5 candidates for the Best Wrestler in the World

Bryan Danielson is no longer an active competitor. His career was winding down after years of being considered the top performer in the industry. Jon Moxley and company may have sent him packing, but that does not change how the world viewed him. Still, Danielson stepping away creates a gap where someone else can step up to become the best performer in professional wrestling today. Here are five individuals that may get consideration for that coveted spot.

GUNTHER

Many fans were worried when Walter made the move to WWE. That made sense because Vince McMahon was notorious for making needless and damaging changes to performers who established themselves outside of the WWE. It was an attempt to undermine their work and worth, which succeeded several times. GUNTHER bucked that trend, even after being squashed during Survivor Series and an extremely unnecessary name change when he joined the main roster.

Since joining WWE, Gunther has put on some of the best matches in wrestling. His catalog includes entries like his two singles matches against Ilja Dragunov, the 2019 contest against Tyler Bate, the 2023 triple threat against Drew McIntyre and Sheamus, and his Clash at the Castle match against Sheamus in 2022. Gunther feels like the perfect professional wrestler that adds to the right mix of sports entertainment when necessary, earning himself a spot on this list.

Kevin Owens

No one gets “it” more than Kevin Owens. His entire gimmick seems to be the guy on the roster who pays attention to the show each week and isn’t going to be caught slipping with the shenanigans. There’s nothing in professional wrestling that Owens can’t do. You need someone who can get the fans invested in a single promo segment? Owens can do that. Play a comedic role? Owens can do that. Put on an excellent match from bell to bell, Owens can do that as well.

Owens has never truly had the opportunity to run with the proverbial ball at the top of the WWE roster. Even when he was put in that position as Universal Champion in 2017, it felt like he was in that position as a background character to the main event. Here’s to hoping that Owens gets a chance to stand at the top of the division because he would remind the wider community of how great he is in this business.

Kenny Omega

Kenny Omega has several years in which he’d be on the list of wrestlers considered the best in the world. While injuries have taken away much of his time recently, Omega’s name is one of those that still carries weight across all professional wrestling. Fans are watching and waiting with bated breath for him to come back from the bout with diverticulitis that has kept him out of action since December 2023.

Omega’s track record is more than enough to keep him in consideration for the two wrestlers in the world. The question is what form he will be in when he returns to full-time action. Fans will want to see him doing all his hits, but 41-years of age, it will be interesting to see what adjustments he makes to remain “The Best Bout Machine.”

Will Ospreay

Any conversation about who is the best wrestler in the world without including Will Ospreay is a dishonest conversation to start. If this list were built strictly around match ratings, Ospreay would be head and shoulders above the rest of the field. The man has a five-star match with his toothbrush every morning. In fact, some would consider getting five stars a downgrade of sorts when it comes to rating Ospreay’s biggest matches.

The fan reaction to Will Ospreay is all you need to know about his perception in the industry. Ospreay is beloved at a level that few have obtained and continues to garner more momentum with each outing. It will not be long before AEW is strapping that World Championship around his waist. Even still, Ospreay has all the accolades and amazing matches to be considered the best in the business today.

Zack Sabre Jr.

Zack Sabre Jr. and Bryan Danielson have an interesting connection. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter issues the “Best Technical Wrestler” award each year and it has been named after Bryan Danielson for several of them. Zack Sabre Jr has won the award seven times. Before that, Bryan Danielson had a firm hold on that award and has since regained it. Now that he’s retired, there’s a strong chance that ZSJ will take his place back at the top of the list.

The newly crowned IWGP World Heavyweight Champion has taken his place atop one of the most important promotions in the world. Many have long considered him the best technical wrestler in the world, as the award denotes. But now he will have a stake in the claim that he’s the best wrestler, period. His character work continues to shine and he finds a way to make his mat-based style interesting to the masses. Expect more fans to get on his bandwagon in the months and years to come.