2013 Wrestling Year-End Awards

2013 Wrestling Year-End Awards

December 31, 2013

By Ryan Porzl

It's that time of year again. It's the 2013 Wrestling Year-End Awards. I shall award both the best of the year as well as the worst of the year from both American and Japanese Wrestling. To quote film critic Gene Siskel said about the academy, the same is true for the wrestling magazines and newsletters. These are choices that they would give if they are as smart as I am (just kidding). My worst awards will be the same rules that Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert made years ago which is I won't pick on obscure wrestlers, matches, or promotions no matter how bad they are. I'll pick on the big visible ones since they're more likely to be seen by more people and therefore, cause more suffering.

American Wrestling-

Best Wrestler of the Year: AJ Styles (TNA)- AJ Style was without question, the best wrestler of 2013. He provided us with many great matches with the likes of Kurt Angle, Austin Aries, Magnus, and Bully Ray. From a storyline standpoint, he regained the TNA World Heavyweight Title and won the 2013 Bound For Glory Series. Perhaps more importantly, Styles did something we don't normally see in pro wrestling. We saw him try a different gimmick, a different look, and even doing a somewhat different style of wrestling. We saw AJ become a brooding lone wolf who wore black & a leather jacket, grow a beard, and tone down the flashy style in favor of a more technical style. It's refreshing to see especially in a year where top stars were guys like John Cena, Bully Ray, and Jay Briscoe who have been playing the same characters, more or less, for 10 years or more.

Best Women's Wrestler of the Year: Kaitlyn (WWE)- I'm impressed at the growth and evolution of Kaitlyn. Only three years ago, she was a girl with potential but was extremely green. Now she is easily one of the best divas in the WWE. She also comes off as someone rare in the divas. Despite coming from a modeling background and not following wrestling growing up, she seems like she's willing to learn and not half-ass or go through the motions. This year we saw Kaitlyn win the Diva's Title, have a great feud with AJ Lee, and have some good matches with AJ and Eve Torres. While the end of the year wasn't the best as she cast aside in favor of the stupid AJ/Total Divas feud, it still doesn't take anything away from her and her accomplishments this year.

Best Babyface of the Year: Daniel Bryan (WWE)- Say what you will about WWE botching Daniel Bryan in 2013 and they sure did but no one can deny that Bryan was the best babyface of the year. Nobody in American Wrestling got the cheers and ovations that he got. He was easily the most popular wrestler in 2013 and it's not hard to see why. He's a phenomenal wrestler, he can talk, and connect with the crowd. But even with all his talents, it was more than that. I can't explain how but he was getting reactions that you don't hear everyday.

Best Heel of the Year: Bully Ray (TNA)- Bully Ray still has it. In a time where we live with the internet and know wrestling is scripted, it's still impressive for Bully Ray to get the crowd that angry at him. It's one thing for a heel to get booed but at his best, Bully is still able to get crowd to act in ways that haven't been regularly seen since the 80s-early 90s. Best example was a Lockdown when Bully revealed himself as the president of the Aces and Eights which resulted in the crowd throwing garbage and beer bottles at ringside and into the cage. Sadly, there aren't many villains in wrestling anymore like Bully Ray and for that, he deserves credit for reviving a lost art.

Best Tag Team of the Year: reDRagon (ROH)- I'll admit, I haven't seen much of reDRagon. However, they appear to be a very solid team and were one of the few dominant teams in American Wrestling in 2013. The team proved their worth with critically acclaimed matches with great teams like the American Wolves and the Forever Hooligans. Storyline wise, the team captured the ROH World Tag Team Championships on two occasions and held them for the majority of the year.

Best Match of the Year: Bobby Roode vs. Kurt Angle (Bound For Glory) (TNA)- This was a very good back and forth match between two excellent wrestlers. It was never boring and told a good story of Roode being one step ahead of Angle during the match likely since it was one of Angle's first matches back after taking time off for rehab. Other than the finish of Angle “hurting” himself while doing a top rope Angle Slam, this match came off as Angle and Roode being equals and that Roode can hang with a decorated champion and wrestling legend.

Most Improved Wrestler of the Year: Garett Bischoff (TNA)- Garett has a lot to prove since he is the son of Eric Bischoff. 2013 saw Bischoff show good improvement and prove that he doesn't need his father to be employed. He showed improvement in the ring and on the mic. He really came into his own when he turned heel and joined Aces & Eights. Like father, like son, Bischoff showed he's a natural villain like his dad. He came off smug, arrogant, and just a guy you would pay to see get beat up. His best stuff was against big, tough guys like Samoa Joe as he showed he's very good at taking bumps and acting like a piece of shit weasel who you want to see the big monsters crush.

Comeback Wrestler of the Year: Chris Sabin (TNA)- This choice was easy. In April 2011, Sabin tore his right ACL and sat out for most of 2011. After returning in early 2012, Sabin would wrestle for only 3-4 months before tearing his left ACL. Despite tearing both ACLs, Sabin would not only return but return in top form. He hasn't missed a beat as he's able to compete as good as he did before. He's still able to compete in X Division matches but also took his game a step further by proving he can hang with the main eventers. From a storyline standpoint, Sabin won his first ever TNA World Heavyweight Championship and four more X Division titles which makes him a record setting 8 time X Division Champion.

Best Feud of the Year: Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee (WWE)- This feud gets my award for a few reasons. The first being it was very good as it featured good segments and very good matches. The second being that this is easily been the best feud in the WWE divas division since 2006 when Trish Stratus and Lita retired. Kaitlyn and AJ had very good chemistry with Kaitlyn as the fan favorite hybrid diva who uses power and strength while AJ is the crazy, technical villain who uses submissions to counter Kaitlyn's strength. The feud has also been building up for so long with both coming into the WWE via the third season of NXT, then became tag team partners, and finally breaking up last year. I really believe that at their best, Kaitlyn and AJ has the potential to be the Trish Stratus and Lita of their generation.

Debut/Return of the Year: The Wyatt Family (WWE)- The Wyatts were the best act to debut this year. The group definitely comes off as something you don't normally see from the gimmick of a southern like cult to their entrance of Bray Wyatt leading his men to the ring with his lantern lighting the way. The group has all the potential in the world. Bray Wyatt comes off excellent as a crazed, cult-like leader who is very good and athletic in the ring while also being charismatic and skilled on the mic. Luke Harper and Erick Rowan are very good big men with strength, agility, and the perfect look for the gimmick. The stable has already been in a few high-profile feuds with Kane and Bryan. Hopefully the group will continue their success in 2014.

Most Underrated Wrestler of the Year: Jay Lethal (ROH)- 2013 saw many talented wrestlers not get their due but Jay Lethal is the most underrated out of the bunch. Sure guys like Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler were wasted and never given the chances they deserved but at least they had at least one title reign and brief main event shots even if they were half-assed. Lethal, on the other hand, didn't even get a chance to sink or swim. This was a guy who should've been ROH World Champion but not only did that not happen, he got wasted in the midcard. On top of that, he got passed over for an embarrassing hillbilly in Jay Briscoe who doesn't have a fraction of his talent. Here's hoping 2014 will be better for Lethal.

Best Announcer of the Year: Mike Tenay (TNA)- The professor is always reliable for bringing great announcing. Tenay is one of the greatest announcers in wrestling history and continues to show it year after year. He comes off as an expert who knows what he's calling, he seems to know when to pick his spots in terms of comedy, and he's not annoying to listen to. Lastly, he doesn't come off as a clown like the WWE announcers and he doesn't come off as a b-announcer like Kevin Kelly.

Best Non-Wrestler of the Year: Dixie Carter (TNA)- In 2013, I personally am tired of evil authority figures. It's probably the stalest storyline in wrestling history. That being said, I still give Dixie Carter some credit. When this storyline began, I cringed at the thought of her as a heel boss. However, to her credit, she actually is much better than I thought. She plays her role well, she's over with the crowd, and she's not overkill. While some believe this is a copy of recent storyline in the WWE with the McMahon Family, the difference is that Dixie is more tolerable and doesn't let her ego dominate the show.

Best Gimmick of the Year: AJ Styles|Lone Wolf (TNA)- This one is one of the obvious ones. For one thing, AJ played the character well by changing his flashiness for more of a dark, brooding character. He played the role well in both the ring and on the mic. He was believable on the mic and he would even tone down his moveset in the ring by wrestling more technical and added the calf killer submission hold. Another reason is the fact we don't see something like this enough in wrestling where a wrestler will change their persona, in-ring style, or look with many wrestlers doing the same schtick for years and even decades.

Best Promotion of the Year: Total Nonstop Action Wrestling- TNA wasn't as great as it was last year but it still had plenty of great moments and was the best promotion of the year. The year saw the entertaining TNA vs. Aces & Eights feud that went through most of the year. AJ Styles returning to title contention and all of his storylines. New life was put into the X Division with established names like Chris Sabin and Austin Aries reclaiming the gold while new talent like Manik and Kenny King enjoying reigns in their own right. The year ended with new blood taking that next step with Magnus winning the TNA World Title for the first time and Gunner being groomed for future greatness.

Worst Wrestler of the Year: Jay Briscoe (ROH)- Wrestling has had many stereotypes and unfortunately, Jay Briscoe is a living, breathing, walking, talking stereotype. He's comes off as a drunk redneck who can barely grasp the English language and wrestles like a kid doing wrestling moves on a trampoline in his backyard. Overall, Briscoe is not a good wrestler, he's not charismatic, can't cut a promo, doesn't have a look, and isn't marketable. It's even worse when you remember or know that ROH had guys like Jay Lethal, Michael Elgin, Tommaso Ciampa, and Adam Cole (though he did get the title later on) they could focus instead of Briscoe. Yet Briscoe still got a run with the World Title. It doesn't help that Briscoe is still in a team with brother Mark. This makes his singles run even weirder as it almost comes off like Road Warrior Hawk or Ricky Morton becoming champion. I say almost because they actually had talent.

Worst Women's Wrestler of the Year: The Bella Twins (WWE)- The Bellas are two divas but they're a package. Honestly, the Bellas have never been good on either the mic or in the ring but since coming back, they haven't done anything great and haven't had any great matches or great promos. To make matters worse, they reportedly have been considered the top divas in the WWE due to their appearance in the Total Divas reality show. The point being, if your going to be on TV as much as them and be considered top stars, you better be able to back it up in the ring and they can't.

Worst Tag Team of the Year: Tons of Funk (WWE)- Pop quiz: What do you get when you combine 350 pounds of shit with another 350 pounds of shit? One answer is 700 pounds of shit. The other? Tons of Funk. Oh man, this team is a special kind of suck. The Brodus Clay gimmick was already the winner of my worst gimmick for 2012. Neither Clay and Tensai were good wrestlers so we really didn't need them in a team. This team failed everywhere. They looked like jackasses, they put on bad matches, and couldn't talk. Thankfully, the team is no more but they still get this award for 11½ months of painful moments. Thanks but no thanks WWE. If I want to watch two guys look like morons to appeal to kids then I watch old footage of the Bushwhackers.

Worst Match of the Year: John Cena vs. Mark Henry (Money in the Bank 2013) (WWE)- It takes two to tango but this year it took the biggest handpicked talent in WWE history and the biggest flop in WWE history to have the worst match of the year. This match passed every criteria in the worst match of the year qualification list. It was sloppy, it was botchy, and both “wrestlers” lumbered around like the talentless oafs they are. This match was slow and boring. You had Cena not even applying the STF right for the millionth time. You had Mark Henry barely being able to swing Cena which looked pathetic. Overall, the broomstick that Ric Flair can supposedly carry to a 3 star match has more talent in it's bristles than these two have in their whole bodies.

Worst Feud of the Year: Daniel Bryan vs. The McMahon Family (WWE)- This feud was an epic fail on so many levels. The first was the fact that Bryan was a very red-hot act and it seemed like a waste to put him with the McMahons. The second was it just seemed like a rehash of the Stone Cold/McMahon feud from 15 years ago. Third is the fact that it takes two to tango and while Bryan was game, The McMahon's are awful. The best way to do a story like this is for the fans to live vicariously through the blue-collar hero like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Daniel Bryan as they stick it to their boss. The problem is we didn't see that with Bryan. Unlike, Austin who was able to raise hell and get the last laugh more times than not, Bryan was made to look like a loser the whole time. Very rarely was Bryan able to get the last laugh or stick it to the McMahons or even get revenge on Triple H for costing him the title at Summerslam. Instead, the feud saw Bryan get beat up week after week. Bryan deserved way more than feuding with a very stale and egotistical act.

