Was Bruno actually any good?

By Scott Keith on 17 July 2012

Hey Scott,
So the recent stories about Bruno latest Hall of Fame invitation-slash-rejection has me wondering: was Bruno Sammartino actually any good? Obviously I don't mean in terms of popularity or drawing ability, as he was one of the biggest money makers of all-time. And in terms of actual real life tough guy ability, the stories I've heard is that he could legit hold his own if needbe. But what about match quality? How was his WORKRATE??? Were Bruno matches entertaining in a way that modern wrestling fans could get into, or were they all slow kicky-punchy affairs? Was Bruno more Ric Flair or a slower Hulk Hogan? Just curious if you have any first hand experience having watched his old footage, or if there is any critical consensus (i.e. Dave) out there.
Thanks!

It was obviously a different time and style, but no, Bruno would not be what you'd normally consider a great worker. He knew the right time to do his comebacks and how much offense to give the heel and all the technical side of things, but he wasn't Bob Backlund out there or anything. But hey, he was champion for a decade, it's not like he needed to be.