WWE's 10 Greatest Celebrity Wrestling Matches

A fine line exists between bringing in a celebrity to help publicize a wrestling event and turning it all into a joke. 

The image of David Arquette raising the WCW World Heavyweight Championship above his head causes many a wrestling fan to weep.

Fortunately there are examples when WWE has managed to put on some entertaining matches involving celebrities. The boxers, actors, football players or comedians involved with WWE can’t and shouldn't be made to perform a full-scale match. 

They are best used when they are booked more believably. 

You won't find any five-star matches here, but they'll be well-hyped and entertaining. 

Get your cameras ready and lower your expectations; here are the 10 best celebrity wrestling matches from WWE.

10. Trish Stratus, John Morrison and Snooki vs. LayCool and Dolph Ziggler

Don't get me wrong, there is plenty wrong with this match, but in the end it wasn't half bad.  That's about where one's expectations should lie when it comes to non-wrestlers getting involved. 

Let’s start with the bad.  This shouldn't have been at WrestleMania, especially near the end.  This would have been fine as a SmackDown match, but Vince McMahon loves his celebrities at WrestleMania.

It was also wasn't long enough for any drama to build.  Had you chosen to grab a snack, you might have missed the whole thing.

Lastly, there certainly wasn't enough Morrison and Ziggler involved.

On the positive side, it was cool to see Trish Stratus return and she showed she's still got it.  When Snooki was finally involved, she surprised everyone by performing a fine-looking handspring elbow.

Overall, the match brought a little extra buzz to WrestleMania and it's not competing with a ton of great celebrity matches.

9. Shaquille O'Neal vs. Big Show

While not an official match, this altercation certainly got the crowd keyed up.  Shaq and Big Show standing nose to nose was a big-time memorable moment.

First off, few men can match Big Show in size.  The visual of the two giants readying to fight was awesome on its own.

WCW's mistake when using Karl Malone and Dennis Rodman was asking too much of them.  After a crash course in wrestling, they were suddenly thrust in main events against the very best. 

WWE simply asked Shaq to grab Show by the neck, perform one shoulder block and look intimidating.  The moment stirred excitement over the episode of Raw without making it an embarrassment.

8. Gorilla Monsoon vs. Muhammad Ali

The next entry is again not an actual match, but celebrity involvement that raised the profile of wrestling.  Having one of the most famous athletes in the world step into a wrestling ring was certainly exciting.

In 1976, after Monsoon defeated Baron Mikel Scicluna in a squash match, he got into a confrontation with Ali.  Not much ended up happening, but the crowd went crazy as Ali took off his jacket and stepped through those ropes.

The event served as a precursor to Ali's match with Antonio Inoki in Japan and got people talking about wrestling who might not have otherwise.   

7. Drew Carey 2001 Royal Rumble

Initially the thought of Drew Carey participating in the Royal Rumble may give plenty of wrestling fans a nervous, nauseated feeling.

Carey seems too doughy and timid to justify his appearance.  Why not go with Joe Rogan here?

Had they asked him to perform a spinebuster or have him clothesline someone over the top rope, the whole thing would have stunk of ridiculousness.  WWE played it well though, having the now host of The Price is Right provide some comic relief and nothing else.

When Kane approached him, tossing the potential bribe money away and grabbed Carey by the throat, the moment created real apprehension.  Were we really going to see Kane chokeslam this guy?

The Royal Rumble match is a perfect time to toss in a celebrity as there are so many other guys involved.

6. Hulk Hogan and Brutus Beefcake vs. Randy Savage and Tom Lister (Steel Cage)

In 1989 this match served as a cross promotion for the Hulk Hogan movie, No Holds Barred.  The pay-per-view included the film and the match.    

Lister played Zeus in the movie and was asked to reprise his role in a steel cage.  Lister had not yet starred in Friday or The Fifth Element, so his celebrity was minor. 

This insertion of a mysterious outsider did create an interesting buzz and blurred the line between kayfabe and reality.

Lister did a decent job playing the monster heel. 

5. Mike Tyson and Chris Jericho vs. Triple H and Shawn Michaels

Not only is Tyson a guy who could conceivably hold his own in the ring, this match brought with it some old baggage which added some excellent drama.

As special enforcer at WrestleMania 14, Tyson punched out Michaels.

On a 2010 episode of Raw, Iron Mike teamed with Jericho to face DX.

Jericho, the Game and Michaels did most of the work here, as they should.  Tyson filled his role and put the exclamation point on the ending of the match by turning on Jericho and knocking him out.

4. Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Lawrence Taylor

Had this not been booked as a WrestleMania main event, fans would look back on it a lot more fondly.

Taylor's performance was admirable considering his lack of experience. 

LT proved again that if you are going to bring in a celebrity, it's far better if they’re an actual athlete.  The transition is far easier from Hall of Fame linebacker to wrestler than it is for say, Jay Leno.

Though the match was far too slowly paced, the underdog angle was played up well and featured some palpable tension.  LT was also one of the few celebrities willing to take a few bumps. 

3. WrestleMania 2 Battle Royal

The biggest event in pro wrestling was in its infancy.  Vince McMahon tried every trick he could to draw an audience.

He brought in several NFL players including William "Refrigerator" Perry to compete in a battle royal.

Had it been a strictly football player battle royal, it would have likely bombed.  Instead WWE had Bret Hart, Andre the Giant and the other real wrestlers do the heavy lifting while the NFL players brought in the mainstream media and help filled the seats.

The NFL guys performed decently and despite Neidhart's bizarre elimination, the match was your average non-Royal Rumble battle royal amplified by some NFL hype. 

2. Floyd Mayweather vs. Big Show

Pitting Mayweather against Big Show instead of someone closer to his stature was a bit of a stretch, but the buildup of this WrestleMania match had more than a few fans energized.

Fans wondered just how this would play out. 

The result was decently believable.  Mayweather needed a steel chair and a ton of help from his entourage to gain the upper hand. 

Had Money been willing to take at least a handful of bumps, this could have been even better. 

1. Mr. T and Hulk Hogan vs. Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff

This match lands the number one spot in large part because it helped launch WrestleMania and changed the pro wrestling landscape forever.

Mr. T was extremely hot at the time.  Being a former bodyguard and TV tough guy added to his credibility in the ring.

The star studded event also included Liberace at the ring bell and Muhammad Ali as a second referee.  When Hogan and Mr. T entered, the audience went into a rabid frenzy. 

The actual match was mostly chaotic and T's wrestling was pretty sloppy, but he wasn't overused.  The great buzz throughout and the star power involved combined for a highly memorable event.