411’s Wrestler of the Week 06.16.08: Week 11

Posted by Larry Csonka on 06.16.2008

Chris Jericho takes HBK on a trip down memory lane, The Guns and Speed Muscle tear it up on Impact, Wataru Inoue becomes the Best of the Super Juniors, Fire Ant wins the 2008 CHIKARA Young Lions Cup and more! But who had the goods to take home the WOTW award? Check out the latest edition of 411's Wrestler of the Week for all the details!



Welcome to Week 11, Year-FOUR, of 411's Wrestler of the Week. A quick overview to kick things off as we have some new rules for year four…

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 at WrestleMania. This will be posted every Monday. Let's see who wins this week…

The Voting~!
Shawn S Lealos
1) Chris Jericho
That Highlight Reel was awesome. I was shocked at my opinion of the beat down. Shawn Michaels has been one of my favorite wrestlers since he started out in the AWA as half of the Midnight Rockers. Once he started main eventing in the WWF, he became my favorite wrestler. When he retired I was heartbroken and when he returned I was ecstatic. That said, when Jericho called him a lying, cheating worm and attacked him, I went nuts. It was a perfect setup and I found myself cheering Jericho. They say the best bad guy is the man who believes he is right and that is what Jericho has become. This was the perfect heal turn.

2) Speed Muscle/Motor City Machine Guns - That was a fantastic tag team match. Holy crap. SpeedMuscle was amazing. The MCMG's won. For everyone in the comments that claims wrestlers from Japan doesn't deserve votes, I present you with this match. SpeedMuscle is better than any team in the WWE. They're better than any team in TNA except The MCMG, and that is a close call, too. This is the type of match that made TNA great to begin with.
3) John Morrison - Morrison had a great week. First up on ECW he defended his tag team championship against CM Punk and Kane - again - and they won again. The WWE continues to push a real tag team and I couldn't be happier. Morrison is alone on the list this time because he got the actual pinfall over Punk in the tag team match and then turned around on Smackdown and beat Finley in a singles match up.
4) John Cena
5) Samoa Joe


Andrew Critchell
1) MORRISON - He had a great week! First he, along with Miz, successfully defended the WWE Tag Team Titles against the ECW champ and Mr. Money in the Bank then Morrison defeated the stalwart Finlay in singles competition. Plus this week's Dirt Sheet was yet another fantastic example of how great he is. It seems like the office knows now what I have always known, MORRISON is a star on the rise and the future of WWE

2) Jericho/HBK - These two livened up what was otherwise a lackluster episode of Raw to the degree that it became a thumbs up show. And they didn't even wrestle! Jericho brought the fire on an intense and character defining promo while HBK used his veteran savvy and knowledge of when NOT to talk to help make the promo that much more effective. Then he took a sick bump.
3) Fire Ant
4) Even Bourne
5) Jeff Hardy


Chris Lansdell
1) Wataru Inoue
No PPV, no title changes, so winning a prestigious tournament will have to do it. Inoue beat Tiger Mask IV and Koji Kanemoto on his way to becoming the Best of the Super Juniors, a feat made all the more impressive considering that Jushin Liger was in the tournament, and that Tiger Mask had gone undefeated before meeting Inoue.

2) Kaz: Continues to improve his stock in TNA, this week with a strong showing against Samoa Joe. Hopefully this time his push doesn't die on the chest of Black Reign.
3) Speed Muscle/MCMG: Put on a tremendously quick and exciting tag match in Impact that made me weak at the knees with the prospect of the X Cup.
4) Fire Ant
5) Carlito


Jeremy Thomas
1) Chris Jericho
Very simple choice for me here: Jericho turned heel brilliantly, carrying the Highlight Reel segment to perfection (or as close as we get in the 'E anymore). The whole thing was an incredible few minutes of television, and it made me seriously mark out. The tossing of Michaels into the Jeri-Tron was a beautiful touch and a sick-looking bump; I wasn't sure that Shawn didn't really get glass in his eye. All in all, very well done.

2) Motor City Machine Guns & Speed Muscle: These four had a hugely entertaining match, one that eclipsed the also-good Joe vs. Kaz match. The X Cup is off to a rocking start thanks to this, and I love it.
3) Jeff Hardy: Jeff Hardy, really? Yeah. If you look at RAW, he may have lost, but he looked good against Triple H...and what's more, he got the last laugh on both of the men who will be wrestling for the belt at Night of Champion by taking them down. For whatever reason, Jeff's still got the ball after his Wellness Suspension, and he's sure as hell running with it.
4) Shawn Michaels
5) Kaz


Andy Clark
1) Cibernetico
Cibernetico successfully defended the AAA World Title at the biggest event in Mexican wrestling. That's more than enough to get him the top spot this week.

