William Regal is one of the most notable professional wrestlers to ever come out of the British Isles. That much is kind of obvious.
The Englishman has been on one hell of a journey through this business. While the popular opinion may well be that he's one of the greatest of all time, we aren't so sure it's as simple as that.
Regal was never able to climb to the top of the mountain and win a major world title in WWE, and today, we want to try and figure out what the big reason is for that.
10 DESERVED - British Support
When you’ve got the backing of pretty much an entire country, it can often lead to pretty good things – which is what we’d imagine Jeremy Corbyn will experience in just a few short weeks, but we digress.
One of the most important attributes of William Regal’s character and general persona was that he was a Brit, which immediately set him apart from a large portion of the main roster. It wasn’t a stereotype by any stretch, but instead, it was something that WWE could work on and build from in the years to come.
9 DIDN’T DESERVE - Not Universally Over
Whether it be because of his booking or just because of the man himself in general, William Regal was not universally popular with the audience. Not even close.
There were multiple instances where he was able to become a really effective heel, but suggesting that he was one of the most over members of the roster at any given time just wasn’t an accurate point. You could even argue that he’s more over nowadays, and that’s only because he’s done such an effective job as general manager of NXT.
8 DESERVED - Phenomenal In-Ring Talent
Boy oh boy, could William Regal wrestle.
Whenever he was given the chance to show off his technical prowess, Regal was able to prove to the world that he was just as good as all the die-hard fans had always said he was.
The guy never went out of his way to be something he wasn’t. Instead, he wrestled the style that he always knew would be both great to watch and great for fans of the technical aspect of this business.
In short, he knew how to work a crowd.
7 DIDN’T DESERVE - Comedy Character Legacy
For so long we didn’t even know that Regal was such an excellent in-ring talent because that was clouded over by the comedy character he was playing for oh so long.
We realize that he was incredibly good in that role, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that it ruined his credibility a little bit. We think a lot of that comes down to Vince McMahon’s way of thinking because once he gets his mind onto a certain trail of thought, he rarely seems capable of steering onto a new course.
6 DESERVED - Great Promos
Everyone knows that you need to be good on the mic if you want to have a hope in hell of finding success in WWE. You don’t exactly need to be incredible, but it’s all about finding your own style, building on it and functioning from there.
Regal never had any sort of issue with doing that, to the point where he was unbelievably relaxed and calm whenever a microphone was put into his hands. It’s all about the delivery, largely, and when you’ve got someone as effective as Regal at the helm, very few can touch him.
5 DIDN’T DESERVE - Not The Best Look
From the perspective of stereotypes, and from the perspective of putting ourselves into Vince McMahon's shoes, William Regal wasn’t a traditional sort of bloke. From his body type to his general look to the way he carried himself, everything was just a little bit different.
He reminded many of a British Ric Flair, but that depends on how you look at the business as a whole. A better way of looking at it is that Vince just didn’t really have the creative spark necessary to do what should’ve been done with Regal.
4 DESERVED - KOTR Run
William Regal became King of the Ring, and from his start in the tournament to the moment his coronation occurred, it quickly became obvious that this could be the start of something new for him – to borrow a phrase from High School Musical.
We know that it didn’t quite work out that way, but in this run alone, Regal was able to prove that even though he was in the latter stages of his career, there was still very much a place for him in the world title scene in WWE.
3 DIDN’T DESERVE - Drug Issues
William Regal has spoken about his substance abuse issues many times in the past, and the fact that he’s so open with it all is a testament to the kind of character this man is.
Alas, it’d be wrong of us to pretend like it didn’t cost him in a big way. The belief was that he was going to go on and capture the WWE Championship after his King of the Ring win, which would’ve made a lot of sense. It didn’t quite come to be, however, to the frustration of the masses.
2 DESERVED - Never Given A Chance As Main Eventer
You aren’t going to figure out what sort of a main eventer you’ll be if you aren’t even given the opportunity to compete on the big stage. William Regal probably knew what he was capable of, but he wasn’t being given the chance to shine in a way that he would’ve liked.
Opportunities need to be handed out fairly, and there’s a valid claim to be made that nobody could’ve possibly predicted what level of success Regal would’ve had on that sort of platform. It was a big missed opportunity.
1 DIDN’T DESERVE - Talent Rich Generation
From The Rock & Stone Cold Steve Austin to Triple H & John Cena and beyond, there never seemed to be a substantial place in the upper echelons for William Regal.
He never got consistent calls to the main event, perhaps because he just wasn’t in the right position for them. We can all debate back and forth about that until the day we die, but when push comes to shove, the main event scene was too stacked and Regal got lost in the shuffle along the way.