Top Ten all time professional athletes...but there is a catch!
DocBenjamin
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in Sports Talk
Each must have had a significant nickname. One that was sort of interchangeable with their real name. Or maybe it did become their real name. Be your own judge.
I'll start my list with Babe, Rocket (Richard) and Magic*.
*subject to modification.
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just a few football'ers...
Dick Lane
Bobby Layne
Chuck Bednarik
Elroy Hirsch
Tom Henderson
Ted Hendricks
Joe Perry
Lance Alworth
Skip Thomas
Jack Tatum
🏈🏈🏈
Mean Joe Greene
Le Magnifique Mario Lemieux
Jim
Tiger Woods
Dizzy Dean
Yogi Berra
I doubt if most know their real first names. Not sure if this is what you meant.
i can make a case that Rocket Roger Clemens is the GOAT pitcher.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Neon Deion
Exactly. Boog Powell and Oil Can Boyd. Maybe no athletically eligible, but the names work.
I would think the GOAT pitcher would at minimum be in the HOF.
Cool Papa Bell
The Big Train… Walter Johnson
Joe Cool…. Montana
While I very much dislike him as a coach #1 has to be Prime Time Deion Sanders with the nickname having to be there. Played two professional sports for many years and even has a cool coaches nickname
Some that I dont think have been mentioned yet Gretzky with the Great one, Dominik Hasek with The Dominator, Mario Lemieux with Super Mario was another great nickname.
I wouldnt put them in the best athletes category, but the Randy Jonson as The Big Unit, and Frank Thomas as The Big Hurt are just awesome nicknames. William Perry as the Refrigerator is just one of the funniest
Missouri 14 OSU 3
Babe Ruth, Tiger Woods, Magic Johnson, by far the best ones mentioned based on the OP criteria of "Top Ten all time professional athletes." I presume that's in their particular sport.
Air...don't know what to do with Air.
Legitimate nickname, but was anyone saying, Hey Air, can I get an autograph?
Prolly not.
a few more 🏈🏈🏈 'ers..
Rich Jackson
Fred Williamson
David Jones
Ed Jone
Daryle Lamonica
John Riggins
Eugene Morris
Lester Hayes
Randy White
Walter Payton
Don Air Coryell or Steve Air McNair...🏈🏈🏈
Cyclone or Satchel as my pitcher entry?
I'll go with Paige as Cyclone morphed into a less interesting Cy.
Charlie Hustle
It seems like Jack Nicklaus’ nickname fit him well. The golden bear was big and seemed to wear yellow shirts a lot, along with the blond hair.
Yeah, The Fridge was a great name. Maybe the best.
Wilt the stilt,the big dipper. Both for Wilt Chamberlain.
Not an all time great but an all time great nickname….Sweetwater Clifton.
Boxing has the best nicknames in sports history by far, and it's not even close. This is just a small sample.
Jimmy Wilde, three nicknames - The Ghost with the Hammer in his Hand, The Mighty Atom, The Indian Famine
Max Baer - The Livermore Larruper
Fritzie Zivic - The Croat Comet
Jack Berg - The Whitechapel Whirlwind
Jack Sharkey - The Boston Gob
Ted Lewis - The Aldgate Sphinx
George Johnson - Scrap Iron
Vasily Lomachenko - Hi-Tech
Stanley Hayward - Kitten
Roy Jones Jr. - Captain Hook
Bob Satterfield - Bombardier
Andrew Lewis - Six Heads
Sam Langford - The Boston Terror
Willie Edwards - Sandman
Henry Armstrong - Homicide Hank
Max Rosenbloom - Slapsie
Roberto Duran - Hands of Stone
Matthew Saad Muhammad - Miracle Matthew
Mike McCallum - The Bodysnatcher
Floyd Patterson- The Gentleman of Boxing
Primo Carnera - The Ambling Alp
Joe Choynski - Chrysanthemum
Davey Moore - The Springfield Rifle
James Braddock - The Cinderella Man
Tod Morgan - The Bellhop
Alexis arguello - The Explosive Thin Man
James Toney - Lights Out
Lou Ambers - The Herkimer Hurricane
Rocky Marciano - The Brockton Blockbuster
Kostya Tszyu - Thunder From Down Under
Dwight Braxton - The Camden Buzzsaw
Carmen Basilio - The Onion Farmer
