2019 was, putting it mildly, an interesting year in pro wrestling. For the first time in nearly two decades, the industry juggernaut WWE faced real North American competition, in the form of Tony Khan and Cody Rhodes's brainchild All Elite Wrestling. An upstart company that promised to be more fan-and-employee-friendly, that promised to make wins and losses matter, and that promised to present a more sports-like atmosphere than WWE's three-ring circus, AEW launched its weekly TNT program Dynamite to mostly positive reviews and solid ratings, winning the first seven head-to-head weeks (It's been a see-saw battle since then) against the revamped NXT show. Even more impressive was the near-instant sellouts of the company's first two PPV events, Double or Nothing and All Out (the latter of which saw upwards of 80,000 people vying for seats. The company isn't without its flaws, as was expected for a brand-new promotion, but with Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, Cody, Chris Jericho, and WWE deserter Jon Moxley as their core main event crew, plus a host of promising young stars, AEW is a breath of fresh air in what had long been a stagnant North American wrestling landscape. If nothing else their existence will hopefully force WWE to put more effort into their creative and worker harder to keep employee morale up.
AEW's top stars sadly came at the expense of NJPW, who found themselves in a bit of a lurch immediately following WrestleKingdom 13. Amazingly though, as they'd done in 2016, the company adjusted quickly and put the focus on a crop of new and up-and-coming stars, selling out Madison Square Garden (the first non-WWE promotion to play there since 1961) and once again delivering loads of great matches and moments. Impact's parent company Anthem purchased AXS TV, which also cost NJPW their weekly American time slot, but I don't doubt New Japan will find a workaround.
As for NXT, WWE's third brand had maybe their best creative year, delivering multiple yardstick TakeOver specials and amassing one of the best rosters in the business. The AEW situation has been great for NXT, as the company is now motivated to treat the former developmental brand as a full-fledged part of the whole. Given how badly the main roster squandered all the 2019 call-ups, I've about gotten to the point that I hope no one from NXT ever gets called up again.
Speaking of the main roster, there's probably never been such a collection of wrestling talent so badly used, ever. RAW and Smackdown are bursting with great athletes and somehow they have no idea how to utilize any of them. Pushes were bungled (perhaps intentionally in some cases), payoff matches were poorly booked, undeserving people were elevated and overexposed, angles were dropped without warning, PPV lineups were thrown together last-minute. 2019 provided so much more evidence (as though we even needed it) that the industry passed Vince McMahon by a long time ago and he needs to step down. It's gotten so embarrassing I can't imagine how bad things will be in ten years if he's still there. I skipped six main roster PPVs in 2019. I haven't done that since 2010, and that was back when you had to pay for them. For someone like me (a WWE Network subscriber since Week One) to not bother watching nearly half the company's PPV events in a given year, things have to be in really rough shape. 2020 isn't looking very promising for the red and blue brands. Were it not for NXT I'd have likely dropped my Network subscription already.
But enough grim news. Let's do something fun. Let's hand out some pretend awards!
Promotion of the Year
Welp, this award just got harder to decide. Where the last four years saw New Japan Pro-Wrestling leave all its competitors in the dust in terms of quality, starmaking potential and buzzworthiness, in 2019 things got more complicated. First off though, WWE's main roster is out. Like, not even close to being considered for this award. But NXT put out a fantastic product from start to finish, delivering some of their best-ever shows and matches. By year's end, thanks in part to the Wednesday Night War, the company had made NXT a priority and went so far as to have their roster dominate at the Survivor Series PPV. NXT is easily WWE's hottest commodity at the moment. Then there's All Elite Wrestling, whose weekly program airs on TNT opposite NXT, and is such an easy show to watch it feels like RAW used to when RAW was good every week (remember that?). AEW is fresh and spontaneous in all the ways RAW and Smackdown are not, with a truckload of young, hungry talent clawing for their chance to be stars, plus a host of recognizable top names to put on the marquee. This company has all the ingredients to be a force in the industry. But then we go back to New Japan, who lost four of their top gaijin stars and still somehow managed to fill that void almost immediately, elevating a host of other talents and still putting on most of the best matches of the year. They head into 2020 with a chance to sell out the Tokyo Dome for the second straight year, this time on back-to-back nights. On top of that, their booking is still the best in the business, thanks to the ever-reliable Gedo. It's a squeaker to be sure, but for the 6th year in a row I gotta go with the defending champs.
