Joey Janela

[4.0] "He was given an early AEW roster position and ultimately left it. Given Tony Khan's predilection for keeping people, and how rare it is for someone to actually leave AEW, it raises questions about his in-ring performance. He's essentially stuck in GCW now as a wrestler who really doesn't seem to stand out from the crowd, and who focuses more on shocking flips than a credible gimmick or in-ring ability."

[3.0] "I want to see Janela do well, but there comes a point when a nearly 40-year-old man still doing the Jersey party-frat-boy gimmick stops looking rebellious and starts looking like someone who simply never evolved. Speaking of his work, that hasn't evolved much either. The sloppy execution, the dangerous landings, and the reckless disregard he seems to have for his own neck and everyone else's have reached the point where some of his matches are difficult to watch for all the wrong reasons. There's a difference between being fearless and being reckless, and Janela crossed that line a long time ago. What makes it even more baffling is that he apparently looks at Brett Lauderdale and John Zandig as great mentors. From the outside, it looks less like mentorship and more like an echo chamber encouraging Janela to double down on everything that has kept him stuck in the same corner of wrestling. Maybe everyone around him keeps telling him that one more insane match, one more dangerous bump, or one more viral clip will somehow punch his ticket back to AEW. I'll bet my 401(k) that it won't. Janela can keep believing that doing more of what he's doing now will eventually get him back there, but if this is his audition for another run with a major televised promotion, he's demonstrating exactly why one isn't calling. At some point, reinventing yourself requires actually changing something. You can't spend years running in circles and call it a comeback, especially when the greater wrestling community believes you killed Sabu."

[7.0] "I had him locked in the back of my mind, just stopping by to give him his dues while I watch him fight Brodie Lee Jr. If I gave a weighted average of his last 100 ratable singles matches, I'd have the average of 49 matches that average 14 votes each and those wouldn't go back to a match I've seen in full. His last 100 *rated* singles matches don't go back that far, either. Must be an IWC thing. So, his career rated singles matches, numbering 179, weighted toward his more popular matches, average 6.6/10. I remember enjoying his shenanigans in AEW, definitely now understand why he was given as much of a push as he had in AEW, he's a very consistent performer, lots of fun, lots of willingness to get weird. If he showed back up in AEW he would be a confusing presence, but I'd be happy to see him. Probably worth more as a sum greater than his countless parts, but from my perspective, he's just a solid guy."

[8.0] "Honestly very surprised by his low average-rating: Janela never holds back, no matter whether he wrestles in front of a crowd of 200 or 2000 people. Puts over talent, wrestles a 14-year old kid for 30 minutes and delivers a MOTYC, is very creative, produces shows... He may have said and done controversial things I don't know about, but given I'm mainly on this platform to rate his wrestling ability above all, Joey Janela is one of the most underrated wrestlers I've seen. Barely heard anything positive about him at all in 2025 and 2026, yet, he's consistently been part of the best, or 2nd best matches on nearly all cards I've seen him wrestle."

"Janela is what every fan hopes to be. An independent superstar doing 100% his own thing. It was cool when he got signed but his talent fits better on the indies. Cool and creative guy."

[8.0] "The real king of the Indies. Always a joy to watch in the ring, can always have a good match with anyone, even a 14 year old. Just a guy who knows how to actually be a pro-wrestler."

[9.0] "Lot of highlights from Janela matches, huge hardcore guy and you can always count on weapons and big spots, his matches with kenny omega and jon moxley are both big features from his time in AEW, check them out"

[10.0] "Truly one of the most influential independent wrestlers of all time. Deserves his flowers. Can wrestle literally any style while also cutting promos with the best of them. Makes any show he's on more exciting. Most haters literally only hate him because Cornette told them to do so."

[9.0] "It's really sad someone like Cornette with a huge platform and audience has sicked his fans onto Joey for not fitting into his narrow band of what a wrestler should be. Janela is the true blue bonafide KING of the indies in the modern day. He doesn't have the best body or wrestle 5 star classics but this guy is a business genius, he knows his audience better than they know themselves and is always ready to deliver for them. In some ways he's a bigger draw than more overrated acts in WWE because he does it without a billion dollar juggernaut behind him. He has put a ton of money into hard working wrestlers wallets over the years and for that I appreciate him greatly. Just a true character and a deeply underappreciated wrestling mind that has made his mark on pro-wrestling forever."

