Welcome to the results of the 2020 Theszies / Rec.sport.pro-wrestling Awards.
Anyway. Here, we present the “best” Awards – those Awards which celebrate the greatest things in wrestling during 2016. If you would rather be a Negative Nancy and go read the “worst” Awards, they’re over here.
This year we had 212 voters participating. As always, for next year we encourage all of you wrestling media people to nominate yourselves and your favorites, and try to get your fans out to vote for you. Fair is fair!
As always, thank yous to Justin Henry, Christopher Robin Zimmerman, Herb Kunze and all those who have previously run the Awards and contributed to their legacy; everybody who chipped in to promote the awards; all of you voters, of course; and finally and most importantly an extra-double-sized thanks to mgkdotcom’s Tech Guy, James Young, without whose invaluable assistance these Awards would almost certainly have failed to be anywhere near as successful and user-friendly as they in fact were.
And without further ado…
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JON MOXLEY | 47 | 18 | 13 | 315 |
| Kenny Omega | 19 | 23 | 13 | 190 |
| Drew McIntyre | 22 | 15 | 7 | 169 |
| Roman Reigns | 14 | 17 | 12 | 145 |
| Kota Ibushi | 11 | 11 | 12 | 112 |
THE WRESTLING ESTATE: Jordan Oliver has silenced his critics who labeled him a “spot monkey” at the beginning of the year, making the most of the shutdowns by packing on size and building confidence. He has emerged with excellent matches both on the indies and on MLW Fusion, demonstrating the rare ability to play fan favorite or cocky, chickenshit heel. He’s also a draw – I paid my hard-earned money to see him clash with Ace Austin at Synergy Pro Wrestling’s Black Friday.
VANDAMDAZ: Go Shiozaki was a fantastic GHC Champion for NOAH, having great matches and giving both the company and itself real prestige along the way. I would put up his last two title defences of the year against Nakajima and Suigiara up against the best matches from AEW, WWE and New Japan. Go made NOAH relevant again after years of being in the shadows, and for that alone he deserves to win WOTY in my opinion.
C. FARMILOE: Hats off to Thunder Rosa. She was the NWA women’s champ for most of the year, made some high-profile appearances on AEW, owns a Texas indie that’s entirely women-operated, and built up more buzz than pretty much any other wrestler this year. All during a global pandemic!
KERRDOG: No nomination for the man who had the best run of the year? For shame, lads. Soon you shall all come around and breathe with the Switchblade.
JOHN A. SAWYER JR: It takes a special talent to be champion for close to a full year and still be amazing every time he appears, especially under 2020 circumstances. Jon Moxley was that guy.
B. SEISON: I feel like you could give this award to Okada every year and not be wrong, but this year I think it is hard to argue that any wrestler in this or any other galaxy had a bigger or better year than Sasha Banks.
TONYA HUDSON: Has there been anyone who has caused as many positive talking points in 2020 as Kenny Omega? His tag team spectacles alongside Hangman, his singles run, the re-emergence of ‘The Cleaner’, his heel turn and title win and the implications of cross-promotion matches and stories with Impact. He has been top of the pile.
CHRISTOPHER BIRD: 2020 will be remembered for many reasons, but among them is that it is the year Vince McMahon made all the Roman Reigns doubters eat a giant pile of shit.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YOUNG BUCKS: NICK AND MATT JACKSON | 37 | 22 | 17 | 285 |
| Kenny Omega and Adam Page | 36 | 27 | 11 | 283 |
| FTR: Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler (The Revival) | 33 | 16 | 22 | 255 |
| Bayley and Sasha Banks | 24 | 21 | 16 | 215 |
| Lucha Brothers: Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix | 7 | 18 | 15 | 119 |
TONYA HUDSON: Can we finally give this award to the Young Bucks? AEW has the best tag division in the world by some distance and almost every team in it has had their best match against Matt and Nick. It’s time.
TENKEN: I don’t know if anybody else loves Oney and Twoey as much as me, but if nothing else good happened in 2020, at least those guys finally got a push.
