2018 has seen mega wrestling debuts with mainstream appeal, independent stars dominant the internet
scene, the incredible comeback of modern-day legends, women actually being treated seriously
in WWE and NXT call-ups to the main roster. Ok, well, maybe not the NXT call-ups part.
But who are absolute best when packaged alongside their character, promo skills, and whether
they can actually move the all important audience numbers. I’m Oli Davis, and us here at WrestleTalk
have made a very bad attempt of answering that question with The Top 10 Best Wrestlers
of 2018...
And start posting your favourite wrestlers of the year in the comments below to make
us feel bad about all the ones we left off.
10. Ronda Rousey
It seems Oli and I spent a lot of 2017 talking about the rumours of WWE signing former UFC
star Ronda Rousey to their world of professional wrestling - or Sports Entertainment - and
she came in with quite the bit of fanfare at the Royal Rumble in January 2018. However
it was a rocky start for Ronnie – with her promos lacking impact and that deer-in-headlight
look when it came to doing moves. That all changed at WrestleMania, when she was part
of easily the best match of the whole night. Since then she’s had consistently great
matches with the likes of Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax and Charlotte Flair – in fact she’s
yet to have a bad match in WWE. You could almost say she has a 100% success rate in
match quality. And while some still aren’t keen on her promo work, her in-ring ability
and quickness to pick this game up – even if her matches are rehearsed within an inch
of their lives – Ronda Rousey has had a terrific 2018.
9. Pentagon Jr.
Pentagon Jr is one of those few characters in wrestling that actually gives me chills.
When a lot of luchadors seem fairly fun - looking at you Lucha House Party, put down the pinatas
- Pentagon is the other end of the spectrum. He’s got a seriously spooky look, electric
intensity and is one heck of an in ring performer. No wonder both he and brother Rey Fenix, the
Lucha Brothers if you will, are constantly on the rumour list for talent WWE is desperate
to sign. But it’s not like he’s had a fallow year outside of Vince’s company - he
bested Austin Aries to become Impact World Champion, had a string of belters with Sami
Callihan, plus a return to AAA. And he already looks to be starting off 2019 with a bang,
with a shot at Impact Tag Champs LAX on January 6th. I have zero fear that 2019 is going to
be very good for Pentagon Jr.
8. Kazuchika Okada Arguably the greatest wrestler in the world,
if not the top two or three is in at number eight here in our list. Despite him being
New Japan’s top champion for the first six months of the year, and wrestling 5 and 5
½ star matches against Hiroshi Tanahashi and losing his belt to Kenny Omega in a 7
star match widely considered to be the greatest wrestling match of all time. And he’s in
at number eight. I think it’s because 2018 has been Okada’s
year of decline. Not in a bad way, just because he’s been at the top for so long it’s
now time to go slightly back down the card again. Which means a lot of the great character
work he’s done hasn’t been as celebrated. His lowkey split with longtime manager Gedo
was a brilliant set up for the larger implosion of Okada’s Chaos faction a few months later.
And, more importantly, he dyed his hair a different colour.
7. Will Ospreay
It seems like so long ago that the world discovered the name Will Ospreay via that gif of him
and Ricochet, and boy howdy has this boy had a great 2018. For me personally he’s been
involved in some of my favourite matches across various promotions – from his series in
New Japan against Marty Scurll as well as the likes of Hiromu Takahashi, KUSHIDA, Kazuchikura
Okada and more, his match of the year candidate with WALTER in OTT, his incredible work in
Rev Pro and he’s been one of the most consistent guys for WOS Wrestling. Don Callis may claim
that he needs to slow down or he won’t be walking into his 30s – and that Spanish
Fly on the apron botch may suggest he’s right – but we here at WrestleTalk salute
the amazing flips, psychology and ring presence of The Aerial Assassin Will Ospreay. I for
one cannot wait to see his two dream matches next year against Kota Ibushi at Wrestle Kingdom
and PAC at High Stakes.
6. Johnny Gargano
Johnny Gargano, Johnny TakeOver, Johnny Freaking Wrestling, call the man whatever hyperbolic
nickname you want because he’ll live up to the moniker. At this stage Gargano feels
as essential to the overall makeup of NXT as the yellow ropes, but that’s not to say
that his constant presence is lacking surprise or excitement. Of all the wrestlers in WWE
over the last few years, Johnny’s journey has easily been the most well plotted, the
most well executed and the most enthralling. From the vicious battles to win the tag titles
with the AOP and Revival, to Tommaso Ciampa turning on him, and all throughout 2018. And
what a year it’s been, it started off with a match of the year contender against Andrade
Cien Almas in TakeOver Philadelphia in January, which was the first NXT match in history to
get 5 stars off big daddy Dave Meltzer. Since then he’s had three amazing matches with
Ciampa on the trot and a belter against Aleister Black as well as one of the most exciting
slow-burn heel turns in WWE history. Johnny Wrestling is NXT.
