Happy Wrestling Land’s The Year of Wrestlers*, 2021 Edition

By way of a pandemic and parenthood, my wrestling watching habits have changed over the last few years. I try to keep a tight lid on what I keep up with but it seems to keep expanding, the most prominent addition last year being AEW and this year Stardom (albeit to a lesser degree).

Comparing the efforts of a Stardom wrestler to a WWE wrestler is comparing apples to something that’s not food, but giving anymore effort to focusing on just WWE’s wrestlers (something I have done previously) didn’t feel worthwhile when a solid two-thirds majority of them barely wrestled. Enter the first edition of HWL’s The Year of Wrestlers.

We’re looking back at the individual talents who made the year what it was inside the squared circle, with representation from WWE, AEW, NJPW, and Stardom.

The Year of Wrestlers, Last Year

The kings and queens of pro wrestling in 2020 were those that did what they could, confined for 80% of the year to single location without a live audience, one of wrestling’s primary ingredients.

This year? It was half and half as WWE and AEW resumed touring in the summer, though Japan is still yet to return to full capacity. Asuka, Bayley, Sasha Banks and Bryan Danielson made the most of the Thunderdome for WWE, though in 2021 WWE also completely transformed their philosophy on what wrestlers they employ and half of my “Most Potential” list ended up released.

The Elite, Jon Moxley and Hikaru Shida carried the load for AEW, mostly by way of defending their championships. Of the 10 members on AEW’s “Most Potential” list, nearly all of them by golly realized it too. I also asked Miro to get better, and hey — he did.

For New Japan, Kazuchika Okada took a noticeable step back but the rest of the usual suspects continued to be great at what they do: Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi, Tomohiro Ishii, Kota Ibushi, and Taichi delivered great wrestling in whatever strange environment they found themselves in, but especially in the G1 Climax.

HWL All-Pro Wrestling Team 2021

Just five selections each from AEW, WWE, and the entire country of Japan could make the first HWL All-Star Team, comprised of the best and brightest stars in the business. They are ranked in a sort of preference order, but — you know. It’s wrestling.

1. Eddie Kingston
There are a lot of great things you can bring to the table in wrestling, but nobody included all of them in 2022 like Eddie K: top-tier matches, legendary promos, crowd connection, and in his spare time fun commentary on AEW Dark. By just rolling with basic-ass professional wrestling concepts like being an ass-kicker and treating it serious, he became the breath of fresh air this biz-ness needed on national TV. Other key performances include vs. Bryan Danielson, Miro at All Out, and CM Punk at Full Gear.

2. Bryan Danielson
Daniel Bryan’s decade with WWE is one of the greatest runs of all-time, the ultimate pro wrestler applying all his tricks to fitting inside WWE’s box and succeeding beyond anybody’s wildest dreams. Since he went back to his government name and jumped to AEW in September though, it’s been a classic wrestling match or TV gem nearly every week: 30 minutes with Kenny Omega, 60 minutes with Hangman Page, and random scraps with Colt Cabana, Anthony Bowens, Minoru Suzuki, and other new names. This is fun.

3. Kenny Omega
He worked a New Japan main eventer’s schedule, spent a little too much time with Impact Wrestling and there was that dumb Triple Threat at Double or Nothing… but otherwise Omega’s AEW World Title run brought high-level work inside the ring and he closed the year especially strong with matches vs. Christian Cage on Rampage and at All Out, Bryan Danielson on Dynamite, and Hangman Page at Full Gear.

4. The Young Bucks
As AEW World Tag Team Champions for the majority of the year, The Young Bucks had a lot of opportunities to showcase AEW’s ridiculously deep tag team division and boy did they ever: The Lucha Brothers, Sydal Brothers, SoCal Uncensored, Hollywood Blonds, Jurassic Express and Dante Martin all rocked with the Bucks and that was before Adam Cole came in for 6-man tags. They also found a rhythym on character too, becoming effectively annoying rather than just annoying. Key performances include vs. The Lucha Bros at All Out and Jurassic Express on Dynamite.

