The Great Eight: Top 8 Wrestling Managers

Managers are not something you see much of in the modern era. Paul Heyman is really the only one in the WWE now, and in AEW, you have Don Callis, MVP, Stokely Hathaway, Alex Abrantes, and Prince Nana. But going back into the last century, you will find many examples of the role of the mouthpiece with a stable of wrestlers ready to take on the Champions. I wanted to take some time today to discuss some of the greatest managers of all time.

Note: I do believe that managers and valets are different; a manager is a mouthpiece, someone who does promos to hype up their clients, and at times even getphysical as well. A valet is someone who accompanies a wrestler to the ring and tries to hype them or the crowd up during the match, but isn’t really the one doing the talking for the wrestler or providing a physical presence. That is why you won’t see Miss Elizabeth, Sable, or Marlene on this list. If I were doing a top 8 for valets, then Miss Elizabeth would be number one all day, every day.

Disclaimer: Wrestling is an art and, therefore, is subjective. If you disagree with my list, awesome! Please post your list in the comments section. I encourage positive discourse about this silly art we all love. What I don’t encourage is discourse dissolving into insults about people who disagree with you. Remember, we all love wrestling, so have fun and don’t be a dick!

HM: Captain Lou Albano, Arnold Skaaland, The Grand Wizard, Teddy Long, Mr. Fuji, Slick, Stephanie McMahon, J.J. Dillon, Ed Lewis, Bill Dundee, Dutch Mantel, Gary Hart, The Genius, Larry Sweeney, Harley Race, Don Callis, James Mitchell, Paul Ellering, and Armando Estrada.

8. Freddie Blassie

Blassie was before most of our time, and so I think he gets a bit overlooked in these kinds of articles, but you can’t deny his talent. He had been a wrestler for 20 years, holding multiple championships and feuding with top names like Pedro Morales and Bruno Sammartino. This lent an air of credibility to his promos and the men he managed, which included Hulk Hogan during his first WWF run, “The Crippler” Ray Stevens, High Chief Peter Maivia, Muhammad Ali in his match against Antonio Inoki, Jesse Ventura, and led The Iron Sheik to a WWF Championship win over Bob Backlund. Blassie’s rough voice and intense demeanor made him the perfect manager for many of the monster heels of the late 70s and early 80s, and he deserves way more credit than he gets now.

7. Paul Bearer/Percy Pringle

Before he was Paul Bearer, he was Percy Pringle III. During his runs in both WCCW and CWF, he managed Rick Rude, “Stunning” Steve Austin, Mark Calaway, Lex Luger, and Dingo Warrior. Not a bad resume, but in February 1991, he would be introduced as The Undertaker’s new manager (taking over for Brother Love); his pale skin, shrieking voice, and real-life experience as a mortician helped to enhance The Undertaker’s character. Eventually, Bearer would turn on The Undertaker, at first managing Mankind, and then introducing Undertaker’s younger brother Kane. The whole story of Bearer being Kane’s actual father, Undertaker being the one to burn down the mortuary and killing his family, and all the other twisted parts of that story probably wouldn’t have worked as well if it were anyone else but Paul Bearer telling the story. He just had a look and voice that provided weight to the Southern Gothic feel of the whole thing. And while there have been other spooky-type managers, with Jim Mitchell being probably my second favorite, there will never be anyone else quite like Paul Bearer.

6. Harley Race

While Race managed a few other wrestlers, including a young Vinnie Vegas and Lex Luger, his primary client was Vader. For three years, Race and Vader would rule WCW, with Vader holding the WCW World Heavyweight Championship three times for a total of 377 days. Race would use his own history as a multi-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion to add weight to his promos and guide Vader to Championship glory. Due to a car accident, Race didn’t have a long career as a manager, but his short time left a memorable mark on any young fan watching WCW in the early ’90s.

5. Sensational Sherri

Sherri was a wrestler for years before she was a manager. She had proven herself to be a tough woman that even the men didn’t want to mess with. So, when she took over as Savage’s manager (in a segment that included Savage firing and threatening Elizabeth and Sherri attacking Hogan), it seemed a natural fit for the now heel Savage. She would manage Savage in his feuds with Hogan, Dusty Rhodes, and The Ultimate Warrior. She would then go on to manage Ted DiBiase until 1992. Sherri would then pair up with a newly turned Shawn Michaels, and that is where her skills really shone. I strongly believe that without Sherri Michaels would have had a much harder time getting over; she was able to provide some guidance, a strong promo, and some physical backup when needed. She gave Michaels credibility and helped to flesh out the Heartbreak Kid gimmick into something more substantial. Her run in WCW saw her pair up with Ric Flair for a bit before again lending her credibility to a young Harlem Heat and leading them to seven WCW World Tag Team Championship reigns. Sherri wasn’t just a pretty face to stand at ringside; she was the anti-diva before that was a thing, and she was able to cut a promo better than a lot of the men and could get physical when needed.

