Who is the better technical wrestler: Dean Malenko or Chris Benoit?

Malenko

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by Wayne K. Wilkins

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Attempting to compare two of the greatest technical wrestlers to ever set foot in the squared circle is without a doubt one of the hardest things one could ever do. Dean Malenko has been given nicknames such as 'The Iceman' due to his no-gimmick-needed, to the point wrestling style, as well as 'The Man of 1,000 Holds' the name originally given to The Dynamite Kid Tom Billington, due to the vast array of submission maneuvers both men used in their matches. Chris Benoit however has been given nicknames such as 'The Canadian Crippler' in reference to his match in ECW against Sabu when Benoit hit a move and broke Sabu's neck, and 'The Rabid Wolverine' as with Malenko, in reference to his no-gimmicks-needed, to the point, smash mouth wrestling style.

Two very good friends with two very similar styles in the ring, but the one question that comes from that in the eyes of many fans is who was the better Technical Wrestler of the two?

Dean Malenko - Dean Malenko was very well known for his small size yet his eyes were as cold as ice. One simple stare from "The Iceman" was enough to send chills through your spine. Dean Malenko was not a man who needed any gimmicks; in fact, he worked his ENTIRE career without one. Dean Malenko was pure wrestling in its true form, the living image. Having growing up in the business alongside his brother Joe, they both idolized their father, the legendary Boris Malenko, and therefore set out on their own journey to become professional wrestlers. Joe stayed primarily on the independent scene and then retired, but Dean's career continued. He started off his mainstream career in the Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion alongside his good friends Dean Malenko and Eddie Guerrero, whom he had met on the road upon his arrival to ECW. The three became inseparable however, and they quickly became best friends backstage, but in the ring, the competition between them was fierce. The three men possessed immense technical prowess which made for an amazing feud between Malenko and Guerrero over the ECW television championship, he also engaged in matches with Benoit also in what were some of the greatest matches in the history of ECW.

After receiving a call from World Championship Wrestling, Dean Malenko made the transition from bingo hall to gigantic arenas as a wrestler in the WCW Cruiserweight division. Some of his feature matches in the division are against the likes of Lucha Libre superstars, Rey Misterio Jr. and Psicosis. He held the Cruiserweight championship numerous times and was beginning to be labeled as the pioneer, the MVP of the cruiserweight division. However, the politics in the WCW were more fierce than the competition, and it was at this point where the Cruiserweight division was classed as a 'jobber' division so to speak, putting on phenomenal show opener matches on both television and pay per view to captivate the audience, but rarely did a cruiserweight star get to the main event slot in WCW, and even rarer did one get past midcard status.

Dean Malenko went on to join the new incarnation of The Four Horsemen along with his best friend Chris Benoit, Ric Flair and Arn Anderson in what my opinion was the best ever career move in WCW for both Benoit and Malenko. Both men were truly fitting for the original incarnation of what the Horsemen stood for. No-gimmick-needed Heels with one goal, to dominate the world of professional wrestling and take out every so called hero that attempts to stop them, to travel the globe and capture every single piece of Gold possible, and to put on some of the most spectacular wrestling masterpieces in wrestling history. Who better for the job than Malenko and Benoit? Two of the most gifted, cold-faced, black-hearted professional athletes in the world at the time, as well as two of the most technically sound.

After The Horsemen angle sank due to politics, Malenko went on to join the WWF claiming their light heavyweight championship, but again, rarely going past midcard status. Was this again due to politics? Malenko finally called it quits a few years later and retired at quite a young age.

The Technical prowess of Dean Malenko however is something that lives on. The memories he gave us in the ring are irreplaceable, and matches he had with the likes of Rey Misterio Jr., Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero illustrate the true meaning of professional wrestling at its finest to say the least.

Chris Benoit - Chris Benoit is a rare yet phenomenal case of pure and undeniable talent making it to the main event. He was a WCW World Heavyweight Champion having made Sid vicious tap out to the Crippler Crossface for the Gold, before leaving the company the following day for the WWF, and he was also a WWE World Heavyweight Champion, having won the Royal Rumble in 2004 and going on the Wrestlemania to win the Gold in an epic encounter. Success followed Chris Benoit all throughout his illustrious career as a professional wrestler, stemming back to the days of his training in the legendary and grueling professional wrestling training facility, 'The Hart Family Dungeon' as well as his early years in Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling organization.

