This is a list of both active and inactive Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll between Meltzer and his friends and others he corresponded with on the subject of professional wrestling at the time. After starting the Wrestling Observer in 1982, the awards took on a greater life, with an increasing number of awards given out every year.
The awards were created to recognize the individual achievements of a select few wrestlers who exemplified a specified criterion. The awards are given every year in various categories such as Wrestler of the Year, Most Outstanding Wrestler, Tag Team of the Year, Most Improved, Pro Wrestling Match of the Year, etc.; there are also a handful of awards to recognize the dubious distinctions in the business during that year such as Most Overrated and Worst Match. There are currently forty-five categories that are actively assessed every year and twenty that are no longer active. The awards are voted for by the newsletter's paying readership, primarily wrestling fans, although it is claimed that some industry workers also vote.
The awards are organized into two categories. For "Category A" awards, voters indicate their top three choices. First choices are awarded five points, second places three points, and third places two points. The choice with the most points overall wins. For "Category B" awards, voters simply indicate their top choice. For the "Category B" Shad Gaspard/Jon Huber Memorial Award, the recipients are chosen by a committee headed by Meltzer.
Over the years, various MMA promotions or individual mixed martial artists were deemed eligible to win some awards when it seemed as though they were more deserving to win than the conventional wrestler or wrestling promotion. This led to, in 1997, the creation of Shootfighter of the Year and Shoot Match of the Year to recognize MMA achievement specifically. Still, some primarily professional wrestling-focused awards remained intact for MMA promotions/fighters to win, due to the similar business aspect between both sports (i.e. Best Box Office Draw and Promotion of the Year). In the December 3, 2007 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it was announced that from that year onwards, mixed martial artists are no longer eligible for the Lou Thesz/Ric Flair Award, thus reserving it for professional wrestlers only. Shootfighter of the Year was renamed to Most Outstanding Fighter and Shoot Match of the Year was renamed to MMA Match of the Year to match a new award called Mixed Martial Arts Most Valuable, which is similar to the Lou Thesz/Ric Flair Award except it is for mixed martial artists.
Current awards
"Category A" awards
Lou Thesz/Ric Flair Award (Wrestler of the Year)
Year Wrestler Promotion(s)1980Harley RaceNational Wrestling Alliance1981Ric Flair198219831984 1985Jim Crockett Promotions19861987Riki ChoshuNew Japan Pro-WrestlingAll Japan Pro Wrestling1988Akira MaedaUniversal Wrestling Federation1989Ric FlairWorld Championship Wrestling19901991Jumbo TsurutaAll Japan Pro Wrestling1992Ric FlairWorld Wrestling Federation1993Big Van VaderWorld Championship Wrestling1994Toshiaki KawadaAll Japan Pro Wrestling1995Mitsuharu Misawa1996Kenta Kobashi1997Mitsuharu Misawa1998Stone Cold Steve AustinWorld Wrestling Federation1999Mitsuharu MisawaAll Japan Pro Wrestling2000Triple HWorld Wrestling Federation2001Keiji MutoNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2002Kurt AngleWorld Wrestling Entertainment2003Kenta KobashiPro Wrestling Noah200420052006Místico2007John CenaWorld Wrestling Entertainment2008Chris Jericho20092010John Cena2011Hiroshi TanahashiNew Japan Pro-Wrestling201220132014Shinsuke Nakamura2015AJ StylesNew Japan Pro-WrestlingRing of Honor2016WWE2017Kazuchika OkadaNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2018Kenny OmegaNew Japan Pro-WrestlingRing of Honor2019Chris JerichoNew Japan Pro-WrestlingAll Elite Wrestling2020Jon Moxley2021Kenny OmegaAll Elite WrestlingImpact Wrestling2022Jon Moxley All Elite Wrestling 2023Will OspreayNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2024Cody RhodesWWE2025MísticoConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Mixed Martial Arts Most Valuable
