Pro Wrestling Illustrated have released their Top 500 wrestlers for the past year again and the number 1 place has caused some debate in the wrestling world. Now, call me a cynic but looking at the rest of the top 10, PWI could of done picked this number 1 for that exact reason because the rest of the top 10 maybe apart from Japanese worker Shinsuke Nakamura would pretty much be in the top 10 of most pro wrestling fans that follow the 'mainstream' product. Maybe, die hard TNA fans might have more TNA wrestlers in the 10 but overall, the WWE guys in there would basically be a shoe in from most fans.
Now, AJ Styles is a very good worker but over the last year, has he really been the top of his profession? I'd say no. Most people who know me know that I am not a big fan of the WWE product and if I were to say do a top 20 I'd throw some ROH guys in there along with some more Japanese wrestlers as this is the wrestling I watch the most. Would this make the list more realistic, well, it depends on what the list is made upon, is it workrate, is it match quality, is it drawing power or is it a mixture of them all? For me, lists like this should be based on one thing and one thing only, how much I enjoy watching the guys when they are WRESTLING.
There some well-know wrestling podcasts that have no time for ROH or the Japanese product. There are some who also can't stand TNA and barely give it a look in and they base their wrestling opinions on the WWE product. Let's be honest guys, the WWE can be entertaining, every blue moon they can have some good matches but hand on heart, does the WWE produce the best matches? For me, and it's my opinion, they don't. I don't want to be flamed because people think I am saying that because the WWE product isn't my cup of tea so to speak, I honestly think for wrestling, which is for me why I watch it, WWE comes down the list behind the likes of ROH, NOAH, NJPW, Dragon Gate.
Getting back on topic, AJ Styles, as good as a worker he is, probably hasn't been the best wrestler in the last 12 months, would I have him in my top 10, maybe because in TNA, he been a heel, in the shadow of Ric Flair, wearing a Flair style robe trying to be a modern day 'Nature Boy' and let's face it, AJ Styles is no Nature Boy. TNA for me are the reason AJ Styles is getting the response from the internet fans for being number 1 in the PWI 500, if booked better, Styles could be right up there as one of the best in the world but that's what it is with the wrestling business, yes you have to be able to 'do it' but you are booked to do it in a certain way and TNA's overall product has hurt some of the best workers on their roster like Styles, Homicide, Samoa Joe. TNA are not alone in this, WWE I'm sure have some workers that could put on four star plus style matches but the booking doesn't allow for that so I don't blame the wrestlers for not having high grade matches no, not at all, I blame they way they are booked. OK, there are some wreslers in WWE and TNA that even with the free reign to work how they want still wouldn't pull it off but there are the few that could really impress many of us I am sure. This for me is why ROH is the best WRESTLING promotion in North America because the style the guys work is great, the booking most times is great, they do change things around for the TV show but that's to be expected but the live shows and the DVD releases and internet PPV's (next being on gofightlive.tv on September 11th) are really really top notch wrestling. People will read this blog and I know what will be said about ROH not having the characters, the show not having the production and all that but really, ask yourself are you a wrestling fan or are you a fan of a TV show that has some wrestling on it or shall we say a fan of sports entertainment?
I went off track again, but alas.....Anyway, the PWI 500, well more the top 10 will be discussed amongst other things on the Still Real To Us podcast that should be available to download on Friday August 6th from http://wheelhouseradio.com going onto the Real Guy Radio tab, fingers crossed, I should be on the show with host 'The Champ' Jeff Peck, check it out guys, it's usually a great show!!
