#TheChris100 2022: #40-21

 

One more day after this!!

 
40. Wardlow (19 ballots, 894 points) – LOWEST RANKED 19 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 45
High vote: Parker Smith (9)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. CM Punk (AEW, 1/12)
-          vs. Lance Archer (AEW, 4/27)
-          vs. W. Morrissey (AEW, 5/4)
-          vs. Shawn Spears (AEW, 5/25)
-          vs. MJF (AEW, 5/29)
-          vs. 20 Plaintiffs (AEW, 6/15)
-          vs. Orange Cassidy (AEW, 7/13)
-          w/ Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood vs. Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin & Jay Lethal (AEW, 9/4)
-          vs. Brian Cage (AEW, 10/5)
-          vs. Samoa Joe (AEW, 12/28)
 
"A very likeable powerbombing buddy. That Wardlow vs. 20 plaintiffs match is still stuck with me. Wardlow rocks!!" ~ Henry
 
 
39. Yuka Sakazaki (12 ballots, 917 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 12 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 129
High vote: Michael Clapham (3)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Mahiro Kiryu (TJPW, 1/29)
-          w/ Mizuki & Shoko Nakajima vs. Marika Kobashi, Miyu Yamashita & Nao Kakuta (TJPW, 2/11)
-          w/ Mizuki vs. Miu Watanabe & Rika Tatsumi (TJPW, 3/19)
-          w/ Mizuki vs. Arisu Endo & Suzume (TJPW, 4/9)
-          vs. Riho (AEW, 5/4)
-          vs. Shoko Nakajima (CyberFight, 6/12)
-          vs. Suzume (TJPW, 8/13)
-          vs. Miu Watanabe (TJPW .8/14)
-          w/ Miyu Yamashita & Mizuki vs. Miu Watanabe, Rika Tatsumi & Shoko Nakajima (TJPW, 8/28)
-          vs. Shoko Nakajima (TJPW, 10/9)
 
“There’s a lot of talent from Tokyo Joshi Pro that has broken out as some of the best in the world, and many of them have made this list in years past and present: Maki Itoh, Miyu Yamashita, Yuki Kamifuku, Shoko Nakajima, etc. They’ve all been great for years and only have improved as they get more seasoning in the ring. Yuka Sakazaki has been great for years, but in 2022 she took the jump from one of the best in the company to the best in Tokyo Joshi Pro. That’s not an insult to her competition; they’re incredible. Yuka Sakazaki is just on another level. She’s more polished, more aggressive, straight up meaner than ever. When she put away Shoko Nakajima to take the Tokyo Princess Championship, it was one of the most emphatic victories of the year. I can’t wait to see what she does from here.” ~ Chris
 
"Yuka Sakazaki matches evoke so much emotion. Whether it's the happy fun of a match at a pool or the tenseness of her match with Miu Watnabe in the Princess Cup FInals. I think seeing her wrestle live last year is one of my favorite moments live at a show. She is also half of one of my favorite tag teams of the year with Mizuki" ~ Henry

 
38. Hook (23 ballots, 919 points) – LOWEST RANKED 23 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 34
High vote: Fin Bergin (8)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Aaron Solo (AEW, 1/5)
-          vs. QT Marshall (AEW, 3/6)
-          vs. Anthony Henry (AEW, 4/20)
-          vs. JD Drake (AEW, 5/4)
-          vs. The DKC (AEW, 6/22)
-          vs. Ricky Starks (AEW, 7/27)
-          vs. Angelo Parker (AEW, 9/4)
-          w/ Action Bronson vs. Angelo Parker & Matt Menard (AEW, 9/21)
-          vs. Ari Daivari (AEW, 10/21)
-          vs. Lee Moriarty (AEW, 11/18)
 
“Hook is still largely working a lot of glorified squashes, but he’s starting to work longer and more varied matches. It feels like he has a ton more in his bag than he’s let on so far, but hasn’t quite shown it because the booking hasn’t called for it. Even with the limited amount of time he’s had in the ring, he’s still one of the smoothest-looking rookies we’ve seen in years. When they finally pull the trigger on a big Hook run, it’s going to turn heads.” ~ Chris
 
“He passed the test - the joke's not funny any more and he's still great. One of the most easily enjoyable guys on the entire roster, when you sit down for a Hook match you know exactly what you're getting and it's always exactly as good as you'd hoped. The FTW Title stuff has been fun but it's time for him to move on to bigger things, actual matches for actual titles and against actual opponents. Shoutouts to tag teammate Action Bronson, who if I was taking this a little less seriously would've ended up in my Top 10.” ~ alistair from twitter
 
