2018 was a year of change. From women getting a big push to The Elite and their indie pals striking out on their own with All In, 2018 saw many shifts in the industry as well as a ton of great matches and rivalries.

Taking a look back at the best and worst of 2018 the SLAM! Wrestling brain trust has teamed up to weigh in on a year of change. Agree? Disagree? Let us know.

2018 Honours: Overall Awards

Best Male Wrestler of the Year

A.J. Styles. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Winner: Bryan Danielson. I don’t care if that’s not his official name. The American Dragon is back! And until he retires he will continue to be the best wrestler. Period.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Hiroshi Tanahashi. When many had written him off, Tanahashi reinvented himself and reminded people why he is one of the sport’s all-time greats. His trio of matches with Kazuchika Okada and the G-1 Climax final with Kota Ibushi were among the best of the year.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Kota Ibushi, Tomohiro Ishii, Hiromu Takahashi.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Kenny Omega: Between the ring and behind the curtain, The Cleaner can’t miss in 2018.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: AJ Styles. Though Styles hasn’t necessarily gelled with some of the opponents he had during the year, generally speaking, there’s nobody else I’d rather see wrestle these days than AJ.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Kenny Omega. He continues to outshine anyone in the business.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Seth Rollins, AJ Styles, Kota Ibushi, Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, Velveteen Dream, Tommaso Ciampa and Tetsuya Naito.

 

Best Female Wrestler of the Year

Becky Lynch. Photo Courtesy: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: The Man, of course. Becky Lynch couldn’t be more awesome right now if she was Stone Cold’s tag partner circa WrestleMania XV.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Charlotte Flair. Flair started the year as Smackdown Women’s Champion had a classic match in ending Asuka’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania and had two of WWE’s best main roster matches of the year with Becky Lynch at Evolution and against Lynch and Asuka at TLC.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Jordynne Grace, Becky Lynch, Toni Storm.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Becky Lynch: While she may not have had the claim to the best in-ring year, she was at least in the same ballpark and had one of the hottest women’s angles in WWE history this year. 2018 was the year of The Man.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Becky Lynch. Finally being used right, the last half of the year belonged to The Man.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Tessa Blanchard, Charlotte Flair.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Becky Lynch. Although she is taking her persona a bit too far by getting in the faces of John Cena and others, she has become the Stone Cold of the women’s division.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: Charlotte Flair, Kairi Sane and Shayna Baszler.

Best Canadian Wrestler of the Year (Male)

Kenny Omega
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Winner: Kenny Omega. He finally climbed the top of the NJPW ladder to give the Omega/Okada feud an ending it deserved.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Kenny Omega.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Kenny Omega.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Kenny Omega. With Kevin Owens on the shelf and Bobby Roode being criminally-underused, it really comes down to Omega and Jericho for this one. That said, there are so many great Canadian guys out there on the independent scene that just need some regular TV exposure to really make this a crowded field. Hey, WWE – how about a Canadian tournament as a network special in 2019?

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Chris Jericho.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Kenny Omega. He not only became NJPW champ in 2018 but he gave us some of the greatest matches ever along the way.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Chris Jericho.

 

Best Canadian Wrestler of the Year (female)

Natalya. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Candice LeRae. I just wish NXT would let her shine on her own and not simply be “Johnny Wrestling’s wife”.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Natalya.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Taya Valkyrie. Taya made herself a top player on two of wrestling’s top TV products over 2018.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Natalya. Same comment as above as it relates to Canadians on the independent scene.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Rosemary, Allie.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Natalya. Although she doesn’t get the credit she deserves for being such a stand-up example of how to act in and outside the ring, she is a class act all the way.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Taya Valkyrie.

