411’s Wrestler of the Week 08.08.11: Year Seven, Week 19

Posted by Larry Csonka on 08.08.2011

Kurt Angle won the TNA World Title, MVP continued to roll in Japan, Sheamus showed new life as a babyface and more! Check out 411's Wrestler of the Week for all the details and for an updated look at the Year-End standings!



Welcome to Week 19, Year SEVEN, of 411's Wrestler of the Week. A quick overview of the rules to kick things off for us as a reminder…

Each writer chooses FIVE wrestlers from any promotion and each wrestler gets a point total attached to that ranking. It looks a little like this…

1st - 5
2nd - 4
3rd - 3
4th - 2
5th - 1

If you are wondering how some of the writers decide who to vote for, please check out our Wrestler of the Week Supplemental Column!

Then we tally up the votes and the official 411 Wrestler of the Week is crowned. But wait, there's more! Each week the top SIX vote getters get a points value for their ranking which looks something like this…

1st - 15
2nd - 12
3rd - 9
4th - 6
5th - 3
6th - 1

...and they go towards the 411 Wrestler of the Year award to be announced each year around WrestleMania. This will be posted every Monday. Let's see who wins this week…

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Larry Csonka
1) Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle is the man. While I did not like the booking, he pulled an acceptable main event out of Sting and won the title. Angle SHOULD be champion and be competing in PPV main events, because the man delivers.

2) Daisuke Sekimoto: Won the ZERO1 Fire Festival round robin tournament, and was crowned the new NWA World Premium Heavyweight Champion!
3) Daniel Bryan/Sheamus: Daniel Bryan is on a role since winning MITB, with good matches and the addition of the guillotine as a secondary finish. Sheamus' face turn is also a lot of fun, got to beat Khali and I am excited for Sheamus vs. Henry. Seriously.
4) Winter
5) Bully Ray


Ryan Byers
1) MVP
Really quiet week in the United States, so I'm turning to Japan for my number one, where former WWE star MVP put a big win under his belt. MVP, who is about a quarter of the way through a yearlong commitment to New Japan Pro Wrestling, is competing in the company's annual G1 Climax tournament. In the opening night of the tourney, he got what is no doubt the biggest win of his NJPW career, as he pinned former IWPG Champion Shinsuke Nakamura in an upset. Later in the week, he also picked up a win over Wataru Inoue. MVP is in the middle of the pack as far as the standings in the tournament go right now, but his victory over Nakamura is still huge.

2) Daisuke Sekimoto: Sekimoto has had a hell of a year in a variety of different wrestling promotions, being involved in a top notch tag feud in All Japan and looking awesome in his home promotion of Big Japan. This week he had success in ZERO1, winning the company's annual Fire Festival round robin tournament. However, he didn't just win the tournament. He won the tournament in a sixteen minute main event match that he wrestled on the same show where he had a thirty minute draw on the undercard. Now that's impressive. Also, this year, the tournament winner was going to be awarded the brand new NWA World Premium Heavyweight Title, so Daisuke also has that belt to tote around.
3) Sheamus: I thought that Sheamus was made to look like an absolute beast in his match against the Great Khali this week, setting him up as the perfect foil for the red hot Mark Henry at Summerslam.
4) Go Shiozaki
5) Hailey Hatred


Michael Ornelas
1) Brian Kendrick
Retained his title in a match that many had chosen Aries to win. I'm looking forward to actually watching the contest. Hopefully Kendrick is able to carve out a nice little run with the belt before ultimately dropping it.

2) Kurt Angle: Kurt is pretty much the top guy in TNA, so it's only appropriate that he's the top champion. Hopefully the storylines get away from the Immortal BS, but I think we know they won't.
3) Christian: Pinned Randy Orton cleanly, something he's been unable to do for months.
4) Go Shiozaki
5) Sheamus


Wes Kirk
1) Kurt Angle
The now fifteen-time world heavyweight champion took home a big victory over Sting at Hardcore Justice to capture his championship belt albeit with some controversy and a possible heel turn. Angle has always been able to play an entertaining heel who was able to be an American hero while still doing despicable enough things to earn the boos coming his way, and he was able to take Sting to a good match that topped off a solid PPV.

2) Brian Kendrick: After an intense X-Division triple threat match, Kendrick was able to walk out still the champion when pretty much all of us had figured Austin Aries would walk out with the gold. Kendrick has been booked as a solid champion and consistently earning his victories, in singles as well as triple threat matches, and I really hope Kendrick is allowed to go another month or two with the gold to continue the increased importance of his career with this victory.
3) Winter: A couple of years ago a young female wrestler named Katie Lea was put into a horrid storyline and jobbed out to every Diva in the WWE, and she ended up joining TNA after being released. Fast forward a few months and the same girl has now been Knockouts and Knockouts Tag Champion, involved in the top female storyline in the company, and putting on good matches with Mickie James and Velvet Sky. With the capture of the Knockouts gold Winter has shown the talent she wasn't allowed to elsewhere and has resurrected her career.
4) Sheamus
5) MVP


Greg DeMarco
1) Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle won the TNA World Heavyweight Championship on Sunday's Hardcore Justice PPV. Neither Sting or Mr. Anderson had a successful PPV title defense in their respective reigns as champion. Can Angle survive No Surrender? Will he defend at No Surrender? Hey, we'll cross that bridge soon enough. For now, we should recognize Kurt Angle's fifth TNA World title.

