2026 Nomination Thread

[club]

Johnny Kincaid

Starts off (at least in terms of footage) as a versatile WoS babyface who could work technical matches and get rough when required. Found his true calling sometime in 1977 when he became an heel. His tag team with Dave Bond, The Caribbean Sunshine Boys, caused such heat that they were disbanded, and sadly leave us with but one televised match.

He has some great singles performances from this era however. His heel offence is basic and his heel antics - strut, choke, devious inward smile - are nothing you haven’t seen before. It’s just that it so well executed that his matches are never not fun and are often a joy to watch. His match with Tony St Clair is a wonderful synthesis of his strengths as a performer. My main concern with nominating him is that seemingly few matches made tape. Hopefully this is not the case.

 

Recommended matches:

vs. Peter Rann - 22nd March 1972

w/Dave Bond vs. Kung Fu & Pete Roberts - 8th October 1977

vs. Tony St Clair - 18th February 1978

[Grimmas]

updated

[HowtobeaMark]

Cody Rhodes

Has transformed himself into one of the most important wrestlers in the world today. Has shown great character diversity with Legacy, Dashing, Stardust, American Nightmare etc. Has had some of the most emotionally charged matches of recent years and is proving himself to be one of the best on the mic. Think it is time he gets at least evaluated amongst the top names the business has ever produced.

Recommended Matches

Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs The Shield - 6 October 2013

Cody Rhodes vs Dustin Rhodes - 25 May 2019

Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins  - 5 June 2022

[HowtobeaMark]

Josh Alexander

Perhaps a little early for him but he has carried Impact as the man for over a year now. Has produced great matches in that time and has felt like the company's most important home grown talent for years. His matches feel like they mean something and he has elevated the Impact title by wearing it around his waist. Tenure will hurt him, but lets look at him. 

Josh Alexander & The Besties in the World vs British Strong Style - 24 June 2018

Josh Alexander vs TJP - 3 June 2021

Josh Alexander vs Mike Bailey - 19 November 2022

[El McKell]

On 1/31/2023 at 9:47 PM, GraveyardMurmurs said:

Veny/ASUKA.

One of the best Japanese wrestlers of the last 5 years, in my opinion. Has done great work with a crazy variety of opponents. From Kohei Sato & Yuji Hino to Arisa Nakajima & Mei Suruga. They can play cocky heel or valiant underdog. They have an impressive move set, and is a consistent and precise wrestler.

vs. Akito 07/15/2019

vs. Syuri 05/23/2022

vs. Kagetsu 05/23/2021

Just looking at the threads and it looks like she was never added

[HowtobeaMark]

Hirooki Goto

One of the many New Japan Pro Wrestling nearly men, flirting with the top of the card but always falling back down to upper midcard/midcard, which may hurt his chances here but his skills between the ropes cannot be denied. He feels like an old soul in NJPW by old soul I mean harping back to the days of the Samurai. A warrior of honour, determination, and fearlessness. Most recently has been paired with YOSHI-HASHI as a tag team. YOSHI-HASHI has always been seen as a bit of a loser but is now seen as a genuine player to the point the team beat aces Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi and it never felt wrong.  

Recommended matches

Vs Katsuyori Shibata – 22 June 2013

Vs Kenny Omega -14 August 2016

Vs Tomohiro Ishii – 21 July 2018

With YOSHI-Hashi vs Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi – 6 March 2023

[elliott]

Don Frye

I've been watching some Don Frye matches and my goodness what an awesome wrestler. Super charismatic shootstyle heel ass kicker who will punch people in the groin or bite them in the knee if that's what it takes. I kind of figured I was in for a charismatic ass kicker and he has delivered in that regard. I've watched ~15 matches and he is a lot more well rounded than I was expecting. The charisma & aura are there & he brings the violence as you would expect. But what has stood out as a pleasant surprise is his bumping, selling & willingness to completely put over his opponent on the way to beating them. He will absolutely let Yuji Nagata beat the shit out of him & dominate him before finding his opening & beating him thoroughly or he'll sell Akitoshi Saito's kicks like they're the most devastating thing in the world. Watching an American shoot-style guy in the late 90s dominate people in short but convincing fashion I can't help but think about Goldberg and Frye is so much better & more well rounded it's rude to even compare the two. Frye can put over his opponents in ways Goldberg never could while maintaining that badass aura. Given his look, aura & ability it is kind of crazy to me that WCW or WWE never tried to sign him. Anyway, just a super pro-wrestler a couple of years into his career. I'm excited to watch more. Shoot style fans seriously need to give this guy a look. 

