Monthly Archives: January 2019

Pro Wrestling

Let Us All Find Out Who Drew…#1 (and #2)

I didn’t want to just do some Royal Rumble preview (if you are curious, I am picking Asuka, Lesnar (although I have this weird feeling about Balor, wish I had the guts to go with it), Rollins and Charlotte). So let’s do something different. Let’s take a look back at #1 and #2 of all the main Royal Rumbles.

royal rumble bret hart
Bret Hart kicked off the ’88 Rumble, and it wouldn’t be the last time.

1988
#1 – Bret Hart
#2 – Tito Santana

The 1988 Royal Rumble is quite different than what we are used to today. It was the first televised one (there had been Rumbles before, notably one at a house show in 1987 won by the One Man Gang). Bret would have a long run (about 25 minutes), starting a theme of a smaller worker having a long run from #1. Santana lasted about 10 minutes himself, before Bret (and The Anvil) got him out. It’s also worth noting that #1 and #2 didn’t even get an entrance.

royal rumble ax smash demolition
The formula was already being tinkered with

1989
#1 – Ax
#2 – Smash

It’s interesting that Vince was already playing with the Rumble formula by having Demolition be #1 and #2. Neither Ax or Smash had a notable run, lasting 5 and 14 minutes respectively. Jesse Ventura on commentary insinuated that Ted Dibiase paid money to make sure some of the tougher guys got an early number. While it was the first thirty-man Rumble, we still didn’t know what the Rumble was going to be. But at least we had an interesting start with the Demos.

royal rumble dibiase
Dibiase’s riches didn’t get him a good number this time.

1990
#1 – Ted Dibiase
#2 – Koko B. Ware

Interestingly, Howard Finkel announces that this year’s #1 had #30 the year prior. Dibiase would have a long run, over 44 minutes. Dibiase would dump Koko before #3 ever made it out. The 1990 Rumble is probably the first to really have a certain prestige attached to it, as Hulk Hogan would win it (as WWF Champion). Still, through three Rumbles, #1 and #2 were not particularly notable.

royal rumble bret hart dino bravo
Bret was probably more annoyed about having to wrestle Bravo than being #1 again.

1991
#1 – Bret Hart
#2 – Dino Bravo

Poor Bret Hart. Four Rumbles in total he already has two #1s. I’m sure he was thrilled to be in there with Bravo as well. It’s amazing to see how different Bret looks from 1988. While he was still in the Hart Foundation tag team, it’s obvious that he was primed for bigger things. He got 20 minutes here, while Bravo lasted three.

royal rumble British bulldog
No one talks about anyone but Flair, but the Bulldog was a strong early face in the ’92 Rumble

1992
#1 – The British Bulldog
#2 – Ted Dibiase

Surprisingly, Dibiase gets a second top two spot. The Bulldog is a solid face to be #1. Bulldog made quick work of Dibiase while lasting 20 minutes himself. Of course, no one really cares, because this is the infamous Rumble where Ric Flair won from #3 (winning the WWF Title with it). It was nice to see a time where drawing an early number was considered a death knell in regards to winning the match.

royal rumble Ric Flair
No one talks about Flair’s 2nd Rumble, Heenan was great here too.

1993
#1 – Ric Flair
#2 – Bob Backlund

Definitely the highest level of prestige for #1 and #2 so far. Flair of course won from #3 the year prior, so he wasn’t counted out at all. Backlund is a former WWF Champion who would last over an hour and basically finished 3rd in the match. The idea that #1 or #2 could win was firmly entrenched here. Notably, this was the first Rumble where the winner was guaranteed a World Title shot at Wrestlemania.

royal rumble steiners samu
The only “highlight” early on in the ’94 Rumble

1994
#1 – Scott Steiner
#2 – Samu

A bit of a throwback to the first two Rumbles (Rick Steiner would be #3). Instead of having top guys start out, the 1994 Rumble started out quietly and that’s a good thing. Samu didn’t even make it to when Rick got in, and Scott lasted until Diesel went on a rampage and became a star.

royal rumble michaels bulldog
A memorable moment wasted by the short Rumble.

