10 Best Wrestlers Of 2021

6. Will Ospreay

A divisive figure he remains, but the volume of acclaimed work delivered by Will Ospreay in a shorter window than most of his peers this year is extremely impressive.

2021 saw the 28-year-old score the biggest honour of his career to date by besting Kota Ibushi to become IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. It's a new belt with a complicated lineage and undermined somewhat by the way it came into existence, but New Japan put its trust in Ospreay as the company's top guy this spring.

Ospreay's Takagi matches are destined to finish highly on many a Match of the Year lists. Beyond that are Will's outstanding Wrestle Kingdom effort opposite Okada, a typically impressive bout with Zack Sabre Jr. to continue their long feud, and elevatory performances against up-and-comers Ricky Knight Jr. and Michael Oku in the United Kingdom, both of whom had the best matches of their career with Ospreay.

If his style works for you, Ospreay is an obvious WOTY candidate. Objectively, too, he has done a good job of growing over the years, physically and in terms of the way he wrestles, as while he definitely performs in a way custom calibrated to draw acclaim, he is becoming less reliant on dazzling feats of athleticism and sugar highs. This will serve him well as his career progresses.

The character, ultimately, is what holds Ospreay back from the top five. Apeing Conor McGregor's shtick isn't convincing when Becky Lynch does it on WWE Raw and it isn't convincing here either. Ospreay's flashiness and promos feel forced, not natural. Perhaps this will improve with time, but for now, his presentation is the opposite of the next guy on our list.