The Top Ten Wrestlers of 2017, Honorable Mentions part three

Tomorrow, we reveal the immensely talented number one wrestler of 2017 as voted on by the readers of this site. But first, we have the final ten talents that made a large impact over the year withotu quite reaching the top 10.

• Christopher Daniels (#20)
  
  

  

  Image credit: Oil Sandler / Sportskeeda.

  At 46 years of age and a quarter of a century into his career, Daniels is a veteran by any count. Only a few names can say they've made it as far and as high as he has without ever finding success in WWE. (While he never was on WWE television outside an appearance as a Conquistador, he did have a developmental contract from 1998-2000.) 2017 was one of his most impressive years in the business as he wrestled several great matches and finally ascended to the pinnacle of a world championship. While his run with the ROH title wasn't particularly long, it was quite an achievement for one of the best talents still going in the business.
  
  
• Johnny Gargano (#19)
  
  Injury slowed Johnny Gargano a bit in 2017, but he walked into the year as NXT Tag Team Champion and walked out as #1 contender to the NXT title. He ranked high on the list of talents here (while current NXT champion Andrade Almas didn't even get a vote.) And while he spent much of 2017 taking losses, he showed why he's called Johnny Wrestling in match after match. He and Tommaso Ciampa sold for the Authors of Pain like no other. The beating he took at Ciampa's hand set him up for a huge underdog babyface run. But he did succeed in putting Andrade on the map with a stellar match at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn III and bumped for Pete Dunne in perhaps the best UK title match so far. Gargano has a great 2018 in his future, although Tommaso has to be waiting in the wings as a major thorn in his side.
  
  
• The Young Bucks (#17 & 18)
  
  

  

  Image Credit: ROHwrestling.com.

  I marked Matt and Nick Jackson as the eighth and ninth best wrestlers in the world on my own personal list. They remained forgotten on several others. I suspect they may be victims of their own success. The Young Bucks don't ever have bad matches, but their place as a stalwart and true tag team means they often are forgotten during their dozens of reigns with multiple titles. They held the ROH tag titles twice in 2017, losing and regaining them from the Broken Hardys in their last match before jumping back to WWE. They would then team with Hangman Page (as the Hung Bucks) to capture the ROH Six Man titles. They would take the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team title on their sixth ride as well. (They have since claimed it for the seventh time at Wrestle Kingdom 12.) The Young Bucks have already reached the sky, but their lofty goal of selling out a ten thousand seat arena means they may draw a lot more eyes in 2018.
  
  
• Samoa Joe (#16)
  
  On any other roster, Joe would be a champion. Unfortunately, he's stuck on the roster of Raw, where Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns won't drop their matches without extreme circumstances. Joe dragged the best match Lesnar had this year out of him and actually made Reigns look better (if not great) when he played his latter day Hulk Hogan beatdown schtick. If all goes well in 2018, he will join AJ Styles on Smackdown. It might make that brand look like TNA circa 2008, but everyone and their uncle know the magic Styles and Joe can make. And just think if they threw Shinsuke in there...
  
  
• The Bar (Sheamus #15 & Cesaro #11)
  
  

  

  Image credit: WWE.com. 

  Cesaro and Sheamus were the only tag team not to rank one after another on this list. Both proved their worth by putting on great tag matches in 2017. Their heel turn cemented them as a unit. Cesaro has always worked at a higher level than Sheamus, but the Irishmen seemed relevant for the first time in years in The Bar. I suspect these two will hang together for some time to come.
  
  
• Charlotte Flair (#14)
  
  Charlotte's move to Smackdown and face turn have done wonders for her character and her in ring work. In my opinion, she works best as a face and she showed that off by putting on some matches far stronger than what we got in the last few months of her heel run. My only fear for her is that she will run out of goals to accomplish in WWE far too quickly.
  
  


• Neville (#13)
  
  

  

  Image credit: WWE.com

  My number six pick takes the cake for most improved character work by any meter. But this list is about in ring work and in WWE, he was right near the peak of that. WWE's decision to de-push and turn him was beyond idiotic and would have been a truly awful way to end one of the hottest runs in wrestling. I don't blame him for walking away to avoid being just another member of the Cruiserweight crew. I'm not sure if he will sit out his WWE contract or return, but smart money will be that he's back in the heavyweight division when he does. Honestly, who wouldn't love to see Neville on Smackdown feuding with Nakamura or Styles?
  
  


• The Miz (#12)
  
  I cannot argue that The Miz is really the MVP of Raw, often carrying a show that's primary champion is nowhere to be found and who doesn't ever wrestle on television. His character work is second to none and his in ring work has vastly improved in the last couple years. While I personally wouldn't have ranked him nearly this high, I respect the multiple voters that chose him as a top talent in WWE. 

That's the final ten. Observant readers probably already know who that leaves as number one, the second time our top talent has made an appearance in the top half of our list. Who is it? Find out tomorrow!