1995
#1 – Shawn Michaels
#2 – The British Bulldog

It’s kind of a shame this Rumble exists. Michaels and the Bulldog of course were known for both being able to go coast to coast, which on paper is a great story. The problem is with how it was done. The timer between each competitor was lowered to one minute, and the Rumble itself was only 38:41. Michaels and the Bulldog’s time wasn’t even top 5 all time at that point, despite going from 1 and 2 to the end (Backlund, Flair, Valentine, Martel and Dibiase all lasted 40+ minutes in a Rumble at this point). At the time it was cool, but what a waste of the concept.

Royal Rumble HHH
HHH got himself DQed…and had to enter #1.

1996
#1 – Hunter Hearst Helmsley
#2 – Henry O. Godwinn

HHH got his first #1 by getting a decision reversed in the Free-For-All against Duke “The Dumpster” Droese. Godwinn was feuding with him, which is another Rumble theme that would repeat itself. HHH has one of my favorite performances in the ’96 Rumble, as he lasted 48 minutes and didn’t eliminate anyone. Godwinn got 16 minutes himself, which unfortunately shows how thin the roster was at that point.

royal rumble 1997
Contender for worst #1 and #2.

1997
#1 – Crush
#2 – Ahmed Johnson

Like last year, #1 and #2 were in a feud (as Crush was a member of the Nation of Domination). Ahmed took himself out 3 minutes in chasing after Faarooq, and Crush only lasted a few minutes past that. Good argument for the weakest #1 and #2 here.

royal rumble cactus jack
Foley and Funk added a lot of fun that had been missing from the Rumble.

1998
#1 – Cactus Jack
#2 – Chainsaw Charlie

This was different. Mick Foley and Terry Funk had a friendly “who can hit the other with a chair harder” contest and then took out Tom Brandi as well. Very entertaining #1 and #2. Funk’s 1998 performance is quite entertaining overall. He lasts 25 minutes and is very animated throughout. Interestingly Funk was eliminated by Foley…but Foley was Mankind. So far, this is probably my favorite #1 and #2 and it really set the stage for what the WWF was becoming.

royal rumble 1999 mcmahon austin
Austin vs. McMahon would recreate 1995, although in a strange way.

1999
#1 – Stone Cold Steve Austin
#2 – Mr. McMahon

Oof. #1 and #2 were determined through storylines on RAW. This was a super hot feud and of course a really smart way for Austin to legally get his hands on McMahon. Of course, the rest of the Rumble is treated as a joke as after a trip to the women’s bathroom and a hospital, Austin and McMahon ended up as the last two competitors in the match. And McMahon won it. That’s WWF Attitude for you.

royal rumble 2000
D’Lo and Grandmaster Sexay were lower profile than years prior.

2000
#1 – D’Lo Brown
#2 – Grandmaster Sexay

Holy midcarders Batman! What a change from 1999. D’Lo’s peak had passed and Grandmaster was about to get there, but neither were above the midcard even then. Neither would last particularly long, but Grandmaster was part of a famous elimination when dancing with Rikishi.

Royal Rumble 2001 Hardy
A variant of 88, 89 and 94.

2001
#1 – Jeff Hardy
#2 – Bull Buchanan

Another callback to 1988 and 1994, as Matt Hardy was #3 and Buchanan was part of the Right to Censor faction and teaming with the Goodfather. Once again neither lasted long, as the ring has to be cleared for the Drew Carey-Kane angle.

royal rumble goldust
Goldust got a great reaction in his WWF return.

2002
#1 – Rikishi
#2 – Goldust

The most interesting combination for #1 and #2 since 1999 for several reasons. One, Rikishi (who was #30 the year prior, the first since Dibiase in 89/90 to accomplish this) went from near top guy to midcarder in a year, and he’s treated as such (he eliminated The Undertaker the year prior, and was tossed out as part of the deadwood clearing portion of the Rumble by Taker this year). Goldust had a lot of hype as he was one of the returning four wrestlers advertised for that year. He got a big pop and looked good as well (he also was taken out by Undertaker).

royal rumble 2003 jericho michaels
Jericho and HBK was one of the all-time great starts, with a shocking ending.

2003
#1 – Shawn Michaels
#2 – Chris Jericho

A contender for my favorite #1-#2. Jericho said he could do whatever HBK could, which led them being #1 and #2 here. Jericho though would cheapshot and brutalize HBK in the opening two minutes, taking him out. Brilliant. HBK would come back later and attack Jericho, allowing Test (???) to eliminate him. Excellent storyline build for what turned to be a great match at Wrestlemania XIX.

royal rumble 2004 orton
Randy Orton had a great showing from #2 in 2004.