2) Mr. McMahon: Screw the haters. It may not have been compelling television but I'm giving Vinnie Mac credit for trying something different. It probably wasn't the best way to spend time on a wrestling show, but the man gave a way a million dollars of his own money, looked like a goof trying to dial the phone on national TV, and even shared the screen with Charlie Haas. There are a lot of bugs to be worked out in this whole thing but I'll give Vince credit here.
3) Motor City Machine Guns & SpeedMuscle: That match on Impact rocked and American wrestling audiences got an WSXed version of Dragon Gate wrestling.
4) Wataru
5) Fire Ant


Ryan Byers
1) Matt Sydal - After a "debut" on the last edition of ECW that may have been planned simply as a one-shot, Sydal got the call up to the main WWE roster this past week and scored a tag team victory in his first match as a full-timer. I doubt that Sydal will ever become a mega-star in the company because of his size, but the fact of the matter is that highly talented small wrestlers (Noble, Yang, Moore, etc.) have proven that they can create niches for themselves in WWE and have long runs with the company in which they make far more money than they ever would on the Indy circuit. Sydal took the first steps towards that type of career today, and, because wrestling is in fact a business in which the goal is to make money, I'd say that results in him having a much better week than plenty of other guys.

2) Wataru Inoue - New Japan's fifteenth annual Best of the Super Juniors tournament saw Wataru Inoue pull of a somewhat surprising victory over a field of eleven other competitors. Inoue had two massive wins on Sunday in accomplishing that feat, first knocking off Tiger Mask, who had gone undefeated in the tournament prior to that evening. Inoue then beat an established veteran in the form of Koji Kanemoto, in the process proving that Inoue may be the face of the junior heavyweight division for a long time coming.
3) Faby & Mari Apache - Women's wrestling mark that I am, I have to give some love to these two, who apparently had an intense and emotional hair versus hair match at this week's AAA pay per view event. Faby and Mari have been favorites of mine since 2001 or so, and the fact that they haven't gotten more attention from US fans for their awesome hybrid style of joshi and lucha is a crime. Go track down their matches ASAP.
4) Fire Ant
5) Chris Jericho


Michael Bauer
1) Wataru Inoue
This is a very tough week, but I have to give the nod in a Non PPV week to Inoue. Winning the Super Juniors Tournament is impressive, especially with Liger in the tournament. But being the guy to beat an undefeated Tiger Mask in the semifinals makes this choice that much easier.

2) Motor City Machine Guns & Speed Muscle: I admit it, I hate TNA. I watched the first 1/2-hour JUST for this match. What is tough is that I wish I could vote for Samoa Joe and Kaz as well.
3) Fire Ant: Winning CHIKARA's Young Lions Cup is also very impressive.
4) Chris Jericho
5) Evan Bourne


Christi Csonka
1) The Motor City Machineguns/Yoshino and Doi
For those of you that have ever heard the podcasts, you know this is exactly the kind of thing I like. Little men flying around at 100 miles an hour, flippidy-doo's and all of that goodness. I know some will think I am silly, but from a pure fun standpoint, this was my favorite match in a LONG time.

2) Samoa Joe: He defended his title is a very good match with Kaz. I loved the first hour of Impact this week.
3) Kaz: He got stopped on his rise again, but keeps putting on great efforts and deserves some recognition.
4) Matt Sydal err…I guess it's Evan Bourne now, huh?
5) Chris Jericho


Jarrod Westerfeld
1) Wataru Inoue
A current NJPW champion of the Juniors division, wins a big Super Juniors tournament over an undefeated in round robin field, Tiger Mask (IV), and then winning over guys like Koji Kanemoto and Jyushin Lyger. It only makes sense to give him a big nod for taking down the big tournament victory.

2) Bryan Danielson: Let's just throw him a bone for having a weird week. First he's on Raw winning a dark match over Lance Cade, getting people buzzing around him and his future in ROH and in wrestling, overall. Then he has a 6-man tag in Mexico with Teddy Hart and Jack Evans in the biggest show in Mexico of the year, Triple Mania. Let's just say that's reason enough, shall we?
3) Fire Ant: It's a slow week, and I can't think of anyone who has had a more impressive week than tournament winners: Young Lion's Cup tournament winner, and more than enough reason for a nod.
4) Cibernetico
5) Chris Jericho & Speed Muscle


ARI
1) Motor City Machine Guns / Speed Muscle: These two teams had the best match of the week on television and that's more than enough for me to place them together in the number one spot for this week.