Looking back: The top 10 wrestlers of 2015

With votes now open for the Top 10 wrestlers of 2016, I thought it would be convenient to look back at the ten wrestlers that topped the list in 2015. It was an interesting list, featuring two Lucha Underground standouts, four WWE midcarders, an NXT wrestler and a recent WWE graduate who barely accomplished anything on the main roster that year. Yet, I can think of few lists as representative of the great talent of 2015 as this one. So without more ado, here's the list of some great talent. Click on each name to read their full entry.

1. Pentagon Jr.: I ranked him much higher, but Pentagon Jr. deserved to be near the top of any list he was on for his work in Lucha Underground.
2. Cesaro: Few talents are as consistent as the Swiss Superman.
3. Kofi Kingston: The New Day rose to fame in 2015, but even I was a bit surprised by Kofi's high placing. I actually personally placed him below Xavier Woods, who just barely missed the list. 
4. Prince Puma: Rather as Puma or Ricochet, he put on some great matches in 2016 in both Lucha Underground and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
5. John Cena: It's not that often that an IWC site would rank Cena so high, but few people could argue how good Cena was during his United States title reign.
6. Big E: No one emerged with as much flair as part of The New Day as Big E. He showed why he deserves a main event push sooner rather than later last year. Hopefully 2017 is the year of Big E..
7. Seth Rollins: Iowa's own Seth Rollins dominated the main event picture of WWE and put on some great matches to boot. 
8. Bayley: Fact: There was no greater babyface in wrestling in 2015 than Bayley. 
9. Kevin Owens: He was already an indie superstar, but Owens took NXT then WWE by storm in 2015. 
10. Sasha Banks: I don't think anyone put on as many great matches in 2015 as Sasha. Sadly her 2016 might not have been quite as bright, but she's still easily one of the most talented wrestlers in the world today.

National Day of Lucha Libre: El Oriental, Cuije and Alebrije in Chikara

The Perros Del Mal faction in Mexico is mostly known today as a t-shirt Pentagon Jr. sometimes wears, but they were once a collection of the most wanted talent in Mexico. They also sent a team to the 2010 King of Trios. Oriental and company instantly lit the fires of the Chikara audience, though they ran into trouble against the BDK and their leader, one Claudio Castagnoli (a.k.a. Cesaro). While sadly none have returned to the promotion, El Oriental did wrestle regularly for Lucha Libre USA.

A different kind of SummerSlam

SummerSlam is the big money show of the weekend, but this honestly feels like one of the strangest iterations of the event. None of the "main events" really feel like a main event to me, although I suppose Raw's offering is probably the strongest of the three. But with a double digit number of matches on the card, it promises to offer some interesting battles. And if Battleground was any indication last month, the more varied matches with smaller pre-match packages actually worked really well. Here's a rundown of the card.

Image credit: WWE.com.

• Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins: I'm not sure this will actually main event, but the crowning of a Universal champion is momentous, even if the title's name is painful. I suspect this will be Rollins to win, although it does feel foolish to debut the Demon King in action and have him lose in his first outing. But it was even more foolish to have the Demon King appear days before the pay-per-view. Still it would take a momentous shift in WWE booking to have Balor win the title a month into his run as a member of the main roster.
  
• Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler: Ziggler's push to main event status still doesn't quite feel cemented, which makes this feel like the weakest of the three big matches. Still, I suspect it will have strong storyline potential. I suspect a heel turn for Ziggler is in the future and with the right booking, he could be a strong new heel main eventer on the brand, not unlike Shawn Michaels in the early 90s. But it remains to be seen if WWE will really pull the trigger on Ziggler.

The draft... happened: a few underwhelmed thoughts

I know I am certainly not the only person that found the WWE Draft a bit underwhelming. While far stronger than the version we got from WWE way back in 2002 or the random lottery of later years, the order of so many of the picks were so random. Midcard champions not going until the sixteenth and seventeenth overall pick is certainly insane, while the number one contenders to those titles are treated like also-rans drafted on the secondary show.

Despite much ballyhoo about WWE trying to make Smackdown as strong as Raw, the action of the night really didn't bring that out. Raw seemed programmed to the future with Zayn, Cesaro, Owens and Balor all in strong places while Smackdown feels like it will have to be built around Ambrose, Styles, Wyatt and Cena simply because the roster isn't very deep beyond them. Orton could be a wildcard but he likely will be looking few live events, similar to Cena's new schedule. That especially makes Smackdown an incredibly weak touring brand.

The NXT signings were mostly underwhelming. Balor went high and should get a massive main roster push. American Alpha should be the focus of the Smackdown tag division going ahead, although if that comes with no title belts who knows how important that will really feel. Nia Jax feels way too soon. Alexa Bliss, Carmella and Mojo Rawley could all work on the main roster, but none really feel like they've accomplished enough in NXT to make the call-ups sensible. Other NXT veterans like Tye Dillinger would be more sensible, while Austin Aries, Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode have already showed they can be main event players. However one shimmer of sunlight: it does seem likely we will see the Hype Bros finally start a strong run on Smackdown, though whatthey can accomplish is anyone's guess.

