most famous american wrestler

[5pointcrossankle]

Im just curious who is americas favorite wrestler, i can only think of 3 that would be the all time, an those would be Dan Gable, John Smith and Cael Sanderson

Reason why i ask, because i want to know if americans like old school, world class or ncaa the best

[ODH]

Im just curious who is americas favorite wrestler, i can only think of 3 that would be the all time, an those would be Dan Gable, John Smith and Cael Sanderson

Reason why i ask, because i want to know if americans like old school, world class or ncaa the best

Depends on your age and your location. Anyone over 50 or from Iowa picks Gable.
I like Smith becasue of his technique and the streak of Golds he had.

[Ground&Pound]

Strictly speaking, I'd say Kurt Angle is the most famous/ recognizable American wrestler. NCAA, World & Olympic Champion.

[quinn14]

Do you mean favorite or most well-known? Favorites will depend on the things ODH mentioned. Mine would be Ben Askren because he was the most fun to watch during my era, IMO. But he is not by any means the most well-known. I would guess that is Gable. Even non-wrestling fans have heard of him.

To answer the question of which style Americans like better, it's the NCAA folkstyle by a landslide. American wrestling fans love gold medals just like anyone but the majority of fans would choose to watch NCAAs over freestyle. There are exceptions, but folkstyle is the more popular style so I would assume favorite wrestlers would be picked with a heavy emphasis on college wrestling.

[dirtyholt]

To wrestlers it will be Gable. To non wrestlers who arent fans with the sport, it will be Rulon or Brock Lesnar simply based on familiarity.