[8.0] "He is a great deathmatch wrestler that is always willing to put his body on the line. He is a fairly good in ring performer and his promos are fairly good but nothing to special."

[5.0] "Joey is not a TV wrestler, and that's okay. He's the kind of wrestler who is meant to tour and wrestle in front of live audiences. He isn't the best character nor is he the best wrestler, but he always brings fun to whatever city he visits. I am a huge fan of Joey, but he's someone I like watching in person once a year. I don't need to see any more of them than the once a year I see him, and that's totally okay. He's an attraction wrestler, in that he'll probably do some really cool hardcore shit for you when he comes to your town. I wouldn't mind seeing him get some one-off opportunities in AEW or TNA here and there. His matches with Jon Moxley, Hangman Page, Darby & Havoc, and Kenny Omega are proof that he can give you a great match. Some wrestlers are meant for touring, and for people to see them when they come to town, and some are meant for everyone to watch them weekly on TV. Joey is the former, and that's not a bad thing. He knows what he's good at, and he knows what he's not good at. He never pretends to be something he's not, and I love that about him."

[5.0] "Great bumper but quite a boring deathmatch wrestler who doesn't bring a whole lot of unique wrestling"

[4.0] "Don't get it at all. He's not a total scrub I just find him so vanilla and so boring. I find him more interesting as a person just talking about wrestling than I find him interesting as a wrestler. Even seeing what people consider to be his best matches, I'm completely lost at what gives him any appeal. I give him credit for what he's willing to put his body through for the love of wrestling in all of his deathmatches, but I just don't get it with this guy."

[10.0] "A guy who put GCW on his back and made it the biggest indie in the world. Forget what the haters say. You don't start the most popular independent show of Wrestlemania weekend and get a spot on All In and be one of the first signees to AEW because you suck. Joey can sell tickets, so who cares if he's not Zack Sabre Jr. I can't wait to see him and Tanaka in January."

[2.0] "Joey Janela is somebody who is 1000% aware that wrestling is often silly and ridiculous, and having somebody to a meta character based off of that is not entirely a bad thing. HOWEVER When you are basically doing that your entire career and just put on horrible to decent matches that are packed full of meaningless nonsense, it really does detract from everything you're doing as well as everybody else in the business. I do not like being mean, but I don't understand how Janela was seen as such a big and important star in the world of wrestling. Dude was signed to AEW on day one for pete's sake. I don't get it"

[9.0] "Super over on the indies despite what his detractors say. Great entrance and vibe. Tailor made for the indies. One of the most creative wrestlers out there. Always down for a crazy bump and is often the most memorable part of the show. His Kavinsky theme is one of the most iconic themes on the indies the last decade."

[7.0] "More of a fit for the indies with crazier spot matches and bumps. His in-ring action is good, but his matches can lack psychology. He can get over with a crowd and talk on the mic. He can be comedic at times but can also have more serious matches. His AEW run proves that while he excels on the indies he might not fit in at larger promotions."

[3.0] "He's the sort of wrestler that will be in a match where he opponents works a body parts for 6-7 mins, but then not sell that damage at any other point in the match. He also takes huge bumps that make him look good for taking them instead of making his opponent look good for giving them. Whether he wins or loses has no connection to the match he just wrestled. Avoid his matches."

[10.0] "Janela is the king of the independents. I've seen him live a number of times and he always puts on a great show. Watch Janela vs. JT Dunn from GCW's first show in Providence. Janela is one of the busiest travelers currently working the indies. He's put on stellar matches for GCW, DDT, BZW, WSW, etc. all in the past year or so. Hoping to see him beat Blake Christian for the GCW World Championship. Janela deserves it."

[8.0] "I mean this in the nicest way possible - Joey is built to be an indie wrestler. He thrives when it comes to having creative freedom and having longer, chaotic matches not stunted by ad breaks. He's not perfect, but I genuinely feel like he's always "must-see" and will give you your moneys worth every time."

[9.0] "One of my favorites easily. One of the most creative minds and a deeply underrated worker. I don't get when people say he's all gimmick, he's spent 2022 having numerous 20+ minute barnburners. His match with Speedball Bailey is one of my favorites of the year so far. As far as I'm concerned, if you don't like Joey, you don't like wrestling."

