10. HHH Calls Stone Cold Steve Austin ‘Barney Fife’
Probably the most favorable promo out there featuring HHH, here he is holding his own against a great promo guy himself in Stone Cold Steve Austin.
9. The Rock: Toronto Mother Canuckers
The Rock is of course known for his famous eyebrow and several massively popular catch-phrases but his greatest skill might have been his unique ability to rile up local audiences. That skill is on full display here as he takes on a hostile Toronto crowd.
8. Ric Flair Retires from Wrestling
After a career that spanned 36 years and included 16 Heavy-weight championships, the “Nature Boy”, Ric Flair said goodbye to the world of Professional wrestling in 2008. Wrestlers broke character following the the speech to thank Flair for all he did for the business. The industry honored Ric’s lifetime accomplishments by inducting him into the Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2008. Of course he’s now partially unretired and will be fighting Hulk Hogan in some Senior Citizen matches to take place in Australia, proving once again that wrestling is pretty damn close to being a soap opera since nobody ever truly goes away forever.
7. Jake The Snake Survivor Series ‘88
Jake the Snake, despite all his personal struggles, was another old school legend with the mic, as he illustrates here at the ‘88 Survivor Series. I’m not sure how popular an opinion this would be, but I personally would place Jake Roberts as one of the best 3-4 ever on the microphone.
6. Rowdy Roddy Piper Smashes a Coconut Over Jimmy Snuka’s Head
Roddy Piper was another gifted wordsmith and another guy who has tons of clips that could fit on this list, but we’re going to go with his all time classic rant vs. Jimmy Snuka that culminated in Snuka getting brained with a coconut.
5. Macho Man Randy Savage Defends Elizabeth’s Honor
Randy Savage had to make an appearance on this list, and while he has probably literally thousands of classic promos over the years we’ve picked this classic which highlights him doing something he had to do all too often: defending Ms. Elizabeth’s honor.
4. Bret Hart Turns Heel
Quite possibly the second most shocking heel turn of all time, Bret Harts performance following his “I quit” match vs Steve Austin was legendary.
3. The Rock and Chris Jericho Attack Stephanie McMahon
Seldom on the same side, The Rock and Chris Jericho (an underrated mic guy himself) team up to annoy the boss’ daughter, Stephanie McMahon. Some great one liners in this promo that highlights the mental agility of The Rock and Chris Jericho both.
2. Hulk Hogan Joins NWO
While Hulk Hogan was something of a dull wrestler, he was a hell of a promo cutter. This was one of the most shocking moments in wrestling history, the moment when Mr. USA and vitamin connoisseur Hulk Hogan turned heel.
1. Stone Cold Steve Austin: Austin 3:16
It’s tough not to make this your number one on a list like this, as this promo not only was extremely clever, but it also had a massive effect on the entire wrestling industry. Could you defensibly argue for anything else as number one? The line that launched a million t-shirts, Austin 3:16.
