wrestling / Columns

411’s Wrestler of the Week – Is EC3 #1?

March 17, 2015 | Posted by Larry Csonka

Welcome to YEAR TEN, WEEK 49 of 411’s Wrestler of the Week. A quick overview of the rules to kick things off for us as a reminder…

Each writer chooses FIVE wrestlers (although ties and tag teams are allowed) 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 around WrestleMania. This will be posted every Tuesday (the voting week runs Monday through Sunday). Let’s see who wins this week…

Larry Csonka
1) Kota Ibushi:
Kota Ibushi defeated Tetsuya Naito in the semifinals and then Hirooki Goto in the finals to win the 2015 New Japan Cup. With his win, Ibushi will receive an IWPG Heavyweight Title shot against AJ Styles on April 5th.

2) Minoru Suzuki: Minoru Suzuki NOAH invasion continues as the Suziki-gun stable completes their clean sweep of the titles. Suzuki scored big with the GHC Heavyweight Title, defeating Naomichi Marufuji.
3) Ethan Carter III: Defeated Rockstar Spud in the main event of this week’s Impact. Carter won one of the better TNA matches in some time, and he solidified himself as a true asshole heel for the company.
4) Johnny Mundo
5) TAKA Michinoku & El Desperado

Jack McGee
1) Ethan Carter III:
Ethan Carter III defeated Rockstar Spud in the main event of this week’s Impact Wrestling. The match was well worked, had excellent heat and was probably the most emotionally invested I have been in a TNA match in a long time. Carter came off as a completely remorseless heel, continues to grow as a performer and is poised for big things. They worked the right angle, with the right guys, to the right match in the right venue and it just clicked.

2) Minoru Suzuki: Defeated Naomichi Marufuji to become the new GHC Heavyweight Champion.
3) Kota Ibushi: Your 2015 New Japan Cup winner!
4) Johnny Mundo
5) Bobby Roode

Mike Hammerlock
1) Kota Ibushi:
Got a feeling 2015 is going to be his year. Winning the New Japan Cup puts a rocket on Ibushi’s back. Don’t know that he’s going to beat AJ Styles in his April 5th championship match, but Ibushi’s climbing to the top tier of NJPW. Beating three-time New Japan Cup winner Hirooki Goto in the finals and one-time next big thing Tetsuya Naito in the semis elevates Ibushi to that level right below AJ, Tanahashi, Okada and Nakamura. Kind of exciting to see a star on the rise.

2) Ethan Carter III: He’s become a world-class heel. Might have the most punchable face in the business. What gets overlooked is he’s gotten really good in the ring. The hair vs. hair match he had against Rockstar Spud was superb. Got a lower vote for Spud, who proudly wore the red mask. He bled buckets in a match that marks his final transition from comedy act to legit pro wrestler. Yet EC3 is the bigger story. He’s got the crowd in the palm of his hand. Can’t wait to see what he does next. Like Ibushi, EC3 is on the express train to the top.
3) Johnny Mundo: Finished his steel cage match against King Cuerno with a corkscrew moonsault. The match was all-action. Like with Spud, Cuerno earned his bona fides with the loss. He hung with Mundo on one of Mundo’s very good days. As for Mundo, he’s proving to be exactly what Lucha Underground pays him to be, a big game player. If you’re a WWE fan who hasn’t caught the former John Morrison since he left the mother ship, he’s still got it.
4) Rockstar Spud
5) Minoru Suzuki

Ryan Byers
1) Kota Ibushi:
This weekend, Ibushi defeated Tetsuya Naito and Hirooki Goto to win the 2015 New Japan Cup Tournament, which earned him a shot at the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in Sumo Hall. Ibushi has never challenged for a championship of this magnitude on a show of this size, so it’s a major career opportunity for him. That alone would be enough reason for me to put him in first place, but I have to give him extra credit because of where he came from. Five years ago, this guy was exclusively a part of the roster of DDT, a promotion where the second biggest star to Ibushi was a man whose moveset is based around tea bagging his opponents and the third biggest star to Ibushi was a blow-up doll. It is very unusual to see a wrestler with that sort of background rise up to be an individual who could legitimately headline a show for the biggest wrestling promotion in all of Japan, and it is a testament to Ibushi’s talent that he’s been able to pull it off.

