2016 will go down as a year of spectacular highs and devastating lows for the wrestling industry. Throughout the year fans were treated to excellent matches and spectacular performances from promotions all over the world. New Japan Pro Wrestling stood tallest by year’s end, producing some of the best wrestling imaginable throughout the year.
WWE performed well in its own right, with the company putting on several great matches despite many unusual creative decisions.
Ring of Honor wasn’t far behind, as their partnership with NJPW and other promotions introduced their top stars to an international audience. Names like Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, the Bullet Club, and Michael Elgin, are now household names to a new generation of wrestling fans.
Then there’s TNA. The promotion spent most of the year on life support, barely surviving or making enough money to produce its own TV show (reports still circulate that many employees are still unpaid or are owed mass sums of money).
Then Matt Hardy came along, became a nutcase, and breathed new life into the promotion with the most absurd and gimmickiest wrestling seen in many years.
Since most people view WWE more than other promotions, we’ll try to focus on them. On one hand, they got an influx of incredible new talent on all three major brands, which led to several unbelievable matches that most fans could only dream of the year prior.
On the other hand, not only has the company let go of several top Superstars, but they have also made several booking decisions that could be described as bizarre at best, and abysmal at worst.
So when you look at the wrestling landscape at the end of 2016, it was indeed an interesting year, where the best (and worst) things done by different promotions and wrestlers deserve to be recognised.
Here, we’ll be looking at the best and worst of wrestling in 2016. We’ll see which wrestlers stood out and carried their promotions on their shoulders, and which ones failed miserably in trying to catch the fans’ attention…
Best Wrestler: AJ Styles
Runners-Up: Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Cesaro, Kazuchika Okada
There’s no question that Styles’ debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble was one of the biggest shocks of 2016.
Many thought that Styles, a man who had made his name on the independent scene and in Japan, was signed by WWE solely to take a big name that the promotion thought made its competition in New Japan too powerful and wanted him to be brought to WWE in order to ‘weaken’ him.
That didn’t happen, as Styles reached the top of WWE in very short order, putting on some of the best matches of the entire year. Moreover, he has been consistent in his match quality, becoming the highlight of every show he was on. His matches against John Cena at SummerSlam and Dean Ambrose at TLC were some of the best WWE had to offer.
Given his tendency for good matches on a regular basis, there’s no question that Styles wins this award.
In choosing runners-up for this award, I had to look at their overall performance throughout the year, taking booking into consideration. Shinsuke Nakamura delivered an outstanding performance against AJ Styles at Wrestle Kingdom 10 and put on several spectacular performances at NXT TakeOver events.
However, those matches were so few and far between that it prevented him from winning the award.
Kevin Owens was outstanding this year in most of his matches, showing surprising versatility and athleticism. Sami Zayn had excellent matches with both Nakamura and Owens throughout the year and managed to make even a throwaway RAW match with the latter into something special.
Cesaro also deserves credit for being arguably the most underrated and world-title-worthy wrestler on the RAW roster; given his superhuman blend of strength and athleticism.
Finally, a special consideration should go to the new Ace of New Japan, Kazuchika Okada, who solidified that status with several breathtaking performances. I know most people don’t watch NJPW enough, but I strongly urge you to at least watch a handful of Okada’s matches to see how insanely good this man is.
Worst Wrestler: Dana Brooke
Runners-Up: Darren Young, Goldust, R-Truth
This recognition isn’t entirely Brooke’s fault, as she was brought up to the main roster far too early into her career. A prime example of Vince not listening to anyone’s advice. Vince thought Dana could become the female equivalent of Roman Reigns and pushed her into prominent positions throughout 2016.
Her promos were disappointing, her matches more so, and her chemistry with every other woman on the roster was glaring. In the end, Brooke simply failed in her role and should return to NXT as soon as possible to improve upon her craft.
The runners-up for this award were all equally disappointing in their match performance this year. Goldust and R-Truth can be somewhat forgiven for their poor matches as both are older wrestlers and are certified comedy performers.
