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250 - Greatest Wrestlers Ever


G. Badger

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This is my 250th post and I have the wild idea of going through the top 250 wrestlers as voted on during the Greatest Wrestler Ever project from 2016. I'm not going to rank anyone specifically but am going to give my opinion on the workers and maybe complain a little bit about who's in front of or behind them ;)

250) Koko B Ware - Ah man just remember him from being a little kid but no real memories.

249) Tamon Honda - Probably like a lot of folks I've seen his big matches a multi man match from AJ, and a couple tags from 2002, his 2003 Kobashi ...maybe some stuff from 2004 & 05. He's OK

248) Booker T - The better member of Harlem Heat

247) Chavo Guerrero Sr. - A quickie post about Chavo is probably coming up very soon. 

246) Ole Anderson - Sadly not seen much of him

245) Kana/Asuka - Only seen a few things in WWE, my wife thinks she's awesome

244) Mil Mascaras - A fan of Mil and really dig his stuff in Japan if only for its uniqueness. 

243) Jeff Jarrett - Doesn't do much for me but enjoyed some of his TNA stuff more recently...just not at the time.

242) Dr. Wagner Jr. - Got a handful of matches of his to watch. Sick wrestling name

241) Batista - meme fodder

240) Karl Gotch - I think its silly to put someone who doesn't have a ton of footage on here. He's such a legend in puro that he should be excluded.

239) Raven - In ECW, he's a legend. His importance in helping TNA & ROH get off the ground shouldn't be forgotten.

238) Sasha Banks - I've got some NXT stuff to watch but she's got a cool look.

237) Jerry Lynn - Indie iron man, not much personality but is a wrestling machine. 

236) Roderick Strong - Ha! I was going to compare Jerry Lynn to Roddy. No way Roddy should be this low considering the high quality of matches he had in ROH from beginning to end of his time there.

235) Dick Slater - Seen on some AJ Classics

234) Abdullah the Butcher - Limited physically but an absolute legend.

233) El Solar - Dabble in lucha on occasion and El Solar is one of my faves.

232) Masakatsu Funaki - Honestly haven't seen enough of his prime stuff in PWFG & Pancrase. But the NJ Jr, UWF II, and 2010's AJPW is good good stuff. He's the real deal.

231) Juventud Guerrera - Juvi - check out some of his stuff in NOAH because you already know about the other stuff.

230) Joe Cortez - Sorry 

229) Gino Hernandez - Watched the Dark Side of the Ring. Do want to see more.

228) Super Dragon - I really can't say anything positive. Indie in the bad way...

227) Super Porky/Brazo de Plata - Nope

226) Rob Van Dam - Athletic, charismatic as hell in his heyday. Big fan in high school as he consistently had good- great matches in ECW.

225) Buddy Landell - Sorry

224) Sheamus - Physical style I appreciate but basically a cartoon character

223) Masa Chono - A rare western Chono fan I bet. 

222) Diamond Dallas Page - My mom's a fan and my wife knows him from the yoga stuff. He was pretty damn cool in WCW. Kinda like Chono or Raven, just has something that makes him interesting.

221) Bill Eadie/Masked Superstar - Saw him in WWF but nothing special.

220) Ken Patera - Definitely want to see some of his stuff

219) Lioness Asuka - All in all I've probably only seen her best matches and I'm biased there but they are fantastic. '85-95 and she's still ass

218) Jim Duggan - Probably missed his best stuff but loved him in grade school. 

217) Kyoko Inoue - Kyoko is someone I am not as high on as when I began watching Joshi. Toyota gets blamed for the go-go style but its as much Kyoko.

216) Mark Rocco - Seen mostly as Black Tiger but enjoyed him in the UK matches more stylistically speaking

215) Tommy Rogers - OK, kinda don't recall him but dig The Fantastics

214) Yoji Anjoh - OK but in a different way

213) Chris Adams - not seen much

212) El Samurai - like most, I've seen the high end matches. I like him but there's folks that should be higher up than him.