“This is a total vibes pick because he has a lot of work to do on the selling and psychology, but like, it’s been so fun watching him do a cross between a judoka and cosplay of his dad that I can’t not give him the token last spot on my ballot.” ~ TH
 
 
37. Wheeler Yuta (17 ballots, 951 points)
Last year’s rank: 724
High vote: alistair from twitter (8)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Bryan Danielson (AEW, 3/30)
-          vs. Jon Moxley (AEW, 4/6)
-          vs. DOUKI (NJPW, 5/19)
-          vs. El Desperado (NJPW, 5/22)
-          vs. TJP (NJPW, 5/31)
-          w/ Eddie Kingston & Shota Umino vs. Chris Jericho, Minoru Suzuki & Sammy Guevara (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          Blood and Guts (AEW, 6/29)
-          vs. Dante Martin vs. Rey Fenix vs. Rush (AEW, 8/31)
-          vs. Daniel Garcia (ROH, 12/10)
-          vs. Swerve Strickland (AEW, 12/28)
 
“I feel like he hit a wall after the Mox match on Rampage that he didn’t get past until after the voting period for 2022 ended, but man, he still came up big in a lot of spots. Another big prospect for the future.” ~ TH
 
 
36. Jade Cargill (18 ballots, 970 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 18 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 65
High vote: Parker Smith (3)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Anna Jay (AEW, 1/21)
-          vs. AQA (AEW, 2/9)
-          vs. Tay Conti (AEW, 3/6)
-          vs. Marina Shafir (AEW, 4/20)
-          vs. Anna Jay (AEW, 5/29)
-          w/ Kiera Hogan vs. Athena & Willow Nightingale (AEW, 7/20)
-          vs. Athena (AEW, 9/4)
-          vs. Willow Nightingale (AEW, 10/7)
-          w/ Leila Grey & Red Velvet vs. Kiera Hogan, Madison Rayne & Skye Blue (AEW, 12/7)
-          vs. Kiera Hogan (AEW, 12/28)
 
 
35. “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes (19 ballots, 1014 points)
Last year’s rank: 9
High vote: pedro (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Sammy Guevara (AEW, 1/26)
-          vs. Seth Rollins (WWE, 4/2)
-          vs. The Miz (WWE, 4/11)
-          vs. Kevin Owens (WWE, 4/18)
-          w/ Ezekiel, Randy Orton & Riddle vs. Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Kevin Owens & Seth Rollins (AEW, 4/25)
-          vs. Seth Rollins (WWE, 5/8)
-          vs. Theory (WWE, 5/9)
-          vs. The Miz (WWE, 5/23)
-          vs. Seth Rollins (WWE, 6/5)
 
“I’ve slandered Seth Rollins as a worker more than maybe anyone else, and Cody got a four-star match out of him right out the gate in his WWE run. Unreal.” ~ Chris
 
 
34. Gunther (14 ballots, 1034 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 14 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 64
High vote: Andy (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Roderick Strong (WWE, 1/18)
-          vs. Bron Breakker (WWE, 4/5)
-          vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (WWE, 8/12)
-          vs. Sheamus (WWE, 9/3)
-          w/ Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser vs. Butch, Ridge Holland & Sheamus (WWE, 9/9)
-          vs. Sheamus (WWE, 10/7)
-          w/ Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser vs. Butch, Ridge Holland & Sheamus (WWE, 10/8)
-          vs. Rey Mysterio (WWE, 10/28)
-          w/ Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser vs. Kofi Kingston, Ricochet & Xavier Woods (WWE, 12/9)
-          vs. Ricochet (WWE, 12/16)
 
“Gunther feels like one of the biggest NXT call-up success stories in some time. It’s not exactly surprising for those who’ve been watching him. Before he even went to NXT he developed a formula that really worked and it’s translated well into the WWE TV style of wrestling. All he needed was the push to showcase his talents, and Triple H has largely let him cook so far.” ~ Chris
 
“Every five years or so, the WWE stumbles ass backwards into treating the Intercontinental Championship seriously. This year, it became a platform for the former WALTER to have a series of great matches on the main roster. Between having the best matches of Sheamus’ career in a long while and having lowkey but still great matches against the likes of Rey Mysterio and Roderick Strong, he’s easily one of the best parts of WWE TV all year.” ~ Joseph Montecillo
 
