Physique isn’t everything. Dusty Rhodes was a rotund megastar, underscoring that no oxymoron exists there. MJF was probably more over before he got super-jacked; he was one of AEW’s original needle-movers, and is hardly tall.
There are a million examples of wrestlers - Heidenreich, Mason Ryan and Nathan Jones, to name just three - who proved that size and definition does not equal talent. In fact, sometimes cultivating a “great” physique can actually work against a pro wrestler. Randy Savage proved that bigger isn’t better; he was a bulging muscle monster in WCW in 1999, but could barely move, for which he was probably compensating.
To use a more recent example, the brilliant Cameron Grimes got shredded in preparation for his main roster run, which on the surface appeared to be a sensible idea, but he lost his distinct charm as a comedic wrestler who was a bit over his head. Similarly, were Dominik Mysterio to ever get cut and dry, he’d lose his appeal as a loathsome midcard heel stooge. Still, to play a certain role in WWE, it helps if you possess the musculature that the promotion has always favoured or actively encouraged at the top of the card.
.. 10.
GUNTHER GUNTHER used to be...
less defined than he is now. It very much worked for him; GUNTHER was the super-indie André the Giant, a spectacle, drawing card, an invincible killer who stalked the European circuit and left a trail of bodies in his wake. His lack of a mainstream look was crucial in establishing a .