Ed.

I don’t believe in a black and white opinion of NXT and it’s roster that they are all horrible and all have bad melodrama matches - that just sounds like the opinion of someone who doesn’t regularly watch the brand. I also don’t believe that Michaels is 100% to blame for the bad aspects of NXT, and 0% to credit for the good aspects of NXT. I have no time for something like O’Reilly Vs Cole from last month, but on the flip side the last year of Finn Balor has been my favourite presentation of him as a wrestler during his career and I can’t imagine Shawn’s had nothing to do with the booking and agenting of the brand’s champion at the time. what Shawn has done as an agent/trainer will have no bearing on my ranking of him, just like Dusty or Gedo’s booking isn’t really on my mind when I think they should or shouldn’t make this list.

Thought the match was great until Jericho entered, not so much for his performance (although he didn’t do much until he got on the roof) but how the match structure changed and there was a bunch of stalling. The match beyond really didn’t need to go 15 minutes long, and the finish did come off weak. Match of two halves for sure. next week’s episode looks STACKED. I’m here for killer Miro winning the title off of Darby.

KUSHIDA I think he has a claim of being the best Junior Heavyweight in Japan of the 2010s. I don't think anyone of his generation was equally reliable in both the singles and tag divisions as he was in multiple BOSJ and title reigns. Timesplitters were probably underappreciated at the time because they were often always a first hour act on shows, but I'd take their matches over what the Jr tag division has served up for the past 3-4 years. I think he has the best Jr title run of anyone in the 2010s in his 2016 reign and he helps establish Will Ospreay and Hiromu Takahashi as new stars of the division with the series of rivalries he had with them. His final night with New Japan facing Tanahashi in a great match is a glimpse at what could of been if KUSHIDA was able to escape from the confines of being a Junior Heavyweight. The NXT move hasn't worked out too well for him yet, but now he's Cruiserweight Champion there might be a chance to showcase the best of his abilities. Recommended Matches: Vs HIromu Takahashi (Dominion 2017 11/6/17) Vs Kyle O'Reilly (BOSJ 2016 21/5/16) Vs Will Ospreay (Invasion Attack 10/4/16)

Thought the main was tremendous . Loved the targeted limb work by Bryan and Roman was great in selling he was having problems with his right arm. Also loved the dominate comeback from Roman, twice going for those ground and pounds into a big powerbomb to turn the tide back in his favour. Also a welcome relief that Roman has won one of his title matches clean; I don't mind having the Jey run ins every now and then, but when it's every match it has less impact. So glad these two got to have 3 matches with each other this year after they showed good chemistry with one another six years earlier at Fastlane 2015.

When it comes to watching footage, I have a decent idea of what I want to do. I enjoy modern wrestling, so 2021-2026 footage takes care of itself and I won't really be taking my foot off the peddle on that front. However I'll be trying my best to avoiding rewatching matches I've already seen before and instead focus on the wrestlers, promotions and eras I've barely scratched the surface on. The watch parties are great for getting a taster on a wrestler and if I like what I see, I'll keep watching more footage like I have done with Mercedes Martinez this week. I know what I'm like with big projects, and if I say well I'll focus on joshi for the rest of 2021, then lucha in 2022 it won't work. I'm more comfortable with the idea of focusing on one wrestler and watching them for a week with different snapshots of their career than daunting projects that take months to get through. When it comes to judging wrestlers and list placing, I haven't given it much thought yet, but I guess that comes secondary to footage watching and I have years before I need to make a decision on that. I really like Matt's point about greatest being shown in how a wrestler does in multiple situations and that's something I'll be weighing into my rankings come 2026.

Not that I think it's going to suddenly change his career after almost being a decade into his WWE run, but I'm really interested to see if Cesaro can put on something special with Roman when they inevitably meet for the title so that we get a glimpse of what we could of had if Cesaro was used as world title guy. Presumably that's being added to Backlash and would probably be the biggest match of his career. I had totally forgot the No Mercy performance. Incredible talent to tough that out.