 

Don Frye vs Kazuo Yamazaki (NJPW - 11/2/97)

Don Frye vs Naoya Ogawa (NJPW - 1/4/98)

 

Don Frye vs Kensuke Sasaki (NJPW - 8/8/98)

 

[brockobama]

Came here to laugh about Cody so I'm seconding his nomination, let me shitpost plz

[NotJayTabb]

Jimmy and Jey Uso

I mean, we've got both Nasty Boys listed, but not arguably the best tag team in WWF/E history. To survive over 13yrs in a company that is notoriously not a tag team territory, never breaking up, constantly staying fresh to the point that they're arguably the most over they've ever been, is an incredible achievement. Work superbly as a face team or a heel team, a ton of great matches, and there's still potential for either to have a solo run if needed. Jey has already had a well-received main event slot against Roman Reigns, he could well get there again. There are other nominees who are arguably mainly tag guys, but the Usos are better than most, if not all of them.

MATCHES

vs The Wyatt Family (Money In The Bank 2014)

vs The New Day (Hell In A Cell 2017)

vs Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (Wrestlemania 2023)

[Control21]

El Desperado

A very talented wrestler that has vastly improved his resume over the past four years or so. The "lost" NJPW young lion has become a very versatile wrestler proficient in technical wrestling, Lucha Libre, the modern NJPW "house style," and even deathmatches. He has become an important piece to the NJPW Junior Heavyweight division and is a fan favorite for many. In many ways, he mirrors Hiromu Takahashi to some degree. Desperado is able to convey emotion in his matches to a very palpable degree, a gift that not many wrestlers have. Certainly, someone that could contend for the lower half of a few Top 100 lists.

Recommended matches -

El Desperado vs Jun Kasai (9/12/2022)

El Desperado vs Hiromu Takahashi (12/11/2020)

El Desperado vs Francesco Akira (5/21/2023)

El Desperado vs Kazuchika Okada (3/2/2022)

El Desperado vs Kota Ibushi (3/4/2021)

El Desperado vs Titan (5/26/2023)

El Desperado vs Dragon Lee (6/3/2018)

El Desperado vs Hiromu Takahashi (5/22/2018)

El Desperado vs Kota Ibushi (2/11/2014)

Kyosuke Mikami vs Hiromu Takahashi (8/24/2010)

Hiromu Takahashi 

One of the best junior heavyweights over the past decade. Hiromu Takahashi is a very gifted wrestler who knows how to work the modern NJPW formula, and by extension, most other modern styles as well. Hiromu Takahashi is also a master of conveying emotion and utilizing psychology in his matches to insert a vivid sense of tension and danger. He has developed memorable rivalries with the likes of KUSHIDA, Dragon Lee, El Desperado, and Taiji Ishimori. While he is still relatively early in his career, I think he has put together a very solid case for one of the best junior heavyweights of all time and could be a contender for some Top 100 lists.

Recommended matches -

Hiromu Takahashi vs Taiji Ishimori (6/4/2018)

Hiromu Takahashi vs Will Ospreay (1/4/2020)

Hiromu Takahashi vs Will Ospreay (2/10/2018)

Hiromu Takahashi vs Will Ospreay (6/9/2018)

Hiromu Takahashi vs KUSHIDA (6/11/2017)

Hiromu Takahashi vs KUSHIDA (1/4/2017)

Hiromu Takahashi vs Dragon Lee (2/11/2017)

Hiromu Takahashi vs Ryu Lee (2/9/2020)

Dragon Lee vs Kamaitachi (1/24/2016)

Dragon Lee vs Kamaitachi (3/20/2015)

Dragon Lee vs Kamaitachi (12/4/2015)

 

 

[Mr JMML]

Hiromu Takahashi has been one of the best juniors in NJPW since 2017 or so is very surprising that he wasn't nominated until yesterday. Good recomendations Control.