2) Chris Jericho: One of the better heel turns in recent memory, Jericho throwing Michaels through the obscenely expensive Jeritron 5000 evoked memories of the Barbershop Incident. I loved the callback and that in a way, justice was finally served to HBK.
3) Evan Bourne & Kofi Kingston: Matt Sydal may have changed his name, but he got the victory with Kofi in a tag match and looked great in the process. Both men are rapidly making progress on the ECW brand.
4) Samoa Joe
5) Wataru Inoue


Matt Short
1) Wataru Inoue
Won the fifteenth annual Best of the Super Juniors tournament in New Japan this weekend. He did this by edging out the undefeated Tiger Mask then Koji Kanemoto in the finals. Inoue joins a list of prestigious wrestlers who have won this important tournament.

2) MCMG/Speed Muscle (Naruki Doi & Masato Yoshino): Speed Muscle made their North American TV debut in what I believe was the best match of the week. They came up short against the Machine Guns, but it was a great match from all involved and both teams deserve some credit for the work they did.
3) Fire Ant: Went from not even being in the Chikara Young Lion's Cup tournament, to being a replacement for his injured brother Worker Ant, to winning the whole thing. Not only did he win an important tournament for young wrestlers, but he got a measure of revenge against Vin Gerard who cost The Colony the King of Trios earlier this year. The year of the ant is upon us.
4) Chris Jericho
5) Evan Bourne


Robert S. Leighty Jr
1) Chris Jericho
In past WOTW I said Jericho would have been moved to #1 if he had kicked Michaels in the balls after their PPV match. Well, not only did I get the kick in the can this week, but I also got the call back to the Barbershop incident. This was awesomely done, and a great touch by whoever thought of it. Jericho as a heel is much better than face Jericho.

2) MCMG/Speed Muscle: Best match of the week deserves something. Exciting to see, and hopefully we get more on a future PPV. Would have been #1 if not for the awesomeness of Jericho.
3) Wataru Inoue: This was a slow week in the States, so I will spread some love to the Far East. My Puro knowledge is lacking, but he won the Juniors Tournament and that has to count for something.
4) John Cena
5) Evan Bourne


Samuel Berman
1) Fire Ant
In winning the 2008 Young Lions Cup event, Fire Ant has set himself up as the top up-and-comer for the current CHIKARA season. Fire Ant, who is one-third of the absurdly entertaining trio The Colony, defeated my personal pick to get the YLC win, Vin Gerard, in the finals. The whole thing actually serves to further Gerard's feud with the technicos of CHIKARA, and should lead to some great matches down the line as 2008 rolls on. Kudos to Fire Ant for making it through a crowded field of rising talents from throughout the Independent scene.

2) Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin and Masato Yoshino & Naruki Doi (tie): Put on easily the best match I've seen on TNA television in a good long while, as Speed Muscle debuts in impressive fashion against the MCMG.
3) Wataru Inoue: Won NJPW's Best of the Super Juniors Tournament with a finals victory over Koji Kanemoto.
4) Shingo Takagi
5) Mike Quackenbush & Shane Storm


JT
1) Chris Jericho
About F'N time he shows up. Look, I'm not knocking Jericho because I love the bastard, but they were about a show and a half away from ruining the whole thing. The "will he, won't he" stuff had played its course, and it was time to pull the trigger. That's exactly what they did, and they did so pretty fabulously, and now that it's been done my only concern becomes if people will actually boo him; most people love him as a heel so we'll see. Had he have done this to someone not named Shawn Michaels, this could have worked out in a much different (and possibly much worse) way.

2) Vince McMahon: That asshole Clark stole my thunder. I was all prepared to talk about how Vince might have epically failed (again, for you the readers) at the ratings and utterly bumblefucked his way through RAW. Point being there was nobody more covered or talked about this week. He might not have succeeded at drawing viewers by giving away a million bucks, but he may very well have drawn a ton of people in tonight just to see how bad it goes or what changes are made. Sorry. Gave away a million, got a fuckton of coverage, and had everyone talking. Regardless of ratings, the man had himself quite the week.
3) Motor City Machine Guns / Speed Muscle: As most have said, these guys put on a hell of a match on free TV and even made some non-TNA watchers tune in just to watch it. Credit has to be given for that.
4) Cena / Bourne
5) Fire Ant


Daniel Wilcox
1) Chris Jericho
Jericho finally turned heel on Shawn Michaels this week and as many have said, it was just about perfectly executed and one of the best segments we have seen on Raw this year. Jericho has a lot of momentum right now and who knows, he could become a big name on Raw in the next few months.

2) Motor City Machineguns/Speed Muscle: This match was just awesome from bell to bell and a really refreshing change of pace from the kind of matches we see on TV these days.
3) Jeff Hardy: I'm surprised that this guy is still in the position that he is, but he's still one of the most entertaining guys on Raw and he left Triple H and John Cena laying on Raw this week.
4) CM Punk
5) Evan Bourne


Larry Csonka
1) Wataru Inoue
Wataru Inoue wins New Japan's fifteenth annual Best of the Super Juniors tournament, and by doing so gets my number one vote this week. A semifinal win over Tiger Mask, who was undefeated in the tournament followed by a finals win over Koji Kanemoto. A great week for Inoue, and a week that was personally hard for me to make my choices. There was a lot of goodness this week.