211) Invader I - Puerto Rico is a blind spot for me

210) Nigel McGuinness - Seriously top 3 ROH champ along with Joe & Danielson. His injury and illness cut his rising in ring career short.

209) Tomohiro Ishii - Like his style

208) Osamu Nishimra - Handful of matches seen but I appreciate the style and intensity

207) Seth Rollins - Other than 07-08 Tyler Black stuff I'm not sure. But very talented in ring. I've got a lot more of his ROH stuff on my plate so I expect my opinion to improve.

206) Kota Ibushi - Perhaps he would rate higher now with others. I'm lukewarm

205) Pat O'Connor - Seen a couple matches and want to see more. I always appreciate a technical wrestler

204) Daisuke Sekimoto - Someone who I kept seeing pop up in lists. Polarizing perhaps but he's one of my favorites in the 2010's

203) Big Show - I like Paul Wight and admire his longevity. Kinda wish he had a career in Japan.

202) Christopher Daniels - His importance in the US Indie scene is crucial to wrestling now. Ready from day #1 in ROH and kept evolving and staying relevant despite his age.

201) Cima - OK but so many people who are listed above that should be ahead of him.

200) Buzz Sawyer - Handful of matches, very physical style 

199) Dennis Condrey - Probably heard Cornette talk about him more than I have seen

198) Randy Orton - just goofy, same class as Batista for me

197) Ray Stevens - watching AWA on ESPN Classics from over a decade ago, liked what I saw

196) Jay Briscoe - gotten better with age like Mark, best tag team of the past 15 years, very capable singles star too

195) Megumi Kudo - the ace of FMW's joshi division, probably haven't seen as much as I should given the amount of FMW I've watched

194) Masaaki Mochizuki - OK next to Shingo & Yamato, probably the third guy in Dragon Gate

193) Emilio Charles Jr. - lucha blind spot but I have seen a couple matches

192) MS-1 - have seen the couple big matches but same as above

191) Hayabusa - True ace of FMW, like Nigel his career trajectory was cut short. Totally could have gone to NOAH or at least flourished in the 2000's and had some fantastic bouts. Way too low on the list for me.

190) Gran Hamada - Phenomenal body control and like Jerry Lynn just a in ring machine. His matches with Tiger Mask are fantastic and want to see much much more of Hamada.

189) Mocho Cota - Sorry :(

188) Ivan Koloff - not overly impressed with what I have seen.

187) Mariko Yoshida - I can't put her ahead of Lioness Asuka but she's 90's & 2000's best kept Joshi secret. Totally re invents herself and excels.

186) Kazuo Yamazaki - A victim of Takada's ego but so talented. I wish he stayed in NJPW.

185) Verne Gagne - Again only seen a couple but a technical treat to watch. Probably hurt that he went on longer than he should have.

184) Yoshinari Ogawa - I really really like Ogawa but no way should he be ahead of many of the others. He's a novelty act that stands out because his style was so different than his AJ/NOAH counterparts.

183) Psicosis - Probably unfairly he & Juvi are interchangeable to me. 

182) Edge - Has the look but nothing else. Boring along with Orton, Batista era of WWE

181) Magnum TA - Absolutely have more to watch, like Nigel & Hayabusa, his career was over too soon

180) Taka Michinoku - I've probably soured more on TAKA than any of the other KDX guys but he's got longevity but I'm not a fan of the heel stable stuff in Japan.

179) Negro Navarro - Need to see more of

178) Jeff Hardy - Uh during the attitude era he was the most late ECW Jr. style guy and that's cool but, he hasn't aged well.

177) Kevin Owens - Kevin Steen is best in tag matches to me. 

176) Austin Aries - Just going off his ROH stuff, really talented but not sure I'd put him of Roddy for instance. Actually no way I'd put him ahead...

175) Masato Tanaka - Dangan, if you've been reading the blog you know how I feel.