Of course, the real question of the future will be built around the writers. Raw continues with the same writer it has had for quite some time, a man without a real good sign of knowing how to freshen things up. Smackdown looks to be in the charge of Ryan Ward, former NXT head writer, which could mean a stronger simpler booking method for the show. More storylines built around strong athletic competition seems sensible, but without so many of the superstar NXT alum like the aforementioned Zayn, Cesaro, Owens and Balor, it feels more like rehabilitation for older stars (Dolph Ziggler) and continued Ward pet projects (Baron Corbin and Apollo Crews.)

Next week, we will see with the beginning of a new era for the two brands. Here's hoping they give us the future WWE deserves with the talent it now possesses.

Looking back at Extreme Rules 2016

Like too many WWE pay-per-views, Extreme Rules had some great moments but they were tempered by far too many terrible events that just hurt the show. And of course, the news of Cody Rhodes' requested release being approved darkened the night just a bit (but more on that later this week.)

Image credit: WWE.com.

The pre-show gave us another confrontation between Big Cass and the Dudley Boyz, another segment clearly designed to promote the eventual feud between Enzo and Cass and the veteran extremists. Cass has certainly come into his own as a solo star in the last few weeks though and I suspect Vince will have a big future in mind for him.

Baron Corbin and Dolph Ziggler's no holds barred match had exactly one normally illegal move as Corbin set up the End of Days with a low blow. It completely wasted the stipulation, but at the same time they didn't want to do anything that would hurt the main event, which has the exact same stipulation with a different name.

The main show opened with The Usos and The Club in a tornado tag team match. Jimmy and Jey set out to have another great match in their repertoire and their battle with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows did not fail. The two teams put on a classic match in a format rarely seen on WWE television. Hopefully this will convince someone that more tornado tags will be great in the future of the tag division.

Previewing Extreme Rules 2016

Image credit: WWE. 

I’m still not quite sure what to make of this year’s Extreme Rules card. While this is the ‘new era’ of WWE, the card feels even less “extreme” than previous years. But the ongoing feuds offer some great match potential along with a few intriguing storylines.

The pre-show gives us Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin for the second month in a row, this time in a no disqualification match. (If you’re wondering how this is different than the Extreme Rules main event, the answer is they’re not at all different in modern WWE.) This feud still makes little sense to me as an ongoing storyline. Ziggler should be at a higher level than Ziggler, but Corbin should be winning if the company wants to establish him as a main roster star.

As an aside, this is the second month since his debut Apollo Crews doesn’t appear on pay-per-view. Dude has too many skills to not be used in a stronger feature.

The Top 10 Wrestlers of WWE, April 2016 edition

It has been six weeks since we last ran down the list of the top wrestlers in WWE. As the post-Wrestlemania WWE starts to take shape, let's look at all the wrestlers that are getting television time and excelling right now.

Image credit: WWE.com.

