the-w.com/2015.02.the-w.com.tar/the-w.com/pub/users/chris/01awards.txt

Text File | 2004-05-25 | 433KB | 10,061 lines

Hey look, IT'S BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

For those of you just tuning in, these are the rec.sport.pro-wrestling.*
Year-End Achievement Awards.  They celebrate the excellence, as well as
the....opposite thereof, of the past year in professional wrestling.

The Awards are decided by the readers of r.s.p-w, voting for a 1st, 2nd,
and 3rd place in nearly fifty categories.  This is the unfathomable
TWELFTH year for the Awards.  The first six years were run by Herb Kunze
([e-mail]) - and this marks MY sixth year at the helm.

Just over 300 ballots were submitted to this year's set of awards - down
by about 50% from last year.  From this, can we presume that wrestling's
popularity is on a downtrend?  MAYBE.  ;-)

Thanks to BT, Banco de Gaia, and Jimmy Hart, Jim Johnston and the many
people who have written music heard on wrestling programs for providing
background music while I worked!  Thanks also to Dr Pepper, Gatorade, and
the makers of many brands of jerky for keeping me alive.

Thanks to XO Communications for staying in business despite the stock
going under, and for continuing to provide me with a steady paycheque
despite the fact that I seem to spend an awful lot of time dealing with
writing about professional wrestling, which I've heard isn't actually in
my official job description.  ;-)

These awards are dedicated to Kim, who doesn't mind TOO much that I
disappear for several weeks around awards time.

Finally, thanks to the readers of rec.sport.pro-wrestling.* - it's their
contributions year after year that make the awards so enjoyable to read
and debate after the fact.  Awards can't represent a community unless the
community represents, and once again, you've come through.  Thanks.

The following pages provided invaluable assistance with research.
Bookmark them ALL right now:

<http://slashwrestling.com/>
  [slash] wrestling - my own repository of the past year's events

<http://hometown.aol.com/wsandt/cards/index.html>
  The Wrestling Supercards & Tournaments Web Page

<http://www.puroresu.com/>
  The Great Hisa's Puroresu Dojo

<http://deathvalleydriver.com/bbbowm/>
  Rev. Ray's Page of 1,000 Holds

If you are interested in the whole shebang as opposed to the bits and
pieces I'm posting today, I recommend the following FTP link for your Web
browser:

<http://slashwrestling.com/cgi-bin/redirect.cgi?ftp://ftp.slashwrestling.com/slash/01awards.txt>

The textfile is about 418K in size.

I can be reached by emailing [e-mail].

Without further ado, HEEEEEEEEEEEERE WE GO!!!!

----------------------------------------------------------------------

THE 2001 REC.SPORT.PRO-WRESTLING YEAR-END ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

This entire document copyright 2001 by Christopher Robin Zimmerman.  Portions
of this document are copyright 1990-1995 by Herb Kunze and used with his kind
permission.

Visit Herb's Awards page at <http://www.twc-online.com/herb/Awards.html>.
The 1999 Awards can be found at <http://slashwrestling.com/awards/>.
The 2000 Awards can be found at <http://slashwrestling.com/awards/2000/>.

*PLEASE* CONTACT ME FIRST BEFORE USING ANY PART OF THESE RESULTS!!
I can be reached by emailing [e-mail].

First, some general comments...

STUART: My interest in American wrestling hit an all-time low this year,
especially after WCW and ECW folded, giving people just one easy-to-access
choice, Vince McMahon's action-adventure sports-entertainment. The U.S.
indy scene improved to the point where it delivered a few top notch
matches, but is very spotty and hasn't benefited from the monopolization
of the U.S. wrestling scene as many predicted. Japan had a better 2001
than 2000, but the climate there is still on very shakey ground, with
something of a "dark age" (ala mid-90's American wrestling) taking place.
As is the case virtually every year, Japan dominated the top match of the
year list (although I'm sure the RSPW results will say otherwise. =),
with the MVP of 2001, New Japan's Keiji Muto, involved in many excellent
high level matches this year. In a time of uncertainty, two wrestlers
busted their asses this year to have great matches, despite both being
physical wreckes. Keiji Muto and Steve Austin. Both are masters of
psychology and know how to work around their limitations to perfection. In
Muto's case, his knees are _dead_ and he cannot go through a match without
limping. The best company this year was New Japan, despite it's horrendous
booking. Antonio Inoki's vision of a MMA-influenced pro wrestling in Japan
became more of a reality, with his guys dominating major New Japan Dome
shows, with wins over shooters and in some cases (Fujita vs. Frye on
7/20), against each other. Before anyone argues that this is good for the
business, go and check out the attendances for many of the shows this year
- bad. New Japan's bad booking was mostly on the big shows and between
those they had some awesome tours, with one of the best heavyweights in
the world, Yuji Nagata, finally being pushed to the top in an excellent G1
Climax. Also, with Riki Choshu quitting as booker mid-year, Jushin Thunder
Liger was able to begin restructuring the famous New Japan juniors
division and started by bringing in the popular and much improved indy
freelance team of Jado and Gedo. The New Japan heavyweights also stepped
up, with great performances by Muto (of course), Nagata, Hiroyoshi Tenzan,
Satoshi Kojima, Takashi Iizuka and others, as well as workrate
improvements from Kensuke Sasaki, Manabu Nakanishi and other former bad
workers. It was a good year for match quality in New Japan, but the
company really needs to control it's own Dome shows. Elsewhere in Japan,
NOAH had a quietly decent year, as Misawa didn't rely on outsiders to draw
crowds for his shows. In recent times, NOAH's booking has been more
focused, but the company still lacks a lot. The formerly great All Japan
was reduced to a shell, carried by the interpromotional feud with New
Japan (Keiji Muto winning AJ's Triple Crown) and the forever-awesome
Toshiaki Kawada. Genichiro Tenryu, head booker of the company, booked All
Japan into the ground by hiring his former WAR lackies and pushing them to
the moon, while criminally de-emphasizing Kawada and Taiyo Kea. As always,
the Japanese indies presented some fantastic action, but the death of
BattlARTS, Yuki Ishikawa's worked shoot-style group, is a big blow.
Overall, it's been a really bad year and hopefully it's all uphill from
here.

EDDIE BURKETT: Overall, after the AMAZING year the WWF had last year, this
year seems harder to choose from.  While there are some clear favorites
and standouts from this year, most of this year fails to compare to what I
voted for last year, and that's making this voting really hard.  That, and
HHH, one of my favorite wrestlers has been out since May, and absence does
tend to make voters forgetful...

LINUS INGOLDSBY: A pretty dull year for US wrestling.  Bright Spots - ECW
appearing on Raw, Stone Cold, Wrestlemania.  Dull Spots - the last 4
months.

BRUNO PULVER: Since the demise of WCW and Monday Nitro, wrestling flat out
sucks. WWFs creative team (being on autopilot for few recent years now to
begin with), cant book shit despite endless amount of possibilities and
wrestlers available to them. WWF needs shock therapy, instant turnaround,
new attitude. The Alliance angle is totally stale, about as pointless as
"The Union" was. Even Sullivan could book better angles than WWF creative
team. WWF sucked even when WCW and ECW where kicking, but at the moment
being without a competition they're just ripping people of with sub par
product. An alternative nationwide promotion is badly needed.

AMI: The year started out very strong.  It came in with a roar and out
with a whimper.  The demise of WCW and ECW, along with so many injuries to
top-tier players really hurt what started out as a promising year for
wrestling. 5. KERROTSNOT:  Kurt Angle can carry a broomstick to a good
match.

DENNIS HO: it's a shame Hayabusa has his career ended like this....

SCOTT CRAWFORD: This year can be summed up as a really disappointing one,
maybe the most disappointing in wrestling history. Vince McMahon finally
had the goods to hit one completely out of the park, and blow us away for
good, and he instead whimpers through 6 months of some of the greatest
misuses of talent this side of Eric Bischoff and Verne Gagne. I went from
really being excited about watching wrestling on Mondays to barely caring.
In fairness, he WAS hurt by unplanned stretches without 3 of his top
workers (Eddie Guerrero, Triple H, and Chris Benoit), and a major contract
holdout (Goldberg, who appears to be retired...), but aside from them, he
had the world by the noogies and just let it slip away,
slowly...painfully. It seems that the WCW curse has spread to its new
owner, as of now, but perhaps, something can be salvaged of what's
currently on record as the worst botched angle EVER.

MEDISINNER MAN: This is the year everything changes.  The Twin Towers
going down by an attack.  The Taliban and Osama bin Laden going down by an
even more devastating attack from America.  Major league baseball owners
want to retract teams over loud objections from everyone else.  And WWF
buy out and absorbing all the major competing rival organizations.  So far
the major angle did not pan out so well.  Wrestling attendance and TV
audience shrinks.  What can Vincent K do to turn it around?  Only time
will tell.

EMILY CALLEGARI: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. What
could have gone down as the most exciting year in pro-wrestling history
ends up in the gutter. We started the year with the big three and ended
with the tired and beaten Alliance bowing to the WWF at Survivor Series.
It pains me to see professional wrestling in such a sorry state - not that
there's anything I can really do about it. But I think some of my votes
reflect my apathy. Rock? Jericho? Undertaker? Lita? You can go now. It's
been fun, but I think we should see other people. I am tired of all four
of these characters. I'm sure the year would have been slightly better if
Chris Benoit and Triple H were in action, even just to spice things up.

SCOTT WORDEN: Damn, the year is over.. What was going so fast, now seems
to have taken for ever to get over with.. WWF started out good, then just
nose dived.  How can people be this dumb?  I thought people were not, but
the WWF proved..  oh the humanity.. I would like to thank CRZ for doing
this..  I imagine it takes a ton of time to go through these and all..
Major props.  I think someone out there should get you a free Japanese
massage complete with the special "massage"  anyways, it is out of the
voting year, but Flair on Raw really picked things up HUGE.. already an
early "best News Item" or "Bets Promotional Move"

JASON MEAD: This year pales in comparison to last year, but match quality
was still on a good level. With Benoit, HHH, and Rock all gone for
extended periods of time, this year did suffer a little when being
compared to last year. But, Angle and Austin picked up slack, and while
the aforementioned were active they managed to rock my world. Angles were
alright until the Invasion angle, which sucked majorly. Overall, though,
decent year. Much better than 1999. That's pretty much the barrier for
suck. So, if it's better than 1999, we're not too bad.

ROBERT VAN PEER: All in all this had to be the worst year artistically in
recent wrestling history

CHRIS FICI: In a year when Vince McMahon screwed up what could've been the
biggest angle in wrestling history, we can take comfort in knowing that he
has quite a large bank account, which means he can give the Invasion
another good, old "college try."  Whether or not that is a good or bad
thing depends on who you listen to.  Steve Austin and Keiji Mutoh proved
that old dogs can learn new tricks, or at least return in beautiful
fashion to the tricks that made them so cool as old dogs.  Austin's heel
turn may not have been good business, but damn if it didn't add a whole
new dimension to one of the greatest characters in wrestling history.
His 10 million great matches with every top WWF star not named or related
to the Undertaker is just the cherry on the sundae.  Mutoh, like Austin,
proved that crippling injuries are overrated, and brought the tears of
joyous workrate in his miraculous MOTY with Genichiro Tenryu this past
June.  2001 had too little Benoit and too much McMahon.  Reversing that
formula means 2002 will be a tidal wave of good cheer for all.

DONNY L: I can't believe I'm saying this but I miss WCW, never liked it
more then the WWF but it was atleast it was an alternative now there's
nothing that's very sad.

MAHSITTI:  Why do the McMahons stubbornly believe that anyone actually
wants to see them in MATCHES let alone wasting our time with family
squabble angles, ad nauseum?  Women's wrestling actually has fans who want
to see female wrestlers treated as intelligent, talented athletes rather
than as lowgrade strippers or afterthoughts. They are sexy enough without
being thrown in pools of gravy, but if that's how its gonna be then lets
have some equal opportunity. Gimme RVD in a thong dammit!

MICHAEL STAKELY: Agh, what a year.  ECW and WCW both collapse, and the WWF
proceeds to botch what should have been the greatest angle ever by not
hiring WCW's biggest stars and burying the ones they do pick up. Instead
they prefer to turn it into the McMahon Variety Show and subject the
viewers to an endless parade of Stephanie interviews. Of the Radicals; one
is retired, one is injured, one is reduced to cameo appearances, and the
other got himself fired.  Damn. This year wasn't as bad as last year, but
it sure as hell wasn't a good one for wrestling.

JOHN C.: The past twelve months have seen a lot of changes in wrestling.
Instead of three major companies, we only have one now. The WWF has an
amazing roster filled with all kinds of talent but there are only so many
people that can be on a show. Because of this, shows have been stagnant
and some fans have started to turn wrestling off. Despite all that, there
were some good things to look at in the last year. Steve Austin has become
the best performer in the business again even though he had to overcome a
major neck injury. Kurt Angle has turned himself into the most complete
wrestler while The Rock has continued to grow as a worker. Injuries to
Triple H and Chris Benoit have made us realize just how good they really
are. Overall, 2001 has been a decent year although not as good as last
year.

PAUL M. M. JACOBUS: And way, waaaaay too many of the "Worst" categories
were hard to decide who was really the worst. This says a lot about the
state of affairs, when I spend twice as must time on the worst as the
best. Sigh.

GEOFF DINNES: I really only watched WWF. SO that is why all of my votes
are WWF. I watched very little WCW, and usually was so bored that I
changed teh channel before the segment over, hence the only votes for WCW
are in the 'Worst Organization' and 'Worst Show' catagories. I missed
Backlash and Judgement Day, and every other PPV I saw I enjoyed so that's
why 'Worst Major Show' is empty.

MATTY TONKIN: As you can see, I have mainly chosen only WWF events,
performers, etc for the awards. I'm 28 years old & have been watching the
WWF since around Wrestlemania 3. I dropped off just before Wrestlemania 6
(network TV stopped broadcasting the WWF), but I kept up to date from
around Wrestlemania 10 through rental PPV videos). Finally just before
Survivor Series 98, we got cable television & I became a full-time WWF fan
again. I tape almost every show in full. Is that weird ?? Oh well. I used
to watch WCW occasionally, but gave up on them quite a long time ago & so
didnt see any of the WCW shows immediately prior to their sale to the WWF.
We never got ECW on television in Australia, so I cant comment on their
quality (except for seeing a few ECW videos).

JEREMY SORIA: The year 2001 was a very significant year for wrestling.
With the deaths of WCW and ECW, Vince McMahon's dream to kill off all the
other major wrestling promotions in the United States has come true. It is
only just now have we begun to realize how much the product hasn't really
changed for the better now that there's only one major wrestling company
out there. The news isn't all that bad, for it has encouraged some fans to
start attending their local independent wrestling groups a lot more often.
(All the better if they actually have a decent indy wrestling promotion.)
The WWF had been doing some very good wrestling up until the last few
weeks of the voting period. They sure needed to distinguish itself from
the also-ran WCW "attitude"-infused product that reigned over there until
its demise. This year was also a lot of unfullfilled potential for a lot
of the wrestlers that came over to WCW. A lot of that is the WWF's fault,
for they just don't want to give the newcomers some kind of a shot at a
good spot on the card. If the WWF isn't careful, they might end up
infinitely recycling the same guys again, much like the last months of the
USWA. This landscape is sure going to be a lot different in the future. A
lot of the guys I've enjoyed watching over the years are sitting on huge
contracts from WCW (Bill Goldberg) or are busy with other things (Ken
Shamrock) or are just sitting out just simply because they didn't take
advantage of their one shot at the big time (Buff Bagwell). I am
discouraged by a lot of the stuff I see in the WWF... I sure hope that
things will look up for them. Then again, I think I said that about the
WWF last year.

RAGEROCKRR: Steve Austin was booked as so many worsts because despite his
excellent match with Triple H at No Way Out, and his matches with Benoit
and Jericho, he's totally deteriorated, his heel turns sucked, and he's
switched from face to heel so many times this year, I find it hard to care
about him any more.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: In general, a good year for wrestling.  Workrate in
the WWF skyrocketed on the heels of Austin's successful surgery, Benoit's
elevation, and Angle's consistent quality work.  And the US indies took
off in a way no one could have expected.  But as the year ends, things
look dark again for wrestling...

KAZAMA2000: There were so many great matches during the early-mid part of
the year in WCW,ECW and WWF,it was hard to pick just 3.Conversely,the WWf
made so many mistakes(most of it during the invasion angle)I just wanted
to cut and paste that whole last column.They screwed
Storm,Booker,Kanyon,DDP,Jerry Lynn,Tajiri, Shane Helms,even RVD.Im not
going to even talk a bout the trash there putting on now,but after all
Vince has done for us,who am I to complain?

MATT SPAULDING: Well, 2001 began with the end of the wrestling boom,
continued with the fadeout of ECW and the purchase of WCW by the WWF, and
ended with a disappointing invasion angle being brought to a close.  But
almost anything would have been a disappointment after the WWF's 2000,
which, from January through August, will rank as one of the great runs of
all time by a wrestling company.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the athlete who was the best overall wrestler of the year.
This includes all facets of wrestling: workrate, technical ability,
interviews, charisma, value to his/her promotion, etc. In 1994, this award
was split into three: North American, Non-North American, and overall.
In 1998, it was recombined into one.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Curt Hennig
  1991: Ric Flair
  1992: Ric Flair
  1993: Big Van Vader
  1994: Bret Hart
  1994: (NA)         Sabu
  1994: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1995: (overall/NA) Shawn Michaels
  1995: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1996: (overall/NA) Shawn Michaels
  1996: (non-NA)     Jushin Liger
  1997: (overall/NA) Shawn Michaels
  1997: (non-NA)     Taka Michinoku
  1998: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1999: Chris Benoit
  2000: Triple H

**2001**: Stone Cold Steve Austin

302 first place votes
299 second place votes
299 third place votes

133 49 31  874   Steve Austin
 78 99 33  753   Kurt Angle
 20 32 54  304   Chris Benoit
 25 20 30  245   Triple H
  7 15 18  116   Chris Jericho
  2 16 24  106   Rock
  7  8 22  103   Rob van Dam
 10 11  5   93   Keiji Muto
  0  8 10   44   Booker T
  1  6  9   41   Tajiri
  1  3  5   24   Yuji Nagata
  0  3  6   21   Lance Storm
  1  3  3   20   Toshiaki Kawada
  1  1  5   18   Edge
  2  1  2   17   Momoe Nakanishi
  0  4  2   16   Christian
  0  2  5   16   Rhyno
  1  1  3   14   Minoru Tanaka
  2  1  0   13   Jushin Liger
  2  0  1   12   Lexie Fyfe
  2  0  1   12   Jun Akiyama
  2  0  0   10   Super Dragon
  0  0  5   10   Low Ki
  0  1  3    9   El Hijo del Santo
  1  1  0    8   Hayabusa
  0  0  4    8   American Dragon
  1  0  1    7   Scott Steiner
  0  2  0    6   Brandi Alexander
  1  0  0    5   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  1  0  0    5   Mikey Whipwreck
  1  0  0    5   Kaoru Ito
  0  1  1    5   Riot
  0  1  1    5   Meiko Satomura
  0  1  1    5   CIMA
  0  1  1    5   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  0  0  2    4   Undertaker
  0  1  0    3   Sean O'Haire
  0  1  0    3   Matt Hardy
  0  1  0    3   Masato Tanaka
  0  1  0    3   Magnum Tokyo
  0  1  0    3   Kid Kash
  0  1  0    3   El Satanico
  0  1  0    3   Eddie Guerrero
  0  1  0    3   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  0  0  1    2   Val Venis
  0  0  1    2   Steve Corino
  0  0  1    2   Noki-A
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke
  0  0  1    2   Michael Modest
  0  0  1    2   Kanyon
  0  0  1    2   Kane
  0  0  1    2   Jeff Hardy
  0  0  1    2   Esse Rios
  0  0  1    2   El Samurai
  0  0  1    2   Bam Bam Bigelow

MICHAELANGELO MCCULLAR: This was a tough choice.  But, ultimately, I had
to give the nod to Angle due to Benoit and HHH's injuries.

RYAN HALL: Austin, HHH, Angle. Austin has been consistently the most
interesting part of TV and PPV

EDDIE BURKETT: Frankly, Austin has been phenomenal in these last few
months. Angle has stepped up his game, and HHH was great before he got
hurt.  The Rock has been also been good this year, but not as good as last
year, and in a different mood, these last three guys could easily be
re-ordered to knock someone else out of getting my vote.

JESSE HARALDSON: Steve Austin took a heel turn the fans did not want to
accept and forced them to hate him.  I don't know of anybody who was as
intensely popular as Steve Austin who could do that, especially one B.
Goldberg. No that is too obvious, how about Bill G.

NATE GURNETT: Austin's paranoid heel has made the WWF watchable this year.
He's more or less carried the promotion since April (No Rock, no H, not
even Benoit).  Angle had a good year, if his face turn were better booked,
he might have been #1.  Multiple title reigns plus good work in the ring
plus some great skits (and some lousy ones) adds up to 2.  Jericho was
thrown in for being there all year, whereas Booker T, my alternate choice
for 3 spot, had about 4 months off.  Eh.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Steve Austin transformed himself from a mindless brawler
losing credibility into an old school heel. His heel turn is fresh, and
Austin makes the crowd laugh, then turns around and destroys someone. He
is the best heel since Ric Flair.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Let's hear it for Stone Cold Steve Austin. Say what you
want about whether or not his heel turn was good for business -- it
probably wasn't -- the guy managed to do what others like Goldberg
couldn't: He took his phenomenal popularity and turned it into genuine
contempt from the fans. After years of doing the same act and doing it
well, he completely reinvented himself and made himself more entertaining
in the process. He had a hell of a year, and he deserves this award.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: Stone Cold Steve Austin.  What can you say?  The heel
turn worked and the chicanery and humor he injected to programming helped
quite a bit, as he's moved away from the regular "who cares" face wrestler
to a bad ass heel.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Jushin Liger was awesome this year. Consistently great
anchoring the madly resurgent New Japan Junior division and especially
mentoring the promising slew of rookies, Lyger was on the top of the game
for a longer period of time than Kawada, Santo or the injured Benoit.
Meiko Satomura was consistently great this year, delivering the ass-stomp
when in with TRUE queens of ass-stomp Aja and Akira Hokuto. Low-Ki had a
phenomenal year, having mind-blowingly stiff matches one day and being
king rudo in a high-flying affair in the next, then being the Ricky Morton
of the '01 in a Southern tag the next day.

CHIP BOOTS: No one has been better than Steve Austin this year.

MARKUS: I miss Benoit.

GREG NECASTRO: Kurt Angle had an exceptional year and is a rare example of
a cross-over athlete.

SCOTT WORDEN: Kurt Angle is the best wrestler out there..  Benoit is right
behind and if that injury did not happen, may have been number 1 again..
The Tajiri mark in me gives a 3rd place vote.. :)

CHRIS BIRD: Steve Austin is head and heels above the rest this year, with
tons of fantastic matches and a killer heel character that was the sole
saving grace of the Invasion. (What? The Invasion. What?) Kurt Angle is
clearly deserving of second, with a nearly as strong run and,
surprisingly, a strong (if short) face run. After him, there's a crop of
guys who are all in the same level: Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit, Rock,
HHH, and Booker. And all of them can make arguments to be in the top
three. I'm going with Jericho based on the most consistence and longest
consecutive time spent wrestling, as all the others took breaks for
injuries and/or contract problems this year.

SEAN FLYNN: This was Austin's year.  He put on some amazing matches with
Benoit, Angle, Helmsley, and anyone else not named Undertaker or Kane.
His character as a heel was one of the shining lights of the year, as his
interviews seemed beamed down from another planet they were so funny and
bizarre.  One day people will look back on heel Austin as the template for
the heel of the future.  He was the undeniable top guy for the WWF, and
did all he could to keep them afloat without Rock and HHH.  Angle had a
major year where he became a solid main eventer, and his match with Shane
at KOTR was a brutal classic.  Benoit was on an amazing roll until he got
injured, had he stayed healthy, he likely would have gotten the top spot.

CANZ: Steve Austin carried the WWF on a broken back and weakened spine and
bad knees. He is the man.

SHOCKER 2K: Angle made himself the hands-down best man in the WWF in his
sophomore run. Just absolutely amazing.

DONNY L: Steve Austin came back and is without a doubt wrestler of the
year, his compenation of ringwork and interview is the most amazing thing
I've ever seen.

PETER HAZLETT: Rock has shown ability to wrestle all types of matches and
kept the WWF afloat while HHH was out

SIMON GRIER: In my opinion, five wrestlers stand out over all others in
terms of overall ability, but are on a roughly equal footing with each
other. Kurt Angle, Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin are all excellent
in the ring and on the mic. The Rock is slightly less adept in the ring
than those, but better on the mic, while the exact opposite is true of
Benoit. My vote therefore goes to the only one of the five who wrestled
week in, week out all year - Angle. Austin comes second as the WWF based
their whole product around him and he came up big, while Rock is third
because of his sheer importance to the company.

ESTRAGAND: Angle worked every match, every role and every character
required of him.  Consistent, entertaining and stayed relatively healthy
in 2001.

MICHAEL STAKELY: Wait... what's wrestling again?  That's that two or three
minutes when they get in the ring and don't talk or sing, right? Do they
even do that anymore?

EDC: Kawada get the number one spot thanks to not being dumbed down by his
own promoter...Angle FLurished in the WWF and is quickly becoming the go
to guy in the fed with the absense of Benoit and HHH. Hopfully if the
promotional split goes through, He'll land in the Workrate half... Muto,
on his last legs, earned his spot on shear guts and determination.

JOHN C.: Steve Austin had one of the greatest years ever in 2001. He had
top matches with everybody from Rock to HHH to Benoit to Angle on TV and
on PPVs. His mic work was top notch as usual and his heel character made
him the most intriguing character in wrestling. I'll refrain from saying
"What?"  since I'm sure everybody else is doing it now. It's all because
of the best wrestler for the past twelve months, Steve Austin. Even though
there was no question as to who was the best, there was a question
regarding the runners up. In the end, Angle and Benoit round out the top
three just ahead of The Rock and Triple H.

CHRIS GRIMM: It's a tossup for wrestler of the year between Steve Austin
and Kurt Angle.  Austin returned to top form in the ring, and is more
entertaining than he's been since he was hiding in Bret Hart's ambulance
and breaking into Brian Pillman's house.  Kurt Angle continued on the
awesome year he had last year, holding onto the WWF title a lot longer
than anyone expected and managing to pick it up again later in the year
(albeit for, what, about a week?).  He also got a hell of a lot more over
as a face than I ever thought possible.  I mean, in the age of "Attitude",
did you think a face would *ever* be able to lead the crowd in the Pledge
of Allegiance (which he did before September 11).  I gave the edge to
Angle, mostly due to Austin's long period of inactivity during the summer,
and the simple fact that, up until Austin's heel turn at Wrestlemania, the
character was almost a characiture of his former self, and really, really,
really sucked.  Balance out the category with Chris Jericho, who the
lesser half of the "Canadian Chrises", I'll grant you, but was active the
entire year and finally got his world title. (And held onto it for, what,
about as long as Angle?)

SCOTT CHRIST: Austin dominated the year. His improvement in the ring after
his sub-par post-injury performances in late 2000 was remarkable. Not only
that, but from an entertainment standpoint, he kicked the crap out of,
well, everyone else. What?

JOE GENTILE: The man has a neck injury that would cripple anyone else. Not
only does he come back, not only does he single-handedly grab the reigns
of a federation so desperately in need of a spark, but he takes
superplexes, and other bumps that would expose the Undertakes as the fraud
that he is! Ladies and gentlemen, that is why Steve Austin is your
wrestler of the year. Kurt Angle gets second for his overall flexibility
and talent. The same guy who was wrestling classic matches with Chris
Benoit altered his style to put on one of the most brutal harcore matches
EVER with Shane-O-Mac. RVD gets number three for making the incredible
impact that no one thought he could.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Steve Austin has been the focal point of nearly every
main event angle of the year, has consistently been wrestling fine matches
(including, *gasp*, technical matches too. Shame he can't do that more
often :P), and delivering great promos. With Rock, Triple H and Benoit all
out for long periods, he's been carrying the WWF on his back for most of
the year (even when *he* was injured), and is clearly the wrestler of the
year. Kurt Angle had three World's title reigns this year, and has
consistently worked good matches year long. If he hadn't completely
flopped as a babyface he might have gotten number 1. Rock should probably
be third, but I can't stand him, so he ain't. Yes, I'm biased. Bite me.
Instead, I'm giving it to Chris Jericho, who's worked a number of good
matches, won his first World's title, and is one of the best in the world
when properly motivated. He was also by far the fed's top face whilst Rock
was out making movies. And he beat Rock, too.

CHRIS LENING: Steve Austin was entertaining almost every single time he
was on TV, and as great as he was talking, he was even better wrestling,
telling a story over a time period that is gargantuan by modern standards.
Keiji Mutoh put on a whole bunch of really good matches in the time
period, which all interested me enough to get more and more of his stuff,
inevitably becoming interested in many of his fellow workers, to which I
owe him bunches. Kurt Angle is always fun for me to watch, even when he's
fighting someone I don't normally care for.

MATTY TONKIN: Austin was overall most entertaining, in the ring & on the
mic. The Rock didnt skip a beat on returning & deservedly took his place
back at the top of the roster.

JEREMY SORIA: Stone Cold Steve Austin might literally be on his last legs,
but he has proved in his matches with Benoit and Angle that he still has a
healthy amount of athleticism in him. And no matter what you think of his
gimmick, he is simply charming at times. Benoit and Angle are the two
major athletes in the WWF, and they take their roles as wrestlers very,
very seriously.

SHANE SPEAR: Steve Austin is always in the main-event it seems. Whether he
is a babyface or a heel, Austin always gets a reaction from the crowd. He
held the WWF title twice this year, and has held the title longer than
anybody else.  Kurt Angle was one of only three wrestlers to hold onto the
WWF title this year. He also picked up the WCW World title, the WWF
Hardcore title, and the WCW US title.  Booker has been a three time WCW
champion this year. He has also been the WCW US champ, and a WCW tag
champ, making him the first person since Scott Steiner to do that. Also,
he was the number one face in the old WCW, and the number one heel in the
new WCW until Austin came over.

CHRIS McMURTRY: Mutoh not only carried a near dead company to a watchable
year and another 12 months of existence, but he carried wrestlers that
might as well be dead (Steve Williams) to decent matches throughout 2001.
He started off kind of slow, but once he got on his game, there was no one
better in 2001 than Keiji Mutoh. That said, if anyone is close, it's Steve
Austin. Though, as a drawing card, heel Austin can't exactly be called a
success, in terms of quality matches with a range of opponents and
entertaining out of the ring bits, Stone Cold as a heel was tremendous.
When he first came back from the neck injury, he looked quite out of
place, but he's silenced his critics with maybe his best year yet. And
what can be said about Angle that already hasn't been? The man's
incredible. Though it's tough to say now, at this rate, I don't think it's
unrealtistic to think that he'll go down as one of the greatest ever, if
not the greatest.

ROB HUNTER: Tough call for wrestler of the year.  In terms of workrate,
you've got to go with Kawada.  He has carried the weight of the world on
his shoulders and has managed to drag ***+ matches out of workers than
anybody else this year.  However, All Japan's pitiful booking kept him
away from the important matches he could have been having.  On the other
hand, Keiji Muto has had a hell of a comeback, and, quite frankly, has had
more to work with a lot of the time than Kawada.  He also doesn't wrestle
as frequently as Kawada, making each singles match he has "special."
Yuji Nagata had a breakout year, coming from behind to win the G-1 Climax
Tournament.  Had he captured the IWGP Heavyweight Title from Fujita, he'd
be a shoe-in for first place.  As it stands, Muto is first, Nagata is
second, and Kawada is third.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Steve Austin carried the WWF pillar to post.  No
question he wins.  Chris Benoit is the best wrestler in the WWF, and
AmDrag is the best wrestler in the indies.  They both make their opponents
look better... in fact, all three of these men do.  Next?

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: Rock and Chris Benoit both had lengthy absences, but I
guess I picked Rock because he's with us right now.

MATT SPAULDING: What a year for Stone Cold Steve Austin.  After a slow
start to his comeback from yet another neck injury, he starts having
killer matches, pulls off a heel turn by completely reinventing his
character, and keeps on having killer matches.  Kurt Angle just kept
getting better, even getting over as a face for a few months.  Benoit gets
my third-place vote over Jericho since Benoit's overall work was more
consistent until he got hurt, and Jericho didn't turn it up until after
Summerslam.

SHAWN MULLIN: What a story Steve Austin has been this year.  When he first
came back, it seeemed like maybe he had lost a step.  However, after the
match he worked with Benoit on RAW in December, it's been one hell of a
ride.  Austin probably had his best year overall in the ring wrestling
match of the year candidates with Angle on RAW, HHH at NWO, Rock and
WrestleMania, in a tag against Benoit and Jericho on RAW, a title match
with Benoit on Smackdown, a triple threat with Benoit and Jericho at King
of the Ring, and a couple more matches with Angle at SummerSlam and
Unforgiven.  Nobody approaches that kind of performance.  On top of that,
he was part of the highest grossing show of all time, and he's been
probably the most consistently entertaining performer on the microphone.
People will probably always look at the heel turn as a failure, but I'll
look back fondly on it because of the entertainment it provided and the
spark it gave him.  Angle also had a breakout year, showing he had the
skills to carry a company (although not as a face character), and showing
himself to have perhaps the best pure wrestling skills in the company.
Lastly, the Rock may have missed a few months, but he (with Austin) is
probably also the most entertaining overall performer in the company.  To
look at Rock's PPV matches now and compare them to when he first started,
you wouldn't even know he was the same wrestler.  The Rock that used to
need carrying is now able to drag very entertaining matches out of a guy
like Rikishi when he's called upon.  Lets hope he'll be around for several
more years.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Tag Team

Award Description:

To be given to the tag team who were the best overall team of the year.
This includes all facets of wrestling: workrate, technical ability,
interviews, charisma, hot team moves, value to their promotion, etc. In
1994, this award was split into three: North American, Non-North American,
and overall. In 1998, it was recombined into one.

Previous Winners:

  1990: The Steiners: Rick & Scott
  1991: The Steiners: Rick & Scott
  1992: Terry Gordy & Steve Williams
  1993: The Hollywood Blonds: Brian Pillman & Steve Austin
  1994: (overall/non-NA) The Steiners: Rick & Scott
  1994: (NA)             Eddy Guerrero & Love Machine
  1995: (overall/NA)     Public Enemy: Flyboy Rocco Rock & Johnny Grunge
  1995: (non-NA)         Mitsuhara Misawa & Kenta Kobashi
  1996: (overall/NA)     Harlem Heat: Booker T & Stevie Ray
  1996: (non-NA)         Doug Furnas & Dan Kroffat
  1997: (overall/NA)     The Eliminators: John Kronus & Perry Saturn
  1997: (non-NA)         NWO: Masahiro Chono & Great Muta
  1998: New Age Outlaws: Road Dogg Jesse James & Badd Ass Billy Gunn
  1999: Hardy Boyz: Matt & Jeff
  2000: Edge & Christian

**2001**: Edge & Christian

301 first place votes
300 second place votes
291 third place votes

105 56 33  759   Edge & Christian
 52 43 33  455   Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho
 52 42 32  450   Dudley Boyz - Bubba Ray & D-Von
 36 51 48  429   Hardy Boyz - Matt & Jeff
  5 12 10   81   Steve Austin & Triple H
  2 12 15   76   APA - Faarooq & Bradshaw
  4  7 15   71   Yoshihiro Tajiri & Mikey Whipwreck
 10  2  5   66   Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima
  4  5 11   57   Filthy Animals - Kidman & Rey Mysterio Jr.
  2  8  4   42   Undertaker & Kane
  3  7  2   40   Rey Buccanero Jr. & Ultimo Guerrero
  1  7  7   40   Kaientai - Taka Michinoku & Funaki
  2  4  8   38   Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire
  3  4  4   35   Gedo & Jado
  3  2  6   33   Taiyo Kea & Keiji Muto
  0  6  7   32   Lance Storm & Hurricane
  2  0  6   22   Caged Heat - Loca & Delta Lotta Pain
  2  2  1   18   Las Cachorras Orientales - Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita
  1  3  2   18   Jung Dragons - Kaz & Yang
  0  2  5   16   3 Count - Shane Helms & Shannon Moore
  1  2  2   15   Elix Skipper & Kid Romeo
  0  3  1   11   Jose & Joel Maximo
  0  1  4   11   Diamond Dallas Page & Kanyon
  1  1  0    8   Los Cubanitos
  1  1  0    8   Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka
  0  2  1    8   Yuji Nagata & Takashi Iizuka
  1  0  1    7   Rock & Chris Jericho
  1  0  1    7   Masahito Kakihara & Mitsuya Nagai
  0  1  2    7   Lance Storm & Mike Awesome
  0  1  2    7   Booker T & Test
  0  2  0    6   American Dragon & Low Ki
  0  0  3    6   Big Show & Spike Dudley
  1  0  0    5   Toshiaki Kawada & Masa Fuchi
  1  0  0    5   Steve Austin & Kurt Angle
  1  0  0    5   GOEMON & Onryo
  1  0  0    5   Dustin Rhodes & Dusty Rhodes
  1  0  0    5   CIMA & SUWA
  1  0  0    5   Big Show & Billy Gunn
  1  0  0    5   Backwoods Militia
  0  1  1    5   Mark Jindrak & Sean O'Haire
  0  1  1    5   Konica Man & Kitano Inferno
  0  0  2    4   X-Factor - X-Pac & Albert
  0  1  0    3   Too Cool - Grand Master Sexay & Scotty 2 Hotty
  0  1  0    3   Tomoko Watanabe & Nanae Takahashi
  0  1  0    3   Radicalz - Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko
  0  1  0    3   Osamu Nishimura & Tatsumi Fujinami
  0  1  0    3   Mr. Gannosuke & Mammoth Sasaki
  0  1  0    3   Gedo & Dick Togo
  0  1  0    3   Etsuko Mita & Mima Shimoda
  0  1  0    3   Chris Benoit & Kurt Angle
  0  1  0    3   Asian Invasion - Jade & Lotus
  0  0  1    2   Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi
  0  0  1    2   Taiyo Kea & Johnny Smith
  0  0  1    2   Silver King & Dr. Wagner Jr.
  0  0  1    2   Sean O'Haire & Chuck Palumbo
  0  0  1    2   Nanamomo - Nanae Takahashi & Momoe Nakanishi
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke & Kintaro Kanemura
  0  0  1    2   Minnesota Stretching Crew
  0  0  1    2   Michael Modest & Donovan Morgan
  0  0  1    2   Lost Boys - Azrael & Gabriel
  0  0  1    2   Los Nuevos Infernales
  0  0  1    2   Great Sasuke & Tiger Mask 4
  0  0  1    2   El Hijo del Santo & Negro Casas
  0  0  1    2   Daughters of Darkness - Mystery & Misery
  0  0  1    2   Chris Benoit & Test
  0  0  1    2   Backseat Boyz - Trent Acid & Johnny Kashmere
  0  0  1    2   Air Raid - Air Styles & Air Paris

MICHAELANGELO MCCULLAR: This was, quite possibly, the worst year for tag
teams that I can remember.

RYAN HALL: E&C, Hardyz, Dudleyz heads above the rest

EDDIE BURKETT: Edge & Christian were still a kick ass tag team right up
until the end, and the tension between the two of them kept them
entertaining to watch out of the ring, as well as in the ring.  The
partnership of Benoit and Jericho, while it served to do little to push
their match with Austin at KotR, did provide some good matches, and they
also complemented each other well.  The Hardy Boyz were also good this
year, but their act is becoming stale.  I used to cringe every time Jeff
did the Swanton, now I yawn.  Still, they are one of the few true tag
teams in the WWF to survive the year, and thus, they make the tally.

JESSE HARALDSON: APA have been able to stay at a high level without the
benfit of a major title reign.

NATE GURNETT: Okay, this is what you get when you're sick of the Dudleys
and Hardys and really don't like the APA, and...umm, who's left?  Anyway,
O'Haire is a monster and he and Palumbo worked well together.  Too bad
Chuck is stuck will Billy now.  The Canadians were great together, there's
no reason why WWF shouldn't be using those guys now as a team.  And they
really blew Kanyon/DDP, they could have gotten a lot more mileage out of
them if not for the Brothers of NoSell.

TEDB512: I'll miss Edge & Christian a ton, but nothing was better than
seeing Jericho and Benoit finally team together.

AMI: There were really very few American tag teams that stood out as
anything special this year.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Mikey Whipwreck and Yoshohiro Tajiri had a chance to
revolutionize tag team wrestling. unfortunately, ECW folded soon after
their debut.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: The tag team scene was such a total disappointment this
year. The WWF signs up tons of workers, only to use the SAME 3 TEAMS for
the entire year, give or take a few "superstars team up" teams.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Locaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

DEAN RASMUSSEN: The two best tagteams were both hurt. Iizuka and Nagata
would have gotten my vote this year if Iizuka had been healthy the whole
year.  Also Minoru Tanaka and Koji Kanemoto would have been number two if
Koji Kanemoto hadn't been out for five months.  Either way, Gedo and Jado
were spectacular this year. They starting hanging out with Masato Tanaka,
they all lost weight and started mainlining Ted DiBiase tapes. They had
the best Rock n Roll Express vs the Fantastics match ever presented in
Japan in BattlARTS this year. Konica Man and Kitano Inferno bring the DDT
love!

CHIP BOOTS: Edge and Christian are one of the greatest tag teams ever.

MARKUS: Pairing up Benoit & Jericho was a no-brainer. Mickey and Tajiri
just cracked me up and wrestled well. E&C still had their moments this
year, too.

SCOTT WORDEN: Best Tag team..  Geee..  What happened to that Tag Team
Division?  I gave the nod to the Dudley Boyz as the best..  nothing much
to vote on.. either going to be Them, The Hardys, or Edge and Christian.
Oh wait, those work rate hard on lovers will vote for a make shift team
like Benoit/Jericho.. or even Austin/HHH.  oh well, to each their own.

TERRY McMAHON: I have never seen a tag team as over as the Dudleyz were at
the beginning of this year.  The reaction to their signature spots was
just amazing.

CHRIS BIRD: The usual competitors for this award - Edge and Christian, the
Hardyz, and the Dudleyz - only had two really good matches this year
amongst them, and they were with each other in a giant schmozz (TLC 3 and
4). My first nod goes thusly to Rey Mysterio Jr. and Kidman, who had way
more awesome matches than all three of those guys combined. Right behind
them are the Jung Dragons, who ruled it hard. Third choice goes to Lance
Storm and Hurricane Helms because they clicked well and also were quite
funny.

SEAN FLYNN: This was a protest vote this year.  The tag team scene has
died a slow and painful death lately, so in protest I list nothing but
Benoit teams in honor of my fallen Canadian hero.

CANZ: Los Nuevos Infernales are everything a tag team should be-
coordinated, innovative and exciting- they are capable of working great
matches with anyone pretty much as both Guerrero and Bucanero are bump
machines who force the other team to keep up with them.

SHOCKER 2K: Even though the WWF's tag team division is completely
stagnant, when it was running, these two were the highlight of it. I miss
their team daily. ;)

KEVIN WONG: Why Caged Heat?  Hey, it wasn't a good year for tag teams...

DONNY L: The tag team division has taken a hit recently recently, Hardy
were a constant so there on top of my list, E&C a close second, and
Hurricane & Storm really didn't get there due yet.

PETER HAZLETT: Too bad they got shorted when Benoit got hurt, they were
just hitting stride.  The Dudley Boyz kinda by default, I guess, they are
only ones left really

EDC: Tag Team of the year is always a toss up. The Dudleys have remained
and they are so great together, they are almost like the new Legion of
Doom. well ok not really, but in the confined WWF world, they are better
than all the rest. Los Nuevos Infernales are my favorite Tag team south of
the border. I voted for Mikey Whipwreck and Tajiri in third because They
were the most mismatched team that worked the best. If the WWF had any
balls they would have done that Pyro gimmick with Spike or something
instead of turning him into little show...

JOHN C.: My vote goes to Edge & Christian for consistently entertaining me
even though they were probably getting tired of wrestling the same teams
every night. Runners up are Jericho & Benoit because they were awesome
together for two months. The Hardy Boyz get my third vote only because
they had slightly better matches than the Dudleys. Still, the division was
weak and is in desperate need of a kickstart.

CHRIS GRIMM: The tag team scene has kinda fallen in the past year, too.
Edge and Christian got the nod, almost by default.  They weren't nearly as
entertaining as they were last year, especially since at least half of
their time together this year was a tease of the eventual split.  Chris
Jericho and Chris Benoit only had about a month as a unit, but really
clicked, which isn't too suprising considering who was involved and their
history together.  The Hardyz got the third slot, almost because you feel
guilty not voting for them with the suicidal shit they do night in and
night out.  Besides, who's left?  The Undertaker and Kane?  The Dud-ley
Boyz?  Not a lot to choose from.

SCOTT CHRIST: I guess I'll go with the Dudley Boyz since I like the 3D and
their music. Benoit & Jericho as a runner-up since they only teamed for a
short while. Edge & Christian at number three because, just because.

JOE GENTILE: 1st Dudleys, 2nd Hardys. Were there anyone else? The tag team
division is SO repetitious these days. I'll give Benoit and Jericho 3rd
for the great markout moment of them beating Austin and HHH.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I've voted for Matt and Jeff Hardy here for two years
running, so why not continue the trend? The Hardyz have held tag team (as
well as singles) gold on and off the whole year, have wrestled a number of
good matches (both as a team and in singles), and have consistently been
enormously popular. Edge and Christian get second, and if they hadn't
split halfway through the year, they'd probably have gotten first. The
Dudley Boyz get third by default. They might have held various gold for
longer, in total, than either of the above teams, but the Hardyz and E&C
are better wrestlers, and rather more over. Shame it looks like I won't be
able to vote for either team next year. :( The Dudz don't really work as
heels, anyhow.

CHRIS LENING: Edge and Christian get the vote despite breaking up midway
through, because they'll always be the team I saw rise up from Shotgun
Saturday Night through a zillion matches with the Hardys into the most
enjoyable team I've seen in my brief time watching Wrestling. Benoit and
Jericho had even less time together, but put on a ton of quality stuff
within that limited time. Rey Bucanero and Ultimo Guerrero were tremendous
as a pair, but even better in trios matches, whether against rudo or
technico. And that silly running around pose must receive love.

MATTY TONKIN: Still the best three tag-teams, even though its the same
teams vs the same teams in every major feud / match.

YNAE316:  Edge & Christian:  Hilarious promos, decent action, 7 time
champs Caged Heat - Loca & Delta Lotta Pain:  Loved the gimmick and theme
music

JEREMY SORIA: The Hardy Boyz win again. Yawn. Why didn't they let Palumbo
and O'Haire do some tagging up to show them how to do a swanton bomb
correctly, at the very least?

SHANE SPEAR: The Hardyz were the best team of the year in a rather
lackluster list of choices.  True, all their wins may be because they
CHEAT VIA LITA, but they win nonetheless. Yoshihiro Tajiri & Mikey
Whipwreck were a fun, if not odd pairing during the dying days of WCW.
Edge & Christian edge out the Dudleys for the last spot by simply being
the more entertaining team.

ROB EVANS: Every year it's some combo of Duds, Hardys, E&C.  This year,
the Duds should come out on top.

RAGEROCKRR: The WWF has let tag teams die out this year.  The Dudleys are
the tag teams' last stand.

RYAN FAULCONER: This award seems to be based on who is the coolest tag
team of the year, regardless of how mediocre their ringwork is. I voted
Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan first because they actually deliver in
the ring. They also have the coolness factor that all the kids these days
love. Rey Bucanero & Ultimo Guerrero are a close second both in terms of
ringwork and coolness. Gedo & Jado get third because they deserve
recognition for a great year as well.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: I'm voting for Jericho and Benoit because what they did in
their time as a team kicks everybody's ass. Hardys did not break up and
were not as boring as the Dudleys. E&C broke up but still ruled. Tags sure
wasn't as good as 2000, no sir. I also considered Tenzan & Kojima well
alright no I didn't.

THE CUBS FAN: I really wanted to vote for someone besides the TLC 3, this
years work being so repeatitve espcially when you compare it to last
year's, but I couldn't not think of any other tag team that was around as
long and as consistent - there were lots of teams that were good and fun
for spurts. I suppose lots of votes will go out for guys in the WCW
Cruiserweight Tag Team division but that was just one month of twelve and
the Dragons and 3 Count didn't get close to TLC kinda consistent time the
rest of the year. Maybe if Benoit hadn't get hurt, I could see him and
Jericho. Maybe if I watched more CMLL earlier in the year, I'd pick Ultimo
and Buccanero or Casas and Santo. (Maybe if WOW hadn't folded, I would
have dumped the Dudleyz for Caged Heat just because?) But with what was
allowed to happen, there was no one at the high level all year long.
Except maybe Albert and X-Pac.

SHAWN MULLIN: This is a tough category because tag wrestling has been
pretty disasterous this year.  Beyond the awesome TLC matches, we've had
absolutely no direction in any North American company.  WCW had pretty
much the same system going before it folded: big highspot matches with
interchangeable finishes.  I mean, at any point in this year has it
actually mattered who the tag champions were? As far as I can tell, the
only title switch that really came off as a big deal was the switch
between the Power Trip and Benoit/Jericho.  Nevertheless, the Hardy Boyz
are still the most consistently entertaining team of the bunch.  Edge and
Christian would be up there, but they broke up, and the Hardyz have been
working a lot of tag matches on TV in the last few months.  I put Jericho
and Benoit in there because short reign or not, they were the only ones
who put some real intensity behind the tag team titles, and they had two
match ot the year cadidates in the process.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Heel

Award Description:

To be given to the person who was the best villain this past year. This
person should bring out the fans' wrath. Match quality is not paramount
here; this award should be based primarily on how over the wrestler was in
the past year.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Ted DiBiase
  1991: Cactus Jack
  1992: Jake Roberts
  1993: Big Van Vader
  1994: Bob Backlund
  1995: Big Van Vader
  1996: Steve Austin (Ring Master)
  1997: Shawn Michaels
  1998: Mr. McMahon (Vince McMahon)
  1999: Triple H
  2000: Triple H

**2001**: Stone Cold Steve Austin

300 first place votes
298 second place votes
290 third place votes

157 46 20  963   Steve Austin
 78 67 39  669   Triple H
 15 50 49  323   Kurt Angle
 10 25 23  171   Scott Steiner
  3 24 30  147   Christian
  4 16 23  114   William Regal
  2 20 21  112   Booker T
  4  5 10   55   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  3  5 10   50   Vince McMahon
  1  6 10   43   Lance Storm
  2  5  7   39   Rhyno
  4  2  2   30   Kazunari Murakami
  2  2  2   20   SUWA
  0  2  7   20   X-Pac
  0  4  3   18   Shane McMahon
  0  3  3   15   Gedo
  1  1  3   14   Lana Star
  2  1  0   13   Adam Pearce
  2  0  0   10   Mima Shimoda
  1  1  1   10   Ivory
  0  2  2   10   Chris Jericho
  0  0  4    8   Hurricane
  1  0  1    7   Shocker
  1  0  1    7   Mr. Gannosuke
  1  0  1    7   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  0  1  2    7   Chris Benoit
  1  0  0    5   Shane Douglas
  1  0  0    5   Leilani Kai
  1  0  0    5   Kumiko Maekawa
  1  0  0    5   Eddie Guerrero
  1  0  0    5   Diamond Dallas Page
  1  0  0    5   Christopher Daniels
  0  1  1    5   M2K
  0  0  2    4   Dr. Luther
  0  1  0    3   Yumiko Hotta
  0  1  0    3   Ultimo Guerrero
  0  1  0    3   Thug
  0  1  0    3   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  0  1  0    3   Satanico
  0  1  0    3   Mayumi Ozaki
  0  1  0    3   Hiromichi Fuyuki
  0  1  0    3   Genichiro Tenryu
  0  1  0    3   Brandi Alexander
  0  0  1    2   Trent Acid
  0  0  1    2   Steven Richards
  0  0  1    2   Slam Dunk
  0  0  1    2   Rikishi
  0  0  1    2   Ric Flair
  0  0  1    2   Rey Bucanero
  0  0  1    2   Las Cachorrus Orientales - Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita
  0  0  1    2   Kodo Fuyuki
  0  0  1    2   Jungle Grrrl
  0  0  1    2   Jeff Jarrett
  0  0  1    2   Chris Kanyon
  0  0  1    2   Chavo Guerrero Jr.
  0  0  1    2   Carol Midori

MICHAELANGELO MCCULLAR: Screw what people think.  SCSA has been near
brilliant as a heel.

RYAN HALL: Austin, HHH, Vince. Austin best as heel and face

EDDIE BURKETT: Triple H is PURE EVIL!!!  Just when it seemed he was
becoming a sweet old babyface, he reveals to be behind Rikishi, and
becomes even more heelish than he was before.  Then, he continues his evil
ways by assaulting the Undertaker and destroying his bike and being mean!
Then he picks on Jericho and Benoit and gets hurt and goes away.  By that
point, Austin became evil, but not as evil as HHH.  Austin is too
cowardly, and tends to play too much to the audience (especially with his
what) to get the nod above Triple H.  That said, Austin is still EVIL!
His match against Matt Hardy on the Aug. 8 Raw, where he kept putting Matt
in Hammerlocks and smiling at Lita may have been a squash was so evil it
was brilliant.  Christian has also been a great heel this year, handling
himself in both a funny, understanding, and slightly evil fashion during
his feud with Edge especially, but even prior to that.  His (and Edge's)
arrogance going into the TLC II match at WM was rather enjoyable.

HIRO: No outstanding heel acts this year. Too bad Triple H got injured.

PAUL ZOROVICH: Triple H plays the part of old-school heel so perfectly.
Every time he came on my TV I absolutely believed him.  Nobody else even
came close.

NATE GURNETT: Austin's heel schtick is a hell of a lot of fun to watch.
I liked the Steiner angle over the last 4 months or so of WCW.  Was I the
only one that watched?  Anyway, Booker's feud with La Roca was cut way to
short.  The Book has been getting pretty good heat since anyway.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Steve Austin is the best heel since Ric Flair. Enough
said. Vince McMahon is an evil man (Hart family, etc.)

AGUGARTY: 1st: What?

DEAN RASMUSSEN: SUWA is the best rudo in the world. His offense if farking
hellish and he is master of guiding the young punks along- thus he is my
number one and the best. Gedo was great this year, opting to go the
Southern Heel route. Kazunari Murakami was a total bastard punching
Ishikawa and the ilk in the face.  All that and and he's got the facials
that say "Punch me!"

CHIP BOOTS: Austin completely remade his character this year.

MARKUS: HHH is still The "New" Man. Steiner just killed me everytime they
gave him a mic. Not letting Lance Storm continue getting mic time and do
his heel schtick really pissed me off.

GREG NECASTRO: A short year, but nobody plays the heel better than Triple
H.

SCOTT WORDEN: Steve Austin played the heel rather well me thinks.. Props
for getting a simple word, "what,"  over as a catchphrase.

SEAN FLYNN: It's all about Steve Austin in this category.  Crowds hated
him during his time as a heel, even if they loved the WHAT? humor.
Though it really wasn't a good year for heels in general.  Booker's
anti-Rock heel run did seem to get the crowds against him well enough
though.

MARK POLISHUK: Stone Cold did it.  After all of the bad press about his
heel turn at WrestleMania, Austin managed to create an original,
entertaining and very over heel character.  I predict the over/under on
people that include a 'What?' in their comments to be fifteen.

CANZ: Dr. Wagner Jr choked a kitten and threw it out the window. Good luck
beating that.

KEVIN WONG: Both Booker and Stone Cold really grew into the heel roles
this year, and you gotta dig that.

DONNY L: Austin was a pure heel this year, (not a cool heel which I hate),
he tried everything to make people hate him, Angle is the dork no one
likes worked well as well.

PETER HAZLETT: No one does it better than HHH, even when the fans seem to
want to love him. Rhyno has so much potential, if they pushed him right

SIMON GRIER: Stone Cold Steve Austin was an excellent heel - funny, yet
irritating at the same time and you always wanted the face to give him a
good kicking.  Scott Steiner and Rhino ran roughshod over WCW and ECW in
classic heel fashion, and you couldn't help but mark out for the babyfaces
opposing them just as Booker T and Kid Kash. Shame their companies died
before they truly got their comeuppance.

ESTRAGAND: People really seemed to HATE Booker's "Wannabe Rock" routine.
The Great Tome of Wrestling Crap says "getting people to dislike you,
qualifies you as an effective heel". Angle was wonderfully annoying as the
arrogant, egotistical heel. Austin was fun as the paranoid "WHAT?" freak.
In the Summer, William Regal would stop in the middle of his matches and
WAVE to the crowd and say "hello to all my friends in (NAME OF CITY)"-
that always got a good round of "boooo's"

MICHAEL STAKELY: I'm not a particularly big fan of HHH but the last few
months have really made me miss a dominating heel whose name isn't
McMahon.

EDC: Well given the fact that Heels and faces are almost changing weekly,
it was hard to vote for the best. Steiner was really the best heel,
instilling terror to both fans and opponents.

JOHN C.: Steve Austin is the runaway winner in this category. His ability
to go from the best babyface ever to one of the best heels ever is proof
that he is an exceptional overall talent. He made us laugh and he made us
think he was a psycho. It was hard to hate him in the traditional sense
but as a heel he did his job very well. Triple H finishes second even
though he has been out since late May. He was awesome as usual
particularly during his feud with Austin. Christian gets my third vote
because he plays a great heel that always knows how to get a crowd to
react to him. One day he'll be the top heel in the business. It's only a
matter of time.

CHRIS GRIMM: I still can't believe how great Austin's heel run was,
despite people online who still refuse to admit that it got over.  What?
Kurt Angle rules, face or hell, although HHH probably would've grabbed
number two if he didn't get hurt right in the middle of the year.

SCOTT CHRIST: What?

JOE GENTILE: What?

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Is Kurt Angle an awesome heel or what? I enjoyed him as
a face too, but he's soooo much better as a heel. He was especially good
when he went psycho after losing the WWF title in February, though he was
fun as Steve Austin's dorky sidekick too. Shame the hell re-turn made no
sense... Christian gets second, for the most awesome heel turn in recent
history. He plays a psycho as well as Kurt does, too. Austin gets third.
He's an utter asshole and incredibly creepy at times. He'd probably get
first but, er, unfortunately... the fans still love him. Just watch how
they've taken to the "what" catchphrase... Honourable mention to Lance
Storm ("If I could be serious for a moment..." is somehow just cool.)

MATTY TONKIN: Austin without a doubt. So much more interesting &
entertaining as a heel. Face Austin = Boring. Heel Austin = Funny &
entertaining. Christian is still the best at antagonising the crowd
pre-match & Triple H was still extremely strong as a heel before his
injury.

YNAE316: Scott Steiner:  The Genetic Freak. Now's THAT'S a monster heel
Triple H:  The Game Christian:  Love his cocky promos, dick actions,
wise-ass remarks

JEREMY SORIA: Trip's still the best heel out there. I bask in his
arrogance, I shiver at his extreme self-confidence. Kurt Angle was as
cocky as ever, just as much as Trip is. Steve Austin made for an okay
heel, even if he couldn't really replicate his heelish tendencies from
1996. However, anyone that can pretty much get away with his near rape of
Michael Cole on SmackDown last June gets a huge thumbs up from me as a
heel.

SHANE SPEAR: There will be enough "What" jokes in this section, so I'll
leave that to the other and just say that Steve Austin was the coolest
heel ever.  Between the "My name is" and his talking watch, I don't know
if anybody will be able to top him next year.  The Book also made a real
nice transition to being a bad guy, something I wouldn't have believed was
possible from such a really likeable character.  BOO-YA!  Helms take the
final spot just for being the best idea for a heel in a long time.

RYAN FAULCONER: Mima Shimoda is wrestling world's most badass Susan
Sarandon. She's such a great heel. Murakami is a great psychotic heel so
he gets second. Third goes to Steve Austin because his heel mic work was
tremendous.