174) Kensuke Sasaki - I really like Kensuke but he's kinda only ever been one thing which is the powerhouse but the definitive powerhouse amongst 90's-2000's puro stars

173) Yuji Nagata - Nagata probably is hurt by his big time being in the down period of the 2000's NJ but he is the man for that time by taking on the best of the best from the Four Pillars of AJ, up and comers and even Kurt Angle. 

172) Yoshiaki Yatsu - Kinda like 80's Taue - fantastic tag wrestler with a smattering of choice singles bouts

171) Big Boss Man - No I can't get with this at all. This is a bonkers pick especially ahead of nearly everyone so far.

169) Scott Hall - Kinda a similar sentiment here as well. I've seen some early Outsiders stuff which I like but...c'mon

169) Ultimo Dragon - A fantastic junior wrestler that I honestly have little problem with. A world traveler and is some of my favorite 90's Junior matches and under rated under his real name in the SWS & Hamada UWF.

168) Tiger Mask - I did a giant deep dive project last year. Read some of that. This is not unexpected but is insulting low. Guessing this is all from his series with Dynamite Kid.

167) Dutch Mantell - Heard great things

166) Michael Hayes - Not seen much of him but well aware.

165) Adrian Adonis - same

164) La Fiera - Probably only seen the match with Tiger Mask Misawa

163) Terry Rudge - Nope

162) Scott Steiner - Probably one of the bigger Scott Steiner fans here and this is a bad location. Like no way he should be ahead of many of the others. 

161) Paul Orndorff - Not seen much of but he's alright

160) Masa Saito - Same as above, has a great look, looks like he can & will hurt you

159) Necro Butcher - ugh, as a death match fan this is silly.

158) Davey Boy Smith - Kind of like Scott Steiner, very good stuff in tags but not a greater wrestler than most already listed.

157) Bob Orton Jr. - Not seen much of but he's alright. 

156) Mark Henry - yeah we're in a weird pocket of people. Its like we're in the not a great wrestler but a good wrestler territory. Which sucks when these people ranked higher than Verne Gagne. I can see why people were upset at the time :D

155) Fuerza Guerrera - Really dig Fuerza Guerrera quite a bit. Again my lucha exposure is limited but I know what I like.

154) Matt Hardy - The more even handed Hardy. 

153) Tracy Smothers - Enjoyed what I've seen

152) Bam Bam Bigelow - Beast from the East, clearly very very underrated big man. Wish we had more of him in Japan. Him in ECW was brilliant btw

151) Black Terry - Sorry 

150) Eddie Gilbert - Sorry again

149) Sabu - As big an ECW fan, this probably is a fair spot for him 

148) Tsuyoshi Kikuchi - I'm a Kikuchi fan but c'mon. A side kick in AJ and a grumpy side kick in NOAH. Has great & classic matches but he's a bit player...maybe one of the best but still a bit player.

147) Bruiser Brody - Much much too low. Has flaws in ring but the character is Classic and in Japan he & Hansen are one of the top tag teams of all time.

146) Shinobu Kandori - seen the hits, I dig her

145) Lou Thesz - Again too low, a legend, his stuff holds up today in my book

144) Lex Luger - Similar to Scott Hall. I've seen stuff in NWA/WCW late 80's & early 90's that I dig but there's also a mountain of crap too.

143) Villano III - need to see more of

142) Buddy Rogers - Like Gotch, Thesz in a way these guys should not really be on this list as we wouldn't have wrestling as we know it without them.

141) Tommy Rich - Vanilla 80's baby face to me

140) Perro Aguayo - Not seen much of, bleeds well

139) Bruno Sammartino - Probably too low but haven't seen enough of to argue

138) Marty Jones - Like what I've seen. As you can tell UK wrestling is more a novelty for me but, really enjoy it

137) Kazuchika Okada - I don't think he's much and the fact folks love him turned me off contemporary NJPW. He's good and folks like his character but he's like Edge to me.

136) Butch Reed - Not seen enough but also know that this seems a little bit off

135) Devil Masami - I've really dug everything she's in. It's been awhile though.