2) Winter: Winter picked up the biggest win of her career, winning her first major singles championship when she captured the TNA Knockouts Championship from Mickie James at TNA's Hardcore Justice.
3) MVP: My belief that MVP will win the IWGP Championship by the end of 2012 stays alive as he gets the biggest win of his Japan career to date, beating Shinsuke Nakamura (a three time IWGP champ himself).
4) Sheamus
5) Beth Phoenix


Michael Bauer
1) Sheamus
Yes, a guy won another title that means nothing and will get his due. But Sheamus making Mark Henry look scared and beating Khali the way he did made him look better than he ever did as champion.

2) MVP: In what is a huge win for MVP, as he beats Shinsuke Nakamura in the G1 Climax tournament.
3) Winter: First singles title of her career, winning the TNA Knockouts Championship.
4) Kurt Angle
5) Beth Pheonix / Natalya (tie)


Jeremy Thomas
1) Kurt Angle
I don't like the heel turn (or the potential one, perhaps) but Angle did win the TNA World Title. To be honest I'm glad that the belt is off Sting; no offense to the Icon, but he shouldn't be holding the title at this stage when someone like Angle is capable of carrying it.

2) R-Truth: Truth got separate tag wins over John Cena and Randy Orton, with John Morrison on the losing team each time. I think that's flown under the radar a bit and I also think it's a huge statement toward Truth's stock with the company that he's been jumping back and forth consistently between brands within the same week.
3) MVP: Good ol' MVP gets a couple major wins in the G1 Climax tournament, and good for him.
4) Winter/Beth Phoenix (tie)
5) Sheamus


Chad Nevett
1) Kurt Angle
New TNA World Heavyweight Champion.

2) Brian Kendrick: Still TNA X Division Champion.
3) Winter: New TNA Knockouts Ladies Champion.
4) Beer Money
5) MVP


Andy Critchell
1) Otunga/McGillicutty/R-Truth
Given their relative positions on the card and in the company it was a pretty huge week for these three guys as they all won on both Raw & Smackdown. Otunga & McGillicutty are being showcased as a legitimate tag team which didn't really seem possible a month ago. I know there are a lot of you readers which may not think that these guys are worthy of the push or the belts but I think they might have potential and I'm willing to see where this goes. R-Truth has been all over the place of late and is being booked really well. I imagine Truth owes this push to the surprising uptick in buys for Capitol Punishment and he seems to be making the most of it. His act is still feels fresh and is entertaining without overdoing it.

2) Kurt Angle: Kurt winning the TNA title is definitely noteworthy but not good enough for the #1 spot this week. First of all, the match was pretty subpar, even by 2011 Sting standards. Now, Sting's age and diminished skills certainly are a problem but Angle himself promised a MOTY caliber encounter and simply did not deliver. The finish did not help Angle's cause either and it frankly made him look weak. Finally, to be honest I don't think the TNA title means a whole lot. For as much as Bischoff, Hogan, and Immortal piss and moan about how important the title is and the power that comes along with it (a concept that makes absolutely no sense) Anderson's run and Sting's run have made the title seem like a joke. Bad match, bad finish, bad title. Angle is lucky to get #2.
3) Zack Ryder: Yeah, that's right, Zack Ryder. Sure, he lost in a tag match on Raw. Sure, he lost to Big Zeke on Smackdown. But what matters here is that he came out to big pops on both shows and on Smackdown he was even given a big in-ring promo segment. The Ryder revolution seems to be picking up steam and every week he is getting more and more to work with and prove what he can do. We should all be rooting for Ryder because much like CM Punk he is a guy that has been made popular by the fans despite his lack of push. Ryder is the embodiment of the fact that the voice of the fan actually matters and really that's what keeps people coming back week after week. If you're not on board the Zack Pack then you're part of the problem. Become part of the solution. #WWWYKI
4) Winter
5) Beth Phoenix


Steve Cook
1) R-Truth
Why not? It was a pretty slow week in the world of wrestling, and Ron Killings' star has been rising as of late due to his newfound hatred for the Little Jimmies. He's been appearing on both Raw & SmackDown lately, and was on the winning tag team in each of his featured matches this week. Truth's promo work and in-ring work have added a lot to WWE lately, and he should be commended for making the most of the opportunity he's being given.

