The history of Raw General Managers features a hit list of authority figures with various backgrounds. Fans would witness a mix of former wrestlers, personalities, broadcasters and others holding down the role as the person in charge of the Raw brand.

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We will look at all the names to have legitimate runs as the General Manager of Raw. The best ones found a way to enhance the show with their presence without taking away from it. WWE would witness the worst ones taking away from the product with lackluster runs. Find out which reigns supreme as we rank all the Raw General Managers.

12 Mike Adamle

WWE tried using broadcaster Mike Adamle in the role of Raw General Manager during the summer of 2008. The botches from Adamle on commentary of ECW led to him struggling to fit into the WWE role. Vince McMahon made a strange decision putting Adamle in the GM spot.

Adamle didn’t do a great job as his promos often ended in confusion. The character of Adamle was undefined as a face that sometimes did heel things. Adamle only lasted about four months in the role before he resigned later in the year.

11 John Laurinaitis

The backstage heat of John Laurinaitis saw CM Punk reference him in a few of the memorable pipebomb promos calling out WWE’s system. This led to Laurinaitis becoming an on-air character with General Manager runs on both Raw and Smackdown.

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Laurinaitis tried to make life miserable for the faces on Raw with John Cena and Punk as his main enemies. The run of Laurinaitis was tough to watch and he would get replaced once management realized the character work was not strong.

10 Anonymous Raw General Manager

The strangest idea for someone running the show featured the Anonymous Raw General Manager taking control via email. Michael Cole was forced to read the emails from the anonymous figure as the General Manager.

WWE built this angle up for over a year as fans had high hopes for a reveal. It never came as WWE phased out the character with Triple H taking control of the show as the COO. However, a later angle would have Hornswoggle revealed as the Anonymous Raw General Manager for comedic purposes.

9 Brad Maddox

Brad Maddox had one of the strangest runs as General Manager of the Raw brand. The role would see Maddox progress from an assistant to the full-time GM for about a year. Maddox rarely was in the top storylines as he was still a relatively new character.

Other characters like Stephanie McMahon or Triple H would make decisions over Maddox even though he was the General Manager. The role didn’t help him as much as WWE expected as Maddox flopped when transitioning into an in-ring competitor.

8 Bret Hart

The return of Bret Hart to WWE in 2010 made him a strong addition to the show after almost thirteen years away from the company. Hart would get a short run as the Raw General Manager and did a great job in the role.

The rare occasion of a face wrestler having the position led to less contrived storylines of a heel trying to hold everyone down. Bret would only have a month as the Raw General Manager before he was removed from the position or he may be higher on the list.

7 Mick Foley

The brand split in 2016 would see Stephanie McMahon become the Raw Commissioner in need of a new General Manager. Mick Foley was selected for the position running Raw most weeks trying to combat Stephanie’s interference.

The work of Foley was solid as he tried to add to a few storylines. Foley’s best work was likely the angle that placed Cesaro and Sheamus together as a tag team in The Bar. Stephanie eventually fired Foley due to the clashing of their heel/face dynamic leading to opposing viewpoints.

6 Steve Austin

WWE’s start of the brand split in the early 2000s would see Steve Austin retire and become co-General Manager of Raw with Eric Bischoff shortly after. The feud between Austin and Bischoff dominated the Raw brand with most wrestlers picking a side.

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Austin didn’t have the best run as GM, but he always received a great pop and added excitement to angles. The legendary 2003 Survivor Series match between Team Bischoff and Team Austin ended with Austin losing his position thanks to the tactics of Randy Orton and Batista.

5 Stephanie McMahon

The aftermath of the Mike Adamle debacle saw Stephanie McMahon become the next General Manager in charge of Raw. Shane teamed with her for a short time before Stephanie was the one in total control of the Raw brand.

Feuds with Randy Orton and Chris Jericho were the biggest moments of Stephanie’s run as the face GM character. This helped start the storyline between Orton and Triple H after Orton made things personal with Stephanie and Vince leading to Triple H stepping in.

4 Kurt Angle

Kurt Angle received the Raw General Manager position after his return to WWE in 2017. The McMahon family named Angle as the GM with a face now having less of an influence of holding down others in the storyline.

Angle did a great job during his nearly two-year run as the Raw General Manager. The feud of Angle with Baron “Constable” Corbin was the worst part of Angle’s time as GM. WWE ended the role shortly after the angle due to the General Managers being removed from the shows.

3 William Regal

Longtime fans will remember William Regal’s incredible run as the Commissioner in the early 2000s and newer fans will link him to NXT. However, Regal did have a successful run as the General Manager of Raw back in the 2007-2008 time frame.

The character work of Regal always shined in roles like this. Fans remember him for comedic backstage segments like dancing with Cryme Tyme or struggling to say the name Umaga. WWE eventually ended Regal’s run as the GM when he lost a match to Mr. Kennedy forcing him to give it up.

2 AJ Lee

The role of Raw General Manager helped AJ Lee become one of the top female performers in company history. Lee always had impressive character skills that got her the position running the Raw brand from July to October in 2012.

The storyline of AJ having a romance with John Cena ultimately caused the removal from the position during her feud with Vickie Guerrero. Lee had outstanding segments with big names like CM Punk, Cena and Vince McMahon during the entertaining stint as Raw General Manager.

1 Eric Bischoff

Eric Bischoff was the first-ever General Manager of Raw when the position was made official during the first brand split. The heel work of Bischoff made him a tremendous character. Feuds with Steve Austin, Shane McMahon and a few others provided entertainment when he was involved in angles.

Bischoff was the Raw GM from July 2002 to December 2005 for one of the longer runs. The storylines of having to share the role with Austin and Mick Foley at various points added extra fun to his stint. Bischoff did a great job representing the heel authority figure of Raw without taking over the show.

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