Pro Wrestling Illustrated
![]() | |
![]() 2014 PWI Year-end Awards cover featuringDaniel Bryan | |
Categories | Sports |
---|---|
Frequency | Monthly |
Publisher | Kappa Publishing Group |
First issue | September 1979 |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Website | www.pwi-online.com |
ISSN | 1043-7576 |
Pro Wrestling Illustrated(PWI) is an Americanprofessional wrestlingmagazinethat was founded in 1979 by publisherStanley Weston.[1]PWIis headquartered inBlue Bell, Pennsylvania,and published byKappa Publishing Group.The magazine is the longest published English language wrestling magazine still in production.PWIpublishes bi-monthly issues and annual special issues such as their "Almanac and Book of Facts". The magazine recognizes various world championships as legitimate, similar toThe Ringin boxing.
PWIis often referred to as an "Apter Mag", named after its long-time photographerBill Apter,a term used for wrestling magazines that keepkayfabe.In recent years,[as of?]thePWIhas moved away from reporting on storylines as actual news and mixed in editorial comments on the behind-the-scenes workings of wrestling.
Since 1991,PWIhas been publishing its annual "Top 500 Wrestlers" listing the top male wrestlers in the world. In 2008, they added an annual "Top 50 Female Wrestlers" list, which was later expanded and renamed to the "Top 100 Female Wrestlers" list in 2018 and then again in 2021 as the "Top 150 Female Wrestlers." In 2020, they added an annual "Top 50 Tag Teams" listing the top tag teams in the world.
History
The first issue ofPro Wrestling Illustrated(PWI) was released in 1979. The magazine soon became known for not breakingkayfabein its articles as it traditionally treated all "angles",or storylines, as real. However, in more recent years the magazine has taken an editorial approach between kayfabe and"shoot"writing, differentiating between on-screen feuds and controversies behind the scenes.PWIis not limited to covering only prominentprofessional wrestling promotions,as it also covers multipleindependent promotionsin theUnited States.PWIalso published other special issues, which included:PWI Wrestling Almanac & Book of Factssince 1996,Women of Wrestling,and a weekly newsletter entitledPWI Weeklyfrom 1989 to 2000.
Yearly awards
PWIhas given out annual awards and recognitions since its inception. These awards had previously been given out by anotherVictory Sports Magazineproperty,Sports Review Wrestling.PWIhas also given out monthly rankings for big promotions, some select independent promotions, and overall rankings in singles and tag teams divisions. Additionally, readers are given the ability to vote for the winners of the year-end awards with ballots being included in special year-end issues. A specialPWI Awards Magazineis issued annually, which reveals winners and the number of votes counted. The following is a list of categories in whichPWIhas issued awards.
- Wrestler of the Year(since 1972)
- Tag Team of the Year(since 1972)
- Match of the Year(since 1972)
- Feud of the Year(since 1986)
- Most Popular Wrestler of the Year(since 1972)
- Most Hated Wrestler of the Year(since 1972)
- Most Improved Wrestler of the Year(since 1978)
- Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year(since 1972)
- Rookie of the Year(since 1972)
- Stanley Weston Award(since 1981)
- Comeback of the Year(since 1992)
- Woman of the Year(1972 to 1976, re-established in 2000)
- Manager of the Year(1972 to 1999)
- Midget Wrestler of the Year(1972 to 1976)
- Announcer of the Year(1977)
World championship status
Historical recognition
Although many wrestling organizations promote their lead title as aworld heavyweight championship,Pro Wrestling Illustrated(PWI) has only recognized a few championships as valid world titles at any one time.PWIhas also generally recognized the main tag team title from any promotion with a recognized world heavyweight championship as being aworld tag team championship(unless named otherwise by the promotion) and certain other select titles from those promotions as world championships.
In 1983,PWIwithdrew world title recognition from theWWF World Heavyweight Championship,citing how championBob Backlundwas not facing contenders from outside theWorld Wrestling Federation(WWF) territory and was only facingrulebreakers.[2]This coincided with the WWF's withdrawal from theNational Wrestling Alliance(NWA) in summer 1983.PWIreinstated the WWF's world title recognition retroactively in 1985[3]on account of the WWF's massive mainstream media profile.