 
 33. Rey Fenix (20 ballots, 1049 points)
Last year’s rank: 59
High vote: Fin Bergin (4)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Dante Martin (AEW, 5/4)
-          vs. Kyle O’Reilly (AEW, 5/18)
-          w/ Penta Oscuro vs. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (AEW, 6/3)
-          vs. Bandido vs. El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Laredo Kid vs. Taurus (AAA, 6/18)
-          vs. Andrade El Idolo (AEW, 6/22)
-          vs. Bandido vs. Laredo Kid vs. Taurus (JCP, 7/31)
-          w/ Penta Oscuro vs. Andrade El Idolo & Rush (AEW, 8/10)
-          vs. Dante Martin vs. Rush vs. Wheeler Yuta (AEW, 8/31)
-          w/ PAC & Penta El 0M vs. Chuck Taylor, Orange Cassidy & Trent Beretta (AEW, 9/7)
-          vs. El Hijo del Vikingo (AAA, 10/15)
 
“He continues to make the most batshit spots look routine. I know he missed a chunk of the year thanks to that gnarly injury, but he came back and still fearlessly dazzled everyone and made everything he was a part of pop off the screen. Just an amazing athlete who gets what pro wrestling should be about.” ~ TH
 
 
32. Powerhouse Hobbs (22 ballots, 1066 points) – ONLY 22 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 54
High vote: Heidi (6)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Dante Martin (AEW, 1/12)
-          vs. Matt Sydal (AEW, 2/9)
-          vs. Dante Martin (AEW, 2/16)
-          vs. Keith Lee (AEW, 3/;30)
-          w/ Ricky Starks vs. Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland (AEW, 4/13)
-          w/ Ricky Starks vs. Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland vs. Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus (AEW, 5/29)
-          w/ Ricky Starks vs. Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland vs. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (AEW, 7/13)
-          vs. Ricky Starks (AEW, 9/4)
-          vs. Ricky Starks (AEW, 9/21)
-          vs. Samoa Joe vs. Wardlow (AEW, 11/19)
 
“Was kinda bummed that the Starks feud was a bit of a dud, but when he got to show out, he was still a super entertaining big man bruiser.” ~ TH
 
 
31. Villano IV (17 ballots, 1073 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 17 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: NR
High vote: damián, Mr. Notebook, Dan Rice (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. LA Park (AAA, 4/30)
-          w/ Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. vs. Brazo Celestial, Brazo Cibernetico & Brazo de Oro Jr. (LC, 6/5)
-          vs. Psycho Clown (AAA, 6/18)
-          w/ Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. vs. Negro Navarro, Trauma I & Trauma II vs. Brazo de Oro Jr., La Mascara & Maximo (AULL, 6/25)
-          vs. Canek vs. Penta El 0M (Big Lucha, 7/1)
-          vs. Blue Demon Jr. vs. DMT Azul vs. LA Park (Sanchez, 7/22)
-          w/ Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. vs. Brazo Celestial, Brazo Cibernetico & Brazo de Oro Jr. (El Cholo de Tijuana, 7/30)
-          w/ Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. vs. El Hijo de LA Park, LA Park & LA Park Jr. (LLB/GAW, 8/6)
-          vs. Pentagon Jr. (AAA, 10/15)
-          w/ Pagano vs. Cibernetico & Pentagon Jr. (AAA/Sanchez, 12/25)
 
“AAA’s Ruleta de la Muerte tournament was one of its biggest successes of the year, as eight men worked three different Triplemania branded events in the hopes they wouldn’t lose their masks. Villano IV was the unfortunate victim to the brutal gauntlet of LA Park, Psycho Clown and Pentagon Jr. He ultimately had to give up his mask with losses to those three men, but damn if he didn’t go down swinging. His emotional, bloody brawls in that tournament stand as three of the year’s best matches. Add in a handful of great brawls on the lucha indies, and the 40-year old veteran had a truly magnificent year.” ~ Chris
 
“As someone who doesn’t love the in-house AAA style, Villano IV is a breath of fresh air. An old man who probably couldn’t do half the things his younger contemporaries can, and thus ends up having to go a more elemental and better route for it. GIF all the 630s and rope walks you want, none of it can make me feel in the same way as this veteran throwing punches like his life depended on it. There’s a handful of people who can get a match as great as his unmasking match out of Pentagon Jr, and it says a lot that Villano IV accomplished that.” ~ Joseph Montecillo
 
