wrestling / Columns
411’s Match of the Week 07.25.11: Year One, Week 16
Welcome to Week 16, Year ONE, of 411’s Match of the Week. A quick overview of the rules to kick things off for us …
Each writer chooses THREE matches from any promotion and each match gets a point total attached to that ranking. It looks a little like this…
1st – 5
2nd – 3
3rd – 1
Then we tally up the votes and the official 411 Match of the Week is crowned. But wait, there’s more! Each week, the TOP THREE MATCHES are eligible to make the Year-End Ranking.
The week according to this column will go from Sunday to Saturday, with the column being posted every Monday.
Upon rating matches, writers will assign them with a star rating, and the average star rating amongst writers will be what that match is listed with if it makes the Year-End Standings.
Independent shows WILL be included, but since it takes some time for the DVDs to come out, voting on them will take place retroactively, in which the writers who have seen the shows in question will have the opportunity to vote for matches from them into the Year-End Standings. For an Indy/International match to make the Year-End Standings, it must break an average rating of ****. Nothing will be added retroactively unless at least 3 staff members deem it worthy so there is a consensus.
At the end of the voting year, the match with the highest average star rating will be crowned 411 Match of the Year. In the event of a tie, 411 writers will vote in a tie-breaker.
THIS WEEK’S ELIGIBLE MATCHES
WWE Money in the Bank: SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett; Kelly Kelly vs. Brie Bella; Mark Henry vs. The Big Show; Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio; Christian vs. Randy Orton; CM Punk vs. John Cena
WWE Raw: The Miz vs. Alex Riley; R-Truth vs. Jack Swagger; Kofi Kingston vs. Alberto Del Rio; Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler; Beth Phoenix, Kelly Kelly, Eve, Natalya, Gail Kim, Kaitlyn, & AJ vs. Brie Bella, Nikki Bella, Melina, Maryse, Alicia Fox, Tamina, & Rosa Mendes; The Miz vs. Kofi Kingston; Rey Mysterio vs. R-Truth
WWE NXT: Vladimir Kozlov vs. JTG; Titus O’Neil vs. Darren Young
WWE Superstars: Justin Gabriel vs. Tyson Kidd; Alicia Fox vs. Natalya; Zack Ryder & Santino Marella vs. Michael McGillicutty & David Otunga; Evan Bourne vs. Primo
Impact Wrestling: Rob Van Dam vs. Scott Steiner; Tara & Miss Tessmacher vs. Rosita & Sarita; Matt Morgan vs. AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe vs. Gunner; Brian Kendrick vs. Alex Shelley; Kurt Angle & Sting vs. Bully Ray & Ken Anderson
WWE SmackDown: Christian vs. Ezekiel Jackson; Daniel Bryan vs. Heath Slater; Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus; Randy Orton vs. Kane
Independent shows will be reviewed when they’re available on DVD.
Michael Ornelas
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
I’ve watched this match four times already, and every time I see it, I like it a little more. I initially gave it ****1/2, but changed that to ****3/4 on the second viewing. Third time’s a charm though, and I found reasons to raise it yet again, and then the fourth time was just to cement that sentiment. This was an excellent match, and while it wasn’t technically perfect or botch-free, the atmosphere was simply unbelievable. There hasn’t been a crowd reaction like that in years and this will truly go down as a historic main event to a historic PPV. I know I’m sometimes labeled as an “Indy mark” on this site, but I like all wrestling. I hope that when all the votes are tabulated, this ends up at Number 1, because the big match feel was something that can’t be emulated in Ring of Honor, as much as I love the promotion.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****): I personally thought the Raw match had better spots and had less down time than this one, but that had too many botches to place higher than this. I’m also thrilled that Daniel Bryan won this match as he’s worked very hard and at least deserves the opportunity to challenge for a top championship in WWE. Great match with plenty of excellent, crisply executed spots. I’m still shocked that Gabriel’s ladder 450 Splash went off without a hitch.
3) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (****): This match was just a mess, but probably the most entertaining mess I’ve ever seen. Many things went wrong here, but usually AFTER a spot was already completed. The only thing that really deflated my enjoyment of the match was Truth’s seesaw spot on Jack Swagger and Del Rio taking so long to set the ladder back up at the end. I loved the opening where everyone grabbed a ladder. This had the potential to be a ****1/2 match if it weren’t for the botches, but it was still a fantastic encounter worthy of my third place vote.
Wes Kirk
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (***3/4)
The one match everybody was buzzed about came in the form of John Cena and CM Punk fighting over the WWE Championship, the chance for Punk to become number 41 on the heavyweight championship listing dating back 48 long years. And from the outset, the crowd was red hot for Punk in Chicago and Cena was taken to the limit. However, I think that McMahon and Johnny Ace took away from the ending as suddenly Punk hit his move after Cena socked Ace and then got a quick three count. Easily four stars without the attempt to relive Montreal, which they seem to do a lot.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (***3/4): While a good ladder match, I don’t think it is quite as awesome as some of my colleagues. However, everybody involved gave a good accounting of themselves and I continue to think Heath Slater is being underrated by a lot of people, especially after SmackDown’s match with Bryan. Sheamus’ powerbomb on Cara through the ladder is worth a few rewinds!
3) 07/21/2011, Impact Wrestling – Brian Kendrick vs. Alex Shelley (***): The X-Division title match was important because it establishes that once again, the division is being focused upon in TNA and not just an afterthought. Weeks after Destination X, X-Division wrestlers are given a chance to perform continually and it is helping the product overall. Kendrick and Shelley had a nice match, with a very unusual Sliced Bread #2 variant on the ring apron to Kendrick that you have to check out. Aries at the end was a nice touch, although giving these two guys fifteen minutes and a clean finish would do wonders.
Aaron Frame
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (****3/4)
You know, I wasn’t as lucky as Michael Ornelas where I was able to justify that 1/4 of a star to make it a 5 star match. It was so damn close, but there were tiny little things that my perfectionist mind picked up that didn’t bug me, but more sat in the back of my mind. Well, okay, maybe those little things did bug me a bit, but only about 1/4 a star’s worth.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****): Wow, I’m not really a fan of matches like this, but this was one of the best MitB matches I’ve seen. Even my wife was getting in to this match. That’s saying a lot. The spots were great and some of them not what I would expect. When I think they’re gonna do something crazy they do something smart. Don’t know how better to explain that. Just an all around enjoyable match with some hard bumps and good fast paced action.
3) 07/21/2011, Impact Wrestling – Brian Kendrick vs. Alex Shelley (***1/2): Two of my all time favorites wrestling for the X Division title. And the X Division was what originally got me interested in TNA. So it was a full win with this match. I may have been a little generous with the stars there, but these guys busted their asses in a damn good TV match once again proving what the X Division is and why it’s such a must see part of TNA.
Aaron “Not Officially On Staff” Hubbard
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
Much like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock’s match at Wrestlemania X-SEVEN, the match wasn’t a technical masterpiece and was downright sloppy at times. However, like that match, the two wrestlers masterfully told a great story that the Chicago Crowd, and most viewers at home, had invested in emotionally. While some people will favor other promotions because of the nonstop action, this was the WWE at it’s best, and when the WWE is at their best, there’s nobody better.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****): I have to admit to not being blown away by the undercard of this PPV. Everything was good to very good (minus a Diva’s match that was still watchable) but nothing I’ll be remembering years from now. But this was the second best match of the night, with the Raw counterpart being something of a clustered mess of ladders and bodies. Everyone got their moments to shine here, and even Heath Slater looked good. But the real story is that Daniel Bryan will get a shot at the World Title, a chance to prove he’s main event caliber.
