10 Reasons Why Bobby Heenan Was The Best All-Rounder In WWE History

2. The Professional

Bobby Heenan
WWE.com

Unlike so many in the ultra-competitive individualistic industry at the time, Bobby Heenan was a constant source of professionalism. Always knowing when it was the right time to do business, Heenan always put over a babyface he'd campaigned or cajoled against with enthusiastic aplomb, no matter if it potentially damaged the perception of his character on any particular night.

Like The Rock (and very few others), Heenan rarely needed to use the industry to massage his ego, so confident he was in his talent and ability to rebound from any potential loss or !*$% in his armour. And again similar to 'The Great One', Bobby maintained that professionalism off-screen.

During Vince McMahon's hostile takeover of the North American wrestling landscape in the mid-1980s, he would often raid a territory of talent and pay them to leave a group with immediate effect, doubling down on the damage he was able to do to a local crew.

Heenan's 1984 departure from the AWA saw him written off of television via an indefinite suspension, but 'The Brain' worked his notice with respect and gratitude for employer and promoter Verne Gagne before finally heading to the promised land. He did exactly the same just under ten years later when he exited McMahon's employ for WCW, even 'putting over' Gorilla Monsoon as he was literally thrown out of the company forever on 1993's final episode of Monday Night Raw.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett