We are dangerously close to VP100 ballot deadlines. Every year with these sort of lists, I get stuck on who are My Guys. The wrestlers that regardless of where you place them on your list you feel deep down they should probably do better than they will. When the list starts rolling, your heart sinks a little when they place so many placements before you have them on the big list. There are a few others I would consider in consideration but these are My Guys for the 2023 VP100.

SUBMIT YOUR BALLOT ASAP

Adam Priest

pic.twitter.com/zErUYgdXq3

— PRIEST (@Adam_Priest_) March 10, 2024

The best indie wrestler in the country. The label used to carry more weight when you had wrestlers like Bryan Danielson, Roderick Strong, and Chris Hero roaming the land. In the year of our lord, 2024, the competition isn’t quite as stiff even if there are a handful of wrestlers I think could have found success in previous eras. Adam Priest is maybe the only wrestler I feel confident would have not only been able to hang, he would have been near the top of the heap.

His run-in ACTION is where the bulk of his case lies. Gets to be the commanding champion for most of the year. Mixes in MOTYCs with the best matches some younger wrestlers have had at that point. Or heck, he’s also capable of bringing HOOT of the Year caliber performances. Can do it all. As time goes on the match with Henry is going to age like wine, I feel that in my bones. Sick bumps have a way of not losing value and despite being a match with two who lean a little more on the “Bryan Danielson Award” versus the “Bruiser Brody Award”, Priest particularly gives himself the business.

He’s not a one promotion wrestler though. My thought on him being #1 on the indies would probably still be there for just the ACTION work but he’s like an onion, he has layers. Priest also became a guy you could bring into your territory and have a good match with anyone. Whether the crowd knew him or not, put him against a babyface and that wrestler will be more over than when he started the match. I keep thinking about the Dezmond Cole match from Remarkable. This is not meant to be a slight to Cole but I haven’t loved his work, Priest goes the extra mile to make sure that this dead crowd is fully in it for Cole.

This is not a “has huge potential” type ranking. Priest has the resume. I also happen to think that if AEW picked him up tomorrow he could be a key piece in that company near immediately. In a promotion with some of the best wrestlers of all time, Priest could immediately show up as a top 10 guy in the promotion.

Recommended Watches

• vs. Anthony Henry (ACTION1/20/23)
• vs. Daniel Makabe (ACTION 4/28/23)
• vs. Dezmond Cole (Remarkable 12/9/23)

Soberano Jr.

My #1 luchadore with a bullet. In my favorite style, he is operating at the highest wrestler despite not being truly gifted at the matwork that often draws me into the style. 

That doesn’t matter because Soberano Jr. takes his skillset and makes it malleable. CMLL is a promotion predicated on dozens and dozens of combinations of trios matches. When you have enough good workers in a match, you often get something good. You would think other promotions would pick up on how easy that is but alas, promoters are dumb. Whether Soberarno Jr. is in there with flashy youngsters, emotionally charged technicos, or more rugged rudos, Soberano constantly keeps things interesting. 

No matter which moral compass he aligns with at the time, his brand of athletic wrestling plays well. When I commented once on how I was sort of taken aback on well he can make his flying work as a rudo, a couple folks responded with “Yeah, him working a cocky angle really sells it”. That isn’t quite it. So many cocky heels, the “I am the best and I know” types, succumb to their need to be loved. Playing to the crowd is too important to them to let those moments slip away. Being over by any means necessary is what seems to be important for lesser wrestlers. And they realize going big and bombastic provides far less friction than a consistent character.

CMLL wrestlers rank in the week-to-week work but it was the December match against Atlantis Jr. that locked him high up my ballot. It was a match that crystallized all of my thoughts on him as a wrestler. It did the same for Atantis Jr. who I’m also very high on. Atlantis Jr. provides an emotional core, whether it be a trios or a big-time singles like this, the more he gets to weigh in, the more impactful a match can feel. Not every trios match allows him to be that anchor though, tending to be slightly more disposable. 

This match was anything but disposable though. Soberano Jr. had the perfect dance partner to show his understanding of his rudo character. Honestly, he doesn’t have this arsenal of incredible spots, a throwback in a way, but he does everything with such conviction that all his moves are far more awe-inspiring. With Atlantis Jr, he gets to show it all off without suffering from what could have turned into a moves barrage.

For Soberarno Jr., I believe the only thing in his way is the dastardly anti-lucha bias of folks.

Recommended Watches

• vs. Templario (CMLL 1/6/23)
• w/ Templario vs. Averno & Mistico (CMLL 2/17/23)
• vs. Atlantis Jr. (CMLL 12/22/23)

Kylon King

Workers that primarily function as tag workers always have a hard time on these lists. Usually because of the proximity of one another, unless there is a large body of singles work, the team gets lumped together. When you judge one wrestler’s work you essentially have to judge the other in kind. 

That’s a bummer. There is far more work you can do to differentiate two workers even if they both have the same star ratings on your spreadsheet. Contrary to what the numbers say, each wrestler’s contribution is not equal. And this is not attempting to turn into a Dustin Waller hate section. I think Dustin is a fine wrestler who is certainly contributing to what Miracle Generation does. But sometimes when you are a super athlete who doesn’t mind bumping big, you can’t help but outshine those around you. That’s precisely where Kylon King has found himself.

I try not to rank on potential. The matches are the matches, the work is the work. Even if I think if Kylon King got an extended singles run he would light the world on fire that doesn’t mean I can rate him based on an idea. Sure, he gets to take a few swings as a singles but that’s not where the math lies. To be clear, I have no issues rating a tag guy high, the opposite, but sometimes that is what appears to be best for the wrestler at hand.

His biggest pros is that he can do all the moves and make them look sick as hell. Him and Takeshita frankly share a lot of the same wrestling DNA. Can do the most unbelievable stuff with such conviction that it never breaks the illusion.

All that though and he still doesn’t have the typical resume. Miracle Generation has a bog standard formula that you can plug a ton of different types of teams in. High floor, low ceiling type stuff. King isn’t someone who is getting taken for a ride but he’s also only giving you glimmers of something better, something with a little more pizzazz. Ultimately that holds him back from rising the pack of other indie wrestlers I’m high on.

Recommended Watches

• w/ Dustin Waller vs. Kevin Ku & Dominic Garrini (Beyond Wrestling 2/26/23)
• w/ Dustin Waller vs. Bojack & Diego Hill (ETU 12/16/23)
• w/ Dustin Waller vs. Cheech & Colin Delaney (Wild Zero 11/12/23)