HeadCheese

Does anybody else have wrestlers who are like "this wrestler is for sure one of the 100 best/favorite I've seen but, I'm not sure where to rank them"? I'm kind of feel like that with Stan Hansen and a few others. Stan Hansen felt/feels like like an oddly difficult wrestler to compare to other wrestlers.

Tarzan Goto is someone I'm considering, I like him but, I'm not sure if I like him that much (he might make it still). Based on limited watching of him (over the past year I've watched 14 of his matches and aiming for 20 or 25 before having a big take). He is someone who I like fighting up against opponents, fighting with someone at his level, or a style clsdh (vs. Dan Severn) but, not sure how to feel about his perfomances as an overdog (yet). Watched Tarzan Goto vs. Mitsuhiro Matsunaga last year, it's amazing! Was the top match of its type on my GME list last year. Memphis Tarzan Goto seems interesting too, I really like him in this 10 man tag from 3/14/1987 . Jarrett vs. Goto interactions!! Jeff Jarrett, Alan West, JT Southern, Paul Diamond & Mark Starr vs. Shima, Tarzan Goto, Tojo Yamamoto, The Hunter & Boy Tony Not sure if it's a case helper but the Tarzan Goto & Mr Gannosuke vs The Headhunters bathhouse match is super fun, heads up there is nudity from the people visiting the bathhouse (not the wrestlers) though.

One of the ultimate cool wrestlers and having great runs as with Dump Matsumoto and singles act. Her matches in WWE and WCW were also fun from what I have seen. She is right now proabably a top 40 contender From the limited longer matches I have seen her have she has problems connected with me in those. Might try to check out more of those and rewatch some, if she connects with me in those matches. I can see going even higher.

I get where you are coming from but. drawing is a near non-factor for me. There's some massive draws I don't connect to on that level and won't make my list (Steve Austin and AntonionInoki) but, Mei Suruga is making my list and she's wrestled most of her matches have been I'm the Ichigaya Chocolate Square (no ring venue that holds maybe 40 often less). I also generally like wrestling in smaller buildings too. I think it's a help to Adam Priest's case that he can wrestle in front of 100 pepple emotionally connected in ACTION and connect to the crowd to whatever AEW draws. I'm also prone to connect more with indie wrestlers than TV wrestlers (television wrestling has strict structure). Also with Adam Priest, I get where you are coming from that some pepole that like him might be more emotionally attached to him from him "their guy" but, alot of the pepole I have seen high on him haven't seen him wrestle live or seen have seen him wrestle live very rarely. The person that nominated lives in a country Adam Priest hasn't even wrestled in.

I think with Adam Priest, the people that vote for him will have him in their low 90s. He is someone who I have really liked but, not loved as much as my friends and other. I have #3 on my wrestler of the year list for 2025, the DPW World Heavyweight championship reign is great. I think he might make my list another time though, One of the things that stands out about him as a character he can be most disliked and liked person in the ring for the show. He seems like fun to watch live.

Watched El Faraón vs. Pirata Morgan with some of my friends tonight! Interested in learning more about him. El Faraón Lucha Playlist from what I could find from luchadb. 35 matches. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlM1-WJ2N9Ud2KC72fz4RTvByGwwfbVE5

I think he'll be 20-50 (hes currently at 17 for me but, I have alot of unranked wrestlers). I can see others going even higher than me. His 2005 might be best wrestling I have ever seen wrestler have. He's in the runner for my greatest match ever vs. Abyss - Lockdown 2005. He gets slightly hamepered by being in some of his TNA and WWE work/booking but, even than he has parts where it feels like yes, AJ Styles rules!! Of the top of my head AJ Styles might be the best great at everything wrestlers. He can do power, hard strikes, fly, grapple, go technical, do party matches, great at tag team matches. and do no-dq where it doesn't feel reaches a state where it makes him less interesting or annoying. I think part of it is the amount of struggle he brings. He can do anything but, it will be difficult. Interested in what he does next, if he is really done, done he had really great career.

Bret is a very good wrestler but, proabably won't make my list. He's someone I want to connect to more. Something I wonder about Bret Hart is how would he do in any other time period and promotion/promotions. I think something that helps his case and part of what made him stand out his that he was just a wrestler in land of caricatures and characters during the New Generation.

Really fun and had great charisma, someone who I think is consistently good. Not sure if I will watch enough to have a cofident opinion of him but, seems like a good wrestler to consider.

