Ranking The Top 10 Wrestlers of 2024
Who was Wrestler of the Year?
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Drew McIntyre had a year unlike any other.
There are many reasons why McIntyre is Undisputed’s first-ever Wrestler of the Year, but one in particular stood out:
Every single wrestler McIntyre feuded with throughout the year ended in a better place than when he started.
This was especially the case for CM Punk, one of the most massive stars in the entire industry who looked reborn in his feud with McIntyre. But Punk was far from alone. When working with McIntyre, an injured Seth Rollins looked like a courageous hero. Damian Priest looked like a bona fide champion. Jey Uso looked like he belonged in the main event. On and on we go: regardless of the opponent, McIntyre had a knack for making him look special–as well as showcasing his own elite abilities.
Many different facets go into making this Top 10 list, and it runs deeper than pure in-ring ability. Making a great impact is a critical component. Considering professional wrestling is a unique blend of sport and entertainment, consistently elevating your opponent was highly factored into this list–as was the quality of the match and the stage on which it took place.
Taking all that into consideration, here are my top 10 wrestlers for 2024:
10. Damian Priest
Best matches in 2024: Clash at the Castle vs. Drew McIntyre; Money in the Bank triple threat vs. Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre; SummerSlam vs. Gunther
Damian Priest entered 2024 with all sorts of question marks, and he answered them all throughout the year.
Plus, he accomplished the unexpected: transitioning from villain to crowd favorite. Priest did that during his title run, where he won over the crowd with logical storytelling (amen!) and brilliant execution. He used the title run to shift from a heel to a babyface, which has helped cement his current position right near the top of the roster.
This was especially hard to do as a babyface and a monstrous figure, yet Priest did it in magnificent fashion.
9. Roxanne Perez
Best matches in 2024: Battleground vs. Jordynne Grace; Great American Bash vs. Thea Hail; NXT vs. Giulia
One of WWE’s biggest prospects, Roxanne Perez carried NXT in 2024.
Her matches were superb. She continued to be compelling and passionate on the microphone. The match against Thea Hail over the summer particularly resonated; Perez won over the crowd, and there was an electricity to her work. That is the case again and again in her matches, and she has stood out as NXT’s top star of the past year.
Long its standard bearer, the women’s division in NXT is expected to be even better in 2025, raising the expectations even higher for Perez.
8. Zack Sabre Jr.
Best matches in 2024: New Beginning in Osaka vs. Bryan Danielson; Forbidden Door vs. Orange Cassidy; Power Struggle vs. Shingo Takagi
Zack Sabre Jr. may have had better years in professional wrestling, but he never enjoyed one as decorated as he did in 2024. Sabre won the G1 over the summer, overcoming Yuta Tsuji in the finals, then defeated Tetsuya Naito at King of Pro-Wrestling in October to crown himself IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
This bucked tradition, and purposefully: Sabre didn’t wait until Wrestle Kingdom to fight for the title, instead winning the belt in the fall. It is only appropriate that the route to his long-awaited world title run was through the G1, and it is even better that he did so in new fashion: over time, his own distinct style has become the essence of New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
There is no one quite like Sabre in the ring. His physique, presence, and mannerisms are all very unique, especially to the main event, and it has been a joy to see him finally work his craft as world champion.
7. Will Ospreay
Best matches in 2024: Revolution vs. Konosuke Takeshita; Forbidden Door vs. Swerve Strickland; Dynamite vs. MJF
If this list were all about the best matches, then Will Ospreay would be at the very top.
Ospreay had no shortage of outstanding bouts in 2024, including his bout with Bryan Danielson in AEW and his match earlier in the year in TNA against Josh Alexander.
But wrestling is about the story as much, if not more, than it is about the match. That is why Ospreay’s feud with Kyle Fletcher is so critical, as well as why his story with Kenny Omega was especially significant. He’ll need more of that story–particularly the emotion behind it–if he plans on carrying AEW to new heights.
6. Mariah May
Best matches in 2024: Rampage vs. Hikaru Shida; Dynamite vs. Willow Nightingale; All In vs. Toni Storm
Mariah May enjoyed a dream year in 2024.
She got people invested in her work. It helps that she plays an excellent heel, and turning on Toni Storm this past summer on Dynamite was a genuine highlight reel for AEW. Their feud gave a jolt of energy to the AEW product, and the turn itself was bloody, gory, and phenomenal.
Some fresh opponents are needed in 2025, but May proved over the past year why she is one of the best in the world.
5. Gunther
Best matches in 2024: WrestleMania 40 vs. Sami Zayn; SummerSlam vs. Damian Priest; Bash at Berlin vs. Randy Orton
Gunther seems to win all the time. And often in dominant fashion. That was why it was so surprising when he lost earlier this year to Cody Rhodes in Saudi Arabia, and when he lost to Sami Zayn at WrestleMania. To his credit, no matter if he is winning or losing, Gunther has your attention.
