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411’s Wrestler of the Week 12.18.12: Year Eight, Week 37

December 18, 2012 | Posted by Larry Csonka

Welcome to WEEK 37, YEAR EIGHT 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

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 (the voting week runs Monday through Sunday). Let’s see who wins this week…


Larry Csonka
1) The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns)
The in ring debut of The Shield couldn’t have gone any better in my opinion. Everything worked in that match, and while I recognize that especially Kane and Daniel Bryan (Ryback as well, but the point is that Kane and Bryan are champions and more established than he is) deserve a lot of credit for their part, and the beating they took to help these new guys get over, The Shield more than held their own (yes, even Reigns who gets shit on for not being an Indy Darling) and the match delivered. So far, so good for Ambrose, Reigns and Rollins.

2) Dolph Ziggler: While not the clean victory some may have hoped for, the fact is that Ziggler did win against John Cena in a PPV main event. He and Johnny Ace now have something in common.
3) Samuray del Sol: Samuray del Sol capped off an excellent 2012, winning the 10th and final Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup. Del Sol defeated Eddie Rios (Night 1), Jonathon Gresham (Night 2), Jon Davis (Night 2) and AR Fox (Night 2) to win the tournament.
4) Big Show
5) Kevin Steen

Francisco Ramirez
1) Dolph Ziggler
Regardless of what excuses are used, who helped, or anything additional that can be said, Dolph Ziggler defeated the poster boy of the WWE, John Cena, in a Pay Per View main event. Few and far between are the men who can say that, and now we can add Dolph Ziggler to that list.

2) The Shield: Defeating Team Hell No and Ryback is no small feat, doing it in a TLC match in your Pay Per View debut just shows that big things are in store for the Shield.
3) Big Show: Defeated Sheamus with the aid of one big effing chair to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
4) Austin Aries
5) Samuray del Sol/Octagon Jr.

Ryan Byers
1) Kazuchika Okada
Capping off what has been a hell of a year for him, this week Okada was named the most valuable player in all of Japanese wrestling by Tokyo Sports, a mainstream daily sports publication in the Land of the Rising Sun.

2) The Shield: Cena/Ziggler might have gone on last, but the six man TLC match felt like the real draw of this weekend’s WWE PPV, and the Shield was victorious in a hell of an in-ring debut.
3) A.J. Lee: People will vote for Ziggler because they’re in love with him, but the finish of this PPV was all about getting A.J. over, not Dolph.
4) Samuray Del Sol
5) Masakatsu Funaki

Greg DeMarco
1) The Shield of Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns
The Shield was facing Ryback and Team Hell No members Kane & Daniel Bryan in a pinfall or submission rules Tables, Ladder & Chairs Match. There was every reason to believe that Ryback would end this match standing tall. He didn’t. He (obviously) didn’t eat the fall—that went to Daniel Bryan. But the Shield capped off a great week with a big win in their first major match. The WWE obviously sees something in these three, and big things are on the horizon.

2) Austin Aries: Lost in the craziness of this weekend was the effort put in by Austin Aries during Thursday’s Impact Wrestling. TNA has pushed Aries to the moon, and all he’s done is become, in my own opinion anyway, the very Best Wrestler in the World.
3) Dolph Ziggler/AJ Lee: Yes, Dolph Ziggler did in fact get a win over John Cena in a WWE PPV main event. But he was next to dead as Cena was climbing that ladder, and Cena would have won had it not been for AJ Lee. Ziggler still holds the briefcase, but each week it represents more and more that he’s lacking that signature win we need to see from him. AJ Lee was the real winner in the TLC main event.
4) Bobby Fish
5) The Big Show

Jeremy Thomas
1) The Shield
By beating two former World champions and the new “next guy” in a TLC match—without screwjobs, nonetheless—these guys have officially surpassed what the original Nexus achieved in terms of credibility and accomplishment. There is still plenty of time to screw it up but for now, these three guys are stars.

2) Dolph Ziggler/AJ Lee (tie): Both of these two saw huge things happen in the main event match of TLC, and both of them are very likely to have good things happen to their characters coming out of it.
3) Austin Aries: Aries continues to excel in being one of the top heels in TNA, proving himself to be one of the best things to happen to an increasingly-strong main event scene in the company.
4) Big Show
5) Samuray Del Sol

TJ Hawke
1) The Shield
Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, & Roman Reigns made their WWE debut in a PPV TLC match, and they defeated Kane, Daniel Bryan, and The Ryback in said match.

2) Kevin Steen: The ROH World Champion retained his title in a brutal ladder match against his biggest rival, El Generico, in the main event of the biggest event of ROH’s year.
3) Samuray Del Sol: One of 2012’s biggest breakout stars ended the year on a high note, as he won the last ever Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup. He defeated the 2011 Cup Winner, AR Fox, in the finals. He defeated Eddie Rios, Jonathan Gresham, & Jon Davis as well in the tournament.
4) Dolph Ziggler
5) Jerry Lynn

Michael Ornelas
1) The Shield
Great debut and they picked up a victory in a fantastic match.

2) Kevin Steen: Not only did he retain the RoH World Championship in a ladder war against El Generico, but he also cut the promo of the year on Ring of Honor Wrestling’s TV show leading up to it.
3) Dolph Ziggler: Looked like a million bucks against John Cena and kept his briefcase.
4) Samuray del Sol
5) Austin Aries

Jack McGee
1) The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, & Roman Reigns)
Made their WWE PPV debuts (in the ring) and looked great. They were involved in a great match, they won that great match, and it wasn’t a bullshit or fluke style things, it felt right, it felt important, and it was great. This felt fresh and awesome, and I hope that WWE doesn’t nexus these guys.

2) Dolph Ziggler: Defeated John Cena in the main event of the TLC PPV to retain his MITV Briefcase, and put on one hell of a performance.
3) The Big Show: Retained the world title in super sized fashion.
4) Kevin Steen
5) The Briscoe Brothers


THE WINNERS~!

  • Special Mention…Kazuchika Okada – 5 Votes
  • Fifth Place…Austin Aries and AJ Lee – 10 Votes
  • Fourth Place…The Big Show and Kevin Steen – 11 Votes
  • Third Place…Samuray del Sol – 12 Votes

    Won the 10th and final Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup Tournament.

  • Second Place…Dolph Ziggler – 25 Votes

    Defeated John Cena in the main event at TLC!

  • Wrestler of the Week…The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, & Roman Reigns) – 38 Votes

    Won their debut PPV match at TLC, and looked great in their in ring debut.

    Year-End Standings~!
    And here are the standings after week 37…

    1. CM Punk – 131 points (WWE)

    2. Daniel Bryan – 87 points (WWE)

    3. Sheamus – 69 points (WWE)

    4. Jeff Hardy – 67 points (TNA)

    5. Dolph Ziggler – 66 points (WWE)

    6. Austin Aries – 63 points (TNA)

    7. Samoa Joe – 62 points (TNA)

    8. Big Show – 57 points (WWE)

    9. Brock Lesnar – 55 points (WWE)

    10. James Storm – 54 points (TNA)

    Bobby Roode – 53 points (TNA)

    Bully Ray- 51 points (TNA)
    Kevin Steen – 51 points (ROH)

    John Cena – 40 points (WWE)
    The Ryback – 40 points (WWE)
    Kane – 40 points (WWE)

    Hiroshi Tanahashi – 36 points (NJPW)

    Antonio Cesaro – 33 points (WWE)

    Johnny Gargano – 31 points (US Independent)

    Kazuchika Okada – 28 points (NJPW)

    Alex Shelley – 27 points (US Independent)
    Alberto Del Rio – 27 points (WWE)

    KUSHIDA – 24 points (NJPW)

    Seth Rollins – 22 points (WWE)
    Dean Ambrose – 22 points (WWE)
    Roman Reigns – 22 points (WWE)

    Kofi Kingston – 21 points (WWE)
    Christopher Daniels – 21 points (TNA)
    Kazarian – 21 points (TNA)
    Kenny King – 21 points (TNA)
    Christian – 21 points (WWE)

    Player Uno – 19 points (US Independent)
    Stupified – 19 points (US Independent)
    Damian Sandow – 19 points (WWE)

