2022 continued the tradition of the wrestling manager, with both AEW and WWE running with stables led by excellent managers. AEW especially seemed inundated with stables, each of which appeared to have a mouthpiece of its own. While some manager and wrestler pairings worked, others didn't, and the manager either added nothing to the wrestler they were working with or worse they took away some of the focus from that wrestler.
At their best, wrestling managers can highlight their talents and push the wrestler or wrestlers they are working with into a higher echelon. The best wrestlers this year certainly did this, while others missed their marks.
10 Worst - Maxxine Dupri
By all accounts, the M.M.M stable made up of Mace and Mansoor has been poorly received by wrestling fans. The thing seemed to almost be a disaster from the start when LA Knight was put forth as the mouthpiece for the group as Max Dupri. The group was eventually taken over by Max's kayfabe sister Maxxine, allowing him to leave the group and return to wrestling as LA Knight again. However, rescuing LA Knight from the group is the only positive development that the group has made during its run.
The group hasn't appeared on television in a while, with their last appearance coming in October in a quick loss to New Day on an episode of SmackDown. The group has most recently been feuding with Hit Row on house shows.
9 Best - Zelina Vega
Zelina Vega's credentials as a manager have never been doubted. Vega rose to prominence in WWE managing Andrade Cien Almas in NXT from a middle-of-the-road wrestler to NXT Champion. Vega continued her partnership with Andrade on the main roster and their chemistry together was undoubted. Through the pandemic era, Vega was widely seen as one of the best parts of the product before her untimely release in November 2020.
The WWE would eventually bring Vega back, this time having her work as a wrestler where she won the first-ever Queen of the Ring tournament. Vega suffer an injury that kept her out of action from May to October before returning with a bang. Vega was revealed to be the new manager for a newly promoted Legado Del Fantasma. Given her work with Andrade, there is a lot to look forward to in this partnership heading into 2023.
8 Worst - Jose the Assistant
To be fair, this isn't entirely Jose's fault. Andrade has been unmanageable in AEW and it's not through their lack of trying. So far in Andrade's run, the former NXT and WWE United States Champion has been managed by a revolving door of managers including Vickie Guerrero, Chavo Guerrero Jr, and Jose the Assistant. In regards to Andrade, AEW is hoping to find a Zelina Vega-like manager that can build him up to be a main eventer.
Unfortunately, Jose has had no more success than Vickie and Chavo did before him, and Andrade has seemingly been itching to leave AEW and return to WWE. This could not only reunite Andrade with Vega, but also would see him wrestle under his mentor, Triple H, and his wife Charlotte Flair.
7 Best - MVP
MVP has had an unusual 2022, at the start of the year he was managing Bobby Lashley as the WWE Champion. MVP had taken Lashley from a pairing with Lana and midcard feuds to the top of the card in WWE in 2021. However, since April, MVP's run started to sour after he turned on Lashley to align himself with Omos.
While Lashley looks like a monster and needs a bit of MVP's polish to his presentation, Omos needs more than MVP has to offer. MVP is certainly trying his best with Omos, but fans are not ready to accept Omos as a monster, no matter how hard MVP works to put him over.
6 Worst - Sonjay Dutt
It's hard to know if Sonjay Dutt is the problem in this equation, or simply the talent that he has to work with. Dutt is allied to Jay Lethal and Satnam Singh, and while there is no doubting Lethal's wrestling talent, they both feel held back by Satnam Singh. Singh arrived in AEW after becoming the first Indian drafted to the NBA, despite the fanfare Singh never made a single appearance in the NBA.
Unfortunately for AEW, Singh's in-ring work is as popular as his basketball talents were and fans have reacted poorly to the former basketballer. Singh's work has also taken the shine off Lethal and Dutt, who the AEW crowd would otherwise like.
5 Best - Stokely Hathaway/Malcolm Bivens
Stokely Hathaway started the year as Malcolm Bivens in NXT where he was the head of the Diamond Mine stable which included Roderick Strong, Tyler Rust, and the Creed Brothers. Hathaway was released by WWE after choosing to not sign a contract extension, and at the time claimed that he was done with professional wrestling. Hathaway then made his AEW debut at Double or Nothing, aligning himself with TBS Champion. Since his arrival, Hathaway has found himself aligned with Ethan Page, Lee Moriarty, the Gunn Club, William Morrissey, and MJF.
The new group would be instrumental in helping MJF win the Casino ladder match at All Out 2022, but turned on MJF after he refused to attack Jon Moxley before the Full Gear pay-per-view.
4 Worst - Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Guerrero is another talented manager, stuck leading average talent. After being dumped as Andrade's manager, the first of a string for him, Vickie Guerrero would align with former AEW Women's Champion Nyla Rose.
Unfortunately, even with Vickie Guerrero by her side Rose has been relegated to a lesser talent as the AEW main event scene is dominated by the likes of Britt Baker, Saraya, and Toni Storm. Guerero has also taken on Marina Shafir as a client, who has also been poorly received since making her AEW debut.
3 Best - William Regal
William Regal's work in All Elite Wrestling since joining the company is undoubtedly the best the promotion has seen, outside Arn Anderson's work with Cody Rhodes. It certainly didn't hurt Regal that he found himself aligned with some of the best wrestlers signed to the AEW roster.
As the leader of the Blackpool Combat Club, Regal has worked with Bryan Danielsen, Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta. Regal then turned on Moxley at Full Gear, handing MJF brass knuckles to help him defeat Moxley for the AEW title. MJF then turned on Regal, writing him off television, as rumors circulated that Regal was looking to head back to WWE to work more closely with his son and Triple H.
2 Worst - JBL
In October 2022, Baron Corbin was repackaged again alongside a returning JBL on an episode of Raw. The repackage was Corbin's third second in the space of a year after going from King Corbin to Happy Corbin in 2021. The repackaged gimmick saw Corbin win a few matches with JBL by his side before losing his momentum to Drew McIntyre less than a month later.
The issue is that JBL adds very little to Corbin's overall presence. The issue isn't that Corbin isn't able to heat, he has been a proven heel during his time in WWE, but the constant shuffling of gimmicks seems to be doing more harm than good for his career.
1 Best - Paul Heyman
It is the year 2022, and Paul Heyman is still the king of managers in professional wrestling. While Heyman has had plenty of challengers come for his crown as the best, the Bloodline's Wiseman has once again risen to the top to prove, once again, that he is one of the greatest wrestling managers of all time.
When his career finally comes to an end, it's fair to say that Heyman's stint managing Roman Reigns will be remembered alongside his work with Brock Lesnar by wrestling fans.