Did Rick Martel deserve to be AWA World Champion?

Question

..or was he overrated by the AWA?

Answer 1

By today's standards, no.   He didn't have a gimmick or a catchy name, he was not flashy, and he was bland on the mic.

But he was a good-looking young man with a lot of wrestling skill who could put on believable wrestling matches against all types of wrestlers.

He was the type of wrestler Verne Gagne wanted.  Vince McMahon wants the overly-muscled brawlers but Gagne was well-known for putting wrestling skills ahead of anything else.  In the AWA at the time, Rick Martel was as skilled as anyone.  He was not overrated.  Martel had some great feuds as AWA Champion, especially against Stan Hansen.  Martel was a good Champion and did deserve to hold that title.

Answer 2

Yes i think he did, at that point AWA was lacking star power who they could push and I never liked Greg Gagne as a main eventer. I think Martle in AWA lacked in character gimmick and mic skills, he made up for it in his overall talent.

Answer 3

Yes, he was a model and showered the ring with Arrogance.

Answer 4

More deserving than Larry Zybrysico who was the champion when the company died.

Answer 5

Too overrated.