TWD 50: Future 50′ers and Honourable Mentions

See the entire TWD 50, including the Top-10, here.

In compiling a list such as naming the 50 best wrestlers in the World today, you will of course examine more than 50 names and weed out the ones who for whatever reason, aren’t worthy of such an inclusion.

We will begin with the top young wrestlers around who weren’t recognized this year, but whom we at TWD know are fully capable of being recognized in the future.

Future 50’ers

1. Go Shiozaki – Pro Wrestling NOAH put the title on Shiozaki on June 14, the night after Misawa died, having him defeat former GHC Heavyweight Champion Takeshi Rikio, the same man who ended Kobashi’s legendary two-year reign in 2005.

The past and the future meet in the present: Misawa and Shiozaki on May 6, 2009 showing unity before the GHC Tag League Finals. (Image Credit: Pro Wrestling NOAH)

Shiozaki has long been primed for this career path. A disciple of Kenta Kobashi, Shiozaki has a good mix of size and athleticism. Since Misawa’s death, Go has been going for it, wrestling at a consistently high level for the first time in his life. If NOAH goes under in the absence of their founder, it won’t be at the hands of Shiozaki.

As soon as next year, Go may be ranked highly on the TWD 50.

2. Kenny Omega – Omega is a guy who has a legitimate argument for being on the list this year. He’s done the Hell Tours up in Manitoba that Edge, Christian, Rhino, and Lance Storm have all done. He’s worked steadily in Japan for over a year now with DDT, where he is a main eventer. Hell, he quit his WWE Developmental deal a couple years back because he wanted to wrestle the art form, not the cookie-cutter style.

Saying that Omega is a gifted athlete is like saying Megan Fox is pretty: It’s a criminal understatement. The scary thing is, Omega is a better actor/performer than Fox is. Along with that athleticism, Omega has learned how to tell a story, both in the frozen Manitoba tundra (I should know, I was born way up there), in Developmental, or on the Indys and in Japan. As I will mention with the next person on this list, Omega is doing it the right way, learning multiple styles, and melding them all together.

The future is very bright for Kenny Omega, and barring serious injury, Omega will be on The 50 next year.

3. Ricky Steamboat Jr. – Why is a guy that at least 90 percent of those reading this have never heard of before, up so high in the list? Three reasons.

• Who are we to doubt the pedigree of Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat?
• In his first tour in Japan (with Pro Wrestling NOAH), Jr. Steamboat looked like a prodigy, oozing limitless potential.
• He’s going about his development the right way. He’s wrestling everywhere he can, from Podunk Pro Wrestling, to Japan, to Puerto Rico, to the American Indys, and every place in between. It’s the old-school way of honing your craft, and it’s how all the great North American wrestlers got to the level they did.

It’s gonna take a couple of years yet. Jr. Steamboat still isn’t under a WWE Developmental deal, though it is there simply waiting for him to sign it. Once he does, and once he is called up to the main roster, he is simply one push away from lighting the wrestling world on fire.

4. Cody Rhodes
5. Ted DiBiase Jr. – The only thing that the charter members of Legacy are missing is a few years on the Indys. So now that we have that out of the way, let’s recap what they have:

• Pedigree
• Being developed in WWE Developmental
• Working with WWE main eventers from their first nights on the job.

They will learn the WWE main event style, and they will be able to meld in their athleticism into that style, and it will be very nice.

Whenever either Rhodes or DiBiase get the chance to show their stuff, they look great. A few months ago I thought Ted Jr. was the better prospect, but recently Cody has shown vs DX that he’s every bit as good. These guys are key parts of the future of the E’s main event future, and believe me, it’s a bright one.

6. Austin Aries – There was a lot of talk about Aries making the list. There was also some talk that while he could obviously go in the ring, his style was a little grating and he shouldn’t be included. Then (after the fact) I saw him and Kenny Omega tear the house down in Mississauga, and let me tell you, it was 50/50, there was no carry-job by Omega here.