Tommy Morrison - The Duke
Erik Morales - El Terrible
Carlos Zarate - Canas
Rocky Kansas - Damn the Torpedoes
Gene Tunney - The Fighting Marine
Ken Norton - The Jaw Breaker
Lou Jenkins - The Sweetwater Swatter
William Jones - Gorilla
Micky Ward - Irish Thunder
Marco Antonio Barrera - The Baby Faced Assassin
Eder Jofer - The Golden Bantam
William Stribling - King of the Canebrakes
Georges Carpentier - The Orchid Man
Tyson Fury - The Gypsy King
Benny Leonard - The Ghetto Wizard
Nicolino Locche - The Untouchable
Joe Brown - The Creole Clouter
Max Schmeling - Black Uhlan of The Rhine
Joe Louis - The Brown Bomber
Harry Greb - The Pittsburgh Windmill
Jake LaMotta - The Raging Bull
Evander Holyfield - The Real Deal
Donovan Ruddock - Razor
Floyd Mayweather Jr. - Pretty Boy Floyd
Michael Spinks - The Jinx
Ray Mancini - Boom Boom
Tony Canzoneri - The Mechanic
Azumah Nelson - The Professor
Ruben Olivares - Rock-A-Bye (Because he knocked out most of his opponents and put them to sleep)
Danny Lopez - Little Red
Gabriel Elorde - Flash
Jose Napoles - Mantequilla
Barry McGuigan - The Clones Cyclone
Iran Barkley - The Blade
Ray Robinson - Sugar
Ingemar Johansson - Thor's Hammer
Mickey Walker - The Toy Bulldog
Vinny Pazienza - The Pazmanian Devil
Ricardo Lopez - The Refined
Mike Tyson - Kid Dynamite
James Douglas - Buster
Al Hostak - The Savage Slav
Larry Holmes - The Easton Assassin
Earnie Shavers - The Acorn
Willie Pep - Will O' Wisp, The Hartford Wonder
Emile Griffith - Iron Man
Gerardo Gonzalez - Kid Gavilan
Bob Fitzsimmons - Ruby Robert
Wilfred Benitez - The Radar
Thomas Hearns - The Hitman, The Motor City Cobra
Marvin Hagler - Marvelous
Nicholas Walters - The Axeman
Michael Nunn - Second To Nunn
Manny Pacquiao - Pacman
Tony Zale - Man of Steel
Bernard Hopkins - The Executioner
Wladimir Klitschko - Dr. Steel Hammer
Vitali Klitschko - Dr. Iron Fist
Naseem Hamed - Prince
Joe Frazier - Smokin'
Muhammad Ali - The Louisville Lip
James Smith - Bonecrusher
Juan Lazcano - The Hispanic Causin' Panic
Oliver McCall - The Atomic Bull
DaVaryl Williamson - Touch of Sleep
Emanuel Augustus - The Drunken Master
Ray Mercer - Merciless
Paulino Uzcudun - The Basque Woodchopper
Owen Beck - What The Heck
Mark Johnson - Too Sharp
John Conteh - The Handsome Scouser
Demarcus Corley - Chop Chop
John Ruiz - The Quiet Man
Wilfredo Gomez- Bazooka
Roman Karmazin - Made in Hell
Renoldo Snipes - Mister
Jermain Taylor - Bad Intentions
Sammy Angott - The Claw
Hassan Williams - Candy Man
Jimmy McLarnin - The Belfast Spider
Virgil Hill - Quicksilver
Edwin Rosario - Chapo
Bobby Chacon - Schoolboy
Midget Wolgast - The Latin Half-Pint
Bob Foster - The Deputy Sheriff
Oscar Nelson - The Durable Dane
Jerry Quarry - Hard Luck
Ad Wolgast - The Michigan Wildcat
Mike Gibbons - The St. Paul Phantom
Gerald Nobles - The Jedi
Chuck Wepner - The Bayonne Bleeder
Wilbert Johnson - Vampire
Mike O'Dowd - The Harp
Curtis Sheppard - The Hatchetman
Teofimo Lopez - The Takeover
Leon Spinks - Neon Leon
Archie Moore - The Mongoose
Jimmy Heair - The Mississippi Hippie
Eusebio Pedroza - The Scorpion
Johnny Bumphus - Bump City
Andy Ganigan - The Hawaiian Punch
Khaosai Galaxy - The Thai Tyson
Kevin Kelley - The Flushing Flash
Tony Galento - Two Ton
Marty Jakubowski - The Dart, Popgun
Lester Ellis - Master Blaster
Aaron Pryor - The Hawk
Jack Tuttle - King Tut
Vernon Forrest - The Viper
James Jeffries - The Boilermaker
Tim Tomashek - Dough Boy
Bobby Czyz - The Matinee Idol
Jack Delaney - Bright Eyes
Ron Stander - The Bluffs Butcher
Jesse Ferguson - The Boogeyman
Billy Freeman - Nitro
Chartchai choinoi - The Asian Marciano
Victor Galindez - The Animal
Jorge Arce - Mischievous
Harold Johnson - Mr. Perfection
William Lee - Caveman
Willie Monroe - The Worm
Zhilei Zhang - The Big Bang Theory
World B Free
Sheik
Lord Layton
Bobo Brazil
Bull Curry
Haystacks Calhoun...
