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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 9, 2019 21:31:31 GMT -5
348. Super Fly (3 ballots, 138 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (28) Last Year’s Rank: - 347. Joe Coffey (2 ballots, 139 points, Average Rank 34.5)
High Voter: Emily Newsom (5) Last Year’s Rank: - 346. Homicide (3 ballots, 139 points, Average Rank 54.66666667)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (41) Last Year’s Rank: 217 345. Willie Mack (3 ballots, 140 points, Average Rank 54.33333333)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (26) Last Year’s Rank: - 344. Cam Carter (3 ballots, 141 points, Average Rank 54)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (19) Last Year’s Rank: - 343. Ryo Mizunami (3 ballots, 141 points, Average Rank 54)
High Voter: JML (13) Last Year’s Rank: - 342. LuFisto (5 ballots, 141 points, Average Rank 72.8)
High Voter: Sam DiMascio (52) Last Year’s Rank: 582 "Has a decent shot of making my list this year because there are very few people I would rather watch lay in an ass beating more. She's been doing this shit for twenty years and she still attacks a match the ferocity of a spree killer high on bath salts. I especially dig it when she's wrecking shit against a newer kid, but she honestly has a lot of very fun matches this year vs everyone from Trixie Tash to Shazza McKenzie. Lacks a true blowaway match, but if you are a fan of the sprint she's got your back." 341. Mizuki (5 ballots, 143 points, Average Rank 72.4)
High Voter: George W BUSHI (54) Last Year’s Rank: - 340. Rich Swann (6 ballots, 145 points, Average Rank 68.5)
High Voter: Tom (22) Last Year’s Rank: 306 339. Sareee (2 ballots, 147 points, Average Rank 27.5)
High Voter: Kevin Brown (18) Last Year’s Rank: 497 338. Eterno (2 ballots, 150 points, Average Rank 26)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (18) Last Year’s Rank: 364 337. Kazuki Hirata (2 ballots, 152 points, Average Rank 25)
High Voter: pto (10) Last Year’s Rank: 489 336. Dalton Castle (3 ballots, 152 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (4) Last Year’s Rank: 164 335. Yuya Aoki (4 ballots, 153 points, Average Rank 62.75)
High Voter: John Carroll (47) Last Year’s Rank: 561 334. Matt Taven (7 ballots, 153 points, Average Rank 79.14285714) [LOWEST RANKED 7 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Andy Krellner (39) Last Year’s Rank: 641 333. Shunma Katsumata (3 ballots, 155 points, Average Rank 49.33333333)
High Voter: Evan Weston (33) Last Year’s Rank: - 332. Nikki Cross (5 ballots, 156 points, Average Rank 69.8)
High Voter: Adam Blount (50) Last Year’s Rank: 89 331. Gringo Loco (5 ballots, 156 points, Average Rank 69.8)
High Voter: Problematic (40) Last Year’s Rank: 540 "Doesn't have a long list of bangers, but he passes the "guy I always want to watch" test, he actually is a base god and he actually is cool in an endless sea of geeks and phonies. He's one of these guys where it's hard for me to envision him having a match that isn't fun on some level and I think he generally has the ability to make uninteresting or limited guys a lot better just by virtue of his charisma, style and approach." "I've liked him a lot in Freelance this year. Haven't seen him much anywhere else which hurts his chances. He's not far from being a contender on my list though. Just needs one big match here late and he's right in it" 330. El Terrible (4 ballots, 157 points, Average Rank 61.75)
High Voter: Damián (30) Last Year’s Rank: 482 329. Brian Cage (8 ballots, 158 points, Average Rank 68.75) [LOWEST RANKED 8 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom (33) Last Year’s Rank: 180 328. Maki Ito (5 ballots, 161 points, Average Rank 58.8)
High Voter: José Maia (37) Last Year’s Rank: - 327. PAC (4 ballots, 163 points, Average Rank 60.25)
High Voter: Hunter Patterson (34) Last Year’s Rank: 43 326. Flash Morgan Webster (5 ballots, 164 points, Average Rank 68.2)
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (36) Last Year’s Rank: 492 325. Shinya Aoki (5 ballots, 164 points, Average Rank 71.4)
High Voter: Andy Krellner (2) Last Year’s Rank: 347
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 10, 2019 8:08:07 GMT -5
324. Kohei Sato (3 ballots, 165 points, Average Rank 46)
High Voter: Simon (40) Last Year’s Rank: 368 323. Eddie Edwards (3 ballots, 168 points, Average Rank 45)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (21) Last Year’s Rank: 213 322. Rey Escorpion (3 ballots, 168 points, Average Rank 45)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (19) Last Year’s Rank: 367 321. Kimber Lee (4 ballots, 168 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Steven Graham (18) Last Year’s Rank: - 320. Sami Zayn (9 ballots, 168 points, Average Rank 82) [LOWEST RANKED 9 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Adam Blount (64) Last Year’s Rank: 82 319. Ace Romero (5 ballots, 171 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Sam DiMascio (16) Last Year’s Rank: 181 "I will always love this meatball of a man (provided he doesn't do something truly problematic). Consistently delivers performances that bring a smile to my faces. The Gaines match with THAT POUNCE is the truly great match he pumped out this year but to be able to weave in the best spot of the year into an Actually Great match ain't easy. His AAW work was consistently a joy. Light, breezy matches where he would often smash some small lad into the second row while also literally busting his ass. Feel like I say it every year, more places need to be booking Acey Baby." 318. Kengo Mashimo (5 ballots, 173 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (22) Last Year’s Rank: 316 317. Angel de oro (7 ballots, 173 points, Average Rank 76)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (54) Last Year’s Rank: - 316. Jiro Kuroshio (4 ballots, 174 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Liam (29) Last Year’s Rank: 339 315. Naruki Doi (5 ballots, 174 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (14) Last Year’s Rank: 198 314. Sami Callihan (6 ballots, 174 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Tom (24) Last Year’s Rank: 111 "Credit where it's due-I've watched more Impact this year in part due to his matches with the Lucha Bros. He's had some fun stuff in AAW including a very fun brawl with Havok against Jacobs and King last week. He also may have pissed off the Logan Square folks with his antics though I have to hope it's not that big a deal and blows over. Generally, I've been able to avoid most of the stuff that annoys me about him and his highlights are sufficient that he'll end up in the tail end of my list." 313. Killian Dain (7 ballots, 174 points, Average Rank 76)
High Voter: lblanco (38) Last Year’s Rank: 165 312. Dakota Kai (5 ballots, 175 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Timothy Buechner (23) Last Year’s Rank: 535 311. Ryouji Sai (4 ballots, 176 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (39) Last Year’s Rank: - 310. Averno (3 ballots, 177 points, Average Rank 42) [HIGHEST RANKED 3 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (20) Last Year’s Rank: - 309. Arez (5 ballots, 177 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (26) Last Year’s Rank: 429 "Arez holds his own in the nonstop spotfest matches, but where he really shines is when he gets to do holds and matwork. Sometimes he has these wild segments where he and his opponent are reversing and getting out of holds at a really fast pace, but even when he slows it down it is still great. A really versatile wrestler with 2 standout matches so far this year. I wish he got more opportunities for big matches as he always delivers really well built and smart matches. He does not have a lot out there, but what is out there is enough for him to make the top half of my list." 308. Hana Kimura (7 ballots, 177 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: JML (39) Last Year’s Rank: 385 307. Faby Apache (4 ballots, 178 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Thrifty (29) Last Year’s Rank: - "Has had a good in-ring run in AAA with the Reina de Reinas title, her brief STARDOM tour showed Mary and her are one of the best tag teams in the world, and the AAA/Elite trios televised match was a great sprint she had much to do with. Should get more buzz." 306. Aja Kong (4 ballots, 179 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: JML (36) Last Year’s Rank: 417 305. Freelance (2 ballots, 181 points, Average Rank 11)
High Voter: Damián (9) Last Year’s Rank: 641 "With Aramis and Dragon Bane working Arena Naucalpan a lot, you would think Freelance would be left behind. Instead, he is putting on great matches with them and holding his own. His dives are as reckless as ever, his bumps are good and he can keep up a fast pace. He was having a good-okay year until the past few weeks when he as been in some of the best matches of the year. The 3-way vs. Aramis & Dragon Bane is an easy MOTYC, and he is a big part of that. (FWIW, I am so tired of 3-way matches and the tropes they bring and this match does a great job of avoiding those tropes until it makes sense) Just great timing and placement in all of his matches. Yeah, he's spot-based, but he is really good at working those spots in to his matches and building to big ones. Maybe the big ones don't work on occasion, but when they do it is great. " 304. Atsushi Kotoge (5 ballots, 183 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (43) Last Year’s Rank: 184 303. Austin Aries (6 ballots, 184 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Tom (28) Last Year’s Rank: 309 302. Big R Shimizu (7 ballots, 185 points, Average Rank 74)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (23) Last Year’s Rank: 152 301. Dragon Bane (5 ballots, 189 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (14) Last Year’s Rank: - "Dragon Bane has been around for a few years, but I don't think I was alone in not really noticing him until the AAA opener in May. Since then, he has only been in 2 MOTYCs and has amazing dives every time you see him. In the last few Arena Naucalpan matches he has really leaned in to being a flashy rudo, which is great for Aramis to play off of. He hits absolutely amazing springboard dives with such grace and easy. An amazing talent and one that does not need to hide in multi-man matches as him vs. Aramis is one of the best matches this year." 300. Adam Brooks (8 ballots, 189 points, Average Rank 71)
High Voter: ScorpioCorp (43) Last Year’s Rank: 302 299. Konami (2 ballots, 190 points, Average Rank 10) [HIGHEST RANKED 2 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: JML (4) Last Year’s Rank: 433
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 10, 2019 9:00:53 GMT -5
298. Fly Star (5 ballots, 190 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (30) Last Year’s Rank: - 297. Kay Lee Ray (5 ballots, 191 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Anthony Distler (18) Last Year’s Rank: 295 296. TJP (6 ballots, 191 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Andy Krellner (43) Last Year’s Rank: 230 295. Scotty Davis (5 ballots, 193 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Alex (47) Last Year’s Rank: 659 294. Ciclope (6 ballots, 193 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Damián (40) Last Year’s Rank: 525 293. ASUKA (WAVE) (5 ballots, 194 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: JML (11) Last Year’s Rank: 474 292. Dick Togo (6 ballots, 196 points, Average Rank 68)
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (44) Last Year’s Rank: 209 291. Shoko Nakajima (5 ballots, 202 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: George W BUSHI (46) Last Year’s Rank: - 290. EC3 (8 ballots, 204 points, Average Rank 76)
High Voter: lblanco (39) Last Year’s Rank: 215 289. Wotan (6 ballots, 205 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (25) Last Year’s Rank: 220 "I still am not 100% sure I "get" Wotan but I am at least on the right path. A determined and brutal deathmatch dude that may also be a good workrate guy? Maybe? Anyway, Wotan brawling with Demus is USUALLY a guaranteed thing. I loved their 4/1 match but the 2/3 match is just a mess. Beyond that, you get good brawling out of Wotan in the rest of the matches listed below and ESPECIALLY in the absolutely beautiful and chaotic 6/10 match. I have never seen anything like that and I am not sure how much of it is because of Wotan but he is there and it DEFINITELY happened so somebody is going to get credit for it." 288. Daichi Hashimoto (5 ballots, 212 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Jack B. (31) Last Year’s Rank: 393 "Don't believe the haters, Hashimoto is pretty darn good at the wrestling. He's starting to become a Tubby Junior (TJ for short) and I'm here for it. Okami is a real good team. They don't have many straight clunkers but also didn't have many certifiably great ones this year. He's got a nice kick, don't know what else to tell you. That'll win me over 99/100." 287. Absolute Andy (9 ballots, 212 points, Average Rank 77)
High Voter: Jamesie (50) Last Year’s Rank: 379 286. A-Kid (10 ballots, 214 points, Average Rank 80) [LOWEST RANKED 10 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Jack B. (47) Last Year’s Rank: - 285. Darius Lockhart (5 ballots, 215 points, Average Rank 58)
High Voter: Timothy Buechner (46) Last Year’s Rank: - "Feels like a guy that I'm always thinking "Pretty decent year but the real story is going to be next year". Next year comes and goes and the story remains the same. He's young, talented, and is now working around the globe YET cracking through the noise has been his difficulty. Can go move-for-move or hit the mat with anyone. Feels like he could be the next David Starr in a way. Definitely check out his match against Slim J. Nice beefy match that shows him grinding away at one of the most explosive wrestlers on the US indies." 284. Triple H (6 ballots, 215 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: takedown ted (49) Last Year’s Rank: 296 283. Joey Lynch (6 ballots, 216 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (34) Last Year’s Rank: 323 282. Amazing Red (5 ballots, 218 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Damián (26) Last Year’s Rank: 563 "I've only seen two matches from him in 2018, but both are easy, super high end MOTYCs. I know a lot of people value volume, and I do as well, but I can't deny someone who has two of the absolute best matches of the year. On WKO we used to put Cassandro in the top 25 based off of two perfect performances. Red is that for me this year. Top 30 guy for sure. Watch the Gangone match and tell me he isn't one of the best in the entire world." 281. Caristico (9 ballots, 222 points, Average Rank 76)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (27) Last Year’s Rank: 242 "When Mistico first showed up in the mid-2000s, he was fun but his style was not (and is not) my favorite. That said, I have really enjoyed his work over the past few years. When he gets a mixed or negative reaction from the crowd he is so good as conveying this sort of grumpy disdain towards the younger tecnico he is facing. He has always been good at selling, the problem is when he decides to simply stop selling to get his moves in. This is still something of a problem in his matches, but it does not seem as prevalent as it used to. He's been a key part of some great matches this year and I would never have predicted it but he is gonna wind up in the top half of my list." 280. Reika Saiki (5 ballots, 223 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: JML (41) Last Year’s Rank: 526 279. Viper (8 ballots, 225 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Anthony Distler (12) Last Year’s Rank: 201 278. Tito Santana (4 ballots, 227 points, Average Rank 44)
High Voter: pto (25) Last Year’s Rank: - 277. Shigehiro Irie (8 ballots, 230 points, Average Rank 72)
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (40) Last Year’s Rank: 343 276. Jack Gallagher (6 ballots, 232 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (33) Last Year’s Rank: 175 "Maybe the most underrated guy in WWE, he's been consistently performing at a high level all year round. Had excellent matches with Ali and Alexander on 205 Live and had a great match with Zack Gibson during the UK Tournament. His work certainly outshines his push even at the C/D brand level and definitely puts him in consideration for me this year."
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 10, 2019 13:59:08 GMT -5
275. KAI (10 ballots, 232 points, Average Rank 78)
High Voter: Eric Hart, Dylan Fox (52) Last Year’s Rank: 263 274. Deonna Purazzo (8 ballots, 233 points, Average Rank 72)
High Voter: Alex (42) Last Year’s Rank: 243 273. Mocho Cota Jr. (4 ballots, 234 points, Average Rank 43)
High Voter: pto (23) Last Year’s Rank: - 272. Masato Yoshino (7 ballots, 235 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (15) Last Year’s Rank: 212 271. Atsushi Aoki (7 ballots, 236 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Paul S-F (36) Last Year’s Rank: 459 "People go in on Aoki and I don't get it. Maybe he doesn't have the speed or explosiveness of some of the young dudes running around town but it isn't like Aoki is being lapped on this. And given the opportunity can go p much toe-to-toe with any junior that wants to sling forearms around. I think the Tajiri match from 2/3 was woefully underappreciated. A real classy performance between two pros." 270. Jonah Rock (8 ballots, 236 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Kevin Chiat (39) Last Year’s Rank: 357 269. Bobby Fish (7 ballots, 237 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: José Maia (33) Last Year’s Rank: 183 268. Takumi Iroha (5 ballots, 239 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: JML (28) Last Year’s Rank: - 267. Manabu Soya (4 ballots, 242 points, Average Rank 41)
High Voter: Eric Hart (16) Last Year’s Rank: - 266. DASH Chisako (7 ballots, 242 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: JML (16) Last Year’s Rank: 434 265. Hazuki (9 ballots, 243 points, Average Rank 74)
High Voter: JML (9) Last Year’s Rank: - 264. Dr. Cerebro (4 ballots, 245 points, Average Rank 40)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (13) Last Year’s Rank: 417 263. Frankie Kazarian (5 ballots, 251 points, Average Rank 51)
High Voter: Jgamingenigma (24) Last Year’s Rank: - 262. Curt Stallion (7 ballots, 251 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Steven Louis Lerner (34) Last Year’s Rank: 132 "I'll probably have him above others per usual, but I do think he's had another really good year. People criticize him style wise and I get it to a degree, but I just buy it. I'm not sure why I buy him as the go for broke, Shibata inspired, manic maniac but I completely do, more so than I buy almost any other wrestler actually. His big three main events in SUP were all killer, his first round match with Joey Lynch from the SCI may have been the best match of the tournament, he just had a great match with Josh Briggs of all people at Beyond, et. I personally like him a lot in AAW though I do wish he'd get more singles spots. Even random stuff like his match on YouTube vs Thomas Shire is really good. The frantic pace guys I am not sure there is anyone in wrestling I like to watch more and he is a great live wrestler. I haven't really thought about where I'd rate him, but this is a down year for wrestling, and yet he hasn't really tapered off. So I could see putting him in my top 20" "Stallion is great and I too completely buy into his reckless disregard for his own health, which may be a shoot? If you watch a lot of US indie wrestling I think he should make the top half of your list. He brings a different energy to his matches than a lot of guys." 261. Jake Lee (8 ballots, 255 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Alex (46) Last Year’s Rank: 219 260. Psycho Clown (8 ballots, 255 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (27) Last Year’s Rank: - 259. Yuka Sakazaki (8 ballots, 257 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: JML (29) Last Year’s Rank: - 258. Rey Horus (11 ballots, 260 points, Average Rank 77) [LOWEST RANKED 11 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (49) Last Year’s Rank: 375 257. Volador Jr. (8 ballots, 266 points, Average Rank 68)
High Voter: Bryan Rose (44) Last Year’s Rank: 145 256. Kotaro Suzuki (6 ballots, 267 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: George W BUSHI (34) Last Year’s Rank: 532 255. Slex (4 ballots, 269 points, Average Rank 21) [HIGHEST RANKED 5 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Qqaaxx (16) Last Year’s Rank: - 254. Yoshitatsu (7 ballots, 269 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: bucky (51) Last Year’s Rank: 445 "Yoshitatsu, a true anomaly in the current pro wrestling scene, has managed to find himself in the middle of many high-end matches within All Japan, as well as in many of our hearts. His charm, his mind which concocts things like ''Code Breaker From Chris Jericho'', as well as his incessant ability to get his ass kicked hatefully by most everyone who faces him, have all lead to a Yoshitatsu who has shed the negative, dreaded reputation of his past self in favour of a new Yoshitatsu that, love him or hate him, is an irreplacable part of one of Japan's hottest promotions." 253. Scorpio Sky (10 ballots, 270 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Robin Reid (44) Last Year’s Rank: 354 "He's been Actually Good in Bar Wrestling all year which is a weirdly better than you'd think promotion in general tbqh. He's also been good in ROH which is a promotion I almost always forget to watch. He probably benefits from being the veteran guy who has reemerged and is still doing that thing where his matches all seem to exceed expectations but I also feel like if you've managed to figure out how to have smart workratey matches that don't feel samey in 2018 you deserve to be praised." 252. Puma King (9 ballots, 273 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (38) Last Year’s Rank: 599 "Not the best lucha lad around but in CMLL was always reliable. You can put him in there with damn near anyone and he'll make it work. Mat technician like Jonathan Gresham? Yeah, no problem. Wrestling the flyers of AAA? Sure, why not. Going to DDT and going against an array of different wrestlers who pose different challenges stylistically? I guess he'll do that too. Maybe he doesn't knock it out of the park often but darn good utility player in the world of wrestling. 251. Carta Brava Jr. (5 ballots, 274 points, Average Rank 46)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (21) Last Year’s Rank: -