[8.0] "Anyone that rates Joey low is out to lunch. This cat is so talented & versatile. One of the very best unsigned talents in the world. He can do it all. Whether it is straight up wrestling brawling hardcore high flying deathmatch it does not matter. Joey can do it & do it well!"

"From what I remember, he's a solid wrestler that got a lot of praise for protecting his opponents from injury. There's a certain layer to his cadence that just seems off in terms of personality..."

[8.0] "Good worker, great at the deathmatch style. Definitely gets too much hate for someone who does his job pretty well. Very funny as well. Wished he did more In aew but alas the past is the past and you gotta move on. Glad hes still doing stuff in the indies and GCW"

[4.0] "Janela is your typical crash dummy, he's just there because he likes to do dumb stuff, like being thrown off a roof into a car. He's also the guy who get in the ring to fight an invisible man, and also the one who lights his own footh on fire to kick his opponent. In other words, he is not good..."

[1.0] "As much as people love to complain about the WWE system, at least there is professionalism and order there. True it might all be about the money and appealing to the target demographics, but at least there is polish. Joey Janela is the antithesis of professional. The guy has heart and spirit, give him that. But does he have the business mind and willingness to improve himself? Does he want to put in the work to round out his skill-set and be the big dog? No. He's a goofy goober, and there are no signs of the goofy goober facial expressions ever stopping anytime soon. We're talking about him sure, but it isn't for the right reasons. The comedy bits fall flat, the bodily harm is just depressing, an overall bummer. 1.8/10 for Joey Janela. A wrestler strictly for the reddit.com community."

[9.0] "Reinventing himself after leaving AEW, Joey Janela likes to make sure people are talking about him by doing a great job in the ring. Very happy to have the opportunity to see him wrestle at BodyZoï Wresting in Belgium, this is the style Europe needed to make wrestling more famous."

[9.0] "this guy is amazing. I saw them twice in Belgium the first time against MBM it was a crazy match 40min of pure happiness and the 2nd time against Aigle a more classic match but as great and now he is champion in Belgium so can't wait to see him again soon here"

[7.0] "Wow he went downhill after AEW. I like Janela but christ is he inconsistent, he's got a great character and can work when he wants too, but he's kinda lazy. He's not in the best shape but he's not like Mean Mitch Page, people are kinda weird about his image and I dont think that's ok."

[5.0] "A decent wrestler has some great skills but some of his matches lack what he has, he holds back on many occasions and instead goes for the comedy approach in wrestling while on other occasions this dude has all the skills to go far in a major promotion if he drops the comedy act he will become a massive star in tna, wwe, aew or nwa."

[6.0] "Joey Janela represents the best and worst of indie wrestling. Spot fests, comedy, death matches, huge social media presence, wrestling in every continent, eternal hatred from Jim Cornette, the occasional actually serious match? If you're looking for a guy who has done it all, look no further. While I can't say I'm a big fan, I'd be lying if I said I never found him entertaining. The "big leagues" weren't and will never be a good fit for him, but maybe that's okay for him"

[5.0] "Difficult for me to rate. Did some decent promo and character work in AEW...and he had some good matches when paired up with high level partners. But seems like a free spirit who just needs to roam the world and do crazy shit until the day he injures himself too badly to continue. I have nothing against the "mudshow" type of wrestling, and he's clearly built a career on it, even though it isn't really for me. Certainly his career potential has peaked however."

[7.0] "Joey Janela is back to being who he should be - a globe-trotting indy sleazeball dabbling in all styles of the sport. In 2022 alone he's been doing his thing in the US, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Belgium, and Australia, had plenty of matches with established, high-level workers, done some deathmatches, been a part of some strange and goofy stuff, maintains a presence on social media + the microphone, and is a competent promoter. Weekly US TV is a a cage for Joey, he doesn't belong there. He's a weird wild animal who needs to roam."

"I would definitely pound White Claws with Joey Janella while doing donuts in the Buc-ees parking lot."

[2.0] "Not very good. His character only works when doing dumb over the top stunts and nobody would ever talk about him if not for those dumb stunts. He is just an attention seeker and not a good pro wrestler."

"His time in AEW and his teaming with Sonny Kiss left much to be desired, but he's not a horrible wrestler. I just don't think AEW was the right company for him. In fact, I don't think any major company is. Janela should just stay on the indies, where he should be. It's not that he doesn't deserve to be in the major companies. They just don't suit him."

