These days, one can make the argument that wrestling is as big as it ever was, thanks to the number of active promotions serving as alternatives to WWE.
In all fairness, Vince Mcmahon’s company has been producing good shows as of late, but it doesn’t necessarily mean WWE is the best.
Here we look at 5 awesome indy promotions you need to know about.
#5 Dragon Gate USA/Evolve
Gabe Sapolsky, co-founder of Ring of Honor and former ECW employee, runs Dragon Gate USA and co-owns EVOLVE. Both promotions can be found on the WWN Live network.
Both Dragon Gate USA (a branch of the Dragon Gate promotion in Japan) and EVOLVE also share talent, and their shows are usually available on Internet pay-per-view (iPPV), then transferred to DVD shortly after for purchase.
Drew Galloway (formerly Drew McIntyre) currently holds the EVOLVE world title and the Dragon Gate USA Open the Freedom Gate Championship. Indie vets like Chris Hero, Drew Gulak, and Davey Richards make habitual appearances.
#4 Pro Wrestling Noah
While viewing material can be hard to obtain, Pro Wrestling Noah made the case to be considered as Japan’s No. 2 promotion over the past few decades.
Some compelling and legendary matches have taken place in Noah rings, featuring KENTA (now Hideo Itami), Daniel Bryan, Kensuke Sasaki, Takeshi Morishima and Naomichi Marufuji competing over the Global Honored Crown (GHC) Championship.
If one wants to familiarize itself with Noah, the mid-2000s would be a great place to start. While Noah can’t be found on television, excellent matches and full events can be found on YouTube or Daily Motion.
Noah is also home to some of the world’s most gifted but lesser-known wrestlers, like Zack Sabre Jr., Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste and Daisuke Harada.
#3 CWZ
CZW is an American independent wrestling promotion founded In 1999. The company filled a niche for hardcore wrestling fans that had been left open by the folding of ECW.
CZW established themselves as the leading American hardcore wrestling promotion.
They are most commonly known for their "ultraviolent" style, but, their shows feature almost every other style of wrestling as well.
#2 Pro Wrestling Guerrilla
Everything about Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) screams do-it-yourself success. The company is run by pro-wrestlers, with the bulk of the shows taking place at the American Legion Hall in Reseda, California .
PWG shows now sell out in minutes, attracting fans from all over the world to be part of the spectacle.
Not just anyone is invited to compete at a PWG show; only the best performers with good track records inside the squared circle can book their place on a PWG card. With that said, it’s hard to find a bad match when watching a PWG event, which is why every wrestling fan must own a PWG show on DVD.
The best wrestlers in the world have graced PWG rings over the years, and the biggest show of the year, a single-elimination tournament titled Battle of Los Angeles.
#1 Ring of Honour
Seen as the unofficial developmental territory of the WWE, there’s a good chance your favorite WWE world champions of the past and present laid the groundwork for their careers in Ring of Honor.
Some of these names include CM Punk, Seth Rollins, and Daniel Bryan, all of whom had prosperous careers in the top independent promotion in the world.
The Baltimore-based promotion prides itself on being the “best wrestling on the planet,” which is hard to argue after diving into ROH’s material, where you can find the epic contests featuring Joe vs. Punk, as well as any match pitting the Young Bucks against reDRagon.
Whats you opinion ?
