411’s Wrestler of the Week 8.13.07: Week 19
Posted by Larry Csonka on 08.13.2007
Generico and Steen are on fire, Tanahashi won the G1 Climax and Kurt Angle became Champion of the Universe! But who earned the 411 WOTW title? Come on into find out!
Welcome to Week 19 Year-Three, of 411's Wrestler of the Week. A quick overview to kick things off as we have some new rules for year three…
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 at WrestleMania. This will be posted every Monday. Let's see who wins this week…
The Voting!
JT~!
1) Kurt Angle
Put on a pretty damn fine match, shenanigans aside. Either way, he is now the TNA World, X-Division, Tag Team, and IWGP Champion, defeating one of the most popular wrestlers on the planet.
2) Takeshi Morishima - Successfully defended his ROH Title TWICE this week.
3) CM Punk - While I don't like the fact that this is their 873rd contest, he did successfully not only hold off but PIN the ECW Champion clean, giving himself another shot at the title at one of the big 4 PPVs of the year.
4) William Regal
5) Vince McMahon
Matt Short
1) Kurt Angle
Through a swerve that should have been seen a mile away Kurt Angle has become champion of everything at Hard Justice.
2) El Generico & Kevin Steen - These two had a hell of a weekend as they beat The Briscoes Friday night and then won two singles matches over them on Sunday. They're on a roll as they open their series with the ROH tag team champion with some big wins.
3) Takeshi Morishima - Got past the red hot Claudio Castagnoli and a very game Brent Albright to retain the ROH World Title this weekend.
4) CM Punk
5) William Regal
MEEHAN
1) Hiroshi Tanahashi
I may be the first 411 staffer ever to pick someone for the WOTW spot simply out of spite. Hopefully, I'm not the last and a number of my colleagues will opt to do the same. Simply put, when you have Samoa Joe and KURT FREAKIN' ANGLE on the same PPV card -- nay, in the same match!!! -- you should have an automatic no-brainer for every single wrestling award that an audience can bestow. Instead? We get a Russo-riffic shenanigan-filled shmozz where TNA's number one non-WWExpatriate gets his ass handed to him by a swerve finish that even a 12-year-old could have seen coming a mile away. Well forget awarding ANY kudos TNA's way this week... I'll save my picks for professional WRESTLERS who can actually, ya' know, WRESTLE.
2) CM Punk - Scored the number one contender's spot to the ECW title, which -- at this point -- is looking a LOT more credible than that cheap collection of tin that they're carting about in Orlando these days.
3) El Generico & Kevin Steen - See the column title? It says WRESTLER of the week... and that's precisely why these two gents deserve a top spot.
4) William Regal
5) Umaga
Mike Minotti
1) Kurt Angle
Well, the man is now holding five belts. If that doesn't get you the number one spot, I don't know what does. I wonder how the hell they're going to get those non-world title belts off him while keeping him credible?
2) William Regal - Became the new GM of Raw and hosted the hilarious WWE Dating Game. I'm so happy to see Regal become the voice of Raw. He's light years better at it than Coachman.
3) CM Punk - Won the 15 Minutes of Fame match against John Morrison to become the number one contender for the ECW World Title. Have you noticed the WWE's recent annoying trend of putting on the same championship matches PPV after PPV? How many times are we going to have to see CM Punk vs. John Morrison? Oh wait, there's no one else credible on the ECW roster to fight for the title. Well, that didn't stop them from making Morrison the champion in the first place.
4) Takeshi Morishima
5) Abyss
Ryan Byers
1.) Santino Marella
No, I'm completely serious. WWE has been doing the slow burn towards a Santino heel turn for several weeks now, and it looks like the trigger was officially pulled this past Monday night . . . and do you know what? It was gold. The man was smarmy, self-righteous, and generated actual heat, not just the "We're booing because we know we're supposed to" heat that many bad guys get these days. By playing his new character so well, I wouldn't be surprised if Santino saved his head from WWE's chopping block, which is exactly where it appeared to be when his IC title reign flopped. Sometimes breathing new life in to your career can mean far more than winning titles, winning number one contenders matches, or winning tournaments, and this was the perfect example.
2.) Hiroshi Tanahashi - He not only won New Japan's G1 Climax tournament but also beat the ACTUAL IWGP Champion to do it.
3.) Ron Killings - He didn't just make his TNA comeback. He made his TNA comeback in an angle in which he's guaranteed to be treated like a major player.
4.) Takeshi Morishima
5.) Chris Hero
ARI
1) Kevin Steen & El Generico
They dominated their weekend in Ring of Honor with not just victory after victory against The Briscoes, but in different formats (singles and tag) and stipulations (street fight, falls count anywhere, lights out). They whipped ass, had no remorse and had the fans in the palm of their hands with their every move. Steen has also challenged the ROH World champion to a title match on the October 5th Roxbury Crossing show. These two are the rightful number one contenders to The Briscoes and this weekend proved it.
2) Takeshi Morishima: Two tough ROH World title defenses against incredibly capable wrestlers made this Morishima's week to shine. If you're not convinced about how great a job Morishima is doing, wait and see these DVDs. He gives Claudio Castagnoli and Brent Albright so much offense and comes so close to making it seem like he lost that people are complaining those two were screwed out of the title.
3) Claudio Castagnoli: I didn't think he'd be able to hold onto and use the momentum of the Race to the Top Tournament win, but he did. The crowd got way behind him as a contender and he gave them the match of his ROH career in return. You could say the same of Brent Albright.
4) Brent Albright
5) CM Punk
Andy Clark
1)Kurt Angle
Yeah it was screwy, but you had to see it coming. The man has four different championships, he'll get my vote.
2) Hiroshi Tanahashi- Won the G1 Tournament and defeated the IWGP Champion in the process.
3) Kevin Steen & El Generico- Had an amazing weekend in ROH, defeating the Briscoes in a non-title Street Fight and in individual singles matches as well.
4) The Steiner Brothers
5) William Regal
Bayani Domingo
1) Kurt Angle
Aside from my personal feelings, the man holds ALL THE GOLD. You just can't deny that. I don't care how he did it or what you say about the finish of the match, the man has accomplished something mind-boggling. Period.
2) Kevin Steen & El Generico - The dominated the Briscoes all weekend long. Street fights, Individual matches, it didn't matter cuz' Steen-Erico dominated the BEST tag team in pro wrestling today.
3) Hiroshi Tanahashi - G1 tourney win is impressive, but beating Nagata in the finals bodes well for his future.
4) Takeshi Morishima
5) Chris Hero
Andy Critchell
1)Kurt Angle
Wacky ending aside, he holds all the gold in TNA, something even JJ never had the balls to do. Maybe Joe can go back to beating up guys half his size so we'll think he's legitimate again. Anyway, Angle is truly the man in TNA and him holing all those titles at one time is historic and really pretty cool.
2) Mr. McMahon – Vince made his return to Raw and his impact was immediate, making the battle royal for the vacant GM post. Then to end the show he set in motion an angle that should help elevate whatever wrestler is involved. He also helped bump the Raw rating which had taken a nosedive of late so the fact that he was able to help the bottom line is pretty significant.
3) CM Punk – Punk was not only able to last 15 minutes against Morrison but he was actually able to PIN Morrison in a really nice little TV match. Now Punk has an ECW title match at Summer Slam and things are looking good for the straight edge superstar!
4) Takeshi Morishima
5) William Regal
SAT
1) Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle gets the top slot for winning the Winner Take All Match
2) Kevin Steen & El Generico - Kevin Steen & El Generico get the second slot for defeating the Briscoes in a non title match
3) CM Punk - CM Punk gets the third slot for becoming the number one contender for John Morrison's title at SummerSlam
4) Hiroshi Tanahashi
5) William Regal
Samuel Berman
1) Kevin Steen & El Generico
Steen & Generico were turned in to PLAYERS in Ring of Honor this weekend after their tag and singles victories over de facto 2007 MVPs Jay & Mark Briscoe. Both guys have been portrayed as absolute killers in the ring thus far, a fate few ROH newcomers receive. Kudos to the Briscoes as well for reportedly holding up their end of the bargain on both shows and for putting their challengers over so convincingly on back-to-back shows.
