Roman Reigns has topped Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s “2022 PWI 500” list, an annual ranking of the world’s best pro wrestlers. It’s the second time the Tribal Chief has earned the #1 spot after first scoring the honor in 2016.
Professional wrestling has a highly-opinionated fanbase, so this list is sure to inspire passionate discourse. You do not have to look farther than the Top 20 to find some puzzling inclusions and questionable omissions:
- Jon Moxley is not in the Top 10.
- Will Ospreay and Jay White are not in the Top 20
- Matt Cardona is ranked above MJF, Seth Rollins, Adam Cole, Kenny Omega and Drew McIntyre.
That said, you’d be hard pressed to argue that anybody but Reigns is more deserving of #1. He’s firmly entrenched as this generation’s ‘Face of WWE.’ He’s leaps and bounds ahead of the pack, based on PWI’s established criteria.
The Top 20 wrestlers on the 2022 PWI 500 include:
- Roman Reigns
- Kazuchika Okada
- CM Punk
- Hangman Adam Page
- Bobby Lashley
- Cody Rhodes
- Bryan Danielson
- El Hijo del Vikingo
- Big E
- Jonathan Gresham
- Shingo Takagi
- Jon Moxley
- Matt Cardona
- Josh Alexander
- Hiroshi Tanahashi
- MJF
- Seth Rollins
- Adam Cole
- Kenny Omega
- Drew McIntyre
PWI 500 Criteria & Evaluation Period
The ranking criteria includes:
- In-Ring Achievement: W-L, records, championships and tournaments won
- Influence: Visibility and prestige within a promotion and/or the industry
- Technical Ability: Quality of moves matches, and ring psychology.
- Competition: Success against the most varied and highest quality opponents available.
The evaluation period for the 2022 PWI 500 ran from July 1, 2021-June 30, 2022.
Wrestlers need a minimum of 10 matches during that period to qualify (or 6 matches in separate months).
The 2022 PWI 500 issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated is available now for print preorder at PWI-Online.com The digital edition is available now at pwi.zinioapps.com.