[Control21]

Dokonjonosuke Mishima

Dokon only had a brief run in U-Style, but he delivered in almost all of them. One of the most unique JMMA fighters also proved why he could have been one of the most unique wrestlers in the 2000s if he had continued his career. He’s a bit like Megumi Fujii in the sense that he deserves a nomination based on how unreal he was in a worked format. His matches against Tamura, Manabu Hara, and Kyosuke Sasaki are worth checking out.

Recommended matches –

vs Kiyoshi Tamura (4/6/2003)

vs Manabu Hara (2/4/2004)

vs Kyosuke Sasaki (6/29/2003)

vs Kiyoshi Tamura (8/7/2004)

vs Crafter M (12/7/2004)

Wataru Sakata

Sakata was a RINGS dojo product and spent most of his career in shoot-style before working Zero-1 and HUSTLE in the 2000s. He wasn’t the flashiest of wrestlers but was a solid hand for the RINGS undercard for several years before becoming a similar roster member for more diverse promotions. He went from facing the likes of Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, Nikolai Zouev, and Kiyoshi Tamura to going face-to-face with CW Anderson, Jun Kasai, Tenryu, and Super Crazy. Certainly a colorful career worth examining.

Recommended matches –

vs Hiromitsu Kanehara (6/20/1998)

vs Kiyoshi Tamura (7/20/1998)

vs Masayuki Naruse (12/13/1997)

vs Naohiro Hoshikawa (12/15/2002)

vs Genichiro Tenryu (3/12/2006)

Ryuki Ueyama

Ueyama was one of the last UWFi dojo trainees along with Daijiro Matsui. Both would become JMMA-focused guys but Ueyama had some runs in the squared circle as well. After the end of UWFi, Ueyama would try his luck in KINGDOM, RINGS (although most of these matches were probably shoots), U-Style, DDT, HEAT-UP, and even a match in AJPW! As you would expect from someone who was trained in the UWFi dojo, Ueyama was technically proficient and capable of working a sound match. Another guy who I think deserves some examination here.

vs Seichi Ikemoto (10/9/2004)

vs Hiroyuki Ito (2/15/2003)

w/Seichi Ikemoto vs Kiyoshi Tamura & Takaku Fuke (12/7/2004)

vs Ryuji Hijikata (4/12/2003)

vs Daisuke Nakamura (3/19/2015)

w/Kiyoshi Tamura vs Hidehisa Matsuda & Yuki Kotake (6/29/2007)

Osamu Kido

Karl Gotch’s unheralded student and “son.” Kido was a proficient technician and became a staple in NJPW from its conception all the way into the 1980s and 1990s. Kido was also a key piece in the early years of the UWF revolution, participating in its first iteration. Later in the 2000s, Kido would make a stop in Big Mouth Loud and had a hand in training Shinsuke Nakamura in the NJPW dojo. A very underrated wrestler and one that probably merits his own thread based on a very consistent body of work.

Recommended matches -

vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara (9/6/1985)

w/Akira Maeda vs Kengo Kimura & Tatsumi Fujinami (8/5/1986)

w/Keith Haward vs Akira Maeda & Pete Roberts (12/5/1984)

w/Akira Maeda vs Antonio Inoki & Yoshiaki Fujiwara (12/10/1986)

vs Tatsumi Fujinami (2/6/1991)

 

[Control21]

Victor Zangiev

The archetype of the burly strongman from the Soviet bloc. Zangiev would become one of the most recognizable and impactful foreigners from the late 1980s for Puroresu. Even influencing video games such as Street Fighter. Zangiev would make his debut in 1989 for NJPW after Antonio Inoki visited the Soviet Union and negotiated access to two Russian amateur wrestlers (Salman Hashimikov was the other). Zangiev was perhaps the more charismatic of the two and was capable of having good matches. Seemingly a natural, Zangiev became one of the most formidable outsiders in 1989. Zangiev would later work on several UWFi shows.