The:
Iron Sheik; and
Sargent Slaughter.
I truly enjoyed seeing these two all time professional athletes .................. wrassel and grapple .................... for the hearts and minds of the yutes of Merica 45 years ago on Saturday pro wrestling TV broadcasts.
Bulldog Bob Brown is the one I remember. Could never understand the appeal of the sport, getting another guys sweat all over you. And let’s face it, a lot of world class sweaters’ were involved in that sport. Perspiration artists is probably the preferred term.
A few more of my favorite boxing nicknames.
Chris Eubank - Simply the Best
Samuel Peter - The Nigerian Nightmare
O'Neil Bell - Give em' Hell
Vicente Saldivar - The Subtle Storm
Nigel Benn - Dark Destroyer
Joe Calzaghe - The Pride of Wales
Sean O'Grady - The Bubble Gum Bomber
Salvador Sanchez - The Invincible Eagle
David Haye - Haymaker
Carl Frampton - The Jackal
Gennady Golovkin - God of War
Joel Casamayor - The Brush
Luis Ortiz - The Real King Kong
Shannon Briggs - The Cannon
Steve Cunningham - U.S.S.
Sammy Mandell - The Rockford Sheik
Derek Bryant - One Man Riot
Oleksandr Usyk - The Cat
Joe Walcott - The Barbados Demon
Billy Petrolle - The Fargo Express
Jimmy Johnston - Bandito
Tami Mauriello - The Bronx Barkeeper
Steve Collins - Celtic Warrior
Carl Williams - The Truth
Jimmy Barry - Chicago's Little Tiger
Diego Corraled - Chico
Chris John - The Dragon
Theodore Flowers - The Georgia Deacon
Ricardo Mayorga - El Matador
Adam Richards - The Swamp Donkey
Sergio Mora - The Latin Snake
Chris Byrd - Rapid Fire
Ralph Jones - Mr. Television
Tony Tubbs - TNT
Johnny Bratton - Honey Boy
David Tua - The Terminator
Francois Botha - The White Buffalo
James Kinchen - The Heat
Mike Hunter - The Bounty
Andre Ward - S.O.G. (Son of God)
Kingsley Ikeke - Sharp Knuckle
Andrew Golota - The Foul Pole
Jose Legra - The Pocket Cassius Clay
Daniel Zaragoza - The Mouse Trap
Johnny Famechon - Poetry in Motion
Lloyd Honeyghan - The Ragamuffin Man
David Montrose - Newsboy Brown
Florentine Fernandez - The Ox
Eugene Criqui - Iron Jaw
Harry Wills - The Black Panther
Rinty Monaghan - Rin Tin Tin
Jim Driscoll - Peerless
Charles Ledoux - Apache
Johnny Dundee - The Scottish Wop
Miguel Canto - The Maestro
Humberto Gonzalez - Chiquita
Pascual Perez - The Leon Mendocino Terrier
Timothy Bradley - Desert Storm
Gerrie Coetzee - The Bionic Hand
Johnny Coulon - The Cherry Picker From Logan Square
Lionel Rose - The Drouin Dazzler
"Joe Walcott - The Barbados Demon"
Jersey!