Monday night on Raw, we saw the return of the dulcet tones of Paul Heyman. It may not have been one of his most memorable promos, but there is no denying his importance to the presentation of Brock Lesnar. Their chemistry is so tangible that it makes everything crackle and they are one of the finest examples of the perfect “Manager-Wrestler pairing”.
The combination of elite managers and wrestlers has always been able to evoke a certain magic. So without further ado, here are five dream pairings that we would’ve loved to see Vinnie Mac put together.
#1 Jim Cornette and Bobby Lashley:
Jim Cornette is one of the finest heel promos that the “Sport of Kings” has ever seen. His work with the Midnight Express is the stuff of legends. Their feud with the Rock and Roll Express, during the 1980’s for Mid-South Wrestling, remains one of the greatest programs in wrestling history.
However, these days Cornette can be found in his lair in Kentucky, ranting about the state of wrestling today. His salty comments about today’s cult favourites have enraged many a wrestling fan.
Cornette’s newly gained infamy in wrestling circles presents an opportunity to create a great heel character. His former OVW charge Bobby Lashley, who has done some tremendous work as a heel champion with TNA, would be Cornette’s ideal throwback champion.
It is not difficult to imagine this duo bullying baby faces and enraging fans with meta-commentary about the state of wrestling.
#2 Dashing Cody Rhodes and Sherri Martel:
Sherri Martel was one of the talents that Vince McMahon poached from the AWA in the 1980’s. She initially specialised in managing tag teams, such as the duo of Buddy Rose and Doug Sommers before she joined the WWF.
Even though Martel won the WWF Women’s Championship on her debut, she would eventually make her name as the manager of Shawn Michaels. She was the perfect complimentary piece to the narcissistic heel character that HBK portrayed at the time.
She was instrumental in developing many of the mannerisms that would go on to define the essence of the Shawn Michaels character.
Cody Rhodes is currently one of the hottest properties on the independent circuit, playing the role of a villain to perfection. However, he was one of WWE’s most underutilised performers during his run with the company.
He was misused repeatedly despite having the lineage, look, charisma and amateur wrestling background to be one of the top performers in the company.
The only time he was allowed to portray an effective character was during his time as “Dashing” Cody Rhodes. This run saw him play a narcissistic villain, who had a ruthless streak. Despite drawing considerable heat from audiences, he was squashed by the Big Show at Wrestlemania 28.
However, the input and charisma of a manager like Sherri Martel would have given Cody Rhodes more depth and signature character traits which he could’ve eventually parlayed into a babyface run. His Intercontinental Championship matches would’ve also generated a greater degree of drama, because of Sherri’s expert ringside manner and psychology.
#3 Chris Benoit and Paul Heyman:
Monday Night Raw was hardly at its zenith between 2002 and 2004, it was built around Triple H as World Champion with multiple babyface challengers chasing him. This resulted in a lacklustre product that completely lacked the spark of the Attitude Era.
This could easily have been avoided if WWE had inserted Chris Benoit into the top position with Paul Heyman as his manager. (As soon as Benoit was clear of injury)
The Wolverine is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest in-ring performers in the history of Professional Wrestling. However, he always struggled with his work on the microphone. This could’ve been easily remedied by pairing him with Paul Heyman.
This duo could have anchored Raw with a 15-month title reign. It would have also been much easier to write Raw because most episodes would just have to lead to a 20- minute main event, as Benoit would come up with a classic at will.
It isn’t difficult for one to imagine that this duo, would not only have been the bridge to the next generation, but also the closest thing we could’ve had to a classic Harley Race title run in the modern era.
#4 Umaga and Jerry Lawler:
Jerry Lawler is widely remembered as one of the greatest babyfaces ever, but it is often forgotten that his work as a heel is equally compelling. The King of Memphis probably did his best heel work, when he played the role of the invading heel, who looked down on the culture of ECW and it’s hardcore fans.
His exceptional grasp of wrestling psychology allowed him to expertly tailor his promos to get the best reaction out of the audience. His overall mastery of wrestling would’ve made him a tremendous manager in the modern era.
Whether he was putting on a Match of the Year candidate with Cena or headlining Wrestlemania in the Battle of the Billionaires, Umaga made a significant impact in his time with the WWE. The Samoan Bulldozer was widely regarded as the best worker in the legendary Fatu family, and he also had a unique charisma that made him the ultimate monster heel.
The combination of Jerry Lawler’s knowledge along with Umaga’s work rate and charisma would have made for a hall of fame act. This duo could have gone on to headline several Wrestlemanias and elevate several other Superstars in the process.
#5 The Giant and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan:
Bobby Heenan is regarded as the greatest manager of all time, because of his seamless ability to marry his promo skills and old school psychology with his incredible comedy chops. However, let’s not forget that he has cornered some of the greatest wrestlers in some of the biggest matches around the world.
In fact, it is his involvement in the feud between Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant that lands him a spot on this list.
Paul Wight has gone by several names, throughout his wrestling career. During his stint with WCW, he performed under the ring name“The Giant” and even won the WCW Heavyweight Championship from Hogan on debut. He would continue to feud with “the Hulkster” until the latter turned heel and formed the NWO.
The formation of the NWO also provided a remarkable opportunity to recapture the magic of one of the most iconic feuds of all time. It simply required The Giant to be positioned as the strong baby face with Heenan, who was a WCW commentator at the time, in his corner.
This would have effectively recaptured the dynamic of the Hogan-Andre feud, only with the roles reversed and the added layer of the WCW-NWO feud in the backdrop.
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