Is The Rock the Greatest "Wrestler" or "Sports Entertainer" in WWE History?

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. That name alone gets people excited because he is considered one of the best of all time, but the best what?

There is no denying the magnetic appeal of The Great One, he has done it all and he has done it well. When you look at any top 10 list of WWE superstars, you can be sure he will be near the top.

The problem with this is that no one is ever really saying what he is the best at. Is he the best technical wrestler or the best sports entertainer?

While some people may not think they are different terms, they are in fact vastly different. Allow me to give you some examples.

Shelton Benjamin, amazing wrestler, mediocre sports entertainer. While Benjamin could make any match with someone look great, he was never the best at delivering promos or interviews.

Hulk Hogan, amazing sports entertainer, mediocre wrestler. When compared to the technical great like Flair, Michaels and Guerrero, Hogan does not really match up. He could make a match interesting and fun, but a 60-minute match of mat wrestling with this guy would have been hair-pulling hell.

The Rock is someone who definitely fits into both categories as a great performer, but when it comes down to it, he was a better sports entertainer than he was a wrestler.

When compared to who he was up against in his time, Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero could wrestle circles around Rocky.

It is probably a good thing that The Rock never faced Shawn Michaels one on one because if he had, we may have been exposed to his weaknesses.

This is not to say Rocky cannot wrestle at all. He had some amazing matches in his time, but I do not think they were as great technically as they were aesthetically, if that makes any sense at all.

I am not trying to put The Rock down because I will acknowledge that there are few who will stand the test of time against him, but I am saying he is not the best wrestler—just the best sports entertainer.

Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Dolph Ziggler and Alberto Del Rio are all more technically sound wrestlers, but none of them can make a crowd get on their feet the way Rocky can. One catch phrase and the crowd goes nuts.

So in the end, when we look at who the greatest of all time are, we have to take into account which category they fall into. The Rock will always be one of, if not the, best sports entertainers who ever walked into a ring, but in the world of technical wrestling he does not even crack the top 10.

What do you think? Is The Rock a great wrestler or sports entertainer?

I would also like to say that using the term "sports entertainer" has rotted part of my soul away, but for this article there was no better way to put it.

Please take a moment and read my articles chronicling CM Punk and Daniel Bryan's rise from the Indys to the Majors of wrestling.

WWE: CM Punk & Daniel Bryan's Road from the Indies to WWE World Champions - CM Punk

WWE: CM Punk & Daniel Bryan's Road from the Indies to WWE World Champions Part 2  - Daniel Bryan

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