20 Absolute Best Wrestlers In The World Right Now
10. Tetsuya Naito
Currently riding high as IWGP World Heavyweight and Intercontinental Champion, Tetsuya Naito's big moment finally came at Wrestle Kingdom 14.
Overcoming the conniving Jay White and irreproachable wrestling god Kazuchika Okada over the course of two nights, Naito vanquished the demons of 2014 and 2018, finally scoring his big NJPW coronation. He'd held both straps before, of course, but never crowned the promotion's true top guy and though that bastard KENTA spoiled his moment, Naito Two Belts will go down as WK14's defining image.
The most charismatic wrestler on the planet and still comfortably NJPW's most over star, Naito's in-ring inconsistencies prevent him from placing higher. The White and Okada matches highlight this. At his majestic best versus 'The Rainmaker,' Naito helped carve a dramatic instant classic, though the White bout's sluggish pacing and sloppier moments had plenty to do with the Los Ingobernables man as well as 'Switchblade.' His 2019 record told a similar story, with stunning highs marred by the occasional flub.
Nonetheless, to call New Japan's new king anything other than one of the best in the world would be disingenuous.