Hardcore Holly

[7.0] "Bit of a kn0bhead in his day - proper nasty to the young pups (wonder what happened to him when he was a bairn) but he was a good, serviceable hand in the ring, flaws on show more when he was in a 1 v 1 / singles match, but give the man credit he did a shift when needed"

[4.0] "He was barely serviceable in the ring and didn't have much in a way of personality until he did the Hardcore gimmick. He's more famous for being a bully in training and in the ring than any matches."

[2.0] "Honestly was never great in the ring or on the mic, and I'm unsure how he even lasted as long as he did. He came off as a bitter person too who seemed full of himself, which is interesting considering he wasn't ever very successful. All of his matches blend together for me."

[6.0] "Hardcore Holly was a tough, no-nonsense competitor who brought intensity and grit to WWE's midcard for over a decade. Known for his stiff in-ring style and no-BS persona, he earned respect backstage and on-screen alike. He was a reliable hand, especially during the Hardcore division's heyday and with his tag team success. His longevity and adaptability (from Sparky Plugg to Hardcore icon) deserve credit, even if he was more workhorse than headline act"

[4.0] "He had a very long run as a lower card performer. He often acted as a gatekeeper for the newer talent to get past to their way up the ladder. I did take a point off his score because of him being such as ass that it effected not only his own run, but often worked against others who had to deal with him. His highlight was probably a part of the tag division alongside Crash."

"My Rating 8.4 Hardcore Holly was a good performer. He wasn't the most charismatic but his character was holding him back. Which isn't his fault. I recommend reading his book Hardcore Truth to get some good perspective. The only bad performances he had was during the Sparky Plug run."

[6.0] "In terms of longevity, Bob "Hardcore" Holly is one of the underrated greats. He was never a guy that was gonna draw you any money or win a singles title but as a guy on the card, you can't deny Holly his flowers. Holly was a decent in-ring wrestler, he was at his best when WWF had a hardcore division and he was able to carve out a niche in that area. He was also a competent tag team competitor, where he was able to form entertaining duos with his "cousins" Crash and Molly Holly. His biggest push, if you want to call it that, was in the run up to the 2004 Rumble where he was booked in a "Revenge for injury" storyline against then WWE Champion Brock Lesnar. The match lasted itself lasted all of about 6 minutes but up to that point, Holly was pushed as a legitimate threat to Lesnar. Theres alot to be said about Bob, his backstage reputation as a backstage enforcer/locker-room stooge is well documented, he assaulted Matt Cappotelli on live TV and theres a few other infamous instances with guys where Bob comes across as a bully. Theres also the infamous 2005 Royal Rumble where Holly, Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit beat the piss out of Daniel Puder, obviously as some sort of retaliation for Puder nearly breaking Kurt Angle's arm a few months prior. I wasn't there but I'm lead to believe they were probably instructed by Vince to teach Puder a lesson in order to take him down a peg or so. So obviously that stuffs apart of Bob's legacy but in ring, i'll say this that Bob was a tough, no nonsense competitor."

[5.0] "Honestly Bob Holly is an interesting case in pro wrestling. Was a fine technical wrestler with his brawling being pretty good as well. That being said his best run was probably in the Hardcore division with Crash Holly. He wasn't know for having technical masterpieces in the ring but was able to put on solid matches consistently. His longevity and some of the injuries he overcame is impressive. Well-earned reputation as a bully and did not understand his place in the business. Overall a fine wrestler with a lot of backstage issues."

[8.0] "Holly wasn't the flashiest or the best on promos or anything, but he was a great wrestler in his day. Honestly during his time there were very few who were on his level in my opinion for an actual technical value during the late 90s and early 2000s. His matchis with Lesnar and Benoit were some of the best free matches at the time. He was never gonna be world champion material, but he was still really good."

[8.0] "Nowhere near as bad as many would tell you he was. He would've fit in neatly among the AJPW/NOAH scenes in the 2000s with his hard hitting offense. Often maligned for being stiff to newcomers, but he was nowhere near a Bill DeMott so we can stop that narrative right there. He had one of the best TV matches of the Ruthless Aggression era, powering through a gruesome back bump that left him bloody vs. Rob Van Dam on an episode of WWECW. Hopefully someday he'll get his due and be viewed as more than a punchline for people to scoff at because they were told something that wasn't true."