2) Cibernetico: He won the main event of TripleMANIA this past weekend, which is AAA's equivalent of WrestleMania and in doing so retained the AAA World Heavyweight Title
3) Fire Ant: Closes out an impressive weekend winning the three-day CHIKARA Young Lions Cup tournament.
4) The Motor City Machineguns/Yoshino and Doi
5) Chris Jericho


THE WINNERS~!

Special Mention…Evan Bourne - 20 Votes

Fifth Place…Fire Ant - 26 Votes

Fourth Place…Wataru Inoue - 38 Votes

Third Place…Chris Jericho - 41 Votes

Chris Jericho makes Shawn Michaels his bitch on the Highlight Reel, and on this close week of voting that is good enough for 3rd place.

Second Place…The Motor City Machineguns (Alex Shelly and Chris Sabin) - 49 Votes

After months of punishment and lack of direction, The Motor City Machineguns finally gave fans something to care about with an excellent match against Dragon Gate's Speed Muscle, and now people are hyped for the World X-Cup.

Wrestler of the Week…Speed Muscle (Masato Yoshino and Naruki Doi) - 50 Votes

And by one point your Wrestlers of the Week are SPEED MUSCLE, Masato Yoshino and Naruki Doi. The match with the Machineguns was tremendous, and in this very close week they take home the top honors.


Yearend Standings~!
While the top of the list remains the same, there were a lot of debuts this week. Sabin, Shelley, Yoshino, Doi, Inoue and Fire Ant all made their debuts and expanded the ever-growing list. Chris Jericho leaps into the middle of the pack this week, and he could be poised for a big jump in the rankings. Here are the yearend standings!


Samoa Joe – 33 (TNA)
Batista – 33 (Smackdown)

Matt Hardy – 30 (Smackdown)

Suwama – 24 (All Japan)
King William Regal – 24 (RAW) {SUSPENDED}

Jimmy Jacobs – 21 (ROH)

AJ Styles – 18 (TNA)
Kaz – 18 (TNA)

Chris Jericho – 16 (RAW)

Homicide – 15 (TNA)
Hernandez – 15 (TNA)
Petey Williams – 15 (TNA)
Ric Flair – 15 (WWE) {RETIRED}
Edge – 15 (Smackdown)
Shawn Michaels – 15 (RAW)
Mickie James – 15 (RAW)
HHH – 15 (RAW)
John Morrison – 15 (ECW)
The Miz – 15 (ECW)
Bison Smith – 15 (NOAH)
Akitoshi Saito – 15 (NOAH)
Masato Yoshino – 15 (Dragon Gate)
Naruki Doi – 15 (Dragon Gate)

The Undertaker – 12 (WWE) {"RETIRED"}
Jay Briscoe – 12 (ROH)
Mark Briscoe – 12 (ROH) {INJURED}
Roderick Strong – 12 (ROH)
Alex Shelley – 12 (TNA)
Chris Sabin – 12 (TNA)
Jack Evans – 12 (US Independent)

Nigel McGuinness – 10 (ROH)
Randy Orton – 10 (RAW) {INJURED}

Tyler Black – 9 (ROH)
Chuck Taylor – 9 (US Independent)
Mistico – 9 (Mexico)
Hector Garza – 9 (Mexico)

Kurt Angle – 7 (TNA)

Keiji Muto – 6 (All Japan)
Wataru Inoue – 6 (New Japan)
Mr. Kennedy – 6 (RAW)
The Big Show – 6 (Smackdown)
MsChif – 6 (US Independent)
Incognito – 6 (Mexico)

Bryan Danielson – 3 (ROH)
Ryuji Hijikata –3 (All Japan)
Fire Ant – 3 (US Independent)
Jeff Hardy – 3 (RAW)
John Cena – 3 (RAW)
Beth Phoenix – 3 (RAW)

Evan Bourne – 2 (ECW)

Brent Albright – 1 (ROH)
Awesome Kong – 1 (TNA)
Mike Quackenbush – 1 (US Independent)
Scotty II Hotty – 1 (US Independent)
Joe Doering – 1 (All Japan)
Anthony W. Mori - 1 (Dragon Gate)
GAMMA - 1 (Dragon Gate)

Voting began 4.07.08

Year-End Rankings Key:

WWE, Raw, ECW and Smackdown 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.

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**PREVIOUS WINNERS**

Year One Winner: Ric Flair


Year Two Winner: Samoa Joe


Year Three Winner: John Cena