2) Minoru Suzuki: Defeating Naomichi Marufuji this past Sunday, Suzuki is your new GHC Heavyweight Champion in Pro Wrestling NOAH. However, it’s more than just that. Suzuki is the focal point of an angle in which his heel stable from New Japan has invaded NOAH, and the group now holds every championship in the company after the big weekend event. It’s really revitalizing what was a dead promotion, and Suzuki (in addition to the new booking team) deserves a lot of credit for that.
3) Taichi: As part of the aforementioned Suzuki-gun invasion angle, Taichi is the new GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion which, believe it or not, is his first singles championship in a career that has spanned thirteen years and multiple promotions.
4) TAKA Michinoku & El Desperado
5) John Cena

Kevin Pantoja
1) Ethan Carter III:
For a long time, I’ve felt that the WWE missed the boat on Ethan Carter III. This week, he solidified that for me and made me feel that he’s a bigger missed opportunity than guys like Carlito, John Morrison, Shelton Benjamin and more. On an Impact episode that featured a Last Man Standing match between Eric Young and Bobby Roode, EC3 got to main event with Rockstar Spud. They showed they deserved it by putting on one of my favorite matches in 2015. EC3 has become one of the best heels in all of professional wrestling. The match was excellent, the false change of heart at the end was perfect and 2015 should be his year in TNA.

2) Kota Ibushi: Much like Ethan Carter III, Kota Ibushi is one of the top guys that should be watched in 2015. After opening the year with a blistering outing against Shinsuke Nakamura, he went out and won the New Japan Cup. He defeated two big names on the road to the cup in Tetsuya Naito and Hirooki Goto. Now, he has an IWGP Heavyweight Title shot set against AJ Styles on April 5th. I don’t think he’ll win it there, but he has elevated himself to the top tier of NJPW.
3) Johnny Mundo: While I mentioned that I think EC3 has more potential earlier, that doesn’t mean that Johnny Mundo is a slouch. While I don’t think his style and inability to cut promos worked for WWE, he’s been top notch in Lucha Underground and one of their biggest attractions. He’s a big name for the company and delivers when put into main events, like he did this week in Lucha Underground’s first ever Steel Cage match against King Cuerno. Winning with a beautiful corkscrew moonsault was the icing on the cake of another solid performance for Mundo.
4) Rockstar Spud
5) Bobby Roode

Arnold Furious
1) Minoru Suzuki:
NOAH were making legitimate mainstream news this weekend after Suzuki’s stable “Suzuki-gun” captured every major belt in Pro Wrestling NOAH. Yahoo News in Japan had it on their main page. It’s that big of a deal over there. While I’m not overly keen on the booking, as Suzuki-gun as a group are mostly terrible, the one outstanding achievement of the invasion is Minoru Suzuki picking up the GHC title. It’s his first major title in wrestling since holding the Triple Crown four years ago. The impact this has made is massive for NOAH. Their audiences have been invigorated by the Suzuki-gun invasion.

2) Kota Ibushi: Ibushi’s initial dip into the main event waters of New Japan was a stunning match against Shinsuke Nakamura at the Tokyo Dome in January. It was a match that showed the belief NJPW have in Kota and it was the beginning of his story as a heavyweight. Since then he’s had a series of victories over heavyweights culminating in the New Japan Cup victory. A win that allows him to challenge AJ Styles for the IWGP title. So once again Kota Ibushi will be headlining a PPV event for New Japan. His victory came at the expense of Hirooki Goto and Tetsuya Naito and they were two good matches. Most importantly for Ibushi, he’s beaten the guys who were just above him on the card. Goto and Naito were both considered on that little tier just under the very top guys. Beating both of them, in the same night, puts Ibushi over as one of the next big things. Very hard to choose between Suzuki and Ibushi as #1 this week.
3) Taichi: I hate Taichi but he did win a well-respected singles title. It’s a pity the Suzuki-gun angle is so hot because NOAH’s Junior division is loaded with quality wrestlers. Taichi is somewhat undeserving of the honor but he’s a champion nonetheless.
4) Tetsuya Naito
5) Hirooki Goto

Mike Chin
1) Minoru Suzuki:
Suzuki not only won the GHC Heavyweight Championship, but his Suzuki-Gun stable’s dominance over Pro Wrestling NOAH’s title scene was wrestling biggest story in pro wrestling this week.