Chris Benoit grew up a professional wrestling fan, idolizing The Dynamite Kid Tom Billington so much that he wanted to be just like him in the way he wrestled. Benoit finally realized his dream after MEETING Tom Billington backstage at a local independent show. It was then that Benoit told Dynamite that he was training and that he wanted to be just like him.

Benoit's claim to fame came in the early 90's where he competed in Japan under the name of The Pegasus Kid as a tribute to his hero. He wore a mask, but despite the mask, he was pure talent and pure wrestling as his hero himself was. Benoit even took signature moves out of the arsenal of Billington and used them for his own including the legendary Diving 'Dynamite' Headbutt. Chris Benoit engaged in legendary matches with the likes of Jushin 'Thunder' Liger, The Steiner Brothers and 2 Cold Scorpio and made a huge name for himself becoming a very popular face on the Japanese Wresting scene.

Upon his call to The United States to join the roster of Extreme Championship Wrestling, Chris Benoit met his longtime best friends Dean Malenko and Eddie Guerrero whom he had phenomenal matches with in the ECW promotion during his first years. However, one of his most memorable feuds in ECW was that of what took place with his old rival in Japan, 2 Cold Scorpio. It goes without saying that the likes of Benoit, Malenko and Guerrero changed the very face of Extreme Championship Wrestling Thy raised the card from Hardcore to Technical and mixed in the two styles together to create an irreplaceable style consisting of both hardcore, brawling and perfect technicality. Chris Benoit was the innovator of this unique style and was quickly catching the eye of the fans in the United States, the very same way he did in Japan.

Chris not only caught the eyes of the fans, but also the eyes of the promoters which resulted in Benoit being called and signed by World Championship Wrestling. Chris Benoit stuck around in WCW for a very long time, but his first shine in the major spotlight was a feud with Kevin Sullivan in which Kevin proposed the soap opera storyline of Benoit having an affair with his wife, Nancy Sullivan. Much to Sullivan's rage, the on-screen affair ended up coming true, and Benoit and Nancy engaged in a real life affair which resulted in Nancy divorcing Kevin and marrying Chris Benoit years later.

Chris then went on and ended up joining The Four Horsemen with his good friend Dean Malenko, Ric Flair and Arn Anderson in what had the potential to push Chris Benoit to the main event position with ease. Benoit's style was simply unmatched, he was pure technicality, pure intensity and could get over with the crowd just by watching him in the ring. How many Wrestler's has that ever worked for? Benoit did NOT need a gimmick when it came to wrestling, he needed no flashy robes and no fancy catchphrases, Benoit only needed his Wrestling.

One thing to note is that Chris Benoit's signature move, The Crippler Crossface, was actually taught to him by Dean Malenko when Benoit said he would like to include a finisher submission move in his arsenal, Malenko then proceeded to teach him the Crossface, and the move just stuck.

Chris Benoit went on to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship from Sid Vicious before leaving the company the very next day along with his friends Dean Malenko, Eddie Guerrero and Perry Saturn. The four went on to work for the WWF in which Benoit achieved the biggest success of his career winning multiple Intercontinental Championships and multiple United States Championships, but without a doubt his most major success was winning the Royal Rumble in 2004 and going on to Wrestlemania to win the World Heavyweight Championship in the main event, the same night Eddie Guerrero won the WWE Championship and the two embraced and celebrated together emotionally in the ring, knowing he had beaten the politics and achieved his dream.

Chris Benoit continued to Wrestle until his death in June 2007 shortly after his 40'th birthday, but without a doubt the legacy of his professional wrestling prowess will live on forever.

This poses the one question: Who was the greatest technical wrestler from the two aforementioned technical legends of our business? "The Iceman" Dean Malenko or "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit?

After careful consideration, I have watched almost every televised match both of these Wrestlers have ever worked, and while the vote is very close, I have to give the edge to Dean Malenko. Malenko is the unsung hero of technical wrestling, whereas Benoit had his chance and got to the top, Malenko had no such luck, but deserved it just as much. Could Malenko have been in the main event if he had stayed in the business a few years longer?

I personally see Dean Malenko as the greatest technical wrestler of all time.

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