Aries’ heel mannerisms are so great that he had a drunk guy practically climbing the barricade to get after him. (Aside: Watching Cary Silkin go up to the guy and calmly tell him to “come with” him, playing security at his own event, great times. Cary is awesome.) The guy obviously had a hate-on for Aries prior to the event even starting, which means that Aries’ work has accomplished exactly what RoH wants it to. And I’ve got to hand it to Aries, his work is very tight, very crisp. You can tell that he did his time in Dragon Gate and at the top of the RoH cards.

I’m not gonna lie guys, in hindsight he was TWD 50-worthy. Barring injury, that’ll be fixed next year.

7. Evan Bourne – All the potential in the world, and he’s wrestled everywhere in the world to hone that potential. Matt Sydal’s work in Dragon Gate was great fun, to the point where he very much paved the way for Pac to become a mainstay there over the last two years.

The only thing that will hold Bourne back is the WWE style – more specifically, Vince McMahon’s use of Jr. Heavyweights as jobbers to the stars on Raw. If Bourne can get moved to SmackDown by say April and get a sustained push (PS pushed Kendrick, he’ll definitely push Bourne as long as there’s no heat there), Bourne has an excellent chance to break into The 50 in 2010.

8. Drew McIntyre – He’s 8th on this list, but don’t let that fool you for a second. He may well be the best future wrestler the WWE has. His promos are mint – already. His finisher is good, and he makes it seem special. He wrestles a supremely physical style, like a 6’5” Finlay, and he seems years ahead of the curve in terms of his storytelling ability. If the E pushes him, then as Jackie Gleason used to say, “To the Moon, Alice!”

9. Dolph Ziggler – The WWE just has to green-light this kid. He’s got that Hennig look, that egotistical charisma that naturally oozes off him (you just know he’s a douche in real life, at least to some degree). It’s that natural heelish nature that will carry him far, and once he’s allowed to show the wrestling skills that are readily apparent, he’s another ready-made main eventer for his generation.

10. The Miz
11. MVP – Another couple of guys who almost made the list. The Miz is an uber-heel whose wrestling is physical and underrated (those who are annoyed by the Japanese presence on this site, where do you think The Miz and MVP get their style from?). MVP is more than capable of wrestling as a top face or a top heel. Both are victims of decidedly uneven booking (which at this point is a RAW staple – there’s parity, we get it. But it comes across like no one is consistent). A bigger push that allows them to show their stuff, and a touch more physicality, and not only will The Miz will be the most unlikely great wrestler to come along in decades (let alone MVP who spent 9 years in prison), you’ll have two more guys who the fans will pay to see.

12. Hirooki Goto – All you have to do is sell the leg Goto-san…sell the leg.

13. Taiji Ishimori – NOAH’s version of Masato Yoshino (he should be, he comes from the Toryumon gym), Ishimori is big singles match-pacing away from breaking the Top-40, let alone the Top-50.

14. Atsushi Aoki – NOAH’s resident Jr. mat technician, Aoki wrestles a decidedly New Japan style, and it works great in the NOAH rings as it makes every singles match he has seem fresh. His work against KENTA in the Jr. Tag League this year was almost enough for inclusion alone. I don’t know how he won’t make the list next year, he’s too good at everything, and you could make the argument that he should have made it this year.

15. Murat Bosporus – The Turkish Suplex Machine, and he came this close to making The 50. He was on my original list, and he was on one other person’s final list. He is far superior than those he wrestles against, and I hope he does some traveling in the next 12 months, which would ensure his presence in The 50 next year.

16. Brian Kendrick – Everyone knows about his talent level, now let’s see him wrestle enough and produce enough to make The 50.

17. Roderick Strong – Every backbreaker variation you’ve seen on TV the last 4 years; Carlito’s finisher; Chris Jericho’s finisher; this is the mind behind them. If he was bigger, he’d be making serious money anywhere in the world that he wanted to. The kid can just flat-out go, and I hope he makes it big some day.

18. Joe Hennig – I’ll make this real simple. He’s Curt Freaking Hennig’s kid, and FCW reports have nothing but great things to say about him. He definitely knows his way around a ring, and if he has 3/4 of the charisma that Mr. Perfect had, he’ll draw in this industry for a long time.

19. Low-Ki – Speaking of FCW and guys who should be on your television sooner than later, Low-Ki just came back from yet another torn ACL, making his first FCW tv appearance this past week. Live reports said that his match with Eric Escobar was the match of the night, and he showed zero ill-effects from the knee injury. Seriously, we may have to have a T-50 spot for like 15 guys next year in order to actually fit everyone worthy of being on the TWD 50 onto the list.

20. Matt Jackson
21. Nick Jackson – In seeing them live, there’s a level of physicality about them that doesn’t come across on TV. It’s impressive. I hate to compare, but the easiest picture to paint for those who are unfamiliar with them is that they are this generation’s Hardy Boys, except both are Jeff Hardy (minus the ultra-high end charisma and the enigmatic nature…and hopefully the other stuff too).

22. Mark Briscoe
23. Jay Briscoe – They’ve been in RoH seemingly forever now, over 7 years. When I saw them live last weekend, it was so obvious that they were ready to move on (not in how they acted, in that they’re ready work-wise). They’re capable in every way. The only thing was, it was also obvious that in the WWE, they would be a small tag team, as opposed to a large team in RoH. So it’s interesting that the WWE is taking a legitimate look at them right now, and Cary Silkin is ok’ing it. They could naturally add up to 15 lbs. to their frames without too much of a problem, but could they still fly around with it? Of course they could. 2010 should be an interesting year for The Briscoes.

24. Kaz Hayashi
25. Shuji Kondo – Both of these guys could and should be on this list if they bring their best stuff. In Hayashi’s case, it was more a situation where he didn’t have many chances to show off what he can do (you either loved or hated his winter match with Minoru – I for one loved it). With Kondo, I originally was going to rate him extremely high on my personal Top-50. Then I watched him stink the joint up not once, not twice, but three times. Versus Super Crazy, I can accept. But vs. Minoru? No. When you’re actively dragging down one of the top few Jr. Heavyweights in the world, something’s wrong.

Kondo just isn’t the same guy who looked like an ass-kicking world-beater in March. He either needs to pull a Sugiura and permanently move up to the Heavyweight division, or he needs to extract his head from his sitting cushion and get it together. He should be on this list.

26. Volador Jr.
27. La Sombre – Oh man, let me tell you guys! These two are the most athletic Luchadores as I’ve seen since Rey Jr. first debuted in North America.

These guys are far larger than Rey, and yet can execute double-springboards into armdrags or really whatever they want to, and they look like Olympic gymnasts in the process. It’s glorious.

The only reason they didn’t make The 50 is the same as NOAH’s Ishimori: They haven’t proven themselves in singles’ action. The second they do however, you will see them on here, because if they can tell compelling stories using that supreme level of athleticism, I will become a massive fan of Lucha Libre…and I won’t be the only one.

Honourable Mention
(In no particular order)

1. John Cena (WWE) – In the ring, you work as hard as anyone in the World. I’ll never forget seeing you live and being amazed at how much effort you put in to your matches. That being said, you’ve gotta do more than put on decent (some would say “cookie-cutter“) matches and sell merch to the kiddies to make the TWD 50.

2. Mistico (CMLL/New Japan) – I could sit here and speculate the “Why’s” of it all, but I’d rather deal in fact. And the fact is, you’ve lost it somewhere. Your matches in Mexico are uninspired, and your work in Japan makes me wish you’d just go back to Mexico. Still, I’d rather you had kept the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title instead of it going back on *shudders* Tiger Mask IV.

3. Sting (TNA) – I was definitely impressed with your match against AJ Styles a couple of pay-per-views ago. You had a little more left in the tank than I thought. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to warrant inclusion in The 50, though I would definitely imagine that at some point you’ll be recognized by TWD for your career.