SHAWN MULLIN: Steve Austin was an awesome heel, he just got dealt some bad
cards.  For instance, if HHH had turned face after WrestleMania, Austin
would have actually had a strong (and over) babyface to feed off.
Instead, he and HHH overshadowed each other in their consistent uses of
the sledgehammer of plot (WE ARE HEELS! WE ARE EVIL! WE ARE MEAN!).  Once
HHH was gone, Austin was able to build his own identity as a heel, and
it's by far the most entertaining he's been as a character since 1998.
However, he had no drawing power as a heel, and whether you blame that on
Austin being a heel or a really crappy/boring product surrounding him, it
is still a reality.  Kurt Angle is probably the most natural heel I've
ever seen, he just makes it seem so easy!  Regal also knows how to inspire
hate like almost nobody I've seen.


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Babyface

Award Description:

To be given to the person who best portrayed the hero this past year. This
person should get lots of fan support. Match quality is not paramount
here; this award should be based primarily on how over the wrestler was in
the past year.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Hulk Hogan
  1991: Brian Pillman
  1992: Sting
  1993: Bret Hart
  1994: Bret Hart
  1995: Shawn Michaels
  1996: Shawn Michaels
  1997: Steve Austin
  1998: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1999: The Rock
  2000: The Rock

**2001**: The Rock

297 first place votes
294 second place votes
288 third place votes

152 41 21  925   Rock
 30 51 49  401   Rob van Dam
 17 51 45  328   Chris Jericho
 25 24 14  225   Kurt Angle
 17 22 14  179   Steve Austin
  5 16 23  119   Chris Benoit
  2 19 20  107   Undertaker
  7  6  6   65   Ric Flair
  4  6 13   64   Tajiri
  3  8 12   63   Edge
  2  7 11   53   Booker T
  5  6  1   45   El Hijo del Santo
  2  4  4   30   Magnum Tokyo
  1  5  3   26   Lita
  0  2 10   26   Spike Dudley
  3  2  2   25   Momoe Nakanishi
  2  1  3   19   Hayabusa
  1  2  4   19   Al Snow
  2  1  2   17   Kane
  2  1  1   15   Hurricane
  2  1  0   13   Kaoru Ito
  1  2  1   13   Norman Smiley
  1  2  1   13   Mick Foley
  2  0  1   12   Rising Son
  1  1  1   10   Taiyo Kea
  0  3  0    9   Maven
  1  1  0    8   Sting
  1  0  1    7   Tommy Dreamer
  0  1  2    7   Dragon Kid
  0  1  2    7   Billy Kidman
  0  2  0    6   Perry Saturn
  0  0  3    6   Jeff Hardy
  1  0  0    5   Wifebeater
  1  0  0    5   Terri Gold
  1  0  0    5   Tazz
  1  0  0    5   Survival Tobita
  1  0  0    5   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  0  0  2    4   William Regal
  0  0  2    4   Sandman
  0  0  2    4   Goldberg
  0  0  2    4   Diamond Dallas Page
  0  1  0    3   Tiger Mask IV
  0  1  0    3   Low Ki
  0  1  0    3   Kid Kash
  0  1  0    3   Jushin Liger
  0  1  0    3   GOEMON
  0  0  1    2   Yuji Nagata
  0  0  1    2   Shane McMahon
  0  0  1    2   Rikishi
  0  0  1    2   Onryo
  0  0  1    2   Nidia
  0  0  1    2   Meiko Satomura
  0  0  1    2   Jade
  0  0  1    2   Ayako Hamada
  0  0  1    2   American Dragon

REJECTED - ineligible

  1  0  0        Hulk Hogan
  0  0  1        Lugz Hardcore Guy

RYAN HALL: Austin, RVD, Jericho. Is there a best face?  It's not Rocky.

EDDIE BURKETT: I wanted to vote for Mick Foley, but I didn't know if he'd
be eligible since he isn't an active wrestler.  Pretty much everything
everyone tends to hate about the Undertaker (he doesn't sell, he won't
job, etc.) are the same qualities, which, for some odd reason, seem to
have him over rather well with the non-online audience.  Plus, he was much
better earlier in the year (he didn't get noticeably bad until his feud
with Page).  Plus, his interviews earlier in the year were a bit fun,
IMHO.  Jericho's also been a good face all year, only slipping heel in the
last month or so of elibibility.  The Rock missed a lot of time, and
especially around WM, was slipping a little heelish, as he did at the end
of October.

NATE GURNETT: I hate Rocky, but nobody gets pops like he does.  Granted,
he's not as over as some I could have chosen, but Edge's face turn has
been great.  He and Christian salvaged a decent feud from shite booking.
And, "It's a Shoot!"  Anyway, the crowd loves the stoner charisma of RVD
at3.

TEDB512: I voted for Hurricane, but of course, I meant Shane Helms. And
Benoit's best as a face-ish tweener, as he became this year

VIKRAM BIRRING: After a few days, the WWF fans chanted RVD's initials.
That is amazing for uneducated, apathetic fans. The crowds always seem to
ooooohh and aaaaahhh during Tajiri's matches, no matter who he faces.

KEN DREILING: Maven and Spike Dudley have the great babyface characters,
new, green/small guy over coming the odds, just a great old school
character line for a babyface.  Jericho, whether he was moving up the
ladder or down his pops stayed consistant and that's what put him on my
list.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: The fact that I could vote for Stone Cold both as best
babyface and best heel shows what a phenomenal year he had.

CHIP BOOTS: He calls himself the Great One for a reason.

MARKUS: The kids still love Rocky. Tajiri gets over with barely saying
anything, which rules. Booker T had a really nice run as a face before
WCW's death, I thought.

GREG NECASTRO: Whether you want to accept it or not, Rock gets the crowd
going.

SCOTT WORDEN: Is there any arguing why the The Rock is the best babyface..
Just the site of his tattoo get the crowd nuts..  Must be something wrong
when tattoo draws more heat then 3/4 of and entire roster.

SEAN FLYNN: RVD is what the crowds were chanting at the top of their
lungs.  One could make a solid case that before the torpedoing of the RVD
push began the crowds were more into him than they were even for the Rock,
who is not listed here due to general inactivity and being somewhat the
heel in the pre-WM buildup.  Tajiri gets second for playing the
sympathetic face so well.  Benoit comes in third for those weeks he got to
play on top.  People were ready to see him beat Austin and exploded for
the Crossface.  He gets a vote from me if only for being able to get his
arsenal of moves over the way others get a catchphrase over.

CANZ:  The crowd loves Steve Austin regardless of what he does. How
couldn't you mark out for him? Hijo del Santo is the ultimate example of a
tecnico. The crowds light up at his mere presence.

KEVIN WONG: Man, was it a lean year for faces or what?

DONNY L: Rock can't do no wrong, Lita close 2nd people just love her.

PETER HAZLETT: Can't debate the popularity of Rock and #2 RVD

ESTRAGAND: Sting gets my vote as 'best babyface'. A way to show my
appreication for all the nifty years of service. His final promo was
effective, and if that really WAS the last we'll see of the Stinger, then
I'm okay with that. Booker had a good run as a babyface, towards the end
of WCW, and into the first stages of the inVAsion. Sort of a hard working
guy who commands respect. Nothing special, but it worked for me.

EDC: RVD is the uber face. hes got that one thing everyone wish they had,
Charm. not the overbearing kind that the Rock has, but a genuine charm
about him.

KEVIN DOTEN: Al Snow - After Tough Enough, the crowd loved everything
about Al Snow, isn't that what a babyface is all about?

JOHN C.: The Rock was easily the top babyface even though he took four
months off to film the Scorpion King. He consistently gets the best crowd
reactions and he performs at a high level every night so he's clearly the
best in this category. After him, I went with Steve Austin because he was
great before WrestleMania, especially in his feud with Triple H. Chris
Benoit because the fans were really behind him during his feuds with Angle
and Austin.

CHRIS GRIMM: Now, The Rock will most likely win this award, and despite
the fact that I think he's the biggest waste of TV time this side of Total
Request Live, the masses disagree with me and, as such, Rocky's massively
over (and Carson Daly's a household name).  That said, I can't possibly
vote for someone as Best Face who doesn't act like a face.  The Rock's
character is an overwhelming asshole, an egotistical, self-righteous,
hyprocritical prick who bitches and complains every single time he loses.
He's a hell of a heel but a mass of catchphrases does not a babyface make.
Kurt Angle's face run, on the other hand, was so old-school and brilliant
it was a shame they had to turn him.  He had the crowd reciting the Pledge
of Alliegance, for Christ's sake.  The other two votes go to Tajiri and
Spike Dudley, respectively, as they're about the only other two faces I
can find in the entire damn WWF.  (And, to be fair, both of them came
across as incredibly likeable underdogs, which make the best babyfaces, if
you ask me.)

SCOTT CHRIST: People like The Rock. I like The Rock! The Rock wins.

JOE GENTILE: Before September 11th, Kurt Angle was capable of leading an
entire audience of Generation-X'ers in reciting the pledge of allegience.
That, my friends is a BABYFACE!

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Rock's probably gonna get this again, and all power to
him, but my top vote goes to Chris Jericho. He was hands down the WWF's
top face the four months that Rock was out, and he even got cheered *over*
*the* *Rock*. Nuff said. And he's probably gonna be my pick for next
year's Best Heel. Rock gets second easily, despite how much I personally
can't stand him. Rob van Dam, despite theoretically being a heel gets
bigger pops than most of the official babyface roster. He's also the only
guy in the alliance not named Steve Austin whom the crowd actually likes.
Ergo, he gets third.

YNAE316: Though a mere jobber now, Tommy epitomized the spirit of ECW...

JEREMY SORIA: The Rock may not be one of my favorite wrestlers, but he is
the favorite of a whole lot o f other people. The reaction he got when he
made his triumphant return at SummerSlam was deafening. Kurt Angle made
for a nice babyface late in the voting period - I loved the way he won the
title in Pittsburgh. And Bill Goldberg made a nice comeback from his heel
turn that almost cost him his career. How I'm gonna miss Da Man.

SHANE SPEAR: Rob Van Dam squeaks this catagory out over The Rock due to a
few factors.  Firstly, when they faced off, RVD stole a LOT of the usual
Rocky fans away from the cheers, and dare I say he was almost as popular
as the people's champ?  Th Rock obviously slides into second place nicely,
and Chris Jericho treads water as the number three babyface this year.
Had Stone Cold's face turn come in time for the deadline, I might say
differently, but it didn't...so I won't.

RYAN FAULCONER: It just isn't humanly possible to be a better babyface
than Momoe Nakanishi. She has all the fire and underdog intensity that you
could want in a face. She's has genuinely real undying sticktoitiveness as
well.

SHAWN MULLIN: The Rock can still hold a crowd in the pawn of his hand.
Jericho, even after all the false starts and lack of character evolution,
was still as over as anyone in the company (except Rock), and that's a
testiment to his babyface power.  RVD has the chance to be the next big
thing.  When people are chanting your name in the hallways of an arena
before and after shows... without encouragement... that is something
special.  Hopefully politics don't kill him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Worker

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler with, on average, the best workrate. In 1994,
this award was split into three: North American, Non-North American, and
overall.  In 1998, it was recombined into one.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Ric Flair / Randy Savage (tie)
  1991: Jushin Liger
  1992: Jushin Liger
  1993: Bret Hart
  1994: (overall/NA) Sabu
  1994: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1995: (overall/NA) Shawn Michaels
  1995: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1996: (overall/NA) Rey Mysterio, Jr.
  1996: (non-NA)     Jushin Liger
  1997: (overall/NA) Shawn Michaels
  1997: (non-NA)     Taka Michinoku
  1998: Mankind (Cactus Jack / Dude Love / Mick Foley)
  1999: Chris Benoit
  2000: Chris Benoit

**2001**: Chris Benoit

302 first place votes
300 second place votes
296 third place votes

110 71 37  837   Chris Benoit
 73 65 41  642   Kurt Angle
 39 36 42  387   Steve Austin
 18 27 41  253   Triple H
  6 10 12   84   Rob van Dam
  6  6 15   78   Tajiri
  1 13 17   78   Lance Storm
  3 13 11   76   Chris Jericho
  5  5  7   54   Keiji Muto
  3  5  7   44   Yuji Nagata
  5  2  6   43   Booker T
  4  5  3   41   Toshiaki Kawada
  2  4  3   28   Kanyon
  2  2  4   24   Minoru Tanaka
  3  1  2   22   Jushin Liger
  0  4  5   22   Rock
  3  1  1   20   Jeff Hardy
  1  2  4   19   Eddie Guerrero
  3  0  1   17   Momoe Nakanishi
  3  0  0   15   Hunter Hearst Helmsley
  2  1  0   13   Super Dragon
  2  1  0   13   Lexie Fyfe
  1  2  1   13   Blue Panther
  0  3  2   13   Dean Malenko
  0  2  2   10   Low Ki
  1  0  2    9   Rhyno
  1  1  0    8   Hayabusa
  0  2  1    8   CIMA
  1  0  1    7   Michael Modest
  1  0  1    7   Chris Daniels
  1  0  1    7   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  0  1  2    7   William Regal
  0  1  2    7   Christian
  0  1  2    7   American Dragon
  0  2  0    6   Little Jeannie
  1  0  0    5   Tazz
  1  0  0    5   Hijo del Santo
  0  1  1    5   Matt Hardy
  0  1  1    5   El Hijo del Santo
  0  0  2    4   Test
  0  0  2    4   Takehiro Murahama
  0  0  2    4   Billy Kidman
  0  1  0    3   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  0  1  0    3   Tariri
  0  1  0    3   Mike Sullivan
  0  1  0    3   Kid Kash
  0  1  0    3   Kaoru Ito
  0  1  0    3   Hiroshi Hase
  0  1  0    3   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  0  1  0    3   Albert
  0  0  1    2   Yoshiko Tamura
  0  0  1    2   Undertaker
  0  0  1    2   Silver King
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke
  0  0  1    2   Mikey Whipwreck
  0  0  1    2   Mighty Molly
  0  0  1    2   Meiko Satomura
  0  0  1    2   Kaz Hayashi
  0  0  1    2   Hurricane
  0  0  1    2   Edge
  0  0  1    2   C-Blockk
  0  0  1    2   Black Dragon

REJECTED - duplicate votes

  0  1  0        Chris Benoit

EDDIE BURKETT: Steve Austin has been phenomenal.  After commenting about
how detiorated he was last year, he has come back in spades, and then
some.  Kurt Angle has also been amazing, having great matches with just
about anyone.  Chris Benoit was amazing before he got injured.

HIRO: Again, the loss of Triple H and Chris Benoit somewhat hurts this
category, but thankfully there were some others who stepped up their game.

NATE GURNETT: Angle over Benoit solely because of missed time from Benoit.
Rhyno showed everyone his huge moveset, plus, what was that?, Psychology.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Tajiri is the best worker this side of the Pacific Ocean.
His super-stiff kicks just stun the audience, no matter how many times
they see him do it.  I, for one, will miss Dean Malenko.

KEN DREILING: I look at workrate as basically a seller's art.  These three
Angle Austin & Benoit all put on serious shows when on the defensive.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: I bet not a lot of wrestlers would put the sloppy RVD
up top in workrate, but who cares? His "unorthodox style," as JR says,
makes him a lot of fun to watch, so as a fan, I gotta go with him.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Minoru Tanaka edges out Low-Ki and Yuji Nagata by sheer
magnificence of execution. Low-Ki and Nagata had better matches than
Tanaka this year, but Tanaka was a laser of execution in the ring.

CHIP BOOTS: When you see Austin bumping his ass off, remember that the guy
has a broken neck.

MARKUS: Duh.

GREG NECASTRO: Lance Storm does whatever it takes to put on a great
performance.

SCOTT WORDEN: Angle was the best worker this year.  No doubt..  Benoit's
injury basically clinched that, but internet whores have to vote for their
Messiah I bet..  I voted for him, but for the number 3.. I gave #2 to
Austin..  Very nice year for Austin in the ring.

CANZ: Hijo del Santo never has a bad match and always gives 100%.  He has
more great matches than anyone and with a variety of opponents. In trios
matches he's the best because he gets the match moving much faster and is
so smooth with every single motion. Blue Panther and Silver King both had
stellar years as well and are equally as nigh-flawless in the ring.

SHOCKER 2K: Exactly how many bad matches has Angle had? Like, none? :)

DONNY L: Austin bumped like a mad man and did everything to make other
look great, after such an injury that he was out with,an amazing comeback,
Benoit&Angle 2&3.

PETER HAZLETT: Kurt is always out there giving it his all.  As for RVD,
please be careful, you have a great future ahead of you

JOHN C.: This was a very tough category to pick just three. Four guys
really stood out this year for me. The guy that I left out was Triple H
because he missed the most time among those four. Benoit missed time with
a neck injury as well but he's so consistently awesome that he deserves
the nod again. Angle is great as well although I think his work suffered
as a babyface. He's a much better worker when he's a heel. Austin really
stepped up his performances after WrestleMania so he's my third choice.

SCOTT CHRIST: I went with Austin because I like to define "workrate" as
consistently putting on good matches, which he did more than anyone else
this year, perhaps. Runner-up goes to Kurt Angle, third place to Triple H.
If there was ever an honorable mention, it goes to Chris Benoit in this
category, who could probably outperform all these guys but just didn't
this year.

JOE GENTILE: Rob Van Damn used every bit of effort he had to make it in
the WWF, and should be commended for doing so.  The fact that Austin is
even capable of doing what he does in the ring is miraculous, never mind
that he does it night after night. Say what you want about HHH's "pull" he
busts his ass in the ring.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Chris Benoit still the best worker in wrestling, even
if he was out the last third of the year. He is, after all, Chris Benoit.
Kurt Angle seems to have taken over in Benoit's absence as "Ric Flair
2001", carrying many a broomstick to a fine match indeed, on a
more-or-less weekly basis. Anyone who can get a good match out of the
likes of Kane and Rhyno can win this award any day. (And he probably will,
but not from, as he's still not Benoit). Third could go to any number of
people, but Steve Austin gets it just to screw around with people's heads.
Honourable mentions go to Tajiri, Jericho and RVD.

CHRIS LENING: Austin, Benoit, and Nagata all share a common link, the
ability to take their matches alone, completely disregarding what they say
in interviews or promos, and be able to see their character, a sort of
charisma in move choices and technique. I get excited to see them wrestle,
to see what story they tell. That's all I need.

MATTY TONKIN: Nobody takes more chances & puts their safety at risk on a
weekly basis than Jeff Hardy. He deserves all the credit in the world for
the performance he gives every show. Tajiri at three has a limited number
of moves, but all are unique & they always get a reaction from the crowd.

YNAE316:  All had consistently great matches (big money ones too!!!)
throughout the year.  Therefore, they are the best workers

SHANE SPEAR: Anytime you want to prove that Angle isn't the real deal
he'll show you up every time.  Look at King of the Ring.  Look at his epic
(Yes, EPIC) trilogy of matchups with Chris Benoit.  Speaking of the
crippler, you have to give credit for his beat feud since the Booker T
series in WCW.  When it came down to deciding between one and two, it
actually went to the best of the three.  Angle took Wrestlemania, Benoit
took Backlash, and Angle took Judgment Day.  Angle's my number one, and
Benoit is a very even number two.  Steve Austin is number three after
having what could be the best wrestling year of his career with stellar
matches with Angle, Benoit, Chris Jericho, The Rock, and Rob Van Dam.

RYAN FAULCONER: Yuji Nagata is the best worker of 2001. I could watch him
wrestle a broom trained at the Powerplant and be entertained.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: The rule on being a great worker is making your
opponent look better...  done.

SHAWN MULLIN: Steve Austin is the best worker because he had the most
great matches.  He had good matches with everyone, and he always turned it
up when it mattered.  Kurt Angle guaranteed a great match every show he
was on... whether he was against Chris Benoit or Shane McMahon.  Chris
Benoit makes it all look so easy, and he always delievers.  Too bad he was
injured half the voting period.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Jobber

Award Description:

To be given to the Professional Loser that does an incredible job of putting
his name opponent over. Maybe the bumps that this person takes are just that
much more spectacular than other PLs. After seeing a match with this person,
you feel sorry about the punishment he/she took and realize how good it made
his/her name opponent look.  In 2000, this category was removed.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Barry Horowitz
  1991: Rip Rogers
  1992: Barry Horowitz
  1993: Barry Horowitz
  1994: Barry Horowitz
  1995: Barry Horowitz
  1996: Barry Horowitz
  1997: Spike Dudley
  1998: Lenny Lane
  1999: Bad Barry Horowitz

----------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Jobber to the Stars

To be given to the "Superstar" who has no problem defeating "real" jobbers,
but for some reason can't score the victory when facing comparable opposition.
This award should recognise performers who manage to look good both in
victory AND defeat, as well as helping their opponents look good while
jobbing, and may or may not represent a wrestler deserving of a push (that is
better reflected in the "Most Underrated" category).  In 2000, this category
was removed.

  1998: Chris Benoit
  1999: Al Snow

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Flyer

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who did the most and the best high-flying
maneuvers throughout the year. In 1994, this award was split into two:
North American and Non-North American.  In 1998, it was recombined.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Jushin Liger
  1992: Jushin Liger
  1993: 1-2-3 Kid (Lightning Kid)
  1994: (NA)     1-2-3 Kid
  1994: (non-NA) Jushin Liger
  1995: (NA)     Sabu
  1995: (non-NA) Jushin Liger
  1996: (NA)     Rey Mysterio, Jr.
  1996: (non-NA) Jushin Liger
  1997: (NA)     Rey Mysterio, Jr.
  1997: (non-NA) Taka Michinoku
  1998: (Billy) Kidman
  1999: Jeff Hardy
  2000: Jeff Hardy

**2001**: Rob van Dam

299 first place votes
298 second place votes
287 third place votes

113 71 29  836   Rob van Dam
 71 85 30  670   Jeff Hardy
 13 17 24  164   Billy Kidman
  7  9 13   88   Rey Mysterio Jr.
  4 14 13   88   Hurricane
  3  7 26   88   Shane McMahon
  6  5 14   73   Tajiri
  5  6 14   71   Essa Rios
  6  8  8   70   Cash (Kid Kash)
  5  3 10   54   Jason Jett
  5  2  8   47   Red
  7  1  3   44   Dragon Kid
  3  6  5   43   CIMA
  3  5  6   42   Naomichi Marufuji
  6  1  4   41   Jushin Liger
  3  1  9   36   Chris Jericho
  2  4  7   36   Chris Benoit
  2  5  5   35   Low Ki
  1  6  4   31   Yang
  1  4  5   27   Elix Skipper
  4  0  2   24   Super Dragon
  2  2  3   22   Ricky Marvin
  2  1  3   19   Silver King
  2  1  3   19   Kaz Hayashi
  2  2  1   18   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  1  3  2   18   Taka Michinoku
  3  0  1   17   Hayabusa
  1  2  2   15   Matt Hardy
  2  0  2   14   Great Sasuke
  0  2  4   14   Jerry Lynn
  1  2  1   13   AJ Styles
  0  3  2   13   Kurt Angle
  1  1  2   12   Jungle Grrrl
  1  2  0   11   Jodie Fleisch
  0  3  1   11   Rising Son
  2  0  0   10   Momoe Nakanishi
  1  1  1   10   Magnum Tokyo
  1  1  0    8   Noki-A
  1  1  0    8   Masamichi Marufuji
  1  0  1    7   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  1  0  1    7   Devon Storm
  0  2  0    6   Kanyon
  0  0  3    6   Christian
  1  0  0    5   Virus
  1  0  0    5   SUWA
  1  0  0    5   Mascarita Sagrada 2000
  1  0  0    5   American Dragon
  0  1  1    5   Shocker
  0  1  1    5   Chavo Guerrero Jr.
  0  0  2    4   Spike Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Tomokazu Morita
  0  1  0    3   Ric Blade
  0  1  0    3   Octagoncito
  0  1  0    3   Naohiro Hoshikawa
  0  1  0    3   Mr. Niebla
  0  1  0    3   Jardi Franz
  0  1  0    3   Brian XL
  0  0  1    2   Super Crazy
  0  0  1    2   Shannon Moore
  0  0  1    2   Ruckus
  0  0  1    2   Onryo
  0  0  1    2   Naphtali
  0  0  1    2   Jamie Knoble
  0  0  1    2   Edge
  0  0  1    2   Eddie Guerrero
  0  0  1    2   Douglas C. Driver
  0  0  1    2   Chikayo Nagashima
  0  0  1    2   Chaparita ASARI

RYAN HALL: Jeff Hardy, Shane, Benoit. Hardy continues to take incredible
bumps consistently

EDDIE BURKETT: I like Billy Kidman, and its a shame that he's been stuck
in the muck of the Invasion angle at this point.  The Hurricane is both
fun and a good flyer, and he wasn't half bad as Sugar Shane Helms earlier
in the year.  Jeff Hardy continued risking life and limb this year, but
given that he's been in TLC-like matches for about two years now, I've
been desensitized to it.  I used to cringe every time he did a Swanton
Bomb, cuz I thought he'd hurt himself.  Now, I yawn, cuz its old.  I
cringed the first time he did it on the knees (I think against his brother
Matt), but he's even done that again, and its getting old

HIRO: Wrestlemania X-7 and SmackDown! TLC comes to mind when I voted for
this category.

NATE GURNETT: 5 Star, Senton, and Yang?  What?  Oh, yeah, I was a wcw
mark.  So shoot me.  Yang time still looks great.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Kid Kash is a human flying assault. Whether it is the
springboard sky twister press, the double springboard plancha, powerbomb
into a rana, or the springboard somersault senton, he always seems to have
something up his sleeve. Essa Rios has the best moonsault, ever. The
hangtime is just amazing.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: I really don't get worked up by high-fliers anymore but
Red was really impressive in every match I saw- taking more from Jackie
Chan than from Rey Misterio Jr. He's fun! Naomichi Marufuji was really
graceful and fabulous but not as much in the ring when you got past his
spots.

CHIP BOOTS: No one gets as high as Rob Van Dam.

MARKUS: These 3 are here due to the lack of anyone else doing anything
approaching outstanding lately.

SCOTT WORDEN: best flyer Kidman..  Love the shooting star, when he is
allowed to do it.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: I feel bad typing "Hurricane" for best flyer.  AS
Shane Helms in WCW he was one of the best flyers in the world.  As
Hurricane he jobs with no highspots.

CHRIS BIRD: Yun Yang makes Jeff Hardy look like a wimpy accountant.

CANZ: Mascarita Segrada is little more than a volleyball with legs yet
pulls off highspots out of his little ass that endanger his skull.
Octagoncito is smoother but lacks the insanity of his peer.

SHOCKER 2K: He's a flyer and so much more. RVD IS the whole f'n show.

DONNY L: RVD is the king of highspot, taking over Jeff Hardy who's second

JOHN C.: RVD, Jeff Hardy and Kid Kash. If Van Dam ever learns how to use
transitions in between his highspots he'll be a complete wrestler. Until
then, he'll be considered a flyer.

SCOTT CHRIST: I don't see most of what I presume to be the world's best
high-flyers, so I went with RVD.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Jeff Hardy is still insane. I'm consistently amazed he
has yet to end up in a wheelchair. He's probably made of rubber. RVD gets
second. He's amazingly graceful and athletic. Eddy Guerrero still has the
best Frog Splash though. (Well, Art Barr's was the best ever, but...) Essa
Rios gets third, more or less by default, and due to personal preference.

MATTY TONKIN: See above for Jeff Hardy. Rob Van Dam is awesome & is
spectacular to watch, but not so much "death defying", so he gets a close
second place.

YNAE316: All three, though out of the spotlight have awesome,
breath-taking spots, unlike the tired, over-exposed Jeff Hardy

JEREMY SORIA: Shane McMahon made my top three if only for the amazing
bumps that he took during his match at WrestleMania and at other instances
in the year. He doesn't have to be this good, so we're very glad that he
chooses to be this good.

SHANE SPEAR: Man, if the way of the flyer hasn't diminished with the fall
of WCW.  I had trouble even thinking of five flyers without looking at the
nominations list.  After much thought, the imcumbant Jeff Hardy really
didn't do anything to make him lose the top spot, and nobody really
stepped up to take it from him.  Kid Kash did enough stunts in a short
amount of time (and with better precision than Elix Skipper, whom I was
thinking of voting for.)  Three flying moves doesn't get you much, but for
RVD it can get you the number three spot, just above Elix and possibly
Spike Dudley.

BEE MONTEVERDE: I voted for Angle as a high flyer for those moonsaults of
his. Specifically the one off the cage.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Technical Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who has the most technical ability. The number
of holds and moves you see this person do and the crispness with which the
moves are executed makes his/her matches a pleasure to watch. In 1994,
this award was split into three: North American, Non-North American, and
overall. In 1998, it was recombined into one.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Bret Hart
  1992: Bret Hart
  1993: Bret Hart
  1994: (overall/NA) Bret Hart
  1994: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1995: (overall/NA) Dean Malenko
  1995: (non-NA)     Chris Benoit
  1996: (sweep)      Dean Malenko
  1997: (overall/NA) Dean Malenko
  1997: (non-NA)     Jushin Liger
  1998: Dean Malenko
  1999: Chris Benoit
  2000: Chris Benoit

**2001**: Chris Benoit

302 first place votes
296 second place votes
286 third place votes

149 92 14 1049   Chris Benoit
 97 85 39  818   Kurt Angle
  6 27 58  227   Lance Storm
  6 13 41  151   William Regal
  8  9 16   99   Dean Malenko
  2 13 17   83   Triple H
  2  6 17   62   Steve Austin
  3  5 14   58   Tajiri
  6  3  5   49   Minoru Tanaka
  4  5  4   43   Yuji Nagata
  4  4  1   34   Toshiaki Kawada
  0  4 10   32   Chris Jericho
  0  4  8   28   Jerry Lynn
  3  4  0   27   Blue Panther
  2  1  4   21   Doug Williams
  0  4  4   20   Rob van Dam
  1  2  4   19   Kanyon
  0  4  3   18   American Dragon
  2  0  0   10   Mariko Yoshida
  1  1  1   10   Keiji Muto
  0  2  2   10   Tazz
  1  1  0    8   Super Dragon
  1  0  1    7   Lexie Fyfe
  0  0  3    6   Kendo Ka Shin
  0  0  3    6   Eddie Guerrero
  1  0  0    5   X-Pac
  1  0  0    5   Mr. Gannosuke
  1  0  0    5   Mitsuya Nagai
  1  0  0    5   James Mason
  0  1  1    5   Osamu Nishimura
  0  1  1    5   Christian
  0  0  2    4   Jeff Jarrett
  0  1  0    3   Mike Enos
  0  1  0    3   Masahito Kakihara
  0  1  0    3   Jushin Liger
  0  1  0    3   Hiromi Yagi
  0  1  0    3   El Hijo del Santo
  0  0  1    2   Undertaker
  0  0  1    2   Tony Kozina
  0  0  1    2   Test
  0  0  1    2   Takehiro Murahama
  0  0  1    2   Takashi Iizuka
  0  0  1    2   Shinjiro Ohtani
  0  0  1    2   Matt Hardy
  0  0  1    2   Jungle Grrrl
  0  0  1    2   Ivory
  0  0  1    2   Hisakatsu Oya
  0  0  1    2   Carlos Amano
  0  0  1    2   Carl Malenko
  0  0  1    2   Caliente

RYAN HALL: Angle, Benoit, Austin. Angle is an Olympic gold medallist for
chris'sakes

EDDIE BURKETT: Benoit continued to impress until his injury.  Angle and
Austin still impress every time they go out there.  They may not be
technical each and every time they put on the tights, but they bust it out
sometimes, and its great when they do.

