton Manning's dominance, despite his lackluster post season career, makes him a candidate. Tom Brady can compete with Montana in dominating both regular season and post season, much of that with questionable WRs, but the specter of Spygate still haunts him, as does two Super Bowl losses. John Elway has a great resume, Brett Favre does also. Johnny Unitas dominated maybe better in his time more than any of them in comparison to his contemporaries. Was there ever a better pure passer than Dan Marino ?

If you want to talk about star power in entertainment as a whole combined with longevity then you have to go with Hogan with Flair, Austin, Rock all lining up behind. If you add in ring performance, the ability to make other guys stars, and equate contributions to the industry that way then Flair is elevated and guys like Hart & Angle and maybe even HBK enter the conversation.

 

[D-Man]

Shawn michaels says ric flair is the greastest wrestler of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRRNMVJkwM8 at 1:48

Chris Jericho says shawn michaels is the greatest of all time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq48YZwHL4Y at 3:50

if i could find it i would put up the clip of vince saying stone cold is the greatest superstar of all time.

I don't know, but they don't seem like people ignorant to pro wrestling.

Do you honestly think that they were speaking about anything besides in-ring ability? If you do, you're an idiot. HBK and Jericho couldn't draw a stick figure, let alone outdrawing Hulk Hogan's ticket sales and television ratings while he was at the helm.

Vince mentioned Stone Cold as being the best of all time during Austin's HOF induction ceremony. And he mentioned Stone Cold as being the greatest WWE superstar of all-time; not the greatest overall. And do you honestly think Vince would say otherwise on a WWE-televised and advertised program while Hogan was not under WWE contract?

 

[Optimist Prime]

To be fair, this match did come at a time in Rock's career when he already started to make the shift from wrestling to acting. The same thing happened to Rock about 4 and a half months later when he fought Brock at SummerSlam. Rock was booed and Brock was cheered. Had the match with Hogan been in 99, or 2000 things would have been different. Also keep in mind the match was in 2002. This was about 3 years since Hogan last fought. There was also a nostalgia factor at play.

All of that plays into why Hogan was cheered so much and Rock was booed so much.

I understand what you're saying but doesn't that kind of contradict each other? The Rock was getting booed because he was already less and less there. But Hulk Hogan was cheered for because he actually wasn't there for a long time.

Again, I get what you're saying but I still do think it's more than that. Of course there was a nostalgic factor involved...and I guess that's exactly what I'm saying.

If Jake the Snake had come back and faced The Rock, there would be some mild form of nostalgic factor but let's be serious...the reason Hulk Hogan was cheered the way he was is because he is Hulk Hogan.

As for the others advocating Shawn Michaels, I cannot fault you for that. He's the greatest all around performer the business has ever seen. But wrestling will still be known for quite some time as "that thing Hulk Hogan does" (or did).

 

[BeansOnToastUK]

Slyfox696 recently responded to my article on WrestleZone and made a quote without really giving you any context. So I thought I would include a few quotes of my own from Slyfox696’s comments underneath my article where he is arguing with everyone. You can read in to these as much as you want.

“And you clearly know nothing about wrestling if you think his matches with Batista and Umaga were ‘decent at best’” – Slyfox696 regarding Cena’s ‘classic’ matches.

“That's complete nonsense. If Vince McMahon could make other stars as big as Cena, why doesn't he?” – Slyfox696 missing my point about John Cena and WWE becoming complacent.

“The WWE pushes guys all the time, and they prove they AREN'T as good as Cena.” – Slyfox696 thinks nobody on the roster is as good as John Cena.

“CM Punk was the World Champion for over a year, at least half of which was a face, and he didn't come close to generating the overall revenue Cena did.” – Slyfox696 forgetting about Punk’s ‘Best in the World’ T-Shirt which didn't even come close to Cena’s merchandise sales??

“If he could make Kofi Kingston as big as John Cena, why wouldn't he?” – Slyfox696 forgetting that I’m arguing that WWE are complacent and not driving to push other people.

“NUMEROUS guys have come out of a feud with Cena MUCH better than when they come in.” – Slyfox696 seems to be forgetting an awful lot of the past few years.

