The 10 best female wrestlers of all time

It isn’t the best of times for the women's division in the WWE and it certainly isn’t the worst of times as well. NXT is bringing forth a lot of hope for the future of women’s wrestling and the perception of women wrestlers as a whole in the WWE. Though its rich history has seldom been equal when it comes to the many talented women in WWE, there have been times where they’ve taken the hypermasculine world of wrestling by storm.

So many women in and outside the WWE have made it possible for women to be considered as competitive as men when it comes to the world of wrestling.

These ten women did not have to depend on their looks to make a lasting impact in this industry. Here are the top 10 greatest female wrestlers of all time-

Note: This slideshow reflects the opinions of the author and not of the website.

10.Sweet Saraya

Sweet Saraya is more than just Paige’s mom

For a strictly WWE based audience, Sweet Saraya may be, just maybe, known as Paige’s mother. But to the cult following she’s built over the last many years, she’s a legend. Sweet Saraya’s character is a polar opposite to her first name. She’s scary, she’s fierce and she’s menacing. She never went to the so called ‘big leagues’. She stuck to her roots and built a dedicated following. Paige has said it in many of her interviews about how she’s basically been wrestling as a fetus as her mother wrestled matches without even realizing that she was pregnant.

Even though she’s competed in many violent matches, the chill in the spine she brings forth is because of her mere presence. That no- nonsense look in her eyes, the red hair, the kohled eyes- just about everything builds her into this person you don’t want to mess with.

She runs her own wrestling promotion- Bellatrix Female Warriors- in Norwich

9.Sara Del Rey

In 2012, Sara Del Rey signed a contract with the WWE. Instead of signing as a wrestler, she became the first ever female trainer. The improvement in the division, in terms of wrestling skills, since her arrival is greatly visible. The much-lauded women's division in NXT is a fruit of her labor as a trainer.

Before all of that, Del Rey’s talent in the independent circuit was a gathering storm. Whether it’s being a submission specialist, a powerhouse or a high flyer- Sara Del Rey is all that and more. That combination is the rarest of the rare and that talent is now training to make WWE’s breed of women look like the rarest of the rare.

8.Mickie James

Mickie James

Sara Del Rey cites Mickie James as one of her heroes. Someone who inspired somebody as great as Del Rey, deserves mention. Mickie James had her own set of great moments in the WWE, most notably being part of one of the greatest matches between women at Wrestlemania. The greatest moment of the match was when James was able to get the entire audience to boo the popular Trish Stratus to win her maiden women’s championship. She played the lovelorn fanatic of Trish Stratus and steadily build up a fan base, which till date we know, has a fascination with crazy characters.

James produced some great matches against the likes of Melina, Beth Phoenix, Lita and Trish Stratus. She left WWE on quite a controversial note, but her legacy still remains intact.

7. Alundra Blayze/ Madusa

Alundra Blayze

Few would have expected her to be the one to come out with a classic speech at the Hall of Fame this year. But she did so with all guns blazing.

Alundra Blayze brought her experience from Japan and produced some of the greatest matches against her fierce rival Bull Nakano during the early nineties in the World Wrestling Federation. She gained infamy by being a burgeoning factor behind the Monday Night Wars- by throwing the title she won in the World Wrestling Federation into a garbage bin in WCW.

Her mic skills, storytelling, in- ring ability and psychology, all combined to make her memorable in the world of professional wrestling and sports entertainment.

6.Bull Nakano

Bull Nakano

If Blayze is in the list, you might as well have guessed that Bull Nakano wasn’t far behind. She till date remains one of the few Japanese wrestlers who made it to the WWE and left an indelible mark. Her face paint and her gravity- defying hairstyle added to her fierce persona. One of the most powerful and scariest performers the WWE has ever seen, Nakano competed in one of the greatest women’s feuds in the company against Alundra Blayze. She won the once prestigious women's title and held it for five months.

Her submission move called ‘Bulls Angelito’ is the clear cut inspiration for Paige’s impressive modified scorpion leg lock.

5.Aja Kong

Aja Kong

Like Nakano, Aja Kong is a force to be reckoned with. Her face paint and her dominating stature established her as a powerhouse. Unlike Nakano, Kong never held the Women’s title but she did garner one remarkable feat. She became the sole survivor of the women’s tag match at Survivor Series defeating all four members of the opposing team. Kong, for a big, burly woman was also capable of taking huge bumps from the top rope and executing moves so seamlessly as only few women her size could.

WWE, rightfully, acknowledged her in its list of the most powerful women in the world of wrestling. A diva is too weak a word for Kong, or actually anyone on this list.

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4.Manami Toyota

Manami Toyota

When it comes to Japanese women wrestlers, one just can’t miss the legendary status Manami Toyota has garnered for the past 25 years. Toyota, quite simply put, can execute just about anything. She may not look like the powerhouse that Aja Kong is, but she can very well execute suplexes and powerbombs of all degrees on women of a build like Kong’s. She’s a brilliant combination of speed, agility and power.

Just check out any video of her on Youtube, mostly detailing her best moves, and you’ll know what she’s all about.

3.Jaguar Yokota

Jaguar Yokota

For somebody who retired at the age of 24, Jaguar Yokota made quite an indestructible mark in the world of wrestling. She was the epitome of wrestling in Japan in the 80s. She was quite simply put one of the greatest wrestlers in the world at the time. That fact is said in the vein of considering wrestlers from all genders. A master when it came to submissions and piledrivers, she went on to win a lot of laurels at a young age.

A shoulder injury led her to vacate her title and consequently retire from competition.

But she gave the world Manami Toyota, who was one of her students.

The rest is history.

2.Fabulous Moolah

Fabulous Moolah

Everything related to the history of womens wrestling in the WWE begins with one name- The Fabulous Moolah. There have been women before her who’ve done trailblazing, remarkable things but Moolah got womens wrestling on the mainstream map. She held the womens title for a reign of 10 years. She’s as influential to womens wrestling as Bruno Sammartino was in his prime.

Sensational Sherri Martel was one of her students.

1.Trish Stratus/Lita

WWE Hall of famers Lita & Trish Stratus

It is quite hard to term one greater than the other. One’s career is incomplete without the other. Trish Stratus and Lita had their journey to the top of the WWE, more or less, together. While Stratus remains the greatest women’s champion in the company’s history with 7 reigns, Lita remains one of the most memorable characters in the WWE being a great babyface and conversely a great heel.

Lita had the distinct look- the tattoos, the red hair, the baggy pants- and Stratus is one of those rare examples of resilience and determination where she went from knowing nothing about wrestling to a wrestling legend.

Both of them revitalized the women’s division and took it to height unrivalled till today. They became the biggest faces of womens wrestling in the USA and that meant becoming the faces of wrestling to a much larger fanbase.

They certainly started out as pretty faces but moved on to make the mainstream audience realize that talent matters more in the long run.