HIRO: If not for Chris Benoit's injury and the fact that Dean Malenko is
semi-retired, they would've wrapped this category.

VIKRAM BIRRING: The "Man of 1000 holds" is the best technical wrestler of
this generation. Too bad nobody noticed.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Doug Williams is all Snakepit and carney and Britastically
fabulous on the mat. He's my favorite new guy to make the tapes this year.
I'm glad he's working more in the States and that British tapes are
starting to become more accessible because he rules.

CHIP BOOTS: Kurt has really stepped up his technical game in Benoit's
absence.

MARKUS: Duh, part deux.

SCOTT WORDEN: Angle rules the mat..  Oh it's true, it's true..

CANZ: Blue Panther can still tie anyone in knots. There is no move this
man can't turn into some crazy lucha submission.

SHOCKER 2K: Benoit is a virtual lock for this spot.

DONNY L: Benoit & Angle has such great technique, Lance Storm finishes
third

JOHN C.: After their classic match on Smackdown in May, Steve Austin said
this about Chris Benoit: "He's the only person I would trust to give me
that many (ten) German suplexes in a match." This is coming from a man
with a surgically repaired neck. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if
the best wrestler of the year had that to say about Benoit then there's no
denying the Crippler is the best technical wrestler. Kurt Angle comes in
second with Lance Storm, the forgotten one, coming in third.

JOE GENTILE: I want to know how in the hell the internet smarks are going
to justify giving this award to Benoit when Angle not only was BETTER
technically, but wrestled a full year to Benoit's six months???

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Benoit, of course. He is truly a god of technical
wrestling. Just poetry in motion. Him referring to himself as the best
technical wrestler in the world today is *still* a shoot. Angle gets
second, and all of the above applies to him as well. Shame he decided to
appropriate Benoit's chained German Suplexes, though (more to the point,
shame the announcers never acknowledged it!). And if anyone doesn't get
why these guys are one and two, just go and watch their match from
Wrestlemania. Thank you, I knew you'd see things my way. William Regal
gets third.

YNAE316: It should be no surprise Chris and Lance rank high. I've always
been impressed with Jerry's work and think it's a crying shame how the WWF
just BURIED him after the initialthree week push.

SHANE SPEAR: Now that the actual number of pinfall is thrown out the
window, I can safely votes for the other side of my feud here with Chris
Benoit.  Again, it was just a margin of a decision as Kurt Angle could, by
all means, have shared the spot which is why he obviously takes second. I
used my third place spot on Deano, as I may never get to vote for him
again, and the fact that when he DID wrestle this year, it was a beatuiful
thing.

RYAN FAULCONER: Momoe has mad hops.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Brawler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who brawled his/her way through the year most
convincingly. This award would go to Frank "Bruiser Brody" Goodish if he
were still around. In 1994, this award was split into two: North American
and Non-North American.  In 1998, it was recombined.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Stan Hansen
  1992: Cactus Jack
  1993: Big Van Vader
  1994: (NA)     Cactus Jack
  1994: (non-NA) Stan Hansen
  1995: (NA)     Cactus Jack
  1995: (non-NA) Stan Hansen
  1996: (NA)     Mankind (Cactus Jack)
  1996: (non-NA) Terry Funk
  1997: (NA)     Mankind
  1997: (non-NA) Stan Hansen
  1998: Mankind (Cactus Jack / Mick Foley / Dude Love)
  1999: Mankind
  2000: Mick Foley (Cactus Jack / Mankind)

**2001**: Stone Cold Steve Austin

299 first place votes
299 second place votes
287 third place votes

154 47 12  935   Steve Austin
 26 52 30  346   Triple H
 14 34 41  254   Rhyno
 24 16 25  218   Bradshaw
 11 21 14  146   Undertaker
  8 22 20  146   Rock
  8 13 14  107   Raven
  3 10 12   69   William Regal
  4  6 12   62   Chris Benoit
  2  6 10   48   Kurt Angle
  0  6 13   44   Kane
  3  6  4   41   Scott Steiner
  1  6  8   39   Shane McMahon
  2  6  5   38   Masato Tanaka
  4  4  2   36   Faarooq
  1  4  6   29   Albert
  3  3  2   28   Tomoaki Honma
  2  3  4   27   Bubba Ray Dudley
  5  0  0   25   Kaoru Ito
  1  3  5   24   Steve Blackman
  3  1  2   22   Rob van Dam
  0  4  5   22   Tommy Dreamer
  3  0  0   15   Big Show
  1  2  2   15   Riot
  1  3  0   14   Kazunari Murakami
  1  1  3   14   Sandman
  0  0  6   12   Test
  1  0  3   11   Lioness Asuka
  2  0  0   10   Adam Pearce
  1  1  1   10   Satanico
  0  3  0    9   Abdullah Kobayashi
  1  1  0    8   Toshiaki Kawada
  1  1  0    8   Hardcore Holly
  1  1  0    8   Akira Hokuto
  0  2  1    8   Haku
  0  0  4    8   Tazz
  1  0  1    7   Kintaro Kanemura
  0  1  2    7   Ryuji Yamakawa
  0  2  0    6   Lady Victoria
  0  2  0    6   Aja Kong
  0  0  3    6   Tajiri
  0  0  3    6   Atsushi Onita
  1  0  0    5   Wifebeater
  1  0  0    5   Vader
  1  0  0    5   Thug
  1  0  0    5   NecroButcher
  1  0  0    5   Gedo
  1  0  0    5   Brooklyn Brawler
  0  1  1    5   Mima Shimoda
  0  1  1    5   Booker T
  0  0  2    4   Shadow WX
  0  0  2    4   D-Von Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Mammoth Sasaki
  0  0  1    2   SUWA
  0  0  1    2   Norman Smiley
  0  0  1    2   New Jack
  0  0  1    2   Mike Awesome
  0  0  1    2   Goldberg
  0  0  1    2   Danger

RYAN HALL: HHH, Austin, Regal. HHH can now brawl with the best of 'em.
Regal underrated.

EDDIE BURKETT: Steve Austin and Triple H had some good brawls together,
and even had some good brawls apart.  Raven had a brief, but enjoyable run
as Hardcore Champion.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Raven's innovative matches always fascinated me, but
obviously the WWF became tired of his act. Tommy Dreamer and New Jack are
simply out of control, but they are done.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: I was crushed when they ended the Fun Brothers/Island Boyz
feud early this year because of Kane's injury. I may be the only one. I
was SO up for a major league, months-long slow, plodding Samoan bladefest
of a feud that it defies description, AND it would've kept Poochietaker
away from the genuinely good workers (Haku aside. It's a shame his hair
wasn't nominated for "best worker"...)

DEAN RASMUSSEN: NecroButcher RULED in the IWA-MidSouth King Of The Deat
Match Tournament and in the other tapes from IWA-MS that he appeared on.
He's got a real zest for dying for your pleasure and also knows how to
make the whole thing work as a wrestling match. Abdullah Kobayashi Jr
rocked in the fire match and in most other things I saw in the stunted Big
Japan promotion. Lionness Aska will still kick your teeth in.

CHIP BOOTS: Austin has shown he can do any style, but he's at his best
brawling.

MARKUS: If you're gonna book brawls, these 3 do it the best.

SCOTT WORDEN: :( no more Mick Foley to vote for..  Well, rock you moved
up.. Austin and Triple H both move up to .

CHRIS BIRD: Anybody else think that over the past two or three years, this
award has gotten really superfluous? Practically the entire WWF brawls
now, and lots of them do it well, and lots of them do it in the main
event. The days when Mick Foley was head-and-heels above the rest are long
gone. That having been said: Austin, HHH, Rhyno.

CANZ: Satanico is the abusive grandfather you are glad you never had. The
man bleeds buckets and turns any brawl into a heated demonstration of pure
hate.

SHOCKER 2K: Brawling is what Steve Austin does best, and he is the best at
it as well.

DONNY L: No one brawls like Stone Cold, Triple H is a close second

PETER HAZLETT: What happens to the man-beast now that the alliance is gone
and he has no title?

ESTRAGAND: The Rock as best brawler. he doesn't wrestle, he throws 50
right hands a match.

JOHN C.: With no Mick Foley around, this award goes to Steve Austin. His
brawls are interesting because of the little things he does between
matches to keep us entertained. You never get bored during an Austin match
because he's always thinking of a new idea to keep your attention. The
Rock and HHH round out the top three mainly because they have done the
best job of adapting the WWF brawling style that was created by Foley &
Austin.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: This somehow seems a harder category to vote for
without Mick... Raven and Rhyno were both fine Hardcore champions, so they
get one and two. Austin gets third. (No vote for RVD -- he isn't really a
brawler, in spite of his eternal Hardcore title reign)

YNAE316: Triple H:  The Game Chris Benoit:  Not called the "Wolverine
Machine" by Tazz for nothing... Rhyno:  GORE, GORE, GORE!!!!

SHANE SPEAR: The Undertaker may have slowed down a step or three over the
last couple years, but he still always has to be considered for the top
spot in the brawling spot.  He usually doesn't need any weapons or
anything, it's just the fact that outside the ring he can pound the crap
out of anybody.  Steve Austin is the same way, only he usually had a chair
or something in his hands this year.  Plus, he was so brutal that he tried
to break Kurt Angle's neck on the outside with a piledriver.  Bradshaw
also defines the brawler personality with his bad-ass attitude and rough
clotheslines.  I wish I could've put a hardcore champ in here this year,
but strangly, none of them stood out as really being BRAWLERS.

RYAN FAULCONER: The two brawls I saw from Kaoru Ito this year are enough
to get her first. Kazunari Murakami is such a psychopath that he turns any
match into a wild orgy of violence which gets him second. Steve Austin
wishes he was Mima Shimoda becausee she gets third.

THE CUBS FAN: Remember Jerry Flynn and the Block? I didn't vote for him
but I wanted that mentioned. Thank you.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Favourite Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler you like the most, regardless of the reason.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Ric Flair
  1992: Ric Flair
  1993: Ric Flair
  1994: Ric Flair
  1995: Shawn Michaels
  1996: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1997: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1998: Mankind (Cactus Jack / Dude Love / Mick Foley)
  1999: Chris Jericho
  2000: Triple H

**2001**: Stone Cold Steve Austin

302 first place votes
299 second place votes
295 third place votes

 54 31 23  409   Steve Austin
 37 32 26  333   Chris Benoit
 33 25 21  282   Triple H
 25 27 24  254   Kurt Angle
 22 28 28  250   Rob van Dam
 28 19 19  235   Chris Jericho
 14 11  9  121   Tajiri
 12 12 12  120   Rock
  9  4 12   81   Christian
  7  6 14   81   Booker T
  6  8  6   66   Ric Flair
  3  4  8   43   Hurricane
  2  6  6   40   Edge
  2  2  8   32   Lance Storm
  2  2  5   26   Undertaker
  3  3  0   24   Jeff Hardy
  1  3  5   24   William Regal
  1  4  3   23   Raven
  2  1  3   19   Keiji Muto
  1  4  0   17   Momoe Nakanishi
  1  2  3   17   Eddie Guerrero
  1  3  1   16   Hayabusa
  1  3  1   16   Dean Malenko
  1  2  2   15   Rhyno
  1  2  2   15   La Parka
  2  1  0   13   Toshiaki Kawada
  2  1  0   13   Super Dragon
  0  2  3   12   Yuji Nagata
  0  2  3   12   Riot
  0  2  3   12   Billy Kidman
  1  2  0   11   Scott Steiner
  1  0  3   11   Big Show
  2  0  0   10   Lexie Fyfe
  1  1  1   10   SUWA
  1  0  2    9   Tommy Dreamer
  0  3  0    9   Kanyon
  1  1  0    8   Steve Blackman
  1  1  0    8   Michael Modest
  0  2  1    8   American Dragon
  1  0  1    7   Satoshi Kojima
  1  0  1    7   Magnum Tokyo
  1  0  1    7   Curt Hennig
  0  2  0    6   Test
  0  2  0    6   Shinjiro Otani
  0  2  0    6   Lady Victoria
  0  0  3    6   Chavo Guerrero Jr.
  1  0  0    5   Spanky
  1  0  0    5   Silver King
  1  0  0    5   Sandman
  1  0  0    5   Mike Enos
  1  0  0    5   Mighty Molly
  1  0  0    5   Kazunari Murakami
  1  0  0    5   Kaoru Ito
  1  0  0    5   Jerry Lynn
  1  0  0    5   Hardcore Holly
  1  0  0    5   Gedo
  1  0  0    5   El Samurai
  1  0  0    5   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  1  0  0    5   Bradshaw
  1  0  0    5   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  1  0  0    5   B-Boy
  1  0  0    5   Angle
  1  0  0    5   Albert
  1  0  0    5   Akira Hokuto
  0  1  1    5   X-Pac
  0  1  1    5   Taiyo Kea
  0  1  1    5   Minoru Tanaka
  0  1  1    5   Matt Hardy
  0  1  1    5   Great Sasuke
  0  1  1    5   Essa Rios
  0  1  1    5   Blue Panther
  0  0  2    4   Shane McMahon
  0  1  0    3   Yuu Yamagata
  0  1  0    3   Val Venis
  0  1  0    3   Vader
  0  1  0    3   TAKA Michinoku
  0  1  0    3   Survival Tobita
  0  1  0    3   Spike Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Shocker
  0  1  0    3   Shawn Michaels
  0  1  0    3   Shane Douglas
  0  1  0    3   Scott Hall
  0  1  0    3   Ricky Fuji
  0  1  0    3   Naohiro Hoshikawa
  0  1  0    3   Meiko Satomura
  0  1  0    3   Low Ki
  0  1  0    3   Kid Kash
  0  1  0    3   Kane
  0  1  0    3   Jade
  0  1  0    3   Haku
  0  1  0    3   El Hijo del Santo
  0  1  0    3   Doug Williams
  0  1  0    3   Devon Storm
  0  1  0    3   CIMA
  0  1  0    3   Buh-Buh Ray Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Black Warrior
  0  0  1    2   Tony Kozina
  0  0  1    2   Takehiro Murahama
  0  0  1    2   Summer
  0  0  1    2   Sting
  0  0  1    2   Selina Majors
  0  0  1    2   Sean O'Haire
  0  0  1    2   Ruckus
  0  0  1    2   Riptide
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke
  0  0  1    2   Mike Sanders
  0  0  1    2   Masato Tanaka
  0  0  1    2   Lioness Asuka
  0  0  1    2   Kidman
  0  0  1    2   Kenta Kobashi
  0  0  1    2   Kaz Hayashi
  0  0  1    2   Jungle Grrrl
  0  0  1    2   Jun Akiyama
  0  0  1    2   Jason Jett
  0  0  1    2   Goldberg
  0  0  1    2   Dick Togo
  0  0  1    2   D-Lo Brown
  0  0  1    2   Amanda Storm

REJECTED

  0  0  1        Duplicate votes

RYAN HALL: Austin, HHH, Christian.  How can anyone not laugh out loud at
Christian?

EDDIE BURKETT: Triple H is gone for six months, and I STILL think he's the
game.  Its because he's THAT DAMN GOOD!!!  Austin has been PHENOMENAL as a
heel this year, and its a shame he hasn't been doing the same ratings,
because his character is SO much better than his babyface.  Booker T has
transitioned well to the WWF, and I like it.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  These are the people I wait for every week.  Chris Jericho
is finally growing into his spot in the WWF as a real dickish heel.  Rob
Van Dam has that indefinable "something" that I haven't felt since
Goldberg's heyday.  William Regal is just an old-school kinda guy all
around.

JESSE HARALDSON: Christian always struck me as the funny guy of Edge and
Christian and that has been proven out since he maintains a personality
while Edge is reverting to his boring self.

NATE GURNETT: Christian is a GOD as a heel.  Okay, maybe not.  But he's
the guy who's match I want to see.  Booker's been a favorite for a long
while.  Hey, maybe the WWF can have him and Benoit feud over the
meaningless Euro title!  I miss wcw booking sometimes.  And why don't we
see more Chavo!

TEDB512: Benoit, Austin, and Sugar Shane made 2001 for me. Too bad we lost
two of them (sorta) halfway through...

VIKRAM BIRRING: Steve Austin. What? What? I said Steve Austin is my most
fauvorite wrestler.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: The only person the WWF needs more than Goldberg and Flair
is La Parka. He alone has the power to save wrestling! Bow to him, FOOLS!

KEN DREILING: Hey these are my three guys I like the most face it.
Christian's shoulder rolls are the bombshell.  Tajiri is my mark-out god.
And Devon fat pooping rocks.  Deal with it, it's the mark-out category.

CHIP BOOTS: Tajiri has done nothing but impress me since he showed up in
the WWF.

MARKUS: I'm you typical Benoit uberfan, heh. La Parka needs to be back on
my TV, dammit. HHH needs to come back.

SCOTT WORDEN: Kurt Angle is our god now that Foley has retired..

DVDVR.COM LATIN LOVER: Stand Back, there's a Hurricane a-coming thru!

SEAN FLYNN: I miss Benoit so much.  No matter how bad the WWF got at
points in late 2000 and into 2001, I would watch just to see him wrestle.
Tajiri was like that in the middle of the year, and as the voting year
drew to a close, that mantle was picked up by RVD.

CANZ: Dr Wagner Jr. is so awesome. From choking kittens to dragging
Lazymark Jr.'s ass to nigh-excellence to poking the Giant Silva in the
eyes to break a bearhug, he always makes this fan happy to watch lucha.

KEVIN WONG: What?  A vote for Riot?  Hey, I'm a mark for her, dammit.

ERIC ZIENGS: Y2J would have won, if his creative direction had been
better.

DONNY L: Austin had me laughing and into his character all year long,
still have a soft spot for Chris Jericho who comes in second, RVD is just
too cool for third.

SIMON GRIER: A patriotic vote for William Regal, who is totally overrated
in the ring but hilarious on the mic. Rock and Van Dam always make me
laugh and then put on a great match.

JOHN C.: I know this sounds redundant but Steve Austin wins again. Before
this year he was one of my five favourite wrestlers ever. After all the
awesome work he has done, he has become my favourite of all-time. He can
work, he can talk, he can act and he can make 20,000 people say a regular
word like "What?" and make it sound cool. Is there anything he can't do?
Second choice is Christian because he entertains me in a lot of ways. He
is the future of wrestling and clearly the best of the young guys in the
WWF. Booker T.  follows even though the WWF made him look like a pansy.
Still, he works his ass off and is a great company guy so it's hard not to
like him.

CHRIS GRIMM: Kurt Angle is a hilarious interview, made a truly
inspirational babyface, is probably the best damn wrestler in the sport
today and is from the greatest damn city in the world.  That's reason
enough for a number one.  Heel Austin was equally awesome in virtually
every respect, although he's probably here mostly for the time he sang "We
Are The Champions" to Vince McMahon, the time he circulated a petition to
cancel his King of the Ring main event, the time he needed Debra to go
into his lockerroom and get his stuff and the time he screamed "I'm in!"
when Vince McMahon was giving a pre-Invasion pep-talk.  Tajiri...  well,
you tell me how anyone could not be a fan of Tajiri's.

SCOTT CHRIST: BRADSHAWWWWWWW.

JOE GENTILE: Jericho has it all: Ability, talent, and great mic skills. I
love Tajiri, and I will miss his great material with Regal. Its real easy
to admire a guy like Van Damn who got so over so quickly when no one gave
him a chance.

PIEMAN: I am prolly the only one that's gonna vote for Steve Blackman
here, so here goes:  Hi, my name is pieman.  Steve Blackman is my most
favourite wrestler.  I guess I am the only one at this meeting.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I seem to be repeating my choices from last year a
lot... As it was last year, Jericho, Benoit and HHH get my votes. Y2J was
around longer than the other two, and his winning the WCW title was my
personal markout moment of the year, so he gets the nod over Benoit. They
may well switch back when Benoit returns though; it's that close. Triple H
was still awesome while he was around, and he easily gets third.
Honourable mentions go to Austin, RVD, Edge, Christian, Angle, the Hardyz,
Hurricane, Regal, Tajiri, and numerous others.

CHRIS LENING: Steve Austin never stopped being entertaining, until after
the voting deadline. He maybe had a handful of bad segments all year, and
a truckload of great ones. Shocker wears Pink Pants and does Buff
Bagwell-esque taunts, and yet in spite of this, he rules, so much so that
I found myself addicted to lucha libre after watching for a few weeks to
see his stuff. The fact that he was introduced at the Juicio Final PPV to
the "Ladies and Finer Ladies", and that it was announced there his goal
was to procreate with all the attractive women, makes him somehow even
more awesome. Kurt Angle is a Dangerous Dork who knows nothing else but
winning, and that is something I can appreciate. Honorable mention to
Satanico for being the World's Greatest Grandpa.

YNAE316: I'm a huge Y2J, RVD, Hurricane mark

JEREMY SORIA: I've always moaned that I can only choose three.  Instead of
that, I want to explain why I choose some wrestlers over others as my
favorites, considering that a lot of people would think my choices for
favorites would be non-traditional. The first thing that gets my attention
is how these wrestlers look, physically. Sprite is wrong - image IS
EVERYTHING. I want a man who actually looks impressive, a man that can
actually look like he can kick some serious ass. Muscles on a man get that
point across to me a lot more than the way they talk or the way they
wrestle. The other things that make my opinion of a wrestler go higher is
their other characteristics - their interviews, their wrestling style,
that invisible characteristic called "charisma" that some people have.
These things put together basically are the things that help make these
wrestlers icons in the sport. That's why I still have a lot of Austin
Pride, I still babble over Buff Bagwell, I went woofy over Bill Goldberg,
I barked over Rick Steiner, and I fawned and swooned over other wrestlers
who would make others retch. But come on, give some of them a chance.

SHANE SPEAR: I was glued to the television anytime Booker came out this
year.  First of all, he has one of the best entrances in either
federation.  Secondly, his transformation from super-face to heel has to
be one of the best of all time.  I didn't believe the man could be booed
mercilessly.  The Hurricane quickly became another favorite of mine with
his super catch-phrase and sidekick Molly.  Too bad the WWF didn't believe
in him.  Steve Austin is just below these two, and it would be a crime to
pass him up as he not only has the crowd eating out of his hand heel or
face, but turned it up to 11 in the way of wrestling this year.

ROB EVANS: Finally RVD gets to display his talents on a national stage and
the fans love him.

THE CUBS FAN: Spanky unjustly ended up under the shadow of American
Dragon. I love Dragon too, but Spanky is a great US Crusierweight (maybe
not as good as Dragon, or maybe Dragon just uses the prefered style), a
good talker (slightly better than Dragon) and great ring presence (better
than Dragon.) I'd probably pick Dragon if I was doing one of those one
night cruiserweight tournaments that seem in high fashion this year, but
if I wanted to someone long term, I'd go with Spanky. In unrelated
weirdness, Essa Rios is my hero and will continue to be for some time, I'm
sure. I do an ode to my third person elsewhere.

SHAWN MULLIN: I love Steve Austin!  There was a time where I was kind of
getting bored of him, but the re-invention of his character just made me
realize why I have a big ol' Steve Austin poster in my room.  The man is
amazing, he always gives it his all, and he is one of the best overall
performers of all time.  I cheer for Chris Jericho to suceed more than
anyone else in the company, and it's hard to explain why I (and many
others) get so wrapped up in the hope that he'll be elevated to the next
level.  RVD won my favour very quickly this year, to the point where I
would look forward to his match more than almost anything else on each
show.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Improved Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who most improved himself/herself in all
facets of the sport in the past year.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Lex Luger
  1991: Ron Simmons
  1992: Steve Austin
  1993: Marcus Alexander Bagwell
  1994: Diesel
  1995: Johnny B. Badd
  1996: Wildman Marc Mero (Johnny B. Badd)
  1997: Ken Shamrock
  1998: The Rock
  1999: Hardcore Holly
  2000: Triple H

**2001**: Rob van Dam

302 first place votes
293 second place votes
279 third place votes

 46 42 20  396   Rob van Dam
 40 36 29  366   Rhyno
 35 18 30  289   Kurt Angle
 37 20 12  269   Steve Austin
 18 15 31  197   Test
 17 23 20  194   Edge
 10 26 10  148   Christian
 12 15 19  143   Trish Stratus
 14  7  9  109   Booker T
 13 11  5  108   Keiji Muto
 10  7 18  107   Albert
  6  9 10   77   Hurricane
  5  4  8   53   Chris Jericho
  3  7  8   52   Rock
  6  3  4   47   Shane McMahon
  4  3  2   33   Chris Benoit
  2  6  2   32   Low Ki
  1  5  4   28   Mighty Molly
  2  2  4   24   X-Pac
  0  4  3   18   Tajiri
  0  4  2   16   Undertaker
  3  0  0   15   Excalibur
  2  1  1   15   Manabu Nakanishi
  0  4  0   12   Riot
  0  2  3   12   Jason Jett
  2  0  0   10   Gedo
  0  2  2   10   Scott Steiner
  1  0  2    9   Sean O'Haire
  0  3  0    9   Kanyon
  0  1  3    9   Takeshi Suguira
  1  1  0    8   Taiyo Kea
  1  0  1    7   Black Tiger (Silver King)
  1  0  1    7   Big Show
  1  0  1    7   Amber Holly
  0  2  0    6   Kane
  1  0  0    5   Yoshiko Tamura
  1  0  0    5   Triple H
  1  0  0    5   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  1  0  0    5   Takehiro Murahama
  1  0  0    5   Scott Hall
  1  0  0    5   Kidman
  1  0  0    5   Jacklyn Hyde
  1  0  0    5   Billy Gunn
  1  0  0    5   American Dragon
  0  1  1    5   Yoshihiro Takayama
  0  0  2    4   Steve Blackman
  0  0  2    4   Kumiko Maekawa
  0  1  0    3   Tomokazu Morita
  0  1  0    3   Sachie Abe
  0  1  0    3   Farah the Persian Princess
  0  1  0    3   FANG Suzuki
  0  1  0    3   Donovan Morgan
  0  1  0    3   Disco Fury
  0  1  0    3   Dean Malenko
  0  1  0    3   Chuck Palumbo
  0  0  1    2   Yoshito Sasaki
  0  0  1    2   Takeshi Rikio
  0  0  1    2   Stacy Keibler
  0  0  1    2   Michiko Ohmukai
  0  0  1    2   Matt Hardy
  0  0  1    2   Mark Henry
  0  0  1    2   Jeff Hardy
  0  0  1    2   Caliente
  0  0  1    2   AKIRA

REJECTED

  0  1  1        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Rhyno, Angle, Van Dam. Rhyno's match with Raven was a pleasure
to watch. Van Dam has weeded the crap out of his arsenal.

EDDIE BURKETT: Steve Austin went from being a decrepit old has been this
time last year to PHENOMENAL!!!!  X-Pac picked up his tired old act and
changed it and gave us some decent light heavyweight/cruiserweight title
matches for it.  Rob Van Dam stopped doing what I always considered his
fake and business exposing blatantly choreographed routine at the
beginning of every match where he and his opponent would trade blows and
kick and dodges and reversals only to stop and wait for applause at the
end of the sequence.  (I didn't mind the sequence as much as the stop and
wait for applause)  At any rate, he stopped doing that, and since then
I've liked him infinitely more for it.

HIRO: Kurt Angle continues to shine in only his second year of pro
wrestling. Rob van Dam has somehow adapted into the WWF style very well.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Yep, Trish Stratus.  She's visibly improved over the past
year -- she can actually take a passable bump now -- where I haven't
really seen any improvement from anyone else in the same period.

JESSE HARALDSON: Chris Jericho went from stupid promos a third grader
wrote to intense fueds and comments with a top draw like the Rock.  That
is a big step up.

KERROTSNOT:  Rhyno is the only newbie that came to the WWF and fit in
right away, PLUS he got better as time went on.

VIKRAM BIRRING: It is nice to see that Van Dam does not stall for, say,
90% of his matches anymore. Rhyno wrestles 300% better than in his ECW
days. Him breaking out the bearhug and airplane spin is just classic.

KEN DREILING: Rhyno built up an aresenal of moves that I haven't seen him
pull out before.  Rock just keeps growing as a wrestler every year.
Trish looks like she's trying her ass off in there, as opposed to not at
all before.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: I always knew I was a WWF mark, but this proves it.
Some people have been singing Booker T's praises for years, but I never
saw any value in him as a singles wrestler. Then he comes to the WWF and I
think he's one of the best things there inside of two months. It's too bad
he's kind of been buried, but he'll be back. Booker is a sure-thing future
WWF champion.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: I watched two RVD PVP matches this year, the ECW 1/7/01
against Jerry Lynn, and the WWF Invasion match against Jeff Hardy.  The
difference seems monumental as RVD seems a lot mnore focused.  Even though
he still has the same moveset really, he taunts less and does more
overall.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Keiji Muto spent the first four months of 2001 producing
POO. Then he had a string of matches that other wrestlers would build a
career on. Low-Ki went from high-grade spotmachine to BattlARTS level mat
wrestler.

CHIP BOOTS: Give Trish credit.  She didn't have to improve as much as she
has.

MARKUS: RVD's improved on putting together actual matches instead of just
spotariffic outings, good stuff. The other two are there because I
couldn't think of anyone else to put in this category.

SCOTT WORDEN: Austin is with a doubt the most improved.. He comes back
after that surgery is better than ever..  Absolutely awesome..  Next is
Rhyno.. That guy really has improved..  too bad he is out for now.. Angle
just improves every year..  honorable mention to Trish.. She is not great
or anything, but she keeps trying and improving.

