The Wide World of Wrastlin'Lists about professional wrestling in all its incarnations, with info about the men and women behind the spandex and ranking everything in the arena, from gimmicks to mustaches.
Some of the most memorable moments in wrestling history involve no wrestling at all. Even the greatest matches of all time would lose their luster had they not been preceded by great microphone and character work. Both inside and outside of WWE, this list includes nothing but the best wrestling promos of all time, ranked by overall impact, creativity, authenticity, and level of entertainment.
You'll find some of the best wrestlers ever on this list, many of whom are among the best talkers wrestling has ever seen. Greats like The Rock, Ric Flair, John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Hulk Hogan, and Paul Heyman are known for having the ability to completely win over a crowd with nothing but a few minutes and a live microphone.
Which wrestling promos do you think are the best? Go ahead and rank the best wrestling promos of all time, and when you are finished head on over to vote on the best tag teams in WWE history.
CM Punk cut this now-infamous promo on an episode of Monday Night Raw in 2011, three weeks before he was set to meet John Cena for the WWE title at Money in the Bank, which was to take place coincidentally the night his contract with WWE expired.
Punk got a live microphone and free reign to get things off his chest, and he broke every rule along the way in what many consider the best promo of the PG era.
Memorable quote: "I'd like to think that maybe this company will be better off after Vince McMahon is dead, but the fact is, it's going to be taken over by his idiotic daughter and his doofus son-in-law and the rest of his stupid family."
Stone Cold Steve Austin's King of the Ring Promo in 1996 saw the coining of a couple of Austin's two most notable catchphrases. For that reason alone, it remains an iconic speech.
Memorable quote: "You sit there and you thump your bible, and you say your prayers, and it didn't get you anywhere. Talk about your psalms, talk about John 3:16...Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!"
In 1985, Dusty Rhodes cut one of the era's great promos on Ric Flair leading up to their championship match. By relating directly to the working class, Rhodes delivered what many consider to be the best promo of his career.
Memorable quote: "Hard times are when the auto workers are out of work and they tell them go home, and hard times are when a man has worked at a job 30 years, 30 years they give him a watch, kick him in the butt and say hey, a computer took your place daddy."
Macho Man Randy Savage was known for his next-level energy and crazed persona when delivering promos. His Cream of the Crop promo is up there with the most noteworthy of his career. Many WWE superstars could match Savage's wordplay, but few could match his energy and delivery.
Memorable quote: "The Macho Man Randy Savage is not happy with your decision, yeah. I am the cream in the World Wrestling Federation and there is no doubt about it, yeah, you Mean Gene Okerlund, you know that I'm the cream of the crop!"
After winning the 1992 Royal Rumble, Ric Flair proclaimed it the greatest moment in his life in a spirited promo that was short, sweet and certainly not lacking in charisma.
He made sure on that night that everyone would pay homage to the man.
Memorable quote: "When you walk around this world, and you tell everybody that you’re number one, the only way that you get to stay number one is to be number one."