Below is the FULL PWI 500 for 2010
1. AJ Styles
2. John Cena
3. CM Punk
4. Randy Orton
5. Chris Jericho
6. Batista
7. Shinsuke Nakamura
8. The Undertaker
9. Kurt Angle
10. Sheamus
11. Triple-H
12. The Miz
13. Rey Mysterio Jr.
14. Takashi Sugiura
15. Rob Van Dam
16. Dr. Wagner Jr
17. The Big Show
18. Edge
19. Tyler Black
20. Jeff Hardy
21. Jack Swagger
22. Christian
23. Abyss
24. Ryota Hama
25. Austin Aries
26. Kofi Kingston
27. John Morrison
28. Desmond Wolfe
29. Ultimo Guerrero
30. Drew McIntyre
31. Samoa Joe
32. Davey Richards
33. Mr. Anderson
34. Ted DiBiase Jr.
35. Hirooki Goto
36. D’Angelo Dinero
37. Eddie Edwards
38. Matt Morgan
39. Hiroshi Tanahashi
40. Yoshihiro Takayama
41. Cody Rhodes
42. Mistico
43. James Storm
44. Daniel Bryan
45. Douglas Williams
46. Roderick Strong
47. Christopher Daniels
48. Mesias
49. Eric Young
50. Dolph Ziggler
51. Robert Roode
52. Naomichi Marufuji
53. Kevin Nash
54. Kevin Steen
55. R-Truth
56. Jeff Jarrett
57. Electroshock
58. Tyson Kidd
59. Montel Vontavious Porter
60. Sting
61. Adam Pearce
62. Jay Briscoe
63. Evan Bourne
64. Minoru Suzuki
65. Blue Demon Jr.
66. Matt Hardy
67. Rob Terry
68. Go Shiozaki
69. David Hart Smith
70. Satoshi Kojima
71. Hernandez
72. Cibernetico
73. Brother Devon
74. Chris Hero
75. Togi Makabe
76. Shelton Benjamin
77. Brother Ray
78. Yoshi Tatsu
79. Kane
80. Claudio Castagnoli
81. Volador Jr.
82. Takeshi Rikio
83. Dos Caras Jr.
84. JTG
85. Shad Gaspard
86. Mark Briscoe
87. Amazing Red
88. Alex Shelley
89. Mohammad Yone
90. Luke Gallows
91. La Sombra
92. Kazarian
93. Ezekiel Jackson
94. Carlito
95. Chris Sabin
96. Kenny King
97. Phil Shatter
98. BxB Hulk
99. Mark Henry
100. Heath Slater
101. Colt Cabana
102. Homicide
103. Jon Moxley
104. Averno
105. Yuji Nagata
106. Delirious
107. Magnus
108. Jerry Lynn
109. Wade Barrett
110. Naruki Doi
111. Mephisto
112. Steve Corino
113. Goldust
114. Joe Hennig
115. Masakatsu Funaki
116. Max Buck
117. Zach Ryder
118. El Generico
119. Jeremy Buck
120. Keiji Muto
121. Suwama
122. Karl Anderson
123. Rhett Titus
124. Shannon Moore
125. Primo Colon
126. William Regal
127. Yujiro
128. Erick Stevens
129. Brian Kendrick
130. The Great Khali
131. Tyson Dux
132. KENTA
133. Chessman
134. Jay Lethal
135. Orlando Jordan
136. Finlay
137. Toshiaki Kawada
138. Negro Casas
139. Rhino
140. Kensuke Sasaki
141. Justin Gabriel
142. Kenny Omega
143. Masato Tanaka
144. Paul London
145. Marco Corleone
146. Tetsuya Naito
147. Ray Gonzalez
148. La Parka
149. Joe Lider
150. Jimmy Jacobs
151. Kaz Hayashi
152. Naoya Ogawa
153. Mikal Judas
154. Trent Beretta
155. Vladimir Kozlov
156. Katsuhiko Nakajima
157. Silver King
158. CIMA
159. Caylen Croft
160. Paul Birchill
161. Chuck Taylor
162. Perro Aguayo Jr.
163. Scott Steiner
164. Brett DiBiase
165. Brent Albright
166. Extreme Tiger
167. Tajiri
168. Vance Archer
169. Sean Waltman
170. Shawn Daivari
171. Joey Ryan
