Every WWE wrestler wants to be the best, "to be the man" as Ric Flair would say. Traditionally that would mean being the World Title holder, but nowadays the best wrestler in the world could be anywhere within the WWE's card. The belt, currently held by Brock Lesnar, is less and less the measuring stick. Like last year, this list will count down the World Wrestling Entertainment's twenty best performers. They will be ranked based primarily upon in-ring work, with mic work and character performance also factoring in. Athletic performance and storytelling are ultimately what matter most in pro wrestling. However, creative push will also inevitably factor in. After all, an artist first needs the canvas to be considered a master. The list will rank 2014's best performers and also detail where they placed last year. That will allow identification of the risers and fallers, in addition to further detail as to why a wrestler found success or failure. Only WWE's main roster is eligible for this list. Firstly, a note on the men who fell out of the list entirely. CM Punk (last year placed 1) left WWE in January and hadn't done enough to remain on the list. The Best In The World is no longer a pro wrestler. Alberto Del Rio (last year placed 5) was under-utilised and eventually released due to a backstage incident in August. Chris Jericho (last year placed 11) was only in briefly and failed to live up to the hype in matches with Bray Wyatt. Damien Sandow (last year placed 12) went from being Mr Money In The Bank last year, to being a comedy joke for the first half of 2014. He's now getting some momentum back on track as Mizdow. The Big Show (last year placed 14) was given little in the way of significant matches. Kane (last year placed 18) was often involved, and perhaps deserves a place in the twenty for sheer work rate. However, his efforts were significantly less interesting than previous years. Finally, The Undertaker suffered a concussion early into his WrestleMania 30 match with Brock Lesnar. The bout ended up a dud and Taker infamously lost the 21 year Mania streak. All those drop outs mean new entries, in addition to some familiar faces, in the definitive 20 best WWE wrestlers of 2014.
