#09 SCOTT STEINER

Ring Performance - 10 (early) 5 (late)
Charisma/Mic Skills - 7
Overall Impact - 6

I am sure that Shatner will disagree with Big Poppa Pump's selection for this list but let me lay out Steiner's case. Many of you who are relatively new to wrestling only know Steiner as the juiced up maniac he has become. While he is the most impressive looking wrestler in history..that is not the reason he makes the list. Don't get me wrong, looking the way he does did help him gain entry into this hallowed list but he is much more than his physique. In my grade of Steiner you will see that I chose to differentiate early Steiner (mostly as a tag team wrestler with his brother) from late Steiner (Big Bad Booty Daddy). Early in Steiner's career he was the prototype for the modern wrestler. His combination of size and athleticism was unparalleled in wrestling. The only athlete in wrestling history that is comparable to Steiner is Brock Lesnar.

Steiner was an accomplished amateur wrestler. He was an All-American at the University of Michigan and he brought that skill and agility to the pro ranks. He was the first mainstream wrester to use the "Frankensteiner" the headscissors takedown that has become a staple of modern wrestling. To see a man of his size do that maneuver was a sight to behold. He was also king of the suplex, one of the most devastating moves in wrestling. Along with his brother, Rick, they were the Steiner Brothers, one of the great tag teams in wrestling history. The art of the tag team has gone by the wayside in modern wrestling and that is unfortunate. Now you just see two stars teamed up temporarily usually just to get face time. In the 80s and early 90s there were actual tag teams whose wrestlers never competed in singles...in some ways it was a separate sport and added to wrestling's appeal. Later in his career, he made a heel turn and started pushing the limit in terms of steroid use and his physique changed. Instead of being a big, strong athlete he became a bodybuilder. His body paid a serious price for this and his wrestling ability diminished rapidly. He started to rely on pure strength and general nastiness to overwhelm his opponents. As the injuries mounted he became a side show, flexing at people and just beating people up. Entertaining as hell but not up to the standard that he set for himself early on in his career.

I gave Scott a 7 on the charisma and microphone skills section. This may come as a surprise because he is certainly not the most eloquent speaker. What he lacks in skill he makes up for with pure aggression and obnoxiousness. He is one of the few wrestlers who never bowed the internal pressure of his promotion. Along with that, he is one of the great heels on the mic ever. My favorite from Steiner was in the WCW when he said the following "When I look into the crowd I think to myself that I must be all of your idols (heavy breathing), but then I realize that you are all genetic junk and I am a genetic freak"...hilarious. Nothing better than bashing the home crowd. In another classic rant he went off about Ric Flair on live TV and I quote "When you came on TV the people at home grabbed their remote and change the channel to the WWF and watch Stone Cold a person you and your friends got fired from here because you are jealous old bastard" and then he called Flair "A ass-kissing, butt-fucking bastard" and his final exclamation point was "WCW sucks"...he was suspended for two weeks without pay for that incredibly obnoxious rant. His in ring demeanor is also a contributing factor to him making the list. One of his trademarks was to beat his opponent senseless and then mock his opponents by doing push ups and flexing on them, classic heel stuff. His appearance also helps him in this category, when he was in the WCW you just had to watch him come out flexing his amazing biceps. He just had the it factor that made me want to watch him.

Steiner had a moderate impact on wrestling as a whole. He did blaze the way in the ring early in career and some of his innovations have made the sport more entertaining. He also pushed the envelope physically which led to HHH's and Batista's of the world. His heel turn was one of the best re-inventions of a personality and it propelled him to new heights in wrestling. His horrible attitude and reckless behavior set a new standard for all heels to reach for. Steiner has appeared on a few bodybuilding magazines covers and probably got more than a few bodybuilders to watch pro wrestling. Of course, his attitude and appearance make him off-limits to advertisers and TV so his impact on popularizing wrestling as a cross-over has been negligible. But he makes the list....why?? "Because all he cares about are his freaks and his peaks"....manly indeed.

— arthur@arthurshall.com