10 Wrestlers Who Were Way Ahead Of Their Time
Sometimes the envelope needs to be shoved aside.
Like most creative industries, critics and fans are often too quick to throw acclaim at something they claim to be 'ahead of its time'. Heck, sometimes something that is purely 'good' gets that praise, no matter how incorrect or overblown it is. Quite honestly, not that many things are ever truly ahead of their time.
Even so, wrestling history is littered with genuine examples of this. A number of performers stood out unlike any other in their pomp, true trend-setters and mould-breakers who may not have been appreciated as much as they should have been at the time, but have come to be loved and respected in the years that have passed.
Wrestling is full of creative thinkers who have to move themselves outside the box as well as a number who naturally gravitate that way anyway. These still exist today, whether it was Zack Ryder's use of social media, Colt Cabana's podcasts or even The Young Bucks' approach to merchandise.
This list could almost certainly be longer. Missing are names such as Mick Foley, 'Superstar' Billy Graham, Rob Van Dam, Bruiser Brody and Mike Awesome, performers who were ahead of their time in one way or another. Included in the list however we have an Olympic medallist, Adam Bomb's first manager and a guy from Wigan. Here are 10 wrestlers that were way ahead of their time.
10. Taz
Taz certainly wasn't the first submission specialist in mainstream professional wrestling, but he may very well have been the first to incorporate the MMA-feel that pervades pro graps on all levels in 2016. Taz was cartoon-ish in his own way yes, but he brought a real-fight feel that was missing in wrestling up until that point.
Taz popularised getting his opponents to tap out, locking them in his patented Tazmission until they had no choice but to tap. Until then most submission victories were gained via the dreaded arm dropping or vocal submission, but the tap out has since become the common way of giving up.
Taz was different to most things around him in the mid 1990s, a mat grappler who threw you around whilst giving the impression that he was there for no other reason. He was called 'The Most Miserable Man on the Planet' for a reason.