Everyone has their opinion on the greatest wrestling/wrestling character of all time. I am here today to tell you that if your opinion is anyone other than the legendary William Regal, you are just flat-out wrong.
The rumor mill is hotting up on Billy Reags moving back to the WWE in short order, a rumor only pushed further after Regal was taken out with the DREADED BRASS KNUCKS by MJF on AEW Dynamite last night. It was the kind of cheap heelish attack that Regal would have been proud of, and – if we are to believe those rumors – then it might be the last we have seen of Regal on AEW TV.
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William Regal, the GOAT
I will admit to being a little biased here. As an Englishman – and a Northern Englishman at that – Regal is my people. Sure, I didn’t grow up bare-knuckle fighting in the seaside town of Blackpool, but I know the area, and I know that Regal sounds like I do. Sometimes that is enough.
We have had other wrestlers step up in the past. Wade Barrett looked like he was on his way to becoming the first English WWE Champion before John Cena torpedoed his momentum as the leader of The Nexus. The British Bulldogs were a fantastic tag act, and while Davy Boy Smith was popular as a solo star, he was always the second fiddle to a Hart of some kind during the majority of his career.
Regal is different.
Substance abuse issues he has openly spoken about and confronted stopped him from winning the top belt in WWE. Those issues would have ended the career of many men, but Regal fought back to become a mid-card hand that the bosses trusted.
While he is famous for giving Goldberg a workout that showed how green the monster was in the ring, that one match shows just how good Regal is. It is hard to look unique as a wrestler today, but it was even more difficult 20 years ago when anything against the WWE or WCW styles (heavyweight or cruiserweight) was immediately taken off TV.
Regal, however, managed to get over. Fans could see how technically solid he was and how everything he did looked like it hurt in an era when that wasn’t yet the style. His legacy is training the likes of Bryan Danielson, showing them that you don’t have to be a giant to succeed as long as what you do catches the eye.
I hope Regal returns to WWE in an important role onscreen and backstage. His ability to blend comedy – think his friendship/feuds with Tajiri and Vladimir Kozlov – might be the best in the history of the business. His comedic timing is off-the-charts good, while when he wants to be serious, the man is terrifying.
The good news for fans is that the world of Triple H’s WWE seems perfect for Regal. The two have a noted friendship and history, and it was a Vince McMahon decision to can Regal in January when his work on NXT – and his yelling of WARGAMES – was top tier.
Whatever Regal does next will be great, just because it always is.
Always remember folks. Pro Wrestling is Real.