Renee Paquette Is "Torn" Over Her 2021 Male Wrestler Of The Year Pick
In an appearance at the Sportskeeda Wrestling Awards, Renee Paquette was asked to name who she thought was the male Wrestler of the Year for 2021.
Renee Paquette named both AEW star Bryan Danielson and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns as the two best candidates before ultimately choosing Danielson. She explained it was due to both his wrestling and that the Bryan Danielson we're seeing now is the best version of him.
"I'm torn between Roman Reigns and Bryan Danielson," Paquette said. "I think what Roman has been able to do in terms of interest in that big, blockbuster name, you want to see what he's going to do, I like character growth and development. Roman Reigns has been incredible to watch. Whoever he happens to be in a storyline with, I think he's been so cool to watch and you can really feel him as sort of the standard-bearer pillar of WWE. He is that guy.
"And I know we've been told he's that guy for a long time, but he is that guy right now. But now on the other side, you've got somebody like Bryan Danielson and I think when you're talking professional wrestling, and not to take away the entertainment side of things, he's fantastic at that as well, but when you're talking just professional wrestling alone, he is the guy that everybody else looks to for inspiration.
"He's a guy they look to see how holds are done, the different moves that he's doing. And the fact that he showed up in AEW, that was another one that really blew people's minds. I think everyone was like 'is this happening? I this actually going to happen? We think it's going to happen, but we're not sure if it's actually going to happen.'
"So the fact that it did, and we get to see Bryan Danielson, the best version of him. You know, I think from all the things he's been able to learn throughout his career from the independent scene to working for WWE and now being back. Taking all of those tools and just getting to be the best version of himself, like, we are so lucky that we get to watch this and witness this and be a part of this. The matches that him and Hangman have been able to have together were insane. So male wrestler of the year, I'm gonna give it to Bryan Danielson."
As for who Renee Paquette thought was the best babyface in 2021, she gave the nod to close friend and former WWE Champion Big E. Praising him as both a performer and a person, Paquette stated that it was almost impossible for anyone to dislike Big E.
"Big E all day, every day," Paquette said. "That's my guy. Big E with his championship run was incredible. He's also just an exceptional human being. He's an exceptional human being, he's an exceptional professional wrestler. I thought he was an absolutely outstanding champion. I loved him at the tippy top of that company.
"I think that that's exactly where he belongs. In terms of like a big man that can move, that's oddly flexible, he's so great. He's so entertaining, he's so charming, he's just that guy that everybody roots for. Nobody goes 'ah, Big E is not really for me. I'm not a Big E guy.' Nobody says that. Literally, those words don't exist."
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