El-P

I've seen him work a mat wrestling classic with ZSJ. I've seen him being an awesome dipshit blood-thisty heel against Micheal Oku. So he absolutely CAN do it, and especially now that he has had neck fusion he may adapt on a broader level. We'll see what path he chooses. From the previous generation, Ibushi and Naito are the people he should look at and learn, what to NOT do (I love both, but... you know).

By the way, I just realized something, unless I'm completely off the loop. Keith Lee did not make the list, right ? Talk about someone who, likewise Matt Riddle, was thought of as one of the best indie wrestler and future huge star. And for completely different reasons, he has seemingly disappeared from people's mind.

Oh for sure. But then again, we're not really taking about the "wider crowd" here, as it was referenced earlier. If you look at the actual landscape, it's obvious how Ospreay is viewed by the pro-wrestlers and fans today. In 2036, who knows. By then he may still be active and still be great, with ten more years to his case and a status that will only have grown. The thing is, he indeed only is 33, which is crazy when you think about it.

I'm sure for some people, Ospreay even making the top 100 is abhorrent. Now I'm quite interested in the % for Omega. I have my doubts it gets higher than 40%.

You also get that on Bluesky, ya know. With the advantage being it's not hate mongering app. 😂 80% of this thread is basically "OMG I'm afraid of (insert wrestler from the 80's) is not getting higher than (insert people from the 2010'), OMG I'm so happy (insert wrestler from the 2010's) is not making it higher". I just drops some stuff about wrestlers from the list, trying to be creative and kinda funny, with yes, sometime a little dig on the "pro-wrestling was better back in the days" mentality. I don't have an overinflated sense of self-importance. I'll let the insult slide, because I'm good like that.

Riki Choshu : he walked so Davey Boy Smith and Misawa could run (I have no idea if anyone if gonna get that one). I'm sure some older salary men were complaining about Choshu "working too fast" in the early 80's. I don't agree at all about the notion of "timeless", because everything ever if a product of its time, but if there's anything close to it in pro-wrestling, that Riki Choshu in plain black tights and no knee pad throwing the lariat. Worked then. Would work now. (and it just occurred to me that the closest thing to Choshu these days is Rush, of all people) Kota Ibushi : Kenta Kobashi on crack. (that's a praise, btw)

List is pretty fun. I predict it will be a boring top 10 with an expected winner.

The number of people influenced by older voters and outdated (yes ! I'm the one dropping it this time !) notions is not, as showed by some of the results. As far as the demographic goes, I have honestly no idea, but "new voters" doesn't mean "only young voters" either. Because you are active on X doesn't mean you're not a 40 years old yelling at clouds about "lack of psychology in today's pro-wrestling". (well, being on X in 2026 for anything other that professional reasons is *yuck*, but I don't even wanna get into this one) FTR, I voted for Regal I believe in 2006 and (for sure) in 2016. Not sure I would have voted for him this time around, but maybe. He was always an old favorite of mine.

Also, I'm gonna put it out there while I'm at it, since I dunno when he's dropping and I may be offline for a few, the placement and % of AJ Styles is probably really interesting, since he's a guy whose name has been "legitimized" by a long and harmless WWE stint, while his case is basically famous for the short but great NJPW stint, yet most of it is TNA. If you watch AJ Styles's TNA stuff, it's obvious where he is. NJ only adds to it. And he's most probably the only guy who made a case one of being of the GOATs from TNA (Samoa Joe was a lot more ROH during his peak). Well, there's another one, actually, but... we'll see.

Regal is divisive in that he's like the greatest wrestler who never had a legit great match. Quite a feat. KENTA is divisive because he's a top 2 most influential wrestler for the pro-wrestling of the last 25 years probably (or at least the two previous decades). And a lot of the older generation began starting hating on wrestling with the 00's Japanese tropes and the US indies tropes. KENTA (and Marufuji, who did not make it, oddly enough, when he didn't drop like KENTA did when he got to WWE and was still awesome at worst in 2016) is all over this. Mercedes making it feels exactly right. She was the best of the WWE bunch from the start, and was never surpassed. And has peaked last year (thus far).

Thanks for the kind words about the Eaton post, people. The fact only a third of a the people voting had Ospreay on their list may be the ultimate tell about this version of the poll and the overall voting crowd. For all the "recency bias" and "AEW influence" talk, this is pretty revealing that on the contrary, someone like Ospreay who is without a shadow of a doubt one of the greatest wrestler ever and already influencing the next generation and has for a while (you can see him in all the great upcoming pro-wrestlers, from Leon Slater to Nick Wayne to Kyle Fletcher) can't get more than 33% of votes. It is what it is. This.

Well, the guy started his career in 2017. He spent 8 years in the NJPW system. Then he spent a year doing nothing after being hired by WWE. It's not like he's a rookie anymore. No idea how he looks now, but he was okay at the end in NJ. (then Oskar showed up and was a hundred times better as a giant)

Bobby Eaton : Awful worker. This is everything that is wrong about pro-wrestling these days. His partners are goofs, but he's the main offender of the worst instincts going in pro-wrestling. Charisma vacuum, doesn't understand the slightest thing about being a heel when his matches are just spot spot spot. He's spamming big spectacular moves that looks more impressive than whatever the babyface team he faces can do, which is totally counterproductive in term of psychology. Plus he and his partners, both of them, do those ridiculous, contrived double team moves *in squash matches* instead of saving them for the actual meaningful matches, making the laters a lot less specials. Although that shit looks totally non believable anyway and totally exposes the business and gets me out of the matches every time. The Alabama Jam should be done once a year at Starrcade as a finisher, not for studio matches against two jobbers. He just doesn't let anything breathe because he's just way too interested in doing cool shit, and again AS A HEEL ! Just a disgrace when you think about the real, realistic tag workers from the past. Thankfully Ole Anderson is keeping that old school spirits alive of working a limb for 40 minutes, which is how it should be done, but even his younger partner Arn has fallen into the same trappings of doing way too much and bumping like an idiot and ruining the suspension of disbelief. I fucking hate Bobby Eaton and his dumbass manager who can talk, but is never serious enough and also over react to everything because he wants to be FUNNY. Whoever voted for this guy is a FUCKING IDIOT teenager who probably thinks that new wave shit is good music. SYNTHS ARE NOT REAL INSTRUMENTS ! And OF COURSE this guy's theme music is some disco shit because OF COURSE. Anyway. I fucking hate what pro-wrestling is becoming. The Midnight Express are killing the business.