2004
#1 – Chris Benoit
#2 – Randy Orton

It’s a shame I can’t appreciate Benoit’s run in the 2004 Rumble today, because it’s excellent and the 2004 is still the greatest Rumble of all time (yes, better than 1992). Benoit of course would go coast to coast and win the whole thing. Orton was fantastic here as well, and he got a good run in until Mick Foley made his return and took him out. Two years in a row we’ve gotten excellent #1 and #2s.

royal rumble guerrero
One of Eddie Guerrero’s last fun moments before he turned heel in 2005.

2005
#1 – Eddie Guerrero
#2 – Chris Benoit

Another enjoyable #1 and #2. While Guerrero was hurting at this point in his career, he still put in a solid and entertaining 28 minutes. Benoit would go 47 this year and made it past #30. I’m not sure if I should, but I still enjoy what Guerrero, Benoit and Hardcore Holly did to Daniel Puder early on.

royal rumble mysterio
Rey Mysterio put on one of the all-time great Rumble performances.

2006
#1 – Triple H
#2 – Rey Mysterio

A very interesting #1 and #2 as Mysterio wasn’t quite at the top guy level yet, which made for a great underdog story. Both HHH and Mysterio would last to the end, and Mysterio would complete the coast to coast eliminating Randy Orton. For years now, WWE were definitely did right with #1 and #2.

royapl rumble 2007
Flair and Finlay was an awesome old school start.

2007
#1 – Ric Flair
#2 – Finlay

While lower profile that previous years, this is still a strong top two. Unfortunately, Flair (his second #1) would only last a few minutes, but Finlay got in a strong 30.

royal rumble undertaker hbk
Michaels vs. Undertaker was another chapter in their amazing feud of the late 2000s.

2008
#1 – The Undertaker
#2 – Shawn Michaels

Another contender for best #1 and #2. There were so many great things about this that we need to make a list. First off, they were the last two remaining the year prior and had a great match. Second, each of their performances were excellent and should be included in the HBK-Taker that followed in 2009 and 2010. Third, Michael Buffer was brought in for the introductions. Undertaker also joined Dibiase and Rikishias someone who got #30 one year and #1 the next. Anyway, Undertaker and Shawn both lasted a little more than a half hour, and HBK would finally avenge his 2007 defeat by superkicking Taker out of this one.

royal rumble rey morrison
Rey vs. Morrison was a fun start.

2009
#1 – Rey Mysterio
#2 – John Morrison

Not particularly notable this year, but Rey would get a long 49 minute run and Morrison had a good showing himself at 20 minutes. Still, you could do worse with Mysterio and Morrison as your #1 and #2.

royal rumble 2010
Two good workers, but we all remember CM Punk at #3

2010
#1 – Dolph Ziggler
#2 – Evan Bourne

For the first time since 2002 we get a couple midcarders to start. CM Punk would wipe them both out as soon as he came in at three and proceed to be awesome. As great as the 2010 Rumble is, it’s #1 and #2 were rather bland. Ziggler would come a long way though, as we will get to.

royal rumble 2011 bryan punk
I mean…it’s Bryan vs. Punk

2011
#1 – CM Punk
#2 – Daniel Bryan

I mean, just read those two names. Unfortunately, the booking and structure of the 2011 Rumble somewhat deflated these two at #1 and #2. For one, there was a confusing Corre vs. Nexus brawl right before Bryan came out. Second, this was the first ever 40 man Rumble, while really put into question whether #1 or #2 could win. Lastly, Bryan wasn’t established yet as a guy that mattered. Still, Punk vs. Bryan is a pretty cool way to start. Punk would take out Bryan about 20 minutes in, and John Cena would wipe out Punk.

Royal Rumble miz
Miz had a solid showing in 2012.

2012
#1 – The Miz
#2 – Alex Riley

Unfortunately, the Miz was on the way down after a successful 2011, mostly because he and R-Truth were blamed for the low 2011 Survivor Series buyrate. Alex Riley got cheers for turning on the Miz in 2011, but then people realized he was Alex Riley. WWE realized it too, and he was gone in a minute. Miz got a long run though.

royal rumble 2013 jericho ziggler
Jericho’s surprise return in 2013 was nothing short of amazing.

