50 Best Wrestlers Of The 2020s (So Far)

24. Roxanne Perez

WWE Royal Rumble 2025 Roxanne Perez
WWE

Nicknamed 'The Prodigy' and routinely required to back it up, Roxanne Perez entered NXT and worked her way through to WWE's main roster with a not-insignificant amount of hype and pressure on her young shoulders. 

After making waves as Rok-C in Ring of Honor, (she captured the ROH Women’s World Championship at just 19), Perez had momentum and maturity well beyond her years. Her arrival in NXT in 2022 quickly sparked buzz, and it wasn’t long before she became a cornerstone of the brand. Her emotional victory over Mandy Rose to win the NXT Women’s Championship in late 2022 was a major moment, and she backed it up with stellar title defences against the likes of Meiko Satomura and Blair Davenport. Her versatility has been a standout feature too; a natural babyface early on, Perez showed impressive and surprising range with a 2024 heel turn, drawing praise for both her storytelling skills and increased physicality. 

If there's one lingering area for growth, it’s her promos. Though not devoid of emotion, her delivery can feel over-rehearsed. That said, she’s shown signs of comfort as her character matures, and with time still firmly on her side, few doubt she’ll eventually round out her game completely. Particularly considering how much she's trusted to carry greener opponents or keep pace with veterans bell-to-bell.

With half the decade down, Roxanne Perez may end up as the best in-ring talent of the 2020s, and she’s only getting started.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett