10 Reasons Why Scott Steiner Is The Most Unappreciated Pro Wrestler Ever
He is, mathematically, the man.
The perception of Scott Steiner, among some quarters of the wrestling fandom, is one of a bumbling, over-muscled hothead with drop foot syndrome - a depressing footnote in Triple H's dubious history with the shovel.
That infamous match, at Royal Rumble 2003, was the lasting impression much of the wider fanbase have of the man. A proto blueprint of Brock Lesnar's Night Mayor act - in that Steiner did little more than drill Trips with a succession of overhead belly-to-belly suplexes - it was a dubious and unintentional innovation. But, not for the first time, Steiner was ahead of them.
Steiner is equally renowned for his often baffling promo work - a supposedly laughable stream of consciousness born from the mind of an absolute lunatic - but there was, if you can excuse the cliche, method to his madness. Steiner grasped the finer points of specificity in his comedic ramblings. His famous boast - "I've got freaks nine days out of the week" - was so much funnier that it would have been, had he swapped nine for seven.
Steiner knows how many days there are in a week - even if he isn't all that great with percentages...
10. He's Incredibly Innovative
Scott Steiner invented the Frankensteiner, the difference between that and the hurricanrana is so negligible as to not exist. The "rana" in hurricanrana refers to the double leg cradle pin which follows the move Steiner patented, and should get more credit for patenting.
Its influence on wrestling was seismic; in an era heavy on workrate and populated by men of unprecedented athleticism, it is as ubiquitous now as the lariat or the power slam was back then.
The story behind the move is as important as the move itself. Steiner first devised it when he was working out of Memphis, but to preserve its importance, he waited until he was on a national stage to debut it. He knew that it would mean nothing, if nobody really saw it. And people think the man is stupid.
There's a lesson in there somewhere. As savvy as Daniel Bryan was, and as much as he cherished his time in Ring Of Honor et al. as he did his stint in WWE, he was on borrowed time when he finally starting earning real money. He misses wrestling. He could've done more of it, had he adopted Steiner's less is more approach.
Bryan is a humble man, one who detests materialism. He probably isn't the best example to cite, but there's arguably none better for the stars of tomorrow to follow.