MJF Tops ESPN 30 Under 30 Wrestlers List, Rhea Ripley 2nd
MJF is indeed “Better Than You” as he topped ESPN’s 30 Under 30 wrestlers list to watch out for.
Just like they do 25 under 25 athletes list for MMA and Boxing, ESPN has released its list of 30 wrestlers to watch out for under the age of 30. Reigning AEW World Champion MJF has topped the list. Considered one of the best on the mic currently, MJF became the champion at Full Gear 2022 event and has crossed 250 days as the champion.
Reigning Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley from WWE is in second place on the list. WWE United States Champion Austin Theory, AAA Mega Champion El Hijo Del Vikingo, and NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio complete the top 5. The complete list is as below:
| Rank | Name | Promotion |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MJF | AEW |
| 2 | Rhea Ripley | WWE |
| 3 | Austin Theory | WWE |
| 4 | El Hijo del Vikingo | AAA/AEW |
| 5 | Dominik Mysterio | WWE |
| 6 | Bron Breakker | WWE NXT |
| 7 | Carmelo Hayes | WWE NXT |
| 8 | Konosuke Takeshita | AEW |
| 9 | Liv Morgan | WWE |
| 10 | Logan Paul | WWE |
| 11 | Giulia | NJPW/Stardom |
| 12 | Butch | WWE |
| 13 | Jack Perry | AEW |
| 14 | Wes Lee | WWE NXT |
| 15 | Utami Hayashishita | NJPW/Stardom |
| 16 | Toni Storm | AEW |
| 17 | Dragon Lee | WWE NXT |
| 18 | Bandido | AEW |
| 19 | Jamie Hayter | AEW |
| 20 | Wheeler Yuta | AEW |
| 21 | Kaito Kiyomiya | NOAH |
| 22 | Saya Kamitani | NJPW/Stardom |
| 23 | Yota Tsuji | NJPW |
| 24 | Jordynne Grace | Free Agent |
| 25 | Deonna Purrazzo | IMPACT Wrestling |
| 26 | Ilja Dragunov | WWE NXT |
| 27 | Masha Slamovich | IMPACT Wrestling |
| 28 | Tyler Bate | WWE NXT |
| 29 | Daniel Garcia | AEW |
| 30 | Shota Umino | NJPW |
A total of 12 wrestlers from WWE are on the list, including 6 from NXT. AEW has second more wrestlers in the list with 8. NJPW’s sister promotion Stardom has 3 wrestlers on the list while both NJPW and IMPACT Wrestling each have 2 wrestlers on the list.
| Promotion | Total Wrestlers in List |
|---|---|
| AEW | 8 |
| WWE | 6 |
| WWE NXT | 6 |
| NJPW/Stardom | 3 |
| IMPACT Wrestling | 2 |
| NJPW | 2 |
| NOAH | 1 |
| Free Agent | 1 |
| AAA/AEW | 1 |
ESPN’s article also noted how pro wrestling has thrived after the pandemic with WWE selling out arenas, AEW about to sell out Wembley Stadium, along with CMLL and AAA pulling crowd in Mexico.