Arn Anderson and the New Four Horsemen

The Four Horsemen. The greatest legacy in pro wrestling.

The original quartet, comprised of Ole and Arn Anderson—also known as The Minnesota Wrecking Crew—Tully Blanchard, and The Nature Boy Ric Flair, dominated Jim Crockett Promotions and the NWA.

They set the tone for what it meant to be the best in every aspect of the business. They had the best matches, they talked better than anyone else, and they lived the lifestyle, putting the business ahead of everything else.

The Horsemen set the standard for excellence in professional wrestling, a standard that has been imitated, but never successfully duplicated.

The reason for this is simple. The idea of The Horsemen did not come from a booker. Jim Crockett did not create the Four Horsemen, nor did the man responsible for so many of the great angles and storylines in the NWA, The American Dream Dusty Rhodes.

The Four Horsemen just happened. All four men were friendly, and being heels, were thrown together in tag matches and six-man tag matches.

After enough exposure to one another, the idea of a group began to take shape. Their images, their gimmicks, began to mesh.

Each man’s constant drive to be the best, the same drive that brought them together, unified them into the greatest heel faction of all time. They didn’t act the part of The Four Horsemen. They WERE The Four Horsemen.

They were so good, so over, that the man at the head of the group didn’t dare revisit the concept after the company who nearly killed it, WCW, shut down. That is, until now.

Enter Ric Flair’s Fortune, TNA’s attempt at recreating the magic of The Horsemen. Flair, AJ Styles, Kaz, Desmond Wolfe, and Beer Money, all young talented workers, who seem to fit the mold that was poured by the original Horsemen 24 years ago.

Time will tell if this modern rebirth will succeed, or become an insignificant gimmick, lost in the shuffle. But the buzz behind this new faction, and the notion of bringing back what once was so great, began to turn the wheels in my head.

Vince owns the name of The Four Horsemen. Fact is, he owns everything. So since the name is there and the talent is there, then why not reintroduce the idea?

Yes, Flair is in TNA, and the truth is that this will probably never happen simply because he is no longer with the WWE.

And, you cannot do the Four Horsemen without Ric Flair. It’s just not the same group.

Plus, the WWE doing a heel group in response to a heel group in TNA is like Vince admitting on the air that TNA exists. That is not going to happen.

But, hey, we’re all wrestling fans here—random speculation and impossible scenarios make us tick. That is what keeps us watching, and fuels our debates. So, why not delve into a little bit of what if?

One of the people who made the Horsemen great was their mouthpiece, James J. Dillon. He was a true manager in every sense of the word.

He was professional in his tone and represented the other four with every word he spoke. Who better to fit this role than The Enforcer, Arn Anderson?

Arn is one of the best ever on the mic. He verbally dissected the competition with a surgeon’s precision. He painted a picture with every spot he was given, and by the end of his time speaking, you felt as though you had already seen the match.

He was also one of the most underrated workers to ever step through the ropes, practicing his craft at the highest level. Nothing loud, nothing flashy, just one of the best wrestlers on the card on any given night.

For these reasons, and the fact that he is presently on the WWE payroll, Arn Anderson would be the ideal choice to be the manager of The New Four Horsemen.

Taking Arn’s place as the Enforcer is a young man who at first glance may not be the obvious choice—Jack Swagger.

He’s got all the athletic ability and talent it takes to be one of the best. He’s a young, good looking kid with endless possibilities ahead of him.

Take away the goofy smile and the constant “All-American American” line, and when you look into his eyes, you can see an intensity that has yet to be tapped.

An angle like this one may do what, ironically, a World Title run could not do: give him some credibility.

Ole Anderson was the bruiser of the group. He was a tough, no-nonsense worker with a permanent scowl that oozed intimidation.

With a stiff, punishing moveset combined with true old-school wrestling ability, Ole had the complete package. For my money, no one in WWE fits this description better than William Regal.

Let’s face it, Regal has not had a decent push in a long time, and if anyone deserves more spotlight, it’s him.

He would be excellent in this role, not only in the ring and on the mic, but also as a veteran presence in the group.

Tully Blanchard was cool, cocky and arrogant. He was also very good in the ring.

Technically sound and with a swagger that was second only to Flair, Tully brought an air of sophistication and a sense of entitlement to his character and to the Horsemen. To me, this is Ted DiBiase.

Ted, like Swagger, is naturally gifted in the ring and has a lot of years ahead of him. So far, he has been given the task of following in his father’s gimmick.

Why not embellish that character and take it to the next level by joining The Four Horsemen?

There is not a lot more I can say about Ric Flair. I have stated before that I believe he is the greatest of all time.

With that being the case, I do not believe that there is anyone on the current WWE roster, with arguably the exception of Triple H, who could fill this role.

So instead, why not focus on the ring ability and potential to headline that we all see in a wrestler who just cannot seem to get his big break? I’m talking about Christian.

It seems that all fans agree Christian deserves “the push.” A lot of us thought it would come when he returned to the WWE from TNA. After all, he was given the World Title in that company, and had seemed to finally reach that main-event status.

But apart from an “ECW” Title run, Christian just has not been given anything.

Again, he is not Flair, but if given the opportunity to showcase his ability—along with the fact that he can work anyone in the locker room and have a good match—Christian would more than excel in this role.

Despite Flair’s on-air character, he considered the other three Horsemen to be on the same level as himself.

In this way, he was always able to keep the fame and spotlight in perspective, while at the same time being the super confident and outspoken leader of the group. Christian is the right man for the job.

There you have it, my New Four Horsemen. Highly debatable, perhaps, as several top names are not mentioned here, including Orton and Edge. But the whole point of this is to get some guys over, and those two have no problem with that.

The truth is, lightning does not strike the same place twice in this business. The groundbreaking popularity of The Horsemen was due to their chemistry and work ethic, factors which are not always present in the modern-day pro wrestling faction.

But, hey, I can dream, can’t I? After all, diamonds are forever. And so are The Four Horsemen.