Riddle is someone who could make my list if he now goes on to be one of the best tv wrestlers for the next 5 years.

I'm into early 1993 now and it's just damn impressive how good Akiyama is from the jump.

I’m biased as we’re from the same hometown and it’s incredible to see someone so talented from Dudley, but I can’t justify putting him on my list if we get 5 more years of 2020 Tyler Bate, or endlessly in NXT Tyler Bate. The 2017 Dunne matches were great, as was the feud with Undisputed Era and the WALTER takeover match. A return to that kind of form could sneak him on.

Very fun watch party. Mercedes is definitely in contention for my top 100. I’ve enjoyed her in NXT, but after watching 2 hours of her indie stuff I get the sense we’re only getting 20% of what she’s capable of in NXT (other than the Meiko match). The two matches that stood out the most tonight: 1) Vs Sara Del Ray, keeping in context that this was 2005 this felt ahead of its time and I really enjoyed the technical aspects of this one. They didn’t really telegraph they were going to a time limit until the announcer said 5 minutes remaining and even then I could of bought a finish happening for either woman. What this gives me is first hand proof that Mercedes has been a good wrestler for over 15 years. 2) Vs Kylie Rae no ropes submission, I have no idea beyond it not being a major promotion why this didn’t get more praise in 2019. I thought it was fantastic with both woman playing their roles perfectly and working to the stipulation well. Overall across the six matches I thought she had a great veteran presence, and mixed nasty strikes (those chops) and great looking submissions into her matches. Looking forward to watching more of her stuff.

The Okada match is the jewel in the crown, but Shibata's series of matches with Tanahashi were tremendous as well I thought, probably a little underrated. Really enjoyed his stuff with the dads too over the NEVER title. He'll definitely make my list, but I probably have to cap him somewhere around 80-100. His retirement leaves me wanting more with him going out in his peak, whereas I think a number of NJPW guys cases become weaker after 2017.

I think Sasha and Bayley would definitely be ahead of Becky for me and even if I think Becky's the better wrestler, I prefer Charlotte's output. I love Becky and her rise to the top of the WWE was one of the feel good moments of the 2010s, but the in-ring is just not there for a top 100 candidate. It's a shame for her that not only did the mania match bomb, but most of her reign. Outside of the Sasha HIAC match, her 2019 is nothing to write home about.

It's going to be fascinating to see where Okada can finish and he might turn into the most divisive wrestler from the 2010s to discuss. A year or two ago he might have felt on course to be a top 10 guy, but with the winds of change blowing and NJPW support in the West waning, Okada might add less to his case as love for his style of match dries up and retrospectively fans might be more critical of his previous work. Opportunity always springs to mind with Okada because for the opportunities he's been given, he should be making a top 10 case for GWE. He's been booked as the undisputed ace of his company, the most successful and popular company in Japan in the 2010s, and therefore he's been in more main events and title matches than anyone else in the last 10 years for NJPW. And given the house style, his booking leads him to being involved in the more 'heralded' matches than anyone else where he's almost always going to have a couple of matches up for MOTY recognition that can cover up his output for the rest of the year. He's had every opportunity since 2012 to prove he's one of the greatest wrestlers ever, and yet, I don't even feel like he was a top 5 performer for his own company for those golden years; I find him wildly inconsistent and frustrating so when I compare him to every other wrestler in history, he's going to drop further and further down a GWE list. Random match theory is another thing that hurts Okada if you're a proponent of the theory. Okada's case of being a great wrestler comes from the showcase singles matches he has, call it around 15 matches per year (9-10 G1 matches + 4-6 marque matches on the big shows per year) and nothing else. In a non-pandemic year, Okada wrestles about 120-140 times a year and the vast majority make tape thanks to NJ World, so if I used random match theory, only ~12% of the time would I see a performance from Okada that would show me how great he can be. And I'm someone who believes Okada is inconsistent in those singles matches, so it's an even smaller %. I can't see an argument for Okada being one of the best wrestlers of 2010s (let alone all time) when so many other wrestlers of the 2010s have a higher batting average. In truth this could be applied to many NJPW wrestlers where they work in a company that's booked to not have interesting or important tag matches, but I believe I'm far more likely to see a good Ishii or Goto performance on a road to show than an Okada one.

