Hes been a phenomenal major league champion. He restored honor to a vacant world title on two separate occasions, beginning with a classic against Hiroshi Tanahashi at Forbidden Door in June. His best work was alongside Diamante on July 31st against Jacky Funky Kamei and Jason Lee, but he also racked up a number of great singles matches against the likes of Kzy and Dragon Lee. In addition to the indies, Wheeler worked highly captivating matches in AEW, New Japan, AAA, and Ring of Honor. Weve reached a point where its probably time we start thinking about whether Sheamus is arguably the best WWE television wrestler of all time. He was a major part of the main event scene since the beginning of WCPW. They are the best to ever do it. Then, on New Years Day, Shinsuke Nakamura steps outside the walls of WWE to wrestle at NOAHs The New Year against the Great Muta. It is the 31st annual issue. Strickland is great, and he wrestles like a guy who knows it. In every emergency, Jon Moxley was there, and he delivered. Drew McIntyre Open The Voice Gate - Looking ahead to Champion Gate, Rey de Parejas and More! The one spot reserved exclusively for an indie talent belongs to someone who earned a place outright. Paul 'Triple H' Levesque bounced back from a near-fatal heart issue in 2021 to effectively become the most powerful man in wrestling. Being honest, he has every right to be in there, and weve done him dirty, no question. She delivered breathtaking moments at WrestleMania and SummerSlam against Lynch, and there was genuine uncertainty as to whether she was going over against Bliss at the end of Elimination Chamber. Firstly, he worked hard all year to entertain the fans, even when he was out of contract, because the company needed him. Will it all lead to a father-son match at WrestleMania? (AC), It could have gone so differently. His singles matches earlier in the year against Dax Harwood, Hangman Page, and Dustin Rhodes were high-level. 10. Discovering new wrestling was always one of the most enjoyable parts of my fandom when I was younger, and too often nowadays, people are closed off to that like its some kind of bad thing. Dax Harwood plays a vital role in FTR, but his singles work is also solid. They are routinely the most entertaining wrestlers on American TV, and no one delivers in a big match better than they do. Shingo opened the year with a fantastic match against Kazuchika Okada at Wrestle Kingdom, followed by a killer New Japan Cup tournament, before yet another Match of the Year contender against his best opponent, Will Ospreay, smack dab in the middle of another great G1 run. Last weeks Jamie Hayter-Hikaru Shida bout was hard-hitting, violent, and an incredible display of the craft. Whether it was AAA, Big Lucha, or lesser US indie promotions, the 24-year-old routinely pumped out gif-worthy spots en route to great matches. The Last Wrestlers: A Far Flung Journey In Search of a Manly Art. (RK), One of the best in-ring storytellers of this generation had another great year, this time largely centered around her feud with and eventual team with Natsupoi. 100-91. Name. Here are 25 international wrestling stars to watch this weekend. New Japans 50th anniversary was built around Okada. He made a loud and resounding sound in 2022. Dax Harwood is teaming up with Matt Koon for a new podcast. 1. Leave your outdated and ignorant criticisms of his working style at the door. (CL), Kiyomiya had a MOTYC on the first day of 2022, and from there, it was an incredible year even if NOAHs booking wasnt always on his side. Kaori Icho. Like her nickname, "The Boss," she is the boss during her match in the ring. The sky is the limit. Its up for debate but one thing that isnt is that Kamitani belongs on this list and your watchlist heading into 2023. Hes truly made a name for himself in AEW with impressive showcases against the likes of Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Eddie Kingston. (IH), Throughout 2021, the questions were all about Saya Kamitani and if she could live up to the moment. That was the case in their tag bout against the Rock n Roll Express earlier this year for Big Time Wrestlings show in Spartanburg, South Carolina, when they had Bret Hart in their corner in Webster, Massachusetts against Brian Pillman Jr. and Brock Anderson (who had Arn Anderson in their corner), as well as their six-man tag last month with Ricky Steamboat. Match Of The Year: Men's WarGames Match, Survivor Series. The unsung hero of pro wrestling in 2022. 5. Hence becoming one of the richest wrestlers in 2022. Top three matches of 2022: ROH Supercard of Honor vs. His profile is full of national and international professional arm-wrestling titles. Even after his spectacular year, he remains one of wrestlings best-kept secrets. (AC), Irie gets around. Consistently elevating your opponent was an element factored into this list, as were match quality and the stage on which it took place. Lynn's wrestling training began in 2017 and made her debut . (AC), Both Hashimoto and her home promotion of Sendai Girls have had a sneaky good 2022. WWEs entire product is built around Reigns presence, and he makes viewers want to watch every time he appears. However, with the new regime behind him and a new slimmed-down frame, Gunther produced his typical great in-ring, highlighted by the violent Clash at the Castle win over Sheamus. (AC), Aoyagi has been trending in an upward trajectory since 2020, but this year he hit new heights by winning the Champion Carnival in a fantastic final against Jake Lee. (AC). Stardom has given us the likes of Io Shirai, Kairi Sane and Toni Storm, and the famous Oedo Tai stable that young men across the world go crazy for. Tag team of the year: The Usos - 50% The Usos established themselves as the best duo in all of wrestling in 2022. One of the best bell-to-bell wrestlers in the world in 2021, the bulk of Alexander's work took place in relative obscurity with most of his highlights being in Impact Wrestling, AAW and New Japan Strong. One of the beauties of the list in previous years was being able to highlight names that a reader may not be aware of. Fenix continues to be one of the most underrated great wrestlers in the world. He got to shine on both the singles front as the first-ever All-Atlantic Champion, in addition to trios contests as part of Death Triangle. He did everything in the ring youd want for the promotions champion. 