10 best contenders for 2017 WWE Superstar of the Year

When you look at WWE’s 2017 as a whole, you could argue that it’s been a bit hit and miss. For every great pay per view there’s been a poor one, and for every well thought out storyline, there’s been a poorly executed one that led to a great deal of apathy from the WWE Universe.

Still, that’s not necessarily the fault of the performers, who have collectively put on some of the best matches that you’ll see anywhere throughout all of professional wrestling.

From WrestleMania to any given episode of Raw or SmackDown Live, these guys and girls have been able to put on countless great performances night in and night out. Sure, it hasn’t gone perfectly for all of them, but when you compare them against some other options they certainly stand out as the 10 best contenders for claiming the title of 2017 WWE Superstar of the Year.

#10 Charlotte Flair

Flair continues to raise the bar

The Queen of WWE has certainly had an eventful year, and while it wasn’t anywhere near as impressive as 2016, her resilience is one of the reasons why she makes the top 10 here. After all, when you’re fighting not only against your fellow competitors but also having to deal with personal issues, you deserve to be recognised for your unbelievable determination.

On top of that Flair has also had another stellar 12 months from an in-ring perspective, beginning the year as the Raw Women’s Champion and ending it as the SmackDown Live Women’s Champion. As both a babyface and a heel she’s been able to fly the flag high, as she continues to set the standard for female wrestlers across the globe.

#9 Kevin Owens

Owens has much more to give

When 2017 began, fans probably expected Kevin Owens to have a blockbuster year – and boy oh boy did he manage that. Sure, it wasn’t perfect and sure, there were aspects of it that could’ve been better, but he still managed to hold both the Universal Championship and the United States Championship and we aren’t even finished with the year yet.

Owens also had a great feud with Shane McMahon, and above all else, he’s been able to successfully carry three emotive storylines that have had fans invested. From Jericho to Zayn to the aforementioned Shane, everything that Owens does is interesting – and if you don’t believe us, ask Vince McMahon.

#8 Neville

Is anyone on the Neville Level?

Unfortunately, The King of the Cruiserweights’ status with World Wrestling Entertainment is currently up in the air, but that doesn’t mean we can’t praise his body of work. After all, Neville has been on an absolute tear this year to the point where even if you didn’t like him, you had to respect him for his incredible work ethic.

As the miserable and dominant heel Neville was a force to be reckoned with, and in many ways, he probably never should’ve lost the title in the first place. Neville was arguably the most consistent performer out of everyone on this list, with both his wrestling abilities and his character work shining through above all else.

#7 Seth Rollins

Rollins' talent speaks for itself

Seth Rollins’ babyface run didn’t get off to the best of starts in the back end of 2016, but once the clock struck midnight on January 1st, everything seemed to change. Seth appeared to have a new lease of life, and he took things to the next level when he ‘invaded’ Takeover: San Antonio in order to challenge his former mentor Triple H to a match.

From that point on their feud had us hooked, and the pay off at WrestleMania 33 was extremely satisfying. Seth went on to have a great match after great match, and despite not really reaching the pinnacle in terms of his potential, we couldn’t be happier to see him playing a big role in the reunion of The Shield.

#6 The Miz

The Miz is a heel by nature

In many ways, it’d be impossible to even consider writing a list like this without including The Miz, because he’s just been that damn good. His renaissance most certainly began in 2016 with the help of his wife Maryse, and through that hard work, he was able to earn a big-time mixed-tag Mania match against John Cena & Nikki Bella.

The outcome may not have been great but aside from that, Miz has continued to set the bar for all other upper midcarders out there. The Awesome One has always been the best choice to carry the Intercontinental Championship, and despite not having Talking Smack as a platform anymore, his promos have gone from strength to strength.

#5 Alexa Bliss

Bliss keeps getting better and better

We arrive at our second female entrant on this list, and she couldn’t be more deserving if she tried. Alexa Bliss has been able to transform herself from being nothing more than a valet down in NXT to becoming one of the best female performers of the last decade, and that kind of thing doesn’t happen all too often.

Her in-ring work has come by leaps and bounds, and above that, she’s potentially one of the best characters in all of WWE right now. Much like Charlotte, she began the year as a champion, over on SmackDown Live, and now she is firmly positioned as the top dog on Monday Night Raw.

The question is: will she be ready for Asuka when the time comes?

#4 Roman Reigns

It's still his yard

We can hear the moans and groans from every corner of the globe, but let’s be honest with ourselves, Roman Reigns is good – really good. Obviously, the guy needs to turn heel eventually and there are certainly some problems that still need to be addressed, but above all that, you can’t deny that he’s had an extremely successful year.

It hasn’t involved any world title reigns, pun not intended, but he did manage to defeat and potentially retire The Undertaker at WrestleMania. That, in itself, earns him a spot on the list, but you’ve also got to appreciate the quality of some of his matches. Now, as the Intercontinental Champion, he appears to be going from strength to strength.

#3 AJ Styles

The Phenomenal One shows no signs of slowing down

AJ Styles’ year was nowhere near as good as 2016, and yet he still finds himself in the top 3 on our list. That should tell you all that you need to know about this guy as a performer because The Phenomenal One has been the benchmark by which all other superstars are measured. His matches are great, his promos are solid, and he’s by far one of the most popular guys in all of WWE.

To top that off he’s also the WWE Champion once again, after dethroning the extremely unpopular Jinder Mahal. Styles is expected to carry the belt forward for quite some time now, and given that he’s done it as both a babyface and a heel, it’s fair to say that fans need to start appreciating this guy’s versatility.

#2 Brock Lesnar

Brock is still 'the man'

Brock Lesnar didn’t have a great 2016 by any means, with many fans questioning whether or not his head was still in the game. Thankfully, since January, he’s managed to completely revitalise himself – and believe it or not, it was the feud against Goldberg that finally brought out a whole new fire in the Beast Incarnate.

Since then he’s been unstoppable and now, as the Universal Champion, he’s putting on solid matches against some of the top stars on both Raw and SmackDown Live. His latest effort against AJ Styles was sensational, and in addition to that, he’s managed to be much more active than he has been in years gone by. Mr Lesnar, we take our hat off to you sir.

#1 Braun Strowman

Braun is a different kind of animal

There was only one true contender for this crown in our opinion, and ironically, it’s someone who has yet to even win a title in WWE: Braun Strowman. The Monster Among Men’s rise to the top has been fantastic to watch, and we’ve come to the point now where he’s legitimately getting some of the biggest reactions in the entire company.

Braun feels like the closest thing this era has to a Stone Cold Steve Austin type character, and it feels like the best is still yet to come. Given how much he’s improved in 2017 we can’t wait to see what’s going to transpire in 2018 and beyond, and we’re especially interested in seeing what his role will be at WrestleMania 34.