3) 07/22/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Kane (***1/2): While Orton/Christian and the Raw Ladder match were also very entertaining, I felt this one delivered well beyond expectations. I can’t remember the last time someone looked so dominant over Kane without ruining his monstrous aura. Orton was just equally as vicious and more intelligent, and Kane got a legitimate kick-out of the RKO, which is very rare these days. Kane seems to be out for a bit courtesy of Mark Henry, but he gave us a great impression to remember until he’s back.
Nick Bazar
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (****3/4)
I don’t see how any other match this year can beat this. It had everything- action, drama, atmosphere and a terrific conclusion. Matches like this don’t come around too often.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****): The better of the two MitB matches with a totally unexpected outcome. You saw a bit of everything here from the high fliers doing their thing to the big guys bringing a different dimension to it. Awesome way to open a PPV.
3) 07/22/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Kane (***3/4): This can make a good argument for TV match of the year. They were given a lot of time, had great psychology and believable nearfalls. Ended a great week of wrestling on a high note.
Colin Rinehart
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
To put it simply, this was incredible. Both guys seriously busted their asses off to deliver an epic action-packed match for over 30 minutes and I think it’s safe to say that this is the best damned singles match Cena has ever had and maybe the best match that CM Punk has had during his entire WWE career. Add in the amazing atmosphere, the great booking, and the finish that’s about to follow, and this is another easy Match of the Year candidate and the kind of wrestling match that will be remembered for many, many years to come.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****3/4): This was the craziest damned car-crash spotfest ladder match I think I’ve ever seen, I mean this was comparable to the original infamous trilogy of TLC matches ten years ago. I can’t even do this match justice, and I’m already drained completely after this match. How can anything follow that? Bryan’s win was incredibly shocking and hugely emotional, and that crowd popped for it like he was Shawn Michaels or something. The best ladder match in a long, long time and likely a contender for Match of the Year if it wasn’t so overshadowed later in the night by Cena/Punk.
3) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (***3/4): Despite the shaky ending this was still another really fun MITB match that while definitely not on the same level as the opener, still delivered your standard high-spot ladder match goodness with a few creative spots thrown in to boot as well.
Mike Uphoff
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
OH MY GOD. HE DID IT, HE DID IT, HOLY FUCKING HELL HE ACTUALLY DID IT. I certainly didn’t think that Vince would have the balls to end the PPV that way, but props to him and how he sold it. I wanted this match to be great, and I wanted it to be phenomenal. It completely blew my expectations out of the water. This may be Cena’s greatest match to date in his career, and maybe Punk’s as well. The Chicago crowd was MOLTEN for anything that Punk did, and the atmosphere amped the match up to insane levels of awesomeness. These two men busted their ass for over half an hour and went Broadway and gave us a truly great match to remember. If Punk never comes back, he can hang his hat on this match, as can Cena. These two provided counter after counter after counter that had everyone on the edge of their seats. I have never doubted Cena’s wrestling ability, and he absolutely showed why Vince has made him a 10-time champ in the WWE. Punk brought his A+ game, and I have to admit, when Punk hit that top-rope Frankensteiner, I thought he was going for the Pepsi Plunge. This was a great match, and I actually liked Cena stopping Vince from screwing Punk over. Also, that counter from the GTS to the STF was sheer genius. I loved Punk kicking Del Rio in the head when he tried to cash in on him, and him running away through the crowd. I can only give this match one rating, and if you don’t like it, that is your opinion. This is the greatest match I have seen not at WrestleMania in my life, and I have been watching wrestling since 1997. This match made me suspend disbelief, stop being the bitter wrestling fan that I am and become a mark again. Again, I can only rate this match one way.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****1/4): This exceeded all the expectations I had for this match. It’s very hard to not have a good MITB match, and this certainly continued the tradition of great MITB ladder matches. Each man worked very hard in this match, and everyone played his role. Kane was dominant, and Cody Rhodes was great as well. Sheamus continued his rampage on everyone, and Sin Cara and Justin Gabriel provided some amazing high-flying moves. I have to give major props to everyone in the match, including Sin Cara for taking that sick powerbomb through the ladder from Sheamus. The true MVP of this match was Bryan Danielson. Some people will bitch and moan about how he doesn’t deserve it, but in all seriousness, go fuck yourselves. He took a Doomsday Device, Heath Slater’s finisher off a ladder, and the C4 2000. He showed some great heart in this match taking some truly sick bumps and now has a chance to become World Heavyweight Champion. I was rooting for him to cash this night, and since he didn’t, I am glued to SmackDown on Friday. This was a great match from everyone involved.
3) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (***1/2): I was actually let down by this match. Perhaps it was because it got ten less minutes than the SmackDown MITB match, but I digress. Everyone worked well in this match, and I legitimately hope that the Miz is not hurt from the sick fall that he took off the ladder. I marked out when he came hopping back out and almost won. I think everyone picked Del Rio to win, and it was a good choice because it didn’t foreshadow the main event at all. Bourne, Rey, and Kingston brought some amazing high-flying moves, and Rey sunset-flip powerbombing Miz was another nice spot. Not as good as the opener, but still continues to add to the library of good to great MITB matches. Very entertaining, and Truth pulled out some great stuff as well. Also, I think that is the second time in my life that I have seen Rey Mysterio booed by a crowd. Good stuff from RAW, but better from SmackDown.
411 GUEST READER #1: Markcb
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
Many times we say a match is not only the match itself, but also all the environment, the crowd, etc. Well, this match had it all. The first 10 or 15 minutes weren’t specially great since Punk and Cena were playing with the crowd, like an 80’s Main Event, but from there on they went all out, counters, some technical wrestling, Cena selling the supposed leg injury like a champ… Even Laurinaitis and McMahon were perfect in their roles. The crowd was AMAZING, I would put them over the public of ONS 06. Even Cole and Lawler were good in comentaries, talking all the time about the importance of the WWE Championship and how it would be a disgrace that Punk left the company with it (Booker is a complete torture). This was the end for the best month of wrestling I have seen in many years, beginning with ROH Best in the World through Destination X and ending here. Thanks, Vince, Cena, Punk, whoever gave us this story, for making us enjoy wrestling and the WWE again.
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****1/4): Awesome combat between these eight men, though a little hurt by some dead zones and a few botches like Slater’s. Sheamus and Bryan had star-making performances, they were everywhere. Specially Sheamus continues to impress me in Ladder matches, he had a ****+ encounter with Morrison last year and another one here. Bryan’s victory was orgasmic for all the IWC. One of the best MitB, if not the best yet.
3) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (***3/4): Shorter than SmackDown’s but much more intense, without those “dead zones” I talked about earlier, although it had its botches too, specially the ending, in whick Del Río almost took out his nipple (the cut was very visible when he was with the briefcase at the top of the Ladder). I missed some more flights from Bourne, Mysterio and Kingston, but a very good match altogether.
411 GUEST READER #2: Confucius Jones
1) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
Haven’t ordered a PPV that wasn’t Wrestlemania or the Royal Rumble since No Mercy 2008. This match changed all that, as CM Punk made WWE entertaining and controversial again. The match was great, the crowd was way into it, and I never thought Punk would pull it off, but he did. Not just the Match of the Week, but probably the Match of the Year!
2) 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (****1/4): I wasn’t too big on Daniel Bryan winning, as I just can’t get into him; I was hoping for a Cody Rhodes victory. But the match was pretty spectacular, as most ladder matches are. Sin Cara got murdered, Justin Gabriel is insane, and we all have to listen to Michael Cole whine until Bryan cashes in his briefcase.
3) 07/22/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Kane (***1/4): I liked this match quite a lot, and wasn’t expecting to when it was announced. I’m not sure if it was the stipulation or they just had a good night (something that’s been pretty common for Orton lately), but they had good chemistry. Orton looked happy not to be injured after that table bump, which was probably the funniest thing I’ve seen in wrestling all year.
