Macho Man Randy Savage is #12 in the Top 50 Wrestlers of All Time

His mixed martial-arts career may very well have overshadowed his stint in WWE, but in the early 2000s, Brock Lesnar more than lived up to his nickname of "The Next Big Thing." With his unimpeachable amateur wrestling expertise and mad-genius Paul Heyman at his side, Lesnar was able to wrap his brain around professional wrestling remarkably quickly, becoming the youngest WWE Champion in history at the age of 25.

With his hulking frame, instantly recognizable look and wealth of charisma, Dave Batista was made for WWE. Though he began his career as just another generic heater, first with Reverend D-Von and more memorably with Evolution, Batista soon came into his own as a fan-favorite competitor and permanent fixture in WWE's World Title picture. The wrestler went out on a high note in 2010 after doing some of the best work of his career as a petulant, yet vicious, heel.

Hulk Hogan was so huge during the 1980s that it's easy to overlook other massive stars of the era like Sgt. Slaughter. After an effective run as a heel, Sarge really came into his own as a patriotic face, feuding with the hated Iron Sheik. Though he spent the late 1980s away from WWE, wrestling for the AWA and being immortalized with his very own G.I. Joe character, Slaughter returned in the early 1990s to portray an Iraqi sympathizer and become one of WWE's most reviled villains.

Like many wrestlers of his day, Lex Luger was a refugee from the world of professional football. But once he arrived in the NWA with his shredded muscles and eagerness to learn, it was clear that professional wrestling was where Luger belonged. With his blonde hair, impeccable physique and solid in-ring abilities, Luger had memorable runs at the top of both WCW and WWE, where he bodyslammed the enormous Yokozuna and went on the nation-wide "Lex Express" tour.