10 Best Storytellers In Wrestling Right Now
1. Kazuchika Okada
It's dark arts magic sh*t, the Kazuchika Okada main event.
A strong argument can be made that he is the greatest professional wrestler of all time, not least because he performs an old, almost secret role that, if broadcast, may have lost some of its power. Okada is in effect an old-school NWA World Heavyweight Champion, but the key distinction is that fans can see his multiple displays of generosity.
The territory fans of yore were worked into believing their guy could beat the champ because he was their guy, and their guy took the Races and the Flairs to their limit. The Champion lost nothing, because he was the World Champion, and those fans were for the most part blissfully unaware that the Races and the Flairs did this all over the loop. Okada does this - this being an impossible illusion of a balancing act in which he hoists everybody to his level without lowering it - all year 'round on a globally available streaming service.
This isn't to diminish the unreal talent of his opponents, but in many ways, Okada isn't just a genius storyteller but the author and protagonist of New Japan Pro Wrestling's great novel.