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 11, 2019 21:05:29 GMT -5
250. Christopher Daniels (10 ballots, 274 points, Average Rank 73)
High Voter: Jgamingenigma (23) Last Year’s Rank: 318 "SCU has been incredibly entertaining both in and out of the ring and their two six man matches with the Bucks + one earlier this year on PPV was both great. The Ammel match was fine for what it was so you can't knock him for that. I guess the question is if someone who's primary work this year has been tag and six man matches has enough to justify inclusion on the list. I think he's on the fence leaning off at the moment." 249. Chuckie T (13 ballots, 274 points, Average Rank 79) [LOWEST RANKED 13 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Jgamingenigma (58) Last Year’s Rank: 74 248. AC Mack (6 ballots, 277 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (5) Last Year’s Rank: - "He's earned a spot on my ballot. He's the best overall performer in the Southeast. I know "talking" doesn't count for this, but it's refreshing to have a good heel promo presence on shows in this region who can actually back it up in the ring. He's improved from show to show all year and he's been given some big opportunities. His matches vs James Bandy and Austin Theory in Action were both excellent in totally different ways against guys who are by no means home run hitters. A guy to watch for the future." 247. Dean Ambrose (7 ballots, 278 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: Hunter Patterson (50) Last Year’s Rank: 55 246. Hikaru Shida (5 ballots, 281 points, Average Rank 45)
High Voter: John Carroll (19) Last Year’s Rank: 335 245. Jaka (8 ballots, 285 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (26) Last Year’s Rank: 157 244. Mark Andrews (7 ballots, 287 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (17) Last Year’s Rank: 78 243. Yuu (8 ballots, 288 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: JML (23) Last Year’s Rank: - 242. Chad Gable (7 ballots, 289 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Hunter Patterson (13) Last Year’s Rank: 98 241. Virus (6 ballots, 291 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (31) Last Year’s Rank: 139 Hell yeah, Virus can still tie one on baby. Watch the Casas and Aramis matches. Love the old gunslingers doing the damn thing and love the old man tearing apart the new hot thing. Seemed fine enough in trios. That's enough for the list." 240. Billy Buck (6 ballots, 291 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Problematic (15) Last Year’s Rank: 319 "Has a very good chance of making my top 20 and a better than decent shot of making my top 10. I doubt seriously that there is a smarter wrestler on the planet in terms of structuring a match and tailoring it to his opponents/setting. Dude can have a workrate-y match and look right in step with it, or work a wild brawl, or work a long title match and make it feel like a big deal. He can calm down a young guy and bring out the best in him or make an older vet or limited big man shine. Great as a face, great as a heel. Has Yatsu-ish precision offense that is limited by smart and fierce. He's also not really obscure now - you can find him all over the place online. He's got matches on Highspots, Powerbomb and Youtube across multiple promotions, and his best matches of the year (Iron Man vs Kyle Matthews from Anarchy, vs Slim J from Action) hold up with the best individual performances of anyone this year." 239. Bayley (15 ballots, 292 points, Average Rank 82) [LOWEST RANKED 15 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Hunter Patterson, Chris Wilcox (60) Last Year’s Rank: 126 238. YAMATO (7 ballots, 293 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (8) Last Year’s Rank: 327 237. Mark Haskins (7 ballots, 294 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Matt Rogers (31) Last Year’s Rank: 134 236. Austin Theory (12 ballots, 297 points, Average Rank 76)
[LOWEST RANKED 12 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Pro Graps (48) Last Year’s Rank: 311 "He's clearly a project for Gabe and he's gotten the quality of opponents all year long to back up that..theory. No great stand out matches, but his work is always solid and he's been in a decent amount of very good/verging on great matches. I don't see his ceiling as being much higher than where he currently is and he'll probably be a guy who get a good shot in NXT within the next two years." "Not a fan of his, but the work rate in Evolve is high enough for him to have a look at my list." "Best match of his career was vs AC Mack at ACTION this year. Seriously" "I'm quite biased but I've had several people tell me they turned a page on Theory after seeing the 8.17 match in ACTION v AC Mack" 235. Yoshiko (6 ballots, 300 points, Average Rank 51)
High Voter: JML (21) Last Year’s Rank: 294 234. Bianca Belair (11 ballots, 302 points, Average Rank 74)
High Voter: Timothy Buechner (26) Last Year’s Rank: 514 233. El Hijo del Vikingo (7 ballots, 305 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: pto (13) Last Year’s Rank: - "El Hijo del Vikingo was a green prospect a year ago, but 2018 was the year that he stepped up and became the most dynamic flyer in the world. Basically imagine Facade growing up as the son of a luchador and allowed to do a shit ton of wild trios openers. The young boy is the most developed of the young generation of luchadors, standing out as someone willing to try any spot in the name of getting a pop. What sets him apart is his ability to fill in great matches beyond these spots, to be a loveable underdog babyface or a devastating hot tag. There's no one better at making something out of nothing. Whether it's unlocking something in spotty workers like Killer Kross and Drago, turning dopey four-ways into absurdly fun spotfests, or lighting up cold crowds, El Hijo del Vikingo could be the MVP on any show for any promotion in the world." 232. Koji Iwamoto (8 ballots, 306 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (32) Last Year’s Rank: 406 "The absolute boy. Built like a little junior tank. One of the only juniors in the country who can square up against Shuji Kondo and not expose the business. He uses sick judo throws and sells the hell out of an injured limb. All of his matches from the Jr. Battle of Glory tournament are worth a watch, the match with Kotaro being the best of the bunch. Even with incredibly out of sync audio (at least where I watched it), that match is completely badass. Get out there and watch some Iwamoto matches." 231. Audaz (8 ballots, 307 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (42) Last Year’s Rank: - 230. Ben-K (9 ballots, 309 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Andy Krellner (32) Last Year’s Rank: 372 229. Rhea Ripley (10 ballots, 309 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Ben? (40) Last Year’s Rank: - 228. Corey Hollis (9 ballots, 311 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller, Problematic (43) Last Year’s Rank: 276 "Great, great heel in an era where so few are even decent heels. Unfortunately he doesn't work very many places which hurts him in a project like this, but he kicked ass at Scenic City this year, the feud with Slim J in Anarchy was really great, and he's been good in Southern Fried. The Slim matches are so strong that I probably will rate him even absent the depth I ideally want." "Yard Call." 227. Toxin Boy (9 ballots, 312 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (32) Last Year’s Rank: - "If you saw the AAA opener with Toxin and the other indie dudes doing their thing you will be pleased to know that he is not just good at hitting dives and super kicks and other indie staples in AAA openers BUT he can also do these things at indie shows. Toxin has good looking offense and when the timing and pace of these indie style matches is on he is one of the best. That 5 way match from March was one of my favorites in that style. Also worth checking out are the two matches vs. Fly Star. The first one is this absolute spectacle of over-the-top violence and I left it with no idea how they would have an apuesta match after that match but GUESS WHAT the apuesta match was different but also very much the same. They're both great, though." 226. Negro Casas (9 ballots, 315 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Gagne West (24) Last Year’s Rank: 234 "Started the new year with a really good aspuestas match with Sam Adonis, made more impressive by the fact that Adonis has never once impressed me." "Even with issues of a broken rib from that Adonis match halting some output, Negro Casas has still provided a lot of greatness. The Soberano Jr, Ricky Marvin, and Aramis matches all provide great charismatic performances. Especially love how Negro has been trying to show he can keep up with the pace of the young ones, succeeds way better than any human should be capable of at his age, and yet, still needs his breathers in these sprints every once in a while." "The greatest of all-time has another real good year. The age is starting to show, seems as though he's pushing himself further than his bones would like but he keeps on crocking. Has a good match against Aramis and then a great match against Virus. In trios he can still create solid vibes out there. Whether it be keeping the flow going or setting up nice 1-on-1's. Even at 59, Casas can make a faceoff with a youngster feel like a big flippin' deal. I hope we get to see one last Negro Casas epic before he hangs it up. The man owes wrestling nothing at this point. That said, would love for him to get a proper spotlight in Arena Mexico for a last lasting memory from the GOAT."
