10 Best WWE Wrestlers Of 2017 (So Far)

3. Samoa Joe

Raw Samoa Joe Roman Reigns
WWE.com

Bursting onto the main roster as Triple H's hand-picked heavy in January, Samoa Joe inserted himself into his on-screen mentor's rivalry with Seth Rollins from the off. That was a good decision by WWE. By placing Joe in the middle of such a massive feud, they were portraying the Samoan as a big deal immediately.

Since then, Joe has been on fire inside the ring. Go back and watch his match with Sami Zayn from Fastlane (one largely glossed over at the time) and you won't be disappointed. Similarly, every other televised match Joe has worked has been driven by the same intensity; it's not a coincidence that WWE believe Joe to be a credible fit for Brock Lesnar.

It's not just his in-ring work either. Joe has come into his own on the mic during this run and has crucially kept promos short and sweet. That fits his fight-focused character, showing self-awareness a few others could benefit from.

2017 has been good to Samoa Joe thus far, and even though he'll likely be cycled out of the main event mix after Great Balls Of Fire, there's scope to bring him back into it following SummerSlam. Joe certainly deserves the chance to someday be a World Champion in WWE.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.