LEWITT: They may not be the very best, but The North are the Platonic Ideal of the team of quiet wrestly guy and loud cheaty guy.
FLIPDAWG: FTR spent six months not wrestling at all and then showed up and were somehow just better at everything about wrestling, and they were already one of the best tag teams working today.
VAMDAMDAZ: A seemingly thrown together unit like Omega and Page shouldn’t have been as great as they were, but both men committed to their respective roles and they had some great matches along the way. Definitely one of the highlights of a much different wrestling year!
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAXWELL JACOB FRIEDMAN | 49 | 30 | 23 | 381 |
| Roman Reigns | 55 | 23 | 10 | 364 |
| Bayley | 19 | 26 | 13 | 199 |
| Jay White | 15 | 17 | 11 | 148 |
| Brodie Lee | 12 | 12 | 17 | 130 |
WAR PENGUIN: I haven’t heard a single negative thing about Roman since his heel turn(excluding the ultra anti-WWE people, of course). That’s pretty damning evidence that his turn is working imo.
TATEWAKI KUNO: I have never heard a crowd hate anyone the way the crowd in the Tokyo Dome hated KENTA on January 5th. It was the best pro wrestling moment I saw all year. If he hadn’t been sidelined by COVID, he’d have walked away with this award.
WOODSY: It took COVID for Vince to finally pull the trigger on Roman’s heel turn, but it’s turned out far better than anyone could have predicted. So far.
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: The Tribal Chief is probably the only enjoyable thing going on in the Fed right now, and finally made everyone realize that Roman has secretly been the shit for years.
HEARTBREAK SQUID: I was going to vote for Roman Reigns, but right at the end of the year Maxwell Jacob Friedman got heel heat literally by taunting the bereaved child of a beloved, recently deceased wrestler and then sold for the kid when the kid smacked him and you have to reward that.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORANGE CASSIDY | 34 | 20 | 15 | 260 |
| Jon Moxley | 31 | 21 | 20 | 258 |
| Adam Page | 26 | 30 | 8 | 236 |
| Drew McIntyre | 24 | 14 | 19 | 200 |
| Darby Allin | 7 | 13 | 14 | 101 |
VANDAMDAZ: What I love about Moxley is that his character isn’t stupid, a trait so many babyfaces seem to suffer from these days. Moxley regularly outsmarts and gets the better of his heel opponents, and that’s great because that’s what a babyface SHOULD do! We all have moments where we want to live vicariously through the hero now and then, and Moxley was the sort of tough, smart and effective wrestling character we’d all like to be.
OUTBACK JAMES: Really, who’s more likable than Tim Storm? I don’t even know Mama Storm, and I would take a bullet for that woman.
TONYA HUDSON: Does anyone else just want to hug Adam Page and tell him he’s a very good wrestler, a tough S.O.B. and a very special cowboy who deserves better?
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: Nothing is more relatable during a horrible pandemic than a borderline alcoholic getting liquored up and punching people in the face.
TENKEN: A lot of folks don’t appreciate his gimmick, but Orange Cassidy’s feud with Chris Jericho finally showed the world the combination of talent and sheer endurance that made him a favorite in the indies.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KENNY OMEGA | 28 | 12 | 11 | 198 |
| Daniel Bryan | 20 | 14 | 17 | 176 |
| Kota Ibushi | 17 | 10 | 8 | 131 |
| AJ Styles | 14 | 13 | 7 | 123 |
| Asuka | 12 | 10 | 13 | 116 |
LEWITT: Tony Nese is a guy I always forget about until he has a match and them I’m all “oh right! Tony Nese is fucking incredible!” I was halfway through this survey before I remembered and went back to add him in.
B. SEISON: I feel like Io Shirai was finally given the kind of spotlight in WWE this year to showcase why she has been the best female wrestler in the world for the last few years.
OUTBACK JAMES: I’m voting for Kenny Omega in first place, but I have a feeling the right answer might be Okada, but I haven’t watched much NJPW since WK. My loss, I’m sure.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| REY FENIX | 74 | 30 | 11 | 482 |
| Ricochet | 20 | 17 | 22 | 195 |
| Io Shirai | 21 | 9 | 14 | 160 |
| Darby Allin | 11 | 19 | 17 | 146 |
| Hiromu Takahashi | 14 | 13 | 7 | 123 |
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: I think it’s finally time a woman won one of these awards. Can you seriously watch Io and NOT think she belongs in a class with PAC, Ricochet, and Styles?
D. GLIDE: El Hijo del Vikingo is a guy that needs to break out of his home market as soon as possible. The guy’s accuracty, footwork and coordination is incredible. The fact that he does all of this usually dressed up in an outfit that would have me feeling winded walking around the ren faire makes it all the more incredible. When AAA announced he was taking time off for family concerns, they included a reminder that he was under contract until the following year, which is the kind of rudeness that being really talented gets you.
TENKEN: Darby’s reckless disregard for his own well-being makes him a shoe-in here. In ten years, he’ll either be the biggest name in professional wrestling, or completely unable to walk.
SEISON: Fenix’s corrections of his own mistakes are frequently better than the perfectly landed high spots of his peers. That dude is just on another level.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JON MOXLEY | 54 | 33 | 20 | 409 |
| WALTER | 34 | 16 | 11 | 240 |
| Brodie Lee | 25 | 24 | 14 | 225 |
| Eddie Kingston | 15 | 17 | 14 | 154 |
| Tomohiro Ishii | 15 | 12 | 10 | 131 |
TATAWAKI KUNO: The match Minoru Suzuki had with Yuji Nagata in the New Japan Cup was absolutely mindblowing. Those guys were both 52 years old, and with no flashy techniques or high-flying, they put on the best match of the entire tournament. It was one of the most impressive performances I’ve ever seen in a wrestling match.
D. GLIDE: Blue Demon Jr. I know there’s been a lot of talk for years about elder wrestlers and their legitimacy, but when Blue Demon Junior just takes an actual hammer to a guy, it’s jarring enough to make you completely forget that his father is one of the most venerated names in Mexico.
JAMES BENCH: First place write-in: R-Truth. He’s held what is effectively the Hardcore Title for almost the entire year, fighting off all comers!
TONYA HUDSON: Eddie Kingston doesn’t come off as a wrestler. He comes off as a street brawler. And he’s damn good at it.
FLIPDAWG: Jon Moxley isn’t the most intense brawler any more, but he makes up for it with a canny, intelligent sort of viciousness – he brawls exactly as much as he needs to in order to keep you down, and escalates as need be. This feels realistic and fresh in a realm where too often “brawling” means “grabbing a kendo stick.”
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORANGE CASSIDY | 19 | 11 | 7 | 142 |
| Adam Page | 13 | 12 | 11 | 123 |
| Jon Moxley | 14 | 5 | 10 | 105 |
| Kenny Omega | 13 | 8 | 6 | 101 |
| Asuka | 11 | 8 | 4 | 87 |
DMJ9798: Bayley has always been someone I’ve liked since NXT, but watching her as this incredible goobery heel just evolve right in front of everyone, especially given the circumstances was incredible. Plus, she’s hilarious.
GIGGA B.: Nothing can top Orange Cassidy and “this time he’s gonna TRY!” but Hangman Page provided the kind of subtle pathos that you rarely get in pro wrestling and I found myself stuck to his every move through the first half of 2020. If he can get his story threads as tangled with other dudes as he did with Kenny Omega, you’re going to have an AEW World Champion with emotional title defenses until the end of time.
JODORISIO: Chris Jericho is my favorite pro wrestler of all time, so I vote him #1 every year, but due to multiple outside-the-ring reasons, he made it veryyy hard to root for him over the past year.
HOFEIZAI: Jushin Liger only had two matches that I know of last year, but this is the last chance I’ll have to vote for him so he deserves every vote.
DANZAM: Serena Deeb, she makes wrestling exciting and makes everyone that goes in the ring with her so much better for it.