4. Jimmy Hart

It takes a lot to stand out next to Hulk Hogan, and the Mouth of the South had no problem doing it. Starting out managing Lawler in Memphis, and getting national headlines for his involvement with Lawler’s feud with Andy Kaufman. Hart would join the WWF in 1985. His list of clients during this time reads like a who’s who of wrestling legends. Greg Valentine, King Kong Bundy, Adrian Adonis, The Hart Foundation, The Funks, The Honky Tonk Man, and The Glamor Girls. He would also introduce Earthquake to the WWF and eventually turn face to manage Brutus Beefcake, and the man he would become most closely tied to was Hulk Hogan. While a lot of Hart’s clients needed him to carry promos for them, his high-energy style helped him stand out even when he was paired with wrestlers who were more than capable on the mic. That twangy southern voice is burned into the memory of any fans who grew up in the ’80s or ’90s and will never be forgotten.

3. Jim Cornette

Cornette has been in this business for almost 50 years now, having started as a photographer before Jerry Jarrett offered him a role as a manager in 1982. Funny enough, his first client as a manager was Sherri Martel. He would leave the CWa and move to MSW in 1983, and it’s there he would start managing Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton as the Midnight Express. Cornette and Midnight Express would start a decade-long run and a celebrated feud with The Rock N’ Roll Express. Cornette, like Heyman, would go on to create his own promotion, which helped launch the careers of New Jack and Chris Jericho. He would lead his own stable in the WWF, where he helped lead Owen Hart and Yokozuna to the Tag Team Championships. His lasting impact on the business would be his run booking OVW, where he helped guide future legends like John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, and Batista. Cornette has become a decisive figure in wrestling, but his lasting legacy is worthy of a spot in the top three.

2. Bobby Heenan

A lot of people will probably argue between the number one and two spots here, but both men are deserving of number one, so this could just be 1a. His clients list is even more impressive than Jimmy Hart’s, with such notables as The Blackjacks, Nick Bockwinkle, Ray “The Crippler” Stevens, Masked Superstar, Ernie Ladd, Big John Studd, Ken Patera, Paul Orndorff, King Kong Bundy, André the Giant, The Brainbusters, Rick Rude, Harley Race, The Islanders, Mr. Perfect, Lex Luger and Ric Flair. Heenan’s quick wit and willingness to put himself in humiliating positions made him such a memorable part of every show he was on. No one will ever be able to deny the greatness that was Heenan. If you missed out on his run as a manager or later as a color commentator, do yourself a favor and find more clips online; you won’t regret it.

1. Paul Heyman

Like I said, most people will argue over which of these two deserves the top spot. I went with Paul Heyman, because while Heenan managed a lot of top talent in his time, Heyman has two of the most dominating wrestlers of all time, plus was the mastermind behind ECW, which helped to revitalize the industry in the late 90s. Like Cornette, Heyman started as a ringside photographer; he also became a promoter before he was a manager, and organized Wrestle Party 85, which saw the debut of Bam Bam Bigelow. He would start as a manager in 1987, where he aligned with Kevin Sullivan and Oliver Humperdink. From there, his list of clients would include Tommy Rich, Austin Idol, Dennis Condrey and Randy Rose (The original Midnight Express), and Eddie Gilbert. He would start a feud with Cornette in WCW, where the two Midnight Express teams would face each other; he also managed a young “Mean” Mark Callous during this time. In 1991, he would start the Dangerous Alliance, a stable that included Rick Rude, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Larry Zbyszko, and a young Steve Austin. In 1993, Heyman would become the booker for ECW, eventually taking over the company and bringing it to the Extreme, helping to pave the way for future stars like Rob Van Dam, Tommy Dreamer, and The Dudley Boyz, while giving a launching pad for luchadors like Rey Mysterio, Psychosis, and Juventud Guerrero, and showcasing more technical wrestlers like Dean Malenko, Chris Jericho, and Eddie Guerrero. After ECW, Heyman would continue to build his legacy by managing Brock Lesnar (for the first time), Big Show, Brock Lesnar (in his return to the company), CM Punk, Roman Reigns and The Bloodline, and now Seth Rollins and The Vision. Aside from his work on-screen, Heyman has been a fount of wrestling wisdom to countless wrestlers behind the scenes and continues to help out in creative as well.