411’s Wrestler of the Week 10.03.11: Year Seven, Week 27

Posted by Larry Csonka on 10.03.2011

Alberto Del Rio won the WWE Title, Cheerleader Melissa won the SHIMMER Title, Mark Henry retained World Title 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 27, 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) Cheerleader Melissa
Cheerleader Melissa has been a mainstay of the SHIMMER promotion, always having great matches, always getting the shot, but never able to win the big one. This weekend, she defeated Britani Knight, Christina Von Eerie and then KANA to earn a title shot. Finally, she capped off the weekend by defeating Madison Eagles, one of the most dominant champions in the history of the company for the title. Congrats Melissa!

2) Ayumi Kurihara and Ayako Hamada: Over the weekend, they had huge success at the SHIMMER tapings. They won the titles on the first part of tapings, and then defended the titles successfully THREE TIMES for one hell of a weekend.
3) Beth Phoenix: Your NEW WWE Divas Champion!
4) Alberto Del Rio & Mark Henry
5) Bobby Roode


Wes Kirk
1) Alberto Del Rio
It isn't so much that Del Rio became the WWE Champion for a second time as the fact that one of the participants in the match was named John Cena and somehow ADR walked out with the gold. Yes, there was horrible booking involved but at least Cena walked out with no title and Del Rio looks relevant again and that's an important thing for your champion. Viva Del Rio!

2) Robert Roode: His match with AJ Styles was actually a good encounter I underrated, honestly that match should be ***1/4 and frankly the program he is working shows he has multiple finishing maneuvers and can compete with the top level talent and more than hold his own. This bodes well for his future and if he becomes the next world champion in TNA a lot of detractors and critics will be silenced by the legitimate creation of a brand new singles star in wrestling.
3) Cheerleader Melissa: Thank god somebody who doesn't look like a forty-five year old transvestite won the ladies title. Melissa has worked her butt off everywhere she has competed and honestly, it is about time she get something to show for her hard work and dedication. Hopefully TNA will realize the mistake they made letting her go and rehire her pronto.
4) Brian Kendrick
5) Beth Phoenix


Greg DeMarco
1) Alberto Del Rio
Sure, he had to lock John Cena out of the HIAC structure and involve a lead pipe to do it. But he just won the WWE Championship for the second time, and did it in a match where John Cena was firing on all cylinders. Seriously, this might be the first time that "Angry Cena" lost the title.

2) Cheerleader Melissa: The entire SHIMMER weekend was built around her climb towards and capturing of the SHIMMER Championship. If SHIMMER represents the best women's wrestling around, then she should be the champ. And now she is.
3) Robert Roode & AJ Styles: Put on one hell of a match as part of Roode's march to Build for Glory. Great storytelling during the match, and some great moments by both after.
4) Mark Henry
5) Beth Phoenix


Chad Nevett
1) Alberto Del Rio
In a match with John Cena and CM Punk for the WWE Championship, Del Rio looked like a longshot (especially after losing the title two weeks ago). But, he managed to win it and, hopefully, will get a little more time with it this time.

2) Mark Henry: Did the unthinkable for anyone not named John Cena: beat Randy Orton two times in a row in a world title match.
3) Cheerleader Melissa: Your new SHIMMER Champion!
4) Jay Lethal
5) Cody Rhodes


R.C. Sutton
1) Alberto Del Rio
I don't care what the booking was, the man walked out of Hell in a Cell WWE Champion. The 2 guys who didn't in that match are Punk & Cena. Kudos to Alberto. Now he just has to make it through a PPV title defense.

2) Mark Henry: I keep betting against him with Randy Orton, and I keep being wrong. I officially believe Mark Henry is in the main event scene to stay.
3) Cheerleader Melissa: I became a fan of hers back when she wrestled in TNA, and she had one hell of a weekend with SHIMMER. I am Happy to see her get the Championship nod.
4) Cody Rhodes
5) Bobby Roode


Robert S. Leighty Jr
1) Alberto Del Rio
Del Rio regains the WWE Title in a pretty ingenius manner as he locks Cena outside the Cell and beats Punk with a pipe. Effective!

2) Mark Henry: A second straight clean win over Orton on PPV and he dominated The Great Khali on RAW and SmackDown. Good week for the World Champ.
3) Cody Rhodes: Defends his IC Title in a Battle Royal, and then gets big coolness points for bringing back the classic IC Title right before defending it successfully again against Morrison.
4) Beth Phoenix
5) Cheerleader Melissa


TJ Hawke
1) Miz & R-Truth
Ever since Kevin Nash powerbombed Punk at Summerslam, WWE's product has been a creative mess. What Truth and Miz did at the end of Hell in a Cell was more interesting than any of the matches on the show.

2) Cheerleader Melissa: Ended the 500+ day SHIMMER title reign of Madison Eagles
3) Mark Henry: These days, retaining a World Title clean against Orton or Cena is probably a bigger accomplishment than winning a world title from someone else
4) Alberto Del Rio
5) Jay Lethal


Ryan Byers
1) Cheerleader Melissa
SHIMMER now has 44 DVDs in the can, taped over the course of several years. Cheerleader Melissa has been there since the very beginning of the promotion in the main event mix, but, when it comes to the company's title, she's always been the bridesmaid but not the bride. This has been particularly true during the reign of Madison Eagles, who first got into title contention as a result of a shady win over Mel. Ever since that match, our favorite cheerleader has been beating top-flight talent en route to earning a title shot. After defeating more pretenders to the throne this weekend, Melissa closed out the latest set of tapings by bringing her long-desired belt home.

2) Alberto Del Rio: I question why he was booked to lose it in the first place, but ADR is once more your WWE Champion.
3) Miz/R-Truth: After spending some time as glorified midcarders, it appears these two are back in the main event mix.
4) Mark Henry
5) Brittany Knight


Andy Critchell
1) Mark Henry
This week, like most other weeks before it was DOMINATED by Mark Henry. He performed a murderdeathkill on Khali on Raw, cut an absolute MONEY promo to lead off Smackdown, performed a murderdeathkill on Khali AGAIN (this of the ankle destroying variety) and then retained against Orton at Hell in the Cell when most people (including myself) thought for sure that WWE was going to go back to old reliable Orton. He even kicked out of the RKO for Christ's sake! I dare you to name one other person who is as intimidating, dominating, and flat out fucking awesome as Mark Henry. Oh that's right, he doesn't exist except in comic books. Mark Henry is the Juggernaut, Galactus, Thanos, and Darkseid all rolled into one massive wig splitting machine. If I could vote for him 1 though 5 I would.

2) Del Rio: I am glad to see him get the title back although the cynic in me is worried that he'll just drop it again to Cena so he can get WWE championship #11. Cena is like broccoli, he's ultimately good and when you don't want it, it is shoved down your throat anyway. Man, I am so clever. Anyhoo, Del Rio showed that in this case smarts trumps hustle, loyalty, and respect. Where is Nelson Muntz when you need him?
3) Beth Phoenix: Gotta give it up to the beauty from Buffalo as she finally got over on the super fine Kelly Kelly. As I have stated before on the 411mania wrestling podcast (which takes your calls every Monday night after Raw) this whole Beth/Kelly storyline has been booked ass backwards with the heel having to struggle to overcome the somehow dominant babyface. But regardless, Beth finally got over the hump(!) and now finally the rhetoric of Beth and Natalya doesn't seem like just empty words.
4) The Awesome Truth
5) Madison Eagles


Michael Ornelas
1) Mark Henry
I'll make up for Wes' omission of Henry by putting him first (well, he earned it either way). He beat Randy Orton cleanly in a Cell match, kicked out of an RKO, and continues his streak of absolute domination.

2) Alberto Del Rio: I have Del Rio second because I think it would have helped him more to keep the belt through when he first won it than to become a two-time WWE Champion. Whatever though, he won a great match in clever fashion. No one looked bad coming out of the match, so that's what really matters at the end of the day.
3) The Miz/R-Truth: Such a well-done ending. Everything was executed pitch-perfectly, and it's been awhile since we've had an arrest angle pulled off well. Despite the match that preceded it, this is what I'm tuning in to see addressed tonight on Raw.
4) Cheerleader Melissa/Beth Phoenix
5) Bobby Roode


Steve Cook
1) Mark Henry
Do the rest of us even need to talk about Mizark when Andy Critchell has already spoken? Probably not, but the big man passed the two-week test for World Champions & looks downright unstoppable. In addition to defeating Randy Orton at HIAC, he took Great Khali out of action and saved us from more Khali vs. Mahal matches.

2) Cheerleader Melissa: Ended the lengthy SHIMMER title reign of Madison Eagles and can now lay claim to the title of Best Woman Wrestler in the World. (Waits for joshi fans to shout him down) The fact that WWE's never given her a shot & TNA horrendously dropped the ball with her speaks volumes about the ineptness of mainstream wrestling promotions when it comes to usage of talented attractive women.
3) Alberto Del Rio/Beth Phoenix: I think these two belong together at this spot. ADR should have never lost the WWE title, and Beth should have won the Divas title two PPVs ago. Nevertheless, they both have their desired prizes now.
4) Cody Rhodes
5) The Awesome Truth


Michael Bauer
1) Alberto Del Rio
Forget that Del Rio should have never lost the belt, but the way he won this one was such utter genius that I'm surpised it was never tried before. He managed to beat Cena and Punk as clean as possible for Hell in a Cell and is now a two-time champion.

2) Mark Henry: Let the dominant Henry continue! He would be number one, but it's obvious his feud with Orton is not over yet.
3) Cheerleader Melissa/Madison Eagles: Melissa won the SHIMMER title to send Eagles off to higher places, but Eagles deserves a ton of credit for her two other defenses over the weekend.
4) Cody Rhodes
5) Ayako Hamada and Ayumi Kurihara (New SHIMMER tag Champs and 3 defenses over the weekend)


Jeremy Thomas
1) Cheerleader Melissa
Call me a SHIMMER mark and I won't mind or deny it. Even with that being the case, you have to give props of Melissa, who has been a large part of making the women's promotion what it is today. That she finally won the big one is a great day for her, and she deserves the votes on this one.