TERRY McMAHON: I honestly think that if we look at November 2000 to
November 2001, the Undertaker has really been one of the most improved
wrestlers out there.  He's quick, he has some variety of moves, and he
sometimes even sells, whereas in 2000 he just punched a lot.

SEAN FLYNN: Okay, so RVD potatoed a few people over the year.  He put
together quite coherent exciting matches with Jericho, Jeff Hardy, and
others.  He showed that his charisma could work on a main event level in
the WWF, not just in a bingo hall.  Rhyno was coming into his own as a
monster heel, amazing for someone his size, until he got injured.  I think
2002 could be his year. Christian really shone as a heel this year, and
seemed to step things up in my eyes in his interviews.

MARK POLISHUK: I used to hate Rhyno's undeserved push in ECW, but he
really (Jim Ross cliche ahead) stepped up his game after coming to the
WWF.  Too bad about his injury.

CANZ: Silver King went from half-assing it in Monterrey Atomicos matches
back to where he was originally- somewhere near the top.

SHOCKER 2K: RVD used to be a stale, spot-missing, sloppy wrestler. This
year, he's turned it all around. He has shown up critics all over the
internet, and will continue to do so, so long as he stays on the ball.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. No one else really besides Test.  He has improved greatly
since that pointless team with Albert broke up.  Just wish he'd get an
actual finisher besides a...you know, kick to the face

KEVIN WONG: Count me as one of the many converts to the new RVD.  He's
still spotty, but he's improved a hell of a lot from his ECW days...  and
once again, I must reiterate that I'm a Riot mark.  She's got such an
upside to her that it's a damn shame that the WWF didn't pick her up.
And remember that she had about 3 months of training before decimating the
'opposition' in WOW...  Edge is Edge.  If they ever let him do something,
maybe he won't 'Billy Gunn' his King of the Ring year...

DONNY L: Trish Stratus(yes Trish) she has come such a long way this year,
from her start to carrying Steph to a great match at a PPV to her ankle
injury and coming back stronger then ever. Alot of male wrestlers should
use her as an example (cough Gunn, Bagwell cough). Rhyno 2nd hated him in
ECW love him now

PETER HAZLETT: Rock is more than just punches and rock bottom now, seems
to have some wrestling moves too.  Trish has gone from valet to champ and
it doesn't surprise

SIMON GRIER: RVD stepped up this year in a way none of the ECW bashers
expected he would to be by far the most successful of the invaders. Austin
was wrestling his best stuff since the neck injury. Stratus has gone from
non-wrestler to pretty bad but not abysmal wrestler.

JOHN C.: Rhyno stepped it up a notch ever since he entered the WWF. It's a
shame that he hurt his neck because he was really coming into his own. RVD
would have been my first choice but the fact that he potatoed a few people
doesn't help. In third I voted for Test because he started showing signs
of improvement after getting a push as a singles heel wrestler.

CHRIS GRIMM: Austin sucked upon his return and is probably the main reason
to watch the WWF right now.  Rhyno was rather boring in ECW (aside from
his lovely interviews), but came across as a serious monster in the WWF.
(I think they could've put the WWF title on him at anytime from about June
forward and while it would've been a shocker, it would have been
credible.)  Hurricane Helms seemed destined for Jakked and the indies, but
a gimmick that I think I'm the only person to like has probably saved his
career.  (Yes, I know he's "gone" since Survivor Series, but he'll be
back, and we're not supposed to know about Survivor Series for these
awards anyway.)

SCOTT CHRIST: RVD was never really that bad, but now he's very, very good.

JOE GENTILE: Steve Austin is the most improved wrestler in the game by
virtue of being immobile a year agot to becoming the best wrestler out
there today.  RVD takes second, Kurt Angle is third.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I never particularly liked Rob van Dam in ECW, where he
was a master of the spot-stall-spot-play to the crowd-spot-repeat ad
nauseum school of wrestling. Somehow though, jumping to the WWF seems to
have convinced him to drop all the annoying stuff in his arsenal while
keeping the good stuff and, more importantly, to *actually* *wrestle*
*real* *matches* rather than just spot-spot-spot-ing. Angle gets second.
He was already great last year, and he's just been going from strength to
strength this year. Tajiri gets third. Okay, his actual in-ring work is
exactly the same is it always was. However, his WWF gimmick is
(paradoxically) a vast improvement over his ECW one.

MATTY TONKIN: I couldnt go past Austin as most improved. I used to hate
Austin as a face. Boring, tired & so repeditive. After turning heel,
getting paranoid & especially with his interogations of the alliance, he
became the highlight of the show. At Royal Rumble I knew he would win & I
was praying for someone to eliminate him so I didnt have to put up with
another year of the same old thing, but after the heel turn I have greatly
anticipated his promos & matches.

YNAE316: I've seen TONS of improvement over the year from all three and
though they could stand more refinement, we're finally seeing Edge and
Test get a break.

SHANE SPEAR: You might say that it was difficult for Booker T to improve,
but his heel character gave him so much more personality, something I feel
was sorely lacking in the old WCW.  Plus he dumped that old catchphrase
too.  His in-ring works was just barely short of awesome this year, as he
had some great matches with The Rock, Scott Steiner, and Kurt Angle.  I
hate Rhyno, but i have to vote for him here, but you'd be a moron to
believe that he didn't improve over the black hole he was in the dying
days of ECW.  Although I picked him second here, I full expect RHyno to
pick up the win in this cataGOREy.  Albert lifting Kane over his head is
MORE than enough for me to give him the third spot.  His I-C title reign
may have been forgettable, but it wasn't laugh out loud bad, like Chyna's
reigns.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: I saw Austin wrestle Rikishi in October and no he wasn't
so great.

THE CUBS FAN: Much respect to Trish for not settling for what she already
had (WWF women's acceptable wrestling, talking, being very hot) and trying
to better herself. In the late portions of the voting the year, she took
strides forward in the ring ('robably better than Lita now) and talking
(so so so much better than her intro promo on RAW) even though Trish's
position in the company probably wouldn't have been affected either way. I
apperciate it.

MATT SPAULDING: Last year I said: "With a combination of good chemistry
and better opposition, The Rock took his game to surprising heights this
year, improving his offense, his interviews, and (really!) his selling."
Well, replace "The Rock" with "Rhyno" and that's why he's my first choice.
Angle became more versatile in this, his second year in the WWF.  And
while Albert didn't exactly deserve that IC title run, he's still much
better than he was a year ago.

SHAWN MULLIN: RVD learned how to control himself, now he just needs to
stop busting noses.  Austin was pretty awful in the ring his first couple
of matches back, and he'd been basically doing the exact same thing for 3
years... but he turned it all around.  He brought new elements to his
character, even before the heel turn, and became the best wrestler in the
company.  Booker T is unchanged as a wrestler, but was actually able to
developpe a very entertaining heel character.  I never ever enjoyed his
mic work in WCW, but I thought he was tremendously entertaining as WCW's
heel champion.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Overrated Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who really has little talent, but has a large
place in the spotlight nonetheless. This is a measure of how undeserved a
wrestler's push is.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Hulk Hogan
  1991: Hulk Hogan
  1992: Ultimate Warrior
  1993: Hulk Hogan
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Hulk Hogan
  1998: Hollywood Hogan
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Goldberg

**2001**: The Undertaker

296 first place votes
283 second place votes
277 third place votes

 43 23 28  340   Undertaker
 31 11 10  208   Rock
 16 19 12  161   Goldberg
 12 22 10  146   Billy Gunn
 15 15 10  140   Buff Bagwell
 11 15 17  134   Lita
 14 11 11  125   Shane McMahon
 15 10  3  111   Rob van Dam
  9  9 17  106   Test
  9 11 10   98   Kevin Nash
 10  9  9   95   Albert
  9 10  6   87   Jeff Hardy
  8  8 10   84   Big Show
  9  5  6   72   Chris Jericho
  5 10  7   69   Tazz
  8  4  6   64   Booker T
  4  8  7   58   Kane
  7  3  6   56   Steve Austin
  3  6 11   55   X-Pac
  4  8  3   50   Lance Storm
  5  6  2   47   Scott Steiner
  3  5  7   44   Diamond Dallas Page
  3  5  5   40   William Regal
  3  5  4   38   Triple H
  5  0  2   29   Chris Benoit
  5  0  1   27   Chyna
  1  4  4   25   Rhyno
  4  1  0   23   Kurt Angle
  3  2  1   23   Low Ki
  2  1  5   23   Sid Vicious
  1  4  2   21   Edge
  3  1  1   20   Raven
  3  1  1   20   Jeff Jarrett
  1  3  2   18   Chuck Palumbo
  2  1  2   17   Jun Akiyama
  2  2  0   16   Keiji Muto
  1  1  3   14   Tajiri
  0  2  4   14   Steve Corino
  1  2  1   13   Masahiro Chono
  1  0  3   11   Perry Saturn
  1  1  1   10   Shinya Hashimoto
  1  1  1   10   Eddie Guerrero
  1  1  1   10   Christian
  0  2  1    8   Scotty 2 Hotty
  0  2  1    8   Kanyon
  0  2  1    8   Billy Kidman
  0  0  4    8   Hardcore Holly
  1  0  1    7   Justin Credible
  0  1  2    7   Tommy Dreamer
  0  1  2    7   Matt Hardy
  1  0  0    5   Klondyke Kate
  0  1  1    5   Bull Buchanan
  0  0  2    4   Mike Awesome
  0  1  0    3   Toshiaki Kawada
  0  1  0    3   Terri Gold
  0  1  0    3   Steve Blackman
  0  1  0    3   Scott Hall
  0  1  0    3   Mitsuharu Misawa
  0  1  0    3   Kensuke Sasaki
  0  1  0    3   Kawada
  0  1  0    3   Ivory
  0  0  1    2   Tony DeVito
  0  0  1    2   Shawn Michaels
  0  0  1    2   Sean O'Haire
  0  0  1    2   Satoshi Kojima
  0  0  1    2   Nova
  0  0  1    2   Masato Tanaka
  0  0  1    2   KAORU
  0  0  1    2   Jushin Liger
  0  0  1    2   Hurricane
  0  0  1    2   Gedo

RYAN HALL: Rock, Goldberg, Undertaker. Rock is getting stale.  Goldberg
and Undertaker are just awful.

EDDIE BURKETT: Undertaker's age is starting to show, most noticeably in
his nearly botched Last Ride attempts.  Its ironic to think that he had to
stop doing the Tombstone because it was dangerous, and now does an even
MORE dangerous move.  Billy Gunn had an IC title run last December, during
which he nearly dropped Benoit on his head.  I think the WWF has stopped
pushing him, at least for now, but crowds STILL pop big for him for no
reason whatsoever.  IMHO, I don't see what's so special about Rob Van Dam.
He works his *unique style*, and that's all good, but other than his
pointing to self bit, I don't see any particular reason why he has gotten
so over since the Invasion started, other than his act of pinning most of
the top names.

PAUL ZOROVICH: I just don't get the whole Steve Austin thing.  Maybe it's
because I was watching WCW during his first rise to fame, but what I've
seen over the past year or so just doesn't warrant all the hype.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Every time Jim Ross talks of potential, it usually means
some "hoss"  with no workrate or charisma. (See Albert, Test, etc.)

CHIP BOOTS: I know Undertaker pops an arena, but so does the W-O-R-M.

MARKUS: I despise Undertake and Show, and Corino stopped being worthwhile
yet people still applaud his efforts. pffffft.

SCOTT WORDEN: Most overrated.  CHYNA!!!!!!  Grrr..  Cya Joanie.. Next
stop, late nite tv commercials with your cohost Rena Mero..  Taker is just
ugh..  I mean, sure Ross thinks he is a hoss and a stallion or whatever,
same with Kane, but please..  The guy looks older than both of my
grandfathers' ages combined..

DVDVR.COM LATIN LOVER: Need we remember how RVD risks death alot? such as
the Face in the Table spot from the 11/19 RAW? As for Jeff Hardy, I don't
like him, highspot working soon to be a cripple punk. He wishes he could
be Ricky Morton. As for Booker T, all he seems to do are kicks.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: This has gotta be the first year that Hogan didn't
even make the *nominations* list!  I'm going with Austin, Tazzzzz, and
Taker.

CANZ: Chris Benoit is a three-move yawn machine.  He's a mid-level brawler
at best now. I'm sick of people shoving his vertically-challenged
"no-nonsense-and-no-fun" style of wrestling down my throat as something
other than a good excuse to take a whizz.

SHOCKER 2K: Chris Benoit's a great wrestler. But he's not the God of
Wrestling that many internet fans make him out to be. In the right
situations, he can be gold. But why should an entire promotion change to
suit one man's style?

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. Ugh.  The Albert Push of 2001.  I never bought it for a
second, and almost everyone else didn't either.

DONNY L: Undertaker why is he still anywhere near the top, Goldberg should
never see a wrestling ring again, and Test gets chance after chance to
prove himself

PETER HAZLETT: Who needs Goldberg. Do the same kind of unbeatable thing
with Rhyno instead. As for Regal, I cringe whenever I have to watch him in
the ring.

SIMON GRIER: I don't know which groups of fans the most overrated
catrergory refers to, but Y2J is overrated by bookers, casuals fans, the
internet, marks, smarks, smarts, smarties and m & m's. He is a useless
goof who is boring on the mic and sloppy and error-prone in the squared
circle. It is not a Triple H conspiracy that he will always remain an
upper midcarder occasionally jobbing in main events - it is because that's
all he deserves.

BRIAN SCALA: Last year, I praised RVD & jeered Paul Heyman for letting him
walk. I was wrong. Heyman didn't screw up RVD; RVD screwed himself by
failing to adjust to the WWF's style of wrestling.

KEVIN DOTEN: Shawn Michaels - He was good in his day. How good would he be
now that the style has changed and he hasn't wrestled in how long?

JOHN C.: Even though Kevin Nash didn't wrestle a lot people still talk
about him as if he's some kind of savior. I'm still trying to figure out
why. Tazz has not had one good match in about two years in the WWF yet
some people still think he has talent. The guy's an orange midget with a
big mouth and little talent. Goldberg comes in third because he's the
luckiest wrestler ever.

CHRIS GRIMM: "The WWF needs Goldberg!"  "The WWF needs Goldberg!"
"Goldberg'll pop the ratings!"  "People'll tune in to see Goldberg!!!"
Really? Kinda makes you wonder why they didn't when he was in WCW?  Enjoy
making Keystone Light commercials, you overrated sack of shit.

SCOTT CHRIST: I hate how the WWF constantly uses Shane McMahon. He's fine
now and then, but when he's wrestling frequently it takes away from the
holy shit factor of his big bumps and his crappy flying moves.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Note to the Underseller, erm, Taker: Retire. Please.
Now. For all our sakes. I never jumped on the anti-UT bandwagon last year,
but I'm firmly aboard now. He's just horrible in the ring, and he never
sells, and he never jobs, and now he's pretending to be a shoot-wrestling
genius too. Yuck. X-Pac, being X-Pac, still sucks. And that Foley bit
about him being MIA and nobody caring was damn well a shoot, too. Billy
Gunn should get third, but I hold such a burning personal dislike of the
Rock that I'll vote for him instead. (He's not actually a bad worker, mind
you. I just hate him.)

MATTY TONKIN: Booker T sucks & I dont know why the internet community
always regarded him as the best thing going in WCW. Edge has always been
the "next big thing" but he hasnt really progressed at all. I like him,
but he's still missing something, like he's 80% in all areas, but cant
lift himself any higher.

YNAE316: Jeff and Edge have been pointed to as the "Shawn Michaels" of
their respective duos, but I disagree. I think both Matt and Christian are
actually the BETTER of the two.  Matt and Christian both work better
matches than Jeff and Edge(particularly Matt, Jeff's more of a "spot"
person than actual ring technician) and both (especially Christian!!) are
a MILLION times better on the mic. Shane McMahon:  Does some great spots
and bumps, but NOT a wrestler...

JEREMY SORIA: DDP is a given. He's the Carrot Top of the wrestling world.
A total goofball and totally unfunny, yet still universally praised. I
don't know why. And Rob Van Dam - although he's the whole Dam show and
everything - still has his reputation of busting people open and missing
highspots.

SHANE SPEAR: I'm sorry, but I just don't see it in Lance Storm.  I
understand he's a good wrestler, but firstly he's still a step below
Angle, Benoit, and possible Austin in technical terms.  That would be fine
and all, but he has NO mic skills to speak of.  No, conditioning an
audience to boo your one sentence is NOT mic skills.  Next on my list is
Lita.  Lita is known for a few simple things.  Thong, Interfering in every
Hardy Boys match, a CRAPPY dragonrana or whatever, and a CRAPPY moonsault.
Yet, everyone hails her as the queen of woman's wrestling.  If she was in
WOW, nobody would've even cared of anything she's done.  The final
wrestler is Tajiri.  Kick, kick, kick!  Not since the Rockettes have I
seen so much kicking!  Actually, Tajiri isn't so bad.  He's just not the
japanese GOD that everybody on the internet thinks he is.

RYAN FAULCONER: Angle, HHH and The Rock sweep all three spots here. Being
the best worker in the WWF does not make you the best worker in the world
and because Angle is thought of as being the best of the three he gets
first. HHH and The Rock are basically the same wrestler with different
signature moves while Angle is hailed as the second coming when in reality
he is just very good.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Welcome to the WE HATE BUFF show.

MATT SPAULDING: This year I realized just why I don't think HHH is as good
as everyone says he is - he bores the hell out of me.

SHAWN MULLIN: Undertaker should sell and lose more.  Shane McMahon, as
much as I think he got too much flak, and as I much as I love him as a
face character, should get KILLED by real wrestlers.  He definately should
not be standing tall while Booker T jobs to the Rock instead of him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Wrestling Gimmick

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who had the best character gimmick in the past
year.

Previous Winners:

  1991: The Undertaker
  1992: The Undertaker
  1993: The Undertaker
  1994: Bob Backlund as the real WWF champ
  1995: Goldust
  1996: NWO
  1997: Mick Foley's multiple personalities
  1998: Lionheart Chris Jericho as a Paragon of Virtue
  1999: Hardcore Holly as The Big Shot and a Superheavyweight
  2000: Edge & Christian, for the benefit of those with flash photography

**2001**: His name is Steve Austin - WWF Champion - he does not deserve this

298 first place votes
290 second place votes
281 third place votes

100 34 20  642   Steve Austin as paranoid WWF Champion
 50 29 37  411   Hurricane as real-life superhero
 34 25 11  267   Steve Austin and Kurt Angle as Vince McMahon suckups
 13 35 23  216   Kurt Angle as "Dangerous Dork" / All-American Olympic Hero
 14 11 11  125   Christian & Edge
 10 14 11  114   Triple H as the Game
  9 12 17  114   Kaientai's dubbed promos
  5 21  8  104   Christian's inferiority complex
 10 13  7  103   Commissioner William Regal
  1 12 20   81   Shawn Stasiak as an inept fool
  3  9 13   68   Rob van Dam as That Dude
  4  6 11   60   Kanyon as Alliance MVP / Who better than Kanyon?
  3  5 12   54   Diamond Dallas Page as self-help guru, motivational speaker
  4  5  6   47   Booker T as The Book
  4  4  5   42   Chris Jericho calling Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley names
  3  4  6   39   Lance Storm, Proud Canadian
  1  5  4   28   APA
  2  2  4   24   Big Show being funny
  3  1  2   22   Commissioner Mick Foley
  1  3  4   22   Los Guapos, the World's Ugliest Prettyboys
  1  0  8   21   Perry Saturn as having taken too many blows to the head
  1  3  3   20   Los Nuevos Infernales
  2  1  2   17   BATT
  1  3  1   16   Tajiri
  1  3  1   16   Rhyno the Man Beast
  1  3  1   16   Hayabusa
  0  2  4   14   Mike Sanders as "Above Average"
  1  2  1   13   Sugar Shane Helms & Sugar Babies
  1  0  4   13   Right to Censor
  0  3  2   13   Alliance
  1  2  0   11   LAZZ
  1  1  1   10   Disciplinarian
  0  3  0    9   Rock
  0  1  3    9   Scott Steiner
  1  0  1    7   Lex Luger & Buff Bagwell as Totally Buff
  1  0  1    7   El Satanico
  1  0  1    7   Brazo de Plata
  0  1  2    7   Riot
  0  2  0    6   Paul Heyman as the "Jim Jones" of Sports Entertainment
  1  0  0    5   Team Canada
  1  0  0    5   Survival Tobita
  1  0  0    5   Simon Diamond
  1  0  0    5   Rico Costantino
  1  0  0    5   Las Cachorras Orientales
  1  0  0    5   John Zandig, professional wrestler
  1  0  0    5   ICE CREAM (AAA)
  1  0  0    5   Ebessan
  1  0  0    5   Danger
  1  0  0    5   Curry Man
  0  1  1    5   Undertaker
  0  1  1    5   Mr. McMahon, evil boss
  0  1  1    5   Kane
  0  0  2    4   Chris Benoit, the best wrestler in the world
  0  1  0    3   Tsubasa
  0  1  0    3   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley as a Slut
  0  1  0    3   Regal
  0  1  0    3   Nick Patrick
  0  1  0    3   Michael Modest's split personality
  0  1  0    3   GOEMON
  0  1  0    3   Billy Gunn & Big Show
  0  0  1    2   noki-A
  0  0  1    2   X-Pac as a punk-ass
  0  0  1    2   Thug
  0  0  1    2   Onryo
  0  0  1    2   Messiah
  0  0  1    2   Jeff Hardy
  0  0  1    2   Glacier as Object of Norman Smiley's Devotion
  0  0  1    2   Danny Rose as "Tough Enough"

EDDIE BURKETT: It was hard to think of what *gimmicks* I enjoyed this
year.  Who Bettah Than Kanyon was a brilliant way for Kanyon to draw
attention to himself, and also worked well since he was a good wrestler.
My vote for Christian isn't so much for his complex when he was with Edge,
but the arrogant attitude he's taken since turning on Edge.  The new
Christian, with the pyro and the theme music, has been very entertaining.
Also, the Hurricane is a great idea, and its a shame they are more or less
burying him in comedy matches with big men.

HIRO: INDEED!

TEDB512: Shane Helms would've been such a big star...

MPWG: Indeed!!

VIKRAM BIRRING: Steve Austin manages to be hilarious, yet evil. How he
keeps the crowd against him is beyond me.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: The promotion of the spinaroonie as the joke it is
instead of something to get legitimately excited about was a stroke of
genius and not, as some WCW marks would contend, an insult to Booker T.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: LAZZ RULES! When drag queens wrestle as faces in North
Carolina, there is hope for this nation.

CHIP BOOTS: I just love the Hurricane gimmick.  Hopefully they'll do
something with him.

GREG NECASTRO: Helms finally got a gimmick that makes me pay attention to
him.

SCOTT WORDEN: Best gimmick..  What'supwitdat?  Hurricane was.. so sue me
for liking it.  Wish the WWF realized it was getting over and decided to
push it instead of doing nothing with it other than jobbertime...  Kanyon
had a good gimmick going there, but well, we know how the WWF operates.

CHRIS BIRD: Although I didn't even vote it first place or second (Paranoid
Stone Cold and the Hurricane get those nods), I would like to remind
everybody how bizarrely funny the return of Glacier was. "Norman, relax.
You are clearly delerious with joy." "Aggggh! My leg!" "With joy, I said."

CANZ: I heard AAA had an ice cream man wrestler. Leave it to Pe±a to force
everyone to fold their cards in awe of his sheer dementia.

KEVIN WONG: Christian, Edge and Kurt Angle.  Team ECK RULED!!!  Man I
sound like such a fanboy...

GREG SAKAKI: How about Tazz always jobbing in under a minute? Is that his
gimmick?

DONNY L: Austin character is the best I've seen in television, Angle's
cool as well so is Regal snob is in third

PETER HAZLETT: RVD was made into a crowd favorite even when he was part of
the heel team.  As for Rhyno, he has just not taken to the next level,
like it should have been

KEVIN DOTEN: Finally, a personality for Booker T, throw in the
Spin-a-rooni and instant success -Hurricane- Wazzupwitdat got over, no
doubt about it

JOHN C.: Austin as a paranoid character brought us laughter, a killer
instinct and great matches all rolled into one. Christian's solo heel turn
was awesome in the early stages. It was so awesome that he gets my second
vote with the Hurricane's superhero work coming in third.

SCOTT CHRIST: AHHHHHHHH AM THE CHAMPION. MY FRIEEEEEND. AND AHHHHHHHH'LL
KEEP ON FIIIIIGHTIN. TILL THE END. I'VE GOT OLYMPIC GOOOOOLD.

JOE GENTILE: What?

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: As a lifelong comic book fan, I feel I have no choice
but to vote for the Hurricane here. Sure, the gimmick's just incredibly
stupid, but it's sooooo funny. Apparently Helms doesn't do the superhero
thing as well as Nova did but, erm, I don't care. So there. Number two is
William Regal (despite not getting nominated...), a great updated version
of, erm, Lord Steven Regal. Unlike the original though, Regal manages to
be really funny while still coming across (especially during his brief
babyface period) as being cool, as well as dangerous. Christian's solo
gimmick, that of the jealous, borderline psychotic younger brother with an
enormous inferiority complex (ie, Owen II) and really bizarre hats gets
third. Honourable mentions: Angle, RVD, Austin, Tajiri, et al.

CHRIS LENING: Austin ran his gimmick for an eternity, and only after the
eligibility period for the year had expired was it not logical. It all
made sense, even talking to his watch. Kurt Angle always seems willing to
do what it takes to further his character as well, and it was done quite
well. And then in Mexico, there were three guys who, in spite of
questionable looks, called themselves "Los Guapos", walked with the air of
some sort of Rock Idols, and came out to the Backstreet Boys. So goofily
enjoyable I loved it.

MATTY TONKIN: The Hurricane is the only new gimmick around, right ?? I
wouldnt consider 95% of personas as "gimmicks" nowdays anyway.

YNAE316: LOVED the Hurricane gimmick but I really do hope Helms get pushed
more seriously and does not become a permanent joke like the Red Rooster.
Loved the "Positively Page" gimmick to, especially the vig with Jennifer.

JEREMY SORIA: Perry Saturn just became adorable. The fact he dumped Terri
for Moppy made him all the more adorable.

SHANE SPEAR: The Hurricane is just plain fun.  I don't know which was my
favorite:  The attempted chokeslam on the Big Show, the wonder twin
reference with Lance Storm, Citizn Kane?  Shane Helms really made a
believer out of me with his gimmick despite the lack of wrestling to back
it up.  Kurt Angle deserves the second spot for being as patriotic as he
could be BEFORE the events of 9-11.  He was wearing the flag and
proclaiming America as the greatest before all that was cool once more.
Then when it swelled, Angle just looked that much cooler because he DID
stand for the red, while, and blue.  Paranoid Stone Cold was also
entertaining, and the peak of that had to be that look back in May or
something when he looked all spaced out while giving McMahon a hug.

BEE MONTEVERDE: If only Christian, Champion of Europe, caught on more.
It's so fun to say!

RYAN FAULCONER: Ebessan may not only be the best gimmick of 2001 but also
the best of all time!

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: By "Chris Benoit, the best wrestler in the world," I
mean the gimmick he started running with on RAW 20 November 2000 when he
wrestled Steve Austin, and continued through his feud with Angle, etc.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: Uh, these aren't gimmicks, they're just people.