Yep, are on NJPW World (Dailymotion and VK too). If you have the money, something that has helped me is buying a streamer for a month and binge a researched wrestler, checking out tge current stuff than cancel. Wrestle Universe (what I feel is the best Wrestling streaming service) is free for the first week if you want to go deeper into Konosuke Takeshita. It's not Tanahashi's most hyped stuff but, GAORA has a good amount of Tanahashi AJPW matches.

Trevor Lee is one of my favorite wrestlers of the 2010s (ranked him in the top 5, I think when making a best wrestlers of the 2010s list), he has had some very good stuff in the NXT environment too. He did very good from what I saw from him in DPW last year. Not sure where I'll rank him but, I feel like I will rank him.

With Roderick Strong, he's a wrestler who will make my list. Right now he is ranked below Chuck Taylor, above Munenori Sawa. I think Roderick Strong is a wrestler I really like the work/matches of but, rarely loved. Him being often such a cardio wrestler feels like its a positive and negative especially in singles matches. He's a great tag team wrestler. I think with the cardio wrestling can lead to exciting matches but, it also feels like he is doing plug in formula wrestling with his opponent and sometimes it feels like he doesn't give things time to sink in. Like with some other modern wrestling, Roderick Strong matches sometimes give me the vibe that he leading with great match thinking more than feeling sometimes. It's something I have been thinking about too. Currently my list has over half 2000s wrestlers (wrestlers who the majority of their case is built of post-2000s work). I'm have been checking out more pre-2000s wrestling over the and I'm still following alot of current wrestling so that might change. Especially with their being alot of high level wrestlers seem to wrestle longer now with more footage too, Having a 15+ year careers big platform feel like the norm now where we can see everything (we basically have 98% of Roderick Strong's whole career on accessible tape in real time vs. other wrestlers where it's more scattered). Wrestlers like Zack Sabre Jr, Jon Moxley, and Orange Cassidy will have been wrestling for 22 years this year too. I think it's okay to rank modern wrestlers above more hyped older wrestlers but, its an interesting thought experiment.

He's making my list, I wasn't really confident in having a take on his career, he is someone who I have known is good but, never really went into alot of career matches. I have 30 matches of his and I'm not sure where to place him yet. I think I'm at the really like stage with him but, he also feels like a wrestler I could place from 4-80 and it would make sense. Hoping to watch more. I feel like Stan Hansen is great at the chaotic, spontaneous destructive lucha brawl style and is able to convey that in large arenas (which is difficult especially with big production). He's also great at being the overdog wounded and in the WWWF the backing off heel even to wrestlers smaller than him. His selling and bumping is great! I think he does loose aura/match momentum when going into more grappling based longer and tag team matches sometimes. It might be just me not choosing tag matches that don't click with me yet. Even in matches I don't like of his, he feels like he does something or takes something in a way that pops out at me. I think something else remarkable about Stan Hansen is how natural he feels too.

Passed 800+ matches watched for GWE/GME research this year. It's been so cool to discover and watch things for the first time. My list doesn't feel close to final yet but, there are some great wrestlers that I didn't know of/know much kc last year who will make my list with new all time favorite matches. Not sure if I have shared this here but, here's my spreadsheet of matches watched with links to most of them and my list progression. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1zjmhE5bpN9Iiog8_4Z1BC1jEfWDYGyeywmOSg8vGISY/edit?usp=drivesdk

Someone I might consider putting in the 90s of my list. He has a good of range (able to do be genuinely scary, make others look great, be funny, be very memeable, and more). He has some great matches and had really fun matches against more limited wrestlers (Braun Strowman, Kane (specifically the December 1999 match and Mania X-7 match with Raven), and Shane McMahon). I think his booking mixed with the big matches on tv every week/ppvs every month of US national wrestling hurt his specialnes and aura some but, it would probably hurt any giants/monster gimmicks specialnes and aura. His longevity as modern tv wrestler compared to other giants is remarkable. I also think he has an all time theme song history (every version of The Big Show theme rules and the AEW theme is fun).

