Power Ranking the Most Impressive Strikers in WWE Today

Style and savagery merge when WWE Superstars demonstrate where the art of striking is today.

Roman Reigns emulates Superman as he swings his fists. Daniel Bryan and Cesaro add a European flair to their uppercuts. Hideo Itami makes every kick, knee strike or chop to the chest a can't-miss moment.

Strikes need not simply be setups for bigger moves. They can be their own highlights when men like these issue them.

Undertaker is nicknamed "The Best Pure Striker in the Sports-Entertainment History." With his career now limited to sporadic appearances and with Triple H's punches only coming a few times a year, this list looks to name an heir to those kings of clobbering.

To rank the best strikers on the current roster, we gauge the speed, intensity and realism of each Superstar's punches, kicks, forearms, knees and chops. Adding memorable elements or creativity to any of these moves helps push one up the rankings. 

Versatility is a big bonus. A wrestler excelling at one strike struggles to compete with someone who has a whole stock of high-quality weapons.

Honorable Mention

• Paige
• Kane
• Seth Rollins

Paige is the Diva division's best striker. She brings an aggression not normally seen from the women on the roster.

Her knee shots to an opponent tied up in the ropes is an eye-catching move, although how hard she delivers the blows varies. She issues the most impressive forearms and kicks of the Divas as well.

It's hard, though, to compete with men like Bad News Barrett, for example. While he's allowed to whack his opponents with a devastating Bull Hammer, Paige is working in a different environment altogether, one not nearly as violent.

Kane's uppercut alone gets him consideration here. It is the perfect pro wrestling punch—realistic, lightning-fast, with a touch of theatrics.

His striking arsenal is limited compared to his peers, however. Other than that go-to uppercut, he doesn't use punches or kicks that are especially noteworthy.

Seth Rollins isn't known for his punches. It's his enzuigiri and flying knee strikes that get him a mention.

Like all of his moves, they are fun to watch. They are more electric than intense, though. Other men specialize in brutality.

7. Bad News Barrett

Brawling has long been key to Bad News Barrett's success. 

With as much as he punishes his enemies with hard shots, that's not a surprise. He also has a background in bare-knuckle boxing. That history, though, hasn't translated into him being the best striker around.

Other wrestlers either hit harder or do a masterful job of convincing us that they do.

He employs a back kick to his opponent's gut, a hammering knee lift and his trusty elbow smash to finish foes off. He delivers all of these with intensity but not on the level of someone like Bray Wyatt.

His strikes all hover around the B+ mark. The bruisers above him have some A-level weapons in their offense.

6. Bray Wyatt

Like his offense overall, Bray Wyatt's strikes are hard-hitting, high-intensity and force the crowd to react.

His hands are dangerous weapons. Wyatt-issued punches, forearms and elbows are nasty. He clubs his foes with a brutal in-ring style.

There is plenty of showmanship to his craft as well. Flying at his opponent before he cracks him with a forearm, for example, adds to his striking game and pushes him past Bad News Barrett on this list.

It's the kicking side of the equation that denies him a higher ranking. WWE's best strikers are just as devastating with a boot as they are with a fist. Wyatt isn't nearly as dynamic a kicker as his peers. 

5. Cesaro

Kicks aren't Cesaro's specialty either. During his WWE run, he has relied more on mat wrestling, sheer power and his forearms. 

Still, his dropkick and (now rarely used) Bicycle Kick are more impressive than Bray Wyatt's kicking game.

It's mostly Cesaro's European Uppercut that lands him a spot here. Nobody pounds his opponents with such dazzling power as he does when he rears back and hits that trademark punch of his. It's not often a wrestler can get the crowd to get that loud with just a punch.

The uppercut looks like it hurts and is mighty fun to watch. He also employs a pop-up version to add gravity to the mix.

WWE's best strikers have a bigger variety of weapons than Cesaro, though. While The Swiss Superman is plenty skilled to master that part of the game if he wished, he spends more of his matches showing off his technical skills.  

4. Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns may draw comparisons to John Cena for a variety of reasons, but he is miles ahead of the former WWE champ in terms of striking.

Cena's punches are limp. Reigns, meanwhile, puts a roaring energy into every blow he delivers. There are both strength and showmanship in his moves too.

He has made the Superman punch a spectacular move and almost always makes the impact look realistic. He throws flair on the dropkick as well, using a unique basement version of the move outside the ring. 

In general, his strikes are exciting, highlights of his match rather than filler.

More versatile strikers pass him up on the list, though. A man like Hideo Itami has an overflowing toolbox from which he can pull out any number of weapons to whack his opponents with.

3. Hideo Itami

When he was still known as Kenta, Hideo Itami told Renee Young of what to expect from him: "My style is kick."

That's an apt description. So much of Itami's offense is made up of great kicks. He hits the best roundhouse in WWE right now. He flies at his foes with a number of dropkick variants.

Even after toning down his kicks to suit the WWE style, they are still hard-hitting, still gasp-inducing.

Add to that his skill at using his knees, how quickly he fires his strikes and how loud his chops are, and it's easy to slide Itami up to this point in the rankings. His punching is really good as well but can't compete with the two top strikers.

His flurry of slaps is not the fearsome weapon that Sheamus' Beats of the Bodhran or Daniel Bryan's elbow strikes are. 

2. Daniel Bryan

In many ways, Daniel Bryan is the Bret Hart of his generation. Everything he does in the ring is marked by an impressive precision. And he executes it all consistently.

That is just as true for Bryan's mat work as it is his strikes.

When he has an opponent reeling, he attacks him with picture-perfect right hands to the temple. They are showy and violent at the same time.

His move set also includes masterful versions of the European uppercut, elbow strikes to the head, a high knee and a discus elbow smash.

It's Bryan's kicks, though, that truly push him up this list. Whether he is flying at an opponent with a front dropkick or simply pounding his chest red with his boots, Bryan sucks the crowd in.

The blows are hard. His passion is obvious.

But if Bryan's strikes are hammers, Sheamus' are sledgehammers. The Celtic Warrior outdoes him in terms of power. 

1. Sheamus

Once a wrestler learns that he has to face Sheamus, it would be smart to go ahead and order some ice packs and Tylenol. He has built his career on pounding folks into the mat.

With as great as the Irishman is at inflicting punishment this way, it's no wonder he so often turns to striking during his bouts.

Sheamus rams his knees into his foes' guts. He weakens them with punches and then drums on their chests with mighty forearms. 

And Sheamus has managed to turn the Brogue Kick into a work of art. He executes it quickly and with great intensity, much like his other strikes.

That jaw-dropping move alone gets him into this discussion; putting brute force and enthralling energy into his other strikes like no one else gets him the top spot.