 
30. “The Aerial Assassin” Will Ospreay (20 ballots, 1099 points)
Last year’s rank: 622
High vote: Austin Musselwhite (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 1/5)
-          vs. Michael Oku (RevPro, 1/29)
-          vs. BUSHI (NJPW, 3/6)
-          vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (NJPW, 3/21)
-          vs. Jon Moxley (NJPW, 4/16)
-          vs. Orange Cassidy (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          w/ Aaron Henare, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb vs. Dick Togo, EVIL, SHO & Yujiro Takhashi (NJPW, 7/17)
-          vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW, 8/17)
-          vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 8/18)
-          vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW, 11/5)
 
“Will Ospreay has never made The Chris 100 proper. He hasn’t even made it close. In the past two years, he hasn’t even broken the top 500. Yet suddenly he’s in the top 30 while the voterbase demographics haven’t changed much. What gives? Less of a focus on the superhero shit, more focus on the strengths in his offense, a great stable of workers around him, and a hell of a lineup of opponents.” ~ Chris
 
Will Ospreay will be the consensus greatest wrestler of all time when he politics his way into wrestling Robbo at the Ryogoku Koukugikan.” ~ brendan durant
 
 
29. “Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (24 ballots, 1101 points) – LOWEST RANKED 24 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 159 points
High vote: alistair from twitter (2)
 
Recommended matches
-          w/ Kris Statlander vs. Adam Cole & Britt Baker (AEW, 1/19)
-          vs. Adam Cole (AEW, 1/26)
-          vs. Will Ospreay (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          vs. Wardlow (AEW, 7/13)
-          vs. Jay Lethal (AEW, 8/3)
-          w/ Chuck Taylor & Trent Beretta vs. Ari Daivari, Parker Boudreaux & Slim J (AEW, 8/17)
-          w/ Chuck Taylor & Trent Beretta vs. Adam Page, Alex Reynolds & John Silver (AEW, 9/2)
-          vs. Katsuyori Shibata (AEW, 11/4)
-          vs. QT Marshall (AEW, 11/30)
-          vs. Trent Beretta (AEW, 12/28)
 
“How many times must a guy prove himself before he is considered proven? Other than having one of the most versatile bodies of work in american wrestling last year (pure comedy against the likes of Ethan Page and Wardlow, real drama when paired up with Katsuyori Shibata, nasty hardcore stuff with Adam Cole, "great wrestling" in the typical sense when given an opponent like Will Ospreay) Orange consistently lived up to the reputation he's developed among those in the know by dragging near-greatness out of everyone he worked with. A real case could be made for him being AEW's Eddy Guerrerro, a genuine superworker who never fucks up, never hurts anybody and whose everything he does looks great - if you aren't on board with Pockets by this point it's because you're choosing not to be.” ~ alistair from twitter
 
 
28. “El Toro Blanco” Rush (26 ballots, 1124 points) – LOWEST RANKED 26 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 413
High vote: Cam Stewart (8)
 
Recommended matches
-          w/ La Bestia del Ring & Vangellys vs. Chris Masters, LA Park & Marco Corleone (Robles, 4/29)
-          vs. Penta El 0M (AEW, 7/6)
-          vs. Dragon Lee (ROH, 7/23)
-          vs. Jon Moxley (AEW, 7/27)
-          w/ Andrade El Idolo vs. Penta El 0M & Rey Fenix (AEW, 8/10)
-          w/ Andrade El Idolo & Dragon Lee vs. Kenny Omega, Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (AEW, 8/17)
-          vs. Adam Page (AEW, 10/5)
-          vs. Bandido (AEW, 11/9)
-          w/ La Bestia del Ring vs. Aereo & LA Park (Hugo produce, 11/13)
-          w/ Dralistico vs. AR Fox & Blake Christian (ROH, 12/10)
 
“I got to see Rush’s debut in AEW, and I lost my damn mind. He’s been a breath of fresh air for the company, providing his high-level brand of brawling to basically any type of match he’s needed in. He looks like a killer whether he’s gunning for a main eventer or beating the shit out of Blake Christian on Dark. Rush is really one of those workers who makes this all look real.” ~ Chris
 
 
27. Tetsuya Naito (20 ballots, 1182 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 20 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 12
High vote: The Bebbler (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Jeff Cobb (NJPW, 1/5)
-          w/ BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA & Shingo Takagi vs. Aleja, Katsuhiko Nakajima, Kenoh, Manabu Soya & Tadasuke (NJPW/NOAH, 1/8)
-          vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 2/20)
-          vs. Yujiro Takahashi (NJPW, 3/2)
-          vs. Jeff Cobb (NJPW, 3/20)
-          vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 3/26)
-          vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (NJPW, 3/27)
-          vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 5/1)
-          vs. Will Ospreay (NJPW, 8/17)
-          vs. Will Ospreay (NJPW, 11/5)
 
“Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Tetsuya Naito put up an absolute killer year against basically any opponent of any quality put against him, making them look incredible with brutal bumps and selling, while also getting plenty of his dazzling offense in. It wasn’t the biggest year of his career, but damn if he wasn’t the most reliable hand in New Japan for yet another year.” ~ Chris
 
 
26. Kaito Kiyomiya (19 ballots, 1196 points) – HIGHEST RANKED 19 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 4
High vote: Dean (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Kenoh (NOAH, 1/1)
-          w/ Keiji Mutoh vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada (NJPW/NOAH, 1/8)
-          vs. Yoshinari Ogawa (NOAH, 2/12)
-          vs. Go Shiozaki (NOAH, 4/30)
-          vs. Ninja Mack (NOAH, 5/4)
-          w/ Daisuke Harada & YO-HEY vs. HAYATA, Rob Van Dam & Yoshinari Ogawa (CyberFight, 6/12)
-          vs. Keiji Mutoh (NOAH, 7/16)
-          vs. Masa Kitamiya (NOAH, 8/13)
-          vs. Masakatsu Funaki (NOAH, 8/19)
-          vs. Hideki Suzuki (NOAH, 9/3)
 
“Kaito spent 2022 beating a lot of his demons. He finally got his win over the legendary Keiji Mutoh before winning the N-1 Victory and beating the monstrous Kazuyuki Fujita for the GHC Heavyweight title. NOAH’s ace put on banger after banger, putting the company on his back in yet another transition year for the storied promotion. It didn’t quite reach the highs for me that some of the COVID years he carried the company (this year’s Kaito/Ogawa match was simply ‘really fucking good’ instead of ‘one of the best matches of the decade’ like the last few have been), but my goodness does he still feel so fresh as a true ace of a promotion that’s accomplished so much at such a ridiculously young age.” ~ Chris
 
Kaito spends much of the year getting his ass whooped by cool shooters. Luckily, he’s very good at that, and at drawing in support and sympathy so that even if his wins feel somewhat sudden or abrupt, you’re just happy to see the guy succeed anyway.” ~ Joseph Montecillo
 
 
25. Jeff Jarrett (21 ballots, 1222 points) – ONLY 21 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: NR
High vote: Luke (5)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Effy (GCW, 1/23)
-          w/ Jay Lethal vs. Andrade El Idolo & Ric Flair (JCP, 7/31)
-          w/ Jay Lethal vs. Darby Allin & Sting (AEW, 11/19)
-          vs. Matt Hardy (WrestleCade, 11/26)
-          w/ Jay Lethal vs. Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen (AEW, 11/30)
-          w/ Jay Lethal vs. Anthony Bowens & Billy Gunn (AEW, 12/21)
 
“The earth is not your place
The pale skin is on your face
If you step inside with me
You will see a king” ~ Dale Oliver, “My World”
 
 
24. Keith Lee (26 ballots, 1301 points)
Last year’s rank: 556
High vote: Flae (10)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. QT Marshall (AEW, 3/9)
-          vs. Powerhouse Hobbs (AEW, 3/30)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Powerhouse Hobbs & Ricky Starks (AEW, 4/13)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Powerhouse Hobbs & Ricky Starks vs. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (AEW, 7/13)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Anthony Bowens & Max Caster (AEW, 9/4)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Anthony Bowens & Max Caster (AEW, 9/21)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood (AEW, 10/26)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. Anthony Bowens & Max Caster (AEW, 11/19)
-          w/ Swerve Strickland vs. JD Griffey & Shane Taylor (ROH, 12/10)
 
“He became a fat piece of shit and started wrestling like a fat piece of shit. His matches have become so compelling since he really started emphasizing his size. Every single beef wrestler should study his match on Rampage vs. Powerhouse Hobbs to understand how to imbue meaning into two big bitches colliding into each other.” ~ Flae
 
