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One of the most important aspects of WWE Superstars are the characters they portray. A wrestler could either be a heel or a babyface. They could even be presented as an anti-hero, a character trait that widely became popular in the Attitude Era when Stone Cold rose up the ranks in WWE.
Some Superstars have changed characters on several occasions. Triple H was initially a top heel, however, he went on to have a short-lived face run in 2002 but went back to being a heel again as he betrayed his best friend Shawn Michaels. He turned face again in 2006, aligning with Michaels.
Being a Babyface or a Heel character involves many factors that range from your gimmick, the creative storylines, the WWE universe's traction towards you and much more.
Some wrestlers have stuck to one face of the coin and have maintained their status quo transcending eras. In this article, we take a look at three wrestlers who never turned heel and two who never turned face.
#3 Never turned heel: Ricky Steamboat
Throughout his WWE run, Ricky The Dragon Steamboat played the part of a hero to perfection. His mannerisms and looks screamed babyface, and Vince McMahon decided never to turn him heel. Steamboat's most famous match was the classic against Randy Savage at WrestleMania 3. It is widely regarded as one of the greatest bouts of all time.
Steamboat reportedly once asked Patt Patterson to turn him heel and fight as a masked character, but Patterson stated that he was a natural babyface.
Despite his tremendous in-ring ability, Ricky failed to achieve much gold in the WWE. He's a one-time Intercontinental Champion and that's as far as he got. He will however go down in history as one of WWE's greatest performers.
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#2 Never turned face: The Iron Sheik
There wasn't a bigger villain in WWE during the early 80s than The Iron Sheik. He was the perfect anti-American character the crowd loved to boo out of the building each time he set foot in the ring. His heelish mannerisms, which included berating the crowd and the USA always worked in WWE.
That was why it was a very big deal when Hulk Hogan defeated him to win the WWE title in Madison Square Garden. Beating Sheik turned Hogan into an American hero the fans could look up to.
At WrestleMania 17, The Iron Sheik returned to be a part of the 'gimmick battle royal' and won the event. Despite being a ghoulish heel all his life, he received a standing ovation from the WWE universe that day.
The Sheik remains a controversial character, even to this day owing to his social media exploits and shoot promos against his compatriots.
#2 Never turned heel: Rey Mysterio
Talking about pure babyfaces, how can one not mention Rey Mysterio? He is as big an underdog as one can be, and has always been loved by the crowd for his athleticism and innovative ring gear.
Mysterio made his WWE debut in 2002 and has never been a heel. His biggest moment came when he defeated Kurt Angle and Randy Orton to win the world title at WrestleMania 22.
Looking back now, it seems that not turning him has been a wise decision, as it would be incredibly hard for WWE to make the fans hate him. Perhaps the only known occasion the fans booed Rey was when he came on at #30 in the 2014 Royal Rumble instead of Daniel Bryan.
The Master of the 619 has reveled in the WWE universe's adulation over the years and has taken on the Goliaths of the world in many successful bouts.
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#1 Never turned face: Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett turned WWE completely upside down in 2010 when he invaded the flagship show, RAW, along with his NXT lackeys, destroying everything in their path. Barrett was the top heel in WWE for the next few months and feuded with John Cena for a while.
His star soon fizzled out though, and he spent the next several years in the mid-card segment. Barrett later became Bad News Barrett, who also had a short stint with The League of Nations but was never portrayed as a babyface.
Barrett brought with him the world-renowned British arrogance that allowed him to criticize the WWE universe week in week out. He was good on the mic and a natural heel, which is why the WWE creative allowed him to go with the flow.
#1 Never turned heel: The Ultimate Warrior
Although he was one of the most controversial WWE Superstars of all time, Warrior was as good as a guy could get when it came to in-ring action and storylines. Warrior was seen as a replacement for Hogan and went on to defeat him in the main event of WrestleMania 6 in one of the biggest matches in the show's history.
Warrior soon left the company due to backstage differences with Vince McMahon. He came back for another short run and defeated Triple H at WrestleMania 12 in 1996 in a complete squash. Warrior's colorful persona became a huge hit with kids as well as adults at the time, and it made sure that he would never be turned heel.
The fact that Warrior's return during Wrestlemania 12 attracted more fans than Shawn Michaels' Iron Man match against Bret Hart is a testimony to his connection with the WWE universe.
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