WWE Mount Rushmore of the 1980s

#3 The Ultimate Warrior

For a brief time, the Ultimate Warrior was more popular than Hulk Hogan in the WWF, leading to their match at WrestleMania 6.

From his rambling promos and energetic machinations, the chances are The Ultimate Warrior is one of the most memorable superstars from the 1980s and 1990s to most fans. His sprint down the ring was usually followed by either a quick match or a pivotal moment in wrestling history.

His 'Super Pose-down' with Rick Rude was one of the best non-wrestling segments in the history of wrestling and his squash of the longest reigning IC Champ, the Honky Tonk Man, was a match that cemented that he was on to bigger and better things.

The Ultimate Warrior became so popular in the late '80s that he started to rival the popularity of the first true superstar in the WWF in Hulk Hogan. Mr. McMahon capitalized on that by pairing the two champions against each other in the main event of WrestleMania VI.

The man was also a poster child for the jacked physiques of the decade. It was a huge part of his character's mystique and some people even thought that someone else was portraying the man under the face paint when he returned from a brief hiatus from the ring.

It was the same man behind the paint, and his infectious energy was something that not any normal person could pull off. Warrior's late '80s career was the perfect example of gauging the popularity of a new young star in order to see if he or she could become a huge main-event star. He was a prime example of a newer star rivaling the popularity of the biggest star in the company and he actually had me cheering for him against Hogan.