60. Baba was extremely proficient as a technical wrestler considering his size. 1. Not as agile as Bam Bam Bigelow or Vader, Nash was still surprisingly quick and deft in the ring. Think about Yokozuna or Big Daddy V but wearing a farmer boy outfit and carrying a horseshoe necklace from 1955 to the late '70s. He especially made his mark in handicap bouts and in what would become his specialty, the battle royal matches. During the '60s and '70s, Andre wrestled all over the world, and yes, he was big in Japan and wrestled huge matches against the likes of fellow list members who we will see in upcoming entries. He gave us classics against Bret Hart and Taz. while others continued to bill Byers as the title holder. In a career that began in the '60s and ended for good in the '90s, Baba became a legend in his home country. Lindsay Kay Hayward is one of the tallest women in history. Simply being a giant doesn't afford one that kind of legacy. Brought into the business by the real life original Zybysko brothers, "Handsome" Harley Race certainly didnt start out being one of the most feared men to walk on "Gods Green Earth." In 1987, All Japan Pro Wrestling took a chance on the skyscraper of a man and pitted him against Antonio Inoki. The result was one of the worst matches in wrestling history. Born in Montreal, WWE Hall of Famer Maurice "Mad Dog" Vachon was one of the top heels in the AWA in the 1960s and 1970s, capturing that promotion's World Heavyweight Championship five times. He battled in various territories, but he always remained loyal to the WWWF. . This fight still does not have a definite date, however, Ring Of Honor made the challenger official after he was the winner of a poll that the company published in its social networks. Hogan began his professional wrestling career in . Dorrel Dixon - World Champion, Middleweight: There have been wrestlers well over 7 tall and some well beyond 400 lbs. He, like Giant Baba, started out under the tutelage of Rikidozan and perhaps is best known for his greatest gift to wrestling - starting New Japan. In spite of that ridiculousness, he managed to come off as intimidating, mostly due to his size. One would think it wouldn't be hard to convincingly portray a man of Mark Henry's size as a dominant and destructive force, but it took until the later stages of his career before that happened. All are heavyweight unless otherwise noted. He denies that wrestling was a kind of buffo circus, a concert of kicks and punches of lies, in which fights and results were prepared. 8 Kevin Nash. In June, he defeated Ted DiBiase to win the WWF North American Championship, and in September, he merged that title with the South American version to become the first ever Intercontinental Champion. So far, the leader of Legado del Fantasma has defended the championship four times: a couple of times against Isaiah Swerve Scott, against Jake Atlas and just a few days ago against the also Mexican Gran Metalik. Ivn Kowalski and Juan Enrique Dos Santos (El Gitano Ivanoff), would be the first wrestlers to personify the character of The Mummy. Then, if it was not enough, he started a second reign in 1973, lasting 1,237 days. Mike Shaw's wrestling personas included Friar Ferguson, Norman the Lunatic and Trucker Norm. These famous Americans are from the political, business, entertainment and professional . He held the new championship 233 days, then he hung his boots a couple years after his historic reign. When a man stands tall enough to look down on Kane, he's sure to make jaws drop as he passes by. Graham also managed to put the hand on the short-lived WWF International Tag Team Championship. His reign only lasted 21 days, but with only six different WWWF Champions in the '70s, it means a lot. While Juan Manuel Figueroa would be La Momia between 1975 and 1988. Giant Silva (real name: Paulo Cesar da Silva) did just that when the two giants clashed in Japan. They experimented with a few gimmicks for him, including the poorly conceived Sultan, who resided in mid-card status. * Championships in parentheses ( ) are noted according to the approximate date of the information, usually three or four months prior to the publishing date, in order to give a better idea of why the wrestlers may be ranked. There was a time for which I will call the "Silver Era" which took place back in the 1940s through the 1960s and has very little recognition today. When he decides he's had enough of chokeslamming smaller men, he'll go down as one of the greatest big men to ever enter a wrestling ring. The duo, called The Executioners, holds the distinction to have not actually lost the belts since they were stripped after a third Executioner interfered in a match. Robert "Jeep" Swenson resembled the sturdy girth of his namesake. He was also a trainer even when he was an active wrestler. I found no WWWF footage of The Sheik, but you can click here to see the hardcore legend in action against Dusty Rhodes in the '70s; or, if you're curious, click here for a match between him and Chief White Eagle in the late '50s or early '60s. Click here to watch Luke Graham in the ring; it's probably not a WWWF footage, but that's all I could find. ( World Champion [Georgia]) Killer Buddy Austin. He also was part of a wrestling family that gave us Paul "Butcher" Vachon, Vivian Vachon and Luna Vachon. Beyond the shock value of their height or weight, they have little to offer. (1999). One of his trademarks was to cut his opponents' face with a pencil hidden in his outfit. For so many men on this list, their size is their only asset. The lumbering and lovable behemoth set the standard for what a big man should be. He was in the first Wrestlemania against Hogan and Mr. T. As a competitor,. The masked monster known as Abyss is an intimidating figure even disregarding his size. The mystery that surrounded Khali, combined with his monstrous size, was the kind of television drama fans hope for from wrestling. He only spent one year with the company in the '70s, but what a year it was! The fact that he has been able to have so much success outside of the wrestling world later on in life with movie roles is something that has led many fans to believe he is much younger. Michael Jarvi's wrestling name "The 7-foot Giant Titan" is an exercise in redundancy. Man Mountain Mike and Haystacks Calhoun formed a tag team, testing the structural integrity of every wrestling ring they entered. However, before his run as manager, Mr. Fuji was one of the greatest tag team specialist ever. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for WRESTLING CLASSICS volume 1 wrestling vhs BUDDY ROGERS antonino rocca 50's 60's at the best online prices at eBay! 50. The man known as Killer Kowalski Jr. was even bigger, a good two inches taller. Former sumo wrestler John Tenta spent most of his career as WWE's Earthquake, crashing his large frame square on the chest of many a jobber. Taller than LeBron James and over 450 lbs, One Man Gang was one of wrestling's biggest performers. Esta web utiliza cookies propias para su correcto funcionamiento. He was even put in rare face-against-face matches when he challenged Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF World Title on a few occasions in the mid-60s. 1959-11 - National Wrestling Association (source: LegacyOfWrestling.com) Stevens wrote on his website, "I lost my nerves from my spine to my forearm, along with most the muscle in my back, my lower right chest, my right tricep and all my strength. He is a former WWWF United States Tag Team Champion, and his biggest achievement was to win the WWWF World Tag Team Title along with King Curtis Iaukea. This enormous man performed for WWE, WCCW and AWA in a career that began in 1985 and ended only a few years later. There isnt a single person reading this list that doesnt understand the level of greatness behind Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. Both men clashed on many occasions with no clear winner until that famous day in 1978 at the Madison Square Garden. 1963-09 - Boxing Illustrated Wrestling News, 1967-10 - The Wrestler (credit: @wrestlerweekly), 1968-12 - Wrestling Revue "Official Wrestling Ratings" (credit: Tom Burke), 1968-12 - Ring Wrestling: "Official World Ratings". From 1972 to 1978, in an age when tag team wrestling actually meant a lot, Fuji portrayed the stereotypical heel Japanese persona, and he was often involved in anti-American storylines. In addition to his championships, he left his mark on the WWE hardcore scene, with his uncommon mix of technician and brawler's skills.Click here to watch Pat Patterson defending the Intercontinental Championship against Dominic DeNucci. DeNucci, who trained Mick Foley and Shane Douglas among others, was mainly a tag team specialist and a great brawler. Given the resounding success of the fights, Lutteroth had the vision to expand and remodel it. It was Big Daddy who served as his biggest rival. Ranking Explanations . WWE misused Vader, turning him more into a jobber to the stars rather than the dominating behemoth he could have been. English wrestler Martin Ruane made opponents as large as Big Daddy look like children. Can you imagine if Cena held the WWE title that long nowadays? The Parks faced Ross and Marshall Von Erich, whom they defeated in a Tornado Tag Match. When you're the size that Gary Fletcher was, there's no more fitting name than Man Mountain. His Gargantua ring name couldn't have been more apt. When he left New Zealand after he signed with the WWWF in 1972, he quickly became a big star, earning the 1973 PWI Rookie of the Year. The hardcore wrestling pioneer trained many wrestlers who became original ECW icons such as Rob Van Dam, Raven and his nephew Sabu. 1. He was a master of in-ring psychology and an ace on the mic who could generate heat like no others. Several years late Baba along with Rikidozans sons left the Japanese Wrestling Alliance to form All Japan. Billed at 7'7'', his actual height is debated. The history of professional wrestling is a long and complicated one, and in the 1960s, the business was much different for the wrestlers involved. Despite his runs as a heel in the '70s, he managed to have a huge fanbase because of his revolutionary style. He immediately became the No. Before Gorilla Monsoon became one half of the funniest commentary duos with Bobby Heenan, he was one of wrestling's most frightening monsters. He also possessed a great magnetism and impressive ring work during his prime. Top 10 Richest Actors in the World 2019 Gym4u 14M views Highway to Heaven WWE - Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels (ALL COM) - Vengeance 2005 Anthony Gardner 372 views 13 TALLEST WRESTLERS in. After a brief time as "The Colossus of Boggo Road," Jones left WWE, and Hollywood soon found several uses for his massiveness. Many icons paved the way to what would become an empire in the world of wrestling. When he was not in singles competition, he teamed up with many other villains, and with Gorilla Monsoon, he won the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship in 1963. The fight was filled with roughness throughout, but the highlight came when the Son of L.A. Park sealed the fight with a brutal spear on Marshall. 49. As Kane, he was the perfect size to play a hellish monster capable of challenging The Undertaker. In today's pro wrestling, there's more talking than in-ring action and when they finally do get in the squared circle, the matches don't last as long as the over-produced entrances. The title holder however, before his run as manager, Mr. Fuji was of. Reading this list that doesnt understand the level of greatness behind Bobby `` the Brain ''.!, their size is their only asset even when he was one of greatest. That famous day in 1978 at the Madison Square Garden beyond the value. 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