The Wrestling Estate Fantasy Draft: Round 1

What if all the top wrestling companies in the world got together and said, “let’s blow the whole thing up and start from scratch?”

Eleven companies will then rise from the ashes, having a draft to determine how the best talent in the world will be divided up for the foreseeable future.

The draft will be conducted through email – 12 rounds. As far as the talent pool goes, all active wrestlers are available. Part-timers are usable, semi-retired wrestlers are not. (So Brock Lesnar and John Cena are fair game, Triple H, Undertaker and HBK are not.) For the purposes of this simulation, we will assume Roman Reigns does NOT have leukemia and Joey Janela’s leg is NOT broken. Some wrestlers can be taken as tag teams, but the caveat is that you have to use them in the same match.

At the end of the draft, we will also have a bonus 13th “legends” round, where you can draft one legend to appear on your show in any way you see fit. The only rule here is that the legend has to be in their present-day form, so you can’t get, for instance, Shawn Michaels from 1997. You won’t be able to draft Chris Jericho, though, as he will be able to appear on any of your shows without having to use a draft pick on him, kind of like as he does in real life, almost like a free space in bingo.

At the end of the draft, you will then submit a “2-3 hour” pay-per-view card to show how your talent would work together in your fictional wrestling company. We’ll run Twitter polls to let readers vote on who has the best roster and who created the most entertaining PPV.

Let’s begin!

Anthony Mahalis
World Wrestling Syndicate
Draft Pick #1: Seth Rollins
How much time you got? The man does it all: terrific in-ring performer, really good on the mic, great as a face or heel. I had a real internal debate between Rollins and Styles, but the fact that Rollins is 9 years younger, means he can be the face of my franchise for much longer. The Kingslayer, off the board.

Calvin Gibbon
Champagne Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #2: Kenny Omega
There’s no denying Kenny Omega is one of the greatest wrestlers in the world today. His abilities in the ring are second to none and his global appeal makes him one of the greatest assets to any wrestling company in the world. Like the Imagine Dragons song, Kenny Omega is a natural. Going forward, he’ll be the crown jewel of Champagne Wrestling.

Juan Bautista
Global Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #3: Walter
He is a young, tall, athletic talent. He isn’t your average big man, plus he has the hardest chops in wrestling.

Sam Gladen
Deep South Wrestling
Draft Pick #4: Pentagon Dark
He’s a legend of lucha libre and can hold a crowd like no one else in the world of professional wrestling.

Steven Jackson
International Association Wrestling
Draft Pick #5: AJ Styles
IAW is all about the greatest pro wrestlers in the world, and there are none greater than the “Phenomenal One” AJ Styles. Excellent in the ring and on the mic, AJ is one of a kind and perfect for IAW.

Neal Wagner
Anarchy Wrestling
Draft Pick #6: Jay Lethal
There are many men in wrestling who can tell stories in the ring, but one of the best right now is Lethal. He has stepped it up, whether first or last match, and whether it’s in an Ironman Match or Last Man Standing. In Anarchy, anything can happen and Jay Lethal can do ANYTHING!

Chad Gelfand
Professional Wrestling Association (PWA)
Draft Pick #7: Velveteen Dream
If you’re building a promotion from the ground up, you want your #1 pick to be someone who you think can carry your promotion for the next 10 years. In Velveteen Dream, you have just that. At just 23 years old, you have someone who already has all of the tools, charisma, mic skills and in ring proficiency. The Dream has them all with even more potential to realize. That’s why the Velveteen Dream is PWA’s #1 Pick.

Team LeftJab
Gotham Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #8: Joey Janela
Janela has been on the verge of hitting the big time for a while and he gets the full spotlight here at GCW. An underrated wrestler who is a daredevil and great on the mic, he fits the mold of the promotion with his controversial persona and “anything goes” attitude. Also, the fact that he is from the tristate area and has a cult following here makes him a no brainer for a NY-based promotion.

Jack Goodwillie
World Series of Wrestling
Draft Pick #9: Adam Cole
There’s plenty of talent still left on the board that I’d love to have here, but Adam Cole was my pick from the beginning and really, is there a better fit for pro wrestling in Las Vegas? Cole is so over the top and so sleazy that it’s actually made his current arrogant persona workable as both face and heel. All that said, it’s easy to forget that he originally got himself over with his ring work, but because Adam’s such a student of the game, drawing inspiration from the likes of Shawn Michaels, CM Punk and even Steve Austin, he definitely has a place among wrestling’s most charismatic personalities today. In a first-round pick, you’re looking for both established, proven talent still with much room to grow. Cole is only 29 and his best years may be ahead of him, even though he is already a multi-time RoH World Champion and former NXT North American Champion. But whether he’s an agitator heel or the babyface fans love to affectionately hate, he is now the defacto “Ace” in Las Vegas’ World Series of Wrestling.

Jenna Leigh
Sparkle Female Superstars
Draft Pick #10: Natalya
In building an all-women’s federation, I want a stable, solid female around whom I can build a roster. Natalya has skills and training from the world over, is the first 3rd-generation female in wrestling history, and is one of the longest tenured women in one of the cattiest, most cutthroat companies on earth. Futhermore, Nattie has never been caught in any kind of outside-the-ring scandals (no “leaked” nudes, no “stolen” sex tapes, etc). This makes her a prime choice to be my baby face, charity face and ring general all in one.

John Corrigan
SHOOT
Draft Pick #11: Ronda Rousey
My first pick in our fantasy draft roundtable is my first pick here. Ronda Rousey is the personification of SHOOT, a great representative of UFC as well as WWE. With the publicity that she brings, I can slash the advertising budget and give everybody a raise.

The second round begins Wednesday.