5. Kenny Omega He did it, Ibushi - he finally did it! After
two IWGP Heavyweight title shots at Kazuchika Okada in 2017, having the best matches of
the year, if not of all time, Kenny Omega overcame Okada for the championship belt on
the third time of asking, in a 2-out-of-3 falls match that some say should be at least
17 stars, because they effectively wrestled a five star match and then two six star ones
back to back. The big win comes after a fascinating Bullet
Club civil war storyline, weaving in Cody Rhodes, The Young Bucks, Kota Ibushi and more,
which was told not just in New Japan, but in their breakthrough Being the Elite YouTube
series too. And that’s not to mention his bloody brawl with Chris Jericho at WrestleKingdom
12 at the start of the year, and a string of great matches against Ishii, Ibushi and
Pentagon Jr at All In afterwards.
4. Becky Lynch
Is there anyone who has had a meteoric rise in popularity in 2018 than Becky Lynch? I
mean earlier this year we posted a video asking if WWE had botched The Lasskicker because
she hadn’t had a storyline for the better part of 18 months. And Becky still wasn’t
doing anything until the summer of 2018 – having meaningless matches on Smackdown or being
part of the WrestleMania Battle Royal. But then, the summer of 2018 happened. Her supposed
“heel turn” at SummerSlam changed the landscape in WWE. Becky debuted this bad ass
character that resonated with fans like we’ve not seen in years – she spoke to people
and the people got behind her (despite her saying we turned our backs). Since then she’s
won the Smackdown Women’s Championship, become The Man and left 2018 with one of the
best Raw closing images – bleeding from her broken face in the crowd staring down
Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey. Couple that with her superb Twitter game and a great
series of matches with Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch has completely turned round her
2018 - and I can’t wait to see what she does in 2019.
3. Tommaso Ciampa
Not even British Gas have generated as much heat as Tommaso Ciampa. When it comes to heat
he’s like Dante’s Peak, grandma meltingly hot. And 2018 just proved it. After being
shelved for much of 2017 due to injury, Ciampa walked back onto the scene and laid out Johnny
Gargano with a crutch at TakeOver Philadelphia, instantly gaining molten heat. He then cost
Johnny his job with another bout of interference. Made a wicked t-shirt and refused to sell
it, which I’m still sore about. Bested Gargano in a Chicago Street Fight where he spat on
and then threw away Johnny’s wedding ring. Was a proper A-hole on Twitter. And most dastardly
of all, he won the NXT Championship from Aleister Black. Ciampa’s litany of sins has made
the audience so cross that he didn’t even need to have entrance music for most of the
year, instead coming out to a chorus of boos. But while being a terrible bastard, he has
had nothing but amazing matches. He might be the Blackheart of NXT but it’s beating
stronger than ever.
2. WALTER
I’ve thought about this before, but it really hit me like a WALTER chop to the chest at
Wrestling Media Con this past September. The mood changes in a building whenever WALTER
makes his entrance. It’s an incredible feeling. You know that not only are you about to see
a terrific match with some absolute brutality, but you also worry for whoever is in that
ring that is about to face the Ring General. God, I love WALTER. For me he should be in
the number one position and I argued for him to get that slot. His matches with PCO, CCK,
Lucha Brothers, Tyler Bate and Will Ospreay alone should give him that honour. “He would
have done if they’d happened in the Tokyo Dome”. He has a presence like no other.
From the moment his music hits to the awe-inspiring in-ring work he delivers each and every time,
WALTER is a sight to behold. He has a chop that sounds like a cannon. There have been
Metallica concerts quieter than WALTER’s chops – but he’s more than just a loud
chop. He knows how to construct a match for a guy of his size and stature. WALTER is a
one of a kind wrestler, and easily one of the best of 2018.
1. Hiroshi Tanahashi 2018 has seen many incredible breakthrough
performances. WALTER winning nearly every independent promotion in Europe’s top title,
the TakeOver stealing rivalry of Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano, Becky Lynch becoming the
Man in WWE. But my personal favourite, the one who’s made me the most emotionally invested
in his overall story arc, is the guy modern-era New Japan was built on, and, more importantly,
the owner of the most luscious hair in the business, Hiroshi Tanahashi.
After passing the torch to Okada several years previous, and a run of injuries in 2017, Tanahashi
has ingeniously changed his style to focus even more on psychology and storytelling,
creating the most affecting comeback story of the year. It began in May, at Wrestling
Dontaku, where Okada beat Tanahashi in a five star match, meaning Kazuchika surpassed Hiroshi’s
record of 11 successful title defences. At their next meeting in the G1 Climax, Tanashi
was seconds away from beating a now title-less Okada in a 30 minute time limit draw. And
completing the trilogy, Tanashi emotionally overcame Kazuchika in a five star classic
in September. He’ll now go on to face Kenny Omega for
the IWGP Heavyweight title in the main event of WrestleKingdom 13, potentially becoming
the Ace of New Japan once again.
But who were your top wrestlers of 2018? Shout at us with your much better picks in the comments
below. What about the best wrestling matches of 2018?
Click the video onscreen to find out our Top 10 picks now! We’ve been WrestleTalk, and
that was wrestling.