MJF Gives His Thoughts On This Year's PWI 500

Far be it from MJF to shy away from controversy, as the AEW star just made "Pro Wrestling Illustrated's" notorious "PWI 500." Maxwell Jacob Friedman came in at #16, ten spots up from his 2021 ranking, and it's for good reason as MJF made a major mark on the ratings for "AEW Dynamite." MJF went on to social media to express his thoughts on this year's list. "'Pro Wrestling Illustrated' hit the nail right on the head," MJF tweeted. "Great job gang!"

The "PWI 500" gives fans plenty of ammunition for debate as to who got snubbed or who got recognized and 2022 is no different. Roman Reigns ranked in at #1 ahead of names like CM Punk, Jon Moxley, Bryan Danielson, and Cody Rhodes. A dark horse favorite to be high up in the rankings was MJF's former Pinnacle teammate Dax Harwood, who put together a wonderful string of singles matches throughout 2022, but the FTR member came in at #101. His tag team partner, Cash Wheeler, however was completely omitted from the list which was noted to be an error on PWI's part (Wheeler was supposed to be ranked around #153, according to PWI Editor-In-Chief, Kevin McElvaney, who apologized for the omission).

Some of MJF"s other colleagues happened to find some successful rankings this year. TNT Champion Wardlow ranked in at #67, while current MLW World Champion Alex Hammerstone, former Dynasty member with MJF, found himself in at #24. Richard Holliday, former MLW World Tag Team Champion with MJF, ranked in at #108 after being a top heel act for MLW. MJF looks poised to rise even higher next year, having recently won the Casino Ladder Match at All Out and earned himself a shot at the AEW World Championship.