The winner is: New Japan Pro Wrestling
Major Show of the Year
This category sees its first major upset since I've been handing out these fake trophies. From 2015-2018 New Japan had this category locked up and then some, with only the Dallas NXT TakeOver in 2016 even being a serious non-NJPW contender for this award. But in 2019 one WWE-produced show earned a perfect 10/10 rating from me, the first to do so since WrestleMania XIX in 2003. This show had everything you'd want in a pro wrestling broadcast. A streamlined card, a blazing opening match, two hard-hitting undercard singles bouts, a wild 4-way women's match, and an absolutely EPIC main event between two guys who could seemingly do no wrong. This show (and its June sequel) blew away everything else in WWE's calendar, became a new yardstick for its brand, and even topped the stellar WrestleKingdom 13 in my opinion. That show is.....
The winner is: NXT TakeOver: New York
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Most Disappointing Show
It's not all good news for WWE. The company, with all the momentum in the world thanks to a multi-billion-dollar deal with Fox to carry the Smackdown brand, had a shot to deliver a killer October PPV featuring its hottest new main event star in what should've been a reinvention of a popular gimmick match. Unfortunately WWE only announced three matches prior to the day of the show, threw together a totally forgettable undercard after the two opening bouts (which were very good, to be fair), and capped it off with one of the stupidest main events of all time. This is a match wherein the heel challenger withstood no fewer than ELEVEN finishers and kept getting up, but the referee seemingly disqualified the babyface champion for using a hammer (in a Hell in a Cell match, mind you), a decision which was then retconned to "the referee deemed the challenger unable to continue." Again, IN A HELL IN A CELL MATCH. Ya know, the one where Mick Foley took a bump off the top of the cage and the match didn't stop? This was one of the worst-booked matches in WWE history and the fans hated it, to say nothing of the idiotic red spotlight that made the proceedings nigh unwatchable. WWE should be embarrassed to have put on this show.
The winner is: WWE Hell in a Cell
Feud of the Year
For the second year in a row NXT takes this award. And one of the two participants is the same as last year. In 2019 these two men had the NXT equivalent (though not quite at that level) of 2017's Okada-Omega feud, creating in-ring magic every time they locked horns. The rivalry began due to an injury suffered by then-champion Tomasso Ciampa, who subsequently had to forfeit the belt. His scheduled challenger then faced another top NXT heel in a 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the vacant championship, and they'd fight twice more throughout the year, creating another truly great trilogy of matches (which I enjoyed more than Gargano-Ciampa if I'm being honest). This feud is the new standard-bearer for NXT main event wrestling.
The Feud of the Year is: Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano
Match of the Year
For 2019's Match of the Year we return once again to the Tokyo Dome, and a clash of styles so compelling and action-packed it takes its place just below Okada-Omega 1 as the second-greatest Dome main event in history. This IWGP Title match went an epic 39 minutes and featured every facet of the two wrestlers' games. Grappling, aerial moves, big high-impact spots, finisher counters and kickouts. And its result capped off an incredible story of redemption for New Japan's 41-year-old former Ace. WrestleKingdom 13's main event was an absolute masterpiece, and for now the New Japan swan song for one of its biggest stars. Beating out other instant classics like Cole-Gargano (twice), Bryan vs. Kofi, Okada vs. Ospreay, Moxley vs Ishii, and Ospreay vs. Shingo, the winner is....
The award goes to: Kenny Omega vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi at WrestleKingdom 13
Woman of the Year
This is basically a two-woman race. Last year's winner Ronda Rousey made a swift exit from the company after WrestleMania and hasn't been seen on WWE television since. The 2017 winner Asuka began and ended the year strong but was barely used in between (much to my anger and dismay). The 2016 winner Charlotte had some big moments but overall failed to deliver the quality in-ring product she's become known for. And the 2015 winner Sasha Banks temporarily walked out after WrestleMania, returned late-summer and turned heel, and had an underwhelming run. Our two top candidates for this award both had big years. One as a dominant year-plus NXT champion who crushed everyone in her path until she ran into someone bigger. The other as a cult anti-hero who bucked authority, cut great promos, won the women's Royal Rumble, and became so popular they built the WrestleMania main event around her. Some booking missteps aside (such as a feud with the green-as-grass Lacey Evans), this woman is still riding high and the fans love her (How could you not, she's simultaneously badass and fucking adorable). Our Woman of the Year award goes to The Man.
