PWI 500

The PWI 500 — 2001

The complete Pro Wrestling Illustrated 500 for 2001 — all five hundred places, as published. Kurt Angle took the number one spot.

PWI 500, 2001 — all 500 places
Rank	Wrestler	GOAT	Evidence
1	Kurt Angle	97.99	Calibrated
2	Steve Austin	99.14	Calibrated
3	Chris Benoit	72.30	Provisional
4	Keiji Mutoh	62.34	Provisional
5	Booker T	95.05	Calibrated
6	Triple H	98.94	Calibrated
7	Scott Steiner	80.36	Provisional
8	Mitsuharu Misawa	66.62	Provisional
9	Chris Jericho	97.96	Calibrated
10	Rhyno	54.12	Provisional
11	The Undertaker	99.38	Calibrated
12	Genichiro Tenryu	54.81	Provisional
13	Lance Storm	55.25	Provisional
14	The Rock	98.95	Calibrated
15	El Hijo del Santo	59.35	Provisional
16	Kane	79.65	Provisional
17	Jeff Hardy	97.49	Calibrated
18	Toshiaki Kawada	58.43	Provisional
19	Diamond Dallas Page	59.87	Provisional
20	Adam Copeland	66.43	Provisional
21	Dr. Wagner Jr.	58.31	Provisional
22	Matt Hardy	69.07	Provisional
23	Minoru Tanaka	53.84	Provisional
24	Jeff Jarrett	64.80	Provisional
25	Jushin Liger	63.16	Provisional
26	Hector Garza	54.54	Provisional
27	Yoshihiro Tajiri	53.48	Provisional
28	Mike Awesome	52.19	Provisional
29	Christian Cage	95.07	Calibrated
30	Buh Buh Ray Dudley	51.31	Provisional
31	Hurricane Helms	51.30	Provisional
32	Albert	50.61	Provisional
33	Nicho El Millonario	51.46	Provisional
34	Kazuyuki Fujita	49.55	Provisional
35	Steve Corino	53.27	Provisional
36	D-Von Dudley	77.80	Provisional
37	Test	52.86	Provisional
38	Billy Kidman	53.02	Provisional
39	Jun Akiyama	58.13	Provisional
40	Hugh Morrus	51.12	Provisional
41	Kensuke Sasaki	58.55	Provisional
42	Chavo Guerrero	55.67	Provisional
43	Sean O'Haire	49.91	Provisional
44	Tokyo Magnum	51.02	Provisional
45	Bradshaw	53.47	Provisional
46	Silver King	52.39	Provisional
47	Shinya Hashimoto	56.16	Provisional
48	Vader	53.26	Provisional
49	Jerry Lynn	54.89	Provisional
50	Eddie Guerrero	98.64	Calibrated
51	Hardcore Holly	51.84	Provisional
52	Yuji Nagata	57.40	Provisional
53	Raven	57.27	Provisional
54	Juventud Guerrera	54.14	Provisional
55	Taiyo Kea	52.83	Provisional
56	Faarooq	51.92	Provisional
57	Sabu	58.98	Provisional
58	Masato Tanaka	54.67	Provisional
59	Rob Van Dam	97.64	Calibrated
60	Chuck Palumbo	51.16	Provisional
61	William Regal	55.80	Provisional
62	Spike Dudley	52.89	Provisional
63	Masa Chono	52.07	Provisional
64	Villano III	50.12	Provisional
65	Christopher Daniels	59.71	Provisional
66	Perry Saturn	51.86	Provisional
67	X-Pac	77.67	Provisional
68	Jinsei Shinzaki	51.28	Provisional
69	Electro Shock	51.29	Provisional
70	Steve Blackman	50.39	Provisional
71	Scott Norton	51.86	Provisional
72	Big Show	60.36	Provisional
73	Shiima Nobunaga	50.37	Provisional
74	Crash Holly	52.42	Provisional
75	Super Delfin	51.79	Provisional
76	Tiger Mask IV	54.77	Provisional
77	Satanico	49.57	Provisional
78	Tommy Dreamer	78.01	Provisional
79	Justin Credible	55.30	Provisional
80	Manabu Nakanishi	53.03	Provisional
81	Bull Buchanan	49.68	Provisional
82	Lance Hoyt	49.79	Provisional
83	Steve Austin	99.14	Calibrated
84	Hiroyoshi Tenzan	56.66	Provisional
85	Satoshi Kojima	57.74	Provisional
86	Grandmaster Sexay	48.70	Provisional
87	Brock Lesnar	99.08	Calibrated
88	Scotty 2 Hotty	51.85	Provisional
89	Atlantis	53.67	Provisional
90	The Goodfather	47.75	Provisional
91	Crowbar	49.38	Provisional
92	Shannon Moore	52.05	Provisional
93	Shinjiro Otani	52.60	Provisional
94	Super Crazy	52.81	Provisional
95	Octagon	52.71	Provisional
96	Chris Candido	53.00	Provisional
97	Rikishi	77.62	Provisional
98	Scott Hall	56.56	Provisional
99	Al Snow	53.13	Provisional
100	Tatsuhito Takaiwa	51.19	Provisional
101	TAKA Michinoku	53.82	Provisional
102	Reckless Youth	50.89	Provisional
103	Sho Funaki	50.67	Provisional
104	La Parka	52.47	Provisional
105	Scoot Andrews	49.96	Provisional
106	Haku	49.25	Provisional
107	The Sandman	51.92	Provisional
108	Naoya Ogawa	51.57	Provisional
109	Negro Casas	54.49	Provisional
110	Rick Steiner	58.59	Provisional
111	Dean Malenko	60.45	Provisional
112	C. W. Anderson	51.49	Provisional
113	Blue Panther	52.50	Provisional
114	Kid Kash	52.05	Provisional
115	Hiro Hase	51.75	Provisional
116	Mike Rotunda	47.08	Provisional
117	Essa Rios	49.16	Provisional
118	Danny Doring	50.58	Provisional
119	Mark Jindrak	50.60	Provisional
120	Ricky Marvin	49.93	Provisional
121	Charlie Haas	54.17	Provisional
122	Akira Taue	52.85	Provisional
123	Shawn Stasiak	50.84	Provisional
124	Joey Matthews	50.13	Provisional
125	Billy Gunn	77.85	Provisional
126	Dick Togo	50.67	Provisional
127	Val Venis	53.90	Provisional
128	Christian York	50.70	Provisional
129	The Great Sasuke	54.76	Provisional
130	Russ Haas	47.58	Provisional
131	K-Kwik	47.09	Provisional
132	Mike Quackenbush	51.44	Provisional
133	Disqo	46.77	Provisional
134	Black Warrior	52.13	Provisional
135	Johnny Smith	50.78	Provisional
136	Amish Roadkill	48.71	Provisional
137	Steven Richards	52.36	Provisional
138	Minoru Fujita	50.39	Provisional
139	Mike Barton	48.80	Provisional
140	Tazz	49.52	Provisional
141	Little Guido Maritato	48.51	Provisional
142	Villano IV	48.91	Provisional
143	2 Cold Scorpio	52.99	Provisional
144	Steve Bradley	49.38	Provisional
145	D-Lo Brown	52.05	Provisional
146	Gedo	51.24	Provisional
147	Nova	49.14	Provisional
148	Chris Kanyon	47.15	Provisional
149	Takehiro Murahama	49.11	Provisional
150	Buff Bagwell	50.65	Provisional
151	Jado	50.49	Provisional
152	Mike Rapada	46.46	Provisional
153	Shelton Benjamin	64.08	Provisional
154	Ultimo Guerrero	59.60	Provisional
155	Villano V	47.75	Provisional
156	Balls Mahoney	51.10	Provisional
157	Shark Boy	50.91	Provisional
158	Gran Hamada	51.21	Provisional
159	Michael Modest	51.07	Provisional
160	Dragon Kid	51.24	Provisional
161	The Blue Boy	47.12	Provisional
162	Kendo Ka Shin	51.94	Provisional
163	Felino	51.95	Provisional
164	Chad Collyer	49.81	Provisional
165	Jerry Lawler	78.48	Provisional
166	Rey Bucanero	53.05	Provisional
167	Mark Henry	78.57	Provisional
168	Evan Karagias	49.22	Provisional
169	Gran Naniwa	49.17	Provisional
170	Low Ki	54.51	Provisional
171	Tarzan Boy	50.11	Provisional
172	Julio Dinero	49.32	Provisional
173	New Jack	51.02	Provisional
174	Simon Diamond	49.61	Provisional
175	The Maestro	47.43	Provisional
176	Donovan Morgan	50.75	Provisional
177	Mr. Niebla	52.79	Provisional
178	Joey Abs	46.95	Provisional
179	Lash LeRoux	48.96	Provisional
180	Gillberg	49.55	Provisional
181	Akira Nogami	50.95	Provisional
182	Nick Dinsmore	50.03	Provisional
183	David Flair	47.97	Provisional
184	Flash	47.05	Provisional
185	Brian Adams	47.82	Provisional
186	Fuerza Guerrera	50.58	Provisional
187	Tatsumi Fujinami	54.14	Provisional
188	Bryan Clark	46.63	Provisional
189	Rico Constantino	48.62	Provisional
190	Mikey Whipwreck	49.52	Provisional
191	Lance Cade	51.09	Provisional
192	El Dandy	48.66	Provisional
193	Dusty Rhodes	99.54	Calibrated
194	Ekmo	47.58	Provisional
195	Air Paris	47.10	Provisional
196	Tony Kozina	49.39	Provisional
197	Kimo	48.27	Provisional
198	Rey Misterio, Jr.	55.61	Provisional
199	AJ Styles	97.33	Calibrated
200	Adam Pearce	52.78	Provisional
201	Jayson Reign	46.43	Provisional
202	Gary Steele	47.00	Provisional
203	Osamu Nishimura	51.25	Provisional
204	El Samurai	50.97	Provisional
205	Michelle Starr	48.56	Provisional
206	American Dragon	50.16	Provisional
207	Gran Apolo	48.76	Provisional
208	Spanky	50.72	Provisional
209	Naomichi Marufuji	54.13	Provisional
210	Jet Jaguar	47.30	Provisional
211	Johnny Moss	47.30	Provisional
212	Jamie Knoble	49.39	Provisional
213	Takao Omori	51.69	Provisional
214	Trailer Park Trash	47.20	Provisional
215	Damien 666	48.69	Provisional
216	Yoshinari Ogawa	50.74	Provisional
217	Randy Orton	97.91	Calibrated
218	Savio Vega	51.84	Provisional
219	Rodrageous	45.39	Provisional
220	Masa Fuchi	45.39	Provisional
221	Tsubasa	46.39	Provisional
222	Emilio Charles Jr.	48.44	Provisional
223	Don Montoya	48.57	Provisional
224	Jason Lee	47.53	Provisional
225	Jim Steele	46.62	Provisional
226	Takuma Sano	48.38	Provisional
227	Ricky Banderas	50.51	Provisional
228	Boyce Legrande	47.71	Provisional
229	Vic Capri	46.00	Provisional
230	John Kronus	50.29	Provisional
231	Samu	50.88	Provisional
232	Halloween	50.27	Provisional
233	Andy Anderson	45.18	Provisional
234	Billy Fives	47.44	Provisional
235	Pete Gas	46.21	Provisional
236	Tom Brandi	49.32	Provisional
237	Jack Dupp	45.88	Provisional
238	Romeo Bliss	46.41	Provisional
239	Shinya Makabe	46.31	Provisional
240	Dr. Cerebro	47.31	Provisional
241	The Messiah	45.80	Provisional
242	Silky Boom Boom	46.38	Provisional
243	Dennis Gregory	47.72	Provisional
244	Beau James	47.82	Provisional
245	Tony Jones	48.44	Provisional
246	Supreme	46.29	Provisional
247	Glen Osbourne	50.88	Provisional
248	Masai Irinara	44.91	Provisional
249	K. C. Thunder	47.85	Provisional
250	Otto Schwanz	47.32	Provisional
251	Vincenzo Massaro	44.88	Provisional
252	Damian Steele	45.67	Provisional
253	Eric Angle	44.88	Provisional
254	Jon Ryan	45.59	Provisional
255	Mike Shane	48.45	Provisional
256	Todd Shane	48.54	Provisional
257	Leviathan	44.78	Provisional
258	Onyx	47.61	Provisional
259	Koji Kanemoto	54.63	Provisional