This. (and really, considering some of the results, again I think the top 100 is actually mostly quite cool, I think this crowd had way too much influence still)

Yeah, that sucks for Willow, she was on such a good run. Also, I would think she was one of the favorites to win the thing. Maybe this actually opens the slot for Mercedes as the X factor, since they have to pivot in probably a major way, unless Alex Windsor is winning the thing, which I doubt (I think the match is Brawling Birds vs Divine Dominion). Some ridiculous stuff in those three hours. Briscoe vs Ciampa was legit AEW PPV level material. Darby vs Speedball was a terrific TV sprint title match, with plenty of great ideas that really took advantage of both man's games. And they actually are going above an beyond to sell the stip and the idea that MJF might lose. Ospreay vs Shibata, again, great match and awesome promo to sell the importance of the Owen and the beginning of his journey toward Wembley. PLEASE don't get hurt Will. The plug for the ESPN article on Darby was quite funny.

I mentioned her husband indy stint more for reference than anything else (and really I think she would be fine, it's not like Shotzi for instance, who has been all over, has had any issues working big indies like GCW, MLW, HOG and such). Not working in WWE is not the end of the world. Hell, Killer Kross & Scarlett aren't exactly all over the place either since they left and they don't seem to starve (signed with MLW, whatever that means). What would WWE do anyway if she refused to do the MAGA fest ? Bench her ? Cool, she can stay at home and have plenty of time "supporting the community" while being paid big dollars. Fire her ? That would go well for morale. Also, in that case, TK would probably throw a bunch of green in her direction just for the fucking pop and social media attention she would get showing up with a rainbow theme cap and a promo about how she did not betrays her values. But that's neither here nor there.

Foley in AEW just feels right. Nice to see them announcing it like that too. (Schiavone and Cactus working together again. How crazy, and cool, is that ? Butts in the seats for sure !)

There has been talk of it, but Coach TK absolutely needs to get Natalia Jiménez (got confused last time with her name, sorry about that) to sing Me Muero at Grandslam Mexico this year whenever it happens.

Poor fucking guy, Malakai. I guess karma is a bitch, uh.

Oh yeah. She made a tweet, dunno if that the same, she also deleted it quickly apparently, about "keeping on supporting the community while also doing her job". Mind you, without mentioning by name *which* community she was referring too. That's why I called her a female CM Punk. In a way, I have more "respect" for Tiffany and the likes, because at least they don't pretend being something they aren't. Chelsea just screams performative. The thing about "keeping your job" is even more ironic when her husband is Matt Cardona, whom for years was telling how he was making more on the indies (hustling and grinding, yes) than he made in WWE before.

Oh yeah, I know, I was one of those people, I lived it. I "coined" the phrase "zombi promotion" about the like of Jd', NEO and such in early 00'. I don't remember how long SC lasted after GWE, but yeah, it was probably the last time joshi was on anyone's mind on the forum scene in a meaningful way for a while. Saya & SLK didn't do anything since they weren't nominated. Which says a lot. Mercedes would probably have dropped staying in WWE yes, since there's no way she would have had the matches she had since. She would not even had the opportunities, for them she passed the torch to Belair and that was it, it's not like she ever was their favorite.

I think that was me. No ? Yes, I think it was me who said that. Often. 😅 Also about Yoshida not making the top 100. Yeah, I guess getting back to the number of women of 2006 is a positive. Sorta. I have no idea for numbers of luchadors compared to 2006 either. And yeah, considering some of the great workers of the same era, and with a bigger profile, that didn't make the top 100, it's kinda odd Roddy Strong (who is a great worker and has been forever now, and I probably would have voted for him actually) of all people eventually did, although I'm guessing he'll drop early. Hey, he's married to Marina Shafir. Who can deny that ?

She was already on the last MAGA-fest last year (that wasn't at all a MAGA-fest but a celebration of the troops *wink wink*), she talked about "being cancelled so many times" on a show with Logan Paul (that's always a redflag), she pretty much comes off MAGA-coded.

I knew I missed one... Wow, exactly the same number, that's interesting. Considering how much we were a joshi friendly board back at SC, the fact 20 years later there isn't one more, despite US wrestling having made such huge progress in the same time span (mostly in the last 15 years, although Gail vs Kong happened in 2007), isn't exactly that great a result in that front I'd say. It is what it is. I really thought Yoshida and Mayu would make it.

Mariko Yoshida not making the top 100 ? Well that's pretty ridiculous. People haven't learned a thing about pro-wrestling after all I guess Only 13 women made it unless I'm mistaken. I dunno if that's better than 2006. I would bet it isn't, but then again, I really don't remember. Lawler, Hogan, Benoit, Lesnar and hell, even Austin... Well. It is what it is... I shall say no more. Apart from that, and considering I really don't care about rankings, it's a pretty decent Top 100. *Much* better than last time for sure. I still wonder about the top 10, since that's the only thing I managed to get through myself.