FLIPDAWG: There was no better guarantee of an entertaining wrestling segment in 2020 than the presence of Jon Moxley, whether that segment was a match, a promo, unofficial ring commentary, or whatever.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRITT BAKER | 31 | 13 | 10 | 214 |
| Anna Jay | 17 | 13 | 13 | 150 |
| Jey Uso | 15 | 15 | 11 | 142 |
| John Silver | 16 | 9 | 13 | 133 |
| Bianca Belair | 14 | 12 | 3 | 112 |
JAMES BENCH: Drew McIntyre took a huge step up at the Royal Rumble and kept going.
VANDAMDAZ: Toa Henare really deserves more of a push in New Japan. He’s come along lots, with both his look and in-ring work improving this year. I really hope New Japan recognises that and gives him a fair shake of the stick in 2021.
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: Last year, I voted for Britt Baker as the Worst Face in Wrestling, and was even quoted as hating her gimmick of being a shoot dentist. But over the past year, she’s evolved into 90s-era Chris Jericho, my personal favorite Jericho. It’s great to see her improve this much.
TENKEN: I actually tried to nominate the entirety of Impact Pro Wrestling here, due to how much better the show’s gotten, but my nominations were either not saved, or quite correctly disregarded. Forced to choose a person, I go with Shotzi Blackheart, who’s really busted her ass trying to get noticed in an absolutely cut-throat competitive division.
LEWITT: Towards the end of last year someone told me Impact was good now. “Yeah right,” I thought, “I’ve heard that one before.” But no! Impact really is good! They did the most with the no-crowd shows, and took some chances that made for really compelling television. They have got some serious future stars. And while it may not have the *very* best talent, their women’s division overall (and the importance it plays on the show) is second to none.”
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALEISTER BLACK | 36 | 16 | 12 | 252 |
| Cesaro | 30 | 14 | 11 | 214 |
| Chad Gable | 13 | 12 | 14 | 129 |
| Andrade | 14 | 8 | 12 | 118 |
| Mustafa Ali | 11 | 16 | 7 | 117 |
WAR PENGUIN: Aleister Black has only wrestled three matches since July. He is the definition of underrated right now. The fact that nobody in the WWE creative team has seen how easy it would be to make this guy the next Undertaker is infuriating. He has the right gimmick, the right wrestling style, and a perfect finisher to hit after teleporting in while the lights are off. All you have to do is start booking him like a threat, and you’ve made the next Undertaker. NXT literally set him up to do it.
GIGGA B.: We’re coming up on almost a decade of Cesaro under the WWE umbrella and he hasn’t even gotten as much as a one-month-build throwaway world title shot. When you’re as talented and magnetic as Cesaro and the company treats you worse than Hardcore Holly…maybe you’re in the wrong company.
TONYA HUDSON: I really like DOUKI. He’s got a look unlike anyone else, a cool moveset and carries himself with menace. Which makes it all the more frustrating that, with a few exceptions, it seems like he can’t beat anyone above the Young Lions.
SEISON: As the pandemic was beginning it looked like AEW was starting a big singles push for Scorpio Sky. I’m not sure what happen to that idea but I hope they come back around to it.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROMAN REIGNS AS THE TRIBAL CHIEF/HEAD OF THE TABLE | 37 | 19 | 20 | 282 |
| Orange Cassidy as the sloth of professional wrestling | 29 | 30 | 22 | 279 |
| Adam Page as an anxious millennial cowboy | 35 | 19 | 19 | 270 |
| Alexa Bliss is possessed by the Fiend | 10 | 15 | 14 | 123 |
| Maxwell Jacob Friedman as the worst person in the world | 10 | 14 | 13 | 118 |
Z.S. GHOST: I don’t know how to write in “the Dark Order as a spooky cult of best buds” but them too.
DESINMAN: I voted for Page at #1 because that’s a gimmick that can really resonate with people, more than the more cartoony or over-the-top gimmicks of years past. That crippling fear of failure blinding you to your own talent and legitimate success is real. That’s human. I feel those emotions, and I know a good amount of people who do too. And whenever someone can tap on the real feelings of the populous, you have a real chance at making a megastar. Hopefully we can get back to full crowds as soon as safely possible, because I think this gimmick is a real winner.
