Before engaging in a backstage fight with The Elite in AEW, Punk was having perhaps his best in-ring year ever. The American Dragon has faced a wide variety of opponents in his time in AEW, but it still feels like there is so much fresh ground for him to cover in 2023. 11. A Reasoned And Well Explained Man. She works best as a heel, and when she is motivated, you can expect a human highlight reel of moves. Dylan Burns 5. She stands out amongst various wrestlers while performing. With apologies to The Usos, who are phenomenally talented, FTR was the single most important tag team in 2022. (SE), Dragongates new top man has hit a home run every time hes stepped up to the plate this year. He has harnessed his gift at cutting promos, and he is currently one of the best in the world at the craft. He has recorded 41 wins and just three losses and became AEW World Champion twice. He has held the WWF World . She won the 2021 Royal Rumble match and became the first-ever black superstar to hold the title in WWE. He did everything within his bodily power to ensure that Cody Rhodes return at WrestleMania was viewed as a legitimately jaw-dropping, iconic moment, which it wasthen followed that up with an even better match with Rhodes at WrestleMania Backlash. Instead of a litany of matches against the industrys top stars, Hart wrestled a very different roster from what he initially expected. I know its tempting to skip straight to the list, but there are some sneaky match recommendations and other pearls of wisdom youll miss out on, so do so at your peril! Incredibly, Slamovich worked for 48 different promotions in 2022. On one of the few shows All Japan has had this year with cheering crowds, his fan reactions rivaled that of All Japan ace Kento Miyahara. Intense and full of passion, Slamovich will play a major role in pro wrestling over the coming years. She came first in the 90+kg women left senior women category beating Antonina of Kazakhstan, Merve of Turkiye and Zanna Cingule of Latvia. A true master of the craft, Rollins is a throwback who could thrive in any era, and he is a joy to watch on a weekly basis. Victory for Moxley comes as a reward for what was arguably the best . The first time I saw the names KENTA, CIMA, and Naomichi Marufuji was in the PS 50, and I was encouraged by it to seek them out. He is one of the best and greatest arm wrestlers in history. Chad Gable is a former Olympian, gets a new push, and will try to use its opportunity to the limit. On top of returning to his top singles form, Miyahara was also a part of several high-level tags throughout the year, ending with winning the Real World Tag League with Takuya Nomura. (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. Nine excellent bouts in three days made him unquestionably Mania weekends MVP. Not only did he have great matches against Rising HAYATO, Minoru Tanaka, and Hikaru Sato, but thanks to his presence, junior heavyweight tags in All Japans midcard are becoming must-watch. The match will co-main event the show, along with what has the potential to be a superb Kaito Kiyomiya-Kenoh GHC heavyweight championship bout, at Tokyos historic Nippon Budokan venue. Mandy Rose via Instagram. Beating Shingo for the IWGP World title on the first night of WrestleKingdom suggested thatd be the case, while incredible defenses over Will Ospreay, Zack Sabre Jr., and perennial rival Tetsuya Naito teased us into thinking that itd be a straightforward year of Okada dominanceuntil Jay White shockingly dethroned him at Dominion. Date of Birth. Fortunately, it appears he will make a full recovery. For me, that was a gateway into Japanese wrestling 20 years ago. During MIyaharas reign, AJPW immediately saw an increase in business and produced many more great singles matches versus the two previous years, during which the company seemed hesitant to put the Triple Crown back on him while Jake Lee got his chance to run with the ball. Rhodes was revealed to be the mystery opponent for Seth Rollins and defeated Rollins with Cross Rhodes in front of more than 70,000 fans inside AT&T Stadium. Denis Cyplenkov. Dave Chaffee is the next strong man on the list of best arm-wrestlers. With 47 matches under his belt for AEW in 2022, Mox was one of the promotions hardest workers. 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. Sadly, he was pretty much on the shelf from June on, wrestling just eight total matches in the second half of the year. (GDT), Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress, Mickie James Last Rodeo Is the Real Hard to Kill Main Event, Dragon Gate Glorious Gate (March 2) Review, wide-ranging wrestling knowledge that defies his years, Journey Through Guerrilla Island PWG history podcast, most passionate up-and-coming wrestling writers around, FSM 50 2019: The 50 Best Wrestlers in the World, FSM 50 2021: The 50 Best Wrestlers in the World, FSM 50 2020: The 50 Best Wrestlers in the World. Please log in again. Now more than ever, there is endless reason for optimism. Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. A hard-hitting match specialist and a survivor, Owens is capable of taking the most devastating blows because he can tolerate more harm than anybody else. (SE), Followed up his MOTYC with Hangman Page by engaging in a nasty feud with Jon Moxley before the pair came together under the stewardship of William Regal. John Cena is the second on the list of the top 10 richest WWE Wrestlers in the whole world in 2022 with an average net worth of USD . In 2022, there were no more questions. 56 Ricochet Hes truly made a name for himself in AEW with impressive showcases against the likes of Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Eddie Kingston. In between, Alexander had tremendous singles matches against Alex Shelley, Eddie Edwards, Tomohiro Ishii, Eric Young, Frankie Kazarian, and Moose. By the end of 2022, he had lapped them and was on the path to possibly becoming an actual junior heavcyweight draw for All Japan. Abdulrashid Sadulaev. Leave your outdated and ignorant criticisms of his working style at the door. Rollins adds different wrinkles and subtle nuances to his matches, ones that extend far beyond wearing his old Shield gear or Dusty Rhodes-inspired polka dotsbut even those dont feel hokey, they feel inspired. Once Kenny Omega returned to the picture, The Elite reestablished themselves as, for lack of a better term, an elite trio. Austin has won two World Wrestling Federation Intercontinental Championships, six World . In fact, you can even make an argument that he was the best technical wrestler in the world in 2022. Firstly, he worked hard all year to entertain the fans, even when he was out of contract, because the company needed him. Who Is The Best Wrestler In The World In 2022? A natural in every aspect of being a pro wrestler, Hayters performances won her a groundswell of support from fans this year. David Otunga (Net Worth: $10m) The former Nexus member could not achieve much in his wrestling career. Tuesday, April 19, 2022 at 1:45 PM by Babu Tendu Adrianna Simwa. Knows the Japanese scene inside out. Ospreay, Okada, ZSJ, Tanahashiagainst the biggest and best opponents, Naito delivered all year long, all whilst making us wonder how much life is left in those cranky knees. Big E is one of the strongest wrestlers of this ongoing era. Also heard and read on FlagshipPatreon.com. A year spent in many places not normally on the wider radar, but a year that rarely disappointed when you sought him out. Top three matches of 2022: MLW Azteca vs. Aramis; Rey de Reyes vs. John [Superstar] Morrison; TripleMana vs. Rey Fenix. There is an incredible amount to like about this week in wrestling. Fresh booking has led to a much more interesting promotion and Hashimoto as their top star has helped that along by delivering high-level main events. Yet Belair made it feel special whenever she took the microphone or stepped into the ring. Okada winning the G1 set up a rematch with White at the Tokyo Dome that will perhaps see Okada start 2023 the way he started 2022, as champion, which would symbolically end New Japans 50th anniversary year the same way it began, with Okada on top. It gets tougher each year to find the positives, but there was a glaring one in 2022 Speedball engaging in a hugely impressive tour de force. The Best Bout Machine was ranked #1 on the PWI 100 in 2018. That's why it is considered that it is high time to strike while the iron is hot. The English pro wrestler born as Zack Sabre Jr, is currently signed to NJPW and one-half of the IWGP Tag Team Champions alongside fellow Suzuki-gun stablemate Taichi. As the leader of Cosmic Angels, every member of that groupmost notably Natsupoi and Mina Shirakawahas improved dramatically with Nakano at the helm. And without a doubt, the undisputed best wrestler of 2022 has to go to Seth 'Freakin' Rollins. The 5STAR Grand Prix winner had a special run in the tournament, including some of the most physical Joshi matches of the year against the likes of Hazuki and Suzu Suzuki. The Golden Phoenix captivated audiences with her stunning aerial offense and fantastic run as the Wonder of STARDOM Champion. He accumulated his net worth thanks to his professional wrestling, podcasts, rock concerts. Joe keeps his tabs on everything and often provides a balanced voice to our rankings. That star power placed him on this list. Those are two completely different matches, but Moxley is versatile and he can highlight opponents in a number of ways. Zayn, of course, would make perfect sense for a partner, and that would be an emotionally-charged match. The problem? Co-host of the Adam & Mike Big Audio Nightmare and [emailprotected] podcasts. Harwood and Wheeler find a way to capture the essence of pro wrestling. 