The award goes to: Becky Lynch
Tag Team of the Year
For the first time in this category with have a three-peat. This tag team began 2019 in one promotion and ended it having helped (super)kickstart another. Balancing their time as beloved high-flying babyfaces and Executive VPs can't be easy, but these two brothers are doing it nicely, still managing to deliver fantastic tag bouts, such as an absolutely insane ladder match this past August. They're still looking for their first taste of gold in this new company, but 2020 should almost certainly see that eventuality take place. I'm happy to present this award for the third time, to the duo that continued to transcend tag team wrestling and helped build AEW, Matt and Nick Jackson!
The winners are: The Young Bucks
Wrestler of the Year
This category is the most difficult one to pick, and that hasn't happened since 2014, when the surefire early-year favorite Daniel Bryan saw his WWE Title run and career derailed by a neck injury, leaving a parity-laden field of substitute choices. In 2019 we saw quite a bit of parity again. WWE's main roster didn't have a particular frontrunner at all; Seth Rollins won the Rumble and beat Brock at WrestleMania but his match opened the show and he mostly failed to run with the ball (not entirely through his own fault). Becky Lynch had a similar story as Seth's; she won her Rumble and got to main event 'Mania but the match wasn't the classic everyone hoped for and she too was saddled with poor booking throughout the spring and summer until Sasha Banks returned. Ditto for Kofi Kingston, who made the most of substituting for an injured Mustafa Ali and became an unlikely underdog hero, leading to his first (and probably last) WWE Title run, but like Seth and Becky didn't get much to work with after his initial big moment. In New Japan there were a slew of candidates; Okada won the IWGP Title again in April and has had a solid run since but nothing compared to his work in 2017-18. Will Ospreay was perhaps pound-for-pound the most accomplished worker of the year, while Kota Ibushi finally got the big push to move him into a Big Four slot, and Jay White became New Japan's new top heel/gaijin. Then in AEW we had Chris Jericho, who not only became the inaugural champion but managed to reinvent himself yet again as a new version of the smarmy jerk you love to hate; Cody Rhodes, who has become the promotion's old-school babyface a la his father; Jon Moxley, who was the hottest free agent in the business when the maverick company scooped him up; and last year's winner Kenny Omega, who started 2019 as the IWGP Champion but has had a bit of an underwhelming run in his new home.
But there was one guy who not only took advantage of being a last-minute substitute like Kofi, won an amazing match to attain his big moment like Kofi, Tanahashi, Ibushi and Ospreay, boasts incredible natural heel magnetism like Jericho, and managed to keep his momentum going throughout the year, stringing together a slew of in-ring masterworks to remain the go-to guy of his particular brand. He heads into 2020 as one of the best workers in the business who also oozes charisma and is such a good bad guy you can't help but love him.
The winner is: Adam Cole (BAY-BAY)
Congratulations to all the winners (none of whom have ever read a single article of mine I'm sure). Before you go, below are my awards for every year since I started watching the wrasslin'....
1987
Wrestler of the Year - Ric Flair
Tag Team of the Year - Hart Foundation
Woman of the Year - Sherri Martel
Match of the Year - Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat (3.29.87)
Feud of the Year - Four Horsemen vs. SuperPowers/Road Warriors
Major Show of the Year - WWF WrestleMania III
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Saturday Night's Main Event #10 (Savage vs. Steele, Battle Royal)
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1988
Wrestler of the Year - Randy Savage
Tag Team of the Year - Road Warriors
Woman of the Year - Elizabeth
Match of the Year - Team Powers of Pain vs. Team Demolition (11.24.88)
Feud of the Year - Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger
Major Show of the Year - WWF Survivor Series
Most Disappointing Show - WWF WrestleMania IV
Promotion of the Year - NWA
1989
Wrestler of the Year - Ric Flair
Tag Team of the Year - Demolition
Woman of the Year - Sherri Martel
Match of the Year - Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (5.7.89)
Feud of the Year - Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk
Major Show of the Year - NWA Great American Bash
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Royal Rumble
Promotion of the Year - NWA
1990
Wrestler of the Year - Ultimate Warrior
Tag Team of the Year - Hart Foundation
Woman of the Year - Sherri Martel
Match of the Year - Brian Pillman & Tom Zenk vs. Midnight Express (5.19.90)
Feud of the Year - Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger
Major Show of the Year - NWA Capitol Combat
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - NWA
1991
Wrestler of the Year - Ric Flair
Tag Team of the Year - Legion of Doom
Woman of the Year - Sherri Martel
Match of the Year - Rockers vs. Orient Express (1.19.91)
Feud of the Year - Undertaker vs. Ultimate Warrior
Major Show of the Year - WCW/New Japan SuperShow
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1992
Wrestler of the Year - Randy Savage
Tag Team of the Year - Steiners
Woman of the Year - Elizabeth
Match of the Year - Bret Hart vs. Davey Boy Smith (8.29.92)
Feud of the Year - Sting vs. Vader