SHAWN MULLIN: Steve Austin's paranoid champion was a beautifully evolved
character.  It started with a man who lost himself in anger during his
path of vengence, built to a man who lost faith in his ability to win
after his neck injury and his match with HHH, and ended up with a man
willing to ally with his most hated rival AND turn against the company
that made him a superstar.  It's the most fleshed out heel turn in a long
long time.  Too bad the company didn't actually display that in the first
stages of the turn.  Regal worked really well in the commish role.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Wrestling Move

Award Description:

To be given to the move that is just the damn best thing you've seen this
past year. This should probably be a "finishing" move or something really
spectacular.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Scott Steiner's Frankensteiner
  1991: Scott Steiner's Frankensteiner
  1992: Jushin Liger's moonsault off the second ropes to floor
  1993: Big Van Vader's moonsault
  1994: Vader's moonsault
  1995: Hakushi's Space Flying Tiger Drop
  1996: Wildman Marc Mero's Wild Thing shooting star press
  1997: Bret Hart's figure four leglock around the ringpost
  1998: Rock's People's Elbow elbowdrop
  1999: Jeff Hardy's senton bomb
  2000: Jeff Hardy's swantonbomb senton

**2001**: Rob van Dam's Five Star frog splash

295 first place votes
289 second place votes
284 third place votes

 21 25 21  222   Rob van Dam's Five Star frog splash
 33 11 11  220   Shane Helms' Vertebreaker
 18 19 19  185   Chris Benoit's multiple German suplexes
 22 11 14  171   Steve Austin's Stone Cold Stunner
 15 14 21  159   Tajiri's Tarantula
 15 13 11  136   Chris Benoit's Crippler crossface
 12 14 10  122   Triple H's Pedigree
 13  8 11  111   Kurt Angle's moonsault
  7 11 14   96   Rhyno's Gore spear
 11  6  8   89   Tajiri's kick
  7  9  4   70   Dudley Boyz' Dudley Death Drop flapjack/neckbreaker combo
  9  4  4   65   Christian's Unprettier
  7  6  1   55   Jeff Hardy's Swantonbomb senton
  4  7  7   55   Kurt Angle's anklelock
  4  7  6   53   Christian's One-Man Conchairto
  7  3  1   46   Dragon Kid's Dragonrana 450 into rana
  5  3  6   46   Rob van Dam's van Daminator kick
  6  2  3   42   Shane McMahon's van Terminator dropkick
  3  3  8   40   Billy Kidman's shooting star press
  2  7  3   37   Chris Benoit's diving headbutt
  4  2  4   34   Spanish Announce Team's Spanish Fly
  3  5  2   34   Keiji Muto's Shining Wizard
  5  0  4   33   Super Dragon's Psycho Driver
  4  3  1   31   Low Ki's Ki Krusher
  4  1  1   25   Billy Kidman's inverted sitout crucifix bomb from ropes
  1  4  4   25   Rock's Rock Bottom uranage
  1  4  4   25   Perry Saturn's Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Gredunza
                 swinging fishermanbuster
  1  2  7   25   Undertaker's Last Ride powerbomb
  2  2  4   24   Test's big boot kick
  1  5  2   24   Kurt Angle's Angle Slam
  3  2  1   23   Shane McMahon's Leap of Faith elbowdrop
  2  3  1   21   Tajiri's handspring elbow
  2  2  1   18   Essa Rios' over the turnbuckle somersault plancha
  2  0  4   18   Mighty Molly's Molly-Go-Round
  1  4  0   17   Jun Akiyama's Exploder
  1  2  3   17   Lita's huracanrana
  0  4  2   16   Red's Red Star Press
  0  2  5   16   Rob van Dam's Rolling Thunder senton
  2  1  1   15   Black Warrior's tope
  1  2  2   15   Shane McMahon's shooting star press
  1  3  0   14   Edge's Edgecution DDT
  2  1  0   13   Chris Jericho's Lionsault quebrada
  0  3  2   13   Yuji Nagata's Nagata Lock II
  1  1  2   12   Bradshaw's Clothesline from Hell
  1  1  2   12   Albert's Baldobomb powerbomb
  0  2  3   12   Jeff Hardy's Whisper in the Wind corkscrew splash
  1  2  0   11   Mitsuharu Misawa's Tiger Driver
  2  0  0   10   Hayabusa's Phoenix splash
  2  0  0   10   American Dragon's bridged chickenwing submission
  1  1  1   10   CIMA's Iconoclasm crossed arm reverse crucifix powerbomb
  1  1  1   10   Big Show & Spike Dudley's Rocket Launcher out of the ring
  1  1  0    8   Big Show's chokeslam
  1  0  1    7   Sting's Stinger splash
  1  0  1    7   Essa Rios' moonsault
  0  1  2    7   Undertaker's Tombstone piledriver
  0  1  2    7   Akira Hokuto's Northern Lights Bomb
  0  2  0    6   Steve Austin's Million Dollar Dream cobra clutch
  0  2  0    6   Red's Asai Skytwister Press
  0  2  0    6   Kaoru Ito's toprope double footstomp
  0  0  3    6   Rock's People's Elbow elbowdrop
  0  0  3    6   Chris Jericho's Walls of Jericho
  1  0  0    5   Toshiaki Kawada's Enzuigiri
  1  0  0    5   Scott Steiner's Northern Lights Suplex
  1  0  0    5   Scott Hall's Outsider Edge crucifix bomb
  1  0  0    5   Scoot Andrews' Forces of Nature
  1  0  0    5   Sachie Abe's dive off the top of a 20 foot cage
  1  0  0    5   Rob van Dam's van Terminator dropkick
  1  0  0    5   Ric Flair's knife-edge chop
  1  0  0    5   Momoe Nakanishi's Moonsault Dragon Suplex
  1  0  0    5   Momoe Nakanishi's Momolatch
  1  0  0    5   Mitsuya Nagai's Hyper Knee
  1  0  0    5   Low Ki's Dragon Clutch
  1  0  0    5   Kurt Angle's overhead suplex
  1  0  0    5   Faarooq's Dominator
  1  0  0    5   Curry Man's Spicy Drop
  1  0  0    5   Chris Jericho's Breakdown forward Russian leg sweep
  1  0  0    5   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter's Barnburner 450 splash
  1  0  0    5   Akira Taue's Ruby Frosion
  0  1  1    5   Tajiri's Octopus abdominal stretch
  0  1  1    5   Riot's Twister top rope corkscrew elbowdrop
  0  1  1    5   Jeff Hardy's super ladder bodyslam
  0  1  1    5   Hurricane's Eye of the Hurricane
  0  1  1    5   Goldberg's jackhammer
  0  0  2    4   Rob van Dam's flying heel kick to the outside
  0  0  2    4   Keiji Muto's moonsault
  0  1  0    3   William Regal's Union Jack neckbreaker
  0  1  0    3   Twist of Fate
  0  1  0    3   Tomoko Watanabe's Hell Smasher
  0  1  0    3   The Bloody's top rope dragon suplex
  0  1  0    3   Takeshi Morishima's inverted Nodowa Otoshi
  0  1  0    3   Stacy Keibler's standing foot choke
  0  1  0    3   Scott Steiner's suplex
  0  1  0    3   Ruckus' space flying tiger drop
  0  1  0    3   Riot's powerbomb
  0  1  0    3   Reno's Roll of the Dice
  0  1  0    3   Mr. Gannosuke's Gannosuke Clutch
  0  1  0    3   Molly Holly's Molly-Go-Round
  0  1  0    3   Kurt Angle's multiple German suplexes
  0  1  0    3   Kanyon's Kanyon Cutter
  0  1  0    3   Farah The Persian Princess' Persian Carpet STF
  0  1  0    3   Faarooq's spinebuster
  0  1  0    3   Chris Jericho's double powerbomb
  0  1  0    3   Brock Lesnar's shooting star press
  0  1  0    3   Booker T's Harlem sidekick
  0  1  0    3   Black Warrior's nudo
  0  1  0    3   Al Snow's Snowplow
  0  1  0    3   Air Raid's Air Raid Crush
  0  0  1    2   Ultimo Guerrero's reverse superplex
  0  0  1    2   Steve Austin's gut first suplex on announcer's table
  0  0  1    2   Rock's Sharpshooter
  0  0  1    2   Rob van Dam's step-over headkick
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke's Fire Thunder
  0  0  1    2   Mitsuharu Misawa's Emerold Flowsion
  0  0  1    2   Mima Shimoda's Death Lake Driver top rope tiger suplex
  0  0  1    2   Manami Toyota's Ocean Cyclone Suplex
  0  0  1    2   Justin Powers' rolling Northern Lights suplexes
  0  0  1    2   Jason Jett's Crash Landing
  0  0  1    2   Jacqueline's Clothesline from Hell
  0  0  1    2   Haku's Tongan Death Grip
  0  0  1    2   Great Sasuke's corkscrew moonsault onto the apron
  0  0  1    2   Edge & Christian's Conchairto
  0  0  1    2   Dick Togo's sentonbomb
  0  0  1    2   Billy Gunn's One and Only cobra clutch slam

REJECTED

  1  3  0        shooting star press (no performer named)
  1  0  0        "anything by..." votes
  0  1  0        Booker T's Spinarooni (not a "move")
  0  1  0        "Tie" votes

EDDIE BURKETT: Every time I saw Helms do the Vertebraker, I expected him
to kill someone with it, and I'm both glad and saddened by the fact that
he can't do it anymore.  Christian's one man conchairto was both vicious
in execution, and in the subtle point it makes that he doesn't need Edge
for anything.  Tajiri's tarantula was amazing the first few times I saw it
years ago in ECW.  When I did see it, I thought, well now, this guy will
never be in the WWF because they would never let him do that move.  The
fact that he still does it in WWF rings this year is why it gets my vote.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Tajiri's kicks rule the earth. The Tarantula is great, and
the handspring elbow is nice as well. They compliment each other because
they have not been seen in this country at all, or since the Great Muta in
the late 1980's.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Super Dragon's Psycho Driver is the frickin' craziest move
I've ever seen. And I've seen every Kobashi Burning Hammer, every Otsuka
Released Dragon, and every Dangerous Backdrop. This one wins in the "It's
All Fun Till Someone Can't Feel Their Legs" category. Spanish Announce
Team's Spanish Fly is a great Preposterously Elaborate finisher.

CHIP BOOTS: Kurt's moonsault would be even more impressive if he hit with
it once in a while.

SCOTT WORDEN: The best Wrestling move is a Tajiri kick.. Love it every
time I see it and can not get enough of it..

CHRIS BIRD: VERT-UH-BRAY-KUH! Just because we haven't seen it since March
doesn't make it any less awesome. The Gore and the Big Boot were also both
good, but they're no VERT-UH-BRAY-KUH. After all, neither the Gore nor the
Big Boot have their own theme song and dancing girls.

SEAN FLYNN: Nothing makes me pop like the Crossface does.  I find myself
yelling at the tv, demanding the recipient tap out and become Benoit's
bitch.  The RVD Frog Splash just looks so gorgeous with the amount of
height he gets on it. And damn it, I miss the Tongan Death Grip, and the
funny dance that preceded it, so this shall be my protest at its absence.

MARK POLISHUK: The Five-Star was the best move of the year, but it wasn't
until the nomination process was over did I realize that another
superlative maneuver (Stacy Keibler's Nash-esque leg choke in the corner
turnbuckle) was not even nominated.  Even though he invented it, Kevin
Nash's version is far inferior to Stacy's...for obvious reasons.

NATRBOY72: Benoit's Crippler Crossface is the best finisher. I detest RVD,
but the 5* frog splash is outstanding, Van Dam also selling it adds to the
move, so it gets second. Austin's gut first table suplexes on Benoit
(probably his idea) and Angle give the match a very old school "these guys
hate each others guts" feel, and gets third.

CANZ: Black Warrior's topes(especially the best ones) are the most equally
brutal and graceful thing in wrestling today.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. How Sugar Shane executed that move w/o paralyzing someone
is amazing.  Kudos to both Helms and the wrestlers who took that move.
It was the most awesome looking move I've seen in awhile, so of course he
never does it in the WWF.  2.  My jaw dropped the first time I saw the
Molly-Go-Round.  Very impressive.  3.  Nightmare on Helms Street/Eye of
the Hurricane is another new and crisp looking move from
Shane/Gregory/Hollywood/Hurricane Helms.  Helms will be a star in two
years if handled right.  Keep up the good work Shane.

KEVIN WONG: Year of the powerbomb variations!!  Helm's Vertebreaker was
probably one of the cooler moves that I got to see on a regular basis.
Riot's powerbomb was the best of the "standard" powerbomb variations I've
seen, sinply because she actually WENT DOWN with the move instead of doing
it Poochiebomb style.  And I guess I'd rate Kidman's reverse powerbomb
thingie higher, but he only did it once...

DONNY L: The lionsault everyone hates it I think it looks great, 5 star
splash second and Angle's moonsault connecting with mat is third.

ESTRAGAND: The Ric Flair "whooo" chop HAS to be the best move. Appreciated
so much, that it's used in EVERY match by every wrestler.

PAUL PROSE: I've always thought the DDT to be a great finishing move, it's
good to see Edge using it as a finisher.

MICHAEL STAKELY: Tajiri's kicks have the trademarks of a great move. Basic
but looks like it hurts like hell.

JOHN C.: The Stunner is still the best finishing move in wrestling even
after all these years. I mark out for Christian's One Man Conchairto
because I remember how great it was when he did it to Edge on Labor Day to
begin his run as a solo heel. Benoit's crossface is the best submission
finisher because of the facial expressions you see on the opponent's face.
It's a great visual especially when Benoit starts to pull back on it.

SCOTT CHRIST: BRADSHAWWWWWW.

JOE GENTILE: The REAL shame of Angle's moonsault is that it actually looks
BETTER when he misses than when it hits!  The Tarantula just looks
painful, and I gave the Molly-Go-ROund third because I marked out the
first time I saw it.

PIEMAN: No matter how many times I see it, I am always impressed with
Kidman's Shooting Star Press.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I've voted for the Swanton Bomb each of the last two
years, so who am I to break up a good streak for no good reason? It's
still an awesome move, even if the Twist of Fate is far more believable,
and is also probably my favourite Ace Crusher variation (it's in my top
five for favourite moves too). Christian's Unprettier, incredibly stupid
name aside, has been one of my favourite moves ever since I first saw him
do it in a house show several years ago, before it had a (WWF) name.
Tajiri's Tarantula rounds out the threesome, beating out the Octopus by a
nose. They're both great moves, but the Tarantula's just that li'l bit
better.

YNAE316:  Shane Helms' Vertebreaker:  Simply AMAZING and devastating to
see.  Hope it comes back...  Rob van Dam's Rolling Thunder senton:
COOLEST looking move Albert's Baldobomb powerbomb:  Looks like it hurts...

SHANE SPEAR: The five-star frog splash is unique because it's the only
finisher I can think of that actually hurts the offense as much as the
defense.  The way that RVD sells his own move makes it very unique, and in
my opinion the best of this year.  Test's big boot would put anybody out
in real life, I believe.  The force on the move is awesome, and to my
memory it's the only move outside of the Stunner to put down both the
Undertaker and Kane.  The stunner dropped a spot or two after the way
Angle and Rock easily kicked out of the move this year in matches.  Plus,
many wrestlers have figured out how to use the stunner against Austin.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Million Dollar Dream... purely for historical markout
purposes, as a symbol of Austin's return to greatness.

THE CUBS FAN: Black Warrior's bullet Tope not only kills his opponent, but
any fan who didn't move out of their seat fast enough. So you gotta like
that.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Match

Award Description:

To be given to the best wrestling match you've seen this year, either
live, on TV, PPV, or in an arena, or on tape. If it took place in the past
year, it is eligible. In 1994, this award was split into three: North
American, Non-North American, and overall.  In 1997, due to lack of
participation on both the NA and non-NA sides, it was recombined.

Previous Winners:

  1990: 04/22/90: Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart vs. Marty Janetty & Shawn
                  Michaels (SNME)
  1991: 03/21/91: Steiners vs. Kensuke Sasaki & Hiroshi Hase (Tokyo, aired
                  on taped PPV)
  1992: 01/18/92: Royal Rumble (Royal Rumble)
  1993: 10/24/93: Cactus Jack vs. Big Van Vader (Halloween Havoc)
  1994: (overall/NA) 03/20/94: Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon (WrestleMania)
  1994: (non-NA)     04/16/94: Chris Benoit vs. Great Sasuke (Super J Cup)
  1995: (overall/NA) 08/27/95: Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon (SummerSlam)
  1995: (non-NA)     11/20/94: Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota (AJW V*TOP Tourney)
  1996: (overall/NA) 03/31/96: Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania)
  1996: (non-NA)     03/17/96: Jushin Liger vs. Shinjiro Otani
  1997: 10/05/97: Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (Hell in the Cell cage)
  1998: 06/28/98: Undertaker vs. Mankind (Hell in the Cell cage)
  1999: 10/17/99: Brood (Matt & Jeff Hardy) vs. Edge & Christian (ladder)
  2000: 08/27/00: Edge & Christian vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Dudley Boyz (tag TLC)

**2001**: 05/21/01: Steve Austin & Triple H (tag) v. Chris Benoit & Chris
                    Jericho (RAW)

288 first place votes
285 second place votes
278 third place votes

 48 34 28  398   05/21/01 Steve Austin & Triple H (tag) v. Chris Benoit & Chris
                          Jericho (RAW)
 53 29 14  380   02/25/01 Triple H v. Steve Austin (2/3 falls)
 32 22 16  258   04/01/01 Rock (WWF) v. Steve Austin
 12 24 12  156   01/21/01 Chris Benoit (IC) v. Chris Jericho (ladder)
 14 17 11  143   05/31/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Chris Benoit (SmackDown!)
 10 19 18  143   10/21/01 Rock (WCW) v. Chris Jericho
  8 18 16  126   06/24/01 Kurt Angle v. Shane McMahon (street fight)
 13  8  8  105   04/01/01 Dudley Boyz (tag) v. Edge & Christian v. Hardy Boyz
                          (TLC)
  8 10 12   94   06/11/01 Chris Benoit v. Kurt Angle (RAW cage)
  7 11 12   92   05/24/01 Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho (tag) v. Hardy Boyz v.
                          v. Dudley Boyz v. Edge & Christian (SmackDown! TLC)
  7  7 10   76   08/19/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Kurt Angle
  7  2  9   59   03/26/01 Sting v. Ric Flair (Nitro)
  4  5 12   59   05/28/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Chris Benoit (RAW)
  3  5  8   46   04/01/01 Chris Benoit v. Kurt Angle
  4  5  4   43   01/08/01 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Steve Austin (RAW)
  3  5  4   38   04/29/01 Chris Benoit v. Kurt Angle (ultimate submission)
  4  4  2   36   06/08/01 Genichiro Tenryu v. Keiji Muto
  4  3  2   33   05/20/01 Chris Benoit v. Kurt Angle (2/3 falls)
  1  6  4   31   08/19/01 Jeff Hardy (HC) v. Rob van Dam (ladder)
  4  2  2   30   04/29/01 Akira Hokuto v. Meiko Satomura
  2  2  5   26   07/21/01 Low Ki v. American Dragon
  1  4  4   25   07/22/01 Jeff Hardy (HC) v. Rob van Dam
  2  4  1   24   12/14/00 Takashi Iizuka & Yuji Nagata v. Toshiaki Kawada &
                          Masa Fuchi
  2  2  2   20   09/23/01 Rob van Dam (HC) v. Chris Jericho
  1  3  3   20   04/28/01 Minoru Tanaka v. Takehiro Murahama (NJPW TV)
  3  0  2   19   04/01/01 Twenty Man Gimmick Battle Royal
  3  0  0   15   11/29/00 Kumiko Maekawa & Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita v. Kaoru
                          Kaoru Ito & Nanae Takahashi & Momoe Nakanishi (cage)
  2  0  2   14   08/12/01 Yuji Nagata v. Keiji Muto (G1 Climax Final)
  2  0  2   14   04/14/01 Toshiaki Kawada v. Keiji Muto
  2  1  0   13   02/28/01 Manami Toyota & Kumiko Maekawa & Mima Shimoda &
                          Etsuko Mita v. Kaoru Ito & Tomoko Watanabe & Nanae
                          Takahashi & Momoe Nakanishi (elimination)
  2  1  0   13   01/21/01 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Triple H
  2  0  1   12   07/14/01 Rising Son v. Super Dragon (2/3 falls)
  1  1  2   12   12/10/00 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Rock v. Triple H v. Rikishi v.
                          Undertaker v. Steve Austin (Hell in the Cell)
  0  1  4   11   06/24/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Chris Benoit v. Chris Jericho
  0  1  4   11   04/29/01 Rhyno (HC) v. Raven
  2  0  0   10   05/22/01 Tetsuhiro Kuroda v. Hayabusa
  2  0  0   10   04/21/01 Riptide v. Lexie Fyfe v. Brandi Alexander (PGWA)
  1  1  1   10   10/21/01 Christian (IC) v. Edge (ladder)
  0  2  2   10   12/03/00 Mikey Whipwreck & Yoshihiro Tajiri v. Super Crazy &
                          Kid Kash
  0  2  2   10   09/04/01 Steve Austin v. Rob van Dam (SmackDown!)
  1  0  2    9   01/07/01 Full Blooded Italians v. Kid Kash & Super Crazy v.
                          Mikey Whipwreck & Yoshihiro Tajiri
  0  1  3    9   05/04/01 Kaoru Ito v. Yumiko Hotta (street fight)
  1  1  0    8   10/08/01 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Steve Austin (RAW)
  1  1  0    8   04/01/01 Undertaker v. Triple H
  1  1  0    8   01/07/01 Rob van Dam v. Jerry Lynn
  0  2  1    8   04/01/01 Vince McMahon v. Shane McMahon (street fight)
  1  0  1    7   01/14/01 Scott Steiner (WCW) v. Sid Vicious v. Jeff Jarrett
                          v. Road Warrior Animal
  0  1  2    7   02/18/01 Shane Helms v. Kaz Hayashi v. Shannon Moore v.
                          Jaime Knoble v. Yang v. Evan Karagias (elimination)
  0  1  2    7   01/21/01 Thirty-man Royal Rumble
  0  2  0    6   03/01/01 Naohiro Hoshikawa v. Naomichi Marufuji
  1  0  0    5   ??/??/?? Low Ki v. Xavier (ladder)
  1  0  0    5   12/??/00 Kenta Kobashi v. Jun Akiyama
  1  0  0    5   12/15/00 Thug v. Selina Majors (FCA)
  1  0  0    5   10/15/01 Rock (WCW) v. Rob van Dam
  1  0  0    5   05/20/01 Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho v. Christian & Edge v.
                          X-Factor v. Hardy Boyz v. APA v. Dudley Boyz
                          (elimination)
  1  0  0    5   03/??/01 Blue Panther & Fuerza Guerrera & Singo v. Safari &
                          Niebla & Olimpico
  1  0  0    5   03/26/01 Primetime & Kid Romeo (Cruiser tag) v. Kidman &
                          Rey Mysterio Jr.
  0  1  1    5   03/30/01 Satanico & Shocker & Black Warrior v. Ultimo
                          Guerrero & Rey Bucanero & Tarzan Boy (Juicio Final)
  0  1  1    5   03/21/01 Jason Jett v. Cash (Thunder)
  0  1  1    5   02/25/01 Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley v. Trish Stratus
  0  0  2    4   11/01/01 Kurt Angle (US) v. Kane (SmackDown!)
  0  0  2    4   04/20/01 Takehiro Murahama v. Minoru Tanaka
  0  0  2    4   01/24/01 Cruiserweight Contender Countdown (Thunder)
  0  0  2    4   01/14/01 Jung Dragons v. Jaime Knoble & Evan Karagias
  0  1  0    3   ??/??/?? Blue Panther v. Felino
  0  1  0    3   11/27/00 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Steve Austin (RAW)
  0  1  0    3   10/21/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Rob van Dam v. Kurt Angle
  0  1  0    3   09/16/01 Kaoru Ito (WWWA) v. Momoe Nakanishi
  0  1  0    3   08/11/01 Hayabusa v. Kintaro Kanemura
  0  1  0    3   07/27/01 Michael Modest v. Yoshinari Ogawa
  0  1  0    3   07/18/01 Red v. Joey Matthews v. Scoot Andrews v. Qenaan
                          Creed v. Mike Quackenbush v. Mikey Whipwreck
                          (Cup Final)
  0  1  0    3   03/21/01 Filthy Animals & Shane Helms v. Elix Skipper &
                          Kid Romeo & Chavo Guerrero Jr. (Thunder)
  0  1  0    3   02/25/01 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Rock
  0  1  0    3   02/04/01 Riot v. Wendi Wheels (hardcore)
  0  1  0    3   01/23/01 Christopher Daniels v. Michael Modest (Nitro)
  0  0  1    2   ??/??/?? Matt Briscoe v. Jay Briscoe
  0  0  1    2   10/21/01 Torrie Wilson v. Stacy Keibler (lingerie)
  0  0  1    2   10/04/01 Rob van Dam v. Kurt Angle (SmackDown!)
  0  0  1    2   09/23/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Kurt Angle
  0  0  1    2   09/13/01 Rock v. Shawn Stasiak (SmackDown!)
  0  0  1    2   08/07/01 Blue Panther & Shocker & Black Warrior v. Niebla &
                          Hijo del Santo & Casas
  0  0  1    2   07/22/01 Trish Stratus & Lita v. Stacy Keibler & Torrie
                          Wilson (bra and panties tag)
  0  0  1    2   04/15/01 Tetsuhiro Kuroda & Mr. Gannosuke & Mammoth Sasaki
                          v. Great Sasuke & GOEMON & Onryo
  0  0  1    2   03/26/01 Scott Steiner (WCW) v. Booker T (US) (Nitro)
  0  0  1    2   03/15/01 Steve Austin v. Kurt Angle (no DQ SmackDown!)
  0  0  1    2   03/01/01 Steve Austin v. Kurt Angle (SmackDown!)
  0  0  1    2   02/04/01 Boom Boom & Caliente v. Asian Invasion

REJECTED

  0  0  2        "Tie" votes
  0  0  1        11/18/01 Steve Austin & Kurt Angle & Booker T & Rob van Dam
                 & Shane McMahon v. Rock & Chris Jericho & Kane & Undertaker
                 & Big Show (elimination) (out of timeframe)

RYAN HALL: Rock-Austin X-7, HHH-Austin 2/3, Rumble match.  Wasn't the
rumble match well booked?

EDDIE BURKETT: I think mostly due to an excess of screwy finishes, (and
also a lackluster product which did not inspire me to get most PPV's this
year), I had a hard time arriving at the matches to vote for, with the
exception of Rock/Austin.  That match was SO amazing, both because it was
the two biggest babyfaces of the time meeting, with no idea of the
outcome, and there were so many little spots in the match that references
old feuds.  For example, Rock breaks out the sharpshooter he started doing
around Judgment Day 2000 for his iron man match, and Austin is able to
reverse, because he was doing the sharpshooter back during his feud with
Bret Hart.  Its finale was the only weak spot, and I still remember fondly
back on that match.  After that, none of the matches seem to compare with
the best matches from 2000.  I picked Shane vs. Kurt, due to the brutality
of the match (although I feel bad voting for a McMahon), and I picked Rock
vs. Jericho, because that was another intense good match, ruined only by
the involvement of Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.

PAUL ZOROVICH: Kurt Angle vs. Steve Austin on Raw ruled it, baby!
Old-school psychology, actual wrestling moves, and a screwjob ending that
(surprise) really worked!

NATE GURNETT: I had to vote for it.  It wasn't the best match, by far, but
Flair/Sting is what got me hooked on wrestling in the first place.  Hey,
I'm man enough to admit I cried.  The power trip-chrises match was
fantastic, easily could have main evented a ppv.  Having the Canadians go
over (more or less) clean was great.  And HHH deserves a ton of accolades
for finishing.  TLC was full of holyshit moments.  Great match.  I can't
believe Jeff's not dead.

VIKRAM BIRRING: The WrestleMania main event is the first match that had me
on my feet since TAKA almost took the title from Triple H on RAW long ago.
Heart stopping near falls, long term psychology; it had everything a great
match needs.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: I'm legitimately surprised that the "Russo's Revenge" big
however many man match with Steiner, Booker, Sting, Kronik, Russo,
Goldberg, etc. in the Triple Cage didn't make the cut. I found it to be an
entertaining mess, even with the predictably crap ending. I really hope
Vince got that cage in the WCW buyout. Cool stuff.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Really, my only choice is the only match all year that
had me on the edge of my seat and marking out big time, the fateful
Jericho/Benoit vs. Austin/HHH tag championship match that put HHH out for
the rest of the year. That one got me excited about wrestling again after
months of unbearable main events and an energy level approaching zero. Too
bad the WWF dropped the ball, HBK style.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: All I gotta say is 10 German Suplexes.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: 04/29/01 Akira Hokuto v. Meiko Satomura was SOO full of
hate and beating and greatness that it wins in a walk in my book. Akira
Hokuto goes out on a great note and Meiko Satomura has another notch in
her belt as she hangs with one of the all time greats once again. 12/14/00
Takashi Iizuka & Yuji Nagata v. Toshiaki Kawada & Masa Fuchi was really
superb. The story was deep as Lake Superior- with Fuchi having to suddenly
transform himself from All Japan comedy wrestler to All Japan Defender Of
the Faith and doing so with a zeal that was beautiful to behold. Iizuka
and Nagata are such a great tagteam and they brought all their hellish
fury to Kawada who got fired up at the challenge and brought it all back
to them. Just a great match. 7/21/01 Low-Ki v. American Dragon was a
better match than their Super 8 finale and it built upon the ideas of the
first masterfully.

CHIP BOOTS: Angle/Austin from Raw is one of the best TV matches I've ever
seen.

SCOTT WORDEN: Best match was The Rock and Jericho at No Mercy..  We will
ignore that pointless run in by Stephanie and pretend it went fully
clean.. Totally awesome match..  2nd match is Austin vs Rock at WM18..
Those two have good chemistry and can put on a show.. only bad thing was
the screw ending..  What can ya do?  3rd would be the Benoit/Jericho vs
Triple H/Austin tag from Raw.. Great match. and great to get one for
free..

JASON MEAD: Once again, the best matches were at the beginning of the
year, like last year. Really good ones in January and February, and then
the Benoit and Jericho May TV matches were good, too. Also, Benoit/Angle
matches ruled.

CHRIS BIRD: Despite that it put HHH on the shelf for eight months, the tag
match between HHH and Steve Austin versus Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit
was simply perfect in every other regard. A clean finish, a hot crowd,
unbelievably good pacing, tons of nearfalls and finishers. Just sublime,
and a great moment rarely reached by wrestling.

SEAN FLYNN: Benoit and Austin, in Canada, with a crowd ready to explode,
was the match of the year, and showed the way things could have gone had
Benoit stayed healthy, Vince not killed the Jericho/Benoit push, and the
Invasion not been on tap.  Intense, realistic, hard hitting wresting with
a simple and easy to get behind storyline.  The Stephanie v. Trish match
gets in here not because it was truly one of the top three, but because it
exceeded expectations more than any other match this year.  I enjoyed it
more than any other match on that card (even more than the Austin/HHH
match which was overrated and frustrating to watch)  They put on a very
emotionally exciting match, which almost did the impossible and made Steph
a face.  Benoit/Angle is the same thing as the Benoit/Austin for
justification, just an amazing match.

CANZ: A stubborn crowd was all that kept the Ola Azul vs Blue
Panther/Signo/Fuerza from status of a classic. I think this was a weak
year for great matches though

SHOCKER 2K: This match was one of the best matches I have ever seen. Just
the simple fact that all four men worked their asses off to win a match
that decided nothing but the tag team titles was simply amazing. Their
performances were all amazing. Worst thing about the match was Triple H's
injury. No other complaints.

KEVIN WONG: Honorable Mention to Steph and Trish Stratus for having a good
match where one did not seem possible, and Riot vs. Wendi Wheels since
Riot debuted one of the few original moves (well, in North America,
anyway) this year (The Riot Twister).  Have I mentioned that I'm a Riot
mark?  OK, just checking...

DONNY L: Tough one, I went with RVD-Jericho match, I thought it was the
best match of the year. Interesting the next two game in free TV, the tag
match for the title Jericho/Benoit vs. H/Austin and the Austin vs. Benoit
in Smackdown from Edmonton.

SIMON GRIER: Rock and Austin told a great story and was easily my match of
the year.  TLC3 was an exciting spotfes that helped get the Y2J-Benoit
team over, and Austin v HHH was an excellent brawl.

ESTRAGAND: Stacy vs. Torrie as a "best match"? Sure, it kept my attention
the entire match. Something the Rock/ Austin/ McMahon/ Angle matches never
seem to do.

PAUL PROSE: Everyone has one match that stands out in their mind, I will
never forget the final match between Flair and Sting.  To see the two men
who stuck with WCW through it all fight in a memorable match on the final
Nitro made me forget all the crap WCW did in the three years prior to that
match.  A perfect end to an excellent federation.

MICHAEL STAKELY: Flair and Sting... sentimental reasons more than anything
else.

