10 Best Wrestlers Of 2024

2. Cody Rhodes

Best Wrestlers Of 2024
WWE

Since WrestleMania 40, Cody Rhodes has been in programmes that are nothing to do with him finally winning the WWE Championship and/or "Finishing The Story". And yet, he remains the most over babyface in the company. Dumb luck on WWE's part, or the sheer genius of the 'American Nightmare' himself?

Those were the words that opened the entry on Rhodes from the version of this list for 2023, only with the WrestleMania information changed. And yet again, Rhodes continues to be acing the company's tests. 

Away from the biggest stages (Cody won the Royal Rumble via a blinding mini-match with CM Punk, had WrestleMania epics with Roman Reigns and The Rock and steals every SmackDown he works), the face of the organisation has been a joy in his other singles outings. A SummerSlam outlier with Solo Sikoa notwithstanding, Rhodes has shone opposite Kevin Owens, Logan Paul and especially AJ Styles. Their Backlash encounter was one of the company's strongest matches of the year that played out in front of a rabid audience indicative of Cody's influence and success. 

He's still undeniable even if and when he drops the gold to 'The Great One'. WrestleMania 41 will show that.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett