411’s WWE RPI Rankings 07.06.13

Click here for the entire spreadsheet containing win/loss records and detailed calculations for the past two months.

Overview of this week’s rankings
CM Punk retained his top spot in this week’s RPI rankings after a double countout against World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio and a tag team alongside Curtis Axel against the PrimeTime Players.

Kane made a substantial gain this week going from 10th to 3rd in the rankings after his pair of wins against Randy Orton. However over the last four weeks, Kane’s ranking has fluctuated around the same point and as such, he is not in the top 10 biggest movers. With Team Hell No seemingly fractured, the separation between Daniel Bryan’s and Kane’s RPI rankings is likely to get larger.

The RPI of Dolph Ziggler continues to slide prior to Money In The Bank, going from 21st to 31st out of 42 WWE superstars. Although he picked up two wins against members of 3MB (McIntyre and Mahal), these opponents have paltry win/loss records. Whether Ziggler can win back the title from Del Rio and establish a long championship run will greatly impact his place in the rankings. And with the matches he produces, it seems natural to put Ziggler near the main event against main event caliber opponents.

Despite being the biggest RPI slider the last couple weeks, Curtis Axel has made the switch to gaining some points. Currently ranked 14th and with an impressive win/loss record (13 wins, 2 losses over the last two months), it appears as though his trajectory has stabilized after rocketing up the RPI rankings

WWE Superstar	RPI Ranking	Winning %	Win-Loss-Draw Record
1) CM Punk	63.3	0.900	4-0-1
2) Roman Reigns	61.1	0.735	12-4-1
3) Kane	59.7	0.500	9-9-0
4) John Cena	59.1	0.500	3-3-1
5) Daniel Bryan	58.5	0.474	8-9-2
6) Chris Jericho	58.3	0.821	11-2-1
7) Randy Orton	58.2	0.667	15-7-2
8) Christian	57.5	0.750	6-2-0
9) Seth Rollins	56.2	0.611	11-7-0
10) Dean Ambrose	55.9	0.600	11-7-2
11) Alberto Del Rio	54.5	0.639	10-5-3
12) Ricardo Rodriguez	53.4	0.875	3-0-1
13) Sheamus	53.3	0.875	14-2-0
14) Curtis Axel	53.3	0.867	13-2-0
15) The Miz	52.6	0.909	10-1-0
16) Zeb Coulter	52.3	0.125	0-3-1
17) Big Show	51.3	0.250	1-3-0
18) Jey Uso	50.6	0.615	8-5-0
19) Jimmy Uso	50.6	0.615	8-5-0
20) Damien Sandow	50.1	0.250	4-12-0
21) Jack Swagger	49.7	0.400	3-5-2
22) Ryback	49.6	0.542	6-5-1
23) Titus O’Neil	49.1	0.375	3-5-0
24) Cody Rhodes	48.6	0.263	5-14-0
25) Kofi Kingston	48.3	0.318	3-7-1
26) Big E Langston	47.7	0.292	3-8-1
27) Wade Barrett	47.5	0.077	1-12-0
28) Sin Cara	47.4	0.300	3-7-0
29) R-Truth	47.1	0.833	5-1-0
30) Fandango	47.0	0.500	4-4-1
31) Dolph Ziggler	46.7	0.429	3-4-0
32) Antonio Cesaro	45.8	0.467	7-8-0
33) Darren Young	45.6	0.250	2-6-0
34) Heath Slater	40.0	0.250	2-6-0
35) Justin Gabriel	39.5	0.400	4-6-0
36) Tensai	39.4	0.500	5-5-0
37) Brodus Clay	38.6	0.500	5-5-0
38) Triple H	35.4	0.000	0-4-0
39) Drew McIntyre	35.2	0.000	0-7-0
40) Jinder Mahal	34.1	0.000	0-6-0
41) The Great Khali	32.9	0.375	1-2-1
42) Zack Ryder	30.5	0.000	0-8-0

WWE Divas	RPI Ranking	Winning %	Win-Loss-Draw Record
1) AJ Lee	62.7	0.571	4-3-0
2) Naomi	56.2	0.800	4-1-0
3) Cameron	54.4	0.750	3-1-0
4) Natalya	48.7	0.500	3-3-0
5) Nikki Bella	47.7	0.250	1-3-0
6) Brie Bella	45.5	0.200	1-4-0
7) Kaitlyn	42.5	0.700	7-3-0
8) Aksana	32.9	0.000	0-3-0

Top ten movers over the last 4 weeks

Gainers		Sliders
1) Triple H	+1.7	1) Dolph Ziggler	-4.2
2) Darren Young	+1.7	2) The Great Khali	-2.4
3) Titus O’Neil	+1.1	3) Tensai	-2.3
4) Chris Jericho	+0.7	4) Brodus Clay	-1.6
5) Antonio Cesaro	+0.5	5) Big E Langston	-1.6
6) John Cena	+0.4	6) Big Show	-1.5
7) Sin Cara	+0.4	7) Jack Swagger	-1.4
8) Curtis Axel	+0.4	8) Kofi Kingston	-1.2
9) Justin Gabriel	+0.4	9) The Miz	-1.1
10) Daniel Bryan	+0.4	10) Sheamus	-1.0

RPI Explained
The ratings percentage index (RPI; out of 100) is a method which ranks teams or individuals based upon their wins, losses and strength of schedule. It is used by the NCAA to aid in the selecting and seeding of teams appearing in tournaments such as basketball’s March Madness.

Why are RPI rankings superior to simple win-loss records? Imagine a superstar that wins matches only against jobbers. Sure, their win/loss record will be stellar but by facing opponents who always lose, their RPI will not be as high as a superstar who wins half their matches but always faces opponents with stellar win/loss records. Using a statistically valid approach to examine WWE superstars will allow fans to determine if their favorite wrestler is being booked appropriately and whether their stock is rising or falling.

The factors involved are:
* 1) the superstar’s winning percentage (25%)
* 2) the average winning percentage of the superstar’s opponents (50%)
* 3) the average winning percentage of the superstar’s opponents’ opponents (25%)

Win-loss records are calculated for every WWE superstar over the past 2 months from Monday Night Raw, Smackdown, Superstars, Main Event, Saturday Morning Slam, and pay-per-views. Superstars must have competed in at least 3 matches over the past 2 months to be included in the overall RPI rankings.