1. Dean Ambrose: Dean didn't have a very good Wrestlemania, nor did he appear on the post-Wrestlemania episode of Raw. But as he starts a new storyline with Chris Jericho, he seems ready to build his credibility back up. It seems likely he will continue to be a pseudo-main eventer over the next several months, even if WWE seems terrified of putting the title belt on him. (1/4)
2. Chris Jericho: Jericho picked up a strange win over AJ Styles at Wrestlemania. It seems in hindsight, the purpose was to make it clear that Jericho deserved a continued spot on WWE television for the next few months. Expect a long feud between him and Ambrose, most likely leading towards a SummerSlam resolution to his current run. (U/1)
3. Charlotte: I am not sure I am happy with a lot of the current booking behind Charlotte, but she continues to rise to the top in women's matches. The main roster has exposed many of her weaknesses in match building, but she still excels when working with ring generals like Sasha, Becky and her latest foe: the always solid Natalya. (9/5)
4. Roman Reigns: He won the main event of Wrestlemania, but it is still hard to treat Roman as an important figure in WWE. Fans react horrifically to all his appearances. The plodding main event had fans leaving Wrestlemania early. Reigns has great talent, but he will never be a huge star under his current direction. Hopefully WWE realizes his current tweener gimmick can take him into a strong heel turn to get him solidly set as a top player in the company. (10/6)
5. The New Day: Big E, Kofi and Xavier might be victims of their own success. They have been left with few unbeaten opponents in the still remarkably strong tag team division. The current tag tournament should help them find new opponents. Personally, I think it's time for the team to lose the belts. WWE would be far wiser to move the group into solo feuds, though without breaking up a unit that often brings the most entertainment value to any episode of Raw. (3/6)
6. Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady: Enzo and Cass finally debuted on the main roster the night after Wrestlemania. Of all the talents that are new to the roster right now, they are clearly the most over by leaps and bounds. The two men seem poised to take the roster by storm in the same way The New Day did exactly a year ago. I suspect we will see a successful tag team run for both men in the coming months, even if it doesn't come with an immediate title shot. (U/1)
7. Kevin Owens: Back in prize fighter without a prize mode, KO still commands attention on every appearance. The brutality shown between him and Zayn seems ready to ignite into a massive feud between both men. If played right, WWE could build either man to main event status in a matter of weeks. (6/6)
8. Cesaro: The Swiss Superman returned to WWE the night after Wrestlemania and instantly set himself up as a strong contender for the best talent on the roster. WWE realizes they have a great star with the King of Swing, but they still seem unsure of the direction he should go in. With a Intercontinental title shot in his future, he could easily bring some prestige to the belt, especially if they allow him to showcase his talents the way Cena did with his open challenges. (U/1)
9. Sami Zayn: The Zayniacs have to be overjoyed at the attention Sami has received in WWE. He had a great showing at his first Wrestlemania, and eight days later he had a barnburner of a match with the number one wrestler for the number one contendership. The company clearly understands they have a strong talent with Zayn, but it remains to be seen if he will follow the career path of Cesaro and Ambrose, never quite able to break into the main event scene. (U/1)
10. AJ Styles: WWE has a hot ticket with AJ Styles and it seems the company realizes it. Coming off his New Japan run, Styles has put on amazing WWE match after amazing WWE match. After two wins in two matches, he has secured his place as number one contender. My only fear right now is that WWE might pull a heel turn for Styles soon to form some kind of WWE version of the Bullet Club. I think it could only be called a mistake to turn Styles heel now, at the height of his babyface popularity. And the real question may be if WWE is actually willing to allow Styles to beat Reigns, perhaps the ultimate example of an outside talent beating the established WWE star. (4/3)

The new number one contender is currently the hottest star on the WWE roster.
Image credit: WWE.com.

As a reminder, the twin number rankings for the wrestlers list their previous ranking on the list (a U means they were unlisted) and the number of lists the wrestler has appeared on in a row.

March Mania Sixteen Match Rumble Round! What will be the eight best modern Wrestlemania matches?

Yesterday, the field narrowed from 48 to 16. Today, it will narrow again from 16 to 8. Voting is open to midnight Central time tonight, so get yours votes in!

But enough with the preliminaries. On to the match ups!

ROUND TWO - GEORGIA DIVISION

Image credit: WWE.

Edge's final pay-per-view match against Alberto Del Rio scored big in its first round match-up, while decisions were split for The Shield battling against Kane and the New Age Outlaws in one of their first battles as a babyface unit. Both are stellar matches, but only one moves on!

Image credit: WWE screen grab

The end of the streak for Undertaker had to go through a tie-breaker to get to the second round, while last year's 7 way Intercontinental Ladder Match did much better, dominating over Triple H vs. Sting.




ROUND TWO - LOUISIANA DIVISION

Seth Rollins crashed last year's main event between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, helping that match secure a win in the first round. Jack Swagger's victory in the Wrestlemania XXVI Money in the Bank match was a tighter race.




I was a bit surprised to see the Wrestlemania XXX match between Triple H and Daniel Bryan go to a tiebreaker after stiff competition from Jericho and Edge. Rey Mysterio versus CM Punk had none of that trouble, completely sweeping their opening round battle.




ROUND TWO - FLORIDA DIVISION

CM Punk and Chris Jericho's World title battle swept its division while Triple H and Undertaker's war at Wrestlemania 28 scored big as well.




Daniel Bryan vs. Batista vs. Randy Orton was almost a no brainer to take its first round match, while the conflict between John Cena and Bray Wyatt barely sneaked out a win.




ROUND TWO - NEW YORK DIVISION

Tyson Kidd and Cesaro's victory in last year's 4 way tag team match was the only preliminary show match to make it to the final round. John Cena battling the Rock in the Twice in a Lifetime match dominated completely against lackluster challengers.




Undertaker retired two other matches much as he did Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania 26. John Cena and Batista barely squeezed past Undertaker and CM Punk to keep this from being two Taker matches pitted against one another.




That's all the matches featuring some huge competitors in some stellar matches! Make your voice heard by voting now!

Shane's return is a win, but where's the focus on new talent?

Shane O'Mac is back! Image credit: WWE.com. 

Let's get this out of the way first: Shane McMahon making his long awaited comeback to WWE was a huge win for the company last night. Shane puts on great matches whenever he's on WWE television, where he could even make electrocuted testicles something entertaining. (Yes, really.) As Undertaker's Wrestlemania opponent, he's certainly a strange pick but he's got the potential to take the company in a much needed, new direction after the biggest show of the year.

The problem is that his return is simply not enough in the current holding pattern of the WWE roster. With numerous stars on the shelf, it seems like the perfect time to start bringing out fresh new characters, but WWE seems completely unwilling to even use half the stars they have on the main roster in a significant way. Cesaro is healthy but hasn't returned to television yet. Neville seems doomed to six man matches. The Wyatt Family have suddenly lost all direction as the Wyatt-Lesnar feud dissipates into dust.

Meanwhile, Jericho and Styles are suddenly a tag team for no reason, the New Day are feuding with everyone's least favorite stable, the League of Nations, and I'm still not sure if WWE even knows what it's doing right now with Kevin Owens or Kalisto, the company's secondary champions. Dolph Ziggler, Neville and Tyler Breeze have become little more than afterthoughts. Meanwhile stars like Enzo and Cass, Samoa Joe and Baron Corbin are in a holding pattern until they're called up from NXT.

Amore and Cassady are ready for the big show. 

It seems like a strange time for WWE not to spread the focus on the wealth of talent they have and build stronger stories that will propel interest in the rest of the card, especially when they are pushing as tough a sell in the main event as Roman Reigns versus Triple H (a.k.a. the battle of who we want to see less.)

Hopefully, a Cesaro-Kevin Owens feud is in the making in the coming weeks. Perhaps WWE will expand past the already announced No Holds Barred and Hell in a Cell match to give fans a much needed Tag Team TLC match as well. The New Day, The Dudleys, Sheamus and Del Rio and maybe even the team of Chris Jericho and AJ Styles could do amazing things on that stage. But it is truly time to let the wrestlers of the company shine as more than great technicians, but to use this period leading up to the biggest show of the year to build new stars.

And I don't mean Roman Reigns.

Wrestlemania Predictions

Wow, the injury list in the WWE has grown bigger than the roster. John Cena. Seth Rollins. Cesaro. Daniel Bryan (Retired), Tyson Kidd (probably retired), Sting (probably retired), Randy Orton, Nikki Bella, Sheamus, and I am sure there are a few more I am forgetting here.

Hell, if it wasn't for the remaining members of The Shield, Kevin Owens and AJ Styles, the WWE wouldn't have a show.

So what is left for Wrestlemania?

My guess is, given the current state of the roster, the WWE is going to play it safe. Due to their terrible booking the last few months, they don't have big enough heels to pull off huge matches. This has always been my biggest complaint with the WWE this past year and why I prefer Lucha Underground; the whole concept of babyface and heel is outdated. They can play that role, but the booking should be based on talent, not role. I want to see Del Rio against Sheamus, not Kalisto five times in a row, or Brock Lesnar vs Rusev. These kinds of matches earn respect and build careers, not throwing every heel against Dolph Ziggler repeatedly.

Over in NXT there are a ton of great stars ready to make the jump to prime time. But the WWE can't push new wrestlers this close to Wrestlemania, it is too risky. We'll be lucky if they put AJ Styles in.
Instead they are going to have to go with what they got now, I doubt they'll bring anyone up for the big show. Some great wrestlers include Samoa Joe, Apollo Crews and Baron Corbin. Corbin against Bray Wyatt would be one hell of a match, but since the WWE doesn't put heels against heels, there is almost no chance of that happening. We were lucky to get Finn Balor VS Apollo Crews on an episode of NXT.

I believe they'll play it safe and have Brock Lesnar beat Triple H for the WWE title at Wrestlemania. Crowds love Brock and he's a guaranteed sell. This is the safest and most logical route for the WWE to take. Even though we've seen these two go at each other in passed, they are, like it or not, the two top dogs in the WWE.

Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns will end up facing off against each other, with perhaps one of them turning heel (because the WWE is obsessed with the heel/babyface concept). I'd love to see a clean rematch between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar and it might happen, but then they would have to build a new storyline for Ambrose, which I don't think they have the ability to do this close to Wrestlemania.

And where is the Undertaker?

Do they even have enough wrestlers to fill the show? Do guys like Chris Jericho still have the star power for one more Wrestlemania? Will Vince give a guy like Kevin Owens a main event spot?
I am sure we'll get Calisto against someone, or maybe Del Rio, if he takes back the belt at Fastlane. Or maybe they'll just face each other again, a match we've already seen five times.
Having Ambrose carry the Intercontinental title is a waste at this point since he doesn't need it to make the main event. Would have been better to let Ryback keep it and give him a good match at WM, but Ryback seems to be falling hard.

Strange as it may sound, it appears that one of the Social Outcasts might actually get a WM match. Thanks to injuries the guys who six months ago were looking at unemployment might have a shot at the mid-card slot, if the mid-carders have to main event. Interesting times, either way.

Kevin Owens: #2 in the Wrestling Weekday Top 10 Wrestlers of 2015, presented by ESO-PRO

Image credit: WWE.com.