12 / 20. The professional arm-wrestler has very strong muscles and a powerful arm that is enough to make the opponent down in competitions. (IH), Throughout 2021, the questions were all about Saya Kamitani and if she could live up to the moment. New Japans 50th anniversary was built around Okada. 55 Darby Allin. Joshi fans will argue that Stardom and Sendai Girls are on par, having the two best women's wrestling promotions in Japan. He signed and joined the World Wrestling Federation in 1983. Oh and check out her match against Miu Watanabe in the Tokyo Princess Cup. While she did not work an abundance of matches this year, her overall impact secured this spot. Travis Bagent is a well-known name in the arm wrestling world. Here are 25 international wrestling stars to watch this weekend. I have been a vocal supporter of Lindaman since his first match, and 2022 was, without a doubt, the best year of his career. 30. (SE), Lindaman has successfully become a big fish in a small pond. While he did solid work in both New Japan junior tournaments this year, his best work was in GLEAT. Fujiwara had a rookie year that should be compared with the likes of Jun Akiyama and Kurt Angle. Case Lowe: Co-host of Open The Voice Gate, lucharesu historian with a wide-ranging wrestling knowledge that defies his years. Some feel the Ospreay match is a sleeper Match of the Year contender, and while Im personally not quite that high on it, Harwood repeatedly showed that he could hang with the absolute best in the world in singles while also putting together a legendary tag team year with Hair. November 19, 2022. This list is based on a wrestlers work in the ring, the attention their work generated, and overall impact. Roman Reigns has faced and defeated the greatest since winning the title by defeating Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman. Before that, Swerve In Our Glory thrived with their Shaq & Kobe dynamic and were the glue of AEWs tag division. 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. He takes a beating, he fights back, and on his best nights, hes able to win big matches. 2022 was an outstanding year for Impact Wrestling, as the company delivered some of the highest quality wrestling during their monthly PPVs and Live Specials.Bolstered by a great world champion in the form of Josh Alexander, new signings, and an all-around strong roster, Impact was one of the best promotions of the year. Age in 2022: 72: Height: 6ft 1in: Weight: 106kg: Country: United States: Status: Retired in 2018: Birth Name: . A natural pro wrestler who has taken what could have been a career-killer gimmick and made it special. 10. Shingo and Taichi worked hard together to have the best and most creative matches in King of Pro Wrestling history, including producing a late Match of the Year contender in December on a JTO show. The match that will ultimately define Higushis championship run was his title defense against Konosuke Takeshita, a bout that will no doubt rack up some points in the MOTY race. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Date of birth. It just feels right to have John Cena back in WWE. 10. Top three matches of 2022: ROH Supercard of Honor vs. His All-Atlantic title win in a Dynamite main event was a really cool moment in AEWs year. His profile is full of national and international professional arm-wrestling titles. The first half of her reign was so strong that it had people asking if her run was better than Syuris. Hes been a phenomenal major league champion. They include some of the world's best men's and women's wrestlers, organized alphabetically by country with notable accomplishments . Theres an argument to be made that his January 5 defense against Bryan Danielson is the best AEW singles match ever. All rights reserved. To say that Bailey has made up for lost time would be an understatement. (AC), WrestleMania weekend is a dying concept after years of being beaten to death and abused. (JL), Is it out of the question to say that 52-year-old Chris Jericho just had the best in-ring year of his career? Vince McMahon resigned. Rubie's Daddy's Li'l Girl Inflatable Adult Costume, As Shown, One Size. With a drive to . (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. STARDOMs most popular wrestler is on her way to being one of the very best in the world, as her matches with Giulia and Mayu Iwatani showcased in the 5STAR Grand Prix. 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