[5.0] "He hung in their in the attitude era, had some good matches and a decent gimmick, a mid carder in that era is not bad , the stuff he did with his cousin crash was entertaining, his gimmicks before sucked, after the attitude era he didnt really do much, him saying he would hang with fighters in the ufc is fuckin delusional the guy thinks he tougher than he actually is"

"Bob was there to see alot of changes in the WWF. After initially starting off as a destined to fail Nascar racer gimmick as well as a terrible reboot of a great tag-team he finally found success in being "Hardcore". His matches were never technical marvels but I always found the hardcore bouts to be entertaining. Especially when they would take it outside of the arena. He was a solid lower mid-carder and seemed to be no real slouch, I don't think he was ever out of shape."

[6.0] "Who here does not love Thurman Sparky Plugg? Good lord, in a way it is a miracle he managed to have any sort of career coming out of the "everyone needs a job" period of WWF. He was a perfectly acceptable lower card guy and did some fun stuff with Crash back in the day."

[5.0] "Perfectly acceptable lower mid carder with an outstanding drop kick, but another guy who overvalued himself and treated new meat like shit. Basically another Bill Demott."

[7.0] "Outside of the ring the dude WAS a total arse. that being said he didn't murder anyone nor was a he a pedophile - so I can rewatch his material and feel mostly guilt free. One of the WWF/E's most "solid hands" for a good chunk of time. Had "jumps off the screen" chemistry with Al Snow regardless of the situation. Notably great tag worker and one of the last at that. Underrated mic guy with some good one liners scattered through the years. Great body and good on anyone who puts the time in to stay *that* consistent. Sometimes his personality outside of the ring bleeds into his on camera work and he broke his own neck when facing Brock Lesnar one fateful night, so there's a flaw I'll underscore. Also, that Thurman "Sparky" Plugg gimmick? Bwahahaha... that WWF had so many stupid ideas, Vince McMahon is a genius! There's alotta "very good" stuff over the years that I can usually just roll with, it all outweighs the "ugh" that *IS* there I assure you. 7 solid points."

[2.0] "While his wrestling ability was adequate at best, his attitude behind was notorious as a locker room bully, leaving everyone that had ever worked with him loathing him. He let his years of experience in the ring made him believe he was above everyone else, would talk down the greener guys, even physical at times. Few people have anything good to say about him, less even think fondly of him, and he himself is to blame for how his career ended."

[4.0] "Never interesting in any aspect. Solid in the ring but never capable of a great match, no charisma or mic skills. His one redeeming quality was in his Hardcore Holly days when he was on the gas big time, he did have a great body. But being a good wrestler takes more than that."

[7.0] "He wasn't that amazing in his early years, but he's one of the best examples of getting better with age. On his 40s he was on his peak which is amazing for a wrestler. He was in WWE for a long time and even had a last run as a tag team champion in his last year. He was more than fine with the microphone and he even got over when they let him talk. His best angle is probably the Hollys one, mainly thanks to Crash. He was also a nice enhancement talent in the 2000s"

[8.0] "A good worker who was always capable and had a good dropkick and finisher. He's not really known for his verbal skills but he doesn't need to be he's just an ass kicker and a very physical performer."

[6.0] "A dependably good worker who stuck by WWE for a long time despite his status as an undercard guy. A mainstay in its Attitude Era hardcore division, Bob to me always deserved at least one run with the IC or US title, for no other reason than as a reward for his years of work for the company."

[6.0] "Holly was a decent worker and capable midcard gatekeeper when used that way. He did not possess a lot of charisma and I can't remember a single promo he ever cut. I felt his best run was with Crash Holly, who had a lot of charisma and gave Bob more to work with. When he main evented a Royal Rumble against Lesnar, it was one of he weakest WWE PPV-era title fights I can remember. A capable hand but not much more."

[8.0] "A rating that is definitely too low, Bob Holly was one of the best hands in the WWF/WWE for nearly 15 years and proved himself adept at pretty much everything."

[8.0] "pretty damn good all-round in-ring talent, who is very underrated here. Had great selling, moveset, and physique. Pretty good on mic two as his duo with crash holly showed a lot of charisma, it's a shame he never got an ic title reign"

[5.0] "Holly took a while to catch on, but his Hardcore Holly gimmick wasn't bad. He did some good work for a while as that character. At the end of the day, Holly wasn't a supremely talented wrestler, nor was he especially charismatic. You could put him in against most guys and he'd be respectable, but he'd rarely be the best match on a card."