LEWITT: How is Su Yung not even nominated?!? Su Yung the undead bride becomes the sweet and innocent Susie becomes no-nonsense Susan is amazing! Su has distinct wrestling styles and movesets for each character, but then one bleeds into another as things start to go awry for her. It is some next-level shit.
JOHN A. SAWYER JR.: “Sea level continues to rise at the rate of 1/8th of an inch per year. A higher sea level enables storm surges to push further inland, and therefore it creates extremely dangerous flooding in coastal communities. Failure to minimize our fossil fuel use and reduction of carbon emissions could be devastating to the estimated 40% of the population of the United States that lives in these coastal communities, and, globally, of the world’s largest 10 cities. Thank you.”
FLIPDAWG: Roman Reigns as “Michael Corleone if he were Samoan and jacked” is the correct answer.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRODIE LEE'S DISCUS CLOTHESLINE | 23 | 12 | 12 | 175 |
| Adam Page’s Buckshot Lariat front flip lariat over ropes | 21 | 14 | 10 | 167 |
| Kenny Omega's One-Winged Angel one-handed electric chair driver | 15 | 11 | 8 | 124 |
| Darby Allin's Coffin Drop top rope trustfall senton | 13 | 10 | 10 | 115 |
| WALTER’s chops | 10 | 15 | 11 | 114 |
WOODSY: Considering only Ibushi and Okada have ever kicked out of it, and that Okada needed to grab a rope to do so, I’m comfortable calling the One-Winged Angel the best move in wrestling.
MR. FAAF: The Hidden Blade looks like it kills whoever Ospreay hits with it, and that rules.
HEARTBREAK SQUID: Brodie Lee’s discus clothesline just worked in a way that Luke Harper’s discus clothesline never did. Maybe it’s just because he was finally allowed to be a terrifying monster.
TONYA HUDSON: There are certain things in life I hope to never experience. Among them is taking a chop from WALTER. My eyes water just thinking about it.
B. SEISON: It might not be as flashy as a lot of other over finishers, but Omega’s One Winged Angel has been the most protected move in wrestling over the last few years and when someone finally kicks out of that thing it is going to be a huge and awesome moment.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/29: KENNY OMEGA AND ADAM PAGE v. YOUNG BUCKS (AEW TAG TITLES) | 36 | 19 | 13 | 263 |
| 10/29: WALTER v. Ilja Dragunov (NXT UK title) | 29 | 13 | 9 | 202 |
| 04/05: John Cena v. Bray Wyatt (Firefly Funhouse) | 18 | 17 | 7 | 155 |
| 05/23: Young Bucks and Kenny Omega and Adam Page and Matt Hardy v. Inner Circle (Stadium Stampede match) | 14 | 13 | 11 | 131 |
| 01/05: Kazuchika Okada v. Tetsuya Naito (IWGP world title) | 13 | 12 | 1 | 103 |
TATEWAKI KUNO: Toru Yano vs. Hiromu Takahashi in the New Japan Cup. Hiromu put Yano in an elevator and won by count-out! It’s the best match finish I’ve ever seen in my life! How could I leave it out?
KEVIN LEE: Marcius Pitt vs Davis Storm was the Australian MOTY: amazing atmosphere, genuine stakes and intricately woven storytelling to make a match that in a just (and non-COVID world) should have gotten more international attention on both men.
RYAN TAYLOR: Let’s face it – the Firefly Funhouse match wasn’t a match so much as a BRUTAL deconstruction of a wrestler’s career, and full credit to WWE for keeping Cena off their product in all forms for as long they did to sell it. Here’s hoping Bray’s current feud with Orton is leading to another one of these.
M.B. KERRDOG: Kota Ibushi and Taichi kicked one another for seventeen straight minutes. Just kicks. Nothing but kicks. Seventeen. Straight. Minutes. The kicker? (sorry, not sorry) Were it not for WALTER actively attempting to remove Dragunov’s head with his bare hands, it would have easily been the best pro-wrestling match I’ve seen in the past five years.
