10 Best Wrestlers From Minnesota Ever, Ranked

For nearly half a century, many of the men and women who dreamed of wrestling glory would make the trek up to the frozen tundra of the American Mid-West - Minnesota. Under the harsh cold traditions, names like Hall Of Famer, Verne Gagne, Eddie Sharkey, Brad Rheingans would help countless aspiring wrestlers gain tremendous cardio by having them run for an eternity and then start working on Hindu Squats.

That certainly seems like torture to some, but to these wrestlers and many others, they were all able to wrestler for hours if need be, and most of the wrestlers on this list are certified Hall Of Famers or most certainly will be.

10 Verne Gagne

As far as Minnesota wrestling is concerned, it all starts with Verne Gagne. This list would be incomplete without him. The former amateur star would embark on his professional career that landed him several NWA titles.

He would go on to form his own company, the AWA and train nearly every top star of both the WWE and WCW for years to come. His style certainly seems quaint for today’s fans, but his shoot-style innovated for his time and helped influence generations to come - just about everyone on this list was trained by him or one of his disciples; from Ric Flair to Eric Bischoff.

9 The Road Warriors

Despite being billed their entire career as being from Chicago, The Road Warriors were part of what became a pretty elite group of competitors that all came up around the same time in Minnesota.

Both Hawk and Animal were musclebound monsters serving as bouncers at a locally famous bar named Grandma Bea’s when they first got noticed. They both trained under Eddie Sharkey and quickly became the most dominant tag team of the eighties and the most iconic team of all time.

8 Molly Holly

If you hear anyone ever speak about Molly Holly, then you already know what an amazingly nice person she is, wrestling business or otherwise. The Minnesota native was taught by Dean Malenko before learning on the job as part of Team Madness, led by The Macho Man.

By the time she got to the WWE, she was already considered one of the best female wrestlers in the world. Molly was able to help mold a generation of Divas, that included Trish, Lita, and Victoria.

7 X-Pac

Another superstar that spent some of his life in Minnesota and was trained by the Malenko family was Sean Waltman, aka Syxx or X-Pac; take your pick. He began his career training at just 17 years old. Just four years later, The Lightning Kid was debuting in the WWE.

Perhaps because of the perception of being part of The Kliq fans often forget how talented Waltman was in the ring, but the two-time Hall Of Famer not only was an integral part of both DX and the nWo, he was also one of the most exciting light heavyweights in the world.

6 Big Van Vader

From one of best smaller guys in X-Pac to one of the best big men ever in Big Van Vader. Trained by AWA staple Brad Rheingans, The Mastodon had already made a pretty big name for himself in both Japan and the AWA before making his fame and fortune as a household name in WCW and later the WWE.

The big man was known for being far more agile than his girth let on and a terror to opponents he had trapped in the corner. His feuds with Ric Flair, Sting, and Cactus Jack exemplified how amazing he really was.

5 Ravishing Rick Rude

The late great Hall Of Famer Ravishing Rick Rude was not only born and raised in Minnesota, but he also trained under Eddie Sharkey alongside names like the Road Warriors, and later superstars like Sean Waltman and Austin Aries.

Rude was one of the first true “body guys” in the sport - ripped to shreds from head to toe. He got his start in World Class being managed by Percy Pringle III before heading up to WWE to have marquee feuds with Jake Roberts and The Ultimate Warrior. He also headed to WCW to head up the Dangerous Alliance alongside Paul E. Dangerously and another Minnesota trainee, Madusa.

4 Ricky Steamboat

Ricky The Dragon Steamboat is one of the most legendary superstars of all time, thanks to his show-stealing match with Randy Savage at WrestleMania III as well as his trilogy with Ric Flair over the NWA Title.

Fans loved him for his entire career as the perennial babyface and he has imparted some of what he learned in the AWA and from Verne for years as a trainer and an agent. The Dragon goes down as one of the best babyfaces of all time and one that names like Bayley (when she was a babyface) were always compared to.

3 Mr. Perfect

There’s great names on this list and then there’s Mr. Perfect. Curt Hennig was born in raised in Minnesota and trained under his father, Larry "The Axe" as well as working for Verne in the AWA. He made a name for himself, finally defeating AWA champion, Nick Bockwinkel. He would of course head to the WWE and become Mr. Perfect. Perfect would win the Intercontinental title and be remembered for having some of the best matches of the early nineties, especially against Bret Hart.

2 Brock Lesnar

To be fair, Brock Lesnar probably didn’t need much training to become half the monster that he is. But the former NCAA champion trained under Brad Rheingans while being groomed by talent scouts like Gerald Brisco.

Throughout his almost 20 year career, including a break to dominate the UFC, Lesnar has proven that he cannot do, including delivering a Shooting Star Press, which he did all the time in OVW before botching it at WrestleMania XIX.

1 Ric Flair

Ric Flair spent years proclaiming both in and out of the ring that he was the “60 Minute Man.” He earned that kind of cardio thanks to his time training with Verne Gagne. Just about every superstar and wrestling journalist consider Flair to be the absolute best in wrestling, sometimes before, right after, or side by side with another superstar who spent some time with the AWA, Shawn Michaels.

The Nature Boy, even to this day is still influencing the locker room, through his daughter and his own appearances with the likes of Lacey Evans and Randy Orton.

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