172. Chris Masters
173. Tomko
174. Sami Callihan
175. Latin Lover
176. Alex Koslov
177. Chavo Guerrero
178. Sonjay Dutt
179. Felino
180. Tyler Reks
181. Jun Akiyama
182. Martin Stone
183. Pac
184. Kiyoshi
185. Manabu Nakanishi
186. Petey Williams
187. Shinjiro Otani
188. Atlantis
189. Austin Creed
190. Necro Butcher
191. Drake Brewer
192. Giant Bernard
193. Tommy Dreamer
194. Stevie Richards
195. Joe E. Legend
196. Bison Smith
197. Darren Young
198. Nicho El Millionario
199. Blue Panther
200. Jason Hades
201. Alex Riley
202. Kory Chavis
203. Arik Cannon
204. Cody Deaner
205. Jason Blade
206. Takeshi Morishima
207. David Otunga
208. Mr. Niebla
209. Kaval
210. Jack Evans
211. Jon Davis
212. Toru Yano
213. Osamu Nishimura
214. Mike Knox
215. Ryusuke Taguchi
216. Rasche Brown
217. Prince Devitt
218. Skip Sheffield
219. Ultimo Gladiator
220. Icarus
221. Shawn Spears
222. Mike Quackenbush
223. Jesse Neal
224. Teddy Hart
225. 2 Cold Scorpio
226. Gran Akuma
227. Yuko Miamoto
228. Tommaso Ciampa
229. Kohei Sato
230. Okada
231. Scott Lost
232. Hector Garza
233. Tiger Mask IV
234. Maasaki Mochizuki
235. Brodie Lee
236. Super Crazy
237. Billy Ken Kid
238. Percy Watson
239. Lince Dorado
240. Mascara Dorado
241. T.J. Cannon
242. Dragon Kid
243. Zorro
244. Ruckus
245. Drake Younger
246. Shocker
247. Raven
248. Oliver John
249. B-Boy
250. Kota Ibushi
251. El Hijo Del Santo
252. Eddie Kingston
253. N8 Mattson
254. Rocky Romero
255. Curt Hawkins
256. Cody Hawk
257. Masahiro Chono
258. B.J.
259. Jigsaw
260. Rey Bucanero
261. Koji Kanemoto
262. Johnny Devine
263. Bruce Maxwell
264. El Sensacional Carlitos
265. Akebono
266. Christopher Gray
267. Ryan Eagles
268. Sterling James Keenan
269. El Terrible
270. Ares
271. Michael Elgin
272. Sebastian Suave
273. Yamato
274. Texano Jr.
275. Tommy Taylor
276. Hallowicked
277. Vampiro
278. Mike Rollins
279. Metal Master
280. Josh Daniels
281. Dustin Cutler
282. Derek Wylde
283. Johnny Curtis
284. Nick Gage
285. Shadow Jackson
286. Brandon Cutler
287. Darrin Corbin
288. Jimmy Wang Yang
289. Quiet Storm
290. Tursas
291. Jules Uso
292. Ace Rockwell
293. Ryan Kruz
294. Pepper Parks
295. Konnan
296. Jimmy Uso
297. Sean Morley
298. Johnny Prime
299. Slam Master J
300. Glen Osbourne
301. Xtremo
302. Joey Mercury
303. Rory McAllister
304. Rob Eckos
305. Brandon Bonham
306. Mike Mondo
307. Robbie McAllister
308. Aden Chambers
309. Benjamin Boone
310. Harley Jackson
311. Prince Nana
312. Billy Bax
313. Shark Boy
314. Strongman
315. Jimmy Rave
316. Scorpio Sky
317. Jushin Liger
318. Shaun Tempers
319. Johnny Kashmere
320. Jackson Andrews
321. The Blue Meanie
322. Jimmy DeMarco
323. Dragon Rojo Jr.
324. Bo Rotundo
325. KC Kea
326. Spike Dudley
327. Dal Knox
328. Brandon Locke
329. Ron Zombie
330. Matt Cross
331. Duke Rotundo
332. Matt Walsh
333. La Mascara
334. Brad Attitude
335. Silas Young
336. TJ Perkins
337. Sangre Azteca