The past year was meaningful for Gunther, rising to the ranks of world champion. He has continued to add value to the World Heavyweight Championship since winning it at SummerSlam, putting so much work in this past year that whomever defeats him for the belt in 2025 will immediately find himself in an envious position.
Gunther has a date with Bill Goldberg in 2025. Based on what we saw in 2024, he’ll make that worth seeing, too.
4. Bryan Danielson
Best matches in 2024: Wrestle Kingdom 18 vs. Kazuchika Okada; Dynamite vs. Hangman Page; All In vs. Swerve Strickland
If this truly was the last year for Bryan Danielson as a full-time wrestler, it fulfilled every promise.
The build to All In was incredibly captivating, then exceeded by one of the most emotionally gripping matches of his career against Swerve in London at Wembley Stadium. And though there were low points (Danielson admitted he lost feeling in his legs in the Dynamite bout against Kazuchika Okada), you were bound to experience something special when watching him work. The Continental Classic finale against Eddie Kingston, the Owen Hart Cup final against Hangman Page, and the physicality in his bout with Shingo Takagi were all highlights of the past year in wrestling. Danielson elevated AEW as world champion, and now the company tries to overcome losing one of the greatest wrestlers of all-time from its roster.
Danielson’s exit left a gaping void in AEW. That was inevitable: he is that compelling of a performer, which, health be damned, he proved all over again in 2024.
3. Cody Rhodes
Best matches in 2024: Raw vs. Drew McIntyre; WrestleMania 40 vs. Roman Reigns; Backlash vs. AJ Styles
Cody Rhodes did the unthinkable in WWE by defeating Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 40 and winning the most coveted prize in the industry.
Watching Rhodes celebrate at WrestleMania was an awestruck moment. This is the same man who played Stardust and couldn’t get a meaningful spot on the roster, the same performer who left the company because he was the only one who believed he could be a main-event talent.
Yet that destiny manifested in 2024.
Rhodes followed up that grand moment with an excellent title reign, with matches that stood out against AJ Styles, Kevin Owens, and Gunther. And his reign runs deeper than the matches–Rhodes is the people’s champion, a place he has earned through a nonstop effort to become the absolute best in the world.
2. Swerve Strickland
Best matches in 2024: Forbidden Door vs. Will Ospreay; All In vs. Bryan Danielson; All Out vs. Hangman Page
Released by WWE in 2021, Swerve reached altogether new heights in AEW.
Not only did he become world champion, Swerve also helped define AEW in 2024. His organic rise to the top of the promotion became official in April, when he headlined the Dynasty pay-per-view and defeated Samoa Joe for the world title. Fortunately for Swerve, and unlike so many others before him, the title win was not the lasting highlight of his inaugural reign. Swerve had a brief-but-meaningful memorable feud with Will Ospreay, as well as his epic All In bout against Bryan Danielson (where Swerve also played the role of villain perfectly), and, of course, his blood feud with Hangman Page. He carried AEW throughout the year, adding intrigue and excitement to the world title picture.
When Swerve won the title, it felt like a victory for the people. He got hot in a way certain people in WWE never anticipated, even surprising many in AEW, and the wrestling world as a whole benefited because of it. Swerve showed he is the total package, having a career year in 2024.
1. Drew McIntyre
Best matches in 2024: WrestleMania 40 vs. Seth Rollins; Bad Blood vs. CM Punk; Saturday Night’s Main Event vs. Sami Zayn
Drew McIntyre doesn’t always receive credit for it, but he is consistently WWE’s top performer. He finds a way to inject life into every show he appears on, a repeating pattern of his year in 2024.
Remarkably, he is largely accomplishing this feat without the benefit of working in the main event. This was true at Bad Blood, when he delivered the match of his career–and CM Punk’s, too–inside the Hell in a Cell structure. McIntyre embedded a rare blend of intensity and physicality into the match, an approach that was inspired by his repeated viewings of Bret Hart matches.
McIntyre also had the match of the night at Saturday Night’s Main Event, opening the show with a very intense bout against Sami Zayn. His promos are completely different from everyone else in the company, including Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, and even Roman Reigns. He has completely grown into his character, harnessing past frustrations to develop into who he is today.
The most effective way to propel yourself to the next level in pro wrestling is through a title reign, yet McIntyre spent only a few minutes as champ in 2024. Unpredictable and fiery, McIntyre showed why he is one of one. Throughout the entire year, no did it better–or was more masterful in his unrelenting pursuit of excellence–than McIntyre whenever he stepped into the ring.