260	Frank Parker	48.46	Provisional
261	Horace Hogan	46.17	Provisional
262	Eddie Golden	48.02	Provisional
263	J. R. Ryder	47.13	Provisional
264	Major DeBeers	47.87	Provisional
265	King Kong Bundy	49.91	Provisional
266	Mike Sullivan	47.02	Provisional
267	Roger Anderson	47.10	Provisional
268	Vance Nevada	49.01	Provisional
269	Cham Pain	46.72	Provisional
270	Vic Grimes	45.90	Provisional
271	Race Steele	47.31	Provisional
272	Jason Jett	44.57	Provisional
273	Andre Baker	46.69	Provisional
274	Kid Kaos	44.51	Provisional
275	Jag	45.87	Provisional
276	Adam Firestorm	46.72	Provisional
277	Col. Boomer Payne	44.47	Provisional
278	David Young	49.83	Provisional
279	Inferno	45.77	Provisional
280	Jeremy Lopez	46.51	Provisional
281	The Prototype	44.40	Provisional
282	Jason Rumble	46.58	Provisional
283	Corporal Punishment	47.00	Provisional
284	Rob Conway	52.40	Provisional
285	Lex Lovett	47.21	Provisional
286	Matt Stryker	49.28	Provisional
287	Robert Thompson	46.93	Provisional
288	John Rambo	49.82	Provisional
289	Blade Boudreaux	46.41	Provisional
290	Shorty Smalls	46.72	Provisional
291	Mikey Henderson	46.08	Provisional
292	Lenny Lane	47.64	Provisional
293	Trent Acid	47.22	Provisional
294	Pogo The Clown	45.37	Provisional
295	Hotstuff Hernandez	49.34	Provisional
296	Shane Ballard	47.50	Provisional
297	Lodi	45.80	Provisional
298	Shannon Ballard	47.44	Provisional
299	Chris Nelson	46.91	Provisional
300	Steve Sharp	44.10	Provisional
301	J. C. Dazz	44.09	Provisional
302	Jon Heidenreich	48.85	Provisional
303	Kevin Northcutt	48.36	Provisional
304	Chilly Willy	45.81	Provisional
305	Vito DeNucci	46.83	Provisional
306	Steve Boz	46.73	Provisional
307	Jimmy Rave	50.23	Provisional
308	Brandon K.	45.78	Provisional
309	John Phoenix	43.97	Provisional
310	Scottie Wren	45.97	Provisional
311	L. A. Smooth	43.97	Provisional
312	Cody Hawk	49.18	Provisional
313	Naphtali	46.42	Provisional
314	Samoa Joe	96.26	Calibrated
315	Prince Nana	48.06	Provisional
316	Scott Bishop	46.01	Provisional
317	Caprice Coleman	50.35	Provisional
318	Robbie Royce	46.61	Provisional
319	Frankie Kazarian	60.54	Provisional
320	Jason Justice	43.79	Provisional
321	Preston Quinn	46.23	Provisional
322	Qenaan Creed	45.91	Provisional
323	Damaja	50.11	Provisional
324	Matt Murphy	45.27	Provisional
325	J. J. Johnston	45.50	Provisional
326	Quinn Magnum	47.05	Provisional
327	Iceman	46.72	Provisional
328	Rob McBride	46.72	Provisional
329	Rick Deezel	46.74	Provisional
330	Keiji Sakoda	46.10	Provisional
331	Johnny Kashmere	47.44	Provisional
332	Biggie Biggs	47.00	Provisional
333	T. Rantula	50.13	Provisional
334	Mr. Ooh La La	47.46	Provisional
335	Drake Dawson	43.57	Provisional
336	Dean Champion	44.89	Provisional
337	Dusty Wolfe	48.71	Provisional
338	Curtis Thompson	43.56	Provisional
339	Ricky Harrison	44.28	Provisional
340	Ty Street	44.36	Provisional
341	Rico Casanova	46.49	Provisional
342	Lord Zoltan	48.45	Provisional
343	Skull Ganz	45.61	Provisional
344	Rick Fuller	47.20	Provisional
345	Ace Darling	50.27	Provisional
346	Lazz	45.37	Provisional
347	Bart Sawyer	49.70	Provisional
348	Nathan Jones	48.05	Provisional
349	Rory Fox	48.15	Provisional
350	Moondog Molsonn	43.36	Provisional
351	Dr. Luther	46.18	Provisional
352	Boom Boom Comini	44.08	Provisional
353	Dylan Night	44.96	Provisional
354	Stone Mountain	44.06	Provisional
355	Scott D'Amore	49.29	Provisional
356	The Hardkore Kidd	44.06	Provisional
357	Jacey North	46.20	Provisional
358	Rapid Fire Maldonado	45.40	Provisional
359	Vinnie Capelli	43.19	Provisional
360	Seven	48.69	Provisional
361	Shaggy 2 Dope	46.03	Provisional
362	Barry Horowitz	49.82	Provisional
363	Bull Schmidt	45.91	Provisional
364	Ronnie Vegas	45.84	Provisional
365	Moondog Wenzel	43.10	Provisional
366	Afa Jr.	48.54	Provisional
367	Mentallo	45.50	Provisional
368	Sydeswype	44.39	Provisional
369	Bad Boy Basil	43.07	Provisional
370	Terry Allen	45.18	Provisional
371	Cheetah Master	49.31	Provisional
372	Marc Ash	48.48	Provisional
373	Bruiser Bennett	46.53	Provisional
374	The Bruiser	46.03	Provisional
375	Chris Michaels	47.51	Provisional
376	Vince Goodnite	43.86	Provisional
377	Smelly	43.69	Provisional
378	Maxx Justice	46.61	Provisional
379	Judas Young	45.30	Provisional
380	Piranah	45.27	Provisional
381	Trooper Gilmore	42.87	Provisional
382	T. J. Powers	44.67	Provisional
383	John Balsamo	44.69	Provisional
384	Dino Divine	43.58	Provisional
385	Horshu	46.17	Provisional
386	Kidd USA	43.56	Provisional
387	Vince Kaplack	42.77	Provisional
388	Shirley Doe	45.50	Provisional
389	Rich Myers	45.69	Provisional
390	Johnny Spade	47.92	Provisional
391	Bobo Brazil, Jr.	45.00	Provisional
392	Crusher Hansen	44.48	Provisional
393	Juggernaut	46.94	Provisional
394	Darren Dalton	42.67	Provisional
395	The Bouncer	44.78	Provisional
396	J-Rocc	45.10	Provisional
397	Creeping Death	43.46	Provisional
398	Monsta Mack	46.41	Provisional
399	Beau Douglas	43.40	Provisional
400	Mafia	44.68	Provisional
401	Eric Priest	44.56	Provisional
402	Jardi Frantz	44.26	Provisional
403	Robbie Rage	42.50	Provisional
404	Guillotine Legrande	42.50	Provisional
405	Brian Anthony	45.18	Provisional
406	Adam Booker	44.27	Provisional
407	Paul Vault	45.07	Provisional
408	Miyaki Frantz	42.47	Provisional
409	Dapper Dan	42.47	Provisional
410	Steve Southern	45.18	Provisional
411	Masked Maniac	45.92	Provisional
412	Scab	44.18	Provisional
413	Dave Johnson	43.70	Provisional
414	Paul Diamond	47.33	Provisional
415	Zak Mason	42.37	Provisional
416	Kevin Knight	50.94	Provisional
417	Johnny Malibu	42.30	Provisional
418	Poison	43.67	Provisional
419	Major Havoc	46.72	Provisional
420	Bobby Rogers	46.94	Provisional
421	J. T. Lightning	45.42	Provisional
422	David Lee Gilbert	43.00	Provisional
423	Badd Brad	42.21	Provisional
424	Ralph Mosca	44.66	Provisional
425	Persian Prince	44.47	Provisional
426	Chris Krueger	42.97	Provisional
427	Al Savage	43.99	Provisional
428	L. A. Wild One	42.17	Provisional
429	Jeff Roth	42.11	Provisional
430	Danny Rose	44.09	Provisional
431	Sebastian Kane	45.71	Provisional
432	Mozart Fontaine	45.34	Provisional