Year Fighter Promotion(s)2007Randy CoutureUltimate Fighting Championship2008Brock Lesnar200920102011Georges St-Pierre2012Anderson Silva2013Georges St-Pierre2014Ronda Rousey20152016Conor McGregor2017Georges St-Pierre2018Conor McGregor2019Jorge Masvidal2020Khabib Nurmagomedov2021Kamaru Usman2022Israel Adesanya2023Jon Jones2024Alex Pereira2025Islam Makhachev
Most Outstanding Wrestler
Year Wrestler Promotion1986Ric FlairJim Crockett Promotions19871988Tatsumi FujinamiNew Japan Pro-Wrestling1989Ric FlairWorld Championship Wrestling1990Jushin Thunder LigerNew Japan Pro-Wrestling1991New Japan Pro-WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling19921993Kenta KobashiAll Japan Pro Wrestling19941995Manami ToyotaAll Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling1996Rey Misterio Jr.Extreme Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling1997Mitsuharu MisawaAll Japan Pro Wrestling1998Koji KanemotoNew Japan Pro-Wrestling1999Mitsuharu MisawaAll Japan Pro Wrestling2000Chris BenoitWorld Championship WrestlingWorld Wrestling Federation2001Kurt AngleWorld Wrestling Federation/Entertainment200220032004Chris Benoit2005Samoa JoeRing of HonorTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling2006Bryan Danielson/Daniel BryanRing of Honor200720082009Dragon Gate USARing of Honor2010ChikaraDragon Gate USAEvolveWorld Wrestling Entertainment2011Davey RichardsPro Wrestling GuerrillaRing of Honor2012Hiroshi TanahashiNew Japan Pro-Wrestling20132014AJ StylesNew Japan Pro-WrestlingRing of Honor20152016WWE2017Kazuchika OkadaNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2018Kenny Omega2019Will Ospreay2020Kenny OmegaAll Elite WrestlingLucha Libre AAA Worldwide2021Shingo TakagiNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2022Will Ospreay20232024New Japan Pro-WrestlingAll Elite Wrestling2025Konosuke TakeshitaAll Elite WrestlingNew Japan Pro WrestlingDDT Pro-Wrestling
Most Outstanding Fighter of the Year
Year Fighter Promotion(s)1997Maurice SmithUltimate Fighting Championship1998Frank Shamrock19992000Kazushi SakurabaPride Fighting Championships2001Wanderlei Silva2002Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira2003Randy CoutureUltimate Fighting Championship2004Wanderlei SilvaPride Fighting Championships2005Fedor Emelianenko2006Mirko Filipović2007Quinton JacksonUltimate Fighting Championship2008Georges St-Pierre200920102011Jon Jones2012Anderson Silva2013Cain Velasquez2014Ronda Rousey2015Conor McGregor20162017Demetrious Johnson2018Daniel Cormier2019Israel Adesanya20202021Kamaru Usman2022Alexander Volkanovski2023Islam Makhachev2024Alex Pereira2025Islam Makhachev
Tag Team of the Year
Year Tag Team Promotion(s)1980The Fabulous Freebirds(Terry Gordy and Buddy Roberts)Mid-South WrestlingGeorgia Championship Wrestling1981Jimmy Snuka and Terry GordyAll Japan Pro WrestlingNational Wrestling Alliance1982Stan Hansen and Ole AndersonNational Wrestling Alliance1983Ricky Steamboat and Jay YoungbloodJim Crockett Promotions1984The Road Warriors(Hawk and Animal)American Wrestling AssociationNational Wrestling Alliance1985The British Bulldogs(Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)World Wrestling FederationAll Japan Pro WrestlingStampede Wrestling1986The Midnight Express(Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton)Universal Wrestling Federation1987The Midnight Express(Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane)Universal Wrestling FederationJim Crockett Promotions1988Jim Crockett Promotions1989The Rockers(Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty)World Wrestling Federation1990The Steiner Brothers(Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner)World Championship Wrestling1991Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki KawadaAll Japan Pro Wrestling1992The