The Four Horsemen are simply one of the best factions in professional wrestling history. While they never worked as the Four Horsemen in WWE, their fingerprints are all over the place. From Bobby Heenan managing three of them in his stable to Evolution and The Undisputed Era, the Horsemen left an indelible mark on wrestling history.
The Four Horsemen started as the Anderson brothers (Arn and Ole), Tully Blanchard, and Ric Flair, and each man had their defined role. Over the years, new members came and went, from Lex Luger and Barry Windham to Sting, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, and more. With few exceptions, they were the top of the food chain, thanks to the fantastic must-watch rivalries and storylines that kept them on top. Here are some of the best.
10 10. J-TEX CORPORATION
In 1990, the Four Horsemen were back together. Three of the originals, Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, and Ole Anderson, had returned. Flair had just beaten Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat in the third match in their incredible series, ending up with Terry Funk attacking him and piledriving him through a table.
Flair was feuding with Funk, which meant he was also feuding with Gary Hart and his J-Tex Corporation (which included Great Muta, Dragon Master, and Mad Dog Buzz Sawyer). The Four Horsemen brought in Sting as their fourth member for this feud, which included one of Flair's best matches ever against Terry Funk in an I-Quit Match.
9 9. THE DUNGEON OF DOOM
One of the most hated factions in WCW history was the Dungeon of Doom. However, they were not necessarily hated because they were evil — the fans hated them because they were goofy and ridiculous and were there just so Hulk Hogan could beat more monsters. However, they also feuded with the Four Horsemen.
This resulted in what had to be the most awkward and brutal feud in Four Horsemen history, owing to what happened behind the scenes. Kevin Sullivan managed the Dungeon of Doom. Brian Pillman was quitting WCW and refused to fight Sullivan in an I-Quit match, just yelling, "I quit, Booker Man" (Sullivan was also the WCW booker). Chris Benoit was in the Four Horsemen as well, and Sullivan's wife Nancy left him for Benoit while the two men were feuding.
8 8. THE RUSSIANS
The one thing that the NWA did in the territory days that WWE refused to do was pit heels against heels (and babyfaces against babyfaces) when the situation demanded it. That happened in Crockett's WCW promotion when The Russians wanted the world tag team titles held by the Four Horsemen.
Ivan Koloff, his nephew Nikita Koloff and Krusher Kruschev teamed up and the two factions of heels battled for the tag team title. Nikita Koloff also challenged Ric Flair for the world title on more than on occasion.
7 7. HULK HOGAN AND RANDY SAVAGE
After a long time apart due to their stints in WWE, both Ric Flair and Arn Anderson were back together in WCW in 1995. They were facing off with two of the biggest stars in WWE history, Hulk Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage, who had both jumped to WCW as well. While Flair vs. Hogan never happened in WWE, it could happen in WCW.
Arn and Flair began to feud, but it was all a trap. Flair got Sting to help him (again) and betrayed him (again). This time, Flair and Anderson enlisted Brian Pillman and Chris Benoit and they continued to feud with Hogan and Savage.
6 6. THE ROAD WARRIORS
The Road Warriors were the most dominant team in NWA history. They were almost always babyfaces despite their violent nature, and even when WCW tried to turn them heel by having them attack Dusty Rhodes, fans refused to boo the Legion of Doom. That made them perfect foils for the Four Horsemen.
Not only did they feud with Arn and Tully for the tag titles, but Hawk even got a world title shot against Nature Boy Ric Flair. However, the height of this feud came when they teamed with Dusty Rhodes and Nikita Koloff to take on the Four Horsemen in the inaugural War Games in 1987.
5 5. MAGNUM T.A.
Arguably, the greatest I Quit match in professional wrestling history took place in the NWA. The match saw Magnum T.A. and Tully Blanchard battle for the NWA United States Championship. This match took place at Starrcade in 1985, and it was brutal, with Magnum driving a broken piece of wood into Tully's head.
Magnum T.A. was earmarked by the NWA to be the next big name in the company. Many believed he would be the Hulk Hogan that NWA needed to keep pace with WWE, and Magnum was set up to beat Ric Flair for the world title. After Magnum's tragic car accident, those dreams ended.
4 4. NWO
When the nWo came into WCW, it was them against the world. The feuds lined up perfectly. Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and Hulk Hogan took on the biggest names in the company, including the Steiner Brothers, Sting, Diamond Dallas Page, Lex Luger and more. Soon, the group grew to ridiculous heights.
However, before they got too big to handle, the nWo feuded with the Four Horsemen. It was the best faction in NWA history against what became the best faction in WCW history, with the nWo coming out on top. It all came to an end when Arn Anderson offered Curt Hennig his role in the Horsemen, and the former Mr. Perfect betrayed them to join the nWo.
3 3. ROCK N ROLL EXPRESS
Arn Anderson and Ole Anderson were one of the toughest and meanest tag teams in NWA history. Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson were even better, with perfect chemistry and contrasting styles in the ring. Both teams were successful champions and perfect heels.
The Rock N Roll Express was the greatest babyface tag team in the history of professional wrestling. Things got (even more) personal when Ricky Morton got a chance to challenge Ric Flair for the world title and the Horsemen broke his nose in response.
2 2. STING
Ric Flair has suckered in Sting to help him more times than we can count, and then betrayed him every single time. As the old proverb states: fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
If that is true, Sting should be shamed. He was a member of the Four Horsemen until they kicked him out and beat him up. He has saved Ric Flair, only for the Horsemen to show up and beat him up. Yes, he won the world title from Ric Flair, but he took more beatings from the Horsemen than almost anyone.
1 1. DUSTY RHODES
The one person whose entire career in NWA was symbolized by his feud with the Four Horsemen was The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. It makes sense. The Four Horsemen were the evil stable that ran all over the NWA and took no prisoners. Dusty was the top babyface in the company, the man sworn to uphold its values. He was the NWA's Captain America, if you will.
The Four Horsemen once broke Dusty's ankle and hand in a heinous parking lot attack. It was actually in an attack on Rhodes that Arn Anderson coined the Four Horsemen name. Rhodes was part of the first War Games match against the Horsemen. Flair even won his first world title from Rhodes. All in all, Dusty Rhodes was probably the best rival of the Four Horsemen in history.