The Wrestling Estate Fantasy Draft: Round 12

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.
The fifth-round picks can be found here.
The sixth-round picks can be found here.

The seventh-round picks can be found here.

The eighth-round picks can be found here.

The ninth-round picks can be found here.

The 10^th-round picks can be found here.

The 11th-round picks can be found here.

John Corrigan
SHOOT
Draft Pick #122: Shelton Benjamin
Admittedly, an odd final choice. If this draft was 15 years ago, then Shelton Benjamin goes within the first five rounds, no doubt. But since his return to WWE in 2017, the former Intercontinental, U.S. and Tag Team Champion has shown plenty of promise with few results. At 43 years old, perhaps his best days are behind him. I disagree, though, believing the two-time South Carolina state high school heavyweight wrestling champion (not to mention a helluva run at the University of Minnesota) has more left in the tank.

Jenna Leigh
Sparkle Female Superstars
Draft Pick #123: Sienna

Jack Goodwillie
World Series of Wrestling
Draft Pick #124: War Raiders
Well, it’s about time I took an actual tag team, huh? Tag teams in this draft are what tight ends are to fantasy football. It’s a great utility to have an elite one, but if you can juuust wait til the end of your draft, there’s bound to be a massive value pick there. Enter the War Raiders. Or War Beards as I call them. Formerly War Machine. Whatever you wanna call them, Hanson and Rowe are unusual talents. The narrative on all these modern “big men” is how mobile they are. They’ve been saying it since Umaga, and regardless of just how mobile said big man is, that’s the narrative! They used it for Brodus Clay for God’s sakes! But these guys really do fit that bill and while Hanson seems to get a little more rub as a future singles star, Ray Rowe is certainly no slouch either. These guys were the stars of that War Games match, yet I’ve also seen them work with the Young Bucks, so the versatility is there to be a fit in World Series of Wrestling. The only question for me now is do I make them the champs right out of the gate? Or do I roll the dice with Ziggler and Pillman?

Team LeftJab
Gotham Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #125: Psycho Clown
A good fit for Gotham Championship Wrestling. He has a unique style that will stand out among the other wrestlers and a sick look to go with it.

Chad Gelfand
Professional Wrestling Association (PWA)
Draft Pick #126: The Street Profits
Now I made this selection mostly for Montez Ford, but the Street Profits are developing into a really good, charismatic tag team so I don’t want to break them up just yet. I definitely see Montez Ford as the breakout of the group, though. Ford is charismatic, insanely athletic and constantly improving in the ring, so I think that there’s a chance that he could develop into one of my top guys. Shout out to Angelo Dawkins, though, I’m sure we’ll find a role for you when The Street Profits eventually go their separate ways.

Neal Wagner
Anarchy Wrestling
Draft Pick #127: Mike Kanellis (with Maria)
Michael Bennett (the way it should be) has been largely underutilized in WWE. It’s a damn insult that he’s on 205 Live and not in IC-level title contention. He has a look, the athleticism, charisma and Maria as a heater to help elevate him. I’m not looking to bring the “power of love” to Anarchy, but no doubt I love my last pick!

Steven Jackson
International Association Wrestling
Draft Pick #128: Kobra Moon
Every corner of the globe is covered as part of the IAW philosophy and Kobra Moon representing South America is the final piece of the global jigsaw. A successful and charismatic female luchador, Kobra Moon innovates and recreates the female style for all involved in IAW!

Sam Gladen
Deep South Wrestling
Draft Pick #129: Dragon Lee
DSW is full of young blood as we are rounded out by Dragon Lee, a young man with a Cody Rhodes-esque relationship with Mexican wrestling. The Son of Comandante Pierroth and the little brother of Místico and RUSH, the current CMLL World Lightweight Champion is an absolute sleeper this late in the draft.

Juan Bautista
Global Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #130: Martin Kirby
It’s always a blast watching him. He can be a cocky heel or a smarky babyface. He also has the most underrated theme in all of wrestling.

Calvin Gibbon
Champagne Championship Wrestling
Draft Pick #131: Kairi Sane
She’s a multiple time Stardom Champion, a two-time NXT Women’s Champion and the winner of the Mae Young Classic. The Pirate Princess has all the style and glamour that we look for in Champagne Championship Wrestling. But it’s her ferocious in-ring style that makes her the perfect fit.

Anthony Mahalis
World Wrestling Syndicate
Draft Pick #132: Zack Ryder
For no other reason than to provide some entertainment. He has in-ring ability, but he has a great presence about him, that’s what I am taking a chance on.

The legends round will begin shortly.