2) Roman Reigns: Though the match was built more to push the Orton-Rollins angle, Reigns did pick up the handicap match win over Rollins and Orton on Raw and proceeded to punk out Mark Henry on Smackdown.
3) Kota Ibushi: The winner of the New Japan Cup is poised to challenge AJ Styles for the NJPW Championship.
4) Johnny Mundo
5) Ethan Carter III

Alex Crowder
1) Kota Ibushi:
Ibushi gets the biggest victory of his career in the New Japan Cup. He also gets a shot at AJ Styles in what will probably be an incredible match. I am no NJPW savant, but it did seem Ibushi was a little lower on the totem pole. For the most part, I always love to see a new talent get their chance to shine. Ibushi like Ethan Carter III looks to make 2015 his year. I am glad NJPW is giving someone new a chance to shine and it looks to be paying off.

2) Minoru Suzuki: Suzuki and Suzuki-gun are making waves in Pro Wrestling Noah; plus, they seem to be bringing more relevance to NOAH. NOAH had some down times as of late, so I’m happy to see another promotion regain some ground. Suzuki despite his advancing age continues to be a highlight of all Japanese wrestling. Suzuki is a veteran who can go and has great matches no matter where he goes. Suzuki was one of the best last year in my opinion and looks to continue that trend this year.
3) Ethan Carter III: I think everyone that watches TNA likes Rockstar Spud as a character. Spud never impressed me in the ring. On the other hand, ECIII has been on fire since joining TNA and really surprised me with his work last week. ECIII not only got a fantastic match out of Spud, which surprised me. He also continues to be the perfect heel and looks to make this his year. ECIII at the rate he continues to improve will be wearing the TNA World Championship in short order.
4) Taichi
5) Rockstar Spud

THE WINNERS~!
* Special Mention…Rockstar Spud – 5 Votes

* Fifth Place…Taichi – 8 Votes

* Fourth Place…Johnny Mundo – 12 Votes

* Third Place…Ethan Carter III – 21 Votes

Defeated Rockstar Spud in a great hair vs. hair match on last week’s Impact.

* Second Place…Minoru Suzuki – 27 Votes

Your NEW GHC Heavyweight Champion!

* And 411’s Wrestler of the Week is…
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photo Kota Ibushi NJCup 2015_zpsaawbqrlu.png

Kota Ibushi – 34 Votes

Ibushi won the 2015 New Japan Cup, and will go on to challenge AJ Styles for the IWGP Heavyweight Title

The Standings~!
Here are the standings after week forty-nine…

1. Seth Rollins – 178pts.

2. Dolph Ziggler – 119pts.

3. Roman Reigns – 107pts.

4. AJ Styles – 104pts.

5. Dean Ambrose – 98pts.

6. Bobby Lashley – 90pts.

7. Rusev – 82pts.

8. Brock Lesnar – 70pts.

9. John Cena – 66pts.

10. Eric Young – 58pts.
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Kazuchika Okada – 54pts

Kyle O’Reilly – 53pts.

Daniel Bryan – 52pts.

Hiroshi Tanahashi – 45pts
Bobby Fish – 45pts.

Ricochet/Prince Puma – 40pts

BxB Hulk – 38pts

Bray Wyatt – 35pts

Kevin Owens – 27pts.
Cesaro – 27pts.

Adrian Neville – 26pts.
Davey Richards – 26pts.
Eddie Edwards – 26pts.