The man once known as Kevin Steen made his NXT debut just weeks before 2014 closes. Within two months, he was NXT champion after a brutal match with his former friend Sami Zayn. Three months later, he was on the main roster and immediately embroiled in a feud with John Cena. At Elimination Chamber, he scored an upset clean win over Cena with his pop up powerbomb. And though he wasn't able to take the title from Cena, he stole the show for four straight pay-per-views, against Cena and then Cesaro. A month later, he was Intercontinental champion. Not bad for a guy with barely a year under his belt.

Owens is proof that with the right push from creative on the right talent, they can break through the boundaries quickly and effectively. He is majorly over and while he has yet to challenge for the WWE World Heavyweight title, he has been a dominant figure on WWE television. Yet some people still claim WWE fails to push him.

I am pretty sure half a dozen wrestlers would love to have Owens' spot, where he hasn't missed a pay-per-view appearance since his debut. And unlike some folks WWE has featured regularly (say, Roman Reigns and Bray Wyatt), he hasn't had a bad match in the bunch.

Owens seems poised to be a future main eventer in WWE and may be more entertaining than just about any other contender for that title. He does everything he can to improve the program every time he appears. As Mike Gordon puts it: “No one works harder to make it look so effortless.” And that couldn't be more true. Despite his build, I can think of few talents on the independent scene that toiled as hard to get where they are now than Kevin Owens. For goodness sake, this is a native French speaker that taught himself English by watching WWE television as a child. I would be hard pressed to see anyone more devoted to the sport of kings than "The Prizefighter."

Big E: #5 in the Wrestling Weekday Top 10 Wrestlers of 2015, presented by ESO-PRO

Image credit: WWE.com. 

Since Wrestlemania, it's hard to argue that The New Day have consistently been the most entertaining part of Raw week after week. Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and a trombone have all had amazing moments, but the true star of the show has been Big E. With his preacher-style presentation, crazy lines and always impressive in ring skill, he is easily one of the top up-and-coming stars in WWE.

Long time viewers of NXT knew exactly how great Big E can be on the microphone and followers of him on social media know that he's just plain crazy much of the time. As Lauren Price puts it in her nomination: “Glad that New Day has given a chance to show his personality and wit on the main roster vs being stuck as someone’s silent bodyguard.”

Cesaro: #9 in the Wrestling Weekday Top 10 Wrestlers of 2015, presented by ESO-PRO

Can't say Cesaro doesn't know how to work the merchandise.
Image credit: WWE.com.

The wrestler formerly known as Claudio Castaganoli did the same thing he has been doing for nearly a decade as a professional wrestler: he stole the show whenever and wherever he got the chance.

Unfortunately, he also faced the same problem he always seemed to face: a glass ceiling far too low for a wrestler of his immense talent.

NXT Advent Calendar Day 16: Back to the beginning

As NXT prepares to close out a second year of like Takeover specials, it seemed time to look back at the very first such special, just days after the launch of the WWE Network. Arrival is the only NXT show not to carry the Takeover handle, but it certainly kicked off the brand's penchant for great cards. It did so with an amazing opener that ran over twenty minutes as WWE superstar Cesaro took on a man that was quickly becoming the face of NXT, Sami Zayn.

Cesaro and Zayn already had a couple really stupendous battles on the weeks before the event, but it was at Arrival they pulled out all the stops to put on a match for the ages. Every indie encounter they had seemed to lead up to an amazing moment for both men as Cesaro ended his NXT run and Sami Zayn prepped for his slow rise to the main event.

Check out the full match below.


Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn 27-02-14 by bestwrestlingintheworld
Did I mention that I miss Renee Young calling matches?

Did the Young Bucks make the right decision by signing with ROH?

It was a big news story after being teased by the Young Bucks themselves: who would they sign a contract with at this point in their careers? The answer was Ring of Honor. While the deal in place allows them to continue their work with ROH's partner NJPW and the Bucks' home promotion PWG, Ring of Honor seems like a strange choice for the duo.

Image credit: ROHWrestling.com.

Ring of Honor has had two other high profile signings in the last few months. They signed Moose after rumors that the rising star might be WWE bound. Since that time, he's fought on the early half of every card in negligible matches that do nothing for a star that was massively over entering 2015. The second signing was of Roderick Strong, a man that while often looked at as bland personality-wise can go as well as anyone in the ring. His signing has embroiled him in a feud with Jay Lethal, the perennial booking favorite of ROH's Hunter Johnson.

WWE LIVE! in Toronto

So I finally got to see a live WWE event. I was actually expecting a bigger spectacle but that was because I've been watching it on television for so long. The house shows have much lower production values, more like what he see in televised independent matches.

Right off the bat, my respect for the people in the show went up. I've been tearing Byron Saxon for months over his shoddy work as an announcer, but seeing him amp up the crowd in person made me feel a little bit of sympathy for the guy. Seeing them live made me appreciate just how hard it must be to travel and work every single night and still keep that energy level up. Despite all the negativity some of these guys endure, they still give it their all (most of the time). So on behalf of the city of Toronto and all the people that went to the Ricoh Coliseum that night, thank you guys for making the effort for us.

