Trained by the legendary Rikidozan, Shohei “Giant” Baba was a true groundbreaker. His huge size (6 ft 10) made him stand out and break the stereotype of the smaller Asian athlete. Baba became the first Japanese wrestler to win the coveted NWA World Heavyweight Title and his status as a national hero was well deserved.

It was very tempting to include Jim Cornette with our Midnight Express entry, but upon further review the vast repertoire of Jim Cornette’s non Midnight Express accomplishments were too vast and he deserves an entry all his own.

The state of Texas has given wrestling superstar after superstar, though none of them could have been a better brawler than Stan “The Lariat” Hansen. Nobody played the part of a deranged cowboy better than he did either.

At one point wrestling prognosticators predicted that Owen would be the first Hart brother to be a World Champion. Needless to say, that didn’t happen, but when fans say that he was just as talented as his older brother Bret, few can argue.