#83: Eddie Guerrero

Real Name: Eduardo Guerrero

Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

Hall of Famer Eddie Guerrero was born into a famous wrestling family, so it was no surprise to see Latino Heat wearing the WWE Championship Belt around his waist. With a good balance of high-flying attacks, technical wrestling prowess and unexpected charisma, Guerrero could electrify a crowd like few others.

Guerrero is yet another entry on this list who was present during the exciting mid-90s heyday for Extreme Championship Wrestling. Guerrero immediately used that promotion as a springboard to a contract with WCW in 1995. Although his time in WCW was marred by poor relations with management and unrealized potential, Guerrero was involved in several interesting angles and matches. He was the leader of the Latino World Order, which was a formidable group of wrestlers that feuded with Rey Mysterio and Billy Kidman.

In the year 2000, Guerrero and three other disgruntled WCW superstars (Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit and Perry Saturn) jumped ship to the WWF. The foursome were called The Radicalz and their defection to the WWF was yet another key victory for the company in the war against WCW. Unfortunately, Guerrero injured himself performing a frog splash almost immediately upon his arrival in the World Wrestling Federation. Once healed, he began a humorous angle as "Latino Heat."

As entertaining as Guerrero was, his substance abuse and subsequent DUI arrest led to his release from the WWF. When he made his return, a mere six months later, Guerrero began to really put things together. His biggest career highlight arrived in 2004 when he defeated Brock Lesnar to become WWF Heavyweight Champion. His reign included a successful title defense at WrestleMania XX, a night where his good friend Chris Benoit won the World Heavyweight Championship.

Looking back on their celebration in the ring that night, one can't help but feel a little wistful. Few could predict what the not-so-distant future held for these two champions. On November 18, 2005, the WWF had planned for Batista, nursing a back injury, to drop the World Heavyweight Championship to Eddie Guerrero. Sadly, five days prior to the title match, Guerrero was found dead in his hotel room, a hauntingly familiar end to the life of yet another professional wrestler. A superstar at the height of his career, who knows how high Guerrero may have climbed on this list had he been able to steal life and cheat death a little while longer.