[7.0] "Hardcore Holly had his fair share of awful gimmicks, but he was pretty intesne when he got in the ring, and it was a blast to watch him at his best."

[9.0] "I love Hardcore Holly. He is a non-nonsense, tough as nails roughneck. His moves are snug and believable. The energy is consistently vicious and serious. The chops and dropkicks are some of the best the business has to offer. Could he be a son of a bitch? Sure, but that was also part of his job description it would seem. Was he bland on the mic? A little, but his talking was done between the ropes. Whether main eventing with Brock Lesnar or curtain jerking with Al Snow, Holly brought the intensity. Perhaps never was it more on display than in his matches with Rob Van Dam on WWE's rebranded ECW product. That show was not good, but their matches together certainly were. The one where Bob gashes his back open then works another fifteen minutes is etched into my mind forever. You'll never think of Sparkplug again after that one. Holly made his home predominantly in the tag division with grapplers like late "cousin" Crash Holly and a young rookie Cody Rhodes, as well as the hardcore division from which he derived his name. Perhaps deserving of more decoration, Holly may have to settle with being remembered for being a tough midcard mainstay. Here is hoping he has a few more Alabama Slams left in the chamber."

[10.0] "One of the best wrestlers to come out of Alabama. Double Plus tough. And way better on the mic than he gets credit for. This long time WWF/WWE vet was the best part of many WWF/WWE events for over 10 years."

[5.0] "Stiff as a plank and a charisma vacuum. Even in his best years you could at best get a decent match out of the guy, and even then it wouldn't exactly be anywhere close to actually memorable, usually having to rely on being stiff as shit in the ring to try and induce a response out of the crowd. Bob would get pushes now and then due to his impressive (read: steroid induced) physical stature, but none of them really turned out well for him and he failed to capitalise on chance after chance to get over as a proper contender. Had a few nice moves (his Alabama Slam and dropkick in particular were pretty great) but most of the time there wasn't really anything there to warrant him being beyond a low mid carder."

[7.0] "I think Bob Holly is a very underrated wrestler. He was never used properly in wwe and i think he could have belong in a upper midcard role. He was a legit tough guy and maybe he would have been more appreciated in Japan, where non flashy guy can make a career taking an giving stiff shot."

[7.0] "I never understood why Bob Holly was never a main event Star he had the look, the body and skills set (minus the mic work) but I loved Hardcore Holly (not Sparkplug)"

[5.0] "One of the most bog standard boring wrestlers with a bog standard boring look. Absolutely nothing unique about this guy."

[7.0] "He was that guy who would at times be a hit or miss. He was a great wrestler and worked very hard. Had very good punches and the Alabama Slam. Ouch! I used to hate him when I was younger. I don't now why but I did probably it was his angry looks. Unfortunately his gimmicks were horrible, such as the Sparky Plugg gimmick. The name Hardcore was weird. He won tag team belts with 1-2-3 Kid (X-Pac), Bart Gunn, Crash Holly and Cody Rhodes. When he started going hardcore he was a legend but hardcore matches were stupid. He had great matches with Stone Cold, Brock Lesnar, Al Snow, Billy Gunn, Chyna, and Rob Van Dam. He had a bad injury in ECW agaisnt RVD in 2006 but wow he was tough. I read his book Hardcore Truth very true and blunt. You like him or hate him he is Hardcore Holly."

[2.0] "As a worker, Bob Holly was fine if unremarkable. As a human being, Bob Holly was as utterly worthless as they come."

[6.0] "A solid veteran, certainly no one would dispute that he was as tough as nails. Not the best as a character or with a microphone but he was certainly solid in the ring."

[4.0] "Tough SOB with an old school mindset. My most vivid memory of his in ring career was in a random table match on WWECW where a piece of the table splintered off, split is back open and he finished the match with blood spilling out of his back. My next biggest memory was him sandbagging Brock Lesnar and Lesnar dropping him on his head in return. Stiff in the ring and an ass backstage."