10. He has harnessed his gift at cutting promos, and he is currently one of the best in the world at the craft. mixed martial arts, Belgrade, wrestling, Serbia | 956 views, 24 likes, 3 loves, 3 comments, 13 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from IMMAF - International Mixed Martial Arts Federation: Which submission. Roman Reigns Tops the PWI 500 List for 2022, Top 20 Wrestlers Revealed. In 2022, there were no more questions. Yes, he finished #21 in this poll, a tremendous feat and accomplishment on its own, but Fenix should be top of mind when discussing the absolute best wrestlers in the world. Rubie's Daddy's Li'l Girl Inflatable Adult Costume, As Shown, One Size. Putting Roman Reigns fourth on this list, especially ahead of Will Ospreay, was the single hardest decision in the top 10. His dominant Olympic performance and legendary last-second takedown finish in the gold-medal match solidified Steveson's position as the most exciting collegiate wrestler to watch this upcoming . The Undertaker" Mark Calaway (Net worth: 15.5 Million Euros) View this post on Instagram. Knows the Japanese scene inside out. The professional arm-wrestler has very strong muscles and a powerful arm that is enough to make the opponent down in competitions. Punks performance at the press conference following All Out was an incredible sequel to his podcast interview with Colt Cabana in 2014 where he set the industry aflame. Japan, Canada, and Europe was the bulk of his 2022, but if youre looking for key matches or moments his match against El Lindaman for GLEAT in May and the demonic laugh and headbutt to Fuminori Abe during wXws Ambition stand out, along with a tag bout with Fuminari Abe against Violence is Forever for wXw in October. With an expanded panel of knowledgeable voters this year, we hope to have covered every corner of the wrestling world well. Marty Scurll is one of those rarities; a technical wrestler who also has a well-developed gimmick and persona. A rebrand in March almost had the former WALTER share some history that, to be kind, would have been super problematic. Big E is one of the strongest wrestlers of this ongoing era. Joe keeps his tabs on everything and often provides a balanced voice to our rankings. Shes become undeniable and one of STARDOMs true greats with this title reign being the exclamation point. Another earth-shattering saga was the rise and fall of CM Punk in AEW. In addition, she became the SmackDown Women's Champion at Wrestlemania 37. Top three matches of 2022: MLW Azteca vs. Aramis; Rey de Reyes vs. John [Superstar] Morrison; TripleMana vs. Rey Fenix. Of those 33 singles matches, 2828!currently have a 7+ rating on Cagematch.net. An AEW Executive Vice President jumped ship to WWE. Josh Alexander. Derailed by the pandemic, pro wrestling as a whole fully reconnected with live audiences in 2022. He ended the year by winning the Jr. Battle of Glory tournament as the Jr. champion and looks to continue his dominance of the division in 2023. 70-61. (AC), The Seth Rollins series was arguably the best overall work of Codys career, but dont forget the January ladder match against Sammy Guevara. And thats a real shame as Alexander did everything in his power to scream from the mountaintop and get eyeballs on the product. Michael Hitt 7. (CL), Syuri has been the standard when it comes to world champions in 2022. Masha Slamovich. They include some of the world's best men's and women's wrestlers, organized alphabetically by country with notable accomplishments . (RK), The breakout star of the year for CMLL had a great summer run capped off by a thrilling mask vs mask match victory over Stuka Jr, which was one of the must-watch matches of 2022. Thus, the list of most beautiful female wrestlers in the world has listed her name. As 2022 winds down, Sports Illustrated is looking back at the themes and teams, storylines and throughlines that shaped the year. Cena teams with Kevin Owens against Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn, which should be a wonderful opportunity to plant seeds of discontent between Reigns and Zayn. Taking the mold War Zone presented just a . Jamie Hayter vs Toni Storm. However, she has proven to be a dependable workhorse and was one of the most unexpected highlights of STARDOM in 2022 including winning the Cinderella Tournament. Hulk Hogan, is one of the greatest wrestlers the world has ever seen. Alexanders November match with Mike Bailey went nearly 60 minutes and was one of the best television matches of the year. (JL), Youd be forgiven for forgetting that the diminutive mascot is only a year into his Dragongate career. The one spot reserved exclusively for . Im still holding out hope that someone from Death Triangle gets the series-ending win. Big E has wrestled big names in the WWE industry like Big show, Great Khali, and Mark Henry. Bryan Danielson put together one of . 2022 in professional wrestling describes the year's events in the world of professional wrestling.. Beginning in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic severely affected the professional wrestling industry worldwide, with many promotions presenting shows behind closed doors.Some events were canceled while others were rescheduled to occur in 2021 and then some in 2022. (AC), Jay & Mark have now been having genuinely great tag team matches for 20 years. (CL), Another wrestler that continues the theme of confidence separating the wheat from the chaff in modern wrestling. Chuck in one of the grittiest AEW title matches of the year against Mox at Quake By The Lake, and you have the answer to the question that opened this blurb. 18. . With a touch of recency bias admitted to, that makes Zayn the top wrestler for WWE in 2022. 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