2023 is the second year of the WrestlePurists awards. Our awards will be highlighting the very best that pro wrestling has had to offer in 2023. The winners have been decided by votes from wrestlers, media/critics, and of course, the fans.
How Are The Winners Decided?
We did a series of tweets asking for followers/fans to put forward names for nomination in the replies. The names suggested most under these tweets made up the shortlist of nominees.
We created a series of polls where people could vote for who they think should win. We have also been reaching out to media members and talent for their votes too. Polls and voting closed on January 5th after more than a month of voting.
Awards are decided by who has the highest combined % of votes across fans, wrestlers, media/critics that voted. There will also be an individual Wrestler of the Year award for each of those particular voting groups.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
- LOLA VICE (36.8%)
- Yuma Anzai (26.3%)
- Kelani Jordan (19.3%)
- HANAKO (13.2%
- Toga (3.4%)
BEST NON-WRESTLER:
- PRINCE NANA (44%)
- Paul Heyman (20.6%)
- Samantha Irvin (13.8%)
- Nigel McGuinness (13.7%)
- Renee Paquette (7.9%)
MOST IMPROVED:
- DOMINIK MYSTERIO (40.5%)
- Julia Hart (27.1%)
- Yota Tsuji (13.3%)
- Tiffany Stratton (11.9%)
- Mariah May (7.9%)
MOST UNDERRATED:
- DANIEL GARCIA (35.3%)
- Chad Gable (31.6%)
- Speedball Mike Bailey (16.9%)
- Lio Rush (8.7%)
- Gabe Kidd (6.5%)
BEST ON PROMOS:
- CHRISTIAN CAGE (40%)
- MJF (21.4%)
- Cody Rhodes (17%)
- Jon Moxley (12.1%)
- LA Knight (9.4%)
BOOKER OF THE YEAR:
- PAUL LEVESQUE (51%)
- Tony Khan (18.6%)
- Shawn Michaels (17.1%)
- Shuji Ishikawa (8.2%)
- Panico (5.1%)
SHOW OF THE YEAR:
- WWE WRESTLEMANIA 39 NIGHT 1 (45.4%)
- AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door 2 (16.8%)
- AEW Revolution (13.9%)
- AEW All Out (13.7%)
- STARDOM All Star Grand Queendom (10.1%)
TAG TEAM OF THE YEAR:
- FTR (36.6%)
- Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens (35.1%)
- Aussie Open (12%)
- The Usos (8.7%)
- Astronauts (7.6%)
PROMOTION OF THE YEAR:
- WWE (59.2%)
- AEW (27%)
- AJPW (6%)
- CMLL (4.9%)
- NJPW (2.9%)
MATCH OF THE YEAR:
- KENNY OMEGA V WILL OSPREAY @ Wrestle Kingdom 17 (31.1%)
- Kenny Omega v Will Ospreay @ AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door 2 (28.2%)
- Swerve Strickland v Hangman Adam Page @ AEW Full Gear (18.9%)
- MJF v Bryan Danielson @ AEW Revolution (13.8%)
- Bryan Danielson v Zack Sabre Jr @ AEW WrestleDream (7.9%)
WOMENS WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
- ATHENA (45.9%)
- Rhea Ripley (30%)
- Giulia (12%)
- Becky Lynch (9.4%)
- Sareee (2.7%)
BEST IN-RING WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
- WILL OSPREAY (49.5%)
- Bryan Danielson (24.5%)
- GUNTHER (19.2%)
- Ilja Dragunov (4.5%)
- Zack Sabre Jr (2.3%)
FANS WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
- CODY RHODES (37.7%)
- Will Ospreay (25.6%)
- GUNTHER (17.1%)
- MJF (11.2%)
- Bryan Danielson (8.4%)
MEDIA / CRITICS WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
- WILL OSPREAY (37.2%)
- Bryan Danielson (26.8%)
- GUNTHER (19.8%)
- MJF (9.3%)
- Cody Rhodes (6.9%)
WRESTLER’S WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
1. WILL OSPREAY (41.5%)
T-2. MJF (17%)
T-2. Bryan Danielson (17%)
4. GUNTHER (14.7%)
5. Cody Rhodes (9.8%)
OVERALL WRESTLER OF THE YEAR:
- WILL OSPREAY (31.4.%)
- Cody Rhodes (22.3%)
- GUNTHER (18.4%)
- Bryan Danielson (17.6%)
- MJF (10.2%)
