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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
40. Rey Mysterio
Points: 1016
Ballots: 18
Highest Vote: 7th Place (Norko Kipte)
Last Year's Ranking: Not Ranked
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1025
Ballots: 16
Highest Vote: 4th Place (Jarred Giles)
Last Year's Ranking: 15th Place
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1081
Ballots: 15
Highest Vote: 7th Place (Chris McDonald)
Last Year's Ranking: Not Ranked
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| Photo Credit: NJPW1972.com |
Points: 1108
Ballots: 15
Highest Vote: 9th Place (Kirk Dessler)
Last Year's Ranking: 22nd Place
TH: The Ace for the first time in a long time spent most of his year on the backburner in the John Cena of the last few years role. Whenever he wrestled though, he turned it on like everyone knows he could. There's a warm comfort in a Tanahashi match, no matter where on the card.
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| Photo Credit: Grenwail |
Points: 1111
Ballots: 17
Highest Vote: 7th Place (Bobby Godfrey)
Last Year's Ranking: 35th Place
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| Photo Credit: Grenwail |
Points: 1142
Ballots: 17
Highest Vote: 8th Place (Bobby Godfrey)
Last Year's Ranking: 36th Place
TH: The Bucks have always been a favorite team of mine, but putting them on television and giving them boundaries has made them even better. They're still one of the most exciting teams still going.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1157
Ballots: 18
Highest Vote: 6th Place (Joey O.)
Last Year's Ranking: 28th Place
Joey O.: The "best-kept secret" was improving from a perfectly cromulent NXT tag team wrestler to a cruiserweight champ on 205 Live. Then, by chance of being in a background shot on SmackDown! one week, he got to shine in a series of matches with Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan, then wrap up the year in an awesome feud with Aleister Black.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1200
Ballots: 17
Highest Vote: 9th Place (Joey O.)
Last Year's Ranking: 4th Place
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| Photo Credit: NJPW1972.com |
Points: 1202
Ballots: 12
Highest Vote: 1st Place (Don Becker, Chris Striegel, Adam Shinder, Jarrett Saidler)
Last Year's Ranking: 46th Place
Kirk Dessler: I do not recall a wrestler with a 4-5 star match record in one year is Will Ospreay. The sheer number of top matches and even more important, I don't recall any disappointments. Once a spot monkey, Ospreay proved his abilitiy to go 25 minutes and more and to tell brilliant stories. HIs BOSJ mtch against SHingo Takagi will be remembered for a very long time.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1204
Ballots: 15
Highest Vote: 2nd Place (David Kincannon, Rizz, Joe Punk)
Last Year's Ranking: 81st Place
David Kincannon: Kevin Owens’ tenure in the WWE has been up and down in terms of his storylines and placement on the card. What has always been consistent, however, is his match quality. It doesn’t matter if it’s a dark match before 205Live (this happened multiple times in 2019), or the main event of a WWE Network event. When Kevin Owens is in a match, you know that you are going to get every ounce of effort that he has.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1211
Ballots: 18
Highest Vote: 1st Place (Jarred Giles)
Last Year's Ranking: 5th Place
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| Photo Credit: Grenwail |
Points: 1224
Ballots: 16
Highest Vote: 3rd Place (Adam Blount, Scott Raychel)
Last Year's Ranking: 72nd Place
TH: MDK ALL FUCKIN DAY! Gage is not just the master of the spectacle, because saying that feels like damning with faint praise. He's simply the best brawler in wrestling and has the best handle on weapons, deathmatch or no deathmatch. The fact that it's year two of comeback two shows that he's not just some circus act; he's the real fuckin' deal.
Adam Blount: Nick Fuckin' Gage is something else. An absolutely incredible live experience. The first time I saw him in person was at SCI 2018, so of course, I had to make my first trip to sup graps in Nashville in January 2019 when he was announced there. Whatever the promotion, whoever the opponent Nick Gage delivers. From that January match against Brett Ison, to matches against anyone from Effy to Mance Warner to AJ Gray to more, the king will get any crowd invested, and he has helped GCW stand head and shoulders above every other promotion as king of the indies.
Scott Raychel: Pretty much every wrestler that cuts a promo about their upcoming match with Nick Gage mentions that they’re probably going to die by his hand, yet they’re all lining up because they know a match with Nick Gage is gonna make them a fucking star, even if it means violently bleeding everywhere to do it first.