2013
#1 – Dolph Ziggler
#2 – Chris Jericho

One of the all-time great Rumble surprises. “And I don’t even care who #2 is, so just send him out already!” Ziggler had sent Jericho packing at Summerslam 2012, so this was perfect. Both were brilliant in the match as well, 45 minutes later Ziggler would eliminate Jericho. Ziggler was out a couple minutes later. I would have bet serious money on Ziggler being a big star in 2013, but by Summerslam he was just another guy.

royal rumble 2014
This turned out to be CM Punk’s last match.

2014
#1 – CM Punk
#2 – Seth Rollins

Poor CM Punk. His last three Rumble entry numbers were 3, 1 and 1. I also rolled by eyes at #2. As soon as Punk came out, I said #2 would be Rollins. Anyway this would prove to be CM Punk’s last match. Despite getting concussed by Kofi Kingston he lasted 49 minutes before Kane came in and tossed him out. Rollins got in 48 minutes himself, a performance that’s very overlooked, before fellow SHIELD member Roman Reigns tossed him.

royal rumble miz
Miz was shunted down the card in 2015…but was still amazing.

2015
#1 – The Miz
#2 – R-Truth

We just did this in 2012, as Truth was #3 there. Both were complete midcarders at this point, and Miz was just fodder for the returning Bubba Ray Dudley and R-Truth Dudley’s signature moves. It’s amazing how long it took for the Miz to rebuild himself.

Royal Rumble AJ Styles, Roman
Roman had to defend the title, but this is another where we only cared about #3.

2016
#1 – Roman Reigns
#2 – Rusev

Roman being #1 was a storyline, as he was defending the WWE Title here (not the worst concept in the world actually). Rusev and Roman were the last two in 2015 (officially, the whole finish was a mess). Unfortunately, Rusev didn’t make it to #3. Of course, this is overshadowed by A.J. Styles making his debut at #3.

royal rumble 2017 jericho
Jericho looked like he had a lot of fun in 2017.

2017
#1 – Big Cass
#2 – Chris Jericho

Rather forgettable, but somewhat saved by Jericho having one of my favorite runs. Jericho lasted an hour basically being a troll. Big Cass lasted 10 minutes and there’s not much else to say there.

royal rumble balor rusev
Balor vs. Rusev was a fun start in 2018.

2018 (Men’s)
#1 – Rusev
#2 – Finn Balor

Because of his entrance, I would have put money on Shinsuke Nakamura being #1 or #2. Nonetheless, we have a very entertaining #1 and #2. Rusev got in a good 30 minutes amid “Rusev Day” chants. Balor lasted almost an hour, making the Final Four and putting on a great performance.

royal rumble sasha banks becky lynch
Could the first Women’s Rumble start with anyone but Sasha and Becky?

2018 (Women’s)
#1 – Sasha Banks
#2 – Becky Lynch

It was a safe bet that we’d get these two for #1 and #2. I expected them both to get to the end, but Becky was surprisingly eliminated midway in. Sasha would make it to the end and got played by the Bella Twins. Both were great though.

Pro Wrestling

2018 RDTWorldofSport Wrestling Awards

RDTWorldofSport 2018 Wrestling Awards

Honesty time. This is pretty much my opinion with some searching around to see what some respected wrestling forums and writers think. Also this will mostly be WWE (but not all), basically because that’s what I watched 99% of the time. But if something else catches my eye, it could make the awards. 2018 was an interesting year, for sure. Again, if you disagree, fine. But just remember, I don’t watch NJPW or anything else really.

Moment of the Year

Winner: The Man Comes Around RAW

You know what the easiest way to determine if what someone is doing is great? Take an angle that’s been pretty horrible for years (in this case, the forced RAW-Smackdown “invasions” or whatever for Survivor Series) and turn it into a masterpiece. And that’s what Becky Lynch did. In a pretty lame year for WWE angles, this ridiculously stood out.

Second Place: Penta-Jericho at All-In

Third Place: Ronda Rousey Debuts at the Royal Rumble

Fourth Place: Asuka wins the Smackdown Women’s Title at TLC

Fifth Place: The Undertaker Returns to Confront John Cena

Debut of the Year

Winner: Ronda Rousey in WWE

Her actual debut at the Rumble felt like an absolute shock, and then she proceeded to string together good match after good match all year. Has anyone felt so natural in WWE as Ronda (samoan drop and awkward smiling aside).