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 13, 2019 19:59:16 GMT -5
225. Mercedes Martinez (10 ballots, 315 points, Average Rank 70.)
High Voter: Steven Graham (5) Last Year’s Rank: 325 "I've seen very little Shine this year, so she is a low volume candidate for me, but it would be hard for me to leave her off the list when she had a match as great as the one she had Mania weekend AND the MYC run. I do wonder if others have matches to recommend to bolster her case? I know she's kind of Suzuki'sh in the eyes of some (i.e. she's good for a half dozen awesome matches a year and after that woah boy), but I'd still like to see if she's got a deeper case." 224. Toru Yano (9 ballots, 324 points, Average Rank 68)
High Voter: Emily Newsom (1) Last Year’s Rank: 389 223. Chris Ridgeway (7 ballots, 325 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (22) Last Year’s Rank: 567 "Going into the year I really had hoped Ridgeway would make my list. I hadn't seen a lot of him at that point but I knew I liked him. Now he sits almost in my top 50 and a near lock to make my top 100. Highlights include a great match against Jordan Devlin at Chapter 78, against Mark Davis in Chapter 72, and against ZsJ in IPW UK. With him getting more opportunities in big places like Progress and Rev Pro I expect to see him even higher next year." 222. Hiroyo Matsumoto (8 ballots, 326 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: JML (26) Last Year’s Rank: 129 221. Alexa Bliss (14 ballots, 330 points, Average Rank 74) [LOWEST RANKED 14 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Patrick (34) Last Year’s Rank: 97 "The backlash against Bliss seems to mask the quality work she's done this year. Team Little Big was a major highlight of the Mixed Matched Challenge and Bliss has stepped up well in the several big multi-women matches she's been in. Loses some points for the Jax feud, but the booking was backwards and probably an unforced error in having them square off in the roles they were given. Gave Rousey the perfect title win without losing much by being destroyed. In the end, she may not be as good as others in the division, but she's hardly relying on the color of her hair and her looks like I've seen far too many claim." "The Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax match at WrestleMania was a lot of storyline stuff, but it was done well and I could easily see it being somebody's favorite match on that show. I thought there were other singles matches of hers I liked this year but all I have on my list are the Elimination Chamber and Money In The Bank Match (i.e. not singles matches). The women's division is probably the best part of WWE this year and she has been the main focus of much of it, but she does not seem to have any standout matches. She'll likely end up on my list, but towards the bottom." "I like Alexa a lot and think she plays a good role in WWE's womens division and makes the most of the programs she's booked in, but for a project like this where the focus is in-ring I can't say she's one of the best 100 wrestlers in the world. Her partnership with Braun in the Mixed Match Challenge I thought was outstanding and was a big part of why that show was so fun to watch. I think one mistake people make with her is saying she's pushed because of her looks, when to me it's always been more of a case of she can nail the 10 minute talking segment better than the stronger workers can and that's why Vince keeps putting her into title situations." 220. Keisuke Ishii (8 ballots, 334 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Skylar (19) Last Year’s Rank: 156 219. Demus (5 ballots, 335 points, Average Rank 34) [HIGHEST RANKED 5 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Damián (14) Last Year’s Rank: 118 "Demus's matches are still a rarity, but they are still full of hatred and are a celebration of violence. His best matches have this great uncooperative look as he really looks like nothing else is on his mind other than hurting the guy across from him, like William Regal or Finlay often had. How can you not like the angry little man punching, clawing and biting his way through a match?" 218. Tony Nese (13 ballots, 346 points, Average Rank 74)
High Voter: Drew McKenzie (27) Last Year’s Rank: 383 217. Brody King (13 ballots, 349 points, Average Rank 70)
High Voter: Tony Gonzalez (36) Last Year’s Rank: 576 216. Jeremy Wyatt (6 ballots, 350 points, Average Rank 43)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (8) Last Year’s Rank: 248 "Wyatt is a KC guy that nobody watched because he was in the NWL KC but he has started working for PWCS and SLA in St. Louis recently and should really be working far more places than that. He is a master and pacing and building a match to spots that make sense, whether it was what you were expecting to happen or something different. The NWL title defense vs. Martin Stone is a fantastic example of this and is one of the best matches I've seen this year. I don't know who else out there is doing this great, Ric Flair-esque work without relying on just being a Ric Flair tribute act. Like Almas, he does not have a lot of matches on my list but he makes up for the lack of quantity with a quality that I don't see anywhere else. He won't end up as high as Almas on my list, but he should be somewhere in the middle. He uploaded the matches below to a youtube channel that has a lot of his other NWL stuff from the first few months of the year. I've not (yet) gone through it, but please anybody that does post in here what is worth checking out." "Literally every Wyatt match is worth checking out. I don't think he's had any this year that I would rate as worse than "good" and most are "very good" or better." "Just updating this to say that the Wyatt vs. Gresham match was as fantastic as you would hope. Just a great job of building up to a climax and playing along with the silly rules stuff. I also went back and watched this Dak Draper match from May and it's another great job. Wyatt is one of the best at laying out smartly paced and well built matches. Everything is simple but incredibly effective. His bumping and selling are great and help carry these matches along, too." "I just checked out the Gresham match on a whim when I was surfing through Powerbomb the other week and my god that match was incredible. This is probably the best example of how to hit repeat crescendos to get to the finish without wearing the viewer out or making it feel like you're just trying to go really long. Probably going to be an honorable mention for my top 10 matches of the year because that match flew by despite being packed with stuff. Really need to catch up on the rest of Wyatt's stuff during the next month or so to get a real sense if he can make my list cause if that was any indication he'll get there without much trouble." 215. Akito (9 ballots, 364 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: pto, Evan Weston (30) Last Year’s Rank: 504 214. Jimmy Havoc (10 ballots, 364 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Warpenguin55, Pro Graps (37) Last Year’s Rank: 160 213. Elias (11 ballots, 364 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (3) Last Year’s Rank: 275 212. Yuko Miyamoto (9 ballots, 368 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: pto, Trevor Stapleton (28) Last Year’s Rank: 351 211. Nanae Takahashi (6 ballots, 372 points, Average Rank 40)
High Voter: JML (6) Last Year’s Rank: - 210. Lars Sullivan (13 ballots, 373 points, Average Rank 72)
High Voter: lblanco (40) Last Year’s Rank: 229 209. Gran Metalik (17 ballots, 376 points, Average Rank 79) [LOWEST RANKED 17 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Andy Krellner (27) Last Year’s Rank: 345 "One of the most frustrating under-booked guys in WWE in the past two years because he's one of the most talented people on the roster but goes missing for chunks of time. The Lucha House Party has had a great past few months though and while Kalisto's probably had the most opportunity and best matches in singles competition, I think Metalik could sneak into my top 100 if he continues to get booked more like he has recently." 208. John Klinger (9 ballots, 378 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Emily Newsom (27) Last Year’s Rank: 195 "Fell off the face of the earth outside of one Progress two Evolve in the 2nd half of the year, but what he had in wXw before he left makes him worth for the back 50 of my list. His triple threat against Ilja and WALTER was outstanding, and while not on that level his matches against speedball and the Wargames match at the start of the year were also very good. He's a lock for my list this year for sure, but his chances aren't great for next year if he doesn't get on anywhere new or come back to wXw" 207. Marko Stunt (13 ballots, 384 points, Average Rank 71)
High Voter: Adam Blount (25) Last Year’s Rank: - "Feels like he should have a thread. I have no clue what people are going to make of him once people start actually looking at him as a worker but he's quite good. Sort of a different kind of babyface flyer in that it's not so much that his offense is THAT spectacular, but it is different, and he understands how to make his size an advantage which is what makes him so remarkable. I actually think he most excels selling and bumping and I think if anything he's only just now realizing how much that is going to get him to the next level. The KTB match IS a great match IMO and he's had some really good performances at basically all levels of indie wrestling this year which is impressive for a kid who constantly has to win people over due to his size" "The KTB match was legit 4 stars great. That's the only match I've seen of his, but he's absolutely got a distinct thing." "Saw him in a random scramble match a few months back and he really popped out to me. Made an instant impression in how he uses his size. Super fun to watch, and I'm happy he's getting booked more places. He probably won't crack my top 50 but still a great year for Marko." 206. El Lindaman (10 ballots, 386 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: ScorpioCorp (36) Last Year’s Rank: 536 205. DJZ (12 ballots, 388 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Sam DiMascio (18) Last Year’s Rank: 144 "I remember at the start of the year I thought he could be a top 10 contender, and while that didn't pan out for him this year, he's still had some solid output in 2018. The promotion I've seen him in the most has been Evolve, where he's had some solid work with Mustafa Ali, shane strickland, and AR Fox. Right now have him in my top 50 and hopefully he gets more and more bookings as the American indies continue to need new guys to fill the holes created this year" "He'd be a longshot to make my top 50 and maybe even top 75 but he's always fun when I see him. I'm really big on his match with Fox in EVOLVE." "Picture of consistency. You know more or less what to expect when you go into a DJZ match but the matches are almost always good. High energy matches with strong pacing. Ranks highly on the 'throw on literally any of his matches and I'll have a good time' rankings." 204. Tsukasa Fujimoto (6 ballots, 389 points, Average Rank 36)
High Voter: JML (22) Last Year’s Rank: 346 203. YOSHI-HASHI (12 ballots, 392 points, Average Rank 68)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (38) Last Year’s Rank: 462 "Made my last year off the strength of his G1 performance and his only really accolades this year were from a weaker G1 performance.The Elgin and Okada performances were his standouts and he had a few other matches which were ok. I have to imagine, given that I've watched a larger variety of wrestlers, he'll have a much harder time making the list this year." "It's easy to dump on YOSHI-HASHI because of his place on the card but he probably doesn't get enough credit. He fills his role as a lower card guy in New Japan nicely. His match against Ibushi in the New Japan Cup is legitimately great and it wasn't just a carry job. He was honestly one of the more consistent performers in his G1 block. I enjoy maybe three matches involving Togi Makabe per year, and this year Makabe vs. YOSHI-HASHI was one of them. He's usually solid in tag matches. Is he going to make my top 100? Not likely. I don't think he has the full resume for it. But there's a better argument for him than one might think." 202. Templario (8 ballots, 393 points, Average Rank 52)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (34) Last Year’s Rank: - 201. Cain Justice (6 ballots, 398 points, Average Rank 40)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (1) Last Year’s Rank: 85 "Clearly his 2018 has not produced as much as his 2017 but that's largely due to the extremely poor management of him by CWF and CWF kind of falling off the radar in general. That said he has shown this year that he can do it other places other than the Sportatorium and in a sense that makes this year more impressive if not better. All three of his matches in Action have delivered and they have all been against substantially bigger names all of whom work different styles (Yehi, Anthony Henry and Dominic Garrini). He also had a match in PWF vs Kevin Ku that was widely praised, a good performance at the SCI in a sprint vs Gary Jay and some fine work at NOVA where it feels like it's only the beginning. On top of that it's not like CWF is a goose egg for him. Will make my top 100 for sure, though I will say he's in need of at least one top level bout to rank anywhere near where I had him last year."