The show opened with New Day taking on the Prime Time Players. Lot of dancing from New Day, with Xavier Woods doing a Rick Rude style dance at one point. New Day controlled the match and ended up with the victory. As much as I want to support the PTP, their lacking in something. Not sure what it is, but they just can't seem to get over.

Curtis Axel made an appearance in a handicap match against Los Matadores. Apparently they've turned heel now, but Axel defeated them with a little help from a friend, Torito. My wife didn't know who Axel was until I told her he's the guy that used to think he was Hulk Hogan. Obviously that gimmick didn't pay off for him.

Kevin Owens got himself disqualified with another rake of the eyes in his match against Ryback. Great to see a Canadian IC champion, I think Owens is going to one day be a legendary heel in the way Owen Hart was. I was shouting "Pop Him Up!" but I don't think I've seen Ryback get Pop Up Power Bombed yet. Maybe he's too big?

I am pretty sure this is not the sequence of matches, but I can't recall the exact order they came out. At first I was trying to take pictures and post them live to my blog, but after the third match I realized it was becoming a hassle to try and get the clear shots, my phone camera sucked, so I decided to stop taking pictures and get more involved in the matches.

Speaking of Canadians, Chris Jericho showed up. I actually saw him drive in as we got off the subway. There was a crowd gathered around the tour bus and Jericho drove right behind them. of all the entertainers that night, Jericho got the crowd the best. After beating Luke Harper in a great match, Jericho was able to direct the crowd in a series of cheers. It was nice to see the Canadian boy still has it. Luke Harper spoke at the beginning of the match, not sure what he said, probably some Wyatt family brainwashing stuff, but Jericho snatched the mic from him and gave the crowd a "Toronto is Jericho" pop.

Just as seeing the show live gives you a deeper appreciation for the men and women out there entertaining audiences every night, you also lose some of the magic. The Big Show is a perfect example. The man is a monster of a human being, he moved passed the crowd like a triceratops or something, just massively tall and broad. Cesaro, for all this talent, just couldn't sell his moves. The Big Show is just so big that when you see him getting hit, you know its totally fake. Unlike the televised show, where the lights and the camera work add to the effect, seeing someone try to hurt a guy the size of the Big Show in real life just looked silly. He's simply too big to manhandle and you can tell he's simply allowing the other guy to push him around. I don't think you could really hurt this man in a real life fight. Big Show had a few bright moments interacting with the crowd, even taking the mic for a bit to shout down those telling him to retire. My wife sort of felt bad for him, but he's playing a heel, he's supposed to be hated.

Damien Sandow VS Braun Stroman. The Wyatt Family carried the show as heels, with every member fighting that night. Damien put up a good offense but eventually succumbed to Braun's submission maneuver. Sandow appeared to be the same height as Braun which made the move look a little silly; Sandow actually had to lift his legs off the mat to appear to be held aloft. As Braun went through the screens after the match was over, he looked back at the crowd and gave a little smile. Truth is, the guy has a friendly look in his eyes in person. I bet you he's a really nice guy in real life.

After an intermission, Team Bella faced Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Even with the third person in their corner the Bellas just could not get it done. Nikki looked great but Brie was forgettable, I can't even recall her doing anything in the match. At the end of the match after Charlotte locked in her Figure 8 and Nikki tapped, Team Bella carried Nikki backstage. There was an almost circus-like feel to the end of the match, the girls were overacting to the point where they looked like they were putting on a performance, in the way amateur stage actors do. It was a good match, but Nikki really should just dump the rest of Team Bella and go her own way.

Dean Ambrose faced Bray Wyatt in a No Holds Barred match. Bray came out to a simplified version of his intro, so we got a bit of the fireflies in the audience, but I don't recall seeing a lantern. This was by far one of the best matches of the show. Bray tied the kendo stick to the turnbuckle and sent Ambrose into it face first, blinding him for a while when the stick poked him in the eye. The rest of the Wyatt family came to Bray's aid only to be foiled by the Dudleyz and Ryback. Luke Harper ended up the victim of a 3-D, destroying one table, with another table being destroyed later by Dean coming off the top rope onto a laid-out Bray Wyatt. Ryback went after Braun, which makes me wonder if this is Ryback's next feud.

The final match was for the US title, between WWE World Champ Seth Rollins and defending US champion John Cena. Lots of support for Cena from the crowd, which prompted Rollins to stop mid-match and remind the crowd in his whiny, weasel-like way that he is the world champ. I kept chanting "You Broke Sting" throughout the match. It was a great match, made up of all the moves we've seen these two do in the last two or three matches they've had. The big change came at end, when Cena stunned the crowd with an F-5 from the second rope.

I am going to try and take my son to the show in December. After seeing these guys live, I'm itching to see Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins face off. Both these guys have a great in-ring style and I hope they do eventually have a feud, because those two men can take the sport to the next level.

I had a great time, all the visibility at times was a pain in the ass. Floor seating meant we couldn't see the mat or anything going on outside the ring. Next time  I am going to try and find a spot farther back and perhaps up a bit so we can see clearly.

You can see pics from the show on my blog at: ricktheraven.wordpress.com

They aren't very good, in fact I was much closer to the show than these pics made it appear. The Ricoh Coliseum isn't that big.

TakeOver blows away SummerSlam in an amazing weekend of wrestling!

There is no doubt about it: with two straight nights of network specials, WWE outdid itself at the Barclays Center this weekend. But what hurts the main brand in comparison is how much stronger the NXT matches were.

Don't get me wrong, the six matches on NXT's weekend shot had the advantage of not being marred by shady finishes like the two big matches at SummerSlam were, but even a comparison of the the twin main events from both shows makes it clear that NXT is a stronger brand overall in wresting terms.

Cesaro and Kevin Owens put on a great battle before the SummerSlam
main event. Image credits this page: WWE.com.

Lesnar vs. Undertaker headlines a unique SummerSlam card

I will be the first to admit that WWE's build to SummerSlam hasn't really inspired me to more regularly watch their weekly television programming outside NXT. They have jobbed out up and coming stars, made a mess of the US and WWE title picture and pretty much left themselves scrambling to put together the card with only days before the event. But even with all the problems of their weekly episodic programming, they have crafted a pretty solid card for Brooklyn on Sunday night. 

Image credit: WWE.

• Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev: This one could have used a built more build from Ziggler's return, but I think it should be a great match-up. Rusev needs a solid feud to take him towards Wrestlemania while Ziggler needs to desperately get a win to get him into the title picture against Seth Rollins (where he should be right now.) I suspect this is only the beginning of the feud over Lana though, so even though I predict a Ziggler win to kick off SummerSlam this one is far from over. 

New Japan Wrestling and the WWE Star of the Month

For the first time, I decided to watch New Japan Pro Wrestling, specifically a match between "Rain Maker" Kazuchika Okada and AJ Styles. Now, it has been a long time since I watched a Japanese wrestling match and never with any real interest and I was surprised at how Americanized the product was. I mean of course most of the people were speaking Japanese, but there were a lot of American wrestlers involved, including of course AJ Styles himself and his Bullet Club. Apparently this was a heel vs heel match, Okada's "Rain Maker" character was meant as a heel, but of course the old fashioned "foreigner heel" storyline always works,which is exactly what AJ and his boys came across as. Japan has always been a country of pride and tradition and the Bullet Club really worked as a disrespectful group of invaders. The match I watched was from 2014, Okada is currently the World Champion, in this match however he lost to AJ Styles.

I noticed in NJPW wrestling they interviewed the wrestlers after the match, something the WWE rarely ever does.

AJ Styles in 2014 looked a lot like Seth Rollins in 2015. He is a phenomenal wrestler, with a lot of in-ring talent, but I can see why the WWE doesn't have a place for him. From Ziggler to Rollins, there are just too many guys like AJ in the WWE right now. The Bullet Club doesn't really have a 'theme' other than a cool pirate flag, and they seemed a little too "NWO" for my test. I was also very impressed with Okada, who I'd love to see perform in NXT. I just read that there are some Finn Balor (as Prince Devitt) vs Okada matches out there, going to have to hunt those down! It is very interesting the way some wrestler's careers weave in and out of the Japanese circuit. The world is a big place, plenty of great matches out there waiting to be discovered!

Just read a rumor that Glacier, the old Mortal Kombat dude from WCW, is making appearances again. He has the worst name in wrestling. Literally, the worst. Even a tugboat is more dangerous than a glacier.

The wrestler of the month for June is CESARO. The man has all the right tools to be a world champion, its not his fault he is crippled by his homeland's weird language. But how can I not love a guy who wears a Canadian leaf into the ring out of respect for his tag team partner, TJ? I don't know if the pop-up uppercut is an old move or if he came up with it after seeing Kevin Owens, the first time I recall seeing it was against Cena sometime in the last couple weeks.

I really don't want to see Cena lose the title to Kevin Owens. Owens doesn't need it and Cena has worked hard to give that championship some value. When Cesaro carried the belt, no one cared. Now that Cena has created a whole new avenue for these wrestlers to explore, I'd rather see Cena lose it to someone like Cesaro who will treat it with dignity and respect. Cesaro would be able to follow Cena's lead and keep the title on television. We already have a Heel World Champion, we don't need two. Seeing Cesaro run from corner to corner with those big European uppercuts is quickly becoming the main event, his energy level is up there with Ambrose and Rollins.

Ironically enough, Cesaro has worked for ROH and Pro Wrestling Noah, a Japan based promotion.

Cesaro/Cena/Owens in an Iron Man Triple Threat Match for Summerslam 2015?