Making my list could see him making the top half of my list. Has been consistently good from I proabably got info watching more of him in 2014 (hoping to watch more of his work). My pick for wrestler of the year in 2025. I think Zack Sabre Jr is interesting wrestler because my favorite work of his is when he is wrestling in less really fun mid card matches (Kyle O'Riley at BOLA, him and TMDK vs. Roderick Strong, Luke Gallows, and Bobby Fish in NOAH, the All In 2024 Casino Gauntlet) and out of his comfort zone (his GCW matches with Nick Gage and Mance Warner). His is in one of my all time favorite matches with him vs. Daniel Garcia vs. Katsuyori Shibata vs. Orange Cassidy at Forbidden Door 2023. I think sometimes he can try to be a bit over ambitious, try to force an epic. I think sometimes his work/aura doesn't come across in bigger arenas. He's a really great small room wrestler. Something I think that is really cool about ZSJ is how adventurous he is there feels like he has a sense of joy exploring pro wrestling all over (his Jake De Leon singles and tag matches in the Philippines) in the world and settings (doing no ring shows like Baka Gaijin + Friends). I think Zack Sabre Jr is great at being a great foil for wrestlers to break out against (Will Ospreay at EVOLVE and A-Kid/Axiom at White Wolf Wrestling).

Will try to watch, thank you for sharing

May you tell me about the other four, Sabre and Ospreay are proabably making my list but, I can see your frustration (I don't really know European wrestling that well). I am open to hearing cases for the Mason and Allmark. Also if you would like you can nominate Jordan Breaks and Nino Bryant.

Someone I have overlooked is Fit Finlay, I watched about a handful of Finaly matches yesterday. I remember liking him as a kid with SmackDown. Interested in checking out his World of Sport and going more into his WCW work. He feels like Greg Valentine where he feels rugged but, also can cowardly character stuff. The PWG match with Kevin Steen and CWA match with Eddie Gilbert are both really good.

Listened to the Alan4L and Case podcast talking about Nakajima and he is someone I havent considered for this I think but, he has some grrat stuff. He is someone I might look closer into. I am looking into KENTA, Go Shiozaki, and some of his contemporaries career so he might make it and it might make inspire me. He is a wrestler who I consider very good and have multiple great matches in NOAH (2014-2022). Is one of my all time favorite matches BURNING vs. Kensuke Office from SEM/Kensuke Office SEMex. In Korakuen Hall ~Take The Dream Vol. 6~. Two of my friends. Rachel and Alicia from Kick Out 2.99 really connected to him from a character/story arc standpoint.

With non-modern footage I think some French Catch wrestlers might benefit. Indie luchadors will benefit especially so many of the matches being fancammed abd uploaded or going on Mas Lucha in full. Joshi is going to benefit from the amount GAEA archives being uploaded with the ability to watch things in context. https://youtube.com/@gaeaism4574?si=6Ky7zqyeyRMrpvVZ I think Místico could be someone that does well given how well his second CMLL ace is going. I agree with WALTER and Will Ospreay going up too. Moxley's has a better case too. Swerve Strickland is an interesting case of someone maybe to have the back of my my mind. He has the Dante Fox Hell of War match, very good AEW run, and top runs in DEFY since than. Mike Bailey who will make my list might be someone who has his case for me aswell. I think theres also wrestlers who will make my list who didn't debut till after 2016 (Daniel Garcia and Mei Suruga). I can maybe see some making a case for Tam Nakano and Mad Dog Connelly too.

Little Guido/Nunzio is great, not sure if he'll make the lower 15 on my list but, he's so good at finding doing little things to make his opponent look more powerful. 2/12/99 Chris Chetti vs. Little Guido 2/10/01 Little Guido vs. Low Ki 9/12/08 Claudio Castagnoli vs. Little Guido Really liked the James Stone vs. Yoshihiro Takayama match, his UWFI stuff has been so interesting with him coming off as heelish there some

I think the AEW run has been good and has some great stuff as character. I think she can sometimes can be a bit too dependent on her opponents adding something new to her formula that working to her opponents sometimes on a watching week to we level. Her Athena match is one of my favorite matches of the year anywhere. I think it's really cool to her travel too. In terms of all time womans wrestlers, I think Mickie Knuckles might be the greatest United States woman's wrestler ever currently. On my list I have her 80-100 (with proabably Dump Matsumoto, Mei Suruga, and Chihiro Hashimoto). I think she has a slight disadvantage compared to other joshi because so much of her career as been in tight television/ppv wrestling. I think her best comp might actually might be Sting (who will also proabably rank around that range). I think both rule, are great at the character/emotional connection stuff but, on a closer look from a week to week perspective can be inconsistent.

I think all three have a very similar case (strong main eventer for over 10 years and great tag team wrestlers), all three top guys, andh had feeling the company back them up to being a top star representing that companies house style (for good and bad). They also feel like they can inconsistent and sometimes feel like they have repetition (which can be good and bad) in their matches. All three are making my 100. Bonus points if you have a ranking of them.

Hoping to watch more Killer Kowalski, I think he might have a kind of struggles from a lack of footage but, Really interesting match with from 1991