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 14, 2019 6:35:57 GMT -5
200. Mark Briscoe (12 ballots, 401 points, Average Rank 69)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (2) Last Year’s Rank: 374 199. Bobby Gunns (8 ballots, 405 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: Timothy Buechner (27) Last Year’s Rank: 278 "One of my favorite wrestlers that I "discovered" this year. His shotgun title reign was really fun, with fun matches against speedball, Mark Davis, and a few good ones against Marius Al-Ani. I don't know if I loved the match against Ilja at the World Tag League, but the crowd was the best I've seen for any individual match this year and elevated it strongly. A very solid candidate in the back half of my list this year." 198. Tetsuya Endo (8 ballots, 405 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: pto (20) Last Year’s Rank: 159 197. Yukio Sakaguchi (9 ballots, 416 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Skylar (15) Last Year’s Rank: 289 196. Rina Yamashita (6 ballots, 420 points, Average Rank 31) [HIGHEST RANKED 6 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: JML (12) Last Year’s Rank: 424 195. Ruby Riott (14 ballots, 423 points, Average Rank 71)
High Voter: Steven Graham (40) Last Year’s Rank: - 194. Utami Hayashishita (10 ballots, 427 points, Average Rank 43)
High Voter: JML (15) Last Year’s Rank: - 193. Michael Elgin (11 ballots, 427 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Drew McKenzie (26) Last Year’s Rank: 77 192. BUSHI (11 ballots, 437 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: John Pingel (45) Last Year’s Rank: 216 191. Jay Briscoe (14 ballots, 437 points, Average Rank 72)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (1) Last Year’s Rank: 279 190. Tajiri (7 ballots, 441 points, Average Rank 38)
[HIGHEST RANKED 7 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (10) Last Year’s Rank: 258 "For a man that certain wrestling personalities will tell you has nothing left in the tank, Tajiri kept putting in good performances. It wasn't '90s ECW I guess which I have to assume is the type of Tajiri they want, but what you get is a awesome vet who know how to build a match and work the mat. Oddly, two things I love. Seek out the Akiyama match and the Aoki match from Feb. Dude still has it. Don't let the false narratives infect you." 189. Kota Umeda (12 ballots, 451 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Skylar (6) Last Year’s Rank: - "One of the highlights in an overall good year for DDT and arguably the MVP of Maji Manji. Umeda has shown the variety to work all types of matches/opponents: veteran vs. young boy, strike-heavy, hardcore, sprints, tags, you name it. The six-man title match from Judgment as well as singles matches against Togo, Higuchi, Shiozaki, Yuki Ueno, and Masato Tanaka bolster his case. On-pace to finish in my top 50." 188. Nia Jax (10 ballots, 454 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: Tim Livingston (33) Last Year’s Rank: 130 187. Kzy (13 ballots, 461 points, Average Rank 58)
High Voter: Andy Krellner (14) Last Year’s Rank: 403 186. Tessa Blanchard (12 ballots, 462 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (6) Last Year’s Rank: 292 "Probably the pick for Most Improved of 2018. Her timing and fluidity has gone up a level and she's working with more snugness now. Her BCP match with Mia Yim is shockingly great. Would have been thought it was the blowoff to a multiyear blood feud the way they went at it. Looked good at a meh CZW Best of the Best tournament. Been pretty consistent in matches at other indies. Haven't followed Impact besides the Slammiversary match but that was good too. Turns out Ricochet was holding her back, I guess." 185. John Cena (15 ballots, 465 points, Average Rank 70)
High Voter: Fray (14) Last Year’s Rank: 35 184. Jake Parnell (13 ballots, 476 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (7) Last Year’s Rank: 358 "For me, Parnell goes hand-in-hand with Gary Jay, as the bulk of the matches I have seen this year have been against each other. Parnell is good outside of the Jay feud, though, bringing a good babyface fire to his matches, as well as the violence. He had a great match against Curt Stallion at Glory Pro the other day, and I am excited to see what he does against Daniel Makabe in a few weeks at SUP, assuming I am able to see it. The Jay feud alone is enough to get a pretty high ranking on my list, so he looks like a top half of the list guy." 183. Soberano Jr. (16 ballots, 476 points, Average Rank 71) [LOWEST RANKED 16 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Trevor Stapleton (34) Last Year’s Rank: 141 182. Chris Dickinson (12 ballots, 481 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (23) Last Year’s Rank: 178 "Landed at 100 for me last year and if he makes my list this year, it will be close to there. His tag stuff in Evolve hasn't been especially great and I'm pretty over the Catchpoint/Tracy Williams feud. On the singles side of things, he's had some fun wacky matches with Dan Severin, the no ring match with Janela and a damn fine match with PCO at Black Label Pro. Got a few Evolve tag matches to catch up on, so how those hold up will ultimately tell the tale if he makes my list again." "Currently tied for 98th on my list, which is probably the range I think he'll be in most years assuming he stays in Evolve. His tag stuff has really fallen off there this year, and with a lot of the top tier talent clearing out of the promotion it's going to be a lot harder for him to get some quality stuff out there. Jaka is kinda in the same boat, but he's had better singles stuff this year than Dickinson" 181. Gary Jay (9 ballots, 484 points, Average Rank 47)
High Voter: Jon Hunt (15) Last Year’s Rank: 150 "One of the most reliable "good matches" in all of wrestling indie or otherwise. What he and Parnell have done to build a feud that matters across multiple universes is impressive. Is it overexposed? Maybe, maybe not. But all the matches have been at minimum good and several of them have been absolutely great. Hard hitter and you can pretty much guarantee he's worth your time to watch every time out. Lots of sneaky good matches throughout the year, he's the kind of guy that feels like a bottom half guy until you start looking at his year closer and then you realize he's got a stronger case than that" "I've got 5 Gary Jay matches on my list. 4 of them are against Jake Parnell (and all 4 are 4* or higher). Jay is really consistent, though, and always brings a good, hard-hitting match. Very good at nearfalls and selling/comebacks. The Parnell feud has taken on a life of its own, and just when you think you've seen everything they have (twice, even), they go and have an even wilder match like the one at St. Louis Anarchy in July. I had Jay at 25 on my list last year (!!). I think that feels about right for this year, too." 180. Masa Kitamiya (16 ballots, 500 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (22) Last Year’s Rank: 410 179. Kevin Owens (17 ballots, 503 points, Average Rank 71)
High Voter: takedown ted (43) Last Year’s Rank: 88 "The Zayn stuff was fun, but not a great success in ring. The Braun feud was fun, but again, the in ring was eh minus a few insane bumps. He finally got a great match with Seth Rollins right before the surgery and seemed on the verge of returning to the quality of work he had his first two years. At best, a fringe last ten guy, but I think he misses my list this year." 178. Hideo Itami (17 ballots, 520 points, Average Rank 70)
High Voter: Andy Krellner (26) Last Year’s Rank: 142 "Being hidden from view on the purple view has obscured another solid year for Itami. Had some great/near great stuff with Strong, Tozawa and the three way with Murphy and Ali. I'm looking forward to seeing the NOAH match to see if he's really that much different there or if it's just old school fan wishful thinking. A lower-middle of the pack guy for me with just enough good stuff to get a decent ranking but not enough to make the top half of my list." "I have enjoyed Hideo this year, but I'm not sure I'd even put him in the top half of 205 Live wrestlers. He has some very good matches like the ones you've mentioned, but then there's stuff that just really doesn't connect like the Alexander title match that was a total let down I felt. You'll sometimes get a glimpse of the old KENTA when he roughs up his opponent for a few minutes, but then he'll go back to being one arm Hideo with the weak finish (god I hate they don't let him G2S). On the positive side of things, his next program looks to be against Mustafa Ali which will surely deliver something good. He has an outside chance of making my 100. Didn't really enjoy the Marufuji match either other than the nostalgia of seeing him in a green ring again. Took ages to get going." 177. Taichi (15 ballots, 523 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: Emily Newsom (2) Last Year’s Rank: 390 176. Misaki Ohata (8 ballots, 529 points, Average Rank 32) [HIGHEST RANKED 8 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Alex (1) Last Year’s Rank: -
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 14, 2019 20:51:50 GMT -5
175. Masaaki Mochizuki (11 ballots, 533 points, Average Rank 48)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (6) Last Year’s Rank: 123 174. Chihiro Hashimoto (12 ballots, 534 points, Average Rank 52)
High Voter: JML (14) Last Year’s Rank: 100 173. Zack Gibson (19 ballots, 534 points, Average Rank 73) [LOWEST RANKED 19 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Alex Sarti (43) Last Year’s Rank: 210 "My favorite non-BSS WWE UK guy, he's been tremendous in both WWE UK and PROGRESS. I imagine if promos counted towards this list, he'd be even higher up, but his ringwork has been top notch both in singles and tag matches. I imagine he wins a title in WWE UK (either the singles title or the possible tag titles) next year and depending on the reality of the new UK contracts, should be high up in PROGRESS too." 172. Ember Moon (18 ballots, 542 points, Average Rank 71) [LOWEST RANKED 18 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Hunter Patterson (26) Last Year’s Rank: 63 "Like many of this year's NXT call ups, struggled mightily on the main roster to find her place. She's had some fun moments and her work in MITB match was very good. Getting plugged into Alexa Bliss' spot in the MMC might help her squeak out a spot, but it's very possible she misses my list. The Baszler matches are the highlights of her year, but it's been very lean pickings since April" "If I was ranking people by how talented I think they are she'd be in for sure, but since leaving NXT she hasn't done much. Hope she gets to break through soon." "yeah moon has a very unfortunate nxt post-call-up conundrum in that: - while she was in nxt there was an issue with output since very few things were telelvised - since moving to the main roster she really hasn't done much even if she's wrestling every week or every other week the baszler stuff rules and she does have a few really fun raw matches but it's hard to justify her on my list right now, even if I do think she's maybe one of the top 3 most talented women on WWE's main roster." 171. Arik Royal (9 ballots, 549 points, Average Rank 40) [HIGHEST RANKED 9 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Gagne West (7) Last Year’s Rank: 71 "Has been hurt some by CWF falling off, but he's still done well in NOVA (LOVED the PCO match) and he's absolutely killed it in Action this year. Still the best and most commanding trash talker in wrestling and one of the most unique offensive guys around. Also maybe the best guy around in terms of getting good or solid matches against green talent. If the Yehi feud continues to play out in Action he could well end up having an even stronger 2019, but he's a safe pick for somewhere on my ballot." "Dang, wish another promotion could have picked up the ball after CWF tailed off this year. Arik is a great precense and I thought his matches against PCO and 2 Cold showed how good he is at playing into an aging vets strengths. Sure, those two can still go, but I think Arik leaned into it in a certain way that made those matches a real joy. Oh, and the Tracy Williams match from ACTION flat our rules." 170. Ultimo Guerrero (15 ballots, 550 points, Average Rank 61)