134) Nobuhiko Takada - Overrated but I still like him. When he's ON he's fantastic.

133) Mayumi Ozaki - Haven't seen enough later day OZ but her stuff in the 90's is AWESOME. Her & Dynamite Kansai - shoot!

132) Antonio Inoki - Yeah this is criminally too low but I love his original vision of Strong Style. That said I avoid the worked shoot stuff he did. That's taking it too far.

131) Jake Roberts - Like the person more than the wrestler, like the late Scott Hall. Jake was THE heel when I was a kindergarten kid.

130) Meiko Satomura - I drop off with Joshi after 1997 or so other than a little bit here & there. I know she's one of the best in that post AJW era.

129) Koji Kanemoto - Koji is the best at being a prick & he can back it up. His stock as one of the premier junior wrestler goes up the more I see. He's got two Best Match Watched contenders this year in AJ '13.

128) Minoru Suzuki - Suzuki is the version of Masa Funaki where his peak is after Pancrase. Love Suzuki when I see him.

127) Alexander Otsuka - this is a wacky pick by a BattlARTS maniac right? 

126) Naoki Sano - Love me some Sano in NJ, SWS & NOAH but not sure he'd make my greatest ever list. I feel like this list should have been divided between top 50 Japan, USA and then lucha & top 25 UK. 

125) Dynamite Kansai - Illness got in the way I believe but top worker of the golden '90-95 Joshi period. Her & Ozaki were an amazing tag team.

124) Dean Malenko - Fan of Dean and his tag stuff with Joe in AJ is overlooked but I really need to revisit his WCW run.

123) Yoshihiro Takayama - I'm trying to think of someone more of a Japanese monster (with the real toughness to back it up) than Takayama. He is the embodiment of 2000's puro. 

122) Johnny Saint - A lot of fun and my intro into World of Sport UK wrestling.

121) Pat Patterson - Haven't seen anything beyond his Attitude stoogery.

120) Triple H - Ha! Someone had him @ #12 but refused to reveal their identity. I can feel ya! I've lessened my hate recently but a heel in front of and behind the camera over the years. The definitive heel of the last days of Attitude era by politicking but he could back it up. Very generic work hidden behind a top notch physique. 

119) KENTA - The Jr. version of Takayama. No one encapsulates early 2000's puro more the KENTA. His performances in 2006 (ROH & NOAH) is sorely overlooked as one of the best years an individual has had in wrestling. Better than Danielson.

118) Jerry Blackwell - Big tough fat guy, him vs Hansen in AWA where Stan hits him with his cowboy boots and Blackwell is bleeding is gold.

117) Pirata Morgan - Not enough seen but have enjoyed it

116) Great Sasuke - Haven't seen enough of his stuff from the past 20 years but his 90's stuff speaks for itself. But maybe not your cup of tea.

115) Wahoo McDaniel - Wahoo is great, no nonsense hard physical style that is timeless. Like you could have Wahoo vs Sekimoto and it would be great.

114) Jaguar Yokota - I have a small window of Joshi that I'm pretty familiar with and Yokota is a top 3 worker. Her mid card stuff in the mid 90's is better than some main eventers.

113) Sting - I like Sting. His late 80's and 90's stuff is best. But he was still putting on go stuff in TNA.

112) Dory Funk Jr. - An all-time favorite & legend but an acquired taste. But I could say the same for many of the UK, lucha and 50's/60's guys.

111) Masa Fuchi - Fantastic during the Jumbo & co vs Misawa & co feud. Pops up in very good to great matches thereafter. Kinda goes away until the NOAH split where he & Kawada are the only long time vets.

110) Chigusa Nagayo - I'm more of a Lioness fan but what I said about her, Masami, Jaguar apply to Chigusa. I haven't watched Joshi in a long time but thinking about it, the Crush Gal era is where I want to start.

109) Larry Zbyszko - A Larry Z fan from really is AWA time. Its when I started really appreciating heel moves.

108) Steve Grey - Never got around to watching him

107) Low Ki - I'd probably compare him to Austin Aries but rank Aries higher.