 

Best Tag Team of the Year

The Revival. Photo Courtesy: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A

 

    • MATT BISHOP: The Young Bucks. Matt and Nick Jackson had classics all around the world in 2018, even jumping from the junior heavyweight division to become IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Golden Lovers, Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong, British Strong Style, Lucha Brothers.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: The Undisputed Era. Talking the talk and walking the walk, Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly, Adam Cole, and Bobby Fish have it all.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: The Revival. Given the chance – and a good mouthpiece – these guys could bring tag team wrestling to 80s-level heights. How cool would it be to have them managed by JJ Dillon and have them become this generation’s Arn and Tully?

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Heavy Machinery.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: The Young Bucks. They continue to be the best in the world at what they do. Their matches and their successful grind day in and day out as documented on their YouTube channel are an inspiration to anyone wanting a career in the business outside of the WWE.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: G.O.D, SCU, The Usos, The Briscoe Brothers, Evil and Sanada, Killer Elite Squad, The Undisputed Era and The Bar.

Best Announcer of the Year

Mauro Ranallo. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Mauro Ranallo.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Kevin Kelly.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Don Callis, Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Kevin Kelly.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Michael Cole. I don’t think he’s ever going to be considered a legendary voice like Jim Ross or Gordon Solie. But when I think of wrestling commentators today, he’s the guy that comes to mind first.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Corey Graves, Don Callis

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Mauro Ranallo. Nobody in the business today puts as much passion into their announcing as Mauro does.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Kevin Kelly and Nigel McGuinness.

 

Best Faction – Stable of the Year

Los Ingobernables de Japon. Photo: New Japan Pro Wrestling.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Los Ingobernables de Japon, NJPW. Even the loss of Tanahashi did little to slow down the awesomeness of LIJ.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Undisputed Era.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Undisputed Era.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Los Ingobernables de Japon. I don’t watch a lot of Japanese stuff, but these guys are fun to watch. Plus, they have some great T-shirts, which is the deciding factor over the Bullet Club (so 2018).

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Bullet Club, Suzuki-gun, Chaos, Ohio vs. Everything.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: Los Ingobernables de Japon. With the breakdown of The Bullet Club, LIJ has taken the mantle working as a strong unit and the addition of Shingo Takagi has only bolstered the faction even further.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Suzuki-gun, The Bullet Club, The Undisputed Era and SCU.

 

Best Non-Wrestler of the Year

William Regal. Photo Courtesy: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Bernard the Business Bear. Don’t @ me with this one!

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Paul Heyman.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Don Callis.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar. Heyman’s hype promos still give me goosebumps. And, while I haven’t confirmed this, his total time in the ring delivering promos is probably longer than Brock’s time in the ring delivering suplexes.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Bobo (cheap pop).

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: William Regal, Baron Corbin, Kurt Angle, Drake Maverick and Paige. Unlike in the past where they were handled and written terribly, all of the WWE GMs have done an extraordinary job of pushing the angles along.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Paul Heyman, Maryse and Shane McMahon.

 

Best Major Promotion of the Year

Photo Courtesy: NJPW.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: NJPW. This is where the best professional wrestling takes place.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: New Japan Pro Wrestling.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: NJPW.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: WWE.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: NJPW. Their matches continue to outshine and surpass any on the planet.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: NXT, Smackdown Live.

 

Best Indie Promotion of the Year

Photo Courtesy: Smash Wrestling.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: NXT, although it is not an indie promotion per se. I constantly wonder if this is what WWE proper will look like once Hunter takes over completely. If so there will never be a promotion to rival it again.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Pro Wrestling Guerilla.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: N/A.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Caveat – I’m limiting this to Ontario independent companies since that’s all I really see. Even then this is tough, since a couple of the companies – Border City Wrestling and Destiny World Wrestling in particular – have working relationships with Impact Wrestling that kind of take them out of the true “independent” category. SMASH Wrestling continues to put on good shows, have good production, and a hard-working promoter/crew.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Greektown Wrestling

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Smash Wrestling.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

Best Wrestling Event – PPV of the year

NXT TakeOver: New Orleans. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: ALL IN. This has to be a given since there has never been anything like this in pro wrestling. The main event was rushed, but it was a great show to introduce the audience to such a wide variety of independent wrestlers.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: NJPW Dominion.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: NXT Takeover: New Orleans, All In, Wrestle Kingdom 12, WWE Evolution.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Wrestle Kingdom 2018.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Hell in a Cell. Notwithstanding the BS non-finish, the show itself was good.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Slammiversary, TLC, Money in the Bank.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: NJPW Dominion.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: NXT TakeOver: New Orleans, WWE Survivor Series, All In, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12, NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn IV.

