Flips and Fists: Looking Back on 2024

This past year was filled to the brim with notable moments on both the business and wrestling sides of the industry. Finished stories and concluded eras were rounded out by fresh faces emerging from across international waters. One of the best women’s wrestlers of the modern era found a new full time home, while North American wrestling companies signed major deals to either move to new pastures or expanded their offerings altogether.

The year was filled with fantastic moments, emergences of new faces, and a final goodbye to one of the most legendary wrestlers of last 40 years.

Major Stories of 2024

Vince McMahon Fully Resigns from WWE, TKO Board: Five years ago no one could have guessed accurately when McMahon would finally step aside. Even as the product dwindled in quality and became borderline awful, bad, terrible, atrocious and pretty much unwatchable as its stories defied all reason, it became clear if he was left to his own devices McMahon was intent on never leaving. He was contented to drag the company down into the depths of an abyss with no hope of return. Remember that time Finn Balor lost by divine intervention? Yeah. Yet, perhaps to the shock of few, McMahon is an alleged scumbag and was forced out of the company in 2022 following the emergence of various allegations of sexual misconduct and NDA payments totaling around $19.6 million (USD). Despite resigning that June, he returned following a political powerplay to resume control of the company only to sell it to the UFC’s parent company Endeavour, which merged UFC and WWE into TKO Group. As you would expect, McMahon became the executive chairman of the board. Yet, the final nail in his professional coffin came in January 2024 when Janel Grant filed formal charges against him, citing specific acts and instances that led directly to his resignation from the company. McMahon sold off his TKO shares in April to end his association with WWF/E after 50 years. Even more than that, there is no McMahon aside from HHH currently working in the company, which in and of itself feels weird. I think many just assumed some combination of Shane, Stephanie and HHH would run the company after Vince stepped aside, but it’s clear now that was never going to happen as Vince’s own ego kept him from ever being able to let go. Perhaps it contributed to his downfall with a federal probe looming over him, and on a personal level that’s his problem. If he’s guilty, he’s not worth our time and never was. But in the wake of his leaving, WWE has been on an upswing that some could argue has put AEW on its heels and left to figure out what it stands for. The company was never as engaging over the last two decades with Vince at the helm, and it’s fair to say at this juncture he was a cancer to his own company. Even in potentially leaving in disgrace, McMahon’s exit is the best thing that could have happened for WWE’s long term vitality.

Cody Rhodes Finishes the Story: Adrenaline in my soul, something something, Cody Rhodes… Anyway. I’ve talked about Rhodes’ rise to the top and the journey that defined it over the last few years. When I say “I am a day one Cody fan,” I mean it in the purest sense of being a fan of both his dad and brother since the late ’80s, and being happy to see him very early in his WWE career as he teamed with Hardcore Holly. I resumed following him when I came back to watching wrestling full time in 2016, and followed his journey through the indies, ROH, NJPW and later AEW as he won an array of titles, notably his AEW TNT championships, the ROH championship, his IWGP U.S. championship, and the title his father held three times — the NWA championship. Despite that, even as I was kind of lamenting him leaving AEW, something felt right about his return to WWE. Right place, right time, and this past March it was the right moment for him to become the WWE champion. It’s something neither he, Dusty or Dustin ever did, and it’s something that grabbed fans and sucked them into his world amid a perfect mix of the drama surrounding his journey and the triumph over the Bloodline. It’s like when Lex Luger beat Hogan for the WCW title — the time was right, the moment was there and it’s what we wanted as fans. Sure, that got scuttled like five days later so it isn’t a perfect example, but Cody getting his moment felt like a deserved conclusion. It was a moment in time that I would think got to anyone who had followed him regardless of “fan tenure”. Samantha Irvin announced the result as well as anyone could. It was just a perfect moment that as someone who watched him grow, and then his journey outside WWE, was unforgettably perfect.

The Bloodline Saga Explodes: Consequently, Rhodes’ rise to the top sent the Bloodline into a tailspin that resulted in the family entering the War Games cage this past November. Now clearly demarcated between those probably loyal to Dwayne “The Rock Black Adam Red One” Johnson, with Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu and G.o.D. on one side and Roman Reigns, the Usos and Sami Zayn on the other, this conflict is still going strong long past what many assumed would be its end. It would seem Paul Heyman’s baseball analogy is fairly accurate as they’ve continued to find ways to extend its relevancy into its fifth year. It’s been that long since Reigns returned to WWE and claimed the Universal Championship–the beginning of a 1,380 day reign at the top of the company. With more members left still to be added to the mix, specifically the inevitable Reigns vs. Rock blockbuster matchup, while it can’t go on forever, in the meantime it’s still very much the most engaging story WWE has on offer with its blend of history, relevance, character work and the types of matches the group has been regularly executing.