411 GUEST READER #3: Darkwing Dick
1) 07/17/11, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (*****)
Wrestling the way it’s supposed to be done. Storytelling and crowd heat, not a bunch of flips that mean nothing. CM Punk has claimed for the last few weeks that he’s the best wrestler in the world, and he may have proved exactly that on Sunday.
2) 07/17/11, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs.. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (***3/4): Never been a fan of these clusterfuck ladder matches, to be honest. Ladder matches are better when it’s one on one, like Michaels and Razor back in the day. But this was pretty fun, and my son liked it, so I guess that’s a good thing.
3) 07/17/11, WWE Money in the Bank – Christian vs. Randy Orton (***1/2): Thought this was pretty great, with Christian taking a chickenshit way out to win a title; Flair would have done it. Match was the usual good stuff between these two, but the result that played off the stipulations and Orton’s roaring rampage of revenge afterward made this a great segment.
THIS WEEK’S WINNER
In a fun, albeit sloppy, Money in the Bank match, the Raw crew went out there and held there own with a very enjoyable match that concluded with Alberto Del Rio taking down the briefcase.
The opener to Money in the Bank was this year’s ladder match entry by the blue brand, and it delivered very strongly, capping off with Daniel Bryan defying his detractors and taking a big step towards the main event.
Many people were commenting last week that this deserved to be number one in the Year End Standings…well it tied, thanks to CM Punk and John Cena both bringing the Money in the Bank main event to historic levels.
YEAR END STANDINGS
The top 50 matches will be displayed in order of average star rating until they are knocked out. Come back next week as we get one week closer to figuring out the 411 Match of the Year! In the case of a match with more votes getting a lower star rating, it will go down as Match of the Week, but will be lower in the Year-End Standings.
1. 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (4.83/5.00)color=blue>
1. 06/26/2011, Ring of Honor Best in the World 2011 – Davey Richards vs. Eddie Edwards (4.83/5.00)color=red>
3. 05/06/2011, Ring of Honor Revolution: USA – The Kings of Wrestling vs. The American Wolves (4.33/5.00)color=red>
4. 05/22/2011, WWE Over the Limit – Randy Orton vs. Christian (4.29/5.00)color=blue>
5. 04/03/2011, WrestleMania XXVII – The Undertaker vs. Triple H (4.28/5.00)color=blue>
6. 04/17/2011, CHIKARA King of Trios: Night Three – El Generico vs. 1-2-3 Kid (4.25/5.00)color=maroon>
7. 04/05/2011, CMLL en Cadena Tres – Valiente vs. Pólvora (4.17/5.00)
7. 04/03/2011, NJPW New Dimension Tour 2011 – Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Yuji Nagata (4.17/5.00)
9. 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – SmackDown Money in the Bank: Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Kane vs. Wade Barrett (4.14/5.00)color=blue>
10. 05/03/2011, NJPW Wrestling Dontaku – Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (4.13/5.00)
11. 06/18/2011, AAA Triplemania XIX – LA Park vs. Mesias (4.08/5.00)
11. 05/05/2011, Dragon Gate Dead or Alive 2011 – Dragon Kid (Captain), CIMA, Gamma, & Ricochet vs. Shingo Takagi (Captain), Cyber Kong, Taku Iwasa & KAGETORA (4.08/5.00)
11. 04/16/2011, CHIKARA King of Trios: Night Two – Team Osaka Pro vs. F.I.S.T. (4.08/5.00)color=maroon>
14. 05/27/2011, CMLL Forjando un Idolo – Angel de Oro vs. Pólvora (4.06/5.00)