 

Best Weekly TV Show of the Year
    • MATTHEW ASHER: NXT. And I don’t see this changing any time soon.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: NXT.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: 205 Live.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: RAW and Smackdown.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Impact Wrestling, NXT.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: NXT. Bringing in the new talent has jumpstarted the brand.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Smackdown Live.

 

Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (Male)

Hangman Page. Photo Courtesy: NJPW.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Hangman Page.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Jay White.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Drew McIntyre. His return has been great. With his size and his new-found intensity, it wouldn’t be a stretch to even see him as being the guy to dethrone Brock Lesnar.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Eddie Edwards (he became so much more enjoyable after he snapped and went hardcore).

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Taking nothing away from those mentioned below but Hangman Page. 2018 was his stand-out year as a performer. He went from a mid-card sensation to a main eventer.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Buddy Murphy, Chuckie T., Mustafa Ali, Jay White, Jeff Cobb, Juice Robinson, Toa Henare.

 

Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (Female):

Carmella. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Bianca Belair.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Lacey Evans.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Carmella. It’s not so much that she’s improved in the ring or anything. But seeing her as a goofy babyface hanging out and dancing with R-Truth is just so much fun.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Bianca Belair. Like Hangman she has achieved a lot in 2018 bursting through and becoming a main eventer through all of her hard work.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Lacey Evans, Carmella, Dakota Kai.

 

Most Improved Wrestlers of the Year (Tag Team)

Chuckie T and Beretta. Photo: ROH.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A

 

    • MATT BISHOP: LAX.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Heavy Machinery.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: N/A

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: Best Friends. It may have been just a goofy gimmick at first, however, Chuckie T and Beretta have grown into an accomplished team as their matches during the World Tag League tournament proved.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan, The Forgotten Sons and Street Profits.

 

Match of the Year – Male

AJ Styles versus Samoa Joe. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Okada/Omega IV. 70-plus minutes of wrestling to wrap up an 18-month storyline. Just awesome.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega, NJPW Dominion.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Johnny Gargano (NXT Takeover: Philadelphia), Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taiji Ishimori (NJPW Best of Super Juniors Final), Tomohiro Ishii vs. Kenny Omega (NJPW G-1 Climax), Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW G-1 Climax Final), Golden Lovers vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Will Ospreay (NJPW Road to Tokyo Dome).

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Ishii/Goto, G1 Climax 28, Night Six.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe (Hell in a Cell).

 

    • Honourable Mentions: The Miz vs. Seth Rollins (Backlash).

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Kenny Omega Vs Kazuchika Okada – NJPW Dominion 6.9. Not only one of the best of 2018 but of all time.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 2018. Hiromu Takahashi Vs Taiji Ishimori – NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors XXV. Johnny Gargano Vs Tommaso Ciampa. – NXT Takeover: New Orleans. Andrade “Cien” Almas Vs Johnny Gargano. – NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia. Kenny Omega Vs Chris Jericho. – NJPW WrestleKingdom 12. Daniel Bryan Vs A.J. Styles. – WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders And Chairs ’18.