2) Zack Ryder: Long Island Iced Z is also rocking both shows these days, with the added bonus of being a face on one show & a heel on the other. He lost both of his matches but made an impression on each audience whether they were chanting "We Want Ryder" or cheering Big Zeke as he killed the Assistant to the General Manager.
3) Kurt Angle: Won the TNA title from Sting and might be turning heel. Yay?
4) Daniel Bryan/Tyson Kidd
5) Bully Ray

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THE WINNERS~!

Special Mention…Daisuke Sekimoto - 8 Votes

Fifth Place…Brian Kendrick - 13 Votes

Fourth Place…R Truth - 14 Votes

Third Place…MVP & Sheamus - 17 Votes

MVP continues to roll in Japan while Sheamus seems to have new life as a babyface.

Second Place…Winter - 18 Votes

Your NEW TNA Knockouts Champion!

Wrestler of the Week…Kurt Angle - 37 Votes

Your NEW TNA World Champion!


Year-End Standings~!
And here are the rankings after week NINETEEN…

1. Christian (WWE) – 66

2. CM Punk (WWE) - 63

3. R-Truth (WWE) – 48

4. Randy Orton (WWE) - 46

5. Kurt Angle (TNA) - 31

6. Sheamus (WWE) - 30

7. John Cena (WWE) - 28

8. Sin Cara (WWE) – 27 {SUSPENDED}

9. Rey Mysterio (WWE) - 26

10. Sting (TNA) - 24
10. Giant Bernard (NJPW) - 24
10. Kota Ibushi (DDT) - 24


Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW) - 22

MVP (NJPW) - 21
Daniel Bryan (WWE) - 21
Alberto Del Rio (WWE) – 21

Takashi Sugiura (NOAH) - 19
The Miz (WWE) - 19

Mark Henry (WWE) - 16
HHH (WWE) – 16
Brian Kendrick (TNA) - 16

Davey Richards (ROH) - 15
Austin Aries (TNA) - 15
Mr. Anderson (TNA) - 15
Kevin Steen (US Independent) - 15
Claudio Castignoli (US Independent) - 15
Yuji Nagata (NJPW) - 15
Edge (RETIRED) - 13

Karl Anderson (NJPW) - 12
Johnny Gargano (US Independent) - 12
Winter (TNA) - 12
Gunner (TNA) - 12
Max Buck (US Independent) - 12
Jeremy Buck (US Independent) - 12
Undertaker (WWE) - 12

Kharma (WWE) – 10 {PREGNANT}

Alex Riley (WWE) - 9
Angel De Oro (CMLL) - 9
BxB Hulk (Dragon Gate) - 9
Go Shiozaki (NOAH) - 9
Abyss (TNA) - 9
El Generico (ROH) - 9
Charlie Haas (ROH) - 9
Shelton Benjamin (ROH) - 9

AJ Styles (TNA) – 7

The Sheik (US Independent) - 7
Jeff Jarrett (TNA) - 7

Eric Young (TNA) - 6
Ezekiel Jackson (WWE) - 6
Kofi Kingston (WWE) - 6
Escorpion (CMLL) - 6
Low Ki (US Independent) - 6
Sara Del Rey (US Independent) - 6
Bully Ray(TNA) - 3
Fire Ant (US Independent) - 3
Green Ant (US Independent) - 3
Soldier Ant (US Independent) - 3
Cody Rhodes (WWE) - 3
Tyson Kidd (WWE) - 3
Kelly Kelly (WWE) - 3
Zack Ryder (WWE) - 3
Hirooki Goto (NJPW) - 3

Eddie Edwards (ROH) - 1
David Otunga (WWE) - 1
Dolph Ziggler (WWE) - 1
Michael McGuillicutty (WWE) - 1
Kazarian (TNA) - 1
Christopher Daniels (TNA) - 1
Ultimo Guerrero (CMLL) - 1
Mohammed Yone (NOAH) - 1
Dick Togo (RETIRED) - 1
Daisuke Sekimoto (All Japan) - 1

Voting began 4.04.11

Year-End Rankings Key:

WWE, Raw, SmackDown and NXT-Contracted Wrestlers are represented in BLUE.

TNA Contracted Wrestlers are represented in GREEN.

ROH Contracted Wrestlers are represented in RED.

US Independent Wrestlers are represented in MAROON.

Japanese Contracted Wrestlers are represented in BLACK.

Mexican Contracted Wrestlers are represented in MAGENTA.

Australian Contracted Wrestlers are represented in INDIGO.

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**PREVIOUS WINNERS**

Year One Winner: Ric Flair


Year Two Winner: Samoa Joe


Year Three Winner: John Cena


Year Four Winner: Chris Jericho


Year Five Winner: CM Punk


Year Six Winner: The Miz

If you are wondering how some of the writers decide who to vote for, please check out our Wrestler of the Week Supplemental Column!