Heidenreich

[0.0] "He couldn't wrestle, cut a promo, run the ropes or bump properly. I legitimately question if he really was trained by any of the people listed here. Those are all very competent workers and I doubt they'd do such a poor job training someone. Now, it's also possible that some people don't have the aptitude for wrestling. I saw it myself in training. Some of them really tried hard and a few didn't quit until it was made crystal clear they weren't going to go further but I respected them. Those wash outs were still better than Heidenreich."

"(4/10) He made up for his severe ring deficiencies with his notable character work, & it worked, so that counts for something. If Vince had kept him around, could he have gotten better in ring? Viewings of any of his matches will definitely prove, probably not. Very much a guilty pleasure guy. I'm a sucker for the Heidenreich Chant."

[0.0] "When you see him, it's time to grab your remote or mouse or whatever and hit FAST FORWARD. Now, you COULD ignore this warning and watch but you will regret every moment you could have saved on any other wrestler on any show he is on. Life is too short, fast forward through John Heidenreich."

[1.0] "I was 100% sure I already rated him eons ago, but here's what he deserves. Incapable of selling, incapable of getting a chokeslam from Taker, incapable of acting, incapable of doing more than 2 moves per match, incapable of being a Road Warrior fill-in, incapable of...being a wrestler. At least his botches were not horrible or dangerous for others, so he can stay in the lowest passable rating. A 2. Edit 2025: apparently he WAS dangerous for others. Thanks Stevie Richards. You made me go and lower Jon's rating even more""

[2.0] "Boring gimmick not good in the ring his only accomplishments were his promo segment with Michael Cole backstage and his encounter with snitsky though snitsky is better than him in terms of being a big powerhouse wrestler also snitsky lasted longer in the company than him and that is why hes only getting 2 points 1 for his promo segment with michael cole and the other for running into snitsky"

[3.0] "A stiff wrestler who was notoriously bad in the ring. It's a mystery why this guy was pushed as much as he was when he has no charisma, he can't wrestle safely and he can't draw for the life of himself. He should have been sent into training for longer and then pushed according to his skill level as a heel, providing of course that he could get over enough to be in that position. He didn't last very long in WWE because he just sucked."

[2.0] "Big and jacked up dude who couldn't work a lick is the best thing you can say about John Heidenreich. They tried every trick in the book to get something out of this guy, from working with Paul Heyman and having matches with The Undertaker to being apart of the Legion of Doom, nothing worked. I won't say he didn't have potential because he did just based on his size but he was awkward and boring whenever he stepped into the ring to work a match."

[2.0] "Another big body in the company. Kinda sloppy and involved in some awkward story lines to say the least. His last gimmick in the WWE was being a member of a crappy Legion Of Doom with Animal."

[2.0] "Not a good wrestler by any means. Moved awkwardly in the ring, basic power moveset at best, didn't protect his opponents, etc. Was also very bad on the mic."

[3.0] "Was not the worst in the ring but could not get a good gimmick. Not good on the mic either. Had some decent comedy moments but his solo run was underwhelming, and his tag run with Animal just did not work."

[1.0] "Awful wrestler. His move is very awkward. His mic is terrible. Even Paul Heyman can't help him to look good. I don't understand why WWE hire him at that time."

[4.0] "A big guy who made into a comedy act by reciting poetry and then later being made as Animal's tag team partner in a poorly resurrected incarnation of the Legion of Doom. He had a lot of potential and had his best run whilst feuding with the Undertaker. But before and after, he was just another guy on the card. Had he been booked properly; he could've had at least an Intercontinental or United States title run."

[3.0] "Heidenreich was amusing but he had little going for him other than a decent look. He was pushed quite hard for a while there with a lengthy feud with The Undertaker and consistently failed to impress throughout. His work with Animal was watchable but he always felt an odd fit for the LOD revival act gimmick."