 

Match of the Year (Female)

Shayna Baszler versus Kari Sane. Photo: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch – WWE Evolution.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega, NJPW Dominion.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Lynch/Flair/Asuka TLC.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair (Survivor Series). The match was very good, but this will likely be remembered for Charlotte Flair snapping and destroying Rousey with a Singapore cane. Loved, loved, loved it.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair (Evolution), Shayna Baszler vs. Kairi Sane (NXT Takeover), Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka (TLC), Women’s Money in the Bank Match (MitB).

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch vs. Asuka – Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match – TLC.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Becky Lynch vs Charlotte Flair – WWE Evolution.

 

Match of the Year (Tag Team)

The Briscoe Brothers. Photo: ROH.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Braun Strowman and Nicholas vs. The Bar at WrestleMania 34. The match itself wasn’t great, but it was cool to see Strowman grab Nicholas from “out of the crowd” for this one.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Golden Lovers vs. Young Bucks – NJPW Strong Style Evolved.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: N/A

 

    • BOB KAPUR: OGZ vs. LAX (Slammiversary). Just a good, old-fashioned fight. How can you not like that?

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: Ladder War – ROH Final Battle 2018. Amazing mayhem from teams that gave everything they had and more that night.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Kyle O’Reilly, Roderick Strong Vs Trent Seven, Tyler Bate – NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4. Kyle O’Reilly, Roderick Strong Vs Danny Burch, Oney Lorcan. – NXT TakeOver: Chicago II. Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson Vs Evil, Sanada – NJPW Dominion 6.9. WarGames – NXT TakeOver: WarGames ’18.

 

Feud of the Year (Male)

Gargano versus Ciampa. Photo Courtesy: WWE.
    • MATTHEW ASHER: Gargano/Ciampa. Curious if they will reunite as an evil DIY now, but those 3 matches they had in NXT were all great.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Tomasso Ciampa vs. Johnny Gargano.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Jay White vs. Okada.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Johnny Gargano vs. Tomasso Ciampa. It’s the first one that came to mind that didn’t involve AJ Styles and Nakamura kicking each other in the groin – meaning it was the only other one that was memorable and didn’t disappoint.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: The Miz Vs Daniel Bryan and Jay White Vs Kazuchika Okada.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: The Bullet Club Vs O.G. Bullet Club, AJ Styles Vs. Samoa Joe, Johnny Gargano Vs. Tommaso Ciampa, Daniel Bryan Vs AJ Styles, Jeff Hardy Vs Randy Orton, AJ Styles Vs Shinsuke Nakamura.

Feud of the Year (Female)

Becky Lynch versus Charlotte Flair Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Becky vs. Rousey. Granted, this one is ongoing but it speaks to the love that Becky has that Charlotte got such a pop after pulverizing Ronda with a kendo stick.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Lynch vs. Charlotte.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair. If these two only wrestled each other forever, I’d be fine with that.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Becky Lynch Vs. Charlotte Flair.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Ronda Rousey Vs Becky Lynch, Ronda Rousey Vs The Authority, Shayna Baszler Vs Kairi Sane, Nia Jax Vs Alexa Bliss.

 

Feud of the Year (Tag Team)

Young Bucks versus Golden Lovers. Photo: NJPW.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Young Bucks vs. Golden Lovers – It only lasted about half a year, but when Jackson forced Kenny to hit the One-Winged Angel on himself to end their tag match, that was something else.

 

    • MATT BISHOP: Undisputed Era vs. British Strong Style.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: N/A.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: OGZ vs. LAX. This went on for a bit too long, but the brawls were fun, the payoff street fight was stellar, and the vignettes – from the car hitting the kid to the council of bosses – were both hilarious and bizarre.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: The Guerrillas of Destiny Vs Evil and Sanada.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: The S.H.I.E.L.D Vs the Dogs of War, The OG Bullet Club Vs Bullet Club.

