By Kevin Nelson

When I was young growing up in the 80s, I was hooked on the WWE. My fascination was with larger than life wrestlers such as Jake “the Snake” Roberts, Roddy Piper and the one and only “Macho Man” Randy Savage.

The WWE, at the time, was all about size…the bigger, more muscles you had, the more exposure you received. The ingredient to being a legend in wrestling follows a certain criteria:

1. Must have charisma; meaning the fans must hate or love you.
2. Mic skills; you must be able to talk on a microphone and sell a match.
3. In ring ability: the ability to entertain the crowd and give a good enough performance where the fans are asking for more.
4. Passion: you must be passionate about the business.

The Macho Man had all of those ingredients and was truly authentic and started the trend of having WWE Champions that had actual in ring skill (sorry Hulk Hogan). He was not the biggest or tallest, but he had the ability to bring you out of your seat.

The 80s did not provide too many legendary matches due to the long title reign of Hulk Hogan, but what truly made Wrestlemania, despite all the celebrity glitz and glamour, was one fundamental thing that brings fans back to wrestling.

Great matches and one of the greatest matches of all time to this very day is the Wrestlemania 3 at the Pontiac Silverdome the match pitting Randy Savage against Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat. I still say that is the greatest match of all time that featured two of the very best in ring performances. Steamboat would win, and despite the fact that wasn’t the main event, it was all anyone could talk about.

Throughout the career of the Macho Man, he would win two WWE world heavyweight titles and one intercontinental title. In WCW, he would win the heavyweight title 4 times. His in ring persona was very much the same as his out of ring. From most accounts, he was a temperamental, uncontrollable man who feared know one.

But that is what made me like him when everyone was on the Hulkamania train, the Macho Man was doing his best to destroy it. I will remember him as one of the best of all time and despite not being in the WWE hall of fame, he is simply better off without it.

If a hall of fame can induct Pete Rose and Drew Carey then it is not worthy of the Macho Man. Let’s hear it one more time. OHHHHHHHH YEAAH! Rip Randy Savage.

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