But Darren Young doesn’t have any excuse for his poor match quality. He was hyped up in a big way and returned to WWE with little fanfare. His matches, both televised and live, didn’t live up to the hype and neither did any of his on-screen segments.
Clearly, something drastic must be done if Young has any hopes of evading the axe when WWE does its annual spring cleaning after WrestleMania.
Match of the Year: Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (NXT TakeOver: Dallas)
Runners-Up: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (Wrestle Kingdom X), DIY vs. The Revival (NXT TakeOver: Toronto), A.J. Styles vs. John Cena (SummerSlam 2016)
This was difficult to determine, especially given the number of good matches during the 2016 calendar year. New Japan’s roster delivered several five-star classics, including a jaw-dropping performance from Tanahashi and Okada at Wrestle Kingdom X, which set the tone for the latter’s rise to legendary status in the months that followed.
Cena and Styles delivered the best match on the SummerSlam card, which proved that Cena still had enough in the tank and that Styles deserved to be in the main event. Finally, the spectacular tag team match between DIY and the Revival brought tears to many fans’ eyes at NXT TakeOver: Toronto.
Being there in person, I, along with most in attendance, cheered DIY’s victory for a very long time, and all four wrestlers received a standing ovation afterwards.
But there wasn’t a single match this year better than the match that stole the show in Dallas. Sami Zayn, who had been considered the heart and soul of NXT, put on a valiant performance while defending his turf against new arrival Shinsuke Nakamura.
And for 20 minutes, the two of them put on an insane match that had everyone on the edge of their seats. All it took was one single match for the WWE Universe to see that Nakamura was a true star. Small wonder, then, that fans were chanting both these guys’ names at WrestleMania 32 two days later.
Worst Match Of The Year: Rebel vs. Shelly Martinez
Runners-Up: The Golden Truth vs. Breezango
If you were ever looking for a microcosm of the promotion that is TNA, this match would be it. Someone decided that it was a good idea to put two women with subpar wrestling skills together in a match, and the result was so bad that you couldn’t even laugh at it.
From Shelly screaming ‘my vag hurts’ so loudly the cameras caught it, to the spectacular failure of an ending, it was no surprise that the fans watching live buried their heads in their hands shortly after the match started.
Since most people tend to forget bad matches, the only truly dismal failure of a match I could find for this category was that awful ‘sunburn’ match between Breezango and the Golden Truth at the MITB kickoff. As much as the wrestlers tried to convince us this was funny, no one liked it, and the match got very little fanfare overall.
The other match that deserves honorary mention is Triple H vs. Roman Reigns in the WrestleMania main event. It was bad enough that the crowd was exhausted, having spent more than five hours watching wrestling before this match started.
It was worse that, no matter how evil the Authority were, or how much Reigns tried to be a babyface (he even speared Stephanie, but is it ok to cheer such a thing?), the crowd rejected Reigns en masse.
But what made it terrible was just how boring this match was. It was a slow and plodding affair, akin to the equally dreadful HHH-Orton match at WrestleMania 25. The only difference is that match got cheers when it ended, most likely because it ended.
Best Gimmick: 'Broken' Matt Hardy
Runners-Up: The New Day, JeriKO
By mid-2016, TNA was haemorrhaging money. Ratings were down, attendance was way down, and bad news permeated the air every time those three words were uttered. Then in the middle of the year, Hardy made transformed into one of the most ludicrous wrestling characters ever seen.
‘Broken’ Matt Hardy is the living manifestation of ‘wacky pro wrestling’. He speaks in a terrible British accent. He has a ridiculous hairdo that makes him look like a cross between Alfred Einstein and Bray Wyatt. He talks in such an enigmatic way and with such over-the-top and ridiculous expressions that you cannot possibly take anything he says or does seriously.
And he’s bloody amazing.
Everything ‘Broken’ Matt Hardy has done since adopting this person has paid off many times over. His ‘Final Deletion’ segment with his brother Jeff was the epitome of wacky wrestling and it got people talking about TNA in a good way for the first time in years.
Fans everywhere have even started chanting ‘Delete’ at other shows, which demonstrates how popular his act has become. He took it one step further with his ‘Total Nonstop Deletion’ show (which we’ll get into later) and managed to make even the most mundane promo unique and funny.