2) Ayako Hamada & Ayumi Kurihara: Hamada and Kurihara beat Daizee Haze & Tomoka Nakagawa to end their six-plus month reign as SHIMMER Tag Team Champions, and then proceeded to successfully defend the belts against the likes of former champs the Canadian Ninjas, Sara Del Ray and the then-SHIMMER Champion Madison Eagles and the Knight Dynasty. Very successful weekend for the two, and good for them.
3) Alberto Del Rio: Won the title he should have still had. And for a few weeks at least, the WWE has neither Orton nor Cena on top.
4) The Miz & R-Truth (tie)
5) Mark Henry

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THE WINNERS~!

Special Mention…Cody Rhodes & Bobby Roode - 10 Votes

Fifth Place…Beth Phoenix - 15 Votes

Fourth Place…The Miz & R Truth - 16 Votes

Third Place…Mark Henry - 41 Votes

Still…YOUR WORLD CHAMPION!

Second Place…Cheerleader Melissa - 43 Votes

Your NEW SHIMMER Champion!

Wrestler of the Week…Alberto Del Rio - 52 Votes

Your NEW WWE Champion!


Year-End Standings~!
And here are the rankings after week TWENTY SEVEN. The top three spots are close as Mark Henry keeps dominating and picking up votes. R-Truth bumps up a bit, while the Miz enters the top 15. Debuting on the list this week are Beth Phoenix and Cheerleader Melissa.

Here are the updated standings…

1. Randy Orton (WWE) - 80

2. Mark Henry (WWE) - 79

3. CM Punk (WWE) - 75

4. Christian (WWE) – 69

5. Alberto Del Rio (WWE) – 65

6. R-Truth (WWE) – 54

7. John Cena (WWE) - 51

8. Kurt Angle (TNA) - 40

9. Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW) - 34

10. Austin Aries (TNA) - 31

11. Sheamus (WWE) - 30

12. Sin Cara {Mistico} (WWE) – 27

13. Rey Mysterio (WWE) – 26 {INJURED}

14. Sting (TNA) - 25
14. The Miz (WWE) - 25

Gunner (TNA) - 24
Giant Bernard (NJPW) - 24
Kota Ibushi (DDT) - 24


El Generico (ROH) - 21
MVP (NJPW) - 21
Daniel Bryan (WWE) - 21

Takashi Sugiura (NOAH) - 19

Johnny Gargano (US Independent) - 18

HHH (WWE) – 16
Brian Kendrick (TNA) - 16
Bobby Roode (TNA) - 16

Tadasuke (OSAKA Pro) - 15
Davey Richards (ROH) - 15
Mr. Anderson (TNA) - 15
Kevin Steen (US Independent) - 15
Antonio Cesaro {Claudio Castignoli} (WWE) - 15
Yuji Nagata (NJPW) - 15
Edge (RETIRED) - 15
Kofi Kingston (WWE) - 15

Cody Rhodes (WWE) - 14

Prince Devitt (NJPW) - 12
Mickie James (TNA) - 12
Karl Anderson (NJPW) - 12
Winter (TNA) - 12
Cheerleader Melissa (US Independent) - 12
Nick Jackson (US Independent) - 12
Matt Jackson (US Independent) - 12
Undertaker (WWE) - 12
Kenny King (ROH) - 12
Rhett Titus (ROH) - 12

Kharma (WWE) – 10 {PREGNANT}

Katsuhiko Nakajima (NOAH) - 9
Zack Ryder (WWE) - 9
Sara Del Rey (US Independent) - 9
Sin Cara {Hunico} (WWE) – 9
Alex Riley (WWE) - 9
Angel De Oro (CMLL) - 9
BxB Hulk (Dragon Gate) - 9
Go Shiozaki (NOAH) - 9
Abyss (TNA) - 9
Charlie Haas (ROH) - 9
Shelton Benjamin (ROH) - 9
Evan Bourne (WWE) - 9

AJ Styles (TNA) – 7
The Sheik (US Independent) - 7
Jeff Jarrett (TNA) - 7

Eric Young (TNA) - 6
Ezekiel Jackson (WWE) - 6
Escorpion (CMLL) - 6
Low Ki (US Independent) - 6
Chuck Taylor (US Independent) - 6

Bully Ray(TNA) - 3
Fire Ant (US Independent) - 3
Green Ant (US Independent) - 3
Soldier Ant (US Independent) - 3
Tyson Kidd (WWE) - 3
Beth Phoenix (WWE) - 3
Kelly Kelly (WWE) - 3
Hirooki Goto (NJPW) - 3

Dolph Ziggler (WWE) - 2

Eddie Edwards (ROH) - 1
David Otunga (WWE) - 1
Michael McGuillicutty (WWE) - 1
Crimson (TNA) - 1
Kazarian (TNA) - 1
Christopher Daniels (TNA) - 1
Hernandez (TNA) - 1
Anarquia (TNA) - 1
Ultimo Guerrero (CMLL) - 1
Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW) - 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!