106) Sean Waltman - X-Pac along with Chyna & the New Age Outlaws were DX. So for that X-Pac should be remembered.

105) Akira Maeda - I like him in NJ & UWF but never got into Rings.

104) Chris Hero - I like him and he has great & even classic matches in him but I can't say he's a greater wrestler than Dory Funk Jr. for instance...

103) Carlos Colon - Blind spot, sorry

102) Christian - At the end of the day the best singles wrestler out of the Edge & Christian, Hardys, Dudleys. His work in TNA is pretty good but ultimately pretty vanilla.

101) The Rock (2228 points, 57 ballots, 61.93 avg, high: 8 - anonymous, 2006: 64) - Well this is pretty damn silly having an icon of pro wrestling from the last 20 years this low. 

100) Daisuke Ikeda - Again BATTLArts skewing and Daisuke Ikeda is awesome but, not ahead of Dory Funk Jr.

99) Virus - Sorry again

98) Kerry Von Erich - planning on watching a little more of him. Reminds me of Lex in the late 80's early 90's style wise.

97) The Destroyer - Stuff from the 70's vs Mil & Horst Hoffman are awesome

96) L.A. Park - Like him from WCW know I'm missing his best stuff

95) Sangre Chicana - just seen a match or two

94) Shinsuke Nakamura - Had the potential to be a great and I think there's more from NJ that's been overlooked but is definitely hurt by his WWE time.

93) Bob Backlund - just haven't seen the essentials

92) Dusty Rhodes - Dusty is a lot like the Rock (or vice versa) except Dusty bleeds and can really pull you into a match. Rock has a better look.

91) Too Cold Scorpio - I love Scorpio and is one of the bright spots of wrestling in the early ECW days.

90) Ron Garvin - I think I would like him but only saw a couple matches years ago.

89) Atsushi Onita - Kinda like a sleazy Japanese Dusty Rhodes. 

88) Sami Zayn - The better member of Steenerico. Like Jerry Lynn but I guess he's quite the performer now. 

87) Cesaro - F-ing silly right here. I need to see Kings of Wrestling in their peak more but c'mon...he's a very good tag wrestler. Jay Briscoe is way the fuck behind him and if we're just going on who's a better tag wrestler, Jay smokes him...and Jay is a better singles wrestler.

86) Hiroshi Tanahashi - I've come around on Tanahashi since doing a 2010 house show tag match deep dive. I'd take Nakamura still 

85) Manami Toyota - I have gone back and forth over Toyota. She's one of many necessary wrestlers that contributed to the awesome run of AJW in the 90's. Her & Kyoko changed the pace but unlike Inoue she is essential to so many breathtaking &  iconic matches.

84) The Undertaker - Another icon of American wrestling especially during the Attitude Era for me.

83) Roddy Piper - The more I see the more I dig Piper. Liked him as a kid but really appreciating him now as an adult.

82) Steve Williams - Just familiar with his AJ work but he was this interesting & dangerous cog in the near perfect machine of 90's All Japan.

81) Yoshihiro Tajiri - Going to try for another deep dive into Tajiri. This time pre- ECW. He along with Lynn were the premier junior talents of late stage ECW.

80) Tito Santana - Just haven't seen enough

79) Terry Gordy - A few years ago I'd argue Dr. Death over Gordy but Bamm Bamm's stuff in the 80's AJ scene puts him above. Then you've got the Freebirds too...

78) Dynamite Kid - The Tiger Mask project lowered my opinion whereas it seems to have lowered others on Tiger. I will be watching more British Bulldogs soon I hope. I favour him in that role.

77) Rick Rude - Just memories as a kid and the occasional comp match

76) Hiroshi Hase - Dude was never given a big push but he is the best of that class in NJ. 88 vs Takada, with Mutoh vs Steiners, vs Vader & Bigelow, vs Hashimoto, vs Kobashi. 