‘Broken’ Matt will go down as the best gimmick of 2016, hands down, and might continue bringing more positive feedback to an otherwise crippled TNA.
Credit should also go to the New Day for managing to keep a year-old gimmick inventive and fresh, as well as JeriKO, for being one of the most hilarious duos in WWE.
Worst Gimmick: The Shining Stars
Runners-Up: Gallows & Anderson, Darren Young, Titus O’Neil, The League Of Nations
Vince just cannot shake his old habits, can he? It’s bad enough he’s stuck in the 1980s in terms of picking and choosing stars and how he views his product. It’s made worse by him still thinking that, in 2016, the whole ‘careers-as-wrestlers’ gimmick still has legs. Nothing could be further from the truth, and the Shining Stars exemplify this.
After failing as Puerto Rican bullfighters, Primo and Epico were repackaged as ‘the shining stars of the Caribbean’. At first thought, one could’ve dismissed them as stereotypical Puerto Rican wrestlers, but WWE went even further in the crazy direction by making them travel agents.
As a result, the Shining Stars have spent more time shilling dubious travel packages and gloating about Puerto Rico than they have wrestled. Nobody cares about their segments, and their matches are meaningless.
Gallows & Anderson deserve a nomination in this award for their abysmal performances involving ‘the Old Day’ and several other terrible segments that no one other than Vince McMahon found funny.
Both Darren Young and Titus O’Neil have endured disappointing gimmicks and little support from the audience, while the League of Nations was booked terribly from the get-go and were made to look like cannon fodder for Roman Reigns on every occasion.
Best Tag Team: The Young Bucks
Runners-Up: The New Day, American Alpha, DIY, The Revival
This was a tough one to call, as it came down to two highly impressive teams in the end. On one hand, we have the New Day, a trio that managed to defeat every single threat in WWE, becoming the longest-reigning WWE tag team champions ever in the process.
This is a historic accomplishment that will be discussed for many years to come, even if the duo’s challenges became less dramatic the closer they got to the record.
On the other hand, we have the Young Bucks, a fantastic and celebrated duo that have been the crown jewel of tag team wrestling everywhere outside WWE. As members of both the Elite and the Bullet Club, the brothers Jackson have been spectacular draws wherever they’ve gone, from the major stages of New Japan to smaller independent events.
They also hit a critical achievement in 2016, taking part in the first 6-man tag team match to be rated five stars by the Wrestling Observer in ten years. Given how high the standard is for that distinction, the Young Bucks have surpassed arguably every barrier put in their way.
To that end, the award for best tag team for 2016 goes to the Bucks.
The runners-up for this award are either current or former members of the NXT roster. American Alpha have put on many fantastic matches earlier in the year, but being somewhat directionless and lacking build-up shortly after the Draft Lottery prevented them from reaching higher levels.
DIY and the Revival were both spectacular tag teams this year, taking part in one of the greatest tag team matches in recent WWE history.
Worst Tag Team: The League of Nations
Runners-Up: The Golden Truth, The Shining Stars, The Fashion Police/Breezango
No, despite their oddball pairing, Cesaro and Sheamus have actually performed well as a tag team. The League of Nations, not so much.
Each one of these guys was a solid performer in singles competition, but collectively they were terrible. They lost most of their matches and won at WrestleMania despite little fanfare or build-up for their match. A year later, two of them are gone from WWE, Rusev’s stuck in the mid card and Sheamus is teaming with someone else.
Given how badly they performed as a team, it surprising they lasted as long as they actually did.
The LoN wasn’t the only bad team in WWE in 2016. The Shining Stars were, and still are, a boring gimmick team with little to no support. The Golden Truth are bad comedy wrestlers whose matches rarely, if ever, go beyond three minutes and don’t make anyone laugh.
Breezango, a.k.a. the Fashion Police, have something of a gimmick, but it’s hard to take them seriously when American Alpha’s destroying them in 1-minute matches.
