Ranking Who Was Really The Man In Wrestling Every Year 1990-2020

7. 2014 - AJ Styles

Austin Jericho
NJPW1972.com

AJ Styles, in an era in which WWE renamed every talent to walk through its doors, irrespective of who they were - gridiron chancer or global starlet - tattooed his initials in gigantic letters on his side.

A symbolic gesture of how far removed he was from the mainstream payday, his unreal New Japan run forced WWE to acknowledge, recruit, and push him to the main event.

Styles captured the IWGP Heavyweight Title in his first match back, and then backed up the booking with an exceptional run in the star-making G1 Climax tournament. He revealed himself to be a tremendous working heel. Big and funny (but not too funny) on the sell, Styles was sensationally sly and rapid on the counter; he created incredible excitement even in the heat, drawing more pops than drones without compromising his heel aura.

All of NJPW's big four were fabulous in 2014, as was Daniel Bryan before his dire setback - but this was the year in which Styles simply refused to let his mid-2000s peers diminish his narrative as a great.

Contributor
Contributor

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!