Most Overrated Wrestler of the Year: Alberto Del Rio (WWE)- There isn't a wrestler this year that has been given as many chances at bat and strike out each and everytime as Alberto Del Rio. This year, the WWE did everything except selling their souls to the devil to get him over including tweaking his character on three occasions but none of it worked. He entered the year as a babyface “Man of the People” type character in an attempt for the WWE to push him as their new hispanic superstar. When that failed to get over, they made him a heel again and gave him his rich aristocratic character but that didn't get him over with the crowd. They then tried to make him a more serious and vicious heel but he still failed to catch on. Unfortunately, the WWE didn't get the hint. Despite doing everything to get Del Rio over the fans, not only did he fail with every chance, but they continued to push him as a top star. As if that wasn't enough, the WWE blew a golden opportunity with Dolph Ziggler to give Del Rio another run at the World Heavyweight Championship. All in all, when crickets don't even react to you, you have no business being pushed as a top star and when you are, you're overrated.

Worst Announcer of the Year: JBL (WWE)- This one might not be popular but I stand by it. JBL is not only the worst announcer of the year but he's easily the most annoying. He doesn't bring anything to the commentary table, he doesn't have a voice for commentary as he sounds drunk, and he just repeats stuff over and over again like calling Daniel Bryan a flying goat. He doesn't bring anything to the announce table. He's not a play-by-play guy and doesn't call the action. He's not a color commentator as he doesn't bring a wrestler's perspective or point of view that much and he's not funny or witty. Even worse is the fact that he gets some praise for bringing up promotions from Mexico and Japan yet the problem is he sometimes doesn't get his facts right like claiming that Tensai was the first two time New Japan Cup tournament winner (he only won one). WWE has a lot of bad announcers but JBL is on a whole other level. If WWE wants announcers who follow wrestling outside the WWE, then they should rehire Matt Striker.

Worst Non-Wrestler of the Year: The McMahon Family (WWE)- I don't know where to begin on this one. I guess I can begin by saying the McMahon's have made an already bad product downright unwatchable. Vince may have been a great character at one point but this isn't 1998 or even 1999 anymore and no one wants to see him. Honestly, Vince really has had no business on TV since Fully Loaded 1999 (except for special appearances or announcements). Stephanie was never good to begin with and now may be even worse if that's possible. It's almost like she tries too hard to be intimidating and she's not. What needs to be said of Triple H that hasn't already been said? It's safe to say a lot of fans have been tired of him since 2002 and we don't need to open shows with his usual sleep-inducing 20 minute promos. As if being bad performers weren't bad enough, all three have ridiculous egos. They rarely put anyone over, they're all over TV, and never let anyone outsmart them or get one over them. Yet another problem is the fact they were never needed in the first place. WWE already had two villainous general managers in Brad Maddox and Vickie Guerrero and with the brand split being over, two is too much as it is. Lastly, they bring zilch to the product. They're not entertaining, nobody wanted them back on TV, they don't put anyone over, and they don't add anything to the show.

Worst Gimmick of the Year: The Real Americans|Right-wing Tea Party (WWE)- This gimmick fails for many reasons. The first is I'm not a fan of gimmicks that are about politics. We don't need politics in pro wrestling since we have enough of it in the real world. The second is it's a complete waste of great talents like Jack Swagger and Antonio Cesaro who deserve more than being put with Zeb Colter for a manager and given a gimmick that relies on cheap tactics to get reactions from the fans (example would include accusing hispanics being illegal aliens). Third and lastly, if WWE wanted to do a gimmick on the Tea Party, they should've done it four years ago when the Tea Party were all over the media. Instead the gimmick comes off as four years too late and the WWE looks outdated.