2) Takeshi Morishima - Two more successful ROH World Title defenses puts his reign at over six months.
3) Chris Hero - Finally, some big wins for one of ROH's most underutilized performers.
4) Hiroshi Tanahashi
5) CM Punk
Daniel Wilcox
1) William Regal
Fuck Kurt Angle, William Regal won a battle royal on Raw to fulfill a General Manager's position, which has been vacant for nearly two years now, and Regal was by far the most entertaining thing throughout Raw last week.
2) CM Punk - Beat John Morrison to earn himself an ECW title shot at Summerslam, under Extreme Rules.
3) Umaga/John Cena - They had a fun TV match on Raw and then set up the angle for this week's show with Umaga turning face.
4) Kurt Angle
5) Abyss
Michael Bauer
1) Takashi Morishima
There was only one champion who impressed me this week, and his name was not Kurt Angle. In fact, I repeat from above. FUCK KURT ANGLE! Morishima had two great title defenses in Ring of Honor as he rolls into NYC in two weeks to face off with Danielson.
2) Hiroshi Tanahashi - You gotta give credit where it is due for the G1 Tourney win.
3) Kevin Steen/El Generico - Very convincing wins over the Briscoe Bros this weekend.
4) Umaga
5) CM Punk
Larry Csonka
1) Hiroshi Tanahashi
The G1 Tournament win makes this an easy week to select a #1, great job for Tanahashi and he could be working he way back to the top.
2) Steen and Generico – Took HUGE steps this weekend to not only make people take themselves seriously, but they have gone from being perceived as a couple of Indy goofs to legit stars.
3) CM Punk – Yeah, I was pissed at the TNA booking. Angle maybe champion of the Universe, but at least Punk and Morrision just had a simple and effective match.
4) Kurt Angle
5) Takashi Morishima
THE WINNERS!
Special Mention…Umaga - 6 Votes
Fifth Place…William Regal - 17 Votes
Fourth Place…CM Punk - 28 Votes
Third Place…Takashi Morishima and Hiroshi Tanahashi - 31 Votes
The Japanese stars make their presence felt and tie for third this week.
Second Place…Kevin Steen and El Generico - 35 Votes
Steen and Generico have officially arrived, learn to love it.
Wrestler of the Week…Kurt Angle - 39 Votes
While many hated the booking and either didn't vote for him or voted him low on the list, Kurt Angle is the Champion of the Universe and snags the big WOTW win.
Year-End Standings~!
Kurt Angle leaps into second place, all alone and is only 6-points behind John Cena. El Generico also leaps into the top 10 and is the big surprise of the year thus far. CM Punk climbs into a tie for 4th place, while Takashi Morishima and Hiroshi Tanahashi make their presence felt. We're nearing the halfway point, and things are always changing. Who will have the big week next week? Come on back to find out.
-The top 10 spots are marked
1. John Cena – 63 (Raw)
2. Kurt Angle – 57 (TNA)
3. Matt Hardy – 45 (Smackdown)
4. Samoa Joe – 42 (TNA)
4. CM Punk – 42 (ECW)
6. Edge – 38 (Smackdown)
7. Bobby Lashley – 35 (Raw)
8. MVP – 31 (Smackdown)
9. El Generico – 22 (US Independent)
9. Mark Briscoe – 22 (ROH)
9. Jay Briscoe – 22 (ROH)
Brother Ray – 18 (TNA) Brother Devon – 18 (TNA) Sara Del Ray – 18 (US Independent) Vince McMahon – 18 (WWE) The Great Khali – 18 (Raw)
