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Post by ThankGodForSidJustice on Nov 30, 2021 1:04:05 GMT -5
Cena's definitely a bit clunky when moving, but I don't think it can be denied that he's got freakish strength which is always going to be an asset in wrestling, which gives him a major edge over the likes of Punk and Becky. I was thinking about saying Cena as he could be clunky like you said but then I remember how freakishly strong he was. He also moved around with decent speed and had some explosiveness to him. While they definitely don't compare to someone like Cena I would say strength is probably the one athletic area Punk and Becky are decently inclined in as it certainly isn't speed or leaping. Punk has shown some deceptive strength in lifting up some bigger guys such as Kane for his GTS finish. While she really hasn't in recent years I remember Becky in her earlier years doing some stuff that showed good strength. Like I remember lifting Charlotte in a match to get out of a seated chinlock from the ground up to her feet with her on her shoulders which I remember being impressed by. There was also one time where she picked up James Ellsworth and carried him across the ring. Granted it was Ellsworth but he's still a grown 180-190 pound man. Like there's probably a lot of other women on the roster who wouldn't be able to do that.
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Johnny B. Decent
Patti Mayonnaise
Had one once
Everybody's Favorite Arizonian.
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Post by Johnny B. Decent on Nov 30, 2021 1:08:10 GMT -5
For a quite successful wrestler who went for decades all over the world, Abdullah the Butcher wasn't exactly too gifted, physically. Especially so once he got really big.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2021 1:20:12 GMT -5
Wrestling didn't come naturally to Hiromu Takahashi, and he spent far longer in training than most his contemporaries as a result.
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Post by "Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay on Nov 30, 2021 3:26:31 GMT -5
I think Cena has to be up there. He was great at working with different opponents and obvious exemplary character work but I don't think anyone could say he was a natural wrestler. Are you saying he has 'limited skills and abilities'??
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2021 8:30:22 GMT -5
Alexa Bliss due to her size and only a cheerleading background which is better than nothing but bugger all compared to her indieriffic peers but she overachieved as was in nxt for a short time and mostly as a valet for team strobe lighting (can't remember their name and too lazy to look it up) and then sent to the main roster and pushed from day one presumably due to her looks but didn't disgrace herself and kept her spot for a few years after due to her ability to hang with the horsewomen and others.
Nikki Bella debuted in 2008 with her sister because John Laurinaitis enjoyed the look of them in their underwear (I'd like to think thanksgiving and xmas dinners for Johnny boy now are awkward but I suspect the silly old goat doesn't have a hint of shame) and both were completely useless until 2013ish when Brie improved a little although quickly taking steps back due to inaction and lack of confidence but Nikki went from clutz to ring general in a shockingly short space of time.
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Post by Finish Uncle Muffin’s Story on Nov 30, 2021 8:37:52 GMT -5
I think Punk and Cena are two obvious candidates but I also think there's something to be said about Batista. He was never naturally gifted in the ring, but he ended up having some really solid matches over the years. Some of it was thanks to good dance partners like Undertaker and Triple H but I think he also deserves a bit of credit.
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Post by Super Nintenjoe KBD on Nov 30, 2021 9:04:48 GMT -5
And she showed up. Like I didn't think that even was possible. Maybe it's different in Ireland or something or maybe her teacher was a major hard ass but I always thought if you at least showed up and tried you would pass. That's at least how it was when I was in school and she's just two years older then I am so it's not like it could be a different times thing. I'm Irish and all I remember from PE is playing football. Actually they tried to make us do volleyball and interpretive dance at one stage (neither went down well) and running and athletics briefly, but for 95% of the six years we just played football which is what most people wanted. Like you say I don't remember it being possible to fail it if you were showing up. But maybe they did things differently in her school, Becky went to the more "arty" non-denominational school down the road where a couple of my friends went (same year as Becky I think, and Bono and Adam Clayton went there years before while my aunty was there) while I went to a "tougher" all-boys Catholic school which were/are more common in Dublin.
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Post by Session Moth is over on Nov 30, 2021 9:17:48 GMT -5
I'm not sure how she failed PE when we don't do any official exams in school or have any marking system what so ever for it in either the Junior Cert or Leaving Cert programs.