“And again, if other guys on the roster can do those things as well as Cena, why don't they? They don't, because they can't. Because they lack the overall greatness of John Cena.” – Slyfox696

“Cena makes guys look great, he can't help it if they aren't good enough to continue without him.” – Slyfox696

“I'm guessing you think Daniel Bryan is one of the greatest workers around” – Slyfox696 (Yes, I do think Daniel Bryan is ONE of the greatest workers around.)

“You obviously don't know how the wrestling business works, and it becomes more apparent with every post you make. For example, you're claiming Cena is complacent” – Slyfox696 (Yes, I am. It was the whole point of my article.)

“You do need pro wrestling lessons from me.” – Slyfox696

“There was ZERO interference, once more your ignorance shines through.” – Slyfox696’s opinion on Cena and Punk’s match at MITB in 2011. (I would say that Cena having to punch Johnny Ace at ringside preventing him from stopping the match as someone interfering in the match.)

Now I’m not going to put everything Sly said up here but you can check them out in the comments section under my article. As for the quote made about Hulk Hogan. "Only casual fans will name Hulk Hogan as the greatest of all time."

I made that statement as I was frustrated with the constant messages from Sly telling me how ignorant I was and you can see it all in the comments section if you want to see what lead up to this point. This is all opinion but I would imagine that if you went up to a casual fan and asked them who is the greatest wrestler of all time then 90% of them would say Hulk Hogan as he is the household name. Whereas the smart fans would be less likely to say him and may go with other options such as Undertaker, Bret Hart, Steve Austin, Kurt Angle and HBK. That is all. My article is a point of view. You can agree with it or disagree with it, that’s up to you. I never spend time in my article telling people they are wrong or how they should feel. I always try to remain positive on anything that happens and at the end of the day, it’s an opinion. Normally I wouldn't be concerned but I don’t appreciate someone telling me constantly that I know nothing about professional wrestling and that they have to make sure they get the last word to make them self sound intelligent.

 

[BeansOnToastUK]

My opinions never have jibed with Martyn or IWC members of his ilk. Full disclosure, I used to take part in the VOW chat back before it got crappy, and BeansontoastUK always came across to me as a whiner. Every show was the worst.

That said, he's entitled to his opinion. I'm of the mind that there is no "greatest ever" in pro wrestling. There isn't and can't be a consensus "greatest ever." Let Martyn have his opinion.

I'm sorry you felt this way when you were in the VOW chatroom. I never mean't to come across as a whiner and don't believe I did but did you maybe mistake me for being sarcastic when in the chatroom because I always mess around a bit anyway.

Also, I completely agree. It's not really fair to say who is the greatest of all time because you hit the nail on the head. It's opinion. Please see my other post where I explain the quote and what has happened with Slyfox696.

 

[wCw/nWo Ireland]

well he was the biggest face in wrestling history. and then he switched to heel and became the biggest heel in wrestling history,hes not my choice but he has to be number one!

my choice would be ric flair!!!!

 

[The Butcher]

I'm sorry you felt this way when you were in the VOW chatroom. I never mean't to come across as a whiner and don't believe I did but did you maybe mistake me for being sarcastic when in the chatroom because I always mess around a bit anyway.

Also, I completely agree. It's not really fair to say who is the greatest of all time because you hit the nail on the head. It's opinion. Please see my other post where I explain the quote and what has happened with Slyfox696.

You're a stand-up guy, Beans. Like I said, you came across that way to me, but if that wasn't your intention then I apologize for my misinterpretation. Frankly, I'm not very critical of pro wrestling, so I just don't take to it when people are.

I read your other post, and you were well within your rights to draw upon the opinions of people who are actually in the wrestling business. I find that too often we IWC members try to outsmart the room, when we should just be fans. Hogan is my favorite, and to me there will never be a greater pro wrestler. But if someone else says that Flair is, who in the hell am I to say that he isn't?

I think one thing that all of us need to remember is that this is just pro wrestling for crying out loud. Discussions like this should be more open-minded and open-ended than "my guy is the best, I'm right, you're wrong." We're a small and weird enough community as it is without constantly treading over the same ground, getting worked up about the same stuff. Let's get together and go pick on some Bronies or NASCAR fans or something.

 

[King Patrick Star]

Hulk Hogan is the Greatest Of All Time.