Most Overrated: James Ellsworth
Runners-Up: Roman Reigns, Enzo Amore, Randy Orton
The chinless wonder was something of a cult favourite when he got demolished by Bran Strowman, and WWE took his strange popularity and turned him into a surprise Superstar on SmackDown. During his first few weeks, he was the ultimate underdog, a short and skinny little man with no chance of winning anything major.
Yet WWE saw his popularity and pushed him FAR beyond what a gimmick like this should’ve reached. Not only was he main-eventing SmackDown but he actually scored major wins of WWE Champion AJ Styles.
The good news now is that his involvement with the main event has ended, and how he’s a midcarder, which is a much better spot for him, given that his popularity is more of a fluke than it is related to any in-ring skill.
However, Ellsworth wasn’t the only man to fail to live up to the hype. Roman Reigns, while impressive on most PPVs, has been decidedly average on most TV matches. Enzo Amore has demonstrated great microphone ability but in terms of in-ring ability he leaves a lot to be desired, especially when competing in singles matches.
Finally, Randy Orton is a veteran who has been around a long time but his 2016 has been void of anything particularly memorable, other than the odd ‘RKO Outta Nowhere’.
Most Underrated: Sami Zayn
Runners-Up: Cesaro, American Alpha, Tye Dillinger, Alberto Del Rio
Sami Zayn’s treatment during the second half of 2016 has been nothing short of criminal. He took part in several fantastic matches throughout the first half (including this writer’s Match of the Year) and looked to be poised for a major run of some kind.
Instead, he was left off the SummerSlam card entirely, and spent the next several months so directionless he even said that exact word in a promo. He finished the year in a throwaway feud with Braun Strowman, with the latter coming out victorious. This has left many people, including me, wondering where Zayn’s career will be going in 2017.
Several of Zayn’s compatriots were just as unlucky. Cesaro should’ve gotten at least one World title shot by now, but instead finds himself teaming with Sheamus. This is a waste of Cesaro’s talents, as he has many supporters both within WWE and outside of it that are convinced he can be a big money draw as a World Champion.
American Alpha should have been catapulted to the top of the SmackDown roster right after the draft but were booked inexplicably as secondary to the thrown-together team of Heath Slater & Rhyno. They finally got their big title win recently, but it was long after the fanfare of their spectacular performances against the Revival had dissipated.
Finally, there was Alberto Del Rio, a former World Champion with solid in-ring abilities. He wasn’t pushed to the main event as he was promised, and was saddled with one poor feud after another. It shouldn’t surprise anyone, then, that he didn’t leave on the best of terms…again.
Best Major Wrestling Show: NXT TakeOver: Dallas
Runners-Up: Wrestle Kingdom X, NXT TakeOver: Toronto, Total Nonstop Deletion
Top to bottom, NXT TakeOver: Dallas came off as a major show despite having only five matches. Each match had its own charm, story, and psychology about it, allowing the audience to be fully immersed in the matches they saw.
The crowd was white hot throughout the show, especially during that fantastic Zayn/Nakamura match that not only stole the show but outdid everything seen on WrestleMania two days later.
Wrestle Kingdom X, NJPW’s premier show of 2016, was another stellar affair. It featured some of the best matches New Japan had to offer and was rightfully treated like a critical event. Top to bottom, it had one of the best cards in recent memory, with the final three matches, in particular, being must-watch contests.
NXT TakeOver: Toronto was another excellent event with a stacked card. The tag team match between DIY and the Revival was absolutely spectacular, stealing the show in the process. They really set the bar very high for Survivor Series the following night.
Finally, a special mention should go to the episode of Impact dubbed ‘Total Nonstop Deletion’, which was filmed at the Hardy compound in front of a live audience of only 50 people. Despite that small live audience, this was easily the most hysterical wrestling show of the entire year.
From the debut of Matt Hardy’s 1-year-old son Maxel to drone Vanguard 1 acting as a referee, to a ‘volcano’ erupting in North Carolina, to countless over-the-top wrestling jokes, this is without a doubt, one wrestling show everyone must see, regardless of how cheesy it is.
