Kazuchika Okada had a better 2013 than anyone else in the sport.
Here are the wrestlers honored for outstanding achievement in the year 2013:
Wrestler Of The Year: Kazuchika Okada
Kazuchika Okada was the top wrestler in the best promotion in the world for the majority of the calendar year. He's got megastar charisma, a varied repertoire and (considering he isn't even in his prime yet) there is absolutely no other talent on planet Earth with more value in terms of upswing potential. With all he's accomplished at such a young age (he's only 26!), it's easy to see Okada being the face of New Japan Pro Wrestling well into the next decade. And after the unbelievable year he's had, the amount of momentum this kid has heading into 2014 is downright scary.
Runner Up: Daniel Bryan
Woman Of The Year: AJ Lee
For the second year in a row, AJ Lee carried the WWE divas division on her back. And while she played a pivotal role in some of the top storylines in 2012, it wasn't until this year that fans witnessed the true ascension of the next great WWE diva. Her mini-feud with Kaitlyn resulted in some of the best women's matches of the year and saw her realize her dream of becoming the Divas champion. And it's safe to say that without her, there would've been little to no interest in the championship at all. On top of that, she's beaten every woman there was to beat & did so with the sort of flair you would expect from an all-time great. You can say what you want about her crazy behavior, but Lee is already far along the road to legendary status.
Runner Up: Cheerleader Melissa
Tag Team Of The Year: The Shield
It's hard just giving this award to Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns alone because along with their stablemate Dean Ambrose, The Shield was the most cohesive unit in all of professional wrestling. From the minute the group debuted, you expected big things from them and perhaps no other stable in history had a better first year than the WWE's most dominant force. Every member of the group managed to hold onto gold in 2013 and Rollins & Reigns in particular, held the WWE Tag Team Championship for 148 days (defeating every other noteworthy team in the process). They're not just the best team of the year, but in the argument for the most unstoppable faction the company has ever seen.
Runner Up: The Young Bucks
Manager Of The Year: Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman is perhaps the most useful manger to ever step foot in the WWE. Last year, that statement could have been up for argument, but after the legendary 2013 he's had, there's no room left for debate. He made history at Wrestlemania when he became the first manager to be at ringside for TWO marquee matches and gave Curtis Axel a huge creative boost when the third generation stud first made his debut on the main roster the month after. He may also be the only manager to have managed both the WWE and Intercontinental Championship holders in one calendar year. As sleazy as he can be, there's no denying the results.
Runner Up: Gedo
Most Popular: Daniel Bryan
Not since the Attitude Era has the WWE witnessed a hero gain the sort of cult following that Daniel Bryan has earned over the past year. His rise to megastardom has been the most organic since Stone Cold Steve Austin and it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Bryan's crowd reactions rival some of the most popular superstars ever. What Bryan lacks in size, he makes up for in determination and likability. He's the ultimate underdog and the fans love to see him succeed. The Authority would like you to think otherwise, but his current momentum & connection with the audience is so powerful, one has to wonder if the new face of the WWE has already been crowned.
Runner Up: Shinsuke Nakamura
Most Hated: Randy Orton
Randy Orton's historic win at TLC may have placed him at the very top of the WWE mountain, but he damn sure didn't earn any new supporters in the process. Ever since the Apex Predator turned on the WWE Universe at the climax of Summerslam, he became the most reviled man in the locker room almost overnight. The difference between Orton and every other active villain in pro wrestling is that Orton has touched upon a much deeper level of hatred from audiences around the world. It's the sort of hate Chris Jericho had earned circa 2008-2009, where fans now salivate at the mere opportunity to get their hands on Orton themselves and tear him apart. He's bratty, cowardly and easily, the most abominable heel in the sport today.
Runner Up: Prince Devitt
Most Entertaining: Bad Influence
The team of Christopher Daniels and Kazarian combine to form what will go down as the best blend of comedy & athleticism since the days of Edge and Christian. Last year, they reigned supreme as the best tag team in the world. And while they didn't take top honors this year, there was no other act that could match them as far as entertainment value. As dreadful and inconsistent as Impact Wrestling was most of 2013, we could always count on these two to deliver something worth watching. Championship failures aside, week after week, they always delivered the laughs.
Runner Up: Fandango
Most Charismatic: Shinsuke Nakamura
Nakamura is pretty much the sole reason I've decided to even include this award. When it comes to pro wrestling, that intangible "it" factor is more essential to attaining prolonged success than anything else. It doesn't matter how good you are if you can't connect with your audience. And Shinsuke Nakamura has a persona so unique and captivating, there is no other superstar in the world that can match him. He's a spectacle all unto himself. If you haven't been watching him at all in 2013, then you missed out on the the most unique act in all of sports.
Runner Up: AJ Styles
Most Underrated: Tomohiro Ishii
For what it's worth, I strongly considered nominating Tomohiro Ishii as the wrestler of the year this year. The main reason I did not, is due to the fact that even though Ishii has delivered an incredible amount of epics this past year, he has yet to win any major championships in the process. It's easy to say there is no other wrestler alive who has done more with less than Ishii. Hell I don't think any performer has ever been more of an overachiever. Not saying he isn't a main event caliber talent, but it seems that the higher ups at NJPW just see him as a strong hand and nothing more. It's a true crime that he hasn't been given a major singles run, because he's easily one of the top five most reliable in-ring performers going.
Runner Up: Dolph Ziggler
Best On The Mic: Bully Ray
However you may feel about the current landscape of the company as a whole, I think we can all agree that Bully Ray was TNA's MVP & he carried the promotion on his capable shoulders for the entire calendar year. His work on the microphone was unrivaled and helped position him as the most dominant performer the company has seen in nearly a decade. The former Bubba Dudley is without question in the midst of the best run of his entire 20+ year career and even though CM Punk is often hailed as the best talker in the biz, it's Ray who shined brightest in 2013.