AEW Hits Free Agent Market Big with Mercedes Mone and Okada, Ospreay debuts: A fair argument can be made that the three mentioned above have not made enough of a difference at least in terms of ratings, but I would argue their arrival has been a benefit to AEW. Will Ospreay’s early commitment to joining AEW in late 2023, followed by the debuts of Okada and Mercedes Mone in early 2024 have all paid dividends in specific ways. Where Ospreay is concerned, in terms of pure action in the ring there isn’t a better in-ring performer from an athletic standpoint and he simply has not had a bad match in 2024. Moreover he hasn’t let his foot off the gas. He started off the year in NJPW with a triple threat for the then-U.S. title, a vicious cage match with the Bullet Club War Dogs in February, and then proceeded to have a series of matches against Bryan Danielson, MJF, Swerve Strickland, among many others, in addition to having two great matches with Kyle Fletcher ahead of yet another action packed clash with Okada. To his own credit, Okada has adapted well to U.S. TV with his often comedic character tweak that somewhat calls back to the “balloon era” from a few years ago when his brain broke a little bit. Putting that aside, his run with the Continental title throughout 2024 culminated in a successful tournament defense of the championship in the 2024 edition of the Continental Classic. Perhaps in some respect you could say Okada’s in-ring work hasn’t quite lived up to the hype if you’ve not seen much of him, but I think his matches in the CC should put that to rest. With both being international stars, aside from their ring work, AEW has two marketable talents that can and have helped sell tickets in the U.K. and when/if AEW does a show in Japan Okada will likely be front and centre. The third name in that list has paid off the most in the bigger context of the AEW women’s division. Never mind the pedigree and talent Mercedes Mone brings to the table, the addition of Jennifer Pepperman to AEW has improved the overall quality and direction of the division. The stories feel more organic, the roster members’ appearances often feel purposeful, and holistically there are more stories now in the division than there were a year ago. For a division that has truly struggled where championships are not present, AEW’s women’s division is better off today. Further to that, Mone has been very active in using her name to give the spotlight to talent that had otherwise been less of a consideration for screen time, which has allowed the women’s world title program to breathe at its own pace.

Brand New Era in Wrestling Broadcasts: It was recently announced that Sportsnet was going to begin carrying TNA in Canada, which is kind of a big deal because the company has been almost inaccessible here since it left Spike years ago and was sequestered to its streaming service. Then we have AEW re-upping its WBD deal (and sadly, still on TSN here in Canada) to include HBO Max where it will simulcast its shows and presumably air its PPVs and house its library. Both of those are big deals, but both also shockingly pale in comparison to WWE’s Netflix deal that goes into effect in January. With Netflix we’re talking about an international streaming platform available in 45 languages, in 190 countries, and boasts about 282.7 million subscriptions worldwide. That’s a huge step forward for WWE in terms of the number of potential users who will be able to access WWE content on-demand and live. This is modern content consumption to a tee, and as great as those TNA and AEW deals are for them respectively, WWE’s Netflix deal sets the standard for what a media rights deal can be at a moment where convenience and accessibility are the most important facets of how we choose to consume media. This is a win for all, but with WWE we’re talking about a potential increase in hundreds of millions in their viewer base as opposed to thousands if not a million on a good week. AEW’s Max deal isn’t anything to scoff at, but the comparison is jarringly night and day.

Favourite Moments of 2024

• Cody Rhodes wins the WWE title: I don’t think this needs any more explanation. The epitome of a moment earned.
• Zack Sabre Jr. Secures the IWGP title: ZSJ is one of the best pure technical wrestlers working today. No one quite applies grappling and submission technique like he does, and what makes this valuable to NJPW is he’s one of the few gaijin IWGP champions with seemingly zero intent to work elsewhere full time. He’s worked up and down the card for years in NJPW and he’s someone I’m happy to see on top as he fits the NJPW style perfectly.
• Sting’s Perfect Retirement: There are very few wrestlers I can say I watched longer than Sting. In his case, he was the first non-WWF guy I latched on to. I was a huge Sting fan through the late ’80s and ’90s until WCW’s demise. I kept watching him through TNA, and ultimately his WWE run complete with its gut-wrenching ending against Seth Rollins. His career up to that point could have ended with the WWE Hall of Fame induction. And yet, we got an encore and before we knew what was happening it was showtime once more. Sting’s unbeaten AEW run gave the Icon the send off he deserved on his own terms, an ending fitting of someone who endured generations and stayed relevant through each decade. His retirement alongside Darby Allin, with his sons at ringside, on the backs of the Young Bucks was a great moment fitting his legend. It washed away the sting of his WWE run’s conclusion, and left me with a good feeling that we don’t always get when wrestlers call it a career.

