10 Best Non-WWE Wrestlers Of 2017 (So Far)
Shining a spotlight on the international scene's half-year MVPs.
It'd be a stretch to say that wrestling is in the midst of another golden era, particularly from a business standpoint, but there has rarely been a better time to be a fan. WWE may lack serious competition, but video streaming services and social media have made the alternatives more accessible than ever, and promotions like NJPW, PROGRESS, and EVOLVE are on fire in 2017.
Wrestling's smaller companies are stacked with awesome performers these days, and as we close in on the year's halfway point, it's time to look at those who've stood out from the pack, and made 2017 their own.
Sifting through such a huge, diverse group of wrestlers is a daunting task. There's so much great wrestling going on at the moment that notable omissions are inevitable, meaning there's no place for the likes of Ricochet, The Young Bucks, and Marty Scurll, or Japanese standounts like Shuji Ishikawa and Kento Miyahara - all of whom sit as honourable mentions.
These wrestlers may not find themselves on wrestling's grandest stage, but they're just as worthy of recognition as WWE's biggest stars, and if you're sick of Raw and SmackDown's weekly grind, you owe it to yourself to check them out...
10. Matt Riddle
Former UFC welterweight Matt Riddle compiled one of the most spectacular rookie years in wrestling history in 2016, and hasn’t lost a lick of momentum in 2017. Whether defending his PROGRESS Atlas Championship against the likes of Rampage Brown and Trent Seven or competing with opponents as diverse as ACH and Drew Galloway during one of EVOLVE’s monthly double headers, he is one of the world’s most consistent performers, and the US indie scene’s MVP.
Riddle unsurprisingly leans heavily on his MMA experience in the ring, combining stiff, bruising strikes with slick submission holds, but his appeal stretches far beyond that. His affable charisma and laid-back 'bro' character has helped him form an unbreakable bond with audiences on both sides of the Atlantic, and his popularity shows no signs of waning.
With Chris Hero gone, Riddle has inherited his mantle as the most reliable American indie worker on the planet. His presence practically guarantees a good to great contest, and while his match quality ceiling isn’t as high as Hero’s was, barely a week passes without Riddle producing at least one fight that’s worth going out of your way to track down.