[8.0] "Bob is very under appreciated as a worker. I always found his matches good, at least from his perspective. His moves were very hard-hitting, as he and many other attests to now in interviews. Every chop, every slam made me wince, and he was very believable as an old school "hardcore" wrestler, as in down & dirty NWA style, not talking about the weapons. The "hardcore division" really did not suit him and was a pretty dumb gimmick - it completely wasted his talents as a real worker. I think he could have been a lot better than he ended up being. I have to say Cornette's idea of him as a flamboyant "Hollywood" Bob Holly, someone comparable to Flair with bleached blonde hair, exquisite robes, and a great physique paired with his hard-hitting style could have worked great. He is so talented and his gimmick is so strong that so many fans think he is this big bully even today."

[4.0] "I was a fan of the Holly Cousins gimmick, but Hardcore/Bob was my least favorite of the three (Molly, for me, was #1, and Crash #2). He had a solid in-ring skillset, particularly his much-commented-upon dropkick, but not a lot else going for him and his in-ring work wasn't good enough to really distinguish him."

[6.0] "What a dropkick. Could've been a higher rating if they ever actually sent him to space and gave him a monkey."

[7.0] "Holly had a solid in-ring skill set, combining an old-school brawling sensibility with some deceptive agility, most notably shown in his excellent dropkick. He was also very tough, exhibited not only in his time in the WWF Hardcore division, but also in his match with RVD in which he continued wrestling after suffering a severe gash after going through a table. He had to suffer through his share of silly gimmicks, like wrestling racecar driver Thurman "Sparky" Plugg and an ill-advised revival of the Midnight Express, but also had some entertaining times, like his aforementioned Hardcore division run and especially his teaming with "cousins" Crash and Molly Holly. Though he carried a certain negative backstage reputation during his WWE days, in more recent years he has seemingly mellowed out and seems to be enjoying himself while continuing to put on good performances on the indy scene."

[7.0] "I actually like Hardcore Holly. His slap to welcoming Cody Rhodes to Raw in 2007 was memorable and so was him tearing his back open during a match with RVD back in 2006 and continuing the match, even with blood gushing out of his back. The guy worked with WWE for close to 15 years so he had to be doing something right."

[7.0] "Massively underrated talent. The height of his dropkicks were incredible, Hardcore Holly is what I call old school talent"

[7.0] "While not the greatest wrestler around, Bob Holly was still someone who I would consider to have been a pretty strong talent. He was never main event quality, even though he did flirt with it that one time, but he was definitely a solid midcarder who managed to carve himself a pretty good career in the WWE. While he was not someone I would jump out of my seat with anticipation when I knew he was in a match, I was still somewhat a fan of him. His early work in the beginning of the Hardcore Title against the likes of Al Snow and Road Dogg are some of my favourite moments of the Attitude Era and were the beginning of my love for that particular style of wrestling."

[3.0] "Spent most of his career SANDBAGGING his opponents. That's not hardcore, Bob, that's being a dick. Hardcore wrestlers also do blade jobs and go through tables, I've never seen Holly do either one of those."

[6.0] "Bob Holly is a fantastic athlete who has managed to keep himself in shape even into his 50s. He has a phenomenal dropkick, his moves are very well polished, he's tough as nails and when he applies strong style to his matches, he can be very entertaining. Outside of this, Bob is an average in-ring storyteller, has little to no charisma, and sometimes doesn't play well with others. If athleticism and move polish got wrestlers anywhere, Bob would have been a world champion, but he lacked everything else that would have gotten him far, including friends and likability."

[7.0] "Well... It seems to me most people on this site buy on WWE's booking a lot. I can't see how anyone who uses his in-ring performance as criteria would rate him so low. He's not the "entertaining" type but he can put on very good matches."

[8.0] "I don't think that he was ever too significant. He did have one of the most (and only) WWF Hardcore Title reigns, though I hardly think that that's a feat. Bob Holly has always been great at putting other wrestlers over, was outstanding as a jobber and workhouse, and was apparently an amazing backstage presence, by training with rookies, helping put the show together and being a generally good guy behind-the-scenes. Was and still is a decent draw for smaller indy promotions."

[8.0] "Good wrestler. Never great but usually decent. Especially in wwf hardcore matches. His match with RVD was probably his best and possiy the best of the WWE ECW."

[9.0] "Great wrestler, a guy that respects the wrestling business a lot."

[3.0] "A waste of roster space, really. He was there for so long, yet never cut an outstanding promo or put on a series of good matches."