Jay Briscoe – 24pts.
Jey Uso – 24pts.
Jimmy Uso – 24pts.
Hideo Itami – 24pts.

Kota Ibushi – 23pts.

Minoru Suzuki – 21pts
Bobby Roode – 21pts.
Bad News Barrett – 21pts.

Randy Orton – 20pts.

Alberto El Patron – 19pts.

Finn Balor – 18pts.
Sami Zayn – 18pts.
Luke Harper – 18pts.
Charlotte – 18pts.
Adam Cole – 18pts.
YAMATO – 18pts
Tyson Kidd – 18pts.

AJ Lee – 16pts.
Batista – 16pts.
Jeff Hardy – 16pts.
Tomohiro Ishii – 16pts

Akira Tozawa – 15pts
Sting – 15pts.
Atlantis – 15pts.
Paige – 15pts.
Takao Omori – 15pts
Sheamus – 15pts.
Johnny Gargano – 15pts.
Sasha Banks – 15pts.
Johnny Mundo – 15pts.

Samoa Joe – 14pts.

Cage – 13pts
Icarus – 13pts.
Bully Ray – 13pts.

Ryback – 12pts.
The Rock – 12pts.
Chris Jericho – 12pts.
Michael Elgin – 12pts.
Austin Aries – 12pts.
Shinsuke Nakamura – 12pts.

Stardust (Cody Rhodes) – 11pts.

KUSHIDA – 10pts.

Bad Luck Fale – 9pts
Jay Lethal – 9pts.
CM Punk – 9pts.
Havok – 9pts.
Ultimo Guerrero – 9pts.
Triple H – 9pts.
Yuji Nagata – 9pts
Yujiro Takahashi – 9pts
Masayuki Kono – 9pts
KAI – 9pts
Taryn Terrell – 9pts.

Goldust – 8pts.

Alicia Fox – 7pts.
Devon – 7pts.
Matt Hardy Hardy – 7pts.

Shelton Benjamin – 6pts.
Ethan Carter III – 6pts.
MVP – 6pts.
Gail Kim – 6pts.
Takao Omori – 6pts.
Jun Akiyama – 6pts.
Masato Tanaka – 6pts.
Takashi Sugiura – 6pts.
Suwama – 6pts.
Biff Busick – 6pts.
Erick Rowan – 6pts.
Damien Sandow – 6pts.
Stephanie McMahon – 6pts.
Kalisto – 6pts.
Rich Swann – 6pts.
Tomoaki Honma – 6pts
Toru Yano – 6pts

Shane Hatse – 3pts.
Mikey Nicolls – 3pts.
Go Shiozaki – 3pts.
King Cuerno – 3pts.
Mil Muertes – 3pts.
Kenny Omega – 3pts.
Cyber Kong – 3pts.
Joe Doering – 3pts.
Hirooki Goto – 3pts.
Katsuyori Shibata – 3pts
T-Hawk – 3pts.
EITA – 3pts.
Taichi – 3pts.
Mark Henry – 3pts.
Tyler Breeze – 3pts.
Adam Rose – 3pts.
Jack Swagger – 3pts.
Sin Cara – 3pts.
Mitsuya Nagai – 3pts.
Takeshi Minamino – 3pts.

The Miz – 2pt
Wesley Blake – 2pt
Bubby Murphy – 2pt
Naomichi Marufuji – 2pt
Dasher Hatfield – 2pts.
Mr. Touchdown – 2pts.

Kane – 1pt
Brie Bella – 1pt
Uhaa Nation – 1pt
Sanada – 1pt
Kurt Angle – 1pt
Rockstar Spud – 1pt
Bram – 1pt
Alex Shelley – 1pt
Isami Kodaka – 1pt
Kazuyuki Fujita – 1pt
Vickie Guerrero – 1pt
Drew Galloway – 1pt
Caleb Konley – 1pt
Jimmy Susumu – 1pt
Jimmy Kagetora – 1pt
Fenix – 1pt
Kaz Hayashi – 1pt
Shuji Kondo – 1pt
HARASHIMA – 1pt
Kataro Suzuki – 1pt