Worst Wrestling Show: WrestleMania 32
Runners-Up: Fastlane 2016, SummerSlam 2016
WrestleMania 32 will go down in history as one of the single-most poorly executed show in wrestling history. It was excruciatingly long, running over six hours in length from pre-show to closing ceremonies.
Few of the booking decisions, if any, made any sense whatsoever, and the prevailing feeling was that the show was booked more to spite fans than to entertain them.
Finally, the show was capped off by a terrible main event that actually sent fans home angry and disappointed, which goes against the very purpose of having such a show in the first place. It was all kinds of bad, no matter how much WWE touts their supposed record-breaking attendance figures.
Fastlane wasn’t that much better. Most of the matches failed to excite fans enough to tune into WrestleMania, and it featured both a terrible segment involving Edge & Christian and a Superstars-level joke match involving Curtis Axel & R-Truth.
SummerSlam wasn’t too well-received either, despite a stellar performance from John Cena and AJ Styles in an MOTY contender. The show was far too long, had booking that was far too bizarre, lacked any truly spectacular moments outside of that aforementioned Cena-Styles match, and had an apathetic audience by the end.
Not exactly the kind of response you’d expect from the second-biggest show of the year for WWE.
Feud of the Year: A. J. Styles vs. John Cena
Runners-Up: The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler, Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe, The Bullet Club vs. Everyone, Los Ignobernables de Japon vs. Everyone, Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte
In terms of memorable feuds, none this year can touch the one between Styles and Cena. It was the perfect story of the established old guard being challenged by a newcomer who knew he was better than the veteran.
Despite major trash talk from both sides and several instances of interference, the two met in a spectacular blow-off match at SummerSlam that solidified Styles’ claim that he deserved to be in the main event.
The other feuds in this category were also well-executed. The Miz has done very well as Intercontinental Champion and had several great moments and matches with Dolph Ziggler. Nakamura and Samoa Joe’s rivalry was as personal as it was brutal, leading to multiple great matches that proved both men are main-event-caliber stars.
Outside of WWE, two stables dominated the wrestling scene: Los Ignobernables de Japon are now at the top of NJPW, and the Bullet Club are probably the most popular act in all of wrestling. Their respective feuds with everyone that dare stand against them have been highly entertaining.
Finally, Sasha Banks and Charlotte have wrestled in so many major matches this year that their feud has reached the same level of personal bitterness as Trish Stratus vs. Lita from earlier this century.
Worst Feud of the Year: Darren Young vs. Titus O’Neil
Runners-Up: Rusev vs. all the babyfaces
WWE has messed up the booking of both Darren Young and Titus O’Neil so badly and so many times it’s no wonder the crowd does not care one bit when either man is on screen. They were very entertaining as a tag team, but their numerous splits, fights, reunions and new splits have made fans apathetic to them.
Nothing either man has done has gotten anything more than a whimper out of the audience. The feud was indeed that bad.
The close second to this horrible feud wasn’t so much a feud as it was the general treatment of two characters. Rusev is an obvious heel, but the focus of his rivalries in 2016 was his real-life marriage to manager Lana. But because he’s a foreigner, in Vince’s mind, he must be evil, even when married to someone that genuinely loves him.
So throughout the year, several babyfaces have tried to ruin his marriage or make his life miserable.
The two that stand out were Enzo Amore and Roman Reigns, both of whom acted like major jerks in messing with Rusev’s (character’s) personal life. Their antics were supposed to be cheered by the audience (because, again, evil foreigner Rusev), yet few people could cheer their behaviour, because, in real life, those actions would be considered despicable.
No one won with this feud, and it did very little to endear Roman Reigns to the audience.
Best Women's Wrestler: Sasha Banks
Runners-Up: Charlotte, Bayley, Asuka, Becky Lynch
Banks was the most impressive women’s wrestler throughout the year. She beat Charlotte for this top recognition by a thin margin due to overall better performance in the ring and better overall promos. She also won more matches cleanly, while Charlotte had to use underhanded tactics involving her father during the first half of the year.
As good as she is, any time a wrestler (especially a heel) must resort to something controversial to win a match instead of winning it decisively is a mark against them.