  

• Timeless Toni Storm and the rise of Mariah May as AEW champion: Toni Storm’s “Timeless” character was one of the most engaging wrestling characters of 2024. Storm managed to make her stuff must see through her comedy alone, but then to also adapt her ringwork to be more of a classic style vs. her usual techniques and mannerisms is commendable. Few characters stood out this year the way she did, and it’s to the point where fans are leaning into the joke as she’s moved back toward her more rookie rocker attire and skillset. This all stems from what we assume is a psychological break from not only her losses of the AEW title, but more so the betrayal that came from newcomer Mariah May. I watched May’s entire 2023 run in Stardom, from her arrival alongside Mina Shirakawa to tag team championship glory, through her run in the 5-Star Grand Prix where she had a number of great matches, including a standout match against Giulia in the early stages of the round robin tournament. From a pure wrestling standpoint it’s jarring how much May improved from her arrival in the company in early 2023 to when she joined AEW. She’s a testament to hard work and its value. But what I think really needs noting is her character work opposite Storm, first as her protege and then as a challenger plotting her demise. The rise, fall, rise and fall of the “Timeless” one is synonymous with May’s own rise to the top and how her character work contributed to the story as a whole. I doubt few knew how good May was at the outset, and I doubt many could have guessed how long-lasting Storm’s revised Foley-esque character would be. Regardless what they did this year was among the best parts of AEW, and as someone who quickly became a May fan in 2023 she’s come along nicely in-ring, as a character, and has become one of the better, more original and natural promos in the company. The best part is I think these two could feud almost indefinitely and it could stay relatively fresh.

  

• The emergence of heel Hangman Page, Swerve’s ascension to the top of AEW: Much like above, these two were intertwined throughout the year. The difference between them being their feud involved a double turn that saw Page and Swerve flip flop their face-heel roles in the middle of the feud. Swerve has always been a popular figure even in spite of his villainous actions. That support continued even spite of him invading Page’s home. This all resulted in Page snapping, becoming more cold and dangerous as the reality set upon him that despite his good intentions and AEW-first mentality, the fans simply loved Swerve more. To fight Swerve, Page became Swerve and that manifested in his efforts to ensure Strickland could not win the AEW title, again throughout Swerve’s title run, and finally resorting to his own villainy in “burning down” Swerve’s childhood home. And if that wasn’t enough, their brutal finale (for now) ended in a physical, hard-hitting showdown that culminated with a syringe and a knockout. And even then with Swerve helpless, Page still seemed like he wanted to ensure Swerve was definitely double dead. What’s interesting here, and almost heartbreaking in a way, is that when the medical team descended on the ring to check on Swerve, Page acted like the white hat hero of the story. He acted like he conquered the bad guy, when in fact he became equally stained and tainted through 2024. This feud cemented both at the top of the card for the company, and we definitely haven’t seen the last of these two.
• Liv Morgan finally getting her due with a long title run: Through the pandemic, the more I spent online looking at various wrestling accounts, the more I saw Liv Morgan’s in-ring training videos. The footage was mostly from Natalya’s Dungeon, but in those clips I saw how good she actually was in the ring. She’s another one that has worked hard to cement their place in WWE, and while she did have a short 3 month run in 2022 it felt less earned and cheapened coming out of the Money in the Bank contract match. That isn’t to say all MITB winners are the same, but with her it never felt like she was fully entrusted with the responsibility of being champion. It felt like a matter of time before she would lose, which she did in handing the title back to Ronda Rousey. Her second reign feels like the complete opposite and she’s been allowed to work and develop at a pace that has made her a central part of the program. Clocking in at 217+ days, even if the clock is ticking with Ripley waiting for revenge, this run built out the women’s division beyond the Horsewoman. The division is stronger now with Ripley and Morgan firmly in the mix, and with both still so young this has been a strong year for WWE’s women division.