Runner Up: CM Punk
Best Champion: Kazuchika Okada
Kazuchika Okada's 268 day title reign may have benefited very much from his historic rivalry with Hiroshi Tanahashi, but he deserves credit for being able to put together an impressive streak of high caliber matches with a wide variety of opponents and styles. His matches with Togi Makabe, Satoshi Kojima, Karl Anderson and Prince Devitt were all up to the standard set by Okada's iconic predecessor and as a result, the young standout's star power maintained the IWGP title's reputation as the most prestigious championship in the world.
Runner Up: Shinsuke Nakamura
Best In-Ring Performer: Hiroshi Tanahashi
This was the closest race of any award this year, but Hiroshi Tamahashi yet again finished strong as the best performer in all of pro wrestling. Tomohiro Ishii gave him a terrific challenge, but when you look back at Tanahashi's story arc and laundry list of megahyped matches, you just can't compare him to any other active competitor. In the ring, he's on a level no other athlete can even come close to reaching and his presence in the Top 25 alone speaks for itself. He's the only wrestler who's held to such a high standard that a four star match comes off as a bit of a disappointment. Hell, he even had an all-time classic LUMBERJACK match this year. What more do I need to say?
Runner Up: Tomohiro Ishii
Match Of The Year:: NJPW Invasion Attack: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada
This five star masterpiece is the best match in the Feud Of The Decade thus far between the top two talents in New Japan Pro Wrestling. Kazuchika Okada's rise to prominence will go down in history as one of the most definitive and most well told stories wrestling has ever seen. And years from now, when he becomes every bit the legendary performer that Tanahashi is, it will be this match that we point to as perhaps the most significant match of his entire career. It's a masterclass in storytelling, selling and pacing that will no doubt stand the test of time.
Runner Up:: NJPW King Of Pro Wrestling: Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
Feud Of The Year: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada
Is it still too early to say that this has been the greatest series of matches ever? Tanahashi and Okada have had four incredible battles this past year all of which have earned no less than a ****3/4 rating from me. This feud has extended beyond the typical "good guy vs. bad guy" boundaries often found in major wrestling programs and has hit a level of athletic brilliance on par with the best of boxing and MMA. Every time these two are on the marquee, it feels like a larger-than-life prizefight and there's never a shortage of spectacle and technical brilliance at every turn. This is the Flair/Steamboat of the new millennium. It's #1 by a landslide. No other rivalry this year even comes remotely close.
Runner Up: Daniel Bryan vs. The Authority/Randy Orton
Moment Of The Year: The Rhodes Family Triumphs At Battleground
The minute that Dusty Rhodes & sons made their entrance at the WWE's first ever Battleground event, I knew we were witnessing something special. There was just that magic in the air and tensions were running high as soon as the bell rang. Like everyone else, I clung to the edge of my seat as the Cody Rhodes & Goldust fought from underneath to defeat the near unstoppable tandem of Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns (with Dean Ambrose at ringside) to earn their reinstatement as superstars. As their father fought back tears of joy, I sat in awe of the adulation the Rhodes family received from the live audience and appreciated the rarity of such an emotional high. It's something that will live on forever in WWE lore, but even more so in the hearts of fans around the world.
Runner Up: The WWE/World Heavyweight Championship Ascension Ceremony
Pay-Per-View Of The Year: WWE Summerslam
With all the praise I've given to the great New Japan Pro Wrestling offerings this past year, I still feel as if the WWE trumped them all with their best Summerslam event in over a decade. Christian & Alberto Del Rio had an instant classic that on any other show, would have been the match of the night and yet still, it was the co-main events that took this card over-the-top. CM Punk and Brock Lesnar delivered the biggest spectacle of the year when they (literally) tore down the house in the biggest hyped matchup of the summer. It was a match so good, even Shawn Michaels had to extend his gratitude. And not to be outdone, Daniel Bryan and John Cena turned in the WWE's best main event battle of 2013 (the result of which launched the still ascending Daniel Bryan rocket straight into the stratosphere). Throw in the memorable debut of Bray Wyatt and you've got one of the top two or three most definitive & historic events of the decade thus far.
Runner Up: NJPW G1 Climax Day 8
The Torrie Wilson Award: Brooke Tessmacher
Brooke Tessmacher has always been known to send hormones into overdrive, but as the seductive valet to Bully Ray, she treated fans to some of the sexiest television of the year. Even I have to admit to being a bit guilty of unnecessarily rewinding my DVR whenever Brooke was on screen and I'm sure I wasn't the only one who did so. She is among the most beautiful women in wrestling history (she definitely has the #1 rear end) and even though there were plenty of reasons to want to hate Bully Ray this past year, having the captivating allure of Brooke Tess by side may have been at the top of that list for the latter half of 2013.
Runner Up: Summer Rae
The Brock Lesnar Award: Paige
Beating out perhaps the most impressive lineup of nominees to become the first female ever to win the Brock Lesnar award is the sort of accomplishment one would expect from the WWE's next breakout sensation & current developmental standout, Paige. Her dominant run as women's champion was the highlight of nearly every episode of NXT this past year & she is without a shadow of a doubt, the crown jewel of the next wave of WWE divas. Paige is pretty much a lock for superstardom and call me crazy, but I feel as if 2014 will be the year that AJ Lee is finally upset as the undisputed face of the divas division when the WWE's "anti-diva" finally makes her long-awaited debut on the main roster.
Runner Up: Mojo Rawley
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