Bayley was solid overall this year both in NXT and on the main roster, but she was nowhere near the same level she was in 2015. If there was ever proof that a wrestler must ‘dumb down’ their style once being ‘promoted’ to the main roster, look no further than how Bayley wrestled then and now.
Speaking of NXT, Asuka was once again the most dominant woman on the roster, winning every major match she has been in. Though she might not be the skilled speaker that Charlotte and Sasha are, she more than backed it up with excellent matches and a strong psychology of fear in the ring.
People are more afraid of tiny Asuka than they are of monster Nia Jax. That says a lot about Asuka’s abilities, as well as the flaws in Jax’s booking as a supposed dominant force.
Finally, Becky Lynch was solid throughout the year and rarely had a particularly bad match. That said, she doesn’t achieve this award because she didn’t have a truly standout match either.
Best Speaker: Chris Jericho
Runners-Up: Kevin Owens, Matt Hardy, The Miz, Kenny Omega, Enzo Amore
Despite being one of the oldest wrestlers on the roster, Jericho was spectacular on the microphone in 2016. While he has always been good at promos, he became even better this year, coming up with so many new catchphrases and sub-gimmicks that have made him more fun to watch.
From getting the word ‘it’ over with the audience, to making the audience chant ‘stupid idiot’ whenever he’s on screen, to making a list the funniest thing on the roster, Jericho has been masterful, and truly deserves the respect he has earned for his hard work and creativity.
Kevin Owens has also been an excellent speaker throughout the year. But while his regular promos are solid, Owens excels in trash-talking during his matches, on commentary, and in random one-liners. Him mocking the audience with his rambling even managed to make Roman Reigns laugh at a house show, which is a testament to his abilities.
Of course, one cannot discuss great promos without mentioning ‘Broken’ Matt Hardy. In the span of six months, Hardy’s promos have become so ridiculous you cannot help but laugh at him. He knows this and does whatever he can to make himself even more outlandish with every passing week.
He’s the wackiest character in wrestling today, and you never know what he’s going to say (or more importantly, how he’ll say it).
The Miz has also been money with his promos this year, especially with his famous ‘meltdown’ on Talking Smack. The realism and passion he put into that promo (as well as many subsequent promos) have led to something of a rebirth for the Miz, turning him into arguably the biggest heel on the SmackDown roster.
In Japan, Kenny Omega has also become a fantastic talker. Not only are his promos very fun to listen to in English, but he’s also fluent in Japanese, which is a major accomplishment given how difficult it is to master that language.
The fact that Omega can transition between these two languages without effort makes him a major asset for NJPW, especially as they expand their product further onto the international stage.
Finally, Enzo Amore’s promos have been very interesting as well. He has an odd magnetism about him when he talks, and his mannerisms make him someone you can’t take your eyes off. While his in-ring work might not be the best, one cannot deny he has a gift for the gab.
Most Irritating Person Award: Stephanie McMahon
Runners-Up: Enzo Amore, The Golden Truth, the WWE Creative team, Mick Foley, Byron Saxton
Stephanie McMahon’s character is the most irritating presence in wrestling today. Every week she makes an appearance and talks down to her own roster and drones on in corporate speak.
An authority figure shouldn’t be this important on a wrestling show, but unfortunately, Stephanie has used her status to make many segments solely about her, much to the detriment of the program. On the day she finally gets her comeuppance (if that day ever comes), RAW will probably get its best rating ever, just from the sheer joy people will have at seeing the irritating Stephanie McMahon get what she deserves.
Speaking of irritating, Enzo Amore’s promos and booking have started to lose their appeal for many people. He’s not coming across as entertaining in the same way he did earlier this year, and his overall actions make him out to be like one of those small dogs: insecure about his stature so he makes a lot of noise to compensate for it.
The WWE creative team deserves a major mention for this award for their collective failure this year. RAW’s continued decline can be traced to the creative team’s tendency to over-script the performers and a general lack of knowledge about the unique qualities of wrestling.
Since WWE likes to hire Hollywood writers that know little to nothing about wrestling, those writers write what they know, which obviously isn’t wrestling, leading to a very dismal product.
