Boys and girls the time is upon us again for the Declaration of Independents Top 250 Wrestlers. The DOI 250 ranks the top independent wrestlers on the northeast. Here is our criteria for the rankings:

- Wrestled in the Northeast area at least once. The Northeast includes promotions in NY, NJ, MA, DE and PA. If it was only a one time deal in the Northeast, the rating will reflect that, and it will be mentioned in the comments.

- NWA TNA guys do not get ranked by what they did in TNA, but what they have done in the Northeast. If they have wrestled in both, comments may mention it.

- Solid workrate. This includes ring psychology, good mat wrestling and good wrestling.

- Crowd reaction- how did the crowd react? Did the crowd boo or cheer, or did they just go get a hotdog or take a bathroom break?

- Mic Skills- Is the wrestler a good talker? Does his words make sense? Did it incite or play to the crowd?

- Win/loss record- This was only used to decide tie breakers, and factored in the least in the rankings.

- The ranking period is from 6/1/2003 - 6/1/2004

Obviously the DOI 250 is an opinion list based on what we have seen in this past year. We tried to make it as accurate as possible, so that people will agree with some names, but some of what was ranked might cause some controversy, so we'll see what happens.

Last years list saw Chris Daniels win the number 1 spot of the year. Will he repeat? Last years list also sparked alot of debate, and we'll see if this years does as well.

This list had alot of hours put into it. We decided to include three women wrestlers on the list, ranking women for the first time in 250 history. Where does someone like Great Muta rank? What about Al Snow? Where do indy names like Homicide, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe go? All these questions are answered in the DOI 250.

The DOI 250 comes in two forms:
The printed edition, in a magazine format will be available starting June 19th at the USA Pro Show. The cover price is $3.50, but since it's the first time on sale, we are giving 50 cents off, and will be selling the issue for 3 bucks a pop. The printed edition will contain the top 100 wrestlers with full bios. It will also explain why so and so was ranked above so and so. It will also list numbers 100-250 with no profiles. The printed edition will also include a Top 10 Who Influenced Pro Wrestling list as well. There will also be pictures and more. The DOI 250 printed edition is a must for any indy fan and a great thing to read while sitting down.

The DOI 250 will also be available, for free on the website. The website form, which will be up on Monday, June 21st, will list the top 100 wrestlers, but not include their profiles. It will give profiles for the bottom 150 wrestlers.

The DOI doesn't ask for money often, so we hope that everyone comes out and supports the printed edition, as website costs have skyrocketed for us. The magazine has come out really nice, and we're sure that you'll enjoy it. We guarantee it.

If you can't make the USA Pro show, where we will giving a 50 cent discount on the issue, but still want your copy of the printed edition, we're taking orders now. Please email DOI EMAIL to order your copy. Once we recieve payment, either thru paypal or check, we will notify you and mail your issue out for a $4.25 United States flat rate. (That includes shipping)
If you're going to USA Pro, and want to reserve your copy before it runs out, you can also email us at that email address listed.

We appreciate all the support and looking forward to presenting our list to you. We really worked hard on it. The purpose of this list is to pay respect to all the wrestlers who killed themselves in the ring in the past year and acknowledge their efforts. We hope you buy a copy and enjoy it.

Declaration of Independents Staff