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  Saya Kamitani finally winning the Red Belt in Stardom: Closing out the year in Stardom, Saya Kamitani won the World of Stardom championship from Tam Nakano. She has become one of my favourite female wrestlers currently working, and if not for Nakano, Giulia, Utami Hayashishita and Syuri being ahead of her over the last several years, combined with her injury in 2023 that paved the way for Maika winning the 5-Star that year, she likely would have already secured a Red Belt run much earlier. Never mind her Stardom title resume, although she is a former Wonder of Stardom champion with a 480 day reign across 15 defences, she consistently tops lists of the best wrestlers in the world. This year saw her turn heel and join the faction H.A.T.E., a complete turn away from her squeaky clean face presentation. Moreover, that she again beat Nakano, whom she beat to become the Wonder of Stardom champion (White Belt), and made Nakano wrap the belt around her waist sets her path into 2025 at the top of Stardom. With her at the top I’m probably resubscribing very soon, and if you have never seen her wrestle, definitely check her out.

• Bryan Danielson enters Wembley to Final Countdown and wins the AEW title: Bryan Danielson’s retirement run felt like a series of punctuational moments where each had gravity, major milestones and were above all among some of the best in 2024. That includes his match with Will Ospreay which is one of my top matches of 2024. It’s his entrance into Wembley though that highlighted the magic of his final run;  his entrance to the stage, the crowd singing along to Europe, and the moments where Swerve ran him down in front of his kids only for Danielson to use his children as a source of strength. The moment he clinched the title was one of the key moments of AEW’s calendar year. It capped off his run with a conclusion befitting his legend with a great opponent who only wanted to brutally end him. That championship win was a great concluding moment that preceded the epilogue that was his decisive, violent loss to Jon Moxley 48 days later. Even in knowing he was never going to go out the same way Sting did, that moment in time in London was about as perfect as possible in wrestling.

Five People to Watch in 2025

• Daniel Garcia: Young champion with a point to prove. Technically skilled and should be a world beater in the midcard until the time comes for him to move on. Really looking forward to what he does in 2025.
• Mariah May: She’s become one of my favourite women’s wrestlers over the last two years. She’s a quick learner, excels because she seems to apply herself, is still evolving and has become a strong character and promo on AEW TV. Much like Garcia, I’m looking forward to her championship run continuing throughout the early part of 2025. Everything she does is worth watching right now.
• Kyle Fletcher: I think of Fletcher in the same vein as Garcia, only with Fletcher I feel like he’s more hype and presentation right now than definitively destined for a major run. He’s a talented guy, great athlete, and is someone I think I maybe underrated when I first started watching him in NJPW alongside Mark Davis as part of Aussie Open. His promos are coming around, and I think he’s definitely evolving in-ring; his matches with Ospreay have been great. And anywhere I think he maybe lacks in terms of selling himself, I think that’s the point behind pairing him with Don Callis. He’s definitely someone to watch, mostly because while I think Garcia is a better bet for a breakout year, Fletcher’s ceiling is much higher and there’s still so much we don’t know about him yet.
• Saya Kamitani: Until this year the one thing you knew for certain with Saya was that she was going to give you amazing matches at an absurd rate. Everything she does is worth watching. Now as a heel Red Belt champion her run in 2025 should be stellar with no shortage of great matchups within Stardom alone, never mind any potential AEW-ROH crossovers. As I said above, Saya is a must watch wrestler who if not for injury would already have been the World of Stardom champion in my opinion. Definitely check her out, her run should be pretty great.
• John Cena: The first thing you might notice here is that Cena is the only person not in their 20s, but I think what we are about to witness in 2025 is worth keeping an eye on. In what is billed as his final year as a WWE performer, Cena’s last run has a multitude of unresolved plot points from the past few years that make what he’s about to embark on interesting. We have so many questions, above all notably whether or not he will break Ric Flair’s world title record. That theme alone should be the overarching plot thread for his year, and within that we should see him in the Royal Rumble, contesting for a title shot in Elimination Chamber, at WrestleMania and in Money in the Bank in an effort to “quick match” himself into a position to win his 17th championship. But in that respect, as a I have argued before, I feel like he should have to struggle as that’s been the hallmark of his career. Hard work and dedication, while living up to his credo. The struggle should be there, and I would argue he should not win it. Nor do I think he wants to. But I think if he can get us to believe he wants it, if we can suspend disbelief for a moment, we could see magic in 2025 amid grace in defeat as he shows respect to the business that made him who he is today.

Happy New Year.

Well, if you’re still here, thank you for reading. I assume some, or all, of what I’ve outlined you might disagree with. Feel free to list your favourites, breakout talent, or people to watch in 2025 down below. One thing I want to do more next year is interact with anyone who does take the time to comment provided it’s fair and respectful. I think we can probably have some good chats here. With that said, I hope everyone has a safe start to their 2025. If you’ve taken any time to read anything I’ve written this past year, or if you remember me from a couple of years ago, thank you for taking the time. It’s very much appreciated. Happy New Year, and take care.