Worst Promotion of the Year: WWE- This one is the biggest no-brainer. In fact, there isn't even a silver because no company comes close. Being a fan of wrestling for over 15 years, having known about it for 20, and having studied wrestling history, I can honestly say that there probably has never been an American company that has been as stubborn, as incompetent, and as clueless as the WWE in 2013. Not World Class in 1987. Not AWA in 1988, 1989, or 1990. Not even WCW in 1999 or 2000. 2013 saw the WWE take stupidity to a whole new level. During this calendar year, the WWE continued to push and focus the promotion on boring and failed acts like John Cena, Randy Orton, and Alberto Del Rio. They squandered the chance to capitalize on red-hot wrestlers like Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler as they chose to bury them instead. We got the unneeded and unwanted return of the McMahons and Triple H to TV. They abruptly ended a great diva's feud between AJ and Kaitlyn so they can have AJ feud with the divas who are on a reality show that the majority of the demographic doesn't watch. They wasted the opportunity for the Rock to put over a new star by having him put over Cena. Their titles still mean nothing as I personally had a hard time remembering at various points this year who was the Intercontinental and United States champions. Their flagship show is still at 3 hours and drags every week. They released one of the best talents in the business and a guy who could've main evented Wrestlemania in Chris Hero/Kassius Ohno. They brought up two divas to the main roster before they even had one professional wrestling match because they were cast members of a reality show. We got some of the stupidest gimmicks in recent memory including dancing morons (Tons of Funk), Tea Partiers (Real Americans), Bull fighters with a midget bull mascot (Los Matadores), and a guy who's gimmick is to give bad news (Bad News Barrett). Storylines dropped out of nowhere with no explaination. Makes me miss the good ole' days of Fritz Von Erich collapsing on Christmas night of a supposed heart attack, the AWA Team Challenge Series, and Kevin Nash's limo getting hit by a mysterious white hummer.

Japanese Wrestling-

Best Wrestler of the Year: Suwama (All Japan)- Suwama is probably the most underrated top star in Japanese wrestling. I always felt he never gets the notice that he deserves especially this year. Sure guys like Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and KENTA did great but Suwama was better than them this year. Suwama had many great matches this year including against the likes of Jun Akiyama, Go Shiozaki, and even Akebono. From the storyline standpoint, Suwama won his third Triple Crown Championship, his first Unified World Tag Team Championship, and the 2013 World Strongest Tag Determination League. Suwama also became the first wrestler since 2002 to have held both the Triple Crown and the Unified World Tag Team Championship at the same time (Keiji “The Great Muta” Mutoh was the last to do it) I also give Suwama this award as he is the ace of All Japan during uncertain times. With All Japan having lost half their roster and many staff members due to the Mutoh exodus, Suwama is the top star of All Japan during hard times but I believe he's done a great job in the ring and does help backstage. In fact, he was one of the first wrestlers to show support for All Japan and remain which is what you want in an ace. He could've taken the easy way and jump to the more stable Wrestle-1 but chose to stay in All Japan. Okada and Tanahashi are great but any great wrestler can be an ace of a very stable and successful promotion. Even though NOAH isn't the best, KENTA was still the top star in a less chaotic promotion. It still takes a great talent to be a top star in a promotion with a chaotic year and Suwama has proven to be just that.

Best Junior Heavyweight Wrestler of the Year: Taiji Ishimori (NOAH)- Ishimori was the best junior by far in 2013. Ishimori had the chance to be the ace of Pro Wrestling NOAH's junior heavyweight division where he put on some incredible performances. He was the type of guy you would want in a junior heavyweight division as he has a very acrobatic style of high-flying action. He also put on some very fun matches this year with up and comers like Zack Sabre Jr. to veterans like Tatsuhito Takaiwa. Storyline wise, Ishimori won the GHC (Global Honored Crown) Jr. Heavyweight Championship and held it for most of the year.

Best Gaijin (Foreigner) of the Year: James Raideen (ZERO1)- The native from New Zealand is my gaijin/foreigner of the year. Despite only being 22 years old, Raideen doesn't come off as a fish out of water and can easily hold his own against wrestler's with a tremendous amount of experience. He also has the whole package. He's big, strong, agile, athletic, and has a good look. He also put on some very good matches this year against the likes of Masato Tanaka, Yuji Okabayashi, and Yusaku Obata. From a storyline standpoint, Raideen won his first ZERO1 World Heavyweight Championship and the 2013 Fire Festival tournament. By winning these great accomplishments, he became the first foreigner to win the fire festival and the youngest ZERO1 World Heavyweight Champion as well as the youngest Fire Festival winner.

Best Tag Team of the Year: Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (All Japan)- Suzuki & Aoki are probably the most exciting team to watch in Japan in 2013. They put on many great matches this year against Koji Kamemoto & Minoru Tanaka, Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo, Argenis & Drago, and Shigehiro Irie & Keisuke Ishii. They have a fun style with both have great high flying skills and even technical skills. From a storyline standpoint, the team held the All-Asia Tag Team Championship for the majority of the year and won the 2013 Jr. Tag League.