Mick Foley gets nominated for becoming one of the least-effective on-screen authority figures in recent memory. He’s no longer the Hardcore Legend that fears nothing and talks in cryptic promos as Mankind did. He’s more like an awkward, overprotective dad trying to be cool with an audience he doesn’t understand.
If anything, the way he’s presented on ‘Holy Foley’ has come to life on RAW as well.
Finally, while most of the commentators deserve a nomination for lack of enthusiasm (Michael Cole especially, for infamously reading his reaction to Shane falling of the Cell from a script), the worst commentator this year was undoubtedly Byron Saxton.
He hasn’t contributed much to the shows, talks in a monotone voice that doesn’t give off any hint of passion or excitement, and has been the butt of more jokes than even Michael Cole.
Biggest Disappointment Award: Finn Balor’s Injury
Runner-Up: Mass Departure of long-time wrestlers, the Cruiserweight Division, Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose @ WrestleMania 32, Roman Reigns main event victory @ WrestleMania 32, Daniel Bryan’s retirement
Many things disappointed in wrestling this year, from TNA’s perpetual downward spiral, to NJPW’s dwindling attendance numbers, to Daniel Bryan’s retirement. But these things aren’t as bad as most people think in the grand scheme of things.
NJPW is still doing very well financially, TNA has experienced a mild resurgence thanks to Matt Hardy, and Bryan has transitioned quite well into an on-screen authority figure.
The same cannot be said of Finn Balor, who got injured in the opening moments of his WWE Universal Championship match. Balor fought well against Seth Rollins and even popped his shoulder back into its socket shortly after he got hurt. Alas, he was forced to relinquish the belt the following night on RAW, and was shelved for at least six months.
This was a crippling blow to Balor’s growing career, as he was an obvious big star earmarked for early success.
Balor wasn’t the only wrestler to experience disappointment in 2016. Several top stars departed WWE on bad terms (Ryback and Cody Rhodes especially), showing a glaring flaw with WWE’s treatment of its mid card talent pool. Both the
Both the Lesnar/Ambrose and HHH/Reigns matches at WrestleMania 32 were dismal performances in hindsight, the former being a lost opportunity to build Ambrose into a bigger star and the latter an unmitigated disaster mired in poor execution and a hostile audience.
Finally, there was so much hope that the new Cruiserweight Division would be a huge draw on RAW, featuring the same kind of wrestling seen in the Cruiserweight Classic Network Special. Instead, the Cruiserweights were forced to subdue their style and have ended 2016 with the same booking influence as the rest of the roster.
The only real difference between the Cruiserweights now is that the ring gets special purple ropes now as if that really makes any major difference.
Star of 2017 Award: Kenny Omega
Runners-Up: Shinsuke Nakamura, Baron Corbin, The Miz, Matt Hardy
Out of all the rising stars in 2017, Kenny Omega is likely going to be the biggest thing in 2017. Ever since AJ Styles left NJPW in January 2016, Omega has done wonders in becoming the new Bullet Club leader.
His promos have been spectacular, his matches more so, and his appeal has skyrocketed. He’s the first gaijin to win the G1 Climax, and his Wrestle Kingdom 11 performance was breathtaking. Even though he didn’t win the big one, there’s a good chance he’ll be a major fixture in NJPW and elsewhere throughout 2017.
As for WWE, you can expect three stars to reach the top in 2017. Shinsuke Nakamura has been a hit since his first match, and it’s only a matter of time before he Kinshasas his way to the top of one main roster show or the other.
Baron Corbin has improved by leaps and bounds in recent months, and might actually become an even bigger star as long as his improvements continue in 2017.
The Miz had a spectacular 2016, with excellent promos, strong matches, and a critical role as the best pure heel in all of WWE. He’s on fire right now, and may actually reach the top of the SmackDown roster for the first time since his first World title win in 2010.
Finally, Matt Hardy’s crazy character work has been a saving grace for TNA, to a point where his involvement has been the best thing anyone has said about the company all year. There’s a good chance that he’ll be a star in TNA for 2017, as there is still more craziness that he can do and get away with.
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