Posted September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481642 Who had the greatest "well past their prime" career outside of Funk and Flair? I think Bockwinkel would be in the conversation. Who else? People talk about Thesz and Edouard Carpentier, but were they any good at that age? To give some dates for when key people were 45: Thesz in 1961 Carpentier in 1971 Verne Gagne in 1971 Fritz von Erich in 1974 Bockwinkel in 1979 Sammartino in 1980 Baba in 1983 Inoki in 1988 Hansen in 1994 Tenryu in 1995 Savage in 1997 Hogan in 1998 The number of people who actually wrestled past 45 in major promotions is actually quite small. A lot of guys were younger than you might think when they retired. To give one example, Harley Race was 45 in 1988! Arn Anderson was only 45 in 2003! Wrestlers tend to look older than they are.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481648 There are tons of good ones. Black terry was the best wrestler in the world last year. Navarro a strong candidate the year before. How old is Casas?
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481649 Bockwinkel was probably a better worked at 45 than he was at 30. He was having consistently good matches well into his 50s.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481650 I think I'd put Tenryu in his fifties over Flair in his forties.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481651 Yeah, I'm not even sure Flair should be excluded on the premise that he's just automatically better than anyone else we can think of. Ric Flair 1994-present has some solid stuff, some good stuff and some great interviews, but in the ring, he's not among the best old guys, is he?
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481652 Yeah, I'm not even sure Flair should be excluded on the premise that he's just automatically better than anyone else we can think of. Ric Flair 1994-present has some solid stuff, some good stuff and some great interviews, but in the ring, he's not among the best old guys, is he? I can't think of any great match Flair had past 1992. Tenryu in his 50's smokes most of these guys.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481653 Bockwinkel was probably a better worked at 45 than he was at 30. He was having consistently good matches well into his 50s. Bock is my immediate first choice as well. Consider that his 60-minute draw with Curt Hennig in Vegas happened when he was 52. Aside from that, the sheer number of quality matches and opponents he had defending the AWA title for the most part from 79 through 87 is pretty astounding. Verne had his epic series against Robinson in 1974, plus a ton of good matches against Nick Bockwinkel between 73 and 81. He didn't wrestle as often as Nick, and I don't know how much consideration volume of matches should be given here.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481654 Black Terry instantly comes to mind. Tenryu and Navarro were still pretty great at that age (Navarro still is). Fujiwara was over 45 when he had that Murdoch match in '96, wasn't he? And then a bunch of good stuff after that.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481655 Anyone know what year Billy Robinson crossed the 45 year-old-barrier?
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481656 Jerry Lawler's name should be in the mix. Blue Panther is another Lucha guy who is pretty good.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481662 Gran Hamada. Fujiwara turned 45 in 1994 and was still pretty damn great.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481666 Panther is still a great worker. Bock was tremendous post 45. Makes you wish more of his earlier stuff was available. You could make a case that close to half of the top 30 guys in the world this year are 45 or older.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481670 Anyone know what year Billy Robinson crossed the 45 year-old-barrier? 1984.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481684 I feel like Tracy Smothers has to be having amazing matches right now, but I'm just not fortunate enough to see them.
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481693 Finlay looked like the best in the world in his match with Callihan. Lawler was already mentioned and is my second choice after Finlay... How about Dundee?
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481694 Dundee has been great this year. 5 matches on tape and he has been strong in all of them. Hansen was 44 in 93, so he is on the cusp of being the answer.
September 2, 201114 yr Author comment_5481703 Why are people saying Lawler? He was 45 in 1994. What are the great Lawler matches 94-present?
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481706 What are the bad Lawler matches from that time frame? In the last 12 months alone Lawler has had several very good matches. I will drop a laundry list in here later if need be, but 45+ Lawler decimates 45+ Flair
September 2, 201114 yr comment_5481711 Finlay looked like the best in the world in his match with Callihan. He was good against Steen a few weeks ago in PWG. John
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