    Samuray del Sol (aka Octagon Jr.) – 18 points (US Independent)
    Adam Cole – 18 points (ROH)
    Wade Barrett – 18 points (WWE)
    Chuck Taylor- 18 points (US Independent)

    Hirooki Goto – 15 points (NJPW)
    Masata Tanaka – 15 points (ZERO1)
    CIMA – 15 point (Dragon Gate)
    Ryusuke Taguchi – 15 points (NJPW)
    Nick Jackson- 15 points (US Independent)
    Matt Jackson- 15 points (US Independent)
    Tyson Kidd – 15 points (WWE)
    Rhett Titus – 15 points (ROH)
    Portia Perez – 15 points (US Independent)
    Nicole Mathews – 15 points (US Independent)

    Karl Anderson – 13 point (NJPW)
    The Miz – 13 points (WWE)
    El Generico – 13 point (US Independent)
    Devon – 13 points (TNA)

    Tim Donst – 12 points (US Independent)
    Sweet Saraya Knight – 12 points (US Independent)
    Masakatsu Funaki – 12 points (AJPW)
    Magnus – 12 points (TNA)
    AJ Styles – 12 points (TNA)
    Zema Ion – 12 points (TNA)
    Tensai – 12 points (WWE)
    Dr. Wagner Jr. – 12 points (AAA)
    Texano Jr. – 12 points (AAA)
    Kenta Kobashi – 12 points (Retired)

    RVD – 10 points (TNA)

    Rey Mysterio – 9 points (WWE)
    R Truth – 9 points (WWE)
    Kurt Angle – 9 points (TNA)

    Low Ki – 7 points (US Independent)
    AR Fox – 7 point (US Independent)
    Cody Rhodes – 7 points (WWE)

    Sting – 6 points (TNA)
    Taiyo Kea – 6 points (AJPW)
    Lance Archer – 6 points (NJPW)
    Davey Boy Smith Jr. – 6 points (NJPW)
    KAI – 6 points (AJPW)
    Adam Pearce – 6 points (US Independent)
    17 – 6 points (US Independent)
    Shard – 6 points (US Independent)
    assailANT – 6 points (US Independent)
    combatANT – 6 points (US Independent)
    Colt Cabana – 6 points (US Independent)
    Ultramantis Black – 6 points (US Independent)
    Hallowicked – 6 points (US Independent)
    Frightmare – 6 points (US Independent)
    Mr. Touchdown Mark Angelosetti – 6 points (US Independent)

    AJ Lee – 5 points (WWE)

    Mark Henry – 4 points (WWE)
    PAC – 4 points (WWE)

    Michael Elgin – 3 point (ROH)
    Paul Heyman – 3 points (WWE)
    Jerry Lawler – 3 points (WWE)
    Gran Akuma – 3 points (US Independent)
    Sara Del Rey – 3 points (WWE)
    Chris Sabin – 3 points (TNA)
    Chavo Guerrero – 3 points (TNA)
    Hernandez – 3 points (TNA)
    Robbie E – 3 points (TNA)
    Christian York – 3 points (TNA)
    Genki Horguchi – 3 point (Dragon Gate)

    Jon Davis – 2 point (US Independent)
    Kota Ibushi – 2 point (NJPW)

    Mick Foley – 1 points (WWE)
    Shuji Kondo – 1 point (Japan)
    Akebono – 1 point (Japan)
    Dick Togo – 1 point (Japan)
    Yujiro Takahashi – 1 point (NJPW)
    Tara – 1 point (TNA)
    Miss Tessmacher – 1 point (TNA)
    Katsuhiko Nakajima – 1 point (NOAH)
    Charlie Haas – 1 point (ROH)
    Shelton Benjamin – 1 point (ROH)
    Layla – 1 point (WWE)
    Dmitrious “The Greek God” Papadon – 1 point (US Independent)
    Sami Callihan – 1 point (US Independent)
    El Terrible – 1 point (CMLL)
    Rush – 1 point (CMLL)

  • Voting began 4.09.12
  • 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.

    Other International Wrestlers are represented in INDIGO.



    **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


    Year Seven Winner: CM Punk

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    Larry Csonka