B. SEISON: Omega/Page vs The Young Bucks was the best match of the year and the best non-gimmicked tag team match in North America since the Jim Crockett Promotions days.
GIGGA B.: If I had to list things I hate about this pandemic, #1 would be the hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths and lifelong health conditions because I’m not a ghoul, but once you get past all the real answers the next item on the list is not getting to see Orange Cassidy’s rise happen in front of an audience. That one match with PAC will have to last me for a while.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAYLEY v. SASHA BANKS | 40 | 20 | 19 | 298 |
| Roman Reigns v. Jey Uso | 34 | 17 | 8 | 237 |
| Jon Moxley v. Eddie Kingston | 23 | 29 | 14 | 230 |
| Brodie Lee v. Cody Rhodes (incl. Dark Order v. Nightmare Family) | 7 | 20 | 16 | 127 |
| Chris Jericho v. Orange Cassidy | 14 | 8 | 10 | 114 |
A BOY NAMED ART: Another layer to the tragedy that was Brodie Lee’s death was that we never got a 2nd chapter to his feud with Cody Rhodes, which remains the best actual program involving the TNT Championship. Lee’s demolition of Rhodes was one of the year’s best genuine surprises.
RALF: #3 Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes was just insanely entertaining, start to finish. Both guys came out looking better and more defined characters. Also Grimes tried to hook up with what he thought was his opponents sister. Mid-match. Just outstanding.
FLIPDAWG: Bayley and Sasha Banks were, for a substantial chunk of 2020, the only good reason to watch WWE main roster programming at all.
TENKEN: It started as a joke about Ace wanting to sleep with Trey’s mom. It became a blood feud that defined both wrestlers, and elevated Trey to main-event status, even though he never got the better of Ace. I started the year having no real investment in either guy, and they were favorites by the time 2021 got here.
TONYA HUDSON: I honestly did not think WWE was capable of telling stories with such pathos any more… and then Jey Uso challenged Roman Reigns for the WWE Championship. No endless repetition of story beats, every week advanced things further and the emotional conflict just increased as it went along. Bravo to both men.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXCALIBUR | 54 | 31 | 12 | 387 |
| Tony Schiavone | 42 | 34 | 23 | 358 |
| Samoa Joe | 17 | 24 | 16 | 189 |
| Mauro Ranallo | 16 | 15 | 13 | 151 |
| Taz | 5 | 26 | 18 | 139 |
HOFEIZAI: ROH’s announce team seems like the only ones who knowledgeable and excited about a sporting event they assume is being watched by fans who are not idiots.
TATEWAKI KUNO: “Excited middle-aged man” Liger is just hilarious and adorable.
DMJ9798: Giving Madison Rayne a third place vote, because her dunking on Josh Matthews was a highlight of Impact.
D. GLIDE: I have this weird thing going where every episode of AEW that has Jericho on commentary makes me want him to talk more. He keeps himself in character, and manages to put over everyone in the ring. He even managed to start angles with throwaway comments like “Pineapple Pete” and added so much to the early pandemic area. Then another episode of his podcast drops and suddenly I’m cool with it if he never talks again.
RALF: “Zombies are legal in this match.” Everybody can go home now, wrestling commentary has peaked, its all downhill from here.
CHRISTOPHER BIRD: The episodes of Dynamite where Excalibur wasn’t around are why I voted for Excalibur. Nobody in wrestling helps their booth more than he does.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EDDIE KINGSTON | 72 | 16 | 12 | 432 |
| Jon Moxley | 26 | 23 | 18 | 235 |
| Maxwell Jacob Friedman | 23 | 26 | 21 | 235 |
| Roman Reigns | 10 | 22 | 9 | 139 |
| Chris Jericho | 11 | 14 | 7 | 111 |
THE WRESTLING ESTATE: Eddie Kingston talked himself not only into a contract this year, but a world title shot in the main event of a pay-per-view. There’s a lot of comedy on Dynamite, but the grizzled veteran is the reality check. He’s gruff, unpredictable, unadulterated. He’s the edge the company has desperately needed. You believe every word that comes out of his mouth. It’s remarkable that Eddie Kingston was going to retire last year. Thankfully, he kept grinding and the industry is better off for it. Even before signing with AEW, he was spitting hot fire in the NWA and on the indie scene. Check out his airing of grievances from PROGRESS in February.
