10 Most Over Wrestlers In The World Right Now

7. Adam Cole

Adam Cole
AEW

There are two strong arguments that comfortably slot Cole into the list.

NXT's ratings were dog sh*t, generally, but Adam Cole always popped quarter hours to a relative extent. Cole was so popular amongst the couple of hundred Capitol Wrestling Center residents that they, rather cruelly, had Kyle O'Reilly's f*cking life. They denied his push because Cole was their guy. In a profound indictment, Cole played babyface for about 6% of his NXT run.

You could make the argument, and it's a strong one, that the thinning herd of NXT ultras are a very performative lot and what they shout about means absolutely bobbins.

This lacks credibility whenever Adam Cole makes his entrance in an AEW arena.

There's a fun call-and-response element to Cole's shtick, yes, but if Tony Khan went full 2013 Vince McMahon and gave it to QT Marshall à la Big Show adopting the "Yes!" chant, the results would be identical. They want to be around Cole, they want to bask in Cole's charisma and showmanship, and they go banana for his white-hot finishing sequences, which invariably feature at least one convincing shock near-fall.

Cole summons the loudest reactions in most buildings. When (not if) he orbits the AEW World Title picture as a babyface, he will jump several places higher.

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Contributor
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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!