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tafkaga
Samurai Cop
the Dogfather
Posts: 2,127
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Post by tafkaga on Nov 30, 2021 9:26:27 GMT -5
Luger? He was part of the main event scene for a decade during wrestling's peak, so he should count, right?
His punches were godawful. His powerslams were terrible. That elbow drop where he would bounce off the ropes, stop, do a vertical leap, land flat on his back with back of his arm falling on his opponent... yech.
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Post by "Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay on Nov 30, 2021 12:24:56 GMT -5
I think Punk and Cena are two obvious candidates but I also think there's something to be said about Batista. He was never naturally gifted in the ring, but he ended up having some really solid matches over the years. Some of it was thanks to good dance partners like Undertaker and Triple H but I think he also deserves a bit of credit. Batista as the main event broke a Mania buyrate record set by Austin vs. Rock. Batista absolutely deserves some of the credit for that! He was also old as shit when he started... and somehow started acting even older and got successful
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Post by XaviersSS2015hair on Nov 30, 2021 12:33:48 GMT -5
Luger? He was part of the main event scene for a decade during wrestling's peak, so he should count, right? His punches were godawful. His powerslams were terrible. That elbow drop where he would bounce off the ropes, stop, do a vertical leap, land flat on his back with back of his arm falling on his opponent... yech. Luger played in the USFL (the XFL of the 80's) so he was definitely athletic. Just not a natural in the ring.
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Post by XaviersSS2015hair on Nov 30, 2021 12:39:29 GMT -5
Alexa Bliss due to her size and only a cheerleading background which is better than nothing but bugger all compared to her indieriffic peers but she overachieved as was in nxt for a short time and mostly as a valet for team strobe lighting (can't remember their name and too lazy to look it up) and then sent to the main roster and pushed from day one presumably due to her looks but didn't disgrace herself and kept her spot for a few years after due to her ability to hang with the horsewomen and others. Nikki Bella debuted in 2008 with her sister because John Laurinaitis enjoyed the look of them in their underwear (I'd like to think thanksgiving and xmas dinners for Johnny boy now are awkward but I suspect the silly old goat doesn't have a hint of shame) and both were completely useless until 2013ish when Brie improved a little although quickly taking steps back due to inaction and lack of confidence but Nikki went from clutz to ring general in a shockingly short space of time. Alexa was instantly pushed to the moon over women who were 10 times better than her in the ring. Let's not pretend that's not because of Vince's fetish for gorgeous blondes. I will admit that she excels at every character she's given no matter how awful it is. She gets the personality aspect of wrestling, but I couldn't tell you one match of her's that was even halfway decent. Bell to bell she's always been useless but she talks a good game. I also don't recall a time when Brie was ever halfway decent in the ring, or at any aspect of pro wrestling for that matter. "Too bad talent isn't sexually transmitted."
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Post by XaviersSS2015hair on Nov 30, 2021 12:54:27 GMT -5
Ohh, this is a great thread topic! I'm trying to think...
For physique, Dusty Rhodes has got to be up there, and he wasn't a stellar worker either. Mick Foley had superior natural athleticism and could work harder in the ring without blowing up.
For natural athleticism, call me crazy but I offer you Ric Flair, Roddy Piper, and Terry Funk. They all seemed like non-athletes to me in the way they moved, but they all could go and made themselves into great in-ring workers in their own ways.
In high school Flair participated in wrestling, football and track. Piper participated in amateur wrestling and amateur boxing. He may or may have not won the Golden Gloves depending on what story you believe. He also had a black belt in Judo. Funk wrestled in college and played college football. He could also do a moonsault in his 40's and 50's. Dusty Rhodes also played college football. All of these legends were incredibly athletic.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2021 12:56:23 GMT -5
Dusty was athletic, playing football in college. Also, he shows a lot of energy in his early tag matches with Murdoch.
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Post by XaviersSS2015hair on Nov 30, 2021 13:01:21 GMT -5
Raven once admitted in a shoot interview "I don't have an athletic bone in my body." He also has one leg longer than the other. Which was the reason he always had that white wedge under one of his boots. He got by on his psychology which was always top notch.