I don’t think he’s done anything to push him up a list since 2016 unless you have some strict longevity criteria and you needed to see him reach 25 years of great performances to move him up. Rey is Rey and didn’t really reinvent the wheel when he came back, but he didn’t have to as he’s great. Consolidating a top ten claim against the tide of the new guys might be more accurate for me. The Andrade matches are great and the pick for best TV matches of 2019. It’s a shame his son came along and then WWE have pigeon holed Rey into always being booked in tag team programs or melodrama with Rollins (although the eye for an eye match was good before the finish).

I do think it’s a good thing Christian’s back and can add to his career, because otherwise I could see him as someone that might have to be a harsh cut to make room for those that have staked a claim since 2016. At the moment he’s probably around 80-100 in my head, but could well drop off entirely. I did recently rewatch the Orton feud and came away thinking there were a number of matches that Orton was the better performer in, which changed the narrative i used to have for that feud that Christian was bringing Orton up to his level.

I’ve really dug his work the last 3 years, and he has the chance to be the defining babyface of his generation, but he’s a wait and see for now. Could definitely make my list with 5 more years of good performances.

Excellent resource thread. Thanks.

The ones that come to mind: Vs KUSHIDA - Wrestling Dontaku (3/5/16 - Jr title match) Vs Volador Jr - BOSJ Night 6 (27/5/16) Vs Hero - PWG BOLA Night 1 (2/9/16) Vs Takahashi - BOSJ Night Day 2 (18/5/17) Vs Ospreay - Strong Style Evolved (25/3/18) Vs Ishimori - 47th Anniversary show (6/4/19 - final shot at Jr title) Vs Suzuki - King of Pro Wrestling 2019 (14/10/19 - final singles match) --- He'll be a top 10 contender for me. Greatest Junior Heavyweight ever, and I was still digging his stuff 30 odd years into his career.

I’m currently doing a side project where I watch everything I can get my hands on in 90s AJPW in order. I’m in late 1992 and Jumbo was my pick for best wrestler in the company for ‘90 and ‘91 and was pretty damn great until illness got the better of him in ‘92. Outside of the 1989 Tenryu matches I’ve seen nothing of his 80s work so I’m keen to get to that at some point in the next 5 years, but 90-92 he is top ten material for sure.

I’ll guess I’ll be the contrary view. I think his post WWE run is going to get him onto my list. He was a breath of fresh air in NJPW, with the Ishii, Shingo and Suzuki matches being standouts. In AEW he feels like the biggest star in the company and his title run produced plenty of good matches - in particular the Darby and Kingston matches. He probably has MJF’s career match too now I think about it. At worst he was the 2nd best wrestler in the world last year for me. The bloodsport Smith match wasn’t too good, but the Barnett one delivered maybe the only great match from the indies on mania weekend. His WWE career was a mixed bag but then the highs are pretty damn great. Brilliant program and couple of matches with Regal, a tremendous original 18 months with the Shield, the original feud with Seth, the feud with Owens in late 2015/early 2016, the title match with Triple H at Roadblock which was better than it had any right to be, the AJ Styles feud in late 2016 over the wwe title, the 2017 tag title program with Seth which was great. After that it dries up a bit when he returns in 2018 and clearly he’s not happy. I’m not saying he’s a lock, but with more years in AEW to come I feel pretty confident he’ll be on my list.