“Adam Cole's disappearance from the face of the earth makes Keith Lee 2022's most Gifted By The Booking guy on a major roster. Somehow barely being able to move worked totally to his favour, instead of doing ugly parody versions of cruiserweight spots he started focusing on his actual strengths (hitting hard, tossing guys around like they weigh nothing at all) and getting to be the nuclear option in a tag team with Swerve Strickland shielded him from any holes in his game being seriously exposed, as well as giving him opportunities to do his stuff against guys like Anthony Bowens, El Desperado, Shane Taylor and the horrifically underrated Varsity Athletes Tony Nese and Josh Woods. Big Fat Funky clearly still has something to offer, and as long as Tony's able to keep deploying him in a tactical manner and doesn't try to cram his big ass into that Hangman Page mould we're all good.” ~ alistair from twitter
 
“Felt like he had some rust to start off his AEW run, and that’s totally understandable. But he still got to show what made him special, especially in the rare spots where he leaned into the boos for his team.” ~ TH
 
 
23. “Hangman” Adam Page (23 ballots, 1332 points)
Last year’s rank: 33
High vote: TH (4)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Bryan Danielson (AEW, 1/5)
-          vs. Lance Archer (AEW, 2/9)
-          vs. Dante Martin (AEW, 3/9)
-          vs. CM Punk (AEW, 5/29)
-          vs. David Finlay (AEW, 6/8)
-          vs. Adam Cole vs. Jay White vs. Kazuchika Okada (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          w/ Alex Reynolds & John Silver vs. Chuck Taylor, Orange Cassidy & Trent Beretta (AEW, 9/2)
-          w/ Alex Reynolds & John Silver vs. Kenny Omega, Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (AEW, 9/4)
-          vs. Rush (AEW, 10/5)
-          vs. Jon Moxley (AEW, 10/18)
 
“Of all the Elite guys, Hangman is the only one I would be crestfallen if he left the company. He keeps putting it together, honing his big roughneck style for the modern era in the ring. He’s the perfect example of a guy who could have become annoying as hell had he had a chance to run with the ball in New Japan, but instead used the restraints of television to become a concise and important wrestler.” ~ TH
 
 
22. Konosuke Takeshita (26 ballots, 1359 points)
Last year’s rank: 292
High vote: Gratliff, Henry, Heidi (1)
 
Recommended matches
-          vs. Tetsuya Endo (DDT, 3/20)
-          vs. Jay Lethal (AEW, 5/4)
-          vs. Adam Page (AEW, 5/18)
-          vs. Mike Bailey (WCPW, 6/10)
-          vs. Claudio Castagnoli (AEW, 8/5)
-          w/ MAO & Yasu Urano vs. Daisuke Sasaki, Dick Togo & KANON (DDT, 8/20)
-          vs. Daisuke Sasaki (DDT, 9/10)
-          vs. Kazusada Higuchi (DDT, 9/25)
-          w/ Jun Akyama vs. Eddie Kingston & Ortiz (AEW, 11/18)
-          vs. Jon Moxley (AEW, 12/7)
 
“Takeshita has been a revelation since coming over, and he’s the best argument for someone to spend the money and sub onto Wrestle Universe. He showed that he could wrestle at all sizes against a wide array of opponents, almost a Swiss army knife wrestler. The best part about him is that he’s so emotive and expressive in the ring that it doesn’t take much for him to draw you into a match, frothily rooting for him to overcome all the odds.” ~ TH
 
"Konosuke Takeshita has been really good but I think this year he really improved on having really compact sprint matches. So many wrestlers I really enjoy had their best match of the year against Takeshita. He's in my favorite match of the year and one of the best DDT matches of all time against Kazusada Higuchi." ~ Henry
 
21. Claudio Castagnoli/Cesaro (28 ballots, 1372 points) – ONLY 28 BALLOT WRESTLER
Last year’s rank: 279
High vote: Mike (2)
 
Recommended matches
-          w/ Ricochet vs. Ridge Holland & Sheamus (WWE, 1/28)
-          vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (AEW/NJPW, 6/26)
-          Blood & Guts (AEW, 6/29)
-          vs. Jake Hager (AEW, 7/13)
-          vs. Konosuke Takeshita (AEW, 8/5)
-          vs. Dustin Rhodes (AEW, 8/24)
-          vs. Chris Jericho (AEW, 9/21)
-          vs. QT Marshall (AEW, 10/18)
-          w/ Wheeler Yuta vs. Daniel Garcia & Jake Hager (AEW, 12/7)
-          w/ Jon Moxley vs. Dante Martin & Darius Martin (AEW, 12/28)
 
“I am so glad he got out of WWE. He’s been able to spread his wings, and he turned in some really great performances since joining AEW.” ~ TH

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