5 Best Sellers in WWE Right Now

They say that selling is a lost art in wrestling. I’m here to tell you that’s nonsense, particularly where WWE is concerned. William Regal and Matt Bloom must be showing old VHS tapes of Nicolas Cage’s acting at the Performance Center because most of the talents today can dramatise with the best thespians around.

In short, selling is the act of making a move or strike look like it hurts to preserve kayfabe. There are many famous examples to look back on if you’re still unsure, such as The Rock acting as if his entire family tree had been erased every time he took a Stone Cold Stunner.

Common complaints can be heard about how scripted modern WWE is, which often bleeds into the ring. Many spots can be called from a mile off and patterns in storytelling emerge time and time again, but it’s the little details that inevitably make the biggest impression on the audience. If every match was all about the finishers and the catchy theme tunes, nobody would care.

So, with that in mind, here are some of the best sellers in WWE right now. Who do you think I missed?

 

5. Brock Lesnar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq2QEcbdh6M

“How can Lesnar be a good seller if he never wrestles?” you cry. It’s pretty simple: ever since his return, he has been billed as an unstoppable warrior, a totally intimidating god amongst men – no mean feat considering he has a porksword emblazoned on his chest. Whenever he wrestles, it’s an event and one that he has to put his all into.

So when Lesnar does get hurt, he makes sure he sells it. Few talents can buckle his legs or even look like fazing The Beast, so when Goldberg demolished Lesnar at Survivor Series, it had to appear convincing. The look on Lesnar’s face said more than any flip-flopping around the ring ever could.

But there’s also the criminally underrated match between he and Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 31 to consider. Dominant throughout, Lesnar toyed with Reigns before he was busted open, leading to him been dizzied and falling around the ring after multiple Superman Punches. In those fifteen seconds, Lesnar showed what it looked like when a titan was on the verge of collapse better than anyone else.

 

4. Chad Gable

Remember Chad Gable? Or how about American Alpha in general? Exactly why and how they’ve fallen so quietly to the wayside is another story for another day, but Chad Gable’s potential to become one of the premier talents on the WWE roster should never be undermined.

As the little guy in a dynamic that isn’t too dissimilar to Enzo & Cass (and countless teams in the past), Gable’s job is to absorb all the punishment to heighten the drama leading to the big hoss getting the hot tag and cleaning house. He does it wonderfully, while also providing glimmers of the technical wrestling master he may one day become.

If you want evidence, you need only look to NXT TakeOver: Dallas and American Alpha’s match against The Revival for the NXT Tag Team Championship. Gable was decimated early on before coming back to win the titles after a Grand Amplitude. Magical stuff.

 

3. Dolph Ziggler

Dolph Ziggler may go down as one of the most squandered talents in WWE history when all is said and done in his career, but it certainly won’t be for a want of trying on his part. No matter how big or small the occasion, Ziggler always puts his all into matches, showcased perfectly by how he throws himself around the ring.

Just about toeing the line between selling and overselling -he could probably make an Irish Whip from Hornswoggle look like the deadliest move in all of wrestling- Ziggler excels whenever he’s going through a face program. While his heel work is usually good, it’s as the plucky underdog where he really shines, making every superkick look like it was delivered by an angered horse with an aversion to pink shorts.

A good example is when he was the sole survivor vs. Team Authority at Survivor Series 2014, but the absolute pinnacle of Ziggler selling came at Payback 2013 during a match with Alberto del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship. With Ziggler coming back from a concussion, each and every strike from del Rio looked deadly and incredibly real, which also led to one of the best double turns in WWE history. If anyone ever derides Ziggler’s talent, show them this match.

 

2. Sami Zayn

Ever since he stepped foot in WWE, Sami Zayn has been booked as the perennial underdog. Perhaps this is just a mixture of cynicism and wishful thinking, but it looks like Zayn is being manufactured as the next Daniel Bryan. He made his name in the indies, doesn’t exactly fit the traditional WWE mold, and always goes up against bigger opponents.

Even if he’s been involved in losing efforts all too often, it’s worth remembering that sometimes wrestlers need to lose. Along with Tye Dillinger, he’s made a name from being the loser who never gives up, no matter how many times he is ragdolled around the ring. We might moan when he loses, but it just makes the victories that much sweeter.

His program with Braun Strowman was the perfect showing of what Zayn is about in terms of selling. All of the jobbers in the world couldn’t get Strowman over as a top heel in such a short time as Zayn did, helped by how he made the Monster Among Men look like just that. If you want a more measured showcase of Zayn’s selling talent, check out his more measured bout with Nakamura. Both guys sold their asses off throughout, but Zayn made the hype for Nakamura seem well-earned by allowing the former NJPW star to show how talented not just through sheer force. Even though the two didn’t share a word before the match, the story told in the ring said enough.

 

1. Johnny Gargano

Before his time in WWE, the artist formerly known as Johnny Wrestling was known for putting on great matches while also showing off his funny side. Rather than going full-tilt on that and packaging him as a comedy act of sorts, WWE instead played up to his dramatism and helped him become the best seller in the company today.

As part of DIY with Tommaso Ciampa, Gargano would play a similar role to the aforementioned Gable but with the selling turned up to eleven, particularly in any matches involving The Revival. Gargano’s eyes glazing over after looking like he might have been killed is a well-established routine, but not one that ever gets old. Without Gargano selling like the fledgling Broadway performer that he is, DIY would have never become so beloved.

You probably noticed that I’m referring to DIY in the past tense, and that’s because of Ciampa’s recent betrayal at NXT TakeOver: Chicago. As well as taking a sickening ladder blow to the head during the match, the way Gargano sold the turn in the aftermath no doubt contributed to the “fuck you, Ciampa” chants and showed just how underrated he is as a seller.

After being mercilessly beaten down by his friend, a confused and distraught Gargano almost pitifully clawed at Ciampa for help. One of the most chilling and upsetting scenes you will see in WWE this year.