MID YEAR PREDICTIONS & AWARDS
The 2019 wrestling year could be called anything but boring. New promotions formed, old promotions returned stronger than ever and the independent scene made itself felt more than it ever has. Doing an "Mid Year Award" column is an act of a fool - because you're never going to please everyone, if anyone.
There will be those on twitter who will scream "this is the list of an Indy nerd," and fuck you, maybe I am. Because if you ask me what has defined the year 2019, it's the emergence of amazing promotions not only in the US, but the world.
Promotions like Beyond Wrestling, Game Changer Wrestling, Hog Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Guerilla, Bar Wrestling, and Progress wrestling, just to name a few, have upped the anti.
Just this past Sunday, Beyond Wrestling and Game Changer had two shows that blew away anything WWE has done in the past 30 days.
The highlights for me, were the cage match that featured Kris Statlander and Kimber Lee and Joey Janela taking on David Starr in a sixty-minute match that have to be seen, to be believed. The cage match is easily one of my favorite women's matches of all time. Statlander is a top three female performer and Lee was the perfect foil in that ring Sunday night.
The Iron Man Match was ... beautiful. It had everything you'd want in an Iron Man match. It had hardcore elements. It had psychology. It had humor. It had heart.
Sometimes, I think that's what is killing WWE. I'm not saying the talent doesn't have heart, or love for the business. I'm sure they do. It's just not portrayed on the big screen, for me, anyways. And I assume it's because they are on the road for 300 days a year and living this kind of life 24/7 kills the excitement of it all.
You can still see the passion in the crew on NXT. The halfway point from the Indies to the WWE, and hopefully that new blood will start transitioning into a more passionate program.
WWE tried to inject some fun into their programming by creating the 24/7 title. That has been a hit among the social media wrestling fans, though it doesn't seem to have touched the magic ratings stick. They also brought in Paul Heyman for RAW and Eric Bischoff for Smackdown, respectively.
Obviously the big story of the first seven months of 2019 is the arrival of All Elite Wrestling. I predicted this promotion six months BEFORE ALL-In on a podcast that I no longer have any affiliation with. I knew in my heart that The Elite were testing out the waters and practicing the art of promotions on a bigger scale for a reason. And now we're only two months away from their debut on national television.
The other big story is Kofi Kingston taking the WWE world title, becoming the first person of color to hold the most prestigious title in WWE.
There's almost too much content. I said almost. I'd rather it be this way than just WWE.
Another promotion, MLW, returned in 2018, but has gone over the top in 2019 with a quality TV show and supercards that entertain without offending. Well, unless you're not a Jim Cornette fan. Hi Joey Janella. Look at that, I just broke the fourth wall... Wait. Sorry.
And Impact Wrestling is the unsung hero of the year. Every ppv they've produced this year has had huge moments. The big story there is the emergence of Tessa Blanchard who could be Impact Heavyweight champion by the end of 2019.
Of course, July and August would not be complete without New Japan's G1 Climax. This is the 29th edition and the first 10 shows have been AMAZING. A reinvigorated Jon Moxley has lit up the Japanese wrestling scene after the chains of WWE were unlocked and he is NOT looking backwards at all.
Without further ado, I give you the Mid Year Pro Wrestling Awards, aptly titled "The Sid Vicious Is Currently Playing Softball" awards.
AWARDS
Male Wrestler of 2019
Winner: Kazuchika Okada (NJPW)
Runner Up: Tetsuya Naito (NJPW)
Runner UP: AJ Styles (WWE)
Female Wrestler of 2019
Winner: Ronda Rousey (WWE)
Runner UP: Tessa Blanchard (Impact)
Runner UP: Becky Lynch (WWE)
Tag Team of 2019
Winner: Pentagon & Fenix (AEW, Independents)
Runner Up: LAX (Impact, Independents)
Runner UP: G.o.D (NJPW, ROH)
Break Out Star of 2019
Winner: MJF (AEW, Independents)
Runner Up: Orange Cassidy (Independents)
Runner UP: Tessa Blanchard (Impact)
Comeback Wrestler of 2019
Winner: Jon Moxley
Runner Up: KENTA
Runner UP: Bray Wyatt
Promotion of 2019
Winner: NJPW
Runner Up: MLW
Runner UP: ImpactWrestling
Independent of 2019
Winner: Beyond Wrestling
Runner Up: Game Changer Wrestling
Runner UP: Progress Wrestling
10 PREDICTIONS
1. ROH will close it's doors at the end of 2019.
2. CM Punk will NOT WRESTLE in AEW in 2019.
3. WWE will be reduced to ONE HOUR on Fox Sports after bad ratings anger Fox Execs.
4. MLW will sign a deal with AXS for a weekly show.
5. Impact Wrestling WILL put the world title on Tessa Blanchard.
6. Raw & Smackdown will invade NXT to avenge NXT's invasion of 2010 - not that anyone in NXT was around then. It will however create superstars in Undisputed Era.
7. Orange Cassidy goes viral the world over.
8. Somehow, R-Truth will find himself on Chris Jericho's Rock n Rager cruise and throw the 24/7 belt into the water. He will then jump into the water to get it back.
9. Kris Statlander signs with AEW and feuds with Bea Preistley.