10 Most Improved Wrestlers Of 2018

9. Velveteen Dream

NXT TakeOver Chicago 2 Tommaso Ciampa
WWE.com

Velveteen Dream is the only wrestler to feature on this list and 2017's. Both inclusions were merited. If last year saw him go from Largo loop unknown to raw charisma bomb, 2018 brought his journey closer to transcendent developmental stardom, particularly towards the end.

The 23-year-old's performance versus Tommaso Ciampa was stunning. Dream shone in the biggest match of his career, proving himself one of the most effective crowd-pleasers in the business with fire and electricity. It was his career's finest hour thus far, though it came towards the end of a year filled with similar highlights, marking Dream as NXT's foremost please-don't-f*ck-him-up prospect.

How WWE handle the former Patrick Clark in 2019 will be interesting. No developmental wrestler is more charismatic or attention-grabbing, but there are still notable flaws in his ring work (even the Ciampa bout featured at least one botch). Dream needs another year or two to iron out said flaws. Though he has qualities that can't be taught, a premature main roster call-up would hamper his progress and potentially lower his ceiling, so let's hope he's allowed to remain in Triple H's NXT playground for the foreseeable future.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.