411’s Wrestler of the Week 08.04.08: Week 18

Posted by Larry Csonka on 08.04.2008

Edge and Foley were Money on the Cutting Edge, Brent Albright wins the NWA Title, Regal returns, Masato Tanaka wins his THIRD consecutive Fire Festival tournament and much 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 18, 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~!
Michael Bauer
1) Brent Albright
Ok, listen up all you TV marks. Brent Albright defeating Adam Pearce for a title on the Indy scene is a bigger deal than the WWE. Why? Because the NWA World Title has more prestige, more history, more everything than any title in the WWE. And now Albright follows in likes of Ric Flair's 10 reigns, Harley Races's eight, and many other legends. That is a big deal.

2) Nigel McGuiness: Chalk up another 2 wins for this historical reign.
3) Edge: Making an impact of Foley and Jeff Hardy before dealing with the Dead Man.
4) Tyler Black/Claudio Castagnoli
5) Masato Tanaka


Daniel Wilcox
1) Edge
I was going to go with a Mick Foley/Edge tie here, because both men did some fantastic promo work to close SmackDown with one of the strongest segments we've seen in a long, long time. That segment was pretty much flawless and should result in many buys for Summerslam. That said, I give Edge the top spot because as well as his great work on SmackDown, he also had an excellent TV match with Jeff Hardy at Saturday Night's Main Event and won the match. Edge has been on such a role lately and it'll be a shame to see that come to an end inside Hell in a Cell.

2) Mick Foley/Chris Jericho: More love for this week's great promo work here. As mentioned above, Foley was terrific on Friday night, cutting a promo that shows he can still deliver with the best of 'em when required to do so. Speaking of the best of them, Chris Jericho had another great night on Raw simply by cutting another fantastic promo and also potentially putting himself in the title picture.
3) Jeff Hardy: While Jeff Hardy didn't cut a stunning promo like Edge, Jericho or Foley, with his brief mic work on Friday night he showed a whole new side to him that could lead to a very interesting future for Hardy's direction. He was also involved in the aforementioned SNME match with Edge, which was top notch.
4) Brent Albright
5) Mike Adamle


Andy Clark
1) Mick Foley
Edge should probably get this spot considering he held his own in the segment and had a good match with Jeff Hardy at SNME, but Foley was just too damn good on Friday night. While it would make no sense to anyone other than Vince Russo, there was actually a voice in the back of my head that wanted Foley to be added to the Cell match in some capacity. Cell addition or not, Foley continues to prove that even if his body doesn't have it any more, his promos are still off the charts.

2) Brent Albright: Albright winning the NWA Title may not be big for some, but this has been a yearlong, two promotion storyline revolving around one of the oldest (I won't say prestigious) championships in our sport. Albright probably won't usher in a new golden age for the NWA but he can at least be a decent representative in this day and age.
3) Nigel McGuinness: Despite my ever-growing disdain for both Nigel and his title reign I have to give the devil his due. A true champion is revealed when he wins the matches he shouldn't, and in my opinion he did just that at Death Before Dishonor this past weekend.
4) Edge
5) Masato Tanaka


Jeremy Thomas
1) Edge
Edge gave a great, GREAT performance in the main event promo spot on SmackDown, and really managed to build heat for a feud where his opponent didn't even appear. That's a pretty damn tough thing to accomplish--just ask Brock Lesnar circa March 2004. This was something that really needed to be done, though, in order to remind people just how dangerous Edge can be. It's given the SummerSlam match a little more bite, which is exactly what a Hell in a Cell match needs. Top it off with a big win over Jeff Hardy to main event Saturday Night's Main Event, and he's pretty clearly the Wrestler of the Week.

2) Mick Foley and Mike Adamle: Yes, that's right, my number two spot goes to a tie between two non-wrestlers. As good as Edge was in that promo, and as well as he went over, it wouldn't have been nearly as good as it was if Foley hadn't reminded us why he's one of the best promo men (and bump takers) in the business. Meanwhile, we have a new Raw GM, and surprise! It's Mike Freaking Adamle! This was the "...wait, WHAT??" moment of the week, and whether you love it or hate it, it's undeniably a great career advancement for Adamle. What he does with it from here may be a different story, but for now, Adamle is Raw's man of the hour.
3) Brent Albright: Albright defeated Adam Pearce to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. The belt may not mean as much as it did in days long past, it's still a feather in the cap for the man.
4) Jimmy Jacobs/Tyler Black
5) Consequences Creed


Mike Campbell
1) William Regal
He made his return to RAW and opened up a big can of the ass-whip onto the World Heavyweight Champion. Even though Punk won, people weren't talking about that. They were talking about the beating he was given.