Recommended matches –

vs Shinya Hashimoto (4/24/1989)

vs Nobuhiko Takada (10/8/1994)

w/Vladimir Berkovich vs Naoki Sano & Yoji Anjo (8/18/1994)

w/Salman Hashimikov vs Kazuo Yamazaki & Yoji Anjo (6/10/1994)

Taiji Ishimori

One of the more talented junior heavyweights in wrestling since the mid-2000s. Ishimori has made a name for himself in NOAH and NJPW. He has combined his considerable athleticism with technical skills and a knack for inserting a ton of energy and excitement into his matches. While other wrestlers like KUSHIDA and Hiromu Takahashi may overshadow him, he still has quite a resume and continues to deliver worthwhile matches. His consistency and output warrant at least a conversation.

Recommended matches –

vs Hiromu Takahashi (6/4/2018)

vs Hiromu Takahashi (6/21/2022)

w/KENTA vs Kota Ibushi & Naomichi Marufuji (7/15/2007)

w/Naomichi Marufuji vs Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (6/13/2012)

vs Dragon Lee (5/3/2019)

Hiroyuki Ito

Making his debut in Kiyoshi Tamura’s U-Style, Hiroyuki Ito was a talented grappler and shoot-style underdog. He was quite decent and had several worthwhile matches with Kiyoshi Tamura, Kyosuske Sasaki, and Ryuki Ueyama. After U-Style’s closure, Ito would go on to further ply his trade in NJPW, Futen, Battlarts, and Big Mouth Loud. His output remained consistent and is probably worth a closer look.

vs Kiyoshi Tamura (8/18/2004)

vs Manabu Hara (4/24/2005)

vs Yuki Ishikawa (4/19/2006)

vs Ryuki Ueyama 10/6/2003)

Naoyuki Taira

“The Real Baki the Grappler,” Naoyuki Taira was a talented shootboxer that eventually tried his hand at pro-wrestling, and was quite good at it. Taira spent most of his time in BattlArts, but also appeared in RINGS for a handful of shoot matches. Taira distinguished himself with flair and style and often appeared quite competent in terms of building match structure. Perhaps he falls in a Kohsaka-esque category of wrestlers who were just really good with a small body of work.

vs Alexander Otsuka (5/11/2000)

vs Carl Malenko (7/20/2000)

w/Kazunari Murakami vs Yuki Ishikawa & Carl Malenko (9/7/2000)

[Reel]

So is Grimmas done? We haven't got a new thread for a nominee since March.

[El McKell]

They said in the discord server on July 1st "I will get this updated in the next week" so it's not forgotten totally even if they haven't followed through on that statement

[Grimmas]

UPDATED and sorry for the delay!

[Control21]

11 minutes ago, Grimmas said:

UPDATED and sorry for the delay!

Thanks for all you do to keep this going Grimmas!

[Microstatistics]

Anton Tejero

To me, the most impressive wrestler from all of the French footage. Great as the technically gifted stooging heel who could big bump AND violently rough up opponents.

w/Inca Peruano vs. Gilbert Cesca/Ben Chemoil, 3/12/1965

vs. Walter Borders, 8/29/1967

vs. Jon Guil Don, 4/18/1976

 

 

[fxnj]

Kyoko Kimura

One of the best joshi workers of the overlooked late 2000s-early 2010s period. Very diverse worker who could do solid matwork sections, work an uncomfortably violent brawl, and also be a trailblazer for intergender deathmatch wrestling.

vs. Abdullah Kobayashi 7/30/2006

vs. Meiko Satomura 12/3/2006 and 3/11/2015

vs. Kana 8/16/2008 and 3/4/2014

w/ Command Bolshoi vs. Arisa Nakajima & Kana 3/2/2014

[El McKell]

There's like 10 people I've done a little look at while watching stuff for this project who are not nominated. And I'm gonna nominate 4 of 'em, although it's unlikely I'll vote for any of 'em

Michel Saulnier
A tiny man, a technical wizard, more fun for me to watch than any of the old French heavyweights. I like that he can be this kind of base or whatever in the matches against Le Petit Prince where he grounds his opponent but he also gets to show one of the most athletic wrestlers in his place and time in other matches.

