Cody Rhodes has been recognised for his work by ESPN as 2023 comes to a close.
In a very newsworthy year in professional wrestling, ESPN has named The American Nightmare as Male Wrestler of the Year ahead of Roman Reigns, MJF and Will Ospreay as part of their Pro Wrestling 2023 awards. The winners have been chosen by a panel as opposed to a fan vote.
The Female Wrestler of the Year award went to Rhea Ripley, who was voted ahead of runners-up Iyo Sky and Giulia. The match of the year was a two-way tie, with both matches between Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay at Wrestle Kingdom 17 and AEW Forbidden Door sharing the accolade.
The full list of winners is as follows:
- Male wrestler of the year: Cody Rhodes [Runners-up: Will Ospreay, Roman Reigns and MJF]
- Female wrestler of the year: Rhea Ripley [Runners-up: Giulia and Iyo Sky]
- Tag team of the year: FTR [Runner-up: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn]
- Debut of the year: CM Punk at WWE Survivor Series [Runner-up: Mercedes Mone at Wrestle Kingdom 17]
- Breakthrough wrestler of the year: LA Knight [Runner-up: Swerve Strickland]
- Promo artist of the year: MJF [Runner-up: LA Knight]
- Match of the year: Will Ospreay vs. Kenny Omega. Two-way tie between Wrestle Kingdom 17 and AEW Forbidden Door [Runner-up: Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley at WrestleMania 39]
- Best PPV of the year: WrestleMania 39 [Runner-up: AEW Forbidden Door]
- Best storyline: The Bloodline [Runner-up: MJF and Adam Cole]
Cody Rhodes Names His Top Star Of 2023
With the past year filled with high-quality matches and multiple top stars having breakout performances, it has been harder than in previous years to single out individual wrestlers for their remarkable performances. During a recent interview, Cody Rhodes named who he thinks should the MVP in 2023.
Following a recent live event, Cody Rhodes has admitted that he has been battling illness.