Best Match of the Year: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack) (New Japan)- Anybody who follows Japanese Wrestling knows this match (although they had a few more classics). This match definitely deserves the hype especially since these two wrestled before this and sometimes sequels aren't as good as the original. This match went back and forth, it featured moves I haven't seen before, and it never got boring. There wasn't a time while watching that I felt bored or wanted it to end. In fact, time went pretty fast despite the match being around the 30 minute mark. It was also nice to see Okada win the match and the IWGP (International Wrestling Grand Prix) Heavyweight Championship clean with no interference or shenanigans.

Most Improved Wrestler of the Year: Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan)- Ishii has always been a hidden gem in the world of Japanese wrestling but 2013 finally saw him get the chance to shine and boy, did he take it. Ishii had many great matches most notably with Katusyori Shibata that were praised by many fans and reporters in the wrestling industry. Though he didn't win a title, he took a step up as he did receive a few title shots and entered New Japan's G1 Climax tournament for the first time in his career. After being ignored for years, Ishii finally got himself noticed in 2013. Hopefully, 2014 will see Ishii take that next step and win some gold.

Comeback Wrestler of the Year: Ultimo Dragon (Freelancer)- It seems like a lifetime ago that we seen the Ultimo Dragon but after a few years away from the major leagues, Dragon ended 2013 on a high note. By the end of the year, Dragon came to All Japan Pro Wrestling and became a top wrestler in the junior heavyweight division. From a storyline standpoint, Dragon won the AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship and ended the year as champion. While Dragon didn't have the biggest year and his moment came at the end, he still deserves the award since he kept such a low-profile for so long and now is a champion in a major organization.

Debut/Return of the Year: Burning (All Japan)- The five members of Burning made news earlier this year when they decided to go to All Japan Pro Wrestling after jumping ship from Pro Wrestling NOAH. The five members (Jun Akiyama, Go Shiozaki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki) would become key signings for All Japan as they all were champions when the Mutoh exodus occurred and all stayed thus making them all important pillars for All Japan. From a storyline standpoint, all five members held titles this year with Akiyama and Shiozaki holding the Unified World Tag Team Championships, Kanemaru winning the World Junior Heavyweight Championship, and Suzuki & Aoki winning the All-Asia Tag Team Championships. Akiyama also won the 2013 Champions Carnival while Suzuki & Aoki won the 2013 Junior Tag League.

Most Underated Wrestler of the Year: Toru Yano & Takashi Iizuka (New Japan)- Sure, Yano and Iizuka won NOAH's GHC Tag Team Championships but I still feel they were very underrated. In their home promotion of New Japan, they barely did anything. They didn't win any titles, they were in the bottom of the 2013 New Japan World Tag League, and Iizuka was left off the New Japan Cup and the G1 Climax. The times they weren't teaming, it felt like Yano was always losing while Iizuka was wasted in opening matches or preshow matches. It's definitely a shame as Yano is a very good performer who should be groomed for better things. Iizuka may be 47 but he's still a very good wrestler and more healthier than guys who are younger than him. Together or apart, the two are two of the more fun wrestlers to watch with Yano playing the weasel, cheating heel while Iizuka is the psychotic, weapon-wielding maniac. Both deserve better than what they got in 2013 and hopefully things will pick up next year.

Best Promotion of the Year: All Japan Pro Wrestling- All Japan had it's faults but it still was my favorite promotion of the year. Despite the Mutoh exodus, they still put out some great shows and awesome matches. They were also able to score a few coups in talent as they signed the five members of Burning and started using up and comer Kento Miyahara. For most of the year they had the right guys as champions with Suwama holding the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship, Yoshinobu Kanemaru holding the World Junior Heavyweight Championship, Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki and later Suwama & Joe Doering held the Unified World Tag Team Championships, Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki held the All-Asia Tag Team Championships, and SUSHI held the Gaora TV Championship. The promotion held many great matches including the Suwama/Go Shiozaki series and all of Suzuki and Aoki's tag title defenses. I also commend them for doing well despite losing half their roster. Here's hoping they rebuild their roster and continue to regain their momentum in 2014.