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| Photo Credit: Lee South |
Points: 1237
Ballots: 17
Highest Vote: 2nd Place (Jeffrey Paternostro)
Last Year's Ranking: 82nd Place
Adam Blount: Are there still Cody haters out there? Sure he may not be quite at the very tippy top of the greatest wrestlers on the planet as some AEW diehards will have you believe but he’s not far off. I still feel like he might be underrated by some fans, certainly under appreciated but Cody has had some undeniable classics these past couple of years. A great in ring storyteller. Makes everything mean something.
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| Photo Credit: Grenwail |
Points: 1245
Ballots: 18
Highest Vote: 2nd Place
Last Year's Ranking: Not Ranked
TH: Kris Statlander was the best American wrestler in 2019. No one had the resume she had. No single person whose best attribute was "athletic" used that in a way to further a story in a wrestling match. She took on Nick Gage in a hardcore match, and it was arguable she was the better plunder user. She consistently was on the best match on television or streaming on a weekly basis. I can't throw enough laurels at her feet, because she is a wrestling prodigy, a maestro if you will. I can't wait to see what she does for the big guys.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1303
Ballots: 20
Highest Vote: 3rd Place (Kirk Dessler)
Last Year's Ranking: 21st Place
Kirk Dessler: Moving on to NXT UK, WALTER was about to wrap up his wXw career after more than ten years, a career full of stories, moments and matches. An unquestionable crowd favorite, he showed his full capabilities at 16 Carat Gold. After defeating David Starr with a little trick for the 2nd time, he got booed out of Turbinenhalle after slapping Fenix in a nasty bout out of his mask, and finally put over the tournament winner in the final. WALTER is the full package.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1329
Ballots: 19
Highest Vote: 4th Place (Joey O.)
Last Year's Ranking: 20th Place
Joey O.: There is no one I flat out enjoy watching in the ring nowadays more than Aleister Black. The crispness and preciseness of his kicks and strikes are outstanding and his timing is impeccable. I shouldn't get this much joy out of a tattooed Dutchman coming as close as humanly possible to legit kicking someone in the face. Why Vince wanted to lock him in a dark closet (away from his adorable cats!) for so many weeks, I'll never know...
Rizz: Name me one bad Aleister Black match. Name me one bad Aleister Black feud, angle and storyline. You can’t. His angle is literally a e-fed message board with the subject and body “I want to do a random angle with someone” and he religiously and regularly puts up the best work.
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| Photo Credit: Grenwail |
Points: 1336
Ballots: 20
Highest Vote: 4th Place (Matt T.)
Last Year's Ranking: 6th Place
TH: Like the Young Bucks, Omega was greatly helped by the television time constraints in AEW, but in his notable matches on a longer format, vs. CIMA and Jon Moxley in particular, he still showed why maybe you can't go too long. The Moxley match in general was impressive because he folded into the deathmatch style while still putting his unique spin on it. I don't get people who think he's bad.
Scott Raychel: Kenny Omega wore a Sans costume once. That was tight.
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| Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein |
Points: 1370
Ballots: 20
Highest Vote: 2nd Place (Matt T.)
Last Year's Ranking: 97th Place
TH: I always liked Allin from his EVOLVE days, but he cranked it up to the next level under the bright lights. His big matches with Cody and Jericho were two of AEW's best in the year. He's such a pure babyface despite his trappings, and I hope he continues to find ways to incorporate the skateboard into his matches.
Adam Blount: I had seen clips and highlights of Darby for a lil' while but the first time I saw him live was in February at EVOLVE in Atlanta. He was one of the main reasons I went to that show and his match did not disappoint. He had a banger with Austin Theory that instantly made me fans of both guys. Finished out his EVOLVE days with more great matches against theory and others before killing it in every match for AEW especially the Cracker Barrel brawl and against Cody, and having a war with Moxley at a indie show. Darby has a superstar look, charisma and the ring work to back it all up.
Scott Raychel: I had never seen a single Darby Allin match before he joined AEW, but he quickly won me over with how much he seems to legitimately want to kill himself and maybe also his opponent at the same time in all of his matches. It rules.
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| Photo Credit: NJPW1972.com |
Points: 1409
Ballots: 17
Highest Vote: 1st Place (Cosmis)
Last Year's Ranking: 23rd Place
TH: Naito is one of New Japan's surest things, and while this year was slightly down for him, he had an output worthy of note. His match with LIJ comrade Shingo Takagi was one of the best in the G1 Climax.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Points: 1466
Ballots: 22
Highest Vote: 9th Place (Chris McDonald)
Last Year's Ranking: 16th Place
Joey O.: Man, I cannot stand Matt Riddle's character...except when he's in the ring dishing out kicks and jackhammers left and right. P.S. - Put some boots on, please
Monday, the TWB 100 will take you to the doorstep of the top five.