TheAWA World Heavyweight Championshipwas stripped of its world title status in January 1991 when theAmerican Wrestling Association(AWA) was in its final days.[4]By this time, the championship was vacant and would remain so until the promotion's closure.[5]
Until March 1991,PWIand its sister publications steadfastly referred toWorld Championship Wrestling(WCW) as "the NWA" despite WCW having increasingly phased out the latter name in the preceding months. In spring 1991, the family of magazines adopted a new policy of referring to the current promotion and its champions as WCW and the promotion's pre-1991 past as the NWA. The magazine also announced it would refer to the overall history of the promotion'sworld titleas the "NWA/WCW World Championship" (and likewise with other WCW championships).[6]PWIgenerally traced the lineage of the NWA/WCW World Championship back toGeorge Hackenschmidt'stitle victory in 1905,rather than the creation of theNWA Worlds Heavyweight Championshipin 1948.[7]Subsequently, afterRic Flairleft WCW and was stripped of the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in July 1991,PWIand its sister publications nonetheless continued to recognize the WCW title as held byLex Luger,Sting,Vader,andRon Simmonsas the rightful continuation of the historic NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship. WhenMasa Chonowon an NWA world title tournament in Japan in August 1992,PWIand its sister publications only recognized Chono's title as the "NWA Championship" and rejected it as a world title or as a continuation of the historic NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship.[8]
PWIinitially did not recognize theECW World Heavyweight Championshipas a world title but granted the championship and thepromotionworld title status in 1999.
Current recognition
Since 2023,Pro Wrestling Illustrated(PWI) recognizes theWWE Championship,WWE Universal Championship,World Heavyweight Championship,AEW World Championship,Impact World Championship,ROH World Championship,MLW World Heavyweight Championship,andNWA Worlds Heavyweight Championshipfrom theUnited States,theAAA Mega ChampionshipandCMLL World Heavyweight ChampionshipfromMexico,as well as theIWGP World Heavyweight Championship,Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship,World of Stardom Championship,andGHC Heavyweight ChampionshipfromJapanasworld heavyweight championships.[9][10][11][12][13]PWIlater additionally recognized the independent wrestling titles the Independent Wrestling World Championship and the Pan-Afrikan World Diaspora Wrestling Championship as world championships.[14]
List of all recognized world heavyweight championships
According to the annualPWIalmanac,PWIstill recognizes selectworld titlereigns from May 4, 1905 – January 28, 1946, before the formation of theNational Wrestling Alliance(NWA) in July 1948.[citation needed]
Rankings
PWI 500
PWIhas published the list of the top 500 professional wrestlers each year since 1991 in an annual special edition magazine, thePWI 500.PWIwriters choose the position of the wrestler following a designated evaluation period starting from mid-June; anything a wrestler accomplished before or after that period is not considered. They follow a criterion that includes win–loss record, championships won, quality of competition, major feuds, prominence within a wrestler's promotion(s), and overall wrestling ability.[17][18]As of 2023[update],L. A. Parkhas been ranked in the most editions of thePWI 500,with 30 appearances.[19]John CenaandSeth Rollinshave the most appearances at number one, with three. John Cena has the most appearances in the top 10, with 13. In 1993,Miss Texas (Jacqueline Moore)became the first woman to be ranked in the list, at number 249.[20]Since 2008, men and women have had separate lists.
PWI Women's 250
PWIhas published a list of the top female professional wrestlers each year since 2008 in a special edition magazine. As with the list of male professional wrestlers,PWIwriters choose the position of the wrestler following a designated evaluation period starting from mid-June; anything a wrestler accomplished before or after that period is not considered. The list was originally limited to 50 wrestlers and was referred to as theFemale 50.It has since been expanded and renamed, toWomen's 100in 2018 andWomen's 150in 2021. It was expanded and renamed again toWomen's 250in 2023.[54][55]
PWI Tag Team 100
PWIhas published a list of the top tag teams since 2020.PWIwriters ranks the wrestlers following a designated evaluation period starting from October; a minimum of 10 matches or 4 months as a tag team is required.[72][73]The ranking included both male and female tag teams.
References
- ^"About Us".Pro Wrestling Illustrated.Archivedfrom the original on August 7, 2022.RetrievedJune 23,2022.
- ^Item: "Those Samoans Are Tough – Especially The Fourteenth Time!" 1983 Year In Review. Pro Wrestling Illustrated March 1984
- ^""1985... July 2: Pro Wrestling Illustrated reinstates world title recognition for the WWF heavyweight title after more than two years of viewing it as a regional championship." Wrestling History, Pro Wrestling Illustrated Online, retrieved March 14, 2018 ".Archived fromthe originalon September 24, 2015.RetrievedMarch 14,2018.
