WWE may be the biggest wrestling promotion in the world, but there are many promotions outside the company, that have been delivering quality wrestling matches, one after the other.
TNA, Ring Of Honor, New Japan Pro Wrestling and Lucha Underground are just some of the promotions with quality wrestlers who’ve dominated the year 2016 with exceptional matches, gimmicks and storylines.
In this countdown, we bring you the top five Superstars from the independent wrestling world from the past year. Before that, let’s look at some honourable mentions.
Honorable Mention 1- Will Ospreay
Let’s begin this countdown with a Superstar Vader isn't too fond of! Will Ospreay, in 2016, wrestled for NJPW fighting for the stable ‘Chaos’. At present, he's signed a deal with Ring of Honor, where he became World Television Champion in his debut match.
This year, he was part of the most talked about match outside of WWE, garnering both criticism and acclaim, against Ricochet! One thing is clear, Ospreay has a very bright future ahead of him.
Honourable Mention 2: Kazuchika Okada
Love him or hate him, you cannot argue with Okada's stats. From main eventing Wrestle Kingdom 10 to being the featured attraction for Wrestle Kingdom 11, Okada is the face of New Japan Pro Wrestling!
This year he became only the second Superstar in history to win three consecutive Match of the Year awards from Tokyo Sports for his match against Naomichi Marufuji.
Honourable Mention 3: Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes, formerly known as Stardust, is now more in the news than he was during his WWE run. Having been released in May, Rhodes has taken the independent world by storm. He has made quite an impact, becoming the current WCPW Internet Champion as well as the current GFW NEX*GEN Champion.
With runs in ROH and TNA, Cody is now the newest member of the Bullet Club. 2017 looks like a good year for the man!
Honourable Mention 4: Adam Cole
Adam Cole is the backbone of ROH, and also perhaps the most shocking entrant into the Bullet Club in the year 2016. At Global Wars, he joined the faction and soon enough defeated Jay Lethal to become ROH World Champion. He hung on to the title until December, when he was defeated by Kyle O’Reilly. Cole remains on WWE's radar at all times.
Honourable Mention 5: Tetsuya Naito
Naito has probably had the best year of his life in 2016. After winning the 2016 New Japan Cup, he defeated Okada to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for the first time in April. Later in the year, he defeated Michael Elgin to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. Little wonder then, Tokyo Sports called him the 2016 MVP in Japanese pro-wrestling.
And now our countdown begins...
#5 Broken Matt Hardy
If TNA is in the news these days, it’s all thanks to one man. The mustard-hating, drone-loving ‘deleter’ Matt Hardy has not only invigorated his character this year, he has kept TNA from going under. So much so, that one even hears ‘Delete' chants on Raw.
WWE even copied The Final Deletion in a segment between The Wyatt Family and The New Day, and this is a testament to Hardy’s creativity. Currently, Hardy and Broken ‘Brother Nero' are the TNA tag team champs and the self-proclaimed greatest tag team in all time and space. We love Senor Benjamin too!
#4 Jay Lethal
Jay Lethal, quite deservedly, came in to 2016 holding the ROH World Championship and retained it for a record-breaking reign of 427 days, before losing it to Bullet Club member Adam Cole. His rivalry with the Bullet Club has been a topic of much conversation through the year. He has even been tied to the ropes and shaved bald at one point.
In every one of his title defence matches, Lethal always put on a match like none other. Apart from ROH, Lethal has also been a part of WCPW events against El Ligero and Alicia Fox loving Noam Dar!
#3 Marty Scurll
We’re sure this highly talented promo and in-ring performer is only getting started, but he’s quite the indie veteran already. This year, the umbrella-wielding Scurll has made a huge impact. Not only did he participate in, but he also won the 2016 PWG Battle of Los Angeles, defeating stars like Pentagon Jr., Will Ospreay and Trevor Lee.
That's not all. After moving to ROH from Evolve, Scurll won the ROH World Television Championship from fellow Brit, Will Ospreay. Scurll is great as a character too, and we’re sure WWE is eyeing him closely.
#2 Ricochet
With the exception of our number 1 pick, no indie wrestler was as talked about as Ricochet this year, be it as himself or as Prince Puma. The first ever Lucha Underground Champion bade farewell to the promotion, as he defeated Johnny Mundo for the title but was then retired by Pentagon Dark, with help from Vampiro.
In addition to this, everyone in the wrestling fraternity watched his match against Will Ospreay. At present, he's earned a name in Japan and is one-third of the current reigning and defending Never Openweight six-man tag team Champions. One wonders if WWE is considering him to bolster the Cruiserweight Divison.
#1 Kenny Omega
Kenny Omega wrestled at Wrestle Kingdom 10 as a Junior Heavyweight. In just one year, he challenges Okada at Wrestle Kingdom 11, inside the Tokyo Dome. Few thought that the Bullet Club would be as hot as it is, after losing AJ Styles, Gallows and Anderson; but Kenny Omega has carried the mantle of leadership like a boss, literally.
He has also become the first non-Japanese wrestler to win the 2016 G1 Climax tournament, a truly coveted honour indeed.
Oh, did we mention, he also defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi to become the IWGP Intercontinental Champion, earlier this year? The real Bullet Club continues to dominate Japan, while WWE presents a watered down version.
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