I can't really hold it against her for her character not changing much - when WWE are only interested in presenting you as Charlotte Flair, daughter of Ric, it's hard to do a lot to change that up, and why would you want to change that if you're gonna get pushed regardless . And as much as I love her work, does Sasha really change her character? She just changes her hair colour but is still The Boss like she was 6 years ago. Asuka's character doesn't change for the better. Bayley and Becky changed out of necessity because they were going nowhere as babyfaces. It's not really a division where the women are constantly evolving and changing their act, so I don't see it as a specific criticism for Charlotte. I'm not a fan of her booking though, she gets handed too much, she's almost always in the title mix and there's no sense of her ever having to struggle to achieve success. She sucks as a babyface, and after 6-7 years of being on top, I'm not sure I'm thrilled about any more heel title runs from her. Her in-ring is inconsistent, but she is big match Charlotte. There's not many of her big singles matches that don't deliver, and all the matches mentioned so far are very good at minimum. I could watch a 3 hour network special or DVD of her best work and be thoroughly entertained, but week to week she can be frustrating and there can be bad performances. TLC against Kairi and Asuka she was downright dangerous in the match. She has a shot of the top 100 on the merit of how many very good-great matches she could have come 2026, but I don't see her shaking off the negatives to her case.

I liked her early stuff from 2015-17, I think she was a good heel champion on Smackdown Live aided by that show being so well booked, and there's no-one better on the mic in that division at delivering the scripted promos and one-note angles they asked her to do. The great balls of fire match with Sasha is very good, but I think that's about as good as it gets for her in-ring. Kadaveri makes a good point about that Charlotte match, there were times where it would get unbelievable that the smallest woman on the roster was dominating and taking the lead on heat segments. Her character work always leaned into being booked as a heel, but I think there were flashes there at times that she could of been a good babyface (teaming with Braun comes to mind) and got sympathy when facing some of the bigger acts in the division. I don't see her as a candidate for GWE at all unless you're looking to make an all-woman list because the in-ring has been too weak, but she's near perfect for what WWE want in their womens wrestlers and that's why she's always had something to do for the last 5 years on the shows. There's an alternative universe where Alexa is part of a fun tag team on the roster where she's the brains and does the talking, but her partner does the heavy lifting in matches, but instead we get the paedophile-bait angle she's doing with The Fiend. She needs to learn to say no to things because I don't see her career ever returning to normal from this (unless that's what she wants to cut down her in-ring duties but still have a job in the company)

He's been tremendous since coming to NJPW and been one of the standout wrestlers of the Pandemic, so he's definitely making my list. I've seen little of his pre-2014 work which is going to be a stumbling block given old Dragon Gate footage isn't as readily available as other Japanese companies.

I agree with praise for her NXT title reign; she's excellent in it and it's my favourite title run of any woman in WWE. I just don't think there's enough meat on the bone her for her whole career with the main roster work top make the top 100. She exceeded my expectations in her character work as a heel, but her year long run with the title didn't exactly result in a a host of good title matches. I largely found the 2020 matches with Asuka and Kairi to be a disappointment, and it's only when she drops the title to Sasha that she has a match that is great. From memory she's great in the chamber match to crown the first tag champs, but other than that I'm really blanking on good Bayley matches where I feel like she is fulfilling the potential she showed in NXT. I worry she's made Vince laugh with this DING DONG HELLO thing and she's gonna get Pidgeon holed as a comedy character going forward.. I would have her as the 2nd best HW behind Sasha, so it's not a lost cause by any stretch.

I'm a big fan in recent years, hell he's gotten me to watch hollow, empty arena ROH this last six months or so purely (pun unintended) to see his work and nothing else. Thought he was excellent at 19th Anniversary against Dak Draper. I have major blind spots pre-2015 for Gresham though and would love to take a look at some of that if anyone has recommendations. Top 80-100 sounds about right for now Quentin, but I agree there's scope for higher. When I think of the big hitters in modern technical wrestling who I'm considering for GWE, Gresham has the biggest potential to have the best next 5 years. Thatcher stuck in NXT where things have already tailed off from a good start, Zack feeling like he's hit a ceiling in New Japan in a tag team with Taichi and facing the same old opponents in G1s etc. Gresham feels well placed with ROH where he has this spot in the Pure division to showcase his stuff, and there's the opportunity to launch him back into the world title picture in the future, plus he still occasionally works indies.