High Voter: Anthony Distler (31) Last Year’s Rank: 166 169. Zachary Wentz (16 ballots, 553 points, Average Rank 66)
High Voter: Austin Musselwhite (28) Last Year’s Rank: 330 168. Rey Mysterio (18 ballots, 565 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Lucas Womack (21) Last Year’s Rank: 186 167. Danny Burch (22 ballots, 566 points, Average Rank 75) [LOWEST RANKED 22 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Chris Wilcox (21) Last Year’s Rank: 199 166. JD Drake (13 ballots, 568 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (15) Last Year’s Rank: 236 "From 99 to likely my top 40, Drake's singles run in Evolve has been awesome. And yeah, when you get big matches with Lee, Riddle and Walter, you better deliver if you want to be considered anything great and Drake did just that. I'm holding out hope that both he and Anthony Henry get the big time opportunities they have most certainly earned, but as of now, Gabe seems to be taking the "work horsemen" name literally. On that end, their tag run in Freelance has been a ton of fun and Drake as the modern day foul mouthed Double A really deserves more eyes. One of my current favorites anywhere." "Love this guy. Didn't start getting consistent looks at him until he became a regular in Evolve and Freelance so his ceiling was pretty low on my list last year, but this year has been a complete different story. Currently fighting for a top 25 spot for me right now and could get even higher" 165. Anthony Henry (14 ballots, 575 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Matt Rogers (10) Last Year’s Rank: 104 "One of the best in the world right now that doesn't get nearly enough attention. Currently at 13th in my rankings, and I think he could go a lot higher in the coming years. I've mostly seen him in Evolve this year, with his best stuff coming against Walter, Tim Thatcher, and the style battle finals match against Matt Riddle. He's also had some fun stuff in Freelance against stevie Fierce." "He hooked me on Freelance and have watched every show since because of his feud with Stevie. I love his tag work with Drake, but I'm always frustrated by his placement in EVOLVE since I think he should be in the title mix. Hasn't happened yet, but even with that, he will definitely be higher on my list this year (last year he just squeaked in since i saw very little of him outside the WWN matches)." ""I'll second/third the stuff with Stevie in Freelance being great. Anthony Henry was one of my favorites last year, and while I'm not sure he comes close to top 20 like he did for me last year, he's still having a hell of a year. He's a natural. In Detroit I saw him take a crowd that was almost 100% in WALTER's pocket and turn it into a crowd that was 50/50 and buying into just about everything he did. He's a great underdog as a singles wrestler and one of the best tag workers going when he's with Drake. Definitely a top 50 guy for me."" 164. Kagetsu (11 ballots, 581 points, Average Rank 44)
High Voter: Lucas Womack (16) Last Year’s Rank: 416 163. Oney Lorcan (19 ballots, 595 points, Average Rank 67)
High Voter: Chris Wilcox (20) Last Year’s Rank: 31 162. Arisa Nakajima (10 ballots, 596 points, Average Rank 37) [HIGHEST RANKED 10 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: JML (8) Last Year’s Rank: 291 161. T-Hawk (17 ballots, 606 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: ScorpioCorp (35) Last Year’s Rank: 259 160. Jey Uso (15 ballots, 612 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (10) Last Year’s Rank: 16 159. Robbie Eagles (14 ballots, 625 points, Average Rank 54)
High Voter: Alex (5) Last Year’s Rank: 438 "One of my favorite new discoveries this year along with Bobby Gunns, Marko stunt, and Bandido. Had no earthly idea who he was until I saw some buzz about him debuting in PWG from some Aussie wrestling fans I'm in a chat with, and I'm happy I went to check him out. He's had some fun stuff since coming to PWG like his matches against Bandido and shingo Takagi and was a part of the best team in the Jr Tag League with Ishimori. What really pushed him over the cut line for me was his match against Will Ospreay at PWA Black Label, which was a low end MOTY contender for me. Got him at 97th right now, so he's going to have to hold on for this last month or so of the year, but I think I'll be voting for him for years to come." 158. Jun Kasai (16 ballots, 627 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: John Carroll (24) Last Year’s Rank: 506 157. Jungle Kyona (11 ballots, 639 points, Average Rank 41)
High Voter: JML (1) Last Year’s Rank: 300 "Or should I say Jungle Fucking Kyona. She's been great this year. It's either her or Konami that's always put in the gate keeper roles in Stardom to put over the push talent and make them look great. She happened to have a better match than Io Shirai did with Nicole Savoy, the Viper match rules and if it wasn't for the Exploding Bat match that same night, more ppl would've talked about it. Had the best matches in the Cinderella tournament with Kagestu and Momo Watanabe and imo just had Momo's best match this year at the June Korakuen show for the White Belt. (Little spoiler here but Jungle comes out of the gate, punches Momo in the face and knocks her on her ass the opening moment of the bell.) I'm gonna look forward to her having a killer 5 Star GP later in the year." 156. Joe Doering (17 ballots, 647 points, Average Rank 57)
High Voter: Kevin Brown (31) Last Year’s Rank: 246 "The guy I criminally underrated in 2017 is already off to a great start. The Triple Crown defense against Zeus was a tremendous bomb-throwing war. "Come on motherfucker show me power!" is the moment to beat of 2018." 155. Xavier Woods (15 ballots, 649 points, Average Rank 58)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (37) Last Year’s Rank: 34 154. Sheamus (18 ballots, 652 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (29) Last Year’s Rank: 28 153. Dolph Ziggler (18 ballots, 653 points, Average Rank 65)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (31) Last Year’s Rank: 290 "His year and how you perceive it depends on (1) your thoughts on his matches with Rollins, (2) how much you weigh his contribution to those matches and (3) how much WWE you watch in the grand scheme of your overall wrestling viewing. I think there is certainly a case that he's had one of the better main roster years of anyone in WWE, but those caveats above really make or break his case. Definitely a better year than he's had in a few years especially since I thought his run with the company was ending last year." 152. Flip Gordon (17 ballots, 657 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Adam Blount (20) Last Year’s Rank: 202 151. Brock Lesnar (18 ballots, 658 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (13) Last Year’s Rank: 39
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 17, 2019 20:36:21 GMT -5
150. Daisuke Sasaki (14 ballots, 663 points, Average Rank 54)
High Voter: Evan Weston (17) Last Year’s Rank: 136 149. Daisuke Harada (15 ballots, 672 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: Lucas Womack (19) Last Year’s Rank: 170 148. Isami Kodaka (15 ballots, 671 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: Alex (12) Last Year’s Rank: 577 147. Jimmy Uso (16 ballots, 674 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (9) Last Year’s Rank: 15 146. Dezmond Xavier (18 ballots, 685 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Pro Graps (24) Last Year’s Rank: 269 145. Shotaro Ashino (11 ballots, 687 points, Average Rank 39)
High Voter: Liam (9) Last Year’s Rank: 121 144. Forastero (14 ballots, 689 points, Average Rank 52) [HIGHEST RANKED 14 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (17) Last Year’s Rank: 265 143. Orange Cassidy (18 ballots, 691 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Chris Wilcox (1) Last Year’s Rank: 624 "It sounds ridiculous, and maybe I'm just crazy, but I've really enjoyed the year Orange Cassidy has put together, largely in Beyond Wrestling. His match with David Starr in Beyond got some attention a few weeks ago, but his match with Stokely Hathaway may have been the best comedy wrestling match I've ever seen in the US. I also thought he was the standout in the six way ladder match at Joey Janela Lost in New York, and the mixed tag he had with Session Moth Martina vs Janelope was one of the highlights of Beyond's Lit Up show. I think there are some hidden depths to the Orange Cassidy comedy character that you may not expect out of a peripheral character from the Best Friends Extended Universe. And the "hands in the pocket kip up" is legitimately impressive. He will definitely rank highly on my list." "My favorite comedy wrestler in the world right now. Havent seen enough of him to give him a vote but he deserves it for sure" 142. Aramis (12 ballots, 692 points, Average Rank 45)
[HIGHEST RANKED 12 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Jon Hunt (1) Last Year’s Rank: 421 "Your next indie lucha superstar. He should already be working AAW or PWG or wherever. I first noticed him as a good flippy guy but then towards the end of last year he started running around hitting guys with really stiff elbows and kicks and working the mat. He's kept that up this year, although he still excels in those go-go-go indie spotfest matches, like the 3/24 Mexa Wrestling match. He plays a great underdog babyface in the Negro Casas match and the NGD trios, and then works about even with Ricky Marvin in that 3-way match. If you want to see him wrestle on the mat there is some of that in the Casas match but the Judas el Traidor match is fantastic. He is a very well-rounded tecnico and should finish pretty high on my list if he keeps this pace up." "All lucha-sympathetic voters should watch the Casas, Hechicero, and Virus (12/2) singles. Very few wrestlers last year had three singles matches against three pretty different opponents as strong as these -- only perennial top ten candidates Sabre, Riddle, and Fenix come to mind. I won't have Aramis as high as those dudes because his selling is still somewhat inconsistent when he isn't in there with a maestro, but he's had enough great moments in these matches and in his IWRG work for top 20." 141. Yuji Hino (19 ballots, 693 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: bucky (19) Last Year’s Rank: - 140. Low Ki (16 ballots, 702 points, Average Rank 54)
High Voter: Sam DiMascio (8) Last Year’s Rank: 99 "Bless Major League Wrestling for giving Ki a title run. It feels for the past decade we have been teased over and over again with a sustained run from someone who should be considered an all-time great. In 2018 we are finally given THE RUN. Last year Ki technically had more matches but half of those took place in Impact where it hard to get a gauge on someone. Ki was still Ki, and the 2/3 falls Dutt match does rule, but against the MLW run it feels like there is less meat there. His matches against Fenix, Daga, and Yehi in MLW are all legit great. The Fenix match feels like a mix of early 2000's ROH and a lucha brawl. The Daga match is probably the most straigh forward but has one of the sickest finishes of the year. You expect great things from the Yehi match and it delivers that gritty mat based wrestling you are hoping for. Oh, and he's also a part of one of the best matches of the year over in OTT." 139. Kalisto (23 ballots, 720 points, Average Rank 70)
