The Wrestling Estate Fantasy Draft: Round 5

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.

The first-round picks can be found here.
The second-round picks can be found here.
The third-round picks can be found here.
The fourth-round picks can be found here.

Anthony Mahalis
World Wrestling Syndicate
Draft Pick #45: The Miz
One of the best heels WWE has to offer and one of the best guys on the mic in the business. Look for a continuation of Bryan/Miz in my promotion. None of these matches will end in 30 seconds. This feud will get the attention it deserves.

Calvin Gibbon
Champagne Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #46: Aleister Black
One of the greatest rebrands by WWE NXT, Aleister Black as the brooding, mysterious, silent killer has become one of the WWE’s future megastars. His mystique is already matching that of the Undertaker. The mood changes when he enters any arena. He’s a deadly striker as well. Champagne Championship Wrestling welcomes him as one of our future champions.

Juan Bautista
Global Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #47: Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis)
A young and great tag team ready to tear it up.

Sam Gladen
Deep South Wrestling
Draft Pick #48: The Briscoes

One of the longest-reigning Tag Team Champions in history, as well as the winningest team in ROH, they bring a ferocity and brutality rarely seen in tag team wrestling.

Steven Jackson
International Association Wrestling
Draft Pick #49: Viper
IAW’s first female pick is arguably the best female wrestler in the world today. Viper brings power, speed and a badass attitude to IAW which will definitely shake things up for the rest of the roster. Also, being one of the most accomplished female wrestlers in the world today, it is only appropriate Viper should perform for the most premier brand in the world…IAW!

Neal Wagner
Anarchy Wrestling
Draft Pick #50: Roman Reigns
(I guess this was one of those “out of sight, out of mind” things that he’s still here.) I understand we are all tired of Roman being the top guy, but that’s because he’s been shoved down our throats for so many years. He will still be featured in top matches, but will be built properly and won’t be World Champion first night in. Imagine him vs. Ciampa or Lethal or in a tag match against the Young Bucks.

Chad Gelfand
Professional Wrestling Association (PWA)
Draft Pick #51: The New Day
What a bargain: 3 for 1! The New Day has been one of the best and most successful factions/tag teams of the last decade and I feel like they’ve only scratched the surface of what they can do. I see singles success in all three of their futures to go along with their tag team prowess. So, that’s why the New Day is a great selection at this point in the draft. They are the true definition of “more bang for your buck.”

Team LeftJab
Gotham Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #52: Hangman Page
A six-time ROH Tag Team Champion, member of the Bullet Club since 2016 and just a badass overall, Page will thrive in the “anything goes” atmosphere of GCW.

Jack Goodwillie
World Series of Wrestling
Draft Pick #53: Kevin Owens
I’m adding another “heel” character to the Las Vegas stable, but really, Kevin Owens is so much more than just another heel. Feuding with El Generico in Ring of Honor and forming SCUM with Jimmy Jacobs and Steve Corino, Kevin was the best heel in wrestling for about a nine-month stretch. He is sarcastic, even at times funny, but a bully to the core, and his ability to transfer from one emotion to the next without a second thought makes him an elite talent. Feuding with Braun Strowman has hurt him, both physically and as far as being over, but I wouldn’t be looking to physically abuse the guy. He would be more of a special attraction whose value as an entertainer could take him far in the Las Vegas climate. Plus, he’s got a vastly different look from some of my other picks, and I put a lot of onus on diversity in 2018 pro wrestling, which is also part of why NXT is such a strong product. Still only 34, I’d like to try and get seven more good years out of Kevin before transitioning him to a utility player role backstage.

Jenna Leigh
Sparkle Female Superstars
Draft Pick #54: Bayley
SWS will do what WWE has consistently failed to do: make Bayley the mega babyface she should be. Every company needs its Hogan/Cena style merch machine “good guy”, and Bayley is finally going to become that.

John Corrigan
SHOOT
Draft Pick #55: Killer Kross
Although he’s a Las Vegas guy, I have to snatch up Killer Kross before Goodwillie gets bored of Adam Cole. A real-life bodyguard for celebrities and musicians, Impact Wrestling’s menacing monster is one dude you don’t want to mess with. His in-ring style will mesh well with the MMA-based mentality of SHOOT. Plus, he’s the most underrated promo in the industry.

The sixth round begins Friday.