- ^Pro Wrestling Illustrated strips the AWA of World Title Recognition – Pro Wrestling Illustrated May 1991
- ^"AWA World Heavyweight Title".Archivedfrom the original on February 22, 2011.RetrievedMarch 16,2018.
- ^Editorial, Wrestling '91, Spring 1991 edition
- ^"The NWA was formed in 1948 but the NWA World Heavyweight Championship is traditionally traced back to the World Heavyweight Championship that was created in 1905." = WWF vs NWA: Who's Better? Pro Wrestling Illustrated January 1991
- ^"The NWA World champion became the WCW World champion when the federation changed initials... The initials may have changed, but Ron Simmons wears the same belt (figuratively, at least) in 1992 that Lou Thesz wore in 1952. Given that, Chono cannot be considered the NWA World champion in the historical sense... We'll call him NWA champion because that is the title he won. But this article will be the last time we'll call him NWAWorldchampion "
– "Who Needs The Confusion? Why Reviving The NWA Title Was A Bad Idea."Inside WrestlingDecember 1992 edition, pages 38–41 - ^"The New PWI".Pro Wrestling Illustrated. December 4, 2009. Archived fromthe originalon March 4, 2016.RetrievedAugust 16,2012.
- ^"PWI Will No Longer Recognize TNA World Heavyweight Championship".wrestlingnewsworld.com.Archivedfrom the original on April 4, 2016.RetrievedJuly 27,2016.
- ^@OfficialPWI (April 3, 2020)."For those who are wondering, PWI currently recognizes four championships as legitimate World titles: WWE champions…"(Tweet).RetrievedApril 3,2020– viaTwitter.
- ^PWI (March 6, 2021)."PWI Announces World Title Recognition For Several Promotions In Its Publication".Bodyslam.net.Archivedfrom the original on April 20, 2021.RetrievedMarch 6,2021.
- ^PWI (February 26, 2021)."IMPACT, MLW & ROH Among Championships Given 'World Title' Status By Pro Wrestling Illustrated".Mandatory.com.Archivedfrom the original on February 27, 2021.RetrievedFebruary 26,2021.
- ^IWTV (August 8, 2021)."PWI Recognizes the IWTV & PAWD Titles as World Championships".IWTV.Archivedfrom the original on August 8, 2021.RetrievedAugust 8,2021.
- ^CAGEMATCH."IWTV Independent Wrestling World Championship".CAGEMATCH.Archivedfrom the original on February 3, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 17,2021.
- ^CAGEMATCH."Pan-Afrikan World Diaspora Wrestling World Championship".CAGEMATCH.Archivedfrom the original on September 17, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 17,2021.
- ^"PWI 500: 1–100".Pro Wrestling Illustrated.August 9, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on August 10, 2017.RetrievedAugust 9,2011.
- ^"PWI Senior Writer responds to 'Women's 100' reactions – Diva Dirt".November 7, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on November 13, 2018.RetrievedNovember 12,2018.
- ^"Wrestlers with Most PWI 500 entries".Internet Wrestling Database.RetrievedMarch 31,2023.
- ^Wagner, Brandi (February 9, 2019)."Jackie Moore: Equal Opportunity Ass-Kicker".Last Word on Sports.RetrievedApril 1,2023.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1991".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on November 6, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1992".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 7, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1993".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on December 14, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1994".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 6, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1995".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 25, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1996".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on June 2, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1997".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on June 2, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1998".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 6, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1999".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on July 4, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2000".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 3, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2001".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on June 2, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2002".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 31, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2003".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on June 2, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2004".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 4, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2005".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2009.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2006".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 23, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2007".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on May 4, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2008".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on May 4, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2009".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on July 1, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2010".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on August 8, 2016.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2011".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on August 8, 2016.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2012".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 8, 2016.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2013".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on March 4, 2016.RetrievedAugust 22,2013.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2014".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on November 8, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 26,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2015".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on October 21, 2015.RetrievedOctober 5,2015.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2016".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on July 31, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 1,2016.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2017".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on October 20, 2018.RetrievedAugust 30,2017.
- ^"PWI 500 2018: Kenny Omega is the second straight non-WWE wrestler named #1 in the world".Cageside Seats.August 29, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on August 29, 2018.RetrievedAugust 29,2018.
