Paul Orndorff

[10.0] "A true worker, and a true professional. Paul Orndorff was great because he embodied credibility in everything he did, carrying himself like a legitimate threat the moment he walked to the ring. He had an outstanding look for his era, with a powerful, athletic build that made his offense feel believable and his presence feel important, whether he was a hero or a villain. Orndorff was a master of intensity, able to project controlled aggression through simple expressions and body language, which made his promos feel real and emotionally grounded rather than overblown. In the ring, he was smooth, strong, and precise, excelling at pacing and selling in a way that elevated his opponents and made big moments land harder. He also understood character nuance, particularly as a heel, where his arrogance and simmering anger felt authentic rather than cartoonish, helping set the standard for the kind of grounded, serious antagonist that became so effective in 1980s wrestling."

[7.0] "Orndorff should have been IC champion at some point between 1984 and 1987. Had one of the hottest feuds of the 80's with Hogan and unfortunately, he messed up his arm and was making such bank touring with Hogan that he wouldn't take time off to heal so his arm atrophied and if you look closely, one arm is smaller than the other. Rick Rude came on the scene and just made Orndorff look old fashion. They feuded, trading some wins and losses then Orndorff left. Had some tag team success in WCW before hanging it up and one comeback match in 99 almost left him paralyzed from a freak bump when he did his pile driver. Dude deserved some big single titles runs but was always just a guy in the rogue gallery."

[8.0] "Great wrestler. One of the best of his era. A great heel but also could be a very good babyface. Paul brought instant credibility to everything he did and wrestled at a remarkable pace. Watch him pre-WWF especially in Georgia and you can see how special he was. He seemingly had it all to be a World Champion and likely would have excelled in the role. Even his later career work post-injury is still very strong and he always found a way to be interesting. Orndorff's the type of wrestler that gets better the more you rewatch him."

[7.0] "Paul is a tough one to rate for me. In his WWF run at times, he looked like he was the top babyface behind Hogan and his heel work was great throughout his entire career. That being said, I have never seen him cut a serious promo. He has tried, don't get me wrong, but whenever it came time to be a top level threat, he would just come across unintentionally funny. He also never had a classic match, he had a lot of good matches but not that one you can point to as his greatest. It's a real shame as I really wanted to rate Orndorff higher but these things just stop me going any higher."

[8.0] "Orndorff had a great look for pro wrestling especially for his time period. He was talented in the ring and on the mic and has enough charisma to make a crowd care. Was booked well in WWE but was never given any championships. In WCW he and Roma were a pretty good team but otherwise the run was unremarkable. Shame injuries effected the man so much later in his life."

[9.0] "Paul Orndorff will forever go down as an unsung legend of the classic Golden Era. Never fully got the credit he rightfully deserve for being one of the MVP of the late 80s. He got the look, got the physique, absolutely the talent, and he also had one of if not the best Piledriver in the entire business. Mr. Wonderful, wonderful indeed."

[10.0] "The older I get, the more I appreciate Mr. Wonderful. Paul Orndorff was always a very intense and explosive worker, adding an element of viciousness to practically every maneuver and movement. Paul Orndorff had a career full of highlights, more believability than most and chemistry with plenty. He had THE BEST Piledriver in the history of the business (Scott Casey is up there & some others have good ones - but Paul is #1 with ease) and let me explain to you his missed dropkick: When most wrestlers miss a dropkick via their opponent stopping short (usually by holding the ring ropes) they will do this weird looking mid air back bump that they ONLY EVER DO when missing a dropkick-looking awkward & foolish in the process because for every other dropkick, they will rotate their whole body mid air. Paul Orndorff would always do a full rotation missed dropkick bump landing face first, adding an element of realism most forsake. His WWF career was unfortunately bogged down by inexplicable face turns and a career altering injury to his right arm, but he's still a joy to watch. His tenure in WCW IS GROSSLY UNDERAPPRECIATED. Orndorff helped elevate the company and had a bit of a resurgence there in the form his team with Paul Roma as "Pretty Wonderful", one of my all time favorite tag teams! Every match of his is recommended (eh except probably that 6 man tag match with El Gigante and Junkyard Dog) because he always gave his all. Despite his career lows (it ended on some very poor notes) and the fact that the arm injury severely compromised his work, his highs keep him at a 9.5. It might haunt me for the rest of my days that i never got to thank him personally for that "proper missed dropkick bump almost no one except Paul Orndorff did" but, here on cagematch the acknowledgement will live for others to take note of. Rest in peace and thank you Mr. Wonderful."

[7.0] "Was good all rounder. In 1986 was good as basically the heel version of Hulk Hogan and their feud did goid business. After leaving WWF his career just floundered."

[8.0] "Was a excellent wrestler and heel in his heyday, and was one of the main draws against Hogan and other faces: much like Flair, people would gladly pay to see him get his butt beat. He was a pretty solid in ring as well, through you really wouldn't tell considering being a heel restricted what he could do. Solid on promos, and his gimmick, through overused even in 80's, worked pretty well with him. His later stuff is a lot worse in quality, but you can't really blame the guy considering his muscle atrophy made it a lot harder to establish a proper physique and work at a good pace. Wonky booking in WCW also didn't help matters."

[7.0] "He was a very good heel, great at getting heat out of a crowd, always entertaining and he could have a good match. His promos were a bit on the basic side but were effective and straight to the point: hate me, pay good money to see me beaten. However by 1985 it was obvious his body was worn out and all attempts to turn him into a babyface flopped: Orndorff was just a natural heel and should have always been booked as such."

[8.0] "Never really interested me until now. I watched him on Youtube and is exciting to watch. He was great in his early days in Florida and the Mid-South. Great as a heel. He was huge in the WWF and his feuds with Hulk Hogan were great. When he was babyface his career died down. In WCW he was very different and was not that great."

[7.0] "I was initially not a fan of this guy. He never stood out to me when I grew up and I must have actually forgotten about him until years later when I started rewatching all of the supercards and pay-per-views. Over time he grew on me but he's never become a favorite of mine."

[9.0] "Despite the fact that he is rarely mentioned by WWE today, in fact Orndorff was one of Hogan's most effective and best drawing opponents. Highly skilled and energetic in the ring, he was one of the best wrestlers of the Rock 'n' Wrestling era of WWF, and continued to put on great performances well into the 90s."

[4.0] "I never found Orndorff someone I cared to watch in the ring. He always seemed to me to be that generic muscle bound guy who had the look but not much more. Maybe I am just too critical on his skills but he was a preliminary wrestler in a main event guy's body."

[10.0] "As pretty as a heel should be. There is a reason there called a babyfaces. If I was 400lbs and Orndorff beat me up in his shower shoes. I would not be ashamed. Him with his mirror in WCW at the end of his career was classic."

[9.0] "Orndorff could have wrestled in any era. He had a great physique and played the narcist gimmick as well as anyone. His pile driver was a believable finish. Paul was never going to hold gold in wwe when hogan was in his run... then paul hurt his neck and had to step away from ring. When he retuned to wcw he has lost some of his look and ability in the ring. I feel he is being under rated here by those who only saw the last 5-6 years of his career."