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As the year comes to a close, we at SK Wrestling will be looking back at the year from a pro wrestling perspective. We will be bringing you year-end lists from WWE, AEW, and beyond, to round off what's been the most unique year in wrestling.
Even though nobody will think of 2020 as a glorious year in sports-entertainment history, primarily because of the absence of fans, more than one WWE Superstar stepped up and reminded us why he is at the top of the industry's food chain.
In this list, we shall look at the 5 game-changers from WWE in the year 2020. As always, feel free to disagree with the assessment expressed in this article because it's just one person's opinion and nothing more.
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#5 WWE SmackDown Superstar Jey Uso
Jimmy Uso suffered a legitimate injury at WrestleMania this year, and many assumed that it would mean that Jey Uso would be on the shelf for the rest of 2020 too, as a result.
However, Jey Uso was offered a chance to work at the top of the card as a singles competitor in the 'Tribal Chief' storyline with his cousin, Roman Reigns, and he proved to the world why he's the breakout star, this year. The decision to pick this WWE star ahead of Sami Zayn and even Braun Strowman may be controversial, but who's had a better year than Jey Uso? The matches with Roman Reigns were great, and they were different, rooted in emotion.
WWE, for their part, protected Jey Uso in the best manner they could as well, allowing him to defeat big names such as Kevin Owens and Daniel Bryan. One has to wonder if his push will continue in 2021 too.
#4 WWE RAW star Randy Orton
Randy Orton has always been one of the top heels in WWE, through out his illustrious career, but he really came into his own, in the year 2020, battling against Edge in WrestleMania and beyond.
WWE asked Randy Orton and Edge to go out there and have the 'greatest wrestling match of all time,' and they came very close to it with a contest that just went back and forth. Randy Orton also became the name that WWE legends fear, as he adopted his 'Legend Killer' gimmick again, having excellent segments with the likes of Ric Flair, Christian, and others.
Randy Orton would even become the WWE Champion, defeating Drew McIntyre at Hell in a Cell 2020, in what was a solid match.
The Viper has had many great years in the WWE roster thus far, but one just has to look at him and just admit that there's been something different about him in the year 2020, where he's just embraced the heel in him and stepped up like never before.
#3 WWE RAW Superstar Bray Wyatt
Another controversial pick, because Bray Wyatt's year began on a sour note. WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg would end his streak and kill a lot of the mystique that was associated with The Fiend's character.
Not to be deterred, The Fiend would thrive during the pandemic, having a Firefly Funhouse match against John Cena at WrestleMania, that pretty much ushered in a brand new era in wrestling. Following this, Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman would engage in the weirdest (in a good way) rivalry of the year, at the end of which WWE Superstar Alexa Bliss would become allied with Bray Wyatt.
The alliance with Alexa Bliss has just seemed to breathe new life into Bray Wyatt, and the Firefly Funhouse segments with the puppets and The Goddess are unlike anything we have seen in WWE history. The fact that Bray Wyatt is just going after everyone that wronged him adds a new layer to his character and makes him one of the most compelling figures in all of television.
#2 WWE RAW Superstar Drew McIntyre
It is said, maybe unfairly at times, that WWE does not build new stars anymore. Drew McIntyre is an exception to the rule because The Scottish Psychopath becoming the face of the WWE RAW brand has been organic, it has been natural, and it has been long overdue. Unfortunately, the WWE Universe was not in attendance to see him become the WWE Champion at WrestleMania, but that aside, can anyone complain about his booking?
Drew McIntyre looks like a star, carries himself like a star, and has been a great ambassador for the company in one of the toughest periods of its existence. One has to imagine that when crowds are back in the arenas again, the roar for him will be massive. Despite his size, he is an incredible worker and has been an amazing Champion thus far.
Drew McIntyre's road to the top in WWE has been paved with obstacles and challenges but he has surmounted them all. 2020 has been a bad year for some, but a good one for this particular Scotsman.
#1 WWE SmackDown Superstar Roman Reigns
It's funny to think that the top pick from SK Wrestling for 'Male WWE Superstar of the year 2020' missed his match at WrestleMania. Perhaps that was the best thing for him, because he returned with a very different kind of attitude to WWE, as a Paul Heyman guy.
Many believe that the current version of Roman Reigns that we see today, the Tribal Chief is significantly better than all of the versions that have preceded this, be it the Shield version and especially the babyface version that nobody wanted.
WWE does not always get it right, but they are being very careful with Roman Reigns and one has to believe that Paul Heyman has a big say backstage in the manner in which The Tribal Chief is being currently booked. Many have been full of praise about the manner in which Roman Reigns is being booked, and The Undertaker is one such person.
Who would your top 5 male performers of the year be, from WWE RAW and SmackDown? Please sound off below.