433	Johnny Graham	48.35	Provisional
434	Earl The Pearl	45.30	Provisional
435	Super Destroyer 2000	42.07	Provisional
436	Guy Williams	42.79	Provisional
437	Boogie Woogie Brown	45.62	Provisional
438	Jeff Hammerick	43.10	Provisional
439	Reverend Slim	41.97	Provisional
440	Bob Evans	47.34	Provisional
441	Ronnie Zukko	43.38	Provisional
442	Shawn Christopher	45.71	Provisional
443	Brian Danzig	45.59	Provisional
444	Seijin Akki	41.90	Provisional
445	The Amazing Red	51.78	Provisional
446	Joey Corman	44.27	Provisional
447	Jake Damien	43.20	Provisional
448	Alex Arion	47.23	Provisional
449	Don Basher	45.63	Provisional
450	Juan Xavier	41.80	Provisional
451	Dave Greco	43.17	Provisional
452	Chic White	41.78	Provisional
453	Metal Maniac	46.09	Provisional
454	Nova Cain	44.17	Provisional
455	The California Kid	43.76	Provisional
456	Joel Maximo	48.48	Provisional
457	Indiana Kidd, Jr.	44.92	Provisional
458	B.J. Whitmer	50.58	Provisional
459	Bob Keller	43.48	Provisional
460	Jose Maximo	48.65	Provisional
461	Jimmy Snuka, Jr.	45.71	Provisional
462	Brody Hawk	41.61	Provisional
463	Austin James	41.60	Provisional
464	Homeless Jimmy	41.60	Provisional
465	Brian Bedlam	42.47	Provisional
466	Mark Mest	46.22	Provisional
467	Flex Fenom	43.27	Provisional
468	Tommy Idol	41.51	Provisional
469	Dave Sherman	41.51	Provisional
470	Jon Douglas	41.50	Provisional
471	Adam Jacobs	43.07	Provisional
472	Rick Noble	41.48	Provisional
473	Rod Bell	43.47	Provisional
474	Jimmie Lee	44.59	Provisional
475	Kyle Storm	42.20	Provisional
476	Benny Stoltzfus	41.41	Provisional
477	Gino Martino	43.79	Provisional
478	Majik	44.67	Provisional
479	Chris Charger	41.38	Provisional
480	Terry Knight	42.11	Provisional
481	Brandon Walker	42.11	Provisional
482	C. B. Cane	42.91	Provisional
483	Japanese Pool Boy	45.28	Provisional
484	Joe Brock	41.30	Provisional
485	Hadrian	43.39	Provisional
486	Ash Parker	41.28	Provisional
487	Bulldozer Benton	42.27	Provisional
488	Ben Galvan	41.22	Provisional
489	Thornn	41.21	Provisional
490	Mack Truck	42.11	Provisional
491	Osiris	41.18	Provisional
492	J. W. Boss	41.18	Provisional
493	The Hussla	41.18	Provisional
494	Jeff Starr	44.20	Provisional
495	Superstar Steve	44.76	Provisional
496	Dango Wynn	41.11	Provisional
497	Sean Royal	43.87	Provisional
498	Supreme Lee Great	44.59	Provisional
499	Bill Mudd	41.09	Provisional
500	Pepper Parks	49.11	Provisional

The PWI 500 is used here as a record of who was visible in a given year, not as a vote on greatness — its density in recent decades is exactly the modern-era bias our own ranking corrects for. Why, in full.

The whole archive, 1991–2025 · The GOAT ranking

This page reproduces a published annual ranking as a matter of record. It is a free, unofficial fan reference — an unofficial fan tribute, made for fun. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to World Wrestling Entertainment, All Elite Wrestling, TNA Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, or any official rights holder of the promotions, championships and performers named.