Major Show of the Year - WWF SummerSlam
Most Disappointing Show - WCW Halloween Havoc
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1993
Wrestler of the Year - Vader
Tag Team of the Year - Steiners
Woman of the Year - Alundra Blayze
Match of the Year - Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect (6.13.93)
Feud of the Year - Sting vs. Vader
Major Show of the Year - WWF Royal Rumble
Most Disappointing Show - WWF WrestleMania IX
Promotion of the Year - WCW
1994
Wrestler of the Year - Bret Hart
Tag Team of the Year - Headshrinkers
Woman of the Year - Alundra Blayze
Match of the Year - Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart (3.20.94)
Feud of the Year - Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart
Major Show of the Year - WWF WrestleMania X
Most Disappointing Show - WWF SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1995
Wrestler of the Year - Diesel
Tag Team of the Year - Owen Hart & Yokozuna
Woman of the Year - Alundra Blayze
Match of the Year - Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog (12.18.95)
Feud of the Year - Dean Malenko vs. Eddie Guerrero
Major Show of the Year - WWF Survivor Series
Most Disappointing Show - WWF King of the Ring
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1996
Wrestler of the Year - Shawn Michaels
Tag Team of the Year - Harlem Heat
Woman of the Year - Sunny
Match of the Year - Shawn Michaels vs. Mankind (9.22.96)
Feud of the Year - Undertaker vs. Mankind
Major Show of the Year - WWF King of the Ring
Most Disappointing Show - WWF SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1997
Wrestler of the Year - Steve Austin
Tag Team of the Year - The Outsiders
Woman of the Year - Chyna
Match of the Year - Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (10.5.97)
Feud of the Year - USA vs. Canada
Major Show of the Year - WWF SummerSlam
Most Disappointing Show - WCW Starrcade
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1998
Wrestler of the Year - Steve Austin
Tag Team of the Year - New Age Outlaws
Woman of the Year - Sable
Match of the Year - Undertaker vs. Mankind (6.28.98)
Feud of the Year - Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon
Major Show of the Year - WWF SummerSlam
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - WWF
1999
Wrestler of the Year - Steve Austin
Tag Team of the Year - Kane & X-Pac
Woman of the Year - Chyna
Match of the Year - Edge & Christian vs. Hardy Boyz (10.17.99)
Feud of the Year - Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon
Major Show of the Year - WWF Backlash
Most Disappointing Show - WWF WrestleMania XV
Promotion of the Year - WWF
2000
Wrestler of the Year - The Rock
Tag Team of the Year - Edge & Christian
Woman of the Year - Stephanie McMahon
Match of the Year - Triple H vs. Cactus Jack (2.27.00)
Feud of the Year - Triple H vs. The Rock
Major Show of the Year - WWF Fully Loaded
Most Disappointing Show - WWF King of the Ring
Promotion of the Year - WWF
2001
Wrestler of the Year - Steve Austin
Tag Team of the Year - Dudley Boyz
Woman of the Year - Lita
Match of the Year - Kurt Angle vs. Shane McMahon (6.21.01)
Feud of the Year - Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit
Major Show of the Year - WWF WrestleMania X-7
Most Disappointing Show - WWF Invasion
Promotion of the Year - WWF
2002
Wrestler of the Year - Kurt Angle
Tag Team of the Year - Los Guerreros
Woman of the Year - Trish Stratus
Match of the Year - Kurt Angle & Chris Benoit vs. Edge & Rey Mysterio (10.20.02)
Feud of the Year - RAW vs. Smackdown
Major Show of the Year - WWE SummerSlam
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2003
Wrestler of the Year - Brock Lesnar
Tag Team of the Year - World's Greatest Tag Team
Woman of the Year - Trish Stratus
Match of the Year - Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit (1.19.03)
Feud of the Year - Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar
Major Show of the Year - WWE WrestleMania XIX
Most Disappointing Show - WWE SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2004
Wrestler of the Year - Chris Benoit
Tag Team of the Year - America's Most Wanted
Woman of the Year - Victoria
Match of the Year - Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit (3.14.04)
Feud of the Year - Randy Orton vs. Mick Foley
Major Show of the Year - WWE WrestleMania XX
Most Disappointing Show - WWE SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2005
Wrestler of the Year - AJ Styles
Tag Team of the Year - MNM
Woman of the Year - Trish Stratus
Match of the Year - AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe (12.11.05)
Feud of the Year - AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels
Major Show of the Year - WWE Vengeance
Most Disappointing Show - ECW One Night Stand
Promotion of the Year - TNA
2006
Wrestler of the Year - John Cena
Tag Team of the Year - AJ Styles & Christopher Daniels
Woman of the Year - Mickie James
Match of the Year - Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness (8.12.06)
Feud of the Year - John Cena vs. Edge
Major Show of the Year - WWE No Way Out
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - Ring of Honor
2007
Wrestler of the Year - John Cena
Tag Team of the Year - Briscoe Brothers
Woman of the Year - Gail Kim
Match of the Year - Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness (6.7.07)
Feud of the Year - Bryan Danielson vs. Takeshi Morishima
Major Show of the Year - ROH Driven
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Night of Champions
Promotion of the Year - Ring of Honor
2008
Wrestler of the Year - Samoa Joe
Tag Team of the Year - Beer Money Inc.