75) Hulk Hogan - Best match I've seen is him vs Hansen. Should try to see more stuff in Japan. But its the Hulkster

74) Atlantis - Awesome mask, have really dug what I've seen

73) Chris Jericho - World traveller and still going. Loved him in WCW and Y2J, his Japan stuff is worthwhile as well.

72) Brian Pillman - Like Nigel and others mentioned, he never reached his full potential. Would have loved him in NJ Jrs.

71) Dick Togo - Probably the best of the KDX guys, really need to see more singles stuff. His match vs ZSJ in wXw was fantastic though!

70) Yuki Ishikawa - BattlARTS skew but as a strong style fan, Ishikawa is fantastic. Actually want to revisit Batt-batt now.

69) Blue Panther - One of the guys I've purposely sought out in lucha and he is a favorite. 

68) Kurt Angle - My neighbor (haha sorta not really). His 2006-2009 TNA stuff ranks as some of the best the company produced.

67) Jack Brisco - just not seen enough but I love he vs Dory in '74. Think also might have he vs Inoki somewhere.

66) Keiji Mutoh - Honestly a really great tag wrestler and a sporadic singles performer. NWA Muta is good stuff and early 90's in NJ but after that I don't know.

65) Shinjiro Ohtani - I like NJ Jr. Otani as much as Zero One Otani. Actually might like 01 Heavyweight Otani more!

64) Sgt. Slaughter -Am I drunk?

63) Giant Baba - I've seen more Baba than I ever intended to. He is a novelty act beyond the 70's or very early 80's. I won't skip them but...am ready to especially if in singles. Baba in tag especially multi man matches is very worthwhile. 

62) Kiyoshi Tamura - Have seen his UWFi stuff, very cool

61) Bull Nakano - Yeah she's awesome, monster heel but can wrestle, brings the hate and bringing up Kyoko again, has an awesome singles match with Kyoko. I don't know why I'm focusing on Kyoko but here we are...

60) Volk Han - Watched some stuff on YouTube, the problem I have with Rings and all worked shoots is the now we see shoot fights in the form of MMA. So its difficult for me to suspend disbelief. Its too close to real that I'm watching it as a fight and not pro wrestling. That's me though.

59) Samoa Joe - 2004-2009 Joe is one of the best in the world. Poor booking in TNA really hurt him and perhaps should have gone to Japan for a couple years like AJ Styles.

58) Owen Hart - His stuff in NJ late 80's is revolutionary and is where he belonged. Or maybe WCW, he never was really given a real chance.

57) Bill Dundee - I'm missing out

56) Jim Breaks - Same here

55) Curt Hennig - This is kinda silly and I like Curt especially in AWA. Mr. Perfect was a goofy gimmick and his talents were wasted like Owen. 

54) Greg Valentine - I recently have seen the light on Greg especially older stuff. He vs Roddy Piper is a thing of sick beauty.

53) Dick Murdoch - Just haven't seen enough of him

52) Akira Hokuto - We get a few years of absolute brilliance then gone (essentially). 1991-1993 then sporadically for a couple years. She is probably my favorite wrestler. 

51) Andre The Giant - The man, the myth, the legend. Still gotta see more especially vs Hansen.

50) Billy Robinson - Seen the classics vs Inoki, Nick in Japan, and his series vs Jumbo plus a great match vs Verne Gagne. Assorted AJ matches too. How much of his AWA stuff is out there?

49) Aja Kong - Right up there with Hokuto in terms of greatness. One of the most brutal but great all time Joshi. 

48) Fit Finlay - Fit should be somewhere on this list but this is too too high.

47) Brock Lesnar - I'm not sold on him as a great pro wrestler but he is a great wrestler and fighter.

46) CM Punk - Like Chris Daniels, he could wrestle but also could talk , sell an angle and connect with the audience when everyone else was still trying to figure out who they were as wrestlers. Yeah one of the most complete pro's of the past 15 years. 

45) Harley Race - Just haven't seen enough Race to convince me of his awesome-ness. 

44) Tully Blanchard - The more I see of him, the more I get him. Definitely want to see more Tully.