- ^Lambert, Jeremy (August 29, 2019)."Seth Rollins Tops Annual PWI 500".Fightful.Archivedfrom the original on August 29, 2019.RetrievedAugust 29,2019.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2020".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on November 1, 2020.RetrievedNovember 13,2020.
- ^"Kenny Omega Tops PWI 500 In 2021, Second Time Ranked Number One | Fightful News".www.fightful.com.Archivedfrom the original on September 9, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 8,2021.
- ^"Roman Reigns Tops 2022 PWI 500, Second Time At Number One".www.fightful.com.Archivedfrom the original on September 14, 2022.RetrievedSeptember 14,2022.
- ^"Seth Rollins Tops The 2023 PWI 500, Roman Reigns Places Second; Gunther, Moxley, More Round Out Top 10".www.fightful.com.Archivedfrom the original on September 14, 2022.RetrievedSeptember 14,2023.
- ^"Various News: PWI Female 50 Expanding to 100, Mikey Whipwreck Partners With Indy Promotion".411 Mania.August 9, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on August 13, 2018.RetrievedAugust 9,2018.
- ^"PWI Women's 100 will increase to PWI Women's 150 in 2021".September 13, 2021.Archivedfrom the original on September 21, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 21,2021.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2008".Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 10,2010.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2009".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on January 30, 2017.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2010".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2017.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2011".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2017.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2012".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2017.RetrievedApril 3,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2013".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2017.RetrievedFebruary 16,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2014".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on January 5, 2016.RetrievedDecember 22,2014.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2015".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on December 31, 2015.RetrievedNovember 4,2015.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2016".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on February 22, 2017.RetrievedDecember 13,2016.
- ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Female 50 for 2017".The Internet Wrestling Database.Archivedfrom the original on November 28, 2020.RetrievedNovember 2,2017.
- ^"Various News: Ronda Rousey Tops The PWI Women's 100 List, WWE Free Match, Today's Wrestling Birthdays".411 Mania.Archivedfrom the original on February 4, 2019.RetrievedNovember 1,2018.
- ^"Becky Lynch tops PWI Women's 100 list".Diva Dirt. October 31, 2019. Archived fromthe originalon November 2, 2019.RetrievedOctober 31,2019.
- ^"2020 PWI Women's 100: Top 10 reveal and full ranking details".Bell To Belles.October 15, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on October 18, 2020.RetrievedOctober 15,2020.
- ^"Bianca Belair Tops the PWI Women's Top 150 List".October 21, 2021.Archivedfrom the original on November 2, 2021.RetrievedNovember 2,2021.
- ^Wilkinson, Nick (October 27, 2022)."Syuri Tops 2022 PWI Women's 150 List".diva-dirt.com.Archivedfrom the original on October 27, 2022.RetrievedOctober 27,2022.
- ^Lambert, Jeremy (October 18, 2023)."Rhea Ripley Tops 2023 PWI Women's 250".fightful.com.RetrievedOctober 18,2023.
- ^@OfficialPWI (November 18, 2020)."Criteria: Momentum Wins & Losses Chemistry Activity It Factor Evaluation period: 10/1/19 – 9/30/20"(Tweet) – viaTwitter.
- ^@OfficialPWI (November 18, 2020)."Full cover reveal at 4 p.m. EST. The evaluation period for the PWI #TagTeam50: October 1, 2019 – September 30, 202…"(Tweet) – viaTwitter.
- ^Middleton, Marc (November 18, 2020)."FTR Takes Top Spot On The Inaugural PWI Tag Team 50 List".Wrestling Inc.Archivedfrom the original on April 22, 2021.RetrievedNovember 23,2020.
- ^Martínez, Sebastián (December 2, 2021)."The Young Bucks se afianzan el primer puesto de los Top 50 Tag Team de PWI".Solowrestling.com(in Spanish).Archivedfrom the original on December 2, 2021.RetrievedDecember 2,2021.
- ^Lambert, Jeremy (December 6, 2022)."The Usos Top 2022 PWI Tag Team 100".Fightful.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2022.RetrievedDecember 7,2022.
- ^Russell, Skylar (November 22, 2023)."FTR Tops The 2023 PWI Tag Team 100, Aussie Open, Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn, More Round Out The Top Ten".Fightful.Archivedfrom the original on November 22, 2023.RetrievedNovember 22,2023.
Further reading
- 2005 Pro Wrestling Illustrated Wrestling Almanac & Book of Facts.
External links
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)