Second Place: Ricochet in NXT

Third Place: War Raiders in NXT

Fourth Place: Matt Riddle in NXT

Fifth Place: AOP in WWE

Return of the Year

Winner: Daniel Bryan (WWE)

It wasn’t even the strongest return as Bryan was saddled with trying to make something of Big Cass. But like always, he was too good to be kept in the midcard for long. His heel turn is perhaps the 2nd best story in the company at the moment, and winning the world title and having an excellent match with Brock shows Bryan hasn’t lost a step.

Second Place: Drew Mcintyre on RAW

Third Place: Rey Mysterio at the Royal Rumble/Smackdown

Fourth Place: The Undertaker at Wrestlemania

Fifth Place: Nikki Bella at the Royal Rumble/Smackdown

Match of the Year

Winner: NXT Championship: Andrade “Cien” Almas vs. Johnny Gargano

I feel like I need to add the “I didn’t watch much NJPW” disclaimer like I did last year. I think it’s also worth mentioning, while great matches, the Gargano vs. Ciampa series didn’t completely do it for me for whatever reason (probably because Ciampa was gone too long). Gargano vs. Almas had a perfect story. Gargano’s focus was on becoming Johnny Wrestling again after a post-DIY slump, while Almas had just recently went through the same thing before Zelina Vega got him back on track. The match itself is incredible. Not only did it give Gargano a legit argument at best in the world, it elevated Almas into something special as well (that’s been wasted on Smackdown, but whatever).

Second Place: WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship – Evolution: Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch

Third Place: WWE Women’s Championship – TLC: Charlotte vs. Asuka vs. Becky Lynch

Fourth Place: WWE Survivor Series – Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan

Fifth Place: NJPW WrestleKingdom 12 – Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega

Feud of the Year

Winner: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte

Becky Lynch’s heel turn on Charlotte launched one of rare moments of someone getting megaover (the last one I can remember is Daniel Bryan in 2013). Becky and Charlotte’s beef makes a lot of sense from a storyline perspective and while Becky has just absolutely killed it, Charlotte’s done quite well herself. As a result, we’ve had some great matches and launched a megastar in Becky.

Second Place: Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Third Place: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Fourth Place: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Fifth Place: Aleister Black vs. Johnny Gargano

Biggest Disappointment of the Year

Winner: The Roman Empire Crashes

While the very end of Roman’s run wasn’t his fault at all, the rest of it was an unnecessary mess it didn’t have to be. First, Wrestlemania vs. Brock was an embarrassment. Whoever wrote that needed to be fired. The cage match at the Greatest Royal Rumble was there. The Summerslam main event, where Roman FINALLY won the title was bad (and we needed Braun Strowman to be taken out just so people wouldn’t root for a cash-in). Nonetheless, I was all for a fighting champion Roman storyline and perhaps a strong feud with Braun (who he has great chemistry with; it was my 2017 Feud of the Year). Somehow the writing got worse, where Braun turned heel (no one wanted this), wasted his Money in the Bank contract (what) to face Roman in Hell in a Cell…which went to a no contest (sigh). For as strong as Roman gets pushed, he didn’t get a clean run once he won the title. Sadly, Roman was forced to vacate the title due to real life Leukemia returning. Roman’s ridiculously talented and quite frankly I think the WWE Universe would love to cheer for the guy as a top guy. But his booking is atrocious. The way Roman’s been booked not only hurts Roman, it hurt Samoa Joe (Backlash), Brock (the whole thing), Braun (for his forced heel turn that wasn’t needed), Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose (for the botched SHIELD reunion and Ambrose turn). Roman has megastar potential. But not this way.

Second Place: Asuka pre-TLC

Third Place: Sasha Banks and Bayley’s never ending storyline

Fourth Place: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura feud

Fifth Place: Finn Balor doing next to nothing

Best Show of the Year

Winner: All-In

A non-WWE show! I don’t know if All-Elite Wrestling is going to make it or anything, but wow did Cody Rhodes and company make waves for the American wrestling landscape not really seen for a long time. Good matches (Omega vs. Pentagon was considered for my Top 5), good stories (Cody Rhodes’ path to the NWA title), big names (Rey Mysterio was in the main event), good surprises (Jericho as Penta is my #2 moment of the year) and some other fun stuff (the Battle Royal) far exceeded my expectations. It takes a lot for me to watch a non-WWE show. It takes a real lot for me to enjoy one.