43) Rick Martel - Oh man Rick Martel! Yeah The Model gimmick like most WWF gimmicks, it ruined him. But in AWA & Japan sign me up. He vs Bockwinkel where he's pulling the canvas to crawl to the ropes is forever burned in my brain!

42) Ted DiBiase - Really dig his work in Japan. I need to see his pre WWF work.

41) Riki Choshu - Missing much of his time in AJ but really love what I have. His career is really in NJPW and probably haven't seen his best from the early 80's. His stuff in the late 80's is still top shelf, '88 specifically.

40) Yoshiaki Fujiwara - Has the look of violence and backs it up. I really should look up more Fujiwara in NJ. Surprisingly haven't seen enough of his UWF stuff...especially vs Tiger Sayama.

39) AJ Styles - Probably one the best in ring workers. He can adapt to any style and any promotion. His work has changed to accommodate his age and style. He reminds me of Yamada/Liger in these things.

38) Mick Foley - I probably am not as high on Foley as I was in high school but damn I love Mick. Like Styles he always kept changing his character to stay fresh and interesting. Who would think the King of the Deathmatch would be one of the funniest & most  empathetic baby faces in the crass Attitude era? All that aside he & Terry Funk have one of the best deathmatches in Duel of the Wilds.

37) El Satanico - Like Blue Panther, seek his stuff out  & am always happy.

36) Buddy Rose - Only saw him as a tubby heel in AWA with Doug Sommers

35) El Dandy - Must see more El Dandy...something tells me I should bust out my unwatched lucha dvds.

34) Chris Benoit - Liked him in WCW, loved him in New Japan, and never really saw much in WWE as I started to lose interest in WWE around then.

33) Ricky Morton - Richard when he's in singles competition. Yeah he's great.

32) Dustin Rhodes - I could see Dusty here but not Dustin.

31) Shawn Michaels - I really think he's overrated but I also really don't like most 90's WWF stuff stylistically. The whole thing including the in ring action looks and feels made for children. 

30) John Cena - Couldn't help but see some of his stuff over the last 15 years. Don't get the hate but also don't think he's great. Clearly he's marketable. Good for him, I guess?

29) El Hijo del Santo - Perhaps as a lucha dabbler, my appreciation of El Hijo is typical but, he's fantastic. 

28) Bobby Eaton - Skilled as hell as a heel. Just tremendously natural at what he does. 

27) Jun Akiyama - Big Akiyama fan, longevity is now an attribute (guess it was in 2016 too) but his later work has gone overlooked

26) Akira Taue - Excellent tag worker with a handful of singles classics as well. So not overrated but sometimes I think he's given a tad more credit in those singles matches than is due.

25) Barry Windham - Very much dig him but this is a little bit too high on the list for me.

24) Steve Austin - I want to say too low but we are in the top 25 now...let's see who else is here.

23) Shinya Hashimoto - Seemingly the only NJPW heavyweight who had reliably great singles matches in the 90's. I think Hase is better but was pushed much less. Their championship match is top 3 heavyweight NJ match of the decade.

22) Negro Casas - Probably my favorite luchador and clearly many others as well. 

21) William Regal - I must be on bath salts. This seems very high on the list. I like what he does though and one of the guys I'd stop & watch if channel surfing.

20) Tatsumi Fujinami - One of the best that Japan has produced. I really want to see more of him and I've already seen quite a bit. I think his stock can only go up with me.

19) Arn Anderson - Has the look and the skills to back it up. My teenage years were him as an non wrestler but still a tough looking badass with Flair and the 4 Horsemen. Seeing his actual work as an adult,  the proof is in the pudding.

18) Randy Savage - Probably the best WWF star in terms of personality, look, visibility, and in ring work. WCW didn't really know what to do but what else is new?

17) Bret Hart - The only 90's WWF guy who actually put on great matches. If we don't bitch about the Flair Formula then I won't mention Bret's. His look with the pink and wrap around shades is lame even then but his ability was never in doubt. A guys gotta be tough if he wears pink.