[LOWEST RANKED 23 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Dante Vocaturo (36) Last Year’s Rank: 247 "He's the anti-Neville and has found a good niche with Lucha House Party. Wasn't involved in the tornado match last week which was probably peak LHP, but still an easy fit for the back half of my list. His best stuff has been with guys like Strong and Murphy where the height and style differences have allowed him to shine." 138. Kassius Ohno (23 ballots, 724 points, Average Rank 70)
High Voter: Chris Wilcox (43) Last Year’s Rank: 44 "The winner of the inaugural WDKW100 but has fallen off quite a bit since being signed to WWE. Not really his fault, he's made the best of the opportunities given to him, but Ohno's role as a player/coach in NXT means he's not going to get many main event opportunities even though he can absolutely still handle them, as shown in his sss16 run and his Evolve return, especially the Bate, sabre, and Aichner matches. Not a top half resume unless you've seen extra stuff on the Florida loop, but I think he still belongs on most lists if you watched his full year of work." "He's probably my favorite wrestler of all time, but I don't possibly see how he makes my list. I don't know if he'd even crack my top 150. He does fine with the opportunities he's been given especially when he has time to let loose on the occasional indie appearance, but good/great performances from him are so few and far because of his status in nxt that it's hard to justify a place for him." 137. Braun Strowman (21 ballots, 747 points, Average Rank 61) [LOWEST RANKED 21 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom (11) Last Year’s Rank: 10 136. Trevor Lee (15 ballots, 769 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: Mid Atlantic Miller (10) Last Year’s Rank: 32 "In an incredible turn of events just as his CWF run has totally jumped the shark into self evidently masturbatory excess his AAW work has actually become very good. He's had some tremendous matches in Chicago this year that have actually served to elevate guys - meanwhile he's holding court over all of CWF in a way that actively hurts the promotion even if his effort and work is still technically good. Going to be one of the most challenging guys of the year to rank." "I haven't watched any CWF this year partially because I was sick of Lee's run even though I'm a fan of the guy. Still highly entertaining in PWG and AAW (and I assume he's still a solid hand for Impact as well)" 135. Dominic Garrini (15 ballots, 770 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: Problematic (9) Last Year’s Rank: 95 "Utterly wasted in Evolve this year which is a shame because if you look at the places that have done interesting things and matches with him this year (NOVA, AIW, Action, SUP) he's delivered basically every time out. The feuds with Stallion, Lawlor and to a lesser degree Sage Phillips have proved not only that he can deliver with in meaningful matches, but that he can deliver at a high level in meaningful matches. Still rough around the edges in some ways, but some of those ways are clear positives and not negatives." "The only place I really see him in is Evolve, but he's managed to get himself into my top 100 and stay there for most the year, mainly due to a tag match he had against Ringkampf in January. He's getting close to falling out now, but if I binge through some shows on Powerbomb like I plan to before the end of the year he's someone I expect to see move up a bit" "Figured I'd do a recommended match list for him because I actually think he has a dense resume and I've actually seen very little of him in his home promotion (AIW) Recommended Matches - w/Tracy Williams vs WALTER/Timothy Thatcher, 1/13 EVOLVE* - vs Juice Robinson, 1/19 AIW - vs Curt Stallion, 2/25 SUP* - w/Tracy Williams vs James Drake/Anthony Henry vs Parrow/Odinson, 4/5 EVOLVE* - vs Jake Garvin, 4/13 PWF - vs Curt Stallion, 4/22 SUP* - vs Gunner Miller, 4/27 Action - vs Sage Phillips, 5/11 NOVA Pro - vs Louis Lyndon, 5/25 AIW - vs Jonathan Gresham, 6/8 NOVA Pro - vs Sage Phillips, 6/9 NOVA Pro - vs Jeff Cobb, 6/10 SUP - vs Sage Phillips, 7/6 NOVA Pro - vs Tom Lawlor, 7/27 AIW* - vs JD Drake, 8/5 EVOLVE - vs Lexus Montez, 8/10 PWF* - vs Cain Justice, 8/17 Action - vs Kevin Ku, 8/24 NOVA Pro - w/Kevin Ku vs Jonathan Gresham/Sage Phillips, 9/21 NOVA Pro - vs Wheeler YUTA, 9/23 SUP (stay for whole segment) I left a few things off which I enjoyed (vs Thatcher Mania weekend, vs Cash Flo PWF) which I thought probably appeal less to others. While I think all of these are worth going out of your way to see, the * denotes matches that I think are absolute standouts across the landscape of 2018 and should be seen by anyone considering him for their ballot." 134. Shinsuke Nakamura (22 ballots, 774 points, Average Rank 64)
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (11) Last Year’s Rank: 80 "His feud with AJ produced better matches than most give him credit for, but it's pretty much it for him this year and nothing was blow away. Tomorrow's match with Rey should be interesting and telling as to where both guys are at in the 2018 WWE pecking order. Probably a bottom quarter guy right now, may go lower unless he starts producing something interesting." 133. Jordynne Grace (18 ballots, 778 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Steven Louis Lerner (13) Last Year’s Rank: 185 "Likely to finish in my top 20 and actually a viable top 5 contender at this point. To my mind she's clearly the best women's wrestler on the indies at this point and more than that she's someone who seems capable of having a good match with anyone whether it be an IG match, a match vs a top tier woman, or a match vs a green as shit woman who clearly needs to be carried. Hard hitting, with a bunch of explosive and cool spots, but also the ability to make a bearhug a credible finish in 2018. Speaking of finishers, she passes the Sheamus test of having multiple credible finishers which is another huge thing for me personally. Extra points for being the type of wrestler who always stands out in multi-person settings in that she'll do something cool or be generally stuff or just delivers at a level above the rest of the pack." "I don't see her enough for her to really be in contention on my list, but she's one of my favorite women outside of WWE at the moment and I hope she starts getting booked more and more." 132. Fuminori Abe (17 ballots, 786 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Sam DiMascio (4) Last Year’s Rank: - "Not liking top 10 wrestler of the year's chances of appearing on a lot of ballots but you all should be watching Abe. His Astronauts' partner gets a lot of the notoriety, Nomura is v good as well, but honestly, Abe is my top pick for the crew. Abe is Sawa style BattlArts through and through...but better. He knows his way around a hard kick, knows how to approach antics, and knows how to not be too corny. That was on of my big issues with Sawa, had a lot of tools but took out the power drill when he just needed a few twists with a Phillips Head to do the trick. His tag work with Nomura are his "best" matches but not my favorite performances. I think those are used as a good baseline, if you don't like those you don't like Abe. Then when you get to his singles stuff there is stuff to DIG INTO. vs. Kazuki Hashimoto (BJPW 6/13/18) - Fun little meathead juniors match vs. Hideki Sekine (HARD HIT 7/2/18) - Awesome little shooty match. Abe is not in the same weight class as Sekine but tries using speed and technique to find a way to victory vs. Daiki Shimomura (BASARA 10/13/18) - Abe works a dude with a tale and has fun without going full CHIKARA vs. Ikuto Hidaka (BASARA 11/17/18) - Feels like a battle of generations match. Starts off with things not quite clicking...then everything starts hitting flush and you feel like there was a weird meta at play and you're totally cool with it. Oh, also watch the Nomura match from January which is Actually Great. Emphasizes both wrestlers strengths. SHOOTING!" "I agree that he's unfairly a bit in Nomura's shadow despite being great in his own right. Legitimately one of the best sprint wrestlers in the world who hits hard, has great matwork, and can even get a bit workratey. The Nomura tag team also adds a ton of depth." 131. Sanson (15 ballots, 791 points, Average Rank 48)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (13) Last Year’s Rank: 194 130. MAO (16 ballots, 794 points, Average Rank 46)
High Voter: pto (4) Last Year’s Rank: - 129. Slim J (13 ballots, 796 points, Average Rank 40)
[HIGHEST RANKED 13 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Problematic (8) Last Year’s Rank: - "This will sound insane if you aren't watching his stuff regularly but I sort of see him as a fringe number one contender if he can pad his volume in the next few months. In terms of making the most of his opportunities and delivering with high end, memorable matches, in multiple settings, against a wide variety of opponents, I don't think he can be denied. He's got brutal and engaging excellent brawls with Corey Hollis in Anarchy, great vet vs. upstart matches in Action against Cam Carter and Ike Cross, and excellent matches against Darius Lockhart and Ethan Case at PWX Pure which felt like big time bouts and were as good as any matches I've seen this year. If I were to do a top 100 matches of the year he'd probably have 4 or 5 of them which is remarkable when you consider that I've probably only seen maybe 12 or 15 of his matches this year. Just a great wrestler who understands timing and building to dramatic moments better than almost anyone. One of the few guys where I want to see everything he does" "Only have seen 4 Slim matches this year but he's incredible in each one of them. Watching him, you feel like you're watching one of the most talented wrestler on the planet right now and that's pretty remarkable to say for a guy in his like 17th year being a wrestler" "I think he might have been one of the best wrestlers in the world for the last 15 years just no one was watching, we are launching the Slim J C+A over at SC and hope to remedy that." " Y A R D C A L L " 128. Tom Lawlor (17 ballots, 833 points, Average Rank 52)
High Voter: Timothy Buechner (10) Last Year’s Rank: 218 "Weird that he doesn't have a thread. I think the notion that he is a more grappling heavy version of Riddle is basically a total fantasy, but I do think he is a very good wrestler who has had a lot of really good matches this year that really haven't been talked about as much as they deserve. Matches vs Gresham, Tracy Williams, WALTER, MV Young (street fight in Prestige that is on YouTube and it kicks ass) and Garrini have all been absolutely killer in their own ways and all pretty different. I actually think he's substantially more "pro wrestling" than Riddle in a lot of ways which is not a criticism at all and I think he's kind of an easy pick for a ballot even if his most high profile booking (MLW) has largely wasted him (he has some decent to good stuff there actually but come on)." "I love Filthy Tom. He kicks ass and is one of the like two reasons I've thought about checking out MLW. He's a guy who I haven't seen a ton of that I'm planning on doing a deeper dive on in the next few months. I feel like he's a strong candidate for my last 25." 127. Rusev (23 ballots, 848 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (30) Last Year’s Rank: 113 126. Kofi Kingston (24 ballots, 855 points, Average Rank 63)
High Voter: Tom (16) Last Year’s Rank: 51 "Like a lot of WWE guys, the new Tag Team record holder had a fairly uneventful early 2018. The tag title win definitely rejuvenated all three guys and Kofi has been featured well as part of the "speed squad" with Xavier and with Big E. There were a couple of really fun six man matches early in the summer and their TV match with the Bar is probably the best SDL tag match this year. He will definitely be in the lower part of my list if he keeps up the quality of his/New Day's matches through the final quarter of the year."