Second Place: NXT Takeover: Philadelphia

Third Place: NXT Takeover: New Orleans

Fourth Place: WWE Survivor Series 2018

Fifth Place: WWE Royal Rumble 2018

Non-Wrestler of the Year

Winner: Kurt Angle, RAW

Not a great year for non-wrestlers. Angle did wrestle here and there, so this may be cheating. He did fine with what he had to work with though, especially since his main feud ended up being with Baron Corbin (almost made my disappointments list, what a mess that’s turned out to be). Bringing back the Conquistador though, hard to top that.

Second Place: Zelina Vega, Manager (A stretch I know)

Third Place: William Regal, NXT General Manager

Fourth Place: Paul Heyman, Manager

Fifth Place: Paige, Smackdown General Manager

Best Surprisingly Good Angle

Winner: The Ultimate Deletion

One of the few feel good stories in WWE this year. Br Woken Matt Hardy got to do a WWE-style Ultimate Deletion match…and it was a lot of fun! And while Bray Wyatt is capable of much more, the post-Deletion team, the Eater of Worlds, were fun and a good way for Matt Hardy to go out.

Second Place: Daniel Bryan Turns Heel

Third Place: Kurt Angle as a Conquistador

Woman of the Year

Winner: Becky Lynch (WWE)

Like this was a question. Becky’s the most over act in WWE at the moment and arenas everywhere are chanting her name. I’m begging that WWE doesn’t give her the 2012-2013 CM Punk treatment. To give an idea of how big Becky’s year was, she didn’t even make my Top 5 in this category last year.

Second Place: Ronda Rousey (WWE)

Third Place: Charlotte (WWE)

Fourth Place: Asuka (WWE)

Fifth Place: Shayna Bazsler (NXT)

Tag Team of the Year

Winner: The Undisputed Era (NXT)

It was a rough year in WWE land for tag teams, let me tell you. Thank goodness the Undisputed Era continues to be awesome. New Day, Bar and Usos, good as they all are, are stale. Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel were champions at one point. And so was a 10 year old kid? Thank you Undisputed Era.

Second Place: The New Day (WWE)

Third Place: The Bar (WWE)

Fourth Place: The Deleter of Worlds (WWE)

Fifth Place: The Bludgeon Brothers (WWE)

Wrestler of the Year

Winner: Becky Lynch (WWE)

This one was a tough one for me between three people – Becky, AJ Styles and Kenny Omega. Each had pros and cons. Omega did a lot for wrestling that isn’t non-WWE, was called the most important World Champion by Sports Illustrated and won Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s #1 spot on the PWI 500. He had a lot of great matches and I would guess would be the top draw not named Jericho for All Elite Wrestling if it happens. But the truth is, I don’t watch enough to comfortably judge Omega and his influence. If it wasn’t Jericho I wouldn’t have even watched his match at Wrestle Kingdom. If he came to WWE would he even start on the main roster? Tons of people would say of course not. Others would call me stupid for even suggesting it. So I don’t feel he’s #1. AJ Styles’ year is quite strange, but as WWE does whatever around him, he’s a constant top guy where no one else can be consistent. He would have easily won this year (for the third straight time in three WWE years), but unfortunately a lot of his dream feuds fell a little flat. The feud with Nakamura wasn’t bad at all, but it was built as this dream feud and we got…a string of good to very good matches. Samoa Joe, same thing. The feud with Bryan has some potential and I think could be the dream match in the right situation. Still, AJ still put together a very good year (and I don’t even think any of this was his fault). The knock against Becky is she didn’t get a chance to do anything notable before Summerslam. So basically, can she win a year-long award for a strong four-five months. But wow what a four-five months it was. As I wrote earlier, this is the first time since Daniel Bryan in 2013 where the fans are all-in and WWE has a transcendent star in their hands. Becky has delivered ever since. And, it’s not like Becky’s pre-Summerslam was bad. Had AJ had a stronger year or had I saw more of Omega, I would have given one of them the nod most likely, but Becky stole 2018 with a super strong finish.

Second Place: AJ Styles (WWE)

Third Place: Kenny Omega (NJPW)

Fourth Place: Johnny Gargano (NXT)

Fifth Place: Aleister Black (NXT)