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kidkamikaze10
Dennis Stamp
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Post by kidkamikaze10 on Nov 30, 2021 13:14:12 GMT -5
Raven is a very good one. Even more than Punk, who despite not being athletic, put in the work to be.
Hell, ECW had a few people like this, and then a bunch who were very, very athletic.
Women wise? Becky immediately comes to mind. Least gifted out of the horsewomen, has been a great wrestler for a loooooong time.
Non WWE example would be the Apaches. They do more than well with what little they had, athleticism wise.
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Push R Truth
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Perpetually Constipated
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Post by Push R Truth on Nov 30, 2021 13:21:56 GMT -5
I'm going to take this different direction from the answers I've seen so far: James Ellsworth got mega over by having the worst set of natural gifts I've ever seen on a wrestler.
He was a "Great" pro wrestler during his short time in the WWE. Often times being the highlight of the show he was on.
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Post by protuberance on Nov 30, 2021 13:30:05 GMT -5
Ohh, this is a great thread topic! I'm trying to think...
For physique, Dusty Rhodes has got to be up there, and he wasn't a stellar worker either. Mick Foley had superior natural athleticism and could work harder in the ring without blowing up.
For natural athleticism, call me crazy but I offer you Ric Flair, Roddy Piper, and Terry Funk. They all seemed like non-athletes to me in the way they moved, but they all could go and made themselves into great in-ring workers in their own ways.
In high school Flair participated in wrestling, football and track. Piper participated in amateur wrestling and amateur boxing. He may or may have not won the Golden Gloves depending on what story you believe. He also had a black belt in Judo. Funk wrestled in college and played college football. He could also do a moonsault in his 40's and 50's. Dusty Rhodes also played college football. All of these legends were incredibly athletic.
Haha, okay, I stand corrected. Maybe I thought Flair seem to lack physical gifts when compared with his amazing success and often being called the greatest of all time. With Dusty, it's just that he had a physique that doesn't make you think, "He should be a pro wrestler."
Maybe Sandman is a better example, although I don't know if he counts as a "great wrestler"
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Post by Can you afford to pay me, Gah on Nov 30, 2021 13:44:12 GMT -5
In high school Flair participated in wrestling, football and track. Piper participated in amateur wrestling and amateur boxing. He may or may have not won the Golden Gloves depending on what story you believe. He also had a black belt in Judo. Funk wrestled in college and played college football. He could also do a moonsault in his 40's and 50's. Dusty Rhodes also played college football. All of these legends were incredibly athletic. Haha, okay, I stand corrected. Maybe I thought Flair seem to lack physical gifts when compared with his amazing success and often being called the greatest of all time. With Dusty, it's just that he had a physique that doesn't make you think, "He should be a pro wrestler." Maybe Sandman is a better example, although I don't know if he counts as a "great wrestler"
With Flair I think we are all used to his post broken back where he had to change his ways on how he worked and not carry as lot of muscle mass. So a style that while still worked wasn't showing his athletic side because his back.
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Push R Truth
Patti Mayonnaise
Unique and Special Snowflake, and a pants-less heathen.
Perpetually Constipated
Posts: 39,296
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Post by Push R Truth on Nov 30, 2021 13:49:23 GMT -5
In high school Flair participated in wrestling, football and track. Piper participated in amateur wrestling and amateur boxing. He may or may have not won the Golden Gloves depending on what story you believe. He also had a black belt in Judo. Funk wrestled in college and played college football. He could also do a moonsault in his 40's and 50's. Dusty Rhodes also played college football. All of these legends were incredibly athletic. Haha, okay, I stand corrected. Maybe I thought Flair seem to lack physical gifts when compared with his amazing success and often being called the greatest of all time. With Dusty, it's just that he had a physique that doesn't make you think, "He should be a pro wrestler." Maybe Sandman is a better example, although I don't know if he counts as a "great wrestler"
In my opinion, Sandman was a great wrestler. He was wildly over. That's all it takes to be great. People wanted to see Sandman. IMHO that's the pure essence of Pro Wrestling. And he basically looked like somebody's uncle wandering around drunk during the height of his career.
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