The Greatest Heels in WWE History - No. 6

Quite often than not we find that the ‘bad guys’ are the ones that seem to have greater appeal than their adversary. From Hannibal Lecter to the Joker, villains have always been a complete fascination for many. Professional wrestling is no different and even here we deal with the good-guy vs bad-guy storyline and sometimes take it to the next level.

Top wrestlers like the Edge, Triple H and Vince McMahon have been the extremely convincing heels. But here is one man who was considered a very despicable heel that generated hatred like no other, he is considered the best speaker WWE has had over the years, who called himself ‘the wrestling GOD’ John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL).

“You can knock me down on my back but I will be back… John Bradshaw Layfield is here… and if you don’t like it, you can go straight to hell!”

JBL is one of the longest reigning WWE Champions in the history of the company, had anyone predicted this before 2004 people would have considered it rubbish. JBL was one of the most popular wrestlers during the early 2000s where he was paired along with Ron Simmons better known as Farooq as the Acolytes which was till then his most successful stint in WWE.

Before this JBL was a Justin ‘Hawk’ Bradshaw who hardly made above the lower mid card. He was then paired with Barry Windham where he was known as Blackjack ‘Bradshaw’. This was followed by his pairing with Farooq and this is where he really started his rise to the top.

The team of Farooq and Bradshaw was a great hit and fans loved to see them both together. It was in 2004 that WWE took a chance with a fan favourite team and tried to make them go separate ways. Farooq was fired and Bradshaw turned his back on his former best friend and came out as JBL. His first promo as JBL is considered one of the best heel turn promos of all time where he made his way to the ring in an improvised rodeo theme with a cow mooing in the background. The theme was an absolute hit as it managed to serve its purpose which was irritate people.