James Stewart And Mike ‘Sarge’ Riley Reveal Their Favorite WWE Promos
The Sports Hub’s resident pro wrestling experts, Felger & Mazz producer James Stewart and frequent fill-in host Mike “Sarge” Riley, have revealed their favorite promos in WWE history. The two will play a major role in Toucher & Rich’s upcoming Krush The Krew Contest, where the finalists will visit the studio to square off with Sarge in some wrestling trivia.
But the first step, of course, is to deliver your best promo in 60 seconds or less with the hashtag #KrushTheKrewContest. So if you need some inspiration, you can turn to some of J-Stew and Sarge’s top picks.
First up are James Stewart’s favorite promos of all time, headlined by Jake “The Snake” Roberts at Wrestlemania VI. Roberts’ distinctive dark, cerebral promos hit a peak when he cut one against the “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase.
Stewart says: “It was one of the great promos of all time because it tied together all of the key points in his long feud with ‘The Million Dollar Man’. The tone, the calm direct nature that ramped up to the key reasons why they were fighting on that night.”
And on the other end of the spectrum is this famous Hulk Hogan promo, not from Wrestlemania but from after a match on Saturday Night Main Event when he lost the WWF Championship to Andre The Giant in controversial fashion.
Stewart says: “Hulk Hogan was the ultimate hype machine when I was growing up. His energetic, over-the-top cartoon style of promo is my favorite of all time and it still works to this day. Now, with more interactive crowds in wrestling, most fans could do all of the big lines that Hulk Hogan has delivered over the years.
“Whatcha gonna do, when Hulk Hogan, the largest arms in the world and the millions of Hulkamaniacs run wild, on YOU!!!”
As for Sarge, he’s got some classic promos of his own to talk about. His personal favorite is “Macho Man” Randy Savage’s unforgettable “cream of the crop” promo from two months after Wrestlemania III, where he put on one of the WWE’s greatest all-time matches.
Sarge says: “Hulk Hogan was No. 1. The Macho Man was 1A for years, but I still think Savage was better on the microphone. Not long after his Wrestlemania III match with Ricky Steamboat (regarded by many as the best match ever), the Macho Man cut a memorable promo everyone still talks about today. We lost him way too soon.”
And for a slightly more modern example, we have The Rock. Of course, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has long since become one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. But before that, he cut his teeth as one of the most entertaining pro wrestlers of all-time and one of the top stars of the “Attitude” era in the late-90s. The below promo perfectly encapsulates his unparalleled ability to have the entire crowd in the palm of his hand.
Sarge says: “I put The Rock and ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin as the attitude era rankings of Hogan/Savage being at the top. The Rock was a great in-ring performer, but maybe the best of all time on the microphone. An easy cheap pop saying the name of the city, and then getting the crowd to interact and listen to every word he said with some comedy. Pure brilliance by the ‘People’s Champ’ on this one going after Billy Gunn.”
Honorable mention: You’ve got “Stone Cold” Steve Austin giving birth to Austin 3:16, Hulk Hogan turning heel and forming the nWo, and Ric Flair doing Ric Flair things after winning the 1992 Royal Rumble.
Anyway, be sure to tune in on Toucher & Rich this week to hear their favorite promos from those submitted for the Krush The Krew Contest. Perhaps they’ll draw some influence from these classics.
And if they want to be up to snuff, they’ll have to match J-Stew here:
“Beat @Sarge985 if you can, survive, if he lets you!”#KrushTheKrewContest pic.twitter.com/6krG2SeQ2v
— James Stewart ☝️ (@IAmJamesStewart) March 6, 2018
— By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at [email protected].