Worst Wrestler of the Year: Akebono (All Japan)- Akebono is definitely the worst wrestler of the year. Being a former sumo wrestler, Akebono is a limited and dull wrestler to watch at times. Unlike other big men like Yokozuna, King Mabel, and Vader, Akebono isn't very agile and at times moves like a slug. While he's pretty good in tag teams, he has a hard time having good singles matches. I know All Japan lost half of their roster and Akebono a sumo legend, but he's not the best guy to be the top star. He gets this award for not only now being a singles wrestler but being the Triple Crown Champion (All Japan's top honor) which is something he's not very suited for.

Worst Gaijin (Foreigner) of the Year: Tama Tonga (New Japan)- When I say Tama Tonga is the worst, I don't want it to come off as he's bad but rather he's the least impressive. Out of all the gaijin/foreigners, he just came off as lackluster. He never blew me away, he never came off as impressive or incredible especially for a junior heavyweight. He never stood out, he never had that awesome match or feud and was just there. Honestly, out of all the foreigners New Japan could bring in, there's better choices out there.

Worst Tag Team of the Year: TenCozy (New Japan)- From 1999-2002, TenCozy (then TenKoji) were one of the best and most popular tag teams in Japan but those days are over. Along with their 3 year run, the team enjoyed a few reunions in 2006, 2008, 2009, and since started teaming again in 2011. Safe to say, this team is very stale after teaming on and off for 14 years. To make matters worst, both Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima have had their share of injuries especially this year as both were sidelined this year. Worst of all, both were hurt during a tag title reign. Unfortunately, despite the injuries and staleness, the team was still pushed as a top team this year as they held the IWGP Tag Team Titles and were the finalist of the 2013 World Tag League. I take nothing away from TenCozy but they had no business getting the push they got this year and hopefully they'll be sent to the midcard next year.

Most Overrated Wrestler of the Year: Shinsuke Nakamura (New Japan)- Nakamura was definitely a guy that probably got more than he should've this year. There was a time when Nakamura was a great talent and addition to New Japan but he's been boring for the past year. He's like the Japanese Randy Orton in that he's solid in the ring but so boring in personality. His look reminds me of a Japanese Johnny Depp on acid for some reason. Nakamura spent 99% of 2013 as New Japan's IWGP Intercontinental Champion and there was no reason for it. Given New Japan's huge roster, The title could've been put on other wrestlers. Tomohiro Ishii had a great year and he deserved a reign. Tatsuya Naito could've won it leading up to his IWGP Heavyweight Championship match at Wrestle Kingdom 8 instead of being given the useless NEVER Openweight Championship. Toru Yano has been WAY overdue for a title reign. Hell, Prince Devitt deserved a reign especially with New Japan being interested in moving him to heavyweight. Honestly, there were so many choices that were better than Nakamura.

Worst Promotion of the Year: New Japan Pro Wrestling- Probably the most controversial pick but I stand by it. Matchwise, New Japan had an excellent year with tons of great matches and some that are match of the year worthy. However, the problem with New Japan wasn't the matches. The problem was the booking. Overall, New Japan has one of the most stacked rosters in all of the Orient. Yet, I personally thought other companies with half the roster did more with what they had much better. The Heavyweight Tag Team Titles were on the very stale and broken down TenCozy for half the year. The Junior Heavyweight Title wasn't defended at all for the last 5 months of the year as Prince Devitt was focusing more on the heavyweight division. Nakamura held the Intercontinental Title all year long which got very old, very quick. The Junior Tag Team Titles were put in a never-ending series of matches between the Time Splitters and the Forever Hooligans. The NEVER Openweight Title means nothing and there's no reason to have it since New Japan didn't run any shows under the NEVER banner this year. All in all, New Japan has the roster but doesn't do much with it. Both Tag Team Divisions could be stronger if the promotion built some new teams. The Junior Heavyweight Title could mean more on an actual junior heavyweight like KUSHIDA or BUSHI. The Intercontinental Title should've been passed around a bit more with guys like Yano, Ishii, and Naito deserving reigns. The title could've also been used to help transition Devitt from a junior heavyweight to a heavyweight. Overall, New Japan has the talent and the championships to do amazing things, I just wished they were used better.