10 Most Controversial Wrestlers On The Planet Right Now

6. KENTA

Baron Corbin King
NJPW

KENTA's NJPW debut in itself proved controversial; many fans projected puro values of loyalty onto him, believing that he should have returned to and helped out the struggling Pro Wrestling NOAH league in which he made his name.

His run has also divided opinion. A part of the seminal G1 Climax tournament - revered critically as the greatest of all time - KENTA starred in several absorbing matches, the best of which was his gripping struggle to topple Kazuchika Okada. But his glaring botches and deliberate pacing led many to write him off. He was having very good matches against an elite group of talent incapable of wrestling bad ones, they said, and he has also taken his Bullet Club induction too seriously. He has finally grasped the worst sports entertainment bullsh*t after leaving WWE in his shortcut match with Kota Ibushi this week.

Author's take: KENTA is in clear physical decline, and suffers - to an extent - when working against performers well beyond his wavelength of timing. But his matches are over spectacles because he hasn't lost the ability to project a threatening d*ckhead aura.

Pitchforks out if he gets a bigger match than Tomohiro Ishii at the Tokyo Dome, but until then...

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!