 

2018 Dishonours

Worst Match of the Year (Male)

Orton had another great year. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Basically anything that Bobby Lashley has been involved in since coming back to WWE.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Brothers of Destruction vs. DX, Crown Jewel.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Randy Orton vs. every opponent. As a reminder, if you want Randy to go away, donate to my GoFundMe – https://ca.gofundme.com/pay-randy-orton-to-leave-wrestling-and-never-come-back

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Braun Strowman and Nicholas Vs Cesaro and Sheamus (WrestleMania 34). What a way to devalue the titles.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: Brock Lesnar Vs Roman Reigns. – Greatest Royal Rumble, Roman Reigns Vs Samoa Joe. – Backlash, Bobby Lashley Vs Sami Zayn. – Money in the Bank.

Worst Match of the Year (Female)

Nia Jax versus Alexa Bliss. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Carmella vs. Charlotte, Backlash.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Ronda Rousey & Natalya vs. Nia Jax & Tamina Snuka.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Nia Jax Vs Alexa Bliss – Backlash.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: Carmella Vs Charlotte Flair, -Backlash, Carmella Vs Asuka, – Money in the Bank.

Worst Feud of the Year (Male)

Styles versus Shinsuke Nakamura. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe or Shinsuke Nakamura – I can’t believe I typed that but WWE did something I thought was impossible, seeing AJ and a few other legendary wrestlers turn in bad performances against each other.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Bully Ray vs. Flip Gordon.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: AJ Styles vs. Nakamura. See above re: kicks to the groin. Could have been epic, so this is really for the lost potential.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: AJ Styles vs. Nakamura. Yup, somehow the WWE managed to screw this up.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Baron Corbin Vs Finn Bálor, Daniel Bryan Vs Big Cass.

 

Worst Feud of the Year (Female)

Nia Jax. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Anything with Nia Jax. Dear lord.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Carmella vs. Charlotte.

 

    • BOB KAPUR Natalya vs. Ruby Riott. Other than the great table spot that Liv Morgan had.

 

  • Honourable Mentions: N/A
  • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Sasha Banks Vs Bayley.
  • Honourable Mentions: The Riott Squad Vs Natalya, Ronda Rousey Vs Alexa Bliss.

Worst Feud of the Year (Tag Team)

Brothers of Destruction versus DX. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: at Crown Jewel. This was a combination of 4 people who should NEVER wrestle again along with a terrible real backstory proving that Vinny Mac really only cares about money.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Lucha House Party vs. The Revival.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: The B-Team vs. Bray Wyatt & Matt Hardy.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: The Bar Vs Braun Strowman.

 

Worst Announcer of the Year

Renee Young. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Jonathan Coachman. Why did WWE bring him back again?

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Jonathan Coachman.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: David Otunga.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Renee Young. For the most part, all she does is riff off what the other announcers say and rarely brings up any insightful or unique points of her own.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: David Otunga.

 

Worst Wrestling Event – PPV of the year

Crown Jewel was a dumpster fire. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: WWE Crown Jewel.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: WWE Crown Jewel.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Greatest Royal Rumble, Crown Jewel.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Crown Jewel

 

  • Honourable Mentions: Backlash 2018, Greatest Royal Rumble 2018, Super Show-Down 2018, Extreme Rules 2018.

Worst Male Wrestler of the Year

Speaking of dumpster fires… Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: Baron Corbin. Please just take him back in the field and put him out of my misery. Constable Corbin was terrible.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Shane McMahon.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Bobby Lashley. Great first name, lousy everything else.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Baron Corbin, Titus O’Neil, Curt Hawkins and the Hype Bros.

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Bray Wyatt. Not his fault but his push has been all over the place. He is such a wasted talent. Honourable mentions go to Bobby Lashley, Bobby Roode, Curt Hawkins and No Way Jose.

 

Worst Female Wrestler of the Year

Alicia Fox. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: N/A.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: Carmella.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Tamina Snuka.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winner: Alicia Fox.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: Bayley, Nia Jax.

 

Worst Tag Team of the Year

Bobby Roode and Chad Gable. Photo: WWE.

 

    • MATTHEW ASHER: The Shield. Hear me out on this one. We never get a true reunion as numerous times two members of the Shield tagged with someone else (in Shield tactical gear) and with Roman out for the foreseeable future this attempt to revitalize the popular group ended terribly.

 

    • NOLAN HOWELL: N/A.

 

    • BOB KAPUR: Winner: Braun Strowman and Nicholas.

 

    • Honourable Mentions: N/A

 

    • JOHN POWELL: Winners: Bobby Roode and Chad Gable.

 

2018 Honours: Federation Awards

Tommaso Ciampa. Photo Courtesy: WWE.

MATTHEW ASHER

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Male): N/A

 

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Female): N/A

 

    • Best Impact Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best NJPW Wrestler: Kazuchika Okada, 700-plus days of holding the NJPW title. Epic matches.

 

    • Best NJPW Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Male): Velveteen Dream. Honorable mention: EC3 and Lars Sullivan.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Female): Kari Sane

 

    • Best NXT Tag Team: Heavy Machinery

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): N/A

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Female): N/A

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler: N/A

 

    • Best ROH Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Male): Daniel Bryan

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Female): Becky Lynch

 

  • Best WWE Wrestler (Tag Team): N/A

MATT BISHOP

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Male): Johnny Impact.

 

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Female): Tessa Blanchard.

 

    • Best Impact Tag Team: LAX.

 

    • Best NJPW Wrestler: Hiroshi Tanahashi.

 

    • Best NJPW Tag Team: The Young Bucks.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Male): Tomasso Ciampa.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Female): Kairi Sane.

 

    • Best NXT Tag Team: Undisputed Era.

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): N/A

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Female): N/A.

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler (Male): Jay Lethal.

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler (Female): Kelly Klein.

 

    • Best ROH Tag Team: SCU.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Male): AJ Styles.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Female): Charlotte Flair.

 

  • Best WWE Wrestler (Tag Team): The Usos.

BOB KAPUR

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Male): Killer Kross.

 

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Female): Tessa Blanchard.

 

    • Best Impact Tag Team: oVe.

 

    • Best NJPW Wrestler: N/A

 

    • Best NJPW Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Male): Johnny Gargano.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Female): Shayna Baszler.

 

    • Best NXT Tag Team: Heavy Machinery.

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): N/A.

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler: N/A

 

    • Best ROH Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Male): AJ Styles.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Female): Becky Lynch.

 

  • Best WWE Wrestler (Tag Team): The Revival.

NOLAN HOWELL

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Male): Austin Aries.

 

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Female): Tessa Blanchard.

 

    • Best Impact Tag Team: N/A.

 

    • Best NJPW Wrestler: Kazuchika Okada

 

    • Best NJPW Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Male): Pete Dunne.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Female): Kairi Sane.

 

    • Best NXT Tag Team: Undisputed Era.

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): Pentagon Dark.

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): Taya.

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler: N/A

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler: N/A

 

    • Best ROH Tag Team: N/A

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Male): Buddy Murphy.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Female): Charlotte Flair.

 

  • Best WWE Wrestler (Tag Team): The Usos.

JOHN POWELL

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Male): N/A.

 

    • Best Impact Wrestler (Female): N/A.

 

    • Best Impact Tag Team: N/A.

 

    • Best NJPW Wrestler: Kenny Omega

 

    • Best NJPW Tag Team: The Young Bucks.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Male): Velveteen Dream.

 

    • Best NXT Wrestler (Female): Kairi Sane.

 

    • Best NXT Tag Team: The Undisputed Era.

 

    • Best Lucha Underground Wrestler (Male): N/A.

 

    • Best ROH Wrestler: Marty Scurll.

 

    • Best ROH Tag Team: The Young Bucks.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Male): AJ Styles.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Female): Becky Lynch.

 

    • Best WWE Wrestler (Tag Team): The Revival.

 

Daniel Bryan’s dream came true in 2018. Photo: WWE.