15. 06/26/2011, Ring of Honor Best in the World 2011 – Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team vs. The Kings of Wrestling vs. The All Night Express vs. The Briscoes (4.05/5.00)color=red>
16. 06/12/2011, TNA Slammiversary IX – Bully Ray vs. AJ Styles (3.96/5.00)color=green>
16. 04/17/2011, TNA Lockdown – Jeff Jarrett vs. Kurt Angle (3.96/5.00)color=green>
16. 04/04/2011, Ring of Honor Wrestling of HDNet – Davey Richards & The Briscoes vs. Roderick Strong & The Kings of Wrestling (3.96/5.00)color=red>
19. 04/03/2011, WWE WrestleMania XXVII – Randy Orton vs. CM Punk (3.95/5.00)color=blue>
19. 07/10/2011, TNA Destination X – Austin Aries vs. Zema Ion vs. Jack Evans vs. Low Ki (3.95/5.00)color=green>
21. 05/01/2011, WWE Extreme Rules – Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio (3.92/5.00)color=blue>
22. 05/01/2011, WWE Extreme Rules – Randy Orton vs. CM Punk (3.88/5.00)color=blue>
23. 07/10/2011, TNA Destination X – AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels (3.83/5.00)color=green>
23. 06/26/2011, Ring of Honor Best in the World 2011 – El Generico vs. Christopher Daniels (3.83/5.00)color=red>
25. 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – Raw Money in the Bank: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (3.75/5.00)color=blue>
25. 05/06/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Christian (3.75/5.00)color=blue>
25. 04/17/2011, TNA Lockdown – Lethal Lockdown: Fortune vs. Immortal (3.75/5.00)color=green>
28 06/19/2011, WWE Capitol Punishment – CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio (3.65/5.00)color=blue>
29. 07/10/2011, TNA Destination X – Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn (3.63/5.00)color=green>
30. 06/12/2011, TNA Slammiversary IX – Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Jarrett (3.60/5.00)color=green>
31. 06/19/2011, WWE Capitol Punishment – Randy Orton vs. Christian (3.50/5.00)color=blue>
31. 04/28/2011, WWE Superstars – Trent Barreta vs. Tyson Kidd (3.50/5.00)color=blue>
33. 05/26/2011, WWE Superstars – Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barreta (3.44/5.00)color=blue>
34. 05/15/2011, TNA Sacrifice – Kazarian vs. Max Buck (3.40/5.00)color=green>
35. 06/03/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Sheamus (3.38/5.00)color=blue>
36. 06/20/2011, WWE Raw – CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Alberto Del Rio (3.35/5.00)color=blue>
36. 05/12/2011, WWE Superstars – Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barreta (3.35/5.00) color=blue>
38. 06/10/2011, WWE SmackDown – Sheamus vs. Randy Orton (3.33/5.00)color=blue>
39. 04/18/2011, WWE Raw – Randy Orton vs. CM Punk (3.30/5.00)color=blue>
40. 05/13/2011, WWE SmackDown – Sin Cara vs. Daniel Bryan (3.17/5.00)color=blue>
41. 05/30/2011, WWE Raw – CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio (3.13/5.00)color=blue>
41. 05/09/2011, WWE Raw – The Miz vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Rey Mysterio (3.13/5.00)color=blue>
43. 04/15/2011, WWE SmackDown – 20-man Battle Royal: Christian vs. Brodus Clay vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Kane vs. The Big Show vs. Curt Hawkins vs. Wade Barrett vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater vs. Jack Swagger vs. Chris Masters vs. Yoshi Tatsu vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Tyler Reks vs. Trent Barreta vs. JTG vs. Ezekiel Jackson vs. Kofi Kingston (3.13/5.00) color=blue>
44. 06/03/2011, WWE SmackDown – Daniel Bryan vs. Ted DiBiase (3.10/5.00)color=blue>
44. 07/07/2011, Impact Wrestling – Rob Van Dam vs. AJ Styles vs. Jerry Lynn vs. Christopher Daniels (3.10/5.00)color=green>