[1.0] "Aside from his run with Heyman, which was carried by Heyman, he was an absolute waste of TV time. Trying to use the Road Warriors to get him over was laughable. He was unsafe, sloppy, and plodding. I'm honestly shocked he lasted as long as he did, and they tried as hard as they did to force people to like him."

[4.0] "I don't necessarily have a problem with Heidenreich's work, I actually felt he had potential when he was with Paul Heyman and could be compared to Sycho Sid in terms of character work. But, he wasn't necessarily the greatest by any means. His casket match against The Undertaker was a mess and the Michael Cole segment (although iconic) was flat out strange. If he had more training and if he was younger during his run, he probably could've been better, but we'll never truly know."

[4.0] "An okay powerhouse with a tremendous build and interesting character quirks, but dear lord, that SmackDown angle was mortifying. Neither my childhood nor poor, sweet Michael Cole were ever the same again. Beyond that, I maintain that his time with Snitsky is superior to his time carrying gold with Road Warrior Animal. Snitsky liked his poems. As for Heidenreich, in his own words, "I like what you do to babies. " I fear for my safety."

[2.0] "He had the look and gimmick to go places and the wwe tried to give him a push with taker and road warrior hawk. He? s one of those guys I wonder what happened to but am to lazy to google it. He had a shot but did not capitalize."

[1.0] "Heidenreich was terrible in ring worker , he had terrible mic skills with some terrible gimmicks. They tried to get him over but it never worked."

[3.0] "Started wrestling too late. Had the size and charisma but his moves weren't the greatest. His gimmick was weird. He feuded with he Undertaker. Being with Road Warrior Animal was bad."

[3.0] "Subpar wrestler with a weird and kind of bad gimmick. Sometimes I still wonder what the hell they were thinking with this."

[3.0] "I liked his look when I first saw him, but I think a Roomba might have more skill in the ring than Heidenreich ever had."

[3.0] "Heidenreich wasn't the worst big man in the world, he was better than Nathan Jones. Didn't mind his LOD stuff as much as most people, but that is about it."

[4.0] "I remember I sorta liked Heidenreich growing up and him reciting poetry was an interesting enough gimmick but, after rewatching matches of him again on YouTube, he really wasn't all that good. He lost his home while on the road in 2005 while Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, which I feel sorry for but, he was just another mediocre worker at best."

[2.0] "Mostly notable as WWE Tag Team Champion with Road Warrior Animal in an LOD tribute run that no one really asked for. Didn't have a whole lot of in-ring skill, nor the presence of other big men to make up for it. At least the poetry gimmick was kind of fun."

[2.0] "He had two career highlights: The inappropriate promo with Cole, and his chance encounter with Snitsky. Other than that, he was a bore, had a bad look, no in-ring talent and poor mic skills. Glad they cooled on him."

[3.0] "Other than the ability to make a kid cry at a show while playing a heel, and despite having the great Paul Heyman as his manager and legendary tag team wrestler Road Warrior Animal by his side in one title run, Heidenreich was poor in the ring, his character was one dimensional (Grrr, I'm big, angry and crazy... Like Sid Vicious, minus the charisma, look and matches that focus on my strengths), his moves were everything you would expect from a big sloppy powerhouse (same old stuff). Considering he was in WWE during a time when numerous other tall generic powerhouses were in the company, He didn't stand out on his own. Not even the Undertaker could carry him into a memorable match, and only really got noticed when he stood beside Road Warrior Animal and said "I'm the other guy". Despite the tribute to the Legion Of Doom, in-ring wise, Heidenreich wasn't good enough to tie Hawk's boots, heck, they could have asked Hawk's ex-partner, Kensuke Sasaki, to come to WWE for a few months, have animal do the talking, work some matches, win the titles, lose them, and then go back to Japan. At least the fans would have been given much better quality matches. I'm giving him a 3, because there are worse wrestlers out there that are his size and working in his style. He was boring, but he didn't constantly botch in his matches."