He’s not my favorite of all time, but I can’t argue the Hollywood is the G.O.A.T. Let’s take a look at a comparison between Hulk Hogan and my personal favorites.

Hulk Hogan vs. my number one favorite, Chris Jericho
I find Jericho to be the most entertaining SuperStar ever. He took over the number one spot for me during his Undisputed WWE / WCW World Heavyweight Championship Title reign. I find him to be more entertaining than Hulk Hogan, but obviously not everyone and their mothers and their Grandmothers for that matter, know who Chris Jericho is. Popularity points go to Hulk Hogan.

Hulk Hogan vs. my number two favorite, Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold is to the late 90s what Hulk Hogan was to the late 80s. The only difference is, Hulk Hogan was still doing it in the late 90s and Hogan is still doing his thing today. Austin might have sold more merchandise, but, in my opinion, is because there was more merchandise to be sold and of course the weekly exposure helps. In any case, Hogan knew to job to the Rock and not Austin. Longevity points go to Hulk Hogan.

Hulk Hogan vs. my other number two favorite, The Rock
This might be the closest match up to debate. I would assume that 9 out of 10 people would know both Hulk Hogan and The Rock and associate both with Professional Sports Wrestling Entertainment. The 1 out of 10 people are either too old to know / care who The Rock is, or too young to know / care that The Rock was a WWE SuperStar prior to being a Hollywood movie star. For all I know, the kids today might even think that The Rock winning the WWE Championship is similar to David Arquette winning the WCW Championship. “Loyalty” (for not trying to disassociate Professional Sports Wrestling Entertainment, by default, not really by choice) points go to Hulk Hogan.

Hulk Hogan vs. my number three favorite, Kurt Angle
Real American Hero vs. Real American Hero. Kurt Angle won gold medals for the United States Of America. It’s True and It’s Damn Real!! Hulk Hogan on the other hand (with Vince McMahon’s help of course) changed Professional Wrestling to Sports Entertainment. Since the discussion is who is the Greatest PRO Wrestler of all time, it’s Hulk Hogan. Kayfabe points go to Hulk Hogan.

Hulk Hogan vs. my number five favorite (no number four, because I have two number twos), Ric Flair
The Ultimate Battle between “Good” and “Evil”. Superman vs. Lex Luthor. Batman vs. Joker. The only difference here is, the roles sometimes switched, and in some cases, they were on the same side. Ric Flair is known to be a great Wrestler, period. Hogan is known to be a great entertainer, and even that is questionable. What’s not questionable is the marketability of both. People paid to see Flair lose. People paid to see Hogan win. I can almost guarantee that more people paid to see Hogan win than to see Flair lose. Marketability points go to Hulk Hogan.

Hulk Hogan vs. my other number five favorite, Hulk Hogan
Now I know this is just odd, but for $#!+s and giggles, let’s take a look at Hulk Hogan’s greatest advisory, himself. You know what, never mind. I think I made my point clear, Hulk Hogan is the Greatest Professional Sports Wrestling Entertainer of all time.

 

[zwbruno]

There is no way Hulk Hogan can be considered the greatest of all time because his failures diminish alot of his successes. The steroid scandal, the fall of WCW and his terrible, terrible reality show (currently being syndicated around 9:50-10:05pm every thursday) are all apart of Hulk Hogan's career and you can't take the good without the bad.

As for the drawing power argument, Bruno and Andre both drew as well before Hugan, but there was no national brand like the WWE so it's tough to compare. Austin and Rock did it better after and during and neither have many blemishes except Austin's rather abrupt departure and Rock's movie career. Hell even Cena draws a ton of money but he certainly isn't in the conversation. Fact is, Hulk Hogan is in no way the greatest of all time.

Now in my opinion, the GOAT has to take into consideration every aspect of professional wrestling. You have to be able to wrestle well (being able to deliver and effectively SELL moves) and be technically sound (not necessarily a technician, but competent) while also being able to deliver a dynamic story both inside and outside the ring, and, of course, you have to be able to draw crowds and money. Obviously, it doesn't matter how good the story is if no one watches it.

That being said, it's really hard to say who the greatest of all time is. Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, The Rock, Stone Cold and The Undertaker are all in the conversation. I would probably have to go with Flair or Michaels. Both of those guys are respected by every personality within the pro wrestling universe because they were the very best at the art of pro wrestling.