46. 07/07/2011, Impact Wrestling – Jack Evans vs. Jesse Sorenson vs. Anthony Nese (3.08/5.00)color=green>
47. 05/27/2011, WWE SmackDown – Daniel Bryan vs. Cody Rhodes (3.06/5.00)color=blue>
48. 06/16/2011, Impact Wrestling – Rob Van Dam vs. Samoa Joe (3.05/5.00)color=green>
49. 05/20/2011, WWE SmackDown – Christian vs. Sheamus (3.00/5.00)color=blue>
49. 05/15/2011, TNA Sacrifice – Tommy Dreamer vs. AJ Styles (3.00/5.00)color=green>
49. 04/29/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton & Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio & Brodus Clay (3.00/5.00)color=blue>
49. 04/28/2011, TNA iMPACT! – Gunner vs. Daniels (3.00/5.00)color=green>
MATCHES OF THE WEEK
Week 1: 04/03/2011, WrestleMania XXVII – The Undertaker vs. Triple H (4.28/5.00)color=blue>
Week 2: 04/15/2011, WWE SmackDown – Rey Mysterio vs. Drew McIntyre (2.96/5.00)color=blue>
Week 3: 04/17/2011, TNA Lockdown – Jeff Jarrett vs. Kurt Angle (3.96/5.00)color=green>
Week 4: 04/28/2011, WWE Superstars – Trent Barreta vs. Tyson Kidd (3.50/5.00)color=blue>
Week 5: 05/01/2011, WWE Extreme Rules – Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio (3.92/5.00)color=blue>
Week 6: 05/12/2011, WWE Superstars – Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barreta (3.35/5.00) color=blue>
Week 7: 05/15/2011, TNA Sacrifice – Kazarian vs. Max Buck (3.40/5.00)color=green>
Week 8: 05/22/2011, WWE Over the Limit – Randy Orton vs. Christian (4.29/5.00)color=blue>
Week 9: 06/03/2011, WWE SmackDown – Randy Orton vs. Sheamus (3.38/5.00)color=blue>
Week 10: 06/10/2011, WWE SmackDown – Sheamus vs. Randy Orton (3.33/5.00)color=blue>
Week 11: 06/12/2011, TNA Slammiversary IX – Bully Ray vs. AJ Styles (3.96/5.00)color=green>
Week 12: 06/19/2011, WWE Capitol Punishment – CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio (3.65/5.00)color=blue>
Week 13: 06/26/2011, Ring of Honor Best in the World 2011 – Davey Richards vs. Eddie Edwards (4.83/5.00)color=red>
Week 14: 07/07/2011, Impact Wrestling – Rob Van Dam vs. AJ Styles vs. Jerry Lynn vs. Christopher Daniels (3.10/5.00)color=green>
Week 15: 07/10/2011, TNA Destination X – Austin Aries vs. Zema Ion vs. Jack Evans vs. Low Ki (3.95/5.00)color=green>
Week 16: 07/17/2011, WWE Money in the Bank – CM Punk vs. John Cena (4.83/5.00)color=blue>
OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS – RETOOLED!
1. Randy Ortoncolor=blue> – 9 (3.60)
2. CM Punkcolor=blue> – 7 (3.73)
3. Christiancolor=blue> – 7 (3.52)
4. Rey Mysteriocolor=blue> – 6 (3.36)
5. Christopher Danielscolor=green> – 5 (3.50)
6. Alberto Del Riocolor=blue> – 5 (3.42)
7. Sheamuscolor=blue> – 4 (3.47)
7. AJ Stylescolor=green> – 4 (3.47)
9. Daniel Bryancolor=blue> – 4 (3.37)
10. Trent Barretacolor=blue> – 4 (3.36)
Very big shuffle to the top 10 this week, as Davey, Claudio, and Hero are knocked out as Ring of Honor representatives, and now Punk has the highest average rating among the top.
Matches/Performers from WWE programming are represented in BLUE. color=blue>
Matches/Performers from TNA are represented in GREEN. color=green>
Matches/Performers from Ring of Honor are represented in RED. color=red>
Matches/Performers from any other US Independent promotion are represented in MAROON. color=maroon>
Matches/Performers from any international promotion are represented in BLACK.
Do you watch all WWE and TNA shows every week? If so, contact Michael Ornelas at [email protected], and there’s a chance you might be included in the column next week! Please stick to the format used above. Overwhelming negativity probably won’t make the cut, so keep things positive! Submissions due every Saturday by 11PM.