338. Glamour Boy Shane
339. Phil Atlas
340. Tim Donst
341. Egotistico Fantastico
342. Leo Kruger
343. Michael Tarver
344. Tommy Thunda
345. Kimo
346. Tito Colon
347. Trik Davis
348. Ryan McBride
349. J.D. Maverick
350. Santino Marella
351. Truitt Fields
352. The Sheik
353. Nicky Benz
354. L.A. Park
355. Gregory Helms
356. Frankie the Mobster
357. Sinn Bodhi
358. Hunico
359. Pat Buck
360. Mahoney
361. Jeremy Vain
362. Don Paysan
363. Johnny Gargano
364. Richie Steamboat
365. Caprice Coleman
366. Mason Ryan
367. Savio Vega
368. Charley Manson
369. Jonny Puma
370. Josh Alexander
371. T.J. Mack
372. Marshall Gambino
373. Chasyn Rance
374. Shane Haste
375. Bobby Dempsey
376. Matt Burns
377. Kirby Mack
378. Ryoji Sai
379. Danny Daniels
380. Derrick Bateman
381. Asylum
382. Kevin Grace
383. Lynx
384. Mike Tobin
385. Tank
386. Ultimo Dragon
387. Marion Fontaine
388. Zaquary Springate III
389. Matt Riviera
390. Chase Del Monte
391. Ricky Reyes
392. Kenzo Suzuki
393. Simon Sez
394. Vance Nevada
395. Joey Knight
396. Orien Bishop
397. Aero Star
398. John McChesney
399. Robin Knightwing
400. Bazooka Joe
401. Titan
402. Big E Langston
403. Damien Slater
404. Rudy Switchblade
405. Josef Von Schmidt
406. Matt Logan
407. Ricochet
408. Alex Price
409. Thumbtack Jack
410. Tyler Veritas
411. Mega
412. Scotty Mac
413. Eric Cooper
414. Kid Kash
415. Grizzly Redwood
416. Bryan Logan
417. Adam Cole
418. Nick Logan
419. Papadon
420. Breaker Morant
421. Vinny Dunn
422. Scott Zenzen
423. Bruiser Bennett
424. Steve O
425. Jake O’Reilly
426. Freak Nastty
427. Jimmy Cicero
428. Kamikaze
429. Bobby Shields
430. Hiram Tua
431. Eddie Taurus
432. Mikaze
433. Tony Stetson
434. Chris Rockwell
435. Slim J
436. Donny Marlow
437. Davey Deluxeo
438. Rudy Parker
439. Samuel Elias
440. Ernie Ballz
441. Joe Bravo
442. Robbie Gilmore
443. Ryan Sawyer
444. Wall Calrissian
445. Ananzi
446. Aaron Stevens
447. Mike Sydal
448. Alex Anthony
449. Colin Delaney
450. Cable Jones
451. Conrad Tanner
452. Wes Brisco
453. Titus O’Neil
454. Reiko DMF
455. Dan Eckos
456. Ron Falco
457. Handsome Johnny
458. Vince Beach
459. Corey Hollis
460. Tommy Mack
461. Bill Collier
462. Kwan Chang
463. Mozart Fontaine
464. Scott Chase
465. Barry Ryte
466. Crisifix
467. Don Vega
468. Steve Madison
469. Chris Black
470. Mike Posey
471. Kid America
472. Eli Cottonwood
473. Scott Wright
474. Crazzy Steve
475. J.T. Playa
476. Cameron Thomas
477. Prince Iaukea
478. Marc Mandrake
479. Ray Alexander
480. J.B. Trask
481. Rip Impact
482. Brian Millonas
483. A.J. Strokes
484. Phil Latio
485. Malachi
486. Chris Cooper
487. Primo Scordino
488. Barry Hardy
489. Hellcat
490. Shockwave the Robot
491. Robert Roma
492. Billy Gibbs
493. Steve Kruz
494. Mr. Ooh La La
495. Super Sweet
496. Brandon Thurston
497. Gabe Saint
498. Kliff Hanger
499. Peter B. Beautiful
500. Barry Wolf
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