10 greatest wrestling managers of all time

#3: 'Classy' Freddie Blassie

Classy Freddie Blassie managed a lot of the big stars in the 1970 and 1980s, including George 'the Animal' Steele.

Blassie was before my time but I still remember him during his WWE appearances throughout his life. Blassie was an active wrestler until the mid-1970s and even challenged then WWWF Champions Bruno Sammartino and Pedro Morales.

His managerial career began in the mid-1970s and he also represented Muhammad Ali when Ali fought Antonio Inoki is the famed 'Boxer vs. Wrestler' match in 1976. His fame included calling all of the pro wrestling fans and pundits 'Pencil-Necked Geeks.' His loud and brash rants belittling the fans made him an easy heel to hate as did his use of a cane as a weapon against opponents.

His notable clients included the Iron Sheik, whom he guided to the WWF Championship in 1983 with a victory over Bob Backlund. Prior to managing the Iron Sheik, Blassie managed a debuting wrestler named Hulk Hogan in 1979.

After the iron Sheik lost his championship, he managed the anti-American tag team of the Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff to two reigns as WWF Tag Team champions. The first was at the very first Wrestlemania when Blassie threw his famous cane into the ring for his charges to use against then champions the U.S. Express (Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham).

He was also instrumental in introducing another manager, Slick, to the pro wrestling masses. As he was trying to phase himself out of active duty with the WWF, he revealed that he had sold his clients, mainly the Sheik and Volkoff to a mystery man.

The man turned out to be the stylish Slick, one of the first African-American managers in mainstream pro wrestling. Blassie was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1994.