Ranking WWE superstars from best to worst
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has blessed us with some of the greatest superstars ever to enter the ring. It is also safe to say, however, that not all superstars have had the most impressionable impact on the crowd or their fellow superstars. Whether they had the physical strength or the ability to win over a crowd, here is a look at some of the best and worst WWE superstars.
Randy Orton
This should most definitely be expected. Randy Orton is one of the most popular WWE superstars of all time. Orton debuted in 2002, and within two years of his debut, he became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in WWE history. Orton also shared incredible matches against the likes of John Cena, The Undertaker, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and an incredible hardcore match with Mick Foley in 2004. In Orton’s early career, he has had some of the best matches. He continued to grow his character in the late 2000s and continued to win over the crowd.
Rhea Ripley
Ripley is one of the most popular superstars at the moment. I would even go as far as to say she, along with Bianca Belair, Becky Lynch, and AJ Lee, has made the women’s division more prominent in the eyes of the WWE universe. There is not a single match of Ripley’s that I have not enjoyed since her debut. Her storylines strongly reflect her character inside and out, and even as an enemy, she makes it incredibly difficult to dislike her due to her in-ring ability.
One of my favorite matches of Ripley is her bone-chilling match against Charlotte Flair during Wrestlemania XXXIX. She defeated Flair in a 22-minute match for the WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship. Regardless of her opponent, Ripley continues to have amazing chemistry in the ring and makes her performance her top priority.
Nia Jax
If you are unaware, Nia Jax has most definitely come a long way. Jax comes from a very prestigious background. She is related to some of the biggest names in the industry, including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Jimmy and Jey Uso, and Solo Sikoa—who have made themselves prominent figures in the industry. Jax had a lot of difficulty landing herself in a good position with the crowd, as they noticed that she sometimes would seriously injure other superstars in the ring due to some inexperience.
On an episode of WWE Monday Night RAW (1993-), Jax and Becky Lynch were involved in a brawl that resulted in Jax breaking Lynch’s nose. This landed Lynch out of action for a long time and made the WWE universe realize that Jax was a bit inexperienced in the ring and a serious danger to her fellow superstars’ physical well-being and careers. As of 2023, she has made a comeback, and it is safe to say she has improved her in-ring performance and is having a much more positive response than before.
Vince McMahon
To many people’s dismay, Vince McMahon has performed in the ring numerous times over the years, and yes—he is an awful wrestler. McMahon has taken advantage of his position as the CEO and never really hesitated to abuse it at the expense of another superstar. During the late 1990s, McMahon’s most famous feud was with Stone Cold Steve Austin. Over the years, the two went back and forth with some of the most egregious storylines. McMahon is not a trained wrestler, but he has the ability to implement himself into storylines while being the most inexperienced “wrestler” of all time.
In 2007, McMahon feuded with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) champion Bobby Lashley. Using another wrestler, Umaga, he ‘won’ the ECW championship and sported around the arena proudly, wearing the title for which he barely lifted a finger. It was a mockery and felt like a huge joke to Lashley, who is already an underappreciated superstar despite his strengths.
Goldberg
Bill Goldberg—not to be confused with former WWE superstar Goldust—is arguably one of the worst WWE superstars to hit the ring. McMahon’s obsession with large, muscly, and physically threatening men is his ultimate downfall. The truth is this: Goldberg was an incredibly unsafe wrestler in the ring. He was already incredibly inexperienced in the ring before his debut.
At some point, the crowd noticed that his matches were relatively short, and he always destroyed his opponents in the ring. When they booked a match that required him to pace his movements, respond accordingly to his opponent's callouts, and actually face his opponent head-on, it showed the crowd that this wrestler was not as great as we thought. There is a lot of discourse on his comebacks throughout the years, as he ultimately injured and ruined Bret Hart’s in-ring career because of his dangerous wrestling style. Goldberg was pushed to the universe as an unstoppable force that could not be moved, but he was just a big, bulky guy who, ironically, had half the stamina of his opponent in the ring.