WNS Column: Wilds' War Cry - My Top WWE Wrestlers of 2016

I wanted to take a moment and talk about some of my favorite wrestlers of the year, but there would just be too many if I didn’t narrow it down a bit. RoH, NJPW, Lucha Underground, and even TNA have athletes that need to be mentioned, but the WWE had several individuals who I think put it all out on the industry’s biggest stage, and there are three-hundred and sixty-five days in the year, so it’s easy to forget some of the great things even the top individuals did when the company puts out over seven hours of in-ring content a week. My honorable mention goes to the Cruiserweight Division, who put it all out in an amazing tournament, and I have a feeling several of them will make this list next year when we see a few of those personalities fleshed out a bit more. But, without further ado…  

Chris Jericho

I’ve been a Jericho fan since his WCW run and have gone on record as saying that I am pleased any time Y2J returns. It seems like whatever gimmick he is handed or decides to go with, whatever feud or friendship, the man adds his own spin and makes it work. Jericho is a rockstar, but he took the year off from Fozzy to give us, the fans, the Gift of Jericho and The List. Many of his segments with Kevin Owens stick out of course to me, but Lionheart proved that the original Undisputed Champion can still bring the heat in the ring, lasting fifty minutes in this year’s Royal Rumble, wrestling AJ Styles at Wrestlemania, and in my favorite match against Ambrose, the asylum bout with that thumbtack spot. Rest in peace, Mitch the Plant. Jericho says this is one of his best years since 2009, and it is hard to argue that when he’s closing it out in the main event picture and in a feud with Seth Rollins.

Shinsuke Nakamura

This man’s match against Sami Zayn at TakeOver: Dallas may be a contender for best of the year, and is one of my personal favorites. After a few more sound victories against some of NXT’s best, the King of Strong Style found gold with TakeOver: Brooklyn II against the relentless Samoa Joe, and the two would trade the strap back-and-forth in some good matches, and now it looks like he is about to take on the man, Bobby Roode. I love that Nakamura is such a solid wrestler and a master entertainer, and the critics agree, as he was ranked #7 in the PWI top 500 this year. This is a wrestler who has proven himself in Japan already, as the youngest person to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship belt among many other accolades, and every time he enters the ring now is a showcase for why he needs to be in the title picture of the main roster.

Charlotte Flair

Let’s all take a moment and bow down to the Queen. I began this year knowing that Charlotte was good, but over the last several months the daughter of one particular Dirtiest Player in the Game showed me that she may be the best heel on RAW. Her triple threat match at Wrestlemania was excellent and saw Flair become the last Divas Champion as well as inaugural Women’s title holder. Charlotte and Sasha were the title picture for their division this year and not only main evented a PPV and had the first women’s Hell in a Cell match, but put on one of the greatest feuds of the year. She even managed to find success outside of the ring with making it into January’s issue of Muscle and Fitness. One of my personal favorite moments though has to be the segment where she dropped the Nature Boy, her father, as a manager. It was an emotional moment to show how vicious royalty needs to be sometimes.

Kevin Owens

Owens may have begun the year at Wrestlemania by losing his Intercontinental Championship to Zack Ryder, but after Balor’s unfortunate injury, he was given an opportunity to make 2016 his. In an on-going program with Sami Zayn, Owens gave some high quality matches—especially that fantastic fight at Battleground—for what was my other favorite feud of the year and proved he was ready for the main event. That would happen soon, with a little help from Triple H, and he would keep the belt thanks to some help from his new best friend, Chris Jericho. Yes, we all know that the segments with him and Jericho are hilarious, but Owens really stepped up his comedy game in some of these bits and worked well off of his fellow Canadian. Owens has made an entertaining heel champion while still feeling effective and dangerous and I hope to see him hold the belt a bit longer in 2017, perhaps until Finn is ready. That will be a great match.

The New Day

Did anyone think that New Day wouldn’t actually break the record? Gotta have that power of positivity! They will most likely hold that honor for quite some time and I’m glad to see the trio achieve it, as they are one of the most consistently entertaining stables in the company for me. Each member has become more fleshed out this year and the group transitioned successfully from heel to face earlier, even if it seemed that they lacked direction with some of their opponents. It’s an honest shame that the draft seemed to derail their feud with the Wyatts and creative just couldn’t give everyone an amazing run against true villains like The Club, not like both teams deserved. These guys are also just cool fun loving nerds. I know I popped for those Dragon Ball Z outfits at Wrestlemania. Xavier Woods had an extra special year with his gaming-based YouTube channel coming to prominence this year. I know I like this group though, because now that they’ve lost their belts, I find myself hoping this group of unicorns aren’t broken up in 2017.

The Miz

Sometimes I feel like the only Miz fan in the world. I know it isn’t true, but I’ve been a fan of Mike’s and wanted to see him succeed since his work on ECW and teaming up with John Morrison. I was the only one of my friends who gave a damn when he had the belt and was discouraged seeing Rock v Cena overshadow that. I also have to admit he’s had it a bit rough trying to get over in the past few years and his face runs are almost cringe-worthy, so I’m not surprised that he’s found traction again as a self-absorbed heel alongside the exquisite Maryse. He’ll be remembered this year mostly for his promo on Daniel Bryan during Talking Smack—and heelishly incorporating some of his signature moves into the arsenal—but I love this recent run for his match against Ziggler at No Mercy and the passion he puts behind everything he does. The Hollywood ‘It’ couple did The Marine 5 and made their Total Divas debut this year, but what was with those KFC commercials though?

Asuka

I only knew a bit of her work before NXT, as Kana, but her look, the wonderful entrance with that music, and the way The Empress of Tomorrow brutalizes people, like she might actually want to hurt her opponents, was enough to make me pay attention for sure. Asuka filled a gap in the NXT women’s division after so many others had been called up, and she has dominated. Most will remember her recent match against the esteemed Mickie James, but her best may have been against Bayley at TakeOver: Brooklyn II. Undefeated, she still has a lot to show and so many more asses to kick. Outside of the ring this leading lady is a graphic designer, owns her own hair salon called Another Heaven, and not only is she in WWE 2K17, but Asuka will beat you at it. An avid gamer, she has done work for a couple of Nintendo DS games and had several articles published in XBox Magazine (I’m only a little salty…). I may have found my new favorite here.

AJ Styles

I’ve watched Styles since his early years in TNA and always said the Phenomanol One could make money for WWE if given the chance. The company knew this as well, letting him face their top stars like Jericho, Reigns, and giving him excellent opportunities to BEAT UP JOHN CENA before pushing this superstar to the moon on Smackdown. He came in at the Royal Rumble and lost his first Wrestlemania match, but now he holds the title on what I think is the better show, as the face that runs the place, and one of the lynchpins of the blue brand’s success. AJ can make anyone look good in the ring, even James Ellsworth. In fact, having to deal with the no-chin and a slight ankle injury might be the worst things that have happened to him this year. I hate that he was split up from the rest of The Club, but he has so much potential on his own. Rumor is that he’s up for the Superstar of the Year Slammy, which would be deserved, and I hear he can rap too.

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