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: MJF has become what we loved about The Miz distilled. I don’t know how you manage to be a bigger douchebag that Mike Mizanin, but MJF manages it.
FLIPDAWG: I repeat: Roman Reigns is Michael Corleone if he were Samoan and jacked.
LEWITT: Drake Maverick’s twitter promo was so good it got him his job back. I don’t see how you beat that.
TONYA HUDSON: If anyone but Eddie Kingston takes this award, something has gone wrong. Every time he speaks, it’s one of the highlights of the show. He manages to give people goosebumps with his words. That’s power.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROMAN REIGNS TURNS HEEL AND DEMANDS ALLEGIANCE FROM JEY USO | 38 | 29 | 17 | 311 |
| Kenny Omega screws Jon Moxley out of the AEW title with Don Callis and then appears on Impact Wrestling | 38 | 22 | 11 | 278 |
| Brodie Lee revealed as the Exalted One of the Dark Order | 19 | 14 | 16 | 169 |
| Edge returns at the Royal Rumble | 19 | 14 | 15 | 167 |
| John Cena enters the Firefly Funhouse | 12 | 21 | 10 | 143 |
TENKEN: Sure, it was a comedy angle, but Wrestle House took a bunch of people who weren’t doing much, gave all of them distinct story arcs to show of their characters, and then put them into conflicts that all led to matches, culminating in Rosemary vs. Taya, a match people would actually want to see, for real stakes – the hand of John E. Bravo. Also, it was actually funny. When was the last time WWE did any, let alone all, of that?
B. SEISON: Adam Page’s storyline, not just last year but since AEW began, have proven that wrestling fans still want long term storytelling. They just want it to be good, and Page’s journey has been one of the best parts of their shows.
PSYCHO GOLDFISH: All hail the Tribal Chief.
JOHN A. SAWYER JR.: Even though it happened late in the year, the Kenny Omega screwjob definitely belongs here. Holy shit, what an angle.
CHRISTOPHER BIRD: Edge’s return at the Rumble made me incredibly happy, and that’s good enough for me.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEW | 122 | 35 | 11 | 737 |
| New Japan Pro Wrestling | 26 | 62 | 35 | 386 |
| WWE (incl. NXT/NXT UK/205 Live) | 34 | 38 | 43 | 370 |
| Impact Wrestling | 5 | 6 | 19 | 81 |
| STARDOM | 3 | 13 | 11 | 76 |
OUTBACK JAMES: How can it be anything but WWE? If you’re lumping Smackdown, NXT, and NXT:UK together, that’s 3 if the best 4 wrestling shows we have right now. AEW is amazing, but they’re not better than all 3 combined. No wrestling show I’ve ever watched in my fandom is.
RALF: WXW! They´re even on the network now, which gave me the opportunity to check them out, finally. I suggest everybody do the same. Great stuff.
TENKEN: Okay, Impact’s not actually the best promotion, but I had more fun watching them this year than either of the “Big 2.” AEW and WWE had bigger talent and better matches, but if the show’s not fun, then what’s the point?
HEARTBREAK SQUID: The thing about AEW is that this year everything just… worked. Eddie Kingston delivers a killer promo on Cody Rhodes, and next thing you know he’s feuding in the main event. Griff Garrison and Lee Johnson and KiLynn King wrestling their way into full-time jobs. Brodie Lee finally making the Dark Order click to the point when he had to depart early, they still worked perfectly well. Orange Cassidy debating Chris Jericho. MJF singing with Chris Jericho, for that matter. Adam Page going from the guy they were pushing in your face to the guy you loved more than anybody. Just so many little things going right.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEW DYNAMITE | 119 | 35 | 9 | 718 |
| WWE NXT | 42 | 45 | 25 | 395 |
| NJPW G1 Climax | 18 | 18 | 14 | 172 |
| WWE Smackdown | 6 | 20 | 27 | 144 |
| AEW Dark | 7 | 18 | 21 | 131 |
WORMHUT: Kinda interesting how WWE’s supposed “flagship” show didn’t even make the list of nominees, innit?