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Post by concrete1992 on Mar 17, 2019 21:27:34 GMT -5
125. El Desperado (21 ballots, 863 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Liam (19) Last Year’s Rank: 527 124. Travis Banks (22 ballots, 865 points, Average Rank 62)
High Voter: Aqeel (22) Last Year’s Rank: 64 123. Miyu Yamashita (11 ballots, 895 points, Average Rank 18)
[HIGHEST RANKED 11 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Alex, JML (3) Last Year’s Rank: 596 "Extremely high on my list all year and she just keeps rising. No one in wrestling carries themselves like the badass ace of the company like she does. Maybe doesn't have the highest volume just due to where she works, but I've still got two ****1/2s & two ****1/4s for her in singles alone, and she's a huge part of many fun tags (including an absolute highlight of DDT's Judgment show this year). Clear MVP of a really good company this year. Should get consideration." 122. Naoya Nomura (17 ballots, 903 points, Average Rank 45) [HIGHEST RANKED 17 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: bucky (8) Last Year’s Rank: 237 121. Kaito Kiyomiya (21 ballots, 907 points, Average Rank 56)
High Voter: Lee Mowatt (7) Last Year’s Rank: 547 120. Cesaro (23 ballots, 905 points, Average Rank 60)
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (8) Last Year’s Rank: 18 "The switch to SDL did him and Sheamus no favors as they were basically MIA from Mania till just before Summerslam. Have had some very good matches with the New Day since and Cesaro had a really good match with Jason Jordan (remember him?) earlier this year that might eek him out a spot on my list. The pickings are sadly slim for him at this point." "I feel like tag team wrestling in general has taken a dive in WWE. I feel like the only mainly tag worker from main roster WWE who's for sure on my list right now is Big E. Unfortunately they just don't seem like a priority right now so guys like Cesaro, Sheamus and the Usos who had GREAT years last year are on the outside looking in. A lot of talented wrestlers with little to nothing to do because of roster bloat. It feels INSANE to not have a worker the caliber of Cesaro on my top 100 right now, but here we are." 119. Ortiz (26 ballots, 925 points, Average Rank 64) [LOWEST RANKED 26 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom Dixon (21) Last Year’s Rank: 375 118. Cuatrero (18 ballots, 941 points, Average Rank 43)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (11) Last Year’s Rank: 266 117. Kyle Fletcher (18 ballots, 953 points, Average Rank 46)
High Voter: Aqeel (6) Last Year’s Rank: 241 116. Hechicero (15 ballots, 954 points, Average Rank 39)
[HIGHETS RANKED 15 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Damián (3) Last Year’s Rank: 116 "Hechicero has been having another great year that maybe people are talking about but I have not seen it. He's had several singles matches, which is where he is really able to shine. I have my notes on the matches below, but Hechicero is just fantastic at laying out smart, well built matches that flow logically and consistently from spot to spot building up to a finish. His singles matches really show this but it also comes through in the trios. He's in my top 10 right now, and if he continues to get time for these matches (and good opponents) he has a shot at being #1." "Hechicero has had some great matches in the past 2 months, all but cementing a spot in my top 10 and maybe even top 5. The match vs. Daga would be 5* if not for the stupid finish, and the Marvin match suffers a similar fate. I hope his PWG match is worth watching and leads to more US bookings as he is one of the best going today." "Hechicero is probably the best pure wrestler in the world, and not in some corny sense of "pure", like Sabre's technical prowess where who could possibly give a fuck, because him dropping the straps is as good as anything." 115. Santana (25 ballots, 963 points, Average Rank 60) [LOWEST RANKED 25 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom Dixon (20) Last Year’s Rank: 372 114. YOH (32 ballots, 981 points, Average Rank 69) [LOWEST RANKED 32 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom Dixon (33) Last Year’s Rank: 304 113. Eddie Kingston (16 ballots, 995 points, Average Rank 39)
[HIGHEST RANKED 16 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Andrew Lacelle (7) Last Year’s Rank: 192 "No idea why he hasn't had a thread yet. Has had two legit MOTY candidates with the Yehi match and the AIW Williams match as well as a fun Dickinson brawl in Maine. Need to dig deeper, but his top two are up there with anyones top two" "Yeah he should have had a thread a long time ago. Great kind of under-the-radar year. Don't think I saw him have a match less than fun and he had several flat out greats ones. I could easily see him in my top 20." "Everyone watch him get a very good match out of 2018 MVP and tell me Kingston isn't a genius of the goddamn ring." 112. Drew McIntyre (25 ballots, 1008 points, Average Rank 59)
High Voter: Adam Blount (24) Last Year’s Rank: 69 "Pretty much all of his quality stuff this year has been with one or members of the Shield, mostly Rollins. He's in consideration for maybe a bottom ten spot, but if he gets some quality singles matches in the next two months (Braun?), his stock will rise. I expect 2019 will be a very good year for him, but 2018 was not on the level of where he was last year." 111. CIMA (19 ballots, 1012 points, Average Rank 45)
High Voter: Ryan Cooke (5) Last Year’s Rank: 255 110. Suwama (24 ballots, 1014 points, Average Rank 53)
High Voter: Siobhan de Havilland (7) Last Year’s Rank: 105 109. Chris Brookes (20 ballots, 1016 points, Average Rank 50)
[ONLY 20 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (7) Last Year’s Rank: 179 "Not someone I think of when talking about great singles matches, but like Trent seven his resume is almost completely built on tag stuff for me. He's had a variety of partners this year, and ironically his main partner in Kid Lykos might be my least favorite. His team with Tim Thatcher has given some solid, good but not great matches, but going back to John Gresham as the original CCK has been really good. Highlights for this pairing are their Progress NYC match against LAX, A 6 man tag with Thatcher at Chapter 81 against Bss, against David starr and Jack sexsmith in seattle, vs. Aussie Open in Rev Pro, and then Brookes ended teaming with AR Fox against Flamita and Bandido for another banger after Gresham was "injured" and had to be removed from the match. He's sitting in my top 30 now and I don't think that changes much before I submit my ballot." 108. Big E (27 ballots, 1020 points, Average Rank 60) [LOWEST RANKED 27 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Tom (13) Last Year’s Rank: 30 107. Mayu Iwatani (18 ballots, 1048 points, Average Rank 37) [HIGHEST RANKED 18 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Alex (10) Last Year’s Rank: 146 106. Flamita (31 ballots, 1074 points, Average Rank 65)
[ONLY 31 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Warpenguin55 (20) Last Year’s Rank: 254 "He's been largely overlooked due to Bandido's break out year in North America, and even though I do have Bandido higher at the moment, Flamita has also had a very strong year. His team with Bandido are in the conversation for tag team of the year for me, with great matches against the teams of Fenix and Rey Horus, AR Fox and Chris Brookes, Lucha Bros, and a few solid ones against Wentz and Xavier. On his own Flamita has had some good stuff against Puma King and Fenix, but the tag stuff has been his real highlight so far this year. Got him right outside the top 50 right now." "In an age where there seem to be no shortage of high-fliers, Flamita still manages to stand out. Really good tag work with Bandito and loads of fun multi-man matches. Easy pick." 105. HARASHIMA (22 ballots, 1082 points, Average Rank 50)
High Voter: pto (8) Last Year’s Rank: 154 104. Ricky Marvin (19 ballots, 1103 points, Average Rank 44)
[HIGHEST RANKED 19 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: Jon Hunt, Thrifty, Damian (5) Last Year’s Rank: - "When it comes to i think so far the run away guy is Ricky Marvin. Since going independent from AAA he has had a lot of great matches starting with Keyra in what will likely be the best intergender match this year, the Ciclope match, Kawato (my current match of the year), Barbaro Cavernario, and of course the Dr. Cerebro stuff in IWRG. While I love PCO's comeback story, for me Ricky Marvin is having comeback of the year so far" "I am LOVING our new Satanico in Ricky Marvin of all people. Every match mentioned is a blast, but tags with Eterno & Keyra have also been gems. He's been doing this for 25 years and can still keep up with 20 year-olds while having a modern classic feud with Cerebro." "Ricky has been awesome in a variety of roles too. In the Keyra match, he's a jaw-dropping bumper while working de facto heel. In the Cavenario match, he works as a fiery babyface. In the Dr Cerebro feud, he shifts from expert technician to brawler seamlessly. Also, the Negro Casas match is an great hoot." "If voting was today, I'm pretty sure Ricky Marvin would be my wrestler of the year, and if not #1 then easily in the top 5. Marvin can't (or doesn't, at least) fly quite as much or quite as well as he used to, but he has instead focused on getting meaner and hitting harder. His feud with Dr. Cerebro was amazing. Their title match was a great twist on traditional lucha title matches and is one of my top matches of the year. The apuesta match is similarly great. Marvin has been great at working smart, creative comebacks into all of his matches so that they make sense and don't just switch from one guy's offense to the other's. Xoanafacetico calling Marvin "our Satanico" is too accurate as he swings back and forth between having great technical displays and wild, stiff brawls, just like Satanico did (and does!). I think my list below has every Marvin match this year up to his NOAH stuff, which I have not seen." 103. Cody (26 ballots, 1155 points, Average Rank 55)
High Voter: Adam Blount (10) Last Year’s Rank: 107 "Forgetting everything outside the ring, he has been continuously solid throughout the year. I would take his 2017 over his run this year and if he makes the list for me, it will be at a lower spot than he was at last year. His multi-man stuff with the Bucks and others have been good while I liked the Aldis match probably more than most/more than any previous Aldis match I've seen. That would probably be as close as I would go to naming a stand out match and I think many only remember the bells and whistles of the match and ignore what I thought was probably his best in ring performance since his match with Okada last year. Bottom quarter for me at best as of today." "Love Cody for his character work and what he's been able to accomplish outside the ring, but from a purely in-ring standpoint he remains incredibly average. Granted I thought the WK Ibushi match was great and the U.S. title match with Juice was very good as well, but nothing else has really stood out or been actively good." 102. Chris Jericho (29 ballots, 1161 points, Average Rank 58)
[ONLY 29 BALLOT WRESTLER]
High Voter: José Maia (9) Last Year’s Rank: 210 "Three matches so far this year and at least 1-2 more to come is probably not enough to give him fair consideration. However, the singles matches were both high level title matches and one was a title win. You can quibble about the logic and booking of his win over Naito and the quality of the match was nothing worth writing home about. On the flip side, the WK match with Omega was one of my favorites this year and a very different type of match than he's been doing over the last few years. So, right now, probably on the outside looking in. Might change with a more active fall schedule." "As low as his output has been, middle-aged brawler Jericho is the best he's looked in years. Probably not enough to rank too highly, but might be a perfect vanity pick." 101. AR Fox (27 ballots, 1169 points, Average Rank 58)
High Voter: Chris Gibbons (7) Last Year’s Rank: 161 "Timing worked out very well for him especially when it comes to Evolve. Just as he comes back, there's a sudden exodus of main event talent and he slides very nicely into the upper card. He's done quite well and having the Skulk by his side has really added so much to his act. His matches with Keith Lee, Myron Reed and DJZ are probably my favorites so far this year in Evolve and he's had some good stuff in Beyond and AAW too. His consistency has him looking like a Top 40 ranking as of now." "Was pretty surprised when I had him in my top 25 at the midway point. He's sitting at 32nd now. I only see him in Evolve and AAW but he's been good in both places. I figured he'd make my list, but not as high as he is now." "Have him just outside the top half with the caveat of having seen slightly less of his catalog than those above him. I'm convinced that the Ospreay match from Mania weekend would be burned into everyone's memory if that wasn't Will's, like, 3rd best match of the weekend. He's had some good tag stuff in AAW this year with Myron Reed and with Evolve in the position it is, he should get some prime opportunities in the last couple of months."
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