2) Edge: He continues to be the best heel in the business right now with an awesome promo and then his attack on Foley (a very well documented close friend of his).
3) Brent Albright: He won the NWA Title from Adam Pearce. The NWA Title has seen better days, but it's got a lot of history and it's something nice to Albright's resume.
4) KAI
5) Masato Tanaka


Christi Csonka
1) Edge
Edge gets the top spot this week as he defeated Jeff Hardy Saturday night and the closing of Smackdown was one of the coolest things I saw this year. I can't wait for Hell In A Cell.

2) Mick Foley: Mick Foley may not be able to wrestle anymore, but the man can talk. He was part of that great Smackdown closing I mentioned with Edge, and even though he is "just a commentator," he deserves some love for his performance as well.
3) Chris Jericho: Chris Jericho was also great this week on the mic. We just don't deserve him.
4) Consequences Creed
5) Beer Money


Matt Short
1) Masato Tanaka
Wins his third straight ZERO1 Fire Festival after winning a three-way to make the finals before beating New Japan's Togi Makabe. Tanaka continues to prove to be the fucking man-years after his legendary series with Mike Awesome.

2) Brent Albright: Defeated Adam Pearce to become the new NWA World Champion. While it's value today can be called into question, the legacy behind the belt makes it important.
3) Edge/Mick Foley: Best Cutting Edge ever.
4) KAI
5) Nigel McGuinness


Jerrod Westerfeld
1) Brent Albright
A title win is a big deal in my decision making process for these things, but this also gets the benefit of two facts: firstly it's a historic belt who holds a catalog of legends who have held it, both recognized by the WWE and their Hall of Fame, and those who have yet to be recognized by it. Secondly it also came on a show that doesn't hold the NWA banner over its head. Becoming the new NWA World Heavyweight Champion over the very man that defeated him just under a year ago for the vacant title, Brent not only submitted Pearce and gained back the victory many thought he was owed in the wake of Danielson's injury, but he also had the Hammerstein Ballroom erupt. A very old school paced match managed to get a bigger pop than any "flippity floppity" spotfest one would imagine gets a crowd pumped.

2) Masato Tanaka: Zero-1 MAX is still considered an Indy promotion out in Japan, as their rank falls well beneath the likes of NOAH and Dragon Gate, two promotions that are on the cusp of over taking the dynasty known as the AJPW and NJPW connection. Tanaka, as some of you may remember from his fame in ECW, won his third consecutive Fire Festival tournament. While this isn't a title, it's hard to imagine how someone can be so trusted to receive multiple victories in a tournament fashion for three consecutive years and not think that somewhat important.
3) Tyler Black: This was a tough decision – I was really leaning towards Edge, but it's hard to deny Black his right as a superstar in the making. The man simply has the crowd behind him just by surviving an ass kicking at the hands of Nigel McGuinness. Generating a ton of heat and getting the crowd to erupt and believe in him, I'd say that's a big enough reason to push Tyler over Edge, if only for just this week.
4) Edge
5) Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Kevin Steen & El Generico


Michael O
1) Edge
The soon to be rated PG-13 (no, not you wolfie boy) superstar had a phenomenal week, which he kicked off on Monday by beating Jeff Hardy in the match of the week for Saturday Night's Main Event. Too bad it was seen by barely more people than Brent Albright's NWA title win. The next night, Tuesday for those not paying attention, he layed out Mick Foley in the segment of the week (sorry Chris) on Friday Night Smackdown and showed a pronounced mean streak that is more becoming of a main event heel than he has in some time. Thus far they're doing a fantastic job of setting up Summerslam's main event without the Undertaker's physical participation. This is reminiscent of the build to Summerslam '94, though one would assume it will be paid off with a better match.