[4.0] "Just very very very average. Not spectacular in the ring and his character is alright, albeit a little annoying at times."

"I think the sheer number of haters in the comments should speak for itself: the guy is charismatic, magnetic and draws so much heat. Truly one of the under-appreciated wrestlers of our time. People saying no psychology can't be paying attention. Janela rules!"

[1.0] "Joey Janela is an awful, awful wrestler. No psychology, no storytelling. Covers up his lack of wrestling ability with ridiculous hardcore matches in Garbage Championship Wrestling or whatever it's called. No charisma or promo ability. Terrible, terrible look. I don't care about body shape but you could at least try to look like less of a bum. Underneath that terrible beard and long greasy hair looks like a decent enough guy. One of the low points of AEW's beginnings. Just a terrible wrestler all around."

[2.0] "(Revised rating): Used to like Janela. If he spent more time on working on his craft instead of goofing off in the ring then maybe he'd be making more money in the industry. Decent wrestler on his day, though."

"Actual joke for a professional wrestler. His wrestling skills are mediocre at best with little to any wrestling psychology. overall Joey Janela is one of the worst wrestlers ever. I question why AEW even decided to hire someone so garbage like Janela."

[10.0] "People have been claiming that Joey's time is up - When in reality he only returned to what he cares about most. His return to the indie scene has been nothing short of a continuous success. Constantly putting over rising stars, finally getting legit with his physique, and sticking to his "promotional foundation" is creating a combination that shows firsthand Joey has bought back into HIS brand. Controversial-sure, but go talk to the guy... Nice as shit. I make sure I get to any promotion when I see Joey on card now... he's only been getting better."

[2.0] "Without a shadow of a doubt, Joey Janela is one of my least favorite wrestlers to watch on the planet. His brand of entertainment is so far away from what I enjoy that I find it a chore to ever watch him."

[0.0] "Single. Worst. Performer. In. AEW. First and probably only zero I will give on this site. Why' Because Janela is the biggest joke of a wrestler wrestling has seen in years. Horrid physique, awful look, fake as hell character, more like a coward if anything, and his in-ring skills are the worst. There's a reason you see him and Sonny Kiss pretty much exclusively on Dark, even AEW is ashamed that they hired these goofs. Things like him vs the invisible man or stan or whatever are the reasons why no outsiders to pro wrestling are willing to give it a try. Wasn't professionally trained and this numbnut thinks it's something to boast about. Buddy, you CAN'T wrestle. Stick to debating trolls on Twitter and wrestling in GCW, because it'll mean I will see less of you on my screen."

[6.0] "My AEW guilty pleasure. Every match of his looks like a car wreck, fun to watch but it's a bad, bad match. Nonetheless, he has many, many flaws, and he's suitable for the indies, not AEW. Sometimes way over the top, some of his stuff looks way too fake. The aesthetics of him are great though."

"He really doesn't fit in the big leagues, he's a lazy wrestler as it seems and you can't really believe he was a main event in the start, I don't know if he is lazy or moody or he can't come up with something good enough."

[5.0] "I am not really sure he fits in a company like AEW where his unique creativity struggles to find the space to flourish. His spring break shows are usually fun, I doubt he will be in AEW after his contract finishes and he will be back in GCW having far more fun."

[10.0] "The guy scrapped and clawed from the bottom and now has a show named after and produced by him that is now the most attended non-WWE event of WrestleMania weekend. He can wrestle with the best of them anyway, but his vision, creativity, and ability to get people to talk about him (look at how polarizing he is here) shows that he gets professional wrestling much better than the people who continuously slag him."

[9.0] "I see many users saying that his skills are mediocre, nothing offensive but nothing impressive at the same time. I would definitely rate his in rim skills as over average, he might not be the perfect technical wrestler or an astonishingly agile high flyer, but he is a risk taker and a moment maker. Plus he has a great and creative mind for this business, as another comment mentions. His promos and presence are a rarity."

[10.0] "Joey Janela is the king. You can see all the hate for him here alone, but that's simply because people don't get that when you're with Joey. you're with him 110%. The guy didn't organically build THE WrestleMania weekend show that at this point would outdraw IMPACT or ROH because he sucks; he got to the big leagues because he's got one of the most creative minds in the business. Bad Boy For Life"