D. GLIDE: AAA Auto Luchas (2nd place write-in): A clever way to keep wrestling going and relatively safe during the pandemic, the Auto Luchas shows were exactly the kind of thing that sounds completely absurd and unworkable when a clear and concise description of them is written, and is baffling but workable when you actually see the thing. Of all the attempts to work around audience limitations for COVID, Auto Luchas was at the very least, an interesting one.
HEARTBREAK SQUID: It’s Dynamite. You all know it’s Dynamite. It’s consistently good and frequently great, the very few mis-steps get corrected organically, and it feels like wrestling should feel.
TENKEN: Nobody watches 205 Live, but I will die for the purple brand!
TONYA HUDSON: Every year I vote for the G1 Climax shows and I’m not breaking that streak. A series of shows that are jam-packed with some of the best wrestling matches you’ll see anywhere. What’s not to love?
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NJPW WRESTLE KINGDOM 14 | 38 | 20 | 15 | 280 |
| AEW Double or Nothing | 21 | 28 | 19 | 227 |
| AEW Revolution | 31 | 14 | 12 | 221 |
| WWE Royal Rumble | 24 | 12 | 21 | 198 |
| WWE NXT Takeover: War Games | 19 | 17 | 13 | 172 |
OUTBACK JAMES: NXT, at this point, probably occupies 10-15 of my top 50 “greatest shows ever” slots. I’m a WK guy, I love WM, love the G1, but nothing gets me walking away with a feeling that my time was spent in a super-enjoyable way quite like Takeovers do.
WOODSY: There really needs to be some sort of award for special TV episodes, because the Brodie Lee tribute was the best show in years.
TONYA HUDSON: Wrestle Kingdom always sets the bar for wrestling events for the year, and the 2020 edition was no different. The final matches of the legendary Liger, two excellent Moxley matches, some other terrific title bouts and the first ever double-gold dash to cap it off. Brilliant.
| NOMINEE | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOTCHAMANIA | 15 | 33 | 14 | 202 |
| Scott Keith's Blog of Doom! | 23 | 10 | 4 | 153 |
| r/SquaredCircle (Wreddit) | 12 | 9 | 11 | 124 |
| The Wrestling Observer (incl. Figure 4 Online/The Bryan and Vinny Show/etc.) | 10 | 10 | 12 | 104 |
| Wrestling with Wregret | 12 | 7 | 11 | 103 |
JAMES BENCH: Farewell, Brandon Stroud! I’m not going to claim I didn’t enjoy your writing, it was great, but we can struggle on without you.
DMJ9798: Asuka filming herself eating food from around the world, building things, and going shopping is still the best use of time.
JOHN A. SAWYER JR.: This may be the last year I can vote for this, but I have to stan Nobodies Watching Wrestling one more time. More LGBTQ voices in the fandom are always welcome, and their show was always worth a laugh.
TONYA HUDSON: The coverage provided by Cultaholic has always been good, but they really stepped up in other areas during the pandemic. Adam Pacitti doing regular streams, doing work for charity and generally trying to provide an escape has been invaluable. They’re a great group and deserve to be recognised.
FLIPDAWG: “MONGO!”
THE WRESTLING ESTATE: From an in-depth profile of Stu Saks ahead of his retirement from PWI to an exclusive report on India’s Wrestle Square bracing for NXT India to many profiles and interviews with independent wrestlers from around the world, The Wrestling Estate has ramped up the variety of its pro wrestling coverage this past year. (Hey, we said you could vote for yourselves, guys. – the editors)
