The Top 5 Heels Over the Past 20 Years

By (Senior Analyst) on May 14, 2009

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The heel is the villain and are the "bad guys" in pro wrestling. Some "tweeners" who aren't classified as good or bad can exhibit heel characteristics.

No matter the kind of heel, their job is to be the antagonist. Heels exist to foil the babyface wrestlers.

Sometimes If a heel is cheered over the "good guy," a promoter may turn that heel to a face or make the wrestler do something even more despicable to garner more heel heat.

As for me, I always cheer for the heel because a great heel will make a face even bigger.

Now let's take a look at the top five heels over the last two decades.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

1. "HBK" Shawn Michaels
2. Edge
3. Chris Jericho
4. Ric Flair
5. Raven
6. Bret Hart
7. The Undertaker (Classic, Ministry of Darkness and Red Devil)
8. Kevin Nash
9. Scott Hall
10. Yokozuna
11. "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
12. Mankind (Classic)
13. Kane (Masked)
14. JBL
15. Kurt Angle
16. Jeff Jarrett
17. Brock Lesnar
18. Eddie Guerrero
19. Brian Pillman
20. Goldust
21. Curt Hennig
22. Shane Douglas
23. Paul Wight (The Giant and The Big Show)
24. Owen Hart
25. Konnan

The Rock

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With his numerous one liners and memorable quotes, no heel was wittier than the most electrifying man in sports entertainment, third generation superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

He also had the athletic ability to "Lay the Smackdown" on anybody at any given time with a "Rock Bottom" here and a "People's (Corporate) Elbow" there.

Whether it was Nation of Domination Rock, Corporate Rock or Hollywood Rock, the former Rocky Maivia was a master at getting heat from the crowd.

Stone Cold Steve Austin

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The former "Stunning" Steve Austin and "The Ringmaster" is the man that made heel-like characters fashionable.

Austin's victory at the 1996 King of the Ring over Jake "The Snake" Roberts coined his famous "Austin 3:16" trademark in one of wrestling history's most memorable promos.

Triple H

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After leaving the old D-Generation X (HHH, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg and Billy Gunn), the cunning "Cerebral Assassin" was born.

Then came the sledgehammer..........and a lot of championship reigns.

Randy Orton

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The former United States Marine and son of WWE Hall of Famer "Cowboy" Bob Orton has become one of the most vile and revered heels in recent memory.

As "The Age of Orton" continues to be upon us, his "Punt" signature move adds even more mystique to "The Legend Killer."

Orton's Marine Corps' small unit leadership abilities are evident with his formation of Legacy alongside "The Million Dollar Man's" son Ted DiBiase Jr. and "The American Dream's" son Cody Rhodes.

Hollywood Hulk Hogan

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The man who led one of the most successful heel factions in wrestling history, the nWo.

His transformation to Hollywood Hogan at WCW's 1996 Bash at the Beach was the crowning moment for the New World Order's legacy.

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