Michel Saulnier vs Jo Marconville (1959/12/11) 
Michel Saulnier vs Jean Rabut (1965/06/20)
Michel Saulnier vs Le Petit Prince (1967/09/30) & (1969/04/10)

Pentagon Jr
Shocked nobody has nominated him yet and someone's gotta want to vote for him. Got himself super over in Lucha Underground with his personality and aura. Always carries himself like he's a star even when he's mired in mediocre booking. Not as spectacular  as his brother, but still pretty adept at doing cool shit. In his best bloody/violent stuff he comes across really dangerous.

vs Kairi Hojo, Mayu Iwatani & Io Shiari Lucha Underground - Season 3 Episode 13
vs Kenny Omega All In 2019
w/Fenix vs Young Bucks All Out 2021 
vs Villano IV Mas vs Mask in 2022

TJ Perkins
Someone with a sneaky good long career, pretty good in early PWG, Evolve, peak early 2010s PWG, probably the 2nd best guy in the cruiserweight classic (which for my money is one of the best things WWE ever produced), quite a few sporadic really good Impact matches, and then a really good Best of the Super Juniors this year. 

vs Kyle O'Reilly 2013/08/09
vs Kota Ibushi Cruiserweight Classic
vs Gran Metalik Cruiserweight Classic
vs Josh Alexander Iron Man 2021/06/03
vs Hiromu Takahashi 2023/05/19

Lance Archer
He's better at presenting himself as a monster than really any other big man going today. He made his AEW dark squashes entertaining, he's good at making his opponents look good, and it's funny as hell that way back in 2005 he was super over in the Impact Zone because he went out drinking with the fans.

vs AJ Styles 2014/08/03
vs Will Ospreay 2019/07/06
vs Adam Page 2022/02/10
vs Warlow 2022/04/27

I have also looked at Hikaru Shida, Dave Bond, Skayde, Sumie Sakai, Taz & Yuko Miyamoto. But I'm not gonna  nominate any of them unless someone wants to see them in the nominees and doesn't want to bother doing the little write up

[HowtobeaMark]

Ilja Dragnuov

I don't think I have ever seen a bad performance from Ilja. His selling is often great, his offence looks fantastic and his presentation is very serious which has become a breathe of fresh air in modern American wrestling. Almost without exception, if every current wrestler was a bit more like Ilja they would improve their work. He always brings passion to his matches which always makes his matches feel important. 

vs Walter vs John Klinger (10th March 2018)

vs Walter (29th October 2020)

vs Walter (22nd August 2021)

vs Bron Breakker vs JD McDonagh (22nd October 2022)

vs Dijak (28th May 2023)

vs Carmelo Hayes (30th July 2023)

vs Carmelo Hayes (30th September 2023)

 

 

[club]

SUWA

I’m not much for Toryumon or 00s NOAH juniors, but I could watch this dickhead stomp and punch all day long, and it’s a crying shame he didn’t have a longer career. I’d really like to take a look into his Toryumon stuff - hoping people here better versed in it can signpost me to the good stuff.

 

Dragon Kid vs SUWA - 24/08/00

KENTA vs SUWA - 09/18/05

SUWA vs Mitsuo Momota - 07/16/06

Mil Mascaras, Ultimo Dragon, Kazuchika Okada & Marco Corleone vs Ultimo Guererro, SUWA, Yoshihiro Takayama & Minoru Suzuki - 05/13/07

[Grimmas]

UPDATED!

[El McKell]

I'm going to nominate someone I know almost nothing about. 

Bobby Barnes: 
In the discord sever SAMS said this about him: He's a name I barely hear being mentioned, and while I'd solidly put him below the likes of Grey, Breaks, Rocco, Cortez, Jones, I'm not sure how many others I've seen that I'm certain he should be placed below. His aesthetic change almost parallels Freddie Mercury's in transitioning from the glam of the 70s to the short hair and moustache combo of the 80s, and in the context of '80 and '81 World of Sport he almost feels ahead of his time. Really good heel with the perfect deadpan face. If you enjoy this style of bending the rules and accruing as many public warnings without quite getting DQ'd, then he's your man.

In The Beginner's Guide to British Wrestling Otani's Jacket included 3 of his matches in his list of recommended matches:
Les Kellett vs. Bobby Barnes 1973-09-25
Bobby Barnes vs. Steve Grey 1978-07-26
Jon Cortez vs. Bobby Barnes 1981-03-31

[SAMS]

You’re doing God’s work here @El McKell 
I’d been procrastinating on posting something here for Barnes. But I thought that seeing as I stumped so hard for him on Discord I’m kind of obligated to do the same on PWO. But you beat me to it!