4. Jeff Hardy (North Carolina State Penitentiary) – Mounds of drugs > wrestling.

5. Randy Orton (WWE) – It’s one thing to know that a guy can work…it’s another thing altogether to see that man work.

If only Vince would realize it’s not 1984 anymore and release the Viper. Slow and stealthy doesn’t mean anything to this generation.

6. HHH (WWE) – If only you and the aforementioned Viper had come through in the WrestleMania XXV Main Event…

7. Jun Akiyama (Pro Wrestling NOAH) – I really wanted to push for you, but you never gave me any reason to this year. In fairness to Akiyama though, he has two herniated discs in his back that are so bad, the night Misawa died, he couldn’t even go out to the ring as he had collapsed on the floor backstage after his match (which was right before Misawa’s).

8. Yoshihiro Takayama (All Japan/NOAH) – It’s taken you almost 3 years to start to really show improvements after coming back from your stroke. Keep going, and you’ll be on this list next year, no matter what LeBlanc says!

9. Super Shisa (Dragon Gate) – A superlative mat wrestler, one of the few guys – if not the only guy – in the World who would have the potential to school Danielson/Shelley/Teioh on the mat. If DG ever unleashed this cat, his new name would be “Super Shisa: The Human Pretzel Maker.”

10. Satoshi Kojima (All Japan) – One of the favourite whipping boys of the IWC, Kojima is once again All Japan’s Triple Crown Champion. At one point, there’s no question that Kojima was one of the Top 50 workers in the world. However for several years now, he has been one of the many uninspired All Japan workers. Makes you wonder if he regrets jumping over from New Japan with Mutoh back in 2002.

In the August 6-man tag that saw the return of Kenta Kobashi to an All Japan ring – if only for one night – the 39 year old Kojima showed that when inspired to, he could still work with the best of them. It was easily the best performance I’ve seen him put on in years.

If the TC can inspire him to continue working at that level, Kojima has a legit shot at rocking The 50 next year. Otherwise, it’ll just be status quo with both Koji, and All Japan.

11. Kurt Angle – When Angle quit the WWE a few years back, I traded e-mails with Dave Hawk, Angle’s agent. The jist of it went as follows:

MC: Honestly, I don’t care if he ever wrestles again, so long as he gets his real life back together. He has a family to worry about that means infinitely more than getting back into the ring.
DH: Don’t you worry about Kurt, he’ll be back and better than ever!
MC: Ya…good to see that you care.

I couldn’t have been less impressed. And in the years that have followed, Kurt’s marriage has become yet another victim of the perils of the pro wrestling industry. Last year, he almost got paralyzed at the hands of some fat ass Korean goof who couldn’t even bodyslam a 220 lbs. wrestler who practically jumped up into his hands. And as he continues to get banged up (Dixie Carter even said that Kurt blew his back out at the beginning of the Angle-Wolfe match at Turning Point last Sunday), his inadequacies in the ring have been badly exposed. Kurt’s storytelling jumps badly from opening minute action-type sequences, straight into tense, final minute sequences, without the build-up. He’s been like that for years, but it’s been really pronounced in TNA, where he obviously has more say over his work than he ever did in the WWE.

That’s as much as I’ll be talking about him in terms of his wrestling. When Jason asked me why I hadn’t mentioned him, and why his name hadn’t come up between Triggs, LeBlanc, and myself, I basically said the following:

“I could give a rat’s ass about Kurt Angle the wrestler, because Kurt Angle the human being is flushing himself down the drain. When multiple wrestlers in your own company are questioning whether or not you have certain…issues that may need to be addressed, and when people are saying that you’re the odds-on-favourite to be the next great wrestling tragedy, I humbly suggest that you have more important things to be worrying about than wrestling. So I refuse to even acknowledge him as an option for the TWD 50.”

Make all the soapbox cracks you want Angle fans, there is more to life than trying to be “The Greatest Wrestler Ever” – which by the way let’s face facts, that ship sailed years ago.

Maybe one day, Angle will realize that there’s more to life than competition. I just hope it’s in time to be able to play with his grandchildren.

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