2) Masato Tanaka: I don't know what he did, but Larry told me to vote for him, and what Larry tells me to do, I do. So while that is the same attitude that yielded me a case of oral gonorrhea, I shall apply it here. I know who Masato is, and I've seen him in past action, but I haven't seen this accomplishment and while normally I will not vote for something I haven't seen, I'm a man of flimsy principals and fewer ethics. Besides, I'm not allowed to vote for Autism, who had a pretty good week himself.
3) The Great Khali: After a months long period of stasis, the Great one has been really given the proverbial "monster push". While Khali has more than a couple of losses to his name, for the most part they have been consistent with Vince's imperative that Khali not be tarnished a la The Big Show and as a result, he is easily turned into a credible challenger for the World title. I know victories over Jimmy Wang Yang, and even Jeff Hardy are not going to make everyone think he can take the mighty Hunter, but sometimes there is quality in quantity.
4) Jeff Hardy
5) Mick Foley


Robert S. Leighty Jr
1) Brent Albright
My #1 rule for voting in WOTW is that any wrestler who wins a Title gets high priority. I'm sure much will be made over how important the NWA Title is in today's day and age, but it's still the NWA Title. Albright gets the nod in what was a slow week for actual in ring performances.

2) Edge: Best Cutting Edge Ever. Edge gets a little bump over Foley because of the strong match he had with Jeff Hardy on SNME. It's nice to see that Edge is being built back into the kick ass Edge from 2006.
3) Mick Foley: He can still bring the goods on the mic, and can still take an ass kicking like no other. Also it's kind of crazy to think that Hell in the Cell (from Pittsburgh, PA) with Taker and Foley was 10 years ago.
4) Masato Tanaka
5) Chris Jericho


Jeremy Thomas
1) William Regal
He made his return to RAW and opened up a big can of the ass-whip onto the World Heavyweight Champion. Even though Punk won, people weren't talking about that. They were talking about the beating he was given.

2) Edge: He continues to be the best heel in the business right now with an awesome promo and then his attack on Foley (a very well documented close friend of his).
3) Brent Albright: He won the NWA Title from Adam Pearce. The NWA Title has seen better days, but it's got a lot of history and it's something nice to Albright's resume.
4) KAI
5) Masato Tanaka


Ryan Byers
1) Edge & Mick Foley
Normally my number one criterion for WOTW picks is career advancement, but, near as I can tell, hardly anybody in the world of wrestling did anything this week that will actually make them a bigger star over the long or the short term. (Yes, I'm including Brent Albright in that one.) With no quality accomplishments, I turn to quality performances, and nobody did any better either on the mic or in the ring this week than Mick Foley and Edge. The two have a fine chemistry that dates all the way back to the late 1990's and has proven in the past that it is awesome whether comedic or serious, whether a fluff piece or whether part of a build for a top tier match. We got the latter on Friday's edition of Smackdown, and the results were as close to the perfect wrestling promo as you're going to get in 2008. It was suspenseful, it was entertaining, and, perhaps most importantly, it makes the Hell in a Cell match on the next pay per view come off as something worth paying to see. Kudos to both men.

2) KAI - The young All Japan junior heavyweight won a junior tournament this week by defeating the highly accomplished Silver King. (KAI was not fooled by his stocky physique.) Whether this is a step towards turning KAI in to a player or whether it's just going to set up a one-off title shot on the company's next major show remains to be seen, but it's a feather in his cap for the time being.
3) Masato Tanaka - It's a shame that a performer as talented as Tanaka is relegated to a promotion as meaningless as ZERO1-MAX, but at least I get to vote for him every year when he wins the Fire Festival.
4) William Regal
5) Mike Adamle


Andy Critchell
1) Mike Adamle! - Why? Why you ask? It's simple, because Mike Adamle is the man, that's why. He's now going to have one of the most prominent roles on the most prominent show in pro wrestling. Look, I know people are all bent out of shape about him because they think he's a bad announcer or because they think she doesn't know enough about wrestling but none of that matters. Here is what matters: he is entertaining as hell and he has been ever since he took to the announcing desk at ECW. His weird charisma paired with his goofy attitude made him one of the reasons that ECW was must watch TV and now he will bring that to Raw. Just remember me in two months with the internet is bending over backwards to laud the greatness of Adamle that I knew about all along. Just call me the shepherd, because I'll be leading the sheep.

2) Brent Albright - He won the NWA Title from Adam Pearce and while I don't think much of Albright as a worker, a talker, or an overall performer, he is holding a very historic belt and I respect that.
3) Edge/Foley - All that can be said about their amazing performance on the Cutting Edge has been said. Two pros doing what pros always do, delivering when it counts.
4) Regal
5) Jericho


Shawn S Lealos
1) Brent Albright
I don't care if no one thinks the NWA Championship is worth anything. Ring of Honor thinks it is worth something or they wouldn't be helping to promote it. I'm sure we'll get those people who hate ROH as well, but they are the number three alternative and they are just as big as ECW was back in the 90s. Oh well, we'll get lots of bitching and moaning and whining this week but Albright deserves the spot for winning the title this weekend.

2) EDGE - He had a great angle with Mick Foley and proved why the two had such great chemistry back when they had their fantastic Wrestlemania match. He beats down Mick with no help and then goes on to beat Jeff Hardy. Great week for Edge.
3) Brian Kendrick - I loved Spanky in ECW and I am glad to see him finally get to be himself on Smackdown. Cocky, arrogant Brian Kendrick is the most entertaining Brian Kendrick. I refuse to listen to any comparison save Shawn Michaels circa the early 1990s with Ezekiel as the new Diesel.
4) Taylor Wilde
5) Simply Priceless


ARI
1) Tyler Black & Claudio Castagnoli
If the world didn't believe in Tyler Black before, the world better see his performance at Death Before Dishonor VI. He was a bonafide star in New York City and crowd was just DESPERATE to see this kid win the title. He put on one hell of a show in the ring for them, showing his heart and fighting spirit and almost...almost getting the win. Claudio Castagnoli meanwhile, did something just as impressive. He took a crowd that was winter cold for him at the beginning of the match and made them hate him by the end of it. His turn on Bryan Danielson and the ensuring beat down was so well done that it felt like a riot could breakout at any second for Claudio daring to do what he did to Danielson, including PILLMANIZING his head. Fantastic performances from two of the four contributors in the main event of the best match thus far in 2008 for ROH.

2) Bryan Danielson & Nigel McGuinness: The other two of four wrestlers in the main event match also had their roles to play. Danielson was the face everyone was rooting for to win the match and looked to be the odds on favorite early until he was the victim of unfortunate circumstances. Nigel McGuinness was AMAZING here in his villainy, from tagging in and out in the beginning of the match to get his shots in while avoiding being hit, to his taking advantage of Danielson's misfortune with a grin and a shrug, to BLASTING Black to Hades with his lariats until he won the match. I'll say it again, this was the match of the night, match of the weekend and my current match of the year in Ring of Honor.
3) Brent Albright & Adam Pearce: All top three votes this week go to Ring of Honor and if any commenter's have a problem with that, I simply do not care. Albright and Pearce took a slow match and got the crowd to the point where they were molten hot. Aside from the main event they were loudest for this match, and that's due to the efforts of both men to get the match over and the need for Pearce to be defeated.
4) Edge & Mick Foley
5) Necro Butcher & Rhett Titus


Samuel Berman
1) Nigel McGuinness
I can see how others would rate Albright's title win higher, but for my money, running through three top challengers on one night is the more impressive feat. Nigel dispatched with Claudio Castagnoli, Bryan Danielson and Tyler Black in only the second Four Way Elimination Match to determine the fate of the ROH World Title. Oh, and he also beat Ruckus, for whatever that's worth. Big weekend for Nigel, further cementing his legacy as ROH World Champion.

2) Brent Albright: Won the (formerly very) prestigious NWA World Heavyweight Title with a victory over "Scrap Iron" Adam Pearce.
3) Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin: Though they walked away from the weekend without a win, the MCMG continue to bring their A-game in every ROH outing.
4) Masato Tanaka
5) Tyler Black


Larry Csonka
1) Brent Albright and Masato Tanaka
I was really torn this week, and in the end had to go with the tie for first. Masato Tanaka won his THIRD consecutive Fire Festival tournament, making that tournament his bitch. Meanwhile here in the US Brent Albright won the NWA Title, and while not as prestigious as it once was, it is his first major title win and it took place on a big ROH show.

2) Edge: Money Promo on Smackdown, CHECK! Win over Jeff Hardy, CHECK! That's all I need.
3) Mick Foley: Mick Foley may be broken down and look like hell these days, but that my friends was not only an awesome promo, that was a MONEY promo.
4) Chris Jericho
5) Beer Money

---

THE WINNERS~!

Special Mention…Tyler Black and William Regal - 14 Votes

Fifth Place… Nigel McGuiness - 17 Votes

Fourth Place…Masato Tanaka - 29 Votes

Third Place…Mick Foley - 37 Votes

Mick Foley shows that he still can deliver a money promo.

Second Place…Brent Albright - 55 Votes

Brent Albright gets revenge on Adam Pearce and Sweet and Sour Inc. as he takes home the NWA Title!

Wrestler of the Week…Edge - 60 Votes

Edge was awesome in his promo with Foley, and finished off the week with a win over Jeff Hardy on Saturday Night's Main Event.



Yearend Standings~!
Masato Tanaka makes his debut on the list with his fourth place finish, while Foley debuts with his third place finish. The big jump of the week was Edge, with his first place finish he leapfrogs Chris Jericho and Samoa Joe and finds himself in 3rd place, only 3 points out of first.

Let's check out the Yearend Standings!

1. Matt Hardy – 46 (ECW)

2. Batista – 45 (Raw)

3. Edge – 43 (Smackdown)

4. Chris Jericho – 34 (RAW)

5. Samoa Joe – 33 (TNA)

6. HHH – 27 (Smackdown)

7. William Regal – 25 (RAW)

8. Suwama – 24 (All Japan)
8. Jimmy Jacobs – 24 (ROH)

10. AJ Styles – 21 (TNA)
10. Alex Shelley – 21 (TNA)


Nigel McGuinness – 19 (ROH)

Kaz – 18 (TNA)
Chris Sabin – 18 (TNA)
John Cena – 18 (RAW)

CM Punk – 17 (Raw)

Taylor Wilde – 15 (TNA)
Homicide – 15 (TNA)
Hernandez – 15 (TNA)
Petey Williams – 15 (TNA)
Ric Flair – 15 (US Independent)
Kofi Kingston – 15 (RAW)
Lance Cade – 15 (RAW)
Shawn Michaels – 15 (RAW)
Mickie James – 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)

Tyler Black – 13 (ROH)
Brent Albright – 13 (ROH)

The Undertaker – 12 (WWE)
Shelton Benjamin – 12 (Smackdown)
The Great Khali – 12 (Smackdown)
Jay Briscoe – 12 (ROH)
Mark Briscoe – 12 (ROH)
Roderick Strong – 12 (ROH)
MsChif – 12 (US Independent)
Jack Evans – 12 (US Independent)

Randy Orton – 10 (RAW) {INJURED}

Chuck Taylor – 9 (US Independent)
Chris Hero – 9 (US Independent)
Volador Jr. – 9 (Mexico)
Mistico – 9 (Mexico)
Hector Garza – 9 (Mexico)
KENTA – 9 (NOAH)
Taiji Ishimori – 9 (NOAH)
Shingo Takagi – 9 (Dragon Gate)
Mark Henry – 9 (ECW)
Michelle McCool – 9 (RAW)
Mick Foley – 12 (WWE)

Kurt Angle – 7 (TNA)

Masato Tanaka – 6 (Zero One Max)
Tiger Mask IV - 6 (NOAH)
Keiji Muto – 6 (All Japan)
Wataru Inoue – 6 (New Japan)
Mr. Kennedy – 6 (Smackdown)
The Big Show – 6 (Smackdown)
Incognito – 6 (Mexico)
Erick Stevens – 6 (ROH)

Bryan Danielson – 4 (ROH)

Claudio Castagnoli – 3 (ROH)
Ryuji Hijikata –3 (All Japan)
Fire Ant – 3 (US Independent)
Jeff Hardy – 3 (Smackdown)
Beth Phoenix – 3 (RAW)
JBL – 3 (RAW)

Evan Bourne – 2 (ECW)

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)
Taiyo Kea - 1 (All Japan)
Minoru Suzuki - 1 (All Japan)
Yoshinobu Kanemaru - 1 (NOAH)
Kotaro Suzuki - 1 (NOAH)
Zack Ryder – 1 (Smackdown)
Curt Hawkins – 1 (Smackdown)

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.

---

**PREVIOUS WINNERS**

Year One Winner: Ric Flair


Year Two Winner: Samoa Joe


Year Three Winner: John Cena