Miracle Violence Connection(Terry Gordy and Steve Williams)All Japan Pro WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling1993The Hollywood Blonds(Steve Austin and Brian Pillman)World Championship Wrestling1994La Pareja del Terror(Eddy Guerrero and Art Barr)Asistencia Asesoría y Administración1995Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta KobashiAll Japan Pro Wrestling1996Mitsuharu Misawa and Jun Akiyama19971998Shinjiro Otani and Tatsuhito TakaiwaNew Japan Pro-Wrestling1999Kenta Kobashi and Jun AkiyamaAll Japan Pro Wrestling2000Edge and ChristianWorld Wrestling Federation2001 Tencozy (Satoshi Kojima and Hiroyoshi Tenzan)New Japan Pro-Wrestling2002Los Guerreros(Eddie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero)World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment2003Kenta and Naomichi MarufujiPro Wrestling Noah20042005America's Most Wanted(Chris Harris and James Storm)Total Nonstop Action Wrestling2006The Latin American Exchange(Homicide and Hernandez)2007The Briscoe Brothers(Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe)Ring of Honor2008John Morrison and The MizWorld Wrestling Entertainment2009The American Wolves(Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards)Ring of Honor2010The Kings of Wrestling(Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli)2011Bad Intentions(Giant Bernard and Karl Anderson)New Japan Pro-Wrestling2012Bad Influence(Christopher Daniels and Kazarian)Total Nonstop Action Wrestling2013The Shield(Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns)WWE2014The Young Bucks(Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)New Japan Pro-WrestlingPro Wrestling GuerrillaRing of Honor20152016201720182019Lucha Brothers(Pentagón Jr. and Rey Fénix)All Elite WrestlingImpact WrestlingLucha Libre AAA Worldwide2020The Young Bucks(Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)All Elite Wrestling 20212022 FTR(Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood)All Elite WrestlingRing of Honor20232024The Young Bucks(Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)All Elite Wrestling2025
Best on Interviews
Year Performer Promotion(s)1981Lou AlbanoWorld Wrestling FederationRoddy PiperNational Wrestling Alliance198219831984Jimmy HartContinental Wrestling Association1985Jim CornetteMid-South WrestlingWorld Class Championship Wrestling1986Jim Crockett Promotions198719881989Terry FunkWorld Championship Wrestling1990Arn Anderson1991Ric Flair1992World Wrestling Federation1993Jim CornetteSmoky Mountain Wrestling1994Ric FlairWorld Championship Wrestling1995Cactus JackExtreme Championship Wrestling1996Stone Cold Steve AustinWorld Wrestling Federation/Entertainment199719981999The Rock20002001Stone Cold Steve Austin2002Kurt Angle2003Chris Jericho2004Mick FoleyWorld Wrestling EntertainmentHustleRing of Honor2005Eddie GuerreroWorld Wrestling Entertainment2006Mick Foley2007John Cena2008Chris Jericho20092010Chael SonnenUltimate Fighting Championship2011CM PunkWWE20122013Paul Heyman20142015Conor McGregorUltimate Fighting Championship201620172018Daniel BryanWWE2019Chris JerichoAll Elite WrestlingNew Japan Pro-Wrestling2020Eddie KingstonAll Elite Wrestling2021MJF20222023Eddie Kingston2024Drew McIntyreWWE2025"Hangman" Adam PageAll Elite Wrestling
Promotion of the Year Year Promotion1983Jim Crockett Promotions1984New Japan Pro-Wrestling1985All Japan Pro Wrestling1986Mid-South Wrestling/Universal Wrestling Federation1987New Japan Pro-Wrestling19881989Universal Wrestling Federation1990All Japan Pro Wrestling19911992New Japan Pro-Wrestling1993All Japan Pro Wrestling1994Asistencia Asesoría y Administración1995New Japan Pro-Wrestling1996199719981999World Wrestling Federation20002001Pride Fighting Championships200220032004Pro Wrestling Noah20052006Ultimate Fighting Championship200720082009201020112012New Japan Pro-Wrestling20132014201520162017201820192020All Elite Wrestling202120222023WWE20242025Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Best Weekly TV Show