Woman of the Year - Awesome Kong
Match of the Year - Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair (3.30.08)
Feud of the Year - Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels
Major Show of the Year - ROH Take No Prisoners
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Survivor Series
Promotion of the Year - Ring of Honor
2009
Wrestler of the Year - Randy Orton
Tag Team of the Year - JeriShow
Woman of the Year - Maryse
Match of the Year - Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (4.5.09)
Feud of the Year - CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy
Major Show of the Year - TNA Turning Point
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Royal Rumble
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2010
Wrestler of the Year - Randy Orton
Tag Team of the Year - Hart Dynasty
Woman of the Year - Natalya
Match of the Year - Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (3.28.10)
Feud of the Year - Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Major Show of the Year - NJPW WrestleKingdom IV
Most Disappointing Show - WWE SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2011
Wrestler of the Year - CM Punk
Tag Team of the Year - Beer Money Inc.
Woman of the Year - Beth Phoenix
Match of the Year - John Cena vs. CM Punk (7.17.11)
Feud of the Year - John Cena vs. CM Punk
Major Show of the Year - WWE Money in the Bank
Most Disappointing Show - WWE WrestleMania XXVII
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2012
Wrestler of the Year - CM Punk
Tag Team of the Year - Team Hell No
Woman of the Year - AJ Lee
Match of the Year - CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan (5.20.12)
Feud of the Year - CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan
Major Show of the Year - NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling
Most Disappointing Show - WWE SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - WWE
2013
Wrestler of the Year - Daniel Bryan
Tag Team of the Year - The Shield
Woman of the Year - AJ Lee
Match of the Year - John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan (8.18.13)
Feud of the Year - Daniel Bryan vs. The Authority
Major Show of the Year - WWE SummerSlam
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Battleground
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
2014
Wrestler of the Year - Seth Rollins
Tag Team of the Year - The Usos
Woman of the Year - Paige
Match of the Year - Randy Orton vs. Batista vs. Daniel Bryan (4.6.14)
Feud of the Year - Daniel Bryan vs. The Authority
Major Show of the Year - G1 Climax 24 Day 7
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Royal Rumble
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
2015
Wrestler of the Year - Seth Rollins
Tag Team of the Year - The New Day
Woman of the Year - Sasha Banks
Match of the Year - Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi (1.4.15)
Feud of the Year - Kazuchika Okada vs. AJ Styles
Major Show of the Year - NJPW WrestleKingdom 9
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Royal Rumble
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
2016
Wrestler of the Year - AJ Styles
Tag Team of the Year - The Revival
Woman of the Year - Charlotte Flair
Match of the Year - Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles (1.4.16)
Feud of the Year - Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks
Major Show of the Year - NJPW WrestleKingdom 10
Most Disappointing Show - WWE SummerSlam
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
2017
Wrestler of the Year - Kazuchika Okada
Tag Team of the Year - The Young Bucks
Woman of the Year - Asuka
Match of the Year - Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega (1.4.17)
Feud of the Year - Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega
Major Show of the Year - NJPW WrestleKingdom 11
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Payback
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
2018
Wrestler of the Year - Kenny Omega
Tag Team of the Year - The Young Bucks
Woman of the Year - Ronda Rousey
Match of the Year - Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega (6.9.18)
Feud of the Year - Johnny Gargano vs. Tomasso Ciampa
Major Show of the Year - NJPW Dominion
Most Disappointing Show - WWE Backlash
Promotion of the Year - NJPW
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