16) Nick Bockwinkel - Love Bock and need more in my life. 

15) Ricky Steamboat - Perennial babyface and just fantastic every time I see him. I actually have a few of his top matches still to watch. 

14) Vader - Love Vader, really wish he would've stayed in Japan as I'm not really as high on his US work as others. We all can agree on his WWF run though.

13) Genichiro Tenryu - Like Bockwinkel he got better with age. But really his 1989 stuff is the start of that consistently great Tenryu as Tenryu period. I know it at least goes until 2006. That's something remarkable.

12) Eddie Guerrero - Like Benoit, I'm more familiar with his work outside of WWE. Love Eddie and like Steamboat I've got a few top US matches to watch but the best Jr. Heavyweight in the States.

11) Jumbo Tsuruta - Tenryu had longevity but so did Jumbo...and even longer although he didn't have a career that wound down really. It just ended. But '75-92 as a top level wrestler is crazy. There are stronger years than others but Jumbo evolved with the trends and all of his programs are landmark feuds in puro.

10) Jerry Lawler - I have come around big time on Lawler since my adolescence but his overall style isn't my thing.

9) Toshiaki Kawada - Probably the smartest heavyweight star in Puro in terms of storytelling. There are notable big match exceptions in the later 90's AJ but honestly those only seem like exceptions in comparison to masterpieces. To see his transformation 88 to 92 is so rewarding and gets totally overlooked by what comes later. And his work in the early 2000's with strangers is the true testament to his ability as a talent.

8) Kenta Kobashi - The best actual baby face of AJ since perhaps Terry Funk. Misawa like Jumbo were aces but Kenta Kobashi like Terry were the hearts of AJ fans. They would get their asses kicked but never quit. Even when Kobashi was ace in NOAH, he's still face due to real life injury and illness. What's so crazy about this is he's built like a tank by the mid 90's. 

7) Rey Mysterio Jr. - I dig Rey Jr. but missed a lot of his WWE career. I think this rating is based on that work.  Therefore I politely disagree with him being this high. His coolness in WWE is due to the fact that for a long time there was really no one else like him. But Rey is a star nonetheless.

6) Jushin Liger - AJ Styles is like Yamada/Liger. Just insanely talented from the get-go. He keeps changing his style or approach and looks like he's be wrestling that way his whole life. Fantastic seller and extremely selfless in terms of wins/losses so that always makes the outcomes uncertain.

5) Daniel Bryan - Danielson jumped 100+ spots from 2006 to 2016 and like Rey that must be from his WWE work. And I think from the weight a lot of the non regular members that voted on this list. Like in my humble opinion, his work didn't get better than 2006 while in WWE just by the limitations that are there. 2007-2009 ROH stuff, yeah that bumps him up a tad but I think this was some of the problem folks had with the results. I think others were from some people just not getting total votes. Like Negro Casas was left off (completely off) 40 people's ballots and Misawa the greatest Japanese wrestler was left completely off 11 people's ballots. All that aside he is brilliant. His Best in the World claims back in the 2000's were hard to argue especially with guys in the States.

4) Mitsuharu Misawa - The gold standard for aces in Japan. 

3) Stan Hansen - Nearly every match he's in feels real. He attacks defensively his offense looks like it hurts. He's ornery and tough and is the best gaijin in puro and one of the best heavyweight wrestlers ever.

2) Terry Funk - In my mind you're either a Funk person or a Flair person. You can like or even love both but you've got to pick one. A long time ago I would firmly identify as a Funker. But I have come way around as a Flair fan. But at the end of the day, I'm going with Terry. 

1) Ric Flair - See above

...you know what? I may have thrown my post # off by one..shit..well, maybe not? I'm still posting this :P This has given me some new ideas, made want to rewatch some things, and show me my blind spots. Now mind you these are not my top 250. Some of my comments are simply off the cuff and if I dissed your favorite wrestler, sorry! 

Thanks for reading!

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