JOHN C.: Choosing the best match of the year wasn't so hard for me. I knew
that the Triple H vs. Steve Austin match at No Way Out was the match of
the year right after Triple H got the three count. It was the best
wrestler of this year against the best of the year before and they put on
a classic filled with technical wrestling, brawling and a hell of a lot of
blood. In second I went with Austin vs. Benoit from Smackdown in Edmonton
where Benoit gave Austin ten German suplexes before Austin won with a
rollup thanks to the tights. Great work, amazing heat and an even better
finish. In third I went with the Austin/HHH vs. Benoit/Jericho tag match
from Raw back in May because it had four awesome workers, great heat and
the finish we all wanted to see. It's tough to leave out Jericho/Rock from
No Mercy, Angle/Benoit from 'Mania, Austin/Rock from 'Mania, or the TLC
matches but I only had three votes.

JOE GENTILE: We may have to change this award to the TLC memorial award. I
gave the Benoit/Jericho Tag title win second for the markout moment, and
the Shane/Angle brawl took third for its sheer brutality.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: As always, we're spolit for choice here. The
contenders, in more or less chronological order: Austin/Angle (all of
them), Austin/Benoit (ditto), Jericho/Benoit (Royal Rumble), HHH/Austin
(No Way Out), TLC2&3, Angle/Benoit (all of them), Austin/Rock (WMX7),
Angle/Shane (KotR), RVD/Jeff (SS), RVD/Jericho (Unforgiven), Jericho/Rock
(No Mercy). I've probably missed some, too... Any of these would be
deserving winners, but my votes go as follows: 1) HHH v. Austin from No
Way Out, one of the best matches of not only this year, but of all time.
2) Benoit v. Jericho, IC ladder, from the Royal Rumble, the best singles
ladder matches since SummerSlam 95. 3) Rock vs. Jericho, WCW title, from
No Mercy, cause my favourite wrestler beat one of my least favourite for a
World's title. Yeah, I'm biased. Get used to it.

CHRIS LENING: Steve Austin vs. Chris Benoit will always be special to me,
as it was the first time I ever realized there was depth within the
matches, that every move meant something within the context of the match.
It was to wrestling what The Iceman Cometh was to Literature for me: the
first great match where it all made sense on an entirely new and different
level. I watched it six times within two weeks just to make sure what I
was seeing was there. The other two matches on this list I would neither
have seen nor understood without Benoit vs. Austin.

MATTY TONKIN: TLC 2 was great. My favorite match of the year, with the Tag
Title Match (Austin & Triple H vs Jericho & Benoit) a close second. That
tag match had me cheering for the new champs & really had me on the edge
of my seat. Easily the best free television match I saw for the year
(considering I missed the TLC x4 tag-team match, damn it !!)

YNAE316: 10/21/01 Rock (WCW) v. Chris Jericho:  Would've been better if
Rock had tapped... 05/31/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Chris Benoit
(SmackDown!):  Two great matches between Benoit and Austin 02/18/01 Shane
Helms v. Kaz Hayashi v. Shannon Moore v. Jaime Knoble v. Yang v. Evan
Karagias (elimination): LOVE that cruiser action

JEREMY SORIA: I attended the Raw from Richmond where Angle and Benoit had
their cage match... I think that was the best match I've ever seen live in
a long time - and the best match televised over basic analog cable in
years.

SHANE SPEAR: The only thing that could've made the Austin/Benoit match
better would have been if I hadn't have read the spoilers beforehand.
That only ruined the ending of the match though, because everything else
was golden.  10 GERMAN SUPLEXES !  Damn!  Finally seeing the underdogs win
made the tag title match on RAW one of the best of the year.  HHH deserves
everything in the world for continuing this match for all the kids.
Closing out the catagory, this year's TLC match really didn't live up to
the standards of the previous two, but was still good enought to be a
match of the year.

RAGEROCKRR: Despite a absolutely horrible ending, this was probably Steve
Austin's best work all year.  Benoit's no slouch, but Austin worked his
butt off to make Benoit look like a million bucks.

RYAN FAULCONER: I gave all three votes to joshi matches. I wanted to put
the Ito/Hotta street fight higher thand thirdbut as a stand alone match it
was clearly beat by the awesome AJW 4 on 4 elimination match and Hokuto vs
Satomura. The street fight definitely had the effort of the year though if
that is any consolation. Honorable mention goes to trios title match from
the March EMLL PPV.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: See, now this was tough.  AmDrag v. Low-Ki at ECWA in
July won because it was just an incredible match, whereas Austin/Rock was
too, and in front of a bigger crowd, but they were also in the WWF... if I
could, it'd be a first-place tie between those matches.  Honorable
mentions to AmDrag v.  Low-Ki at the ECWA Super 8, Austin v. Benoit on Raw
20 November 2000, Shane McMahon v. Kurt Angle at King of the Ring 2001,
and Austin v. Benoit from the Smackdown on 31 May 2001.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: This is by far the hardest category, with about eight
candidates.  San Jose tag might be a perfect match.  McMahon interference
in Rock/Austin and Rock/Jericho, how gross.  Austin/Angle at SummerSlam is
a winner if it had a finish -- instead of a groan finish they'd tried to
put heat on Austin, but it didn't work.

MATT SPAULDING: Benoit and Jericho's win over Austin and HHH was not only
a great markout moment, but an amazing match that may have been as good a
match as we'll ever see on free TV, yet it was almost topped by Benoit and
Austin a week and a half later.  Benoit/Jericho at the Rumble edges
Rock/Jericho at No Mercy because of the ending.

SHAWN MULLIN: How do you pick a match of the year in a year filled with
amazing matches!?  Well, Austin/HHH was 40+ minutes of incredibly intense
action without any interference.  I think, looking at everything we've
seen this year, that it is the most impressive match of the year, and the
most flawless.  The only thing lacking in the match is a definate
determination of the better man, but in some ways it's interesting to end
a match in a way that would show them as so close talent-wise that one
would need luck to beat the other.  Benoit/Jericho vs. HHH/Austin was
absolutely the biggest markout match of the year, and it was materfully
built, but it wasn't quite as impressive an athletic display as the NWO
match.  Rock vs. Austin was just a masterpiece of awesomeness, and pretty
much the culimation of the wrestling boom in match form.  The throw backs
to the matches that built the current WWF empire were beautifully inserted
into the match psychology, and the false finishes were the closes and most
exausting of the year.  However, Vince McMahon blatantly interfered, and I
can't give it my vote for match of the year when Vince McMahon was
actually standing in the ring and taking part in the finish as if it was a
handicap match.  I know it made sense in a storyline context, but it takes
away from the match.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Feud

Award Description:

To be given to the feud that gave us the most heated and best wrestling
match(es) of the year. In 1994, this award was split into two: North
American and Non-North American.  In 1996, due to lack of participation on
the non-NA side, it was recombined.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Doom: Ron Simmons & Butch Reed vs. Horsemen: Arn Anderson & Barry
        Windham
  1991: Doom: Ron Simmons & Butch Reed vs. Steiners
  1992: Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage
  1993: Big Van Vader vs. Cactus Jack
  1994: (NA)     Cactus Jack & partner vs. Nasty Boys
  1994: (non-NA) All Japan Women vs. JWP (& other outside women)
  1995: (NA)     Dean Malenko vs. Eddy Guerrero
  1995: (non-NA) Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota
  1996: NWO vs. WCW
  1997: Bret Hart / Hart Foundation vs. Steve Austin
  1998: Mr. McMahon vs. Steve Austin
  1999: Mankind vs. Rock
  2000: Triple H vs. Mankind / Cactus Jack

**2001**: Rock vs. Chris Jericho

294 first place votes
287 second place votes
278 third place votes

 74 38 27  538   Rock v. Chris Jericho
 41 34 21  349   Steve Austin v. Triple H
 30 46 26  340   Steve Austin v. Kurt Angle
 31 24 18  263   Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho v. Steve Austin & Triple H
 19 33 24  242   Chris Benoit v. Kurt Angle
 23 18 21  211   Rock v. Steve Austin
 11  7  5   86   Kurt Angle v. Triple H
  8  4 16   84   WWF v. Alliance
  4  7 17   75   Edge v. Christian
  5  8 12   73   Chris Benoit v. Chris Jericho
  3  8 16   71   Chris Jericho v. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  2 11  7   57   Jim Ross v. Paul Heyman
  6  3  3   45   New Infernales v. Satanico's Infernales
  1  8  8   45   Rob van Dam v. Steve Austin
  4  2  7   40   Rock v. Booker T
  2  3  7   33   Booker T v. Scott Steiner
  3  2  1   23   NJPW v. AJPW
  1  4  2   21   Jung Dragons v. 3 Count
  3  1  1   20   American Dragon v. Low Ki
  1  2  3   17   Jeff Hardy v. Rob van Dam
  1  2  3   17   Essa Rios v. Kurt Angle
  3  0  0   15   Chris Benoit v. Steve Austin
  1  2  1   13   BATT v. Team 2000
  1  1  2   12   Rock v. Chris Benoit
  2  0  0   10   Lexie Fyfe v. Brandi Alexander
  1  1  1   10   All Japan Women v. Old Army
  1  0  2    9   Akira Hokuto v. Meiko Satomura
  0  3  0    9   Diamond Dallas Page v. Positively Kanyon
  0  1  3    9   Shane Helms v. Chavo Guerrero Jr.
  1  1  0    8   Vince McMahon v. Shane McMahon
  1  0  1    7   Jushin Liger v. Minoru Tanaka
  1  0  1    7   Hayabusa v. Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  0  2  0    6   Steve Austin v. Chris Benoit
  1  0  0    5   Yumiko Hotta v. Kaoru Ito
  1  0  0    5   Undertaker v. Triple H
  1  0  0    5   Undertaker v. Diamond Dallas Page
  1  0  0    5   Super Dragon v. B-Boy
  1  0  0    5   Spike Dudley v. Dudley Boyz
  1  0  0    5   Sgt. Slaughter v. Iron Sheik
  1  0  0    5   Selina Majors v. Thug
  1  0  0    5   IPW v. NWA Florida v. NWA Wildside
  0  1  1    5   Low Ki v. Homicide
  0  1  1    5   General Rection v. Lance Storm
  0  0  2    4   ZERO-ONE v. NOAH
  0  0  2    4   Shane McMahon v. Vince McMahon
  0  1  0    3   Undertaker & Kane v. Steve Austin & Triple H
  0  1  0    3   Team Kuroda v. FMW
  0  1  0    3   Shane McMahon v. Kurt Angle
  0  1  0    3   Sachie Abe v. FANG Suzuki
  0  1  0    3   Paul Heyman v. Vince McMahon
  0  1  0    3   NJPW Jrs. v. Osaka Pro
  0  1  0    3   M2K v. Crazy MAX
  0  1  0    3   Diamond Dallas Page v. Scott Steiner
  0  1  0    3   All Japan v. New Japan
  0  0  1    2   Spike Dudley v. Dudley Boyz v. Crash and Hardcore Holly
  0  0  1    2   Rock v. Steve Austins
  0  0  1    2   Rock v. Kurt Angle
  0  0  1    2   Ric Flair & Jeff Jarrett v. Dusty & Dustin Rhodes
  0  0  1    2   Perro Aguayo v. Los Hermanos Dinamitas
  0  0  1    2   Lana Star & Patti Pizzazz v. Poison & Ice Cold
  0  0  1    2   Kurt Angle v. Booker T
  0  0  1    2   K-1 v. Inoki Corps.
  0  0  1    2   Hurricane v. Bradshaw
  0  0  1    2   GOEMON v. Onryo
  0  0  1    2   Edge & Christian v. Dudley Boyz
  0  0  1    2   Danger v. Riot
  0  0  1    2   Becky the Farmer's Daughter v. Jungle Grrrl
  0  0  1    2   American Dragon v. Spanky
  0  0  1    2   3 Count v. Jung Dragons

REJECTED

  1  0  0        WWF v. WWF (?)
  0  0  1        Edge/Christian/Los Conquistadoes (ineligible time)
  0  0  1        ECW v. WCW (didn't happen)

EDDIE BURKETT: HHH vs. Undertaker was fun.  Edge vs. Christian was really
good, except the ending seemed rushed.  Rock vs. Jericho has been fun.

NATE GURNETT: There really weren't many great feuds this year.  Sorry I
didn't like HHH/Austin (Austin shoots H in head with shotgun!  H
retaliates by blowing up car Austin is in!  Match at 11!).  Booker/Rock
had great heat, good matches, and generally was all around enjoyable.
And cut way to short.  And when no one was watching, Chavo and Helms put
on some fantastic matches, Chavo cut some great promos, and Helms went
over clean in the end.  Sort of a paint by numbers feud, but really well
done on both ends.  3 is sort of a toss, as E&C salvaged merely a decent
feud from crappy booking.

TEDB512: Steve Austin versus Jericho and Benoit made for an incredible
month of wrestling television.

CHIP BOOTS: Kayon/Page is one of the few bright spots of the Last Days of
WCW.

SCOTT WORDEN: Rock and Jericho was the best feud..  Even though it was not
that long ago, it was basically one of the only things keeping people
interested.. Austin and Angle had a good one in there too..

F-MAN: It really doesn't get any better than Rock vs. Jericho in terms of
psychology. After Chris Jericho won the WCW Title from the Rock, the
classy thing to do was to hand back the old "The Rock" nameplate to the
belt's former owner. Seriously, there's no better burn than that.

TERRY McMAHON: I can only think of one real feud (Rock-Jericho) that I
think went well this year.  All the other ones went in an entirely wrong
direction (Austin-HHH), went on too long (Angle-Benoit) or mucked about
with no real heat (Edge-Christian, Rock-Booker).

SEAN FLYNN: For a couple weeks, the WWF had me excited to watch, thinking
that the new era had begun.  Thinking that exciting matches and good
storylines and new stars was the order of the day.  Sadly they killed that
all sorts of dead.  But for a couple of weeks, I LOVED watching the WWF.
And those weeks were the Benoit/Jericho v. Austin feud.  It was the only
one that truly made me interested in what would happen next.

CANZ: List of things the fued between Infernales accomplished: Brought
back rudo vs rudo matches and made them the flavor of the month in EMLL;
Elevated the severely underpushed Rencor Latino into a few main events;
Made Ultimo Guerrero and Rey Bucanero recognized as the next generation of
lucha; added another page to the book of the Legend of Satanico; Gave us
hours of great EMLL TV.

SHOCKER 2K: Triple H/Steve Austin going into No Way Out is a textbook
example of how you not only build up for a PPV, but how you end the feud.
Great from start to finish.

DONNY L: I loved Angle and Triple H the ending sucked but during there
feud it was pure gold(it might get hurt because it's so early in the
year). Heyman v. Ross seemed so personal their verbal attacks were great.
Also like whenever steph/jericho go at it.

ESTRAGAND: WWF vs. Alliance: good idea. got me watching WWF again. bad
execution and follow-up.

JOHN C.: Austin vs. Triple H ruled it in a lot of ways. Sure, the whole
thing with Triple H coming back from the car dropping was ridiculous but
the rest of the feud was great. From the contract signing to the no
physical contact stipulation and the MOTY at NWO, it was clearly the
highlight of the year.  Rock vs. Jericho has been awesome in so many ways.
Angle vs. Benoit allowed us to watch two awesome workers wrestle in a lot
of different matches that are really hard to pull off.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: In little more than a month of the voting period, Chris
Jericho and the Rock have gotten into one of the best feuds I've ever
seen. Everything these two touch turns into gold, I swear to Benoit. And
this may end up the best feud of next year as well... Austin vs. Angle
gets second. Great inception, great build up, great matches, shame about
the way it sorta died in the end. Kinda like Angle/HHH from last year.
Edge vs. Christian gets third, with the same caveat. Easily the best
"brother" vs. "brother" feud of all time. It's no Bret vs. Owen, but still
very good stuff.

YNAE316:  Rock v. Chris Jericho:  Looking forward to more...  Jung Dragons
v. 3 Count:  Main reason I stuck with WCW...  Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho
v. Steve Austin & Triple H:  Wished Vince didn't hit the "panic button"

SHANE SPEAR: Steve Austin and Triple H really had a great thing going at
the beginning of this year, and I dare you to find me a more intense
staredown than the one between the two after Trips cost Austin the WWF
championship on RAW in January.  Austin also had a good enemy in one Kurt
Angle.  Not only did he fight him a few times as a face, but the two went
at it all summer long.  There was kidnapping, stealing, and blood.  It's
was like a hollywood movie, only with Angle and Austin.  Like I mentioned
before Benoit and Angle put on a show this year.  The only problem was
that I don't feel like the had 110% during the fued, especially at
Judgment Day, where they seemed to stall.  If they had turned it on full,
I would have no doubt that they would have the top spot.  Maybe next year.

THE CUBS FAN: I'll go out on a limb here, but Essa Rios vs Kurt Angle was
the BEST feud...Essa Rios was involved in...in the WWF...this
year...probably.

SHAWN MULLIN: The Rock/Jericho feud has been a diamond in a relatively
large pile of shit.  The slow build of tension, hate, and character
evolution on Jericho's part has been absolutely fabulous.  The feud is
definately more about Jericho than it is the Rock, but Rock has been the
perfect foe to play off for the development of these very important issues
in Jericho's character.  Lets hope that in the end it'll mean something.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the name athlete who was the worst overall wrestler in the
past year. Minimal technical ability, lousy interviews, non-existent
workrate, and the charisma of a rock should describe this person.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Junkyard Dog
  1991: Andre The Giant
  1992: Nailz
  1993: Giant Gonzalez
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Hulk Hogan
  1998: Hollywood Hogan
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Hulk Hogan

**2001**: Buff Bagwell

283 first place votes
273 second place votes
265 third place votes

 59 27 24  424   Buff Bagwell
 40 15 18  281   Undertaker
 27 27 19  254   Billy Gunn
 26 25 24  253   Chyna
 14 14  8  128   Big Show
 11  9 16  114   Lex Luger
  9 15  7  104   Kevin Nash
  9  6 11   85   X-Pac
  4  8  7   58   Brian Adams
  3  6 12   57   Rick Steiner
  5  2  8   47   Sara
  4  8  1   46   Shane McMahon
  4  4  7   46   Goodfather
  3  7  5   46   Lita
  4  4  5   42   Shawn Stasiak
  5  1  6   40   Goldberg
  3  6  3   39   Albert
  2  5  7   39   Haku
  4  5  1   37   Rock
  1  9  2   36   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  2  4  6   34   Road Dogg
  2  5  4   33   Kane
  5  1  2   32   Test
  2  3  6   31   Wall
  1  5  3   26   Justin Credible
  3  2  1   23   Diamond Dallas Page
  3  0  2   19   Zandig
  1  3  2   18   K-Kwik
  0  4  3   18   Konnan
  2  1  2   17   Stacy Keibler
  2  1  2   17   Chuck Palumbo
  0  4  2   16   Rikishi
  0  4  2   16   Hugh Morrus
  1  2  2   15   Torrie Wilson
  2  0  2   14   Tazz
  1  3  0   14   Jeff Hardy
  0  2  4   14   Bull Buchanan
  1  1  2   12   Slam Dunk
  0  1  4   11   Perry Saturn
  1  1  0    8   Vince McMahon
  1  1  0    8   Steve Austin
  1  0  1    7   Masahiro Chono
  0  1  2    7   Scotty 2 Hotty
  1  0  0    5   William Regal
  1  0  0    5   Trish Stratus
  1  0  0    5   Triple H
  1  0  0    5   Tamon Honda
  1  0  0    5   Stone Mountain
  1  0  0    5   Sid Vicious
  1  0  0    5   Ron Harris
  1  0  0    5   Rob van Dam
  1  0  0    5   Rhyno
  1  0  0    5   Raven
  1  0  0    5   Masked Maniac
  1  0  0    5   Hellkid
  1  0  0    5   Bronco Billie
  1  0  0    5   Athena
  0  1  1    5   Wifebeater
  0  1  1    5   Terri Gold
  0  1  1    5   Lana Star
  0  1  1    5   Crash Holly
  0  1  1    5   Bryan Clarke
  0  0  2    4   Maven
  0  1  0    3   Yutaka Yoshie
  0  1  0    3   Tommy Dreamer
  0  1  0    3   Steve Rizzono
  0  1  0    3   Road Warrior Animal
  0  1  0    3   Ric Blade
  0  1  0    3   Onyx
  0  1  0    3   Masao Orihara
  0  1  0    3   King Kong Bundy
  0  1  0    3   Jeff Jarrett
  0  1  0    3   Hijo del Pierroth
  0  1  0    3   Edge
  0  1  0    3   Don Harris
  0  1  0    3   Bradshaw
  0  1  0    3   Booker T
  0  0  1    2   Tajiri
  0  0  1    2   Spike Dudley
  0  0  1    2   Sean O'Haire
  0  0  1    2   Rusher Kimura
  0  0  1    2   Mike Bell
  0  0  1    2   Lash LeRoux
  0  0  1    2   Kazuyuki Fujita
  0  0  1    2   Johnny Canuck
  0  0  1    2   John Harris
  0  0  1    2   Jado
  0  0  1    2   Drew Carey
  0  0  1    2   Chris Jericho

REJECTED

  1  0  1        Hulk Hogan
  0  1  0        Darryl from Tough Enough
  0  1  0        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Goldberg, Chyna, Undertaker.  You think RVD injures people?
Watch a Goldberg match.  As for Chyna - Women can't drive like men so why
should they try to wrestle with them?

EDDIE BURKETT: Buff Bagwell single handedly killed the Invasion.  Haku
sucks, and I'm glad he's not on tv right now.  Billy Gunn sucks too.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Buff Bagwell, no doubt.  His ineptness against Booker T
almost single-handedly destroyed the revived WCW.

JESSE HARALDSON: Whose dumb idea was it to take away the Godfathers ho's?

CHIP BOOTS: Bradshaw's a "hoss," whatever that means.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst wrestler?  I think there is possible way to take
"worst wrestler" and unscramble that and spell Undertaker..  May need some
imaginary letters, kinda like the square root of a negative number.  I
think it is possible to spell it though.. Billy Gunn.  Heh..  Doesn't Ross
say he is a great athlete.  I though great athletes did not blow up in 2
minutes?

MAIKA BENNETT: Undertaker is just a horrible wrestler to watch.  The
sooner he retires the better.

CHRIS BIRD: He's a lousy wrestler. Anybody who threatens his position on
TV 38. Ignoring how bad the suddenly has "timing issues" because he's
sooooo respected backstage. He nearly kills people with his finisher on a
regular basis. And for some reason, despite the fact that he has NEVER
drawn as a main-eventer, he's always in the main event picture. Ladies and
gents, I give you the Undertaker.

SEAN FLYNN: Let the parade of votes for Undertaker in worst categories
begin.  I have not enjoyed one Undertaker match this year.  I change the
channel when he comes on my tv.  He is not interesting, not fun to watch,
drags down angles he is with, squashes wrestlers who don't carry his bags
or whatever else pisses him off on a given day, and just generally makes
me unhappy when I see him on tv.

CANZ: Every time I see the Undertaker wrestle now I wonder "Who forget to
shovel the dirt here?" When you were never good to begin with and rapidly
get worse over several years, something is wrong. It's time to retire old
fat tall man.

KEVIN WONG: Steph.  Chyna.  Terri Gold.  As much as I'd like to see
women's wrestling in North America, these are three women that shouldn't
be a part of it...

DONNY L: Chyna makes me sick,

PETER HAZLETT: Regal = ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.  Bagwell proved it, didn't he?

SIMON GRIER: Chyna is an absolutely atrocious wrestler. That she thinks
she should have been put over Rock for the WWF title is laughable. Can she
name one competitive physical sport in which a woman could beat the male
world champion? There isn't one. She isn't even a bad worker, she is
utterly dismal. She makes Bull Buchanan look like Ric Flair, and even
stops Billy Gunn from being the worst person in the ring. Thank God she's
gone and the women's division can live again. Gunn tries hard but just
looks out of place in a wrestling ring and gets blown up too easily. Rick
Steiner didn't even try hard, he was just a pathetic embarassment to the
business by the end of WCW.

ESTRAGAND: Lana Star, but I don't think she's there for her workrate in
the ring.

JOHN C.: Goldberg, Bagwell and Luger win out for this award. It was tough
to leave the likes of Nash and Hogan off the list but I think it's time
that these three "wrestlers" (and I use that term loosely) win the award.

SCOTT CHRIST: I hate Test's damn guts.

JOE GENTILE: Oh, don't treat like a woman, don't treat her like a man,
treat her like you know her.... UNEMPLOYED! There isnt a hole deep enough
that Stephanie can fall into as far as I am concerned.  Undertaker just
sucks. I get angry evey time I see his no-selling ass on television.

PIEMAN: I am not sure how many times Billy Gunn's name is going to come
up, but I bet it's a lot.  He really is not very good.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Undertaker; I figure the one guy Kurt Angle *can't*
carry to a good match deserves this award hands down. More to the point,
Taker has worked only about two matches over ** this year, and had to be
carried by the likes of Austin and H to accomplish that. And his
sub-Hoganesque technical skills are a joke. Buff Bagwell seemingly jinxed
the whole invasion angle from the get-go (it never recovered) and became
the first wrestler to ever get kicked out of the WWF on account of being a
shit wrestler. I think this speaks for itself... Chyna, having lost her
novelty value, finally stood revealed this year as a horrible worker. God
alone knows how Jericho managed to carry her over *** a couple of years
back.

MATTY TONKIN: Billy Gunn sucks. Full Stop.

YNAE316: Jeff Hardy:  Tons of great looking high-risk maneuvers, but
doesn't show much else!!!  (Though I'm sure' he has a lot more to
offer...)  Slam Dunk:  Couldn't work for shit... Road Dogg:  TONS of
charisma, crappy wrestler, lame moves...

SHANE SPEAR: BUFF BAGWELL WAS THE FINAL NAIL IN THE COFFIN OF WCW.  You
can give Booker (and Vince's whole set-up of the new company) some of that
credit, but that match KILLED WCW and the Invasion FLAT.  I hate Buff, and
I hope he enjoys his time in the indys, because that's where he'll be
forevermore...THANK GOD!  Hugh Morris is a fat disgrace.  I'm sorry, but
one moonsault is not a moveset.  What possessed the WWF to offer him a
contract is way beyond me.  So long Ric Steiner.  I think the only thing
I'll miss about him was the fact that he was blamed for more in ring
accident than RVD.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Tag Team

Award Description:

To be given to the name tag team who were the worst overall wrestlers in
the past year. Minimal technical ability, lousy interviews, non-existent
workrate, the charisma of a rock, and lousy team moves should describe
this pair.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Rhythm & Blues: Greg Valentine & Honky Tonk Man
  1991: The Patriots: Todd Champion & Firebreaker Chip
  1992: Bushwhackers: Luke Williams & Butch Miller
  1993: The Colossal Kongs: Awesome Kong & King Kong
  1994: Bushwhackers: Luke Williams & Butch Miller
  1995: Tekno Team 2000: Travis & Troy
  1996: Godwinns: Henry O. & Phineas I.
  1997: Godwinns: Henry O. & Phineas I.
  1998: Diamond Dallas Page & Jay Leno
  1999: Ministry of Darkness: Mideon & Viscera
  2000: Harris Brothers: Big Ron & Heavy D

**2001**: Kronik: Brian Adams & Bryan Clarke

280 first place votes
267 second place votes
262 third place votes

 58 45 32  489   Kronik - Brian Adams & Bryan Clarke
 37 32 36  353   Totally Buff - Lex Luger & Buff Bagwell
 35 20 23  281   Big Show & Billy Gunn
 24 26 16  230   Undertaker & Kane
 17 18 23  185   Harris Brothers - Big Ron & Heavy D
 17 20 17  179   X-Factor - X-Pac & Justin Credible & Albert
 15 18 15  159   Road Dogg & K-Kwik
 13 17 21  158   Right to Censor - Goodfather & Bull Buchanan
  7 10 12   89   Rikishi & Haku
 11  9  3   88   Insane Clown Posse - Violent J & Shaggy 2 Dope
  6  1  8   49   Hardy Boyz - Matt & Jeff
  5  4  6   49   Big Show & Spike Dudley
  4  2  7   40   Insiders - Kevin Nash & Diamond Dallas Page
  5  1  4   36   Dudley Boyz - Bubba Ray & D-Von
  5  2  2   35   Boogie Knights - DISQO & Alex Wright
  3  5  2   34   Dusty & Dustin Rhodes
  2  3  4   27   Test & Booker T
  2  4  1   24   Giant Silva & Giant Singh
  1  3  5   24   APA - Faarooq & Bradshaw
  2  2  1   18   Raven & Justin Credible
  0  2  4   14   Mark Jindrak & Shawn Stasiak
  0  2  4   14   Asian Invasion - Jade & Lotus
  2  1  0   13   Beach Patrol - Sandy & Summer
  0  3  2   13   Billy Gunn & Chuck Palumbo
  1  1  0    8   Harley's Angels - Charlie Davidson & EZ Rider
  0  2  1    8   Scotty 2 Hotty & Albert (eligible?)
  0  2  1    8   Big Show & Tajiri
  1  0  1    7   Diamond Dallas Page & Kanyon
  1  0  1    7   Bushwhackers - Butch & Luke
  0  1  2    7   Holly Cousins - Hardcore & Crash
  0  2  0    6   Kane & Undertaker
  0  2  0    6   Buff Bagwell & Lex Luger
  1  0  0    5   T & A - Test & Albert
  1  0  0    5   Masahiro Chono & Scott Hall
  1  0  0    5   Jaime Knoble & Evan Karagias
  1  0  0    5   Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire
  1  0  0    5   Booker T & Test
  1  0  0    5   Beautiful People - (?)
  0  0  2    4   Hurricane & Lance Storm
  0  1  0    3   Ric Blade & Sick Nick Mondo
  0  1  0    3   Mark Jindrak & Sean O'Haire
  0  1  0    3   Law & Order - Nikki Law & Kristi Order
  0  1  0    3   Daughters of Darkness - Mystery & Misery
  0  1  0    3   Chuck Palubmo & Sean O'Haire
  0  1  0    3   Boom Boom the Volcano & Caliente
  0  0  1    2   Yutaka Yoshie & Manabu Nakanishi
  0  0  1    2   Road Warriors - Hawk & Animal (eligible?)
  0  0  1    2   Lo Down - D'Lo Brown & Chaz
  0  0  1    2   Kaientai - Taka Michinoku & Funaki
  0  0  1    2   Billy Gunn & Chyna

REJECTED

  0  1  0        Duplicated votes
  0  0  1        "Tie" votes

RYAN HALL: Kronik, Taker/Kane, Gunn/Show.  Nearly everyone in the room
fell asleep during Kronik/Taker-Kane.

EDDIE BURKETT: Haku sucked so much its a shame he dragged down Rikishi,
who could have been interesting if left to his own.  Road Dogg's act was
incredibly stale, and putting him with a too-green K-Kwikk did nothing to
help him.  Kronik, was, well, Kronik.

NATE GURNETT: I hate Taker.  I merely dislike Kane.  Brothers of NoSelling
killed the division for half the year.  Grrr.....

MPWG: I guess the WWF decided X-factor wasn't bad enough already, so they
tacked on the worst entrance music ever.

CHIP BOOTS: There's never an excuse to put ICP on my TV.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst Tag Team.. Kronik.  I think that was backed up when
they wrestled on WWF ppv this year.  Harris Bros..  Hey, any coincidence
these guys know taker or something?

CHRIS BIRD: I'm still in disbelief that Kronik managed to screw up a sure
thing in not one but TWO wrestling companies. I think that has to be some
kind of horrible record. Undertaker and Kane, meanwhile, were just crappy
in one wrestling company, so they can't compete with the misspelled name
team.

SEAN FLYNN: Hey look, Undertaker appears again on my ballot!  I hate
Undertaker and Kane.  I think the single most defining moment of the year
in terms of opportunities missed was when the Hardys stepped aside so the
Fat Boyz could come waddling down the ramp to scare off HHH/Austin.
Kronik would have been above even them had they been on tv more, but they
had the decency to not appear much.  DDP and Nash get a vote just because
I miss voting for Nash as worst "fill in the blank"

KEVIN WONG: You know, as much as I liked WOW, I really can't stand that
fact that McLane created such blatant stereotypes for women.  Asian
Invasion was pretty much the worst stereotype there.  Oh, and Lotus was
better on Blind Date than in the ring.  'Nuff said.  Oh yeah, and Totally
Buff and the Harris Twins were 1 and 2, because they were just THAT BAD.

GREG SAKAKI: I'll try to remember the recently-created teams of Palumbo &
Billy Gunn and Albert & Scotty 2 Hotty for the 2002 awards.

DONNY L: Taker/Kane, Kronik, Harris brothers all brutal

SIMON GRIER: An absolute plethora of awful tag teams, as usual, but none
worse than Gunn and Chyna, the tw worst workers in the fed. Totally Buff
were selfish jerks and deserved to end their careers jobbing to Palumbo
and O'Haire in half a minute of whatever it was. The Harrises probably
tried hard but are so untalented its hard to tell.

JOHN C.: When Totally Buff refused to do a clean job to O'Haire and
Palumbo at Greed they showed how classless they really are. Gunn & Show
were horrible as were Kronik.

SCOTT CHRIST: I am so, so sick of the Hardy Boyz. Whether or not they're
really worst, I don't care.

JOE GENTILE: REAL rappers could not get over in wrestling in 2000. Why
would ANYONE think Road Dogg and K-Kwik would? 2nd: Yo, you're dealin'
with the X-Factor! *cricket* *cricket* *cricket* 3rd: Haku and Rikishi:
Yes, Rikishi, I guess you samoans DO stick together... off my TV Screen.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Kronic, obviously. When Undertaker and Kane are easily
the better team in a match, you *know* something is wrong. Kronic
definitely deserved to join Buff Bagwell on the dole queue. X-Factor, or,
if you prefer, The New New New Age Outlaws get second. Unfortunately, the
more "New"s there are, the worse the actual team seems to get... And any
team with X-Pox and Justin Tolerable in it is gonna haveta suck. I don't
mind Albert too much, but X-Factor just fell completely flat, and
deservedly so. UT and Kane get third. After all, this is the Undertaker
we're talking about...

YNAE316: Boogie Knights - DISQO & Alex Wright:  They were the champs???
Daughters of Darkness - Mystery & Misery:  What the hell were they? Road
Dogg & K-Kwik:  Loved it when Christian buried their gimmick in a promo...

JEREMY SORIA: As much as Lex Luger and Buff Bagwell make my heart race, it
doesn't help matters any when they think they're the best in the world and
somehow they're entitled to act like brats in the ring.

SHANE SPEAR: Re-uniting the Boogie Knights was just stupid.  They were
terrible years ago when they did it for the first time!  (Tokyo Magnum
saved the segments by the way.)  Why was Disqo on my TV anyway?  Moving
on, Kronik ended up being a sad, pathetic clone of the Acolytes.  Then,
they had to top this by appearing in the WWF for about two weeks.  Wow!
What a team!  Finally, we have Rikishi and Haku, the Islanders 2001.
RIkishi would be over-rated on his own, but nobody really likes him
anyway.  I can't believe somebody thought it would be cool to bring in
Haku to team with him.  Terrible, Terrible decisions!

THE CUBS FAN: I hope the Harris Brothers are just really nice dudes
whoever likes and really wants to see them get over because gosh darn it
they deserve for it being so nice and personable. Otherwise, I don't get
it. If you want to add on all the non-ring stuff (or the stuff in the ring
they were supposed to be doing) to the ring stuff, I could see Totally
Buff passing them.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Heel

Award Description:

To be given to the person whose casting as a bad guy just didn't work
well. Maybe there was just no heel heat drawn or maybe the fans actually
cheered this person, but for whatever reason the heel image just didn't
get over.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Rick Martel
  1991: The Mountie Jacques Rougeau
  1992: Razor Ramon
  1993: Giant Gonzalez
  1994: Bastion Booger
  1995: Zodiac (The Butcher/Brutus Beefcake)
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Ahmed Johnson
  1998: Hollywood Hogan
  1999: Sting
  2000: Goldberg

**2001**: Rob van Dam

274 first place votes
261 second place votes
251 third place votes

 35  9 21  244   Rob van Dam
 24 21 21  225   Rikishi
 25 16 15  203   Buff Bagwell
 25 13 12  188   Diamond Dallas Page
 15 18 12  153   Chyna
 16  8 16  136   Billy Gunn
 13 12  8  117   X-Pac
 14 11  6  115   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 13 10 10  115   Shane McMahon
 11  9 14  110   Hacksaw Jim Duggan
  9 11  5   88   Albert
  5 11 10   78   Lex Luger
  7  4  8   63   Test
  7  4  6   59   Booker T
 10  2  1   58   Steve Austin
  4 10  4   58   Road Warrior Animal
  4  8  5   54   Tazz
  1 11  8   54   Hurricane
  4  6  5   48   Debra
  3  6  5   43   Mighty Molly
  4  5  3   41   Billy Kidman
  4  2  6   38   Big Show
  1  7  4   34   K-Kwik
  2  3  6   31   Steven Richards
  2  3  6   31   Nick Patrick
  1  3  6   26   Kwee Wee
  1  5  2   24   Crash
  0  5  2   19   Justin Credible
  1  3  2   18   Kane
  1  3  2   18   Bull Buchanan
  1  2  3   17   Triple H
  2  2  0   16   Kurt Angle
  0  4  0   12   Jim Duggan
  0  1  4   11   Rob Black
  1  0  2    9   Ric Flair
  1  0  1    7   Rhyno
  1  0  1    7   Masahiro Chono
  1  0  1    7   D-Von Dudley
  0  2  0    6   Jeff Jarrett
  0  2  0    6   Bubba Ray Dudley
  1  0  0    5   Matt Sinister
  1  0  0    5   Goodfather
  1  0  0    5   Goldberg
  1  0  0    5   Chris Jericho
  1  0  0    5   "Tie" votes(NO)
  0  1  1    5   Iron Sheik
  0  0  2    4   Danger
  0  1  0    3   William Regal
  0  1  0    3   Vince McMahon
  0  1  0    3   Scott Hall
  0  1  0    3   Raven
  0  1  0    3   Lance Storm
  0  1  0    3   Kanyon
  0  1  0    3   Jerry Lawler
  0  1  0    3   Christian
  0  0  1    2   Shawn Stasiak
  0  0  1    2   Riot
  0  0  1    2   Rick Steiner
  0  0  1    2   Paul Heyman
  0  0  1    2   Haku

RYAN HALL: Van Dam, Debra, Mighty Molly.  Van Dam is a face so turn him!
Debra & Mighty Molly have no heat whatsoever.

EDDIE BURKETT: Rikishi was such a bad heel they needed HHH to back him up.
Then, they put him with Haku and that sucked too.  DDP gave being a heel a
good try, but his natural tendencies to play to the crowd (and a less than
helpful Undertaker) hindered his attempts.  The Hurricane is too much
comedy to be an effective heel.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  RVD just doesn't work as a heel.  Nobody in the arena sees
him as a heel.  (Maybe Stone Cold Steve Austin does, but that's it.)
He's a face -- and that's the bottom line.

JESSE HARALDSON: Nothing made me change the channel quicker than RTC.

VIKRAM BIRRING: How can RVD be a heel when the crowd chants "R-V-D","!

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Man, I could write a book on bad heels this year. For that
matter, I could write a book on bad everything this year. If there were
enough voting slots, I'd probably pick about 2/3rds of the nominees. Ugly
year.

KEN DREILING: I have Molly on here, becuase she just as that pure innocent
cute face, that shouldn't be able to pull off a heel act.  Ya can't help
but like her, she looks like she'd bring ya banana bread at work, just
becuase you had a bad morning.

CHIP BOOTS: I just can't hate Hacksaw.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst Heel.. Chyna..  Wasn't;t she suppose to be a heel when
wrestling Lita.  I mean, I did not like her, but not in the way you are
suppose to hate a heel.. You know what?  She sucked..  Do I really need to
explain it?  Didn't think so.

F-MAN: Simply put: RVD should not have been part of the Alliance heel
faction.  The guy gets insane face pops wherever he goes, and face pops
are not something a heel should receive.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: Worst Heel? Not sure why they're still trying to
get people to boo Hurricane or RVD.  They gotta be setting shirts like
hotcakes.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1.  Is there anyone out there who actually thinks X-Pac's
heat is "heel heat"?

KEVIN WONG: Buff, Chyna and Billy Gunn are three people that really suck
as being heels.  Actually, they suck, period, but I guess that's pretty
obvious.

DONNY L: I Love RVD but the can't be a heel if his life depends on it.

PETER HAZLETT: Unfortunately for DDP, it may be just bad angles, but
nothing seems to be working as a heel for him.

ESTRAGAND: Road Warrior Animal.. I dunno, I always thought that heels were
supposed to DO something. Lawler...he's supposed to be a HEEL announcer.
Heel announcers don't get pops from the crowd and/or try to be funny with
crappy Beavis and Butthead jokes. Debra.. feel the wrath of toll house
cookies!

KEVIN DOTEN: There are too many, but these guys didn't generate any
reaction, only apathy, and time to go get some beer

JOHN C.: Chyna wins here because she clearly had no desire to play the
role of a heel. Bagwell is just horrible and DDP's portrayal as Sara's
stalker was a huge failure because he's not the right guy to play a heel.

SCOTT CHRIST: Test bites.

JOE GENTILE: Turning Rikishi heel may have cost what little credibility
his career had. Billy Kidman is no heel, and neither is RVD as far as the
fans are concerned.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: RVD. Well, he is *technically* a heel, after all... I
mean, he cheats, all his buddies are heels, everything. Unfortunately, the
crowds treat him like the second coming, so his heelishness kinda falls
flat. The guy needs a proper face turn like nobody's business. (post
Survivor Series note: he got it. Good.) X-Pac gets second. Give it up,
Sean, nobody cares anymore. Haven't for years, in fact. Billy Gunn gets
third (he was technically a heel for a while, remember, after Edge won
KotR), for the exact same reason. Honourable mention goes to Steve Austin.
He's nearly as over as a babyface as RVD is. The only reason he doesn't
get a vote is cause I rather like his heel persona.

YNAE316: Steve Austin:  DId tons of great heel actions, but HARD to hate
when he cracks you up so... Mighty Molly:  Talented wrestler, LAME gimmick
(did you hear that entrance video, "It's Mighty Molly!!!")

SHANE SPEAR: Speaking of Rikishi, he was the most pathetic heel of last
year's awards in my opinion, and then he did nothing to improve on that
this year.  He ended up getting stuck with Haku and only got one or two
key wins over a main-event opponent (Undertaker.)  Luger was terrible as
usual in the dying days of WCW.  Plus, he was teaming with Bagwell, which
NEVER helps.  Rob Van Dam is an interest choice because he was supposed to
be a heel in his association with the Alliance, but never EVER did
anything worthy of being a heel.  So this is not a knock against Van Dam,
I'm just saying he wasn't a good heel.

THE CUBS FAN: Hacksaw was so committed to being a heel, you should've
called him Goldberg. I think someone wanted revenge by killing him off
before he got his face turn.

MATT SPAULDING: You'd think it'd be easier for Shane to play the heel,
being the son of one of the best ever at it, but he seems to really
struggle and press at times.  Diamond Dallas Page CAN be a good heel, but
not as an obsessed stalker.  Buff?  Could have been a good heel if he had,
you know, talent.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Babyface

Award Description:

To be given to the person whose casting as a good guy just didn't work
well. Maybe there was just no face heat drawn or maybe the fans actually
booed this person, but for whatever reason the face image just didn't get
over.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Dusty Rhodes
  1991: P.N. News
  1992: Sid Justice
  1993: Lex Luger
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: John Tenta
  1997: Rocky Maivia
  1998: Warrior
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Hulk Hogan

**2001**: "The One" Billy Gunn

274 first place votes
263 second place votes
250 third place votes

 41 23 28  330   Billy Gunn
 32 17 23  257   X-Pac
 29 26 16  255   Chyna
 30 13 14  217   Kurt Angle
 19 12 11  153   Vince McMahon
 10 21 16  145   William Regal
 14 14 15  142   Linda McMahon
 12  9  8  103   Sara
 10 11  6   95   Undertaker
  5  7  9   64   Kevin Nash
  5  7  7   60   Sid Vicious
  5  5  6   52   Shane McMahon
  3 10  3   51   K-Kwik
  2 10  5   50   Road Dogg
  5  5  4   48   Big Show
  5  4  5   47   Chris Jericho
  4  4  5   42   Kane
  2  6  6   40   Perry Saturn
  5  2  4   39   Diamond Dallas Page
  1  7  6   38   Test
  6  1  2   37   Rock
  3  4  3   33   Booker T
  6  0  1   32   Buff Bagwell
  2  5  2   29   Tazz
  3  3  2   28   Rikishi
  2  4  2   26   David McLane
  2  3  1   21   Dusty Rhodes
  2  2  2   20   Matt Hardy
  1  1  5   18   Sgt. A-Wall
  0  3  4   17   Nidia
  1  2  2   15   Terri Gold
  0  3  3   15   Spike Dudley
  0  3  3   15   Jeff Hardy
  1  2  1   13   Steve Austin
  1  2  1   13   Christian
  0  2  2   10   Maven
  1  0  1    7   Lita
  0  2  0    6   Rob van Dam
  0  0  3    6   Edge
  1  0  0    5   Mike Awesome
  1  0  0    5   Masato Tanaka
  1  0  0    5   Genichiro Tenryu
  1  0  0    5   Chris Benoit
  0  1  1    5   Mick Foley
  0  0  2    4   Patti Pizzazz
  0  0  2    4   Albert
  0  1  0    3   Sting
  0  1  0    3   Saturn
  0  1  0    3   Hulk Hogan
  0  1  0    3   Gedo
  0  1  0    3   Eric Angle
  0  1  0    3   Bubba Ray Dudley
  0  0  1    2   Tech IX
  0  0  1    2   Tajiri
  0  0  1    2   Jado
  0  0  1    2   Hardcore Holly
  0  0  1    2   General Rection
  0  0  1    2   D-Von Dudley
  0  0  1    2   Chuck Palumbo
  0  0  1    2   Bradshaw

REJECTED

  0  1  0        WCW

RYAN HALL: Angle, Chyna, Rock.  Angle bombed as face champ.  Everyone
hates Chyna.  Do you remember Rock as a heel?  I do, and I wish he was
again.

EDDIE BURKETT: X-Pac simply CANNOT get cheers.  The Dudley Boys babyface
act was getting stale when they turned heel.  Good move for them.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Kurt Angle works best as a heel.  With that clean-cut
image, you just EXPECT him to be a face, don't you?  I don't think I need
to explain why I have Billy Gunn on my list.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: See #18, multiplied by 3. What happened to Sara, anyways?
Did they do an injury angle that they never REALLY paid off on
(Poochietaker squashing DDP 400 times in a row is hardly a blowoff; look
at what 'Taker did in those matches, and tell me that she shouldn't have
been able to come back from a DDP-inflicted injury...), and just forget
about her, or did she fade into obscurity, destined for
Gobbledygooker-level infamy?

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst babyface.  Who do you think,, Chyna again.  Remember
her face period?  No, neither do a lot.. Wonder is she can clean sweep the
worst categories this year?

CHRIS BIRD: Linda McMahon. You know, I think nobody in the history of the
world has ever cheered for anything she's ever said except when she said
"Mick Foley" or "The Rock." Also, I voted for Maven for third. Not that
he's really that bad as a face, but he's no Josh!

SEAN FLYNN: I so wanted to vote Undertaker first here, but the appearance
of Billy Gunn as a face at any point during the voting year automatically
puts him in first.  It's like a law of nature or something.  Undertaker
does get a close second though.  He gets a pop for the Fred Durst(ugh!)
entrance and his nifty bike.  Then people remember "hey it's the
Undertaker, he's pretty boring.  Has a nice bike though."

PETER HAZLETT: Just doesn't seem right that Kane is good and not evil

ESTRAGAND: Last I checked, there is only one Bagwell mark in North
america- Rick Steiner's old partner, Judy Bagwell.

MICHAEL STAKELY: Mainly because everybody and their dog knows Vince will
have turned EEEEEEVVVVVIILLLLL again by the time the voting results are
announced, probably at Survivor Series or the RAW right after.

JOHN C.: Chyna wins this one too because she thought she was on the level
of an Austin or Rock as far as popularity even though fans were very tired
of her stale act.

SCOTT CHRIST: I hate Test. But I hate Chyna more.

JOE GENTILE: The only thing Kwik about K-Kwik was the speed in which he
gets squashed. Oh, X-Pac, how hated must you be if you are the only WWF
guy in this whole Invasion angle to draw boos. And Billy Gunn, no matter
what name you use, you are still an ass, man!

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: X-Pac. No one cared about him as a heel, why would
anyone care about him as a face? Still, it takes talent to be the only WWF
wrestler who *couldn't* be turned face by invasion angle. Billy Gunn is
second. He's nearly as popular as Richard Nixon in his prime. Kurt Angle
gets third. He was actually a great face... until Summerslam. After that,
he fell completely flat, more due to the WWF's mismanagement of his
character than through any fault of his own. Too bad.

YNAE316: Sara:  Looks good, but ultimately lame character... Terri Gold:
So-so wrestler, out of date gimmick.  "Loves the kids!!" X-Pac:  Funniest
thing was watching him do a BIG COMEBACK trying to rally the crowd to no
pop whatsoever!!!!

SHANE SPEAR: Yeah, Billy Gunn was SOOO over that his huge heel turn
happened on Heat.  That's right, Sunday Night Heat.  Gunn could be the
worst Babyface of all time, as he couldn't get to the main event in any
capacity this year.  Kevin Nash and Chyna round out the stupid, pointless
faces in the crowd.

RYAN FAULCONER: Kurt Angle's babyface run was so forced and shallow.
Undertaker and Kane get the other two spots because I never understood why
I should cheer for them.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Yes, Bagwell was my worst heel, but he was also my
worst face... he tried working face some in WWA.

THE CUBS FAN: So, I'm reading the WWF.com and X-Pac is talking about how
smart he is and complaining about not getting any TV time with his belt
and I'm like "sure sure but you probably shouldn't known that if you're so
smart" and talking about how great a heel he is, "ha ha whatever", and
then he talked about how he could be a great babyface if he wanted to and
I laughed like I never laughed before. And then he and X-Factor played
babyface on Heat (Heat's a weird place) and he was trying to get the crowd
in for the desperation tag but NO ONE CARED and I laughed even more.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Worker

Award Description:

To be given to the name wrestler whose workrate is so low it's barely
measureable.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Junkyard Dog
  1991: Andre The Giant
  1992: Nailz
  1993: Giant Gonzalez
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Hulk Hogan
  1998: Hollywood Hogan
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Kevin Nash

**2001**: Buff Bagwell

271 first place votes
263 second place votes
256 third place votes

 55 30 20  405   Buff Bagwell
 43 20 18  311   Undertaker
 24 23 20  229   Billy Gunn
 25 21 16  220   Kevin Nash
 20 27 19  219   Chyna
 11 21 24  166   Brian Adams
 12 11 24  141   Lex Luger
 17 11  8  134   Big Show
 11 11  8  104   Rick Steiner
  5  4  8   53   Road Dogg
  1 10  6   47   Kane
  2  6  8   44   Bryan Clarke
  4  3  3   35   Goodfather
  3  6  1   35   Test
  2  2  9   34   X-Pac
  2  3  7   33   Wall
  1  4  8   33   Shawn Stasiak
  2  3  5   29   Stacy Keibler
  2  3  2   23   Zandig
  0  5  4   23   Haku
  2  2  1   18   Slam Dunk
  1  3  2   18   Albert
  3  0  1   17   Lita
  2  1  2   17   Rob van Dam
  1  3  1   16   Diamond Dallas Page
  0  4  2   16   Torrie Wilson
  1  1  3   14   Tommy Dreamer
  2  1  0   13   Steve Austin
  1  1  2   12   Tazz
  1  2  0   11   Shane McMahon
  1  0  3   11   Rock
  0  2  2   10   Scott Norton
  1  1  0    8   K-Kwik
  1  1  0    8   Justin Credible
  0  2  1    8   Steven Richards
  0  2  1    8   Rikishi
  1  0  1    7   Masahiro Chono
  0  1  2    7   Rhyno
  0  2  0    6   Terri
  0  0  3    6   Summer
  0  0  3    6   Bull Buchanan
  1  0  0    5   Yutaka Yoshie
  1  0  0    5   Vampiro
  1  0  0    5   Tatsutoshi Goto
  1  0  0    5   Masked Maniac
  1  0  0    5   Kim Duk
  1  0  0    5   Hijo del Pierroth
  1  0  0    5   Giant Silva
  1  0  0    5   David Flair
  1  0  0    5   Bradshaw
  0  1  1    5   Sid Vicious
  0  0  2    4   Terri Gold
  0  1  0    3   Tank Abbott
  0  1  0    3   Tajiri
  0  1  0    3   Shane Douglas
  0  1  0    3   Sean O'Haire
  0  1  0    3   Russ McCullough
  0  1  0    3   Raven
  0  1  0    3   Goldberg
  0  1  0    3   Giant Singh
  0  1  0    3   Arashi
  0  0  1    2   Trish Stratus
  0  0  1    2   Scotty 2 Hotty
  0  0  1    2   Road Warrior Animal
  0  0  1    2   New Jack
  0  0  1    2   Chris Benoit

REJECTED

  1  0  0    5   Hulk Hogan
  1  0  0    5   Darryl from Tough Enough

RYAN HALL: Undertaker, Adams, Clarke.  And to think they put all three of
these guys in the ring at the SAME TIME.

EDDIE BURKETT: I don't like names starting with B apparently.  They all
suck.  Bagwell most because he killed WCW under Vince.

HIRO: I wish Undertaker would retire before the fans get truly sick with
him.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Bagwell again.  See my comment for #16 above.

CHIP BOOTS: Bagwell pretty much killed an entire promotional plan by
himself.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst Worker..  Chyna again.. ugh..  Hey, be happy someone
beat Undertaker in a vote.. Don't worry Mark, I did vote for ya as number
2.

SEAN FLYNN: What do you get if you add a healthy heaping of no-selling, a
slice of squash (of young workers), a chunk of slowness, a wedgie-bomb
that always takes forever to set up and kills credibility of the person
taking it, and a dash of bad pseudo-shootfighting?  You get the worst
worker of the year! Take a bow Undertaker, you ruined more matches than
anyone else in this year.  His apparent role model, the Big Poochie
himself comes in second, again due to having the decency to not appear a
whole lot this year.

NATRBOY72: I voted for 1) Rick Steiner for intentionally injuring
opponents 2) RVD for unintentionally injuring opponents 3) Lex Luger for
being totally unprofessional (slightly more so than Chyna or Buff)

PETER HAZLETT: How many pushes with different partners until they figure
out it isn't the partner, but Gunn himself?

SIMON GRIER: Chyna might be a rolemodel for girls accross the world by
having lots of plastic surgery and going in Playboy, but that won't make
wrestling fans cheer for you. And who the hell would cheer for Gunn or
Sid?

JOHN C.: Nash, Bagwell and Luger are three lazy workers that typified why
WCW went out of business. They're even worse than Billy Gunn and that's
saying something.

SCOTT CHRIST: Test suuuucks.

JOE GENTILE: I guess anyone who could ruin the biggest angle in the
history of wrestling with a single match really deserves this award, don't
you, Buff? I don't know what you call what The Undertaker does in the
ring, but it is NOT working. Tommy Dreamer, It just hurts seeing you stand
there on TV.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Undertaker. Bagwell. Chyna. You may see an odd
correlation between these votes and my picks for worst wrestler. Odd,
that...

YNAE316: They ARE the weakest link.  Goodbye.

SHANE SPEAR: Luger, Adams, and X-Pac could be the three worst wrestlers
I've seen in some time.  It's almost an instant way of making sure the
fans change the channel.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Least Favourite Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler you like the least, regardless of the reason.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Hulk Hogan
  1992: Hulk Hogan
  1993: Hulk Hogan
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Hulk Hogan
  1998: Hollywood Hogan
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Hulk Hogan

**2001**: Buff Bagwell

275 first place votes
268 second place votes
258 third place votes

 45 31 19  356   Buff Bagwell
 32 30 22  294   Chyna
 26 35 16  267   Billy Gunn
 32 14 22  246   Undertaker
 22 13 17  183   X-Pac
 11  9  7   96   Shane McMahon
 10 10  7   94   Kevin Nash
 10  4  7   76   Rock
  7  5 10   70   Albert
 10  4  3   68   Test
  5  6  7   57   Big Show
  7  2  6   53   Lita
  3 10  4   53   Scotty 2 Hotty
  4  7  5   51   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  1  9  9   50   Road Dogg
  1  5  8   36   Justin Credible
  3  3  4   32   Shane Douglas
  1  4  7   31   Hugh Morrus
  4  2  2   30   Diamond Dallas Page
  2  4  4   30   Shawn Stasiak
  3  1  4   26   Triple H
  3  2  2   25   Booker T
  3  1  3   24   Kane
  2  2  4   24   Rikishi
  1  3  5   24   Lex Luger
  1  4  3   23   Scott Steiner
  1  3  4   22   Jeff Hardy
  2  1  3   19   Matt Hardy
  2  0  4   18   Bull Buchanan
  1  3  1   16   Tazz
  1  2  2   15   Rob van Dam
  1  2  2   15   Rick Steiner
  1  1  3   14   Steve Austin
  1  2  1   13   K-Kwik
  0  2  3   12   Chuck Palumbo
  1  2  0   11   Chris Benoit
  0  3  1   11   Goldberg
  2  0  0   10   Masahiro Chono
  1  1  1   10   Rhyno
  1  1  1   10   Jeff Jarrett
  1  1  1   10   Goodfather
  0  2  2   10   Crash
  1  1  0    8   Zandig
  1  1  0    8   Stacy Keibler
  1  1  0    8   Mitsuharu Misawa
  1  0  1    7   Big Bossman
  0  1  2    7   Sal E. Graziano
  0  2  0    6   Genichiro Tenryu
  1  0  0    5   Tajiri
  1  0  0    5   Road Warrior Animal
  1  0  0    5   Lance Storm
  1  0  0    5   Kurt Angle
  1  0  0    5   Konnan
  1  0  0    5   Bagwell
  0  1  1    5   Tommy Dreamer
  0  1  1    5   Spike Dudley
  0  0  2    4   Bradshaw
  0  1  0    3   Vince McMahon
  0  1  0    3   Vampiro
  0  1  0    3   Torrie Wilson
  0  1  0    3   Terri Gold
  0  1  0    3   Tatsutoshi Goto
  0  1  0    3   Swinger
  0  1  0    3   Supreme
  0  1  0    3   Kanyon
  0  1  0    3   Hulk Hogan
  0  1  0    3   Faarooq
  0  1  0    3   David Flair
  0  1  0    3   Buff Bagwell(NO)
  0  1  0    3   Bubba Ray Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Bryan Adams
  0  0  1    2   Yutaka Yoshie
  0  0  1    2   Wifebeater
  0  0  1    2   Toshiaki Kawada
  0  0  1    2   Tiger Ali Singh
  0  0  1    2   Terrii
  0  0  1    2   Stone Mountain
  0  0  1    2   Sid Vicious
  0  0  1    2   Perry Saturn
  0  0  1    2   Nova
  0  0  1    2   Hurricane
  0  0  1    2   Hardcore Holly
  0  0  1    2   Haku
  0  0  1    2   Edge
  0  0  1    2   Billy Kidman
  0  0  1    2   "Tie" votes(NO)

RYAN HALL: Chyna, Taker, Morrus.  Could someone ask 'The Rick' why they
signed Morrus in the first place?

EDDIE BURKETT: At live events, I try not to make ANY sound for these guys,
lest it be mistaken for actual heat.  Although Vince put on an
entertaining match at Wrestlemania, it should be the wrestler's jobs, not
his.  As for DDP, I didn't like him as the stalker.  His new gimmick is
mildly amusing, so he only gets 3rd.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Bagwell gets the trifecta.

JESSE HARALDSON: I have gottn so tired of all of the Chris Benoit gushing
on the web that it just bugs me to see him on TV now.  The guy is a good
worker with a good moveset but he has no personality and cuts interviews
that would make Ken Shamrock ashamed.

TEDB512: Nash, Big Show, and Taker possess, combined, everything negative
about professional wrestling.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: If Road Dogg got fired, was this really such a bad year
after all?

GREG NECASTRO: I like goofy wrestlers, but Scotty 2 Hotty is too much goof
for me.

SCOTT WORDEN: Least Favorite is the Taker..  Don't like watