50 Best Wrestlers Of The 2020s (So Far)
2. Swerve Strickland
Swerve Strickland has reshaped what it means to be a modern wrestling heel and babyface in the 2020s, and though he hasn't exactly risen from humble beginnings wrestling-wise, the manner in which he has taken the AEW main event scene and made himself a permanent member of it should be studied in training schools across the globe.
Charismatic as a babyface, cold-blooded as a heel, and constantly tweaking his in-ring style to suit the situation he finds himself in, the former AEW World Champion has earned every bit of that ascent with unforgettable performances.
After arriving in AEW in 2022, Swerve quickly impressed as part of the Swerve in Our Glory tag team alongside Keith Lee, capturing the AEW World Tag Team Championships. But it was his singles run where he truly found his voice, both as a sinister character and a complete in-ring performer. His presentation fused bombast and swagger with sharp in-ring psychology, making him feel fresh and dangerous in equal measure.
His feud against Hangman Adam Page became a contemporary classic and proved itself as the new narrative tree within All Elite Wrestling from which multiple storyline branches could grow. Their emotionally dense fights peaked with an unconscionable Texas Death Match at Full Gear 2023 that took things to another level, pushing the boundaries of violence in AEW while establishing Swerve as a sadistic, calculating presence willing to do anything to win.
His World Championship victory over Samoa Joe at Dynasty 2024 was historic and validation for all he'd accomplished. As the first black AEW World Champion, he broke ground while delivering a world-class main event against one of wrestling’s toughest veterans. His reign was defined by compelling promos, high end matches, and a conclusion against Bryan Danielson so epic that it secured the company's reputation as the place for the peak of high quality stadium wrestling.
It's never been harder to define what makes somebody a great than in this era of wildly different mainstream offerings and the near-total death of monoculture. But it's easy to see the four walls in which greatness resides. Whose house?