5. MJF
Take it from me on MJF vs. Darby Allin at Full Gear: “On mechanics alone, this match is good: crisp and confident delivery … all the extra physicality or punctuation the opener of a big wrestling card could want .. It was made even better by … the tone-setting brought by MJF’s robe and cock walk [and] the general space AEW has carved out that even allows for these two young fellows the breathing room to shine in a serious wrestling match opener — these are the things that make the wrestling move.” While he wasn’t wrestling every week, MJF made wrestling move in 2022. Like Kingston, he applies basic wrestling concepts for 2022. His big matches aren’t amazing and dare I say a little basic, but they’ll still probably make the Best Of a decade later because they just mattered more anyways. Key performances included vs. Chris Jericho at All Out and Blood & Guts on Dynamite.

1. Tam Nakano
2022 was the year I started watching Stardom, and Tam Nakano is a major reason I’ll continue to. She headlined the first show I saw with a great match vs. Giulia and continued to deliver the most varied collection of high-level pro wrestling I saw from Japan this year: good main events, semi-main events, epics with wrestlers who regularly have them but some who don’t, too. Alongside a consistent poise and array of pinks and purples, she brings it all together by just being an absolute stone cold badass. Key performances included vs. Saya Kamitani in Yokohama, Mayu Iwatani in Osaka, and Mina Shirakawa in Tokyo.

2. Utami Hayashishita
Purposeful chain wrestling, stiff strikes, big near falls… the only knock I could have on Hayashishita would be similarity in matches, but she was The Champ for all the big Stardom shows I watched and crushed every time. I remain unspoiled and excited for the arrival of her 10th defense to Stardom World because both she and her challenger Syuri were great all year, both at wrestling and just building up excitement for a big showdown at the end of the year while still delivering epic and dramatic matches nearly every month. Take it from me on her match vs. Hazuki in Kawasaki: “Hayashishita has had a near impeccable title reign, and here was this very good match to ruin it.” Key performances included vs. Syuri at Tokyo Dream Cinderella and almost everything else.

3. Shingo Takagi
The general vibe of New Japan this year was disappointment, but called upon to lead the way Shingo Takagi admirably powered through and made it not so disappointing. Him as the IWGP Heavyweight Champion still feels like one of those fever dreams, but here he is being the same awesome wrestler he always was… just as IWGP Heavyweight Champion. The role sometimes led to repetition, but there aren’t a lot of active wrestlers I’d rather see doing the role. Key performances included layups vs. Kazuchika Okada at Dominion and two matches with Hiroshi Tanahashi, as well as the entire G1 Climax and a random epic vs. Jeff Cobb at Wrestle Kingdom.

4. El Desperado
Like Shingo, El Desperado was called upon to lead the way in tough times and even spent half the year as a double junior heavyweight champion. He has the Jushin Liger or El Samurai thing going on where nobody in the company is showing emotion in big spots better than him despite the mask over his face. Despite not making the Finals he was the MVP of the Best of the Super Jr. 2021, and other key performances included vs. Ibushi at NJPW’s 49th Anniversary, w/ Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Roppongi 3K at Sakura Genesis, and vs. Robbie Eagles at Power Struggle.

5. Hiroshi Tanahashi
2022 is the year I am finally admitting that Hiroshi Tanahashi has lost a step, though having him to do things like an entire G1 Climax tour in front of a crowd only allowed to clap as response is a questionable ask. Despite this, and despite the all the talent currently still raging in Japan, just watch him in a spot when it’s time to really really go like the two matches vs. Shingo or even the G1 opener with Kazuchika Okada and I’m done taking questions: still a GOAT.

1. Bianca Belair
It’s tough to develop as a pro wrestler when you’re a whole WWE Main Event Superstar, but a rare bright spot for WWE this year was Bianca Belair doing just that. She not only won the Royal Rumble and faced Sasha Banks in an all-time great WrestleMania main event, but also added the freshest dynamic to WWE’s Four Horsewomen-dominated championship scene since Asuka. Other key performances included vs. Becky Lynch and Sasha at Crown Jewel and Bayley at Hell in a Cell.

2. Sami Zayn
3. Kevin Owens
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens had three more great matches together in 2022 at WrestleMania, Hell in a Cell, and on SmackDown. The last one was a Last Man Standing match and one of their best, but in this particular era of WWE all three stood out as something special. There’s just something to be said in regards to both guys for consistency in making terrible material sort of work. Owens opened the year with what was probably Roman Reigns’ last great feud, while raggedy-ass Sami Zayn’s promos and wrestling and ability to put a stamp on a WWE character in the midst of an era with no stamps was the best thing I saw from WWE this year. Key performances from both included the Elimination Chamber and a bunch of great promos on SmackDown.

4. WALTER
WALTER is still probably the most complete professional wrestler there is right now; it’s just that he’s in NXT UK and wrestles literally four times a year. Regardless, three of the four were among the best matches I saw this year: vs. A-Kid in January, Tommaso Ciampa at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver, and Ilja Dragunov at TakeOver 36. Black tights, brick wall, no bullshit.

5. Sheamus
I wanted to be cute and put Daniel Bryan here, but hey — he’s GONE. Also, I can’t deny the Fella. Somehow, someway, while working for a sports entertainment company and sometimes without the benefit of even having fans in attendance, Sheamus continued his mission to bring the pro wrestling. Key performances included vs. Drew McIntyre on RAW and Damian Priest at SummerSlam.

MVPs: WWE

1. Roman Reigns
2. Big E
3. Ilja Dragunov
4. Sasha Banks
5. Bayley
6. Riddle
7. Meiko Satomura
8. The Usos
9. Street Profits
10. Daniel Bryan

MVPs: AEW

1. CM Punk
2. Darby Allin
3. Hangman Page
4. Miro
5. Christian Cage
6. Jungle Boy
7. Jon Moxley
8. Thunder Rosa
9. The Lucha Bros
10. FTR

MVPs: Japan

1. Syuri
2. Tomohiro Ishii
3. Mayu Iwatani
4. Kazuchika Okada
5. Zack Sabre Jr.
6. Taichi
7. Saya Kamitani
8. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI
9. Momo Watanabe
10. Starlight Kid

Pro Wrestling Rookie Team 2021

1. HOOK
2. Bron Breakker
3. Jade Cargill
4. The Creed Brothers
5. Omos
6. Charlie Dempsey
7. Yota Tsuji
8. Odyssey Jones
9. Rick Boogs
10. Bad Bunny

Most Improved Player

1. Jungle Boy
2. Sammy Guevara
3. Tay Conti
4. Damian Priest
5. Private Party
6. Apollo Crews
7. Nyla Rose
8. Otis
9. Hollywood Blonds
10. Yuya Uemura

Most Advanced Player

1. Adam Cole
2. Great O-Khan
3. Syuri
4. Dante Martin
5. Indi Hartwell
6. Liv Morgan
7. Carmelo Hayes
8. Rhea Ripley
9. Malakai Black
10. Daniel Garcia

Sixth Man or Woman of the Year

1. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods
2. Satoshi Kojima
3. Dustin Rhodes
4. Cesaro
5. The Miz
6. Robbie Eagles
7. AJ Styles
8. Shinsuke Nakamura
9. Serena Deeb
10. Tony Nese

Individual Performances I’m Still Thinking About

1. Bryan Danielson returns to the ring vs. Kenny Omega (AEW Dynamite 9/22/21)
2. Eddie Kingston and CM Punk bleed and brawl at Full Gear (AEW Full Gear 11/13/21)
3. Syuri wrestles twice in one night (Stardom 5-Star GP Finals 9/25/21)
4. Sasha Banks main events WrestleMania with Bianca Belair (WrestleMania 37 4/10/21)
5. Rey Fenix in the All Out Steel Cage Match (AEW All Out 9/5/21)
6. Ilja Dragunov tries to beat WALTER (NXT TakeOver: TBD 8/22/21)
7. Tommaso Ciampa tries to beat WALTER (NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver 4/7/21)
8. Io Shirai’s masterpiece with Raquel Gonzalez (NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver 4/7/21)
9. HOOK makes his in-ring wrestling debut (AEW Dynamite 12/8/21)
10. Kevin Owens drags Roman around the Thunderdome (WWE Royal Rumble 1/31/21)

Flashes of Greatness

1. Rey Mysterio
2. Hiromu Takahashi
3. A-Kid
4. Tyler Bate
5. Kota Ibushi
6. Tetsuya Naito
7. Charlotte Flair
8. Io Shirai
9. Kyle O’Reilly
10. Riho

Best Wrestling Acts

1. Orange Cassidy and The Best Friends
2. Team Taz with Ricky Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs and HOOK
3. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott and Hit Row
4. Britt Baker, Jamie Hayter and Rebel
5. The Dark Order
6. Men of the Year
7. The Acclaimed
8. Malcolm Bivens and The Diamond Mine
9. Luchasaurus
10. Andre Chase

Movers And Shakers, For Better Or Otherwise

1. Cody Rhodes
2. Bobby Lashley
3. Drew McIntyre
4. Becky Lynch
5. Chris Jericho
6. Randy Orton
7. Seth Rollins
8. Grayson Waller
9. Mandy Rose
10. Matt Hardy

Nobody Talks About How Good This Guy Is

1. Natsuko Tora
2. Dakota Kai
3. Sam Gradwell
4. Evil Uno
5. Leon Ruff
6. YOH
7. Fuego del Sol
8. Mark Andrews
9. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
10. Preston “10” Vance

Do Better Next Year

1. Jeff Cobb
2. EVIL, SHO and Yujiro Takahashi
3. Anthony Ogogo
4. Dominik Mysterio
5. Kazuchika Okada
6. Karrion Kross
7. Master Wato
8. Andrade el Idolo
9. Austin Theory
10. Will Ospreay

Best On-Screen Personalities

1. Taz
2. Arn Anderson
3. Tony Schiavone
4. Edge
5. MVP
6. Jim Ross
7. KENTA
8. Tully Blanchard
9. Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae
10. Adam Pearce

Fresh Start Of The Year

1. CM Punk returns to pro wrestling
2. Bryan Danielson jumps to AEW
3. Shingo Takagi as IWGP Heavyweight Champion
4. The Undisputed Era reunites in AEW
5. Ruby Soho
6. Minoru Suzuki comes to America
7. 2point0 in AEW
8. Roderick Strong in Diamond Mine
9. Chad Gable and Otis as the Alpha Academy
10. The Inner Circle momentarily does their own thing

Biggest Busts

1. Bray Wyatt and Alexa Bliss
2. Karrion Kross in WWE
3. Keith Lee on RAW
4. Toni Storm on SmackDown
5. Bronson Reed, NXT North American Champion
6. Toru Yano, King of Pro Wrestling
7. QT Marshall and The Factory follow-up
8. Samoa Joe, NXT Enforcer then NXT Champion
9. Natalya and Tamina, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions
10. “Doudrop”

Who I’d Like To See More Of In 2022

1. Keith Lee
2. Giulia
3. Kay Lee Ray
4. Lee Moriarty
5. Santos Escobar
6. Hikaru Shida
7. Nathan Frazer
8. Desmond Troy
9. AZM
10. Kazuchika Okada

Who I’d Like To Get Familiar With In 2022

1. Fuminori Abe
2. Takuya Nomura
3. Kenoh
4. Maki Itoh
5. Yuji Okabayashi
6. HARASHIMA
7. Shun Skywalker
8. Bandido
9. Trish Adora
10. Kento Miyahara

Other Sentimental Favorites

1. Pete Dunne
2. KUSHIDA
3. Mustafa Ali
4. Wardlow
5. Matt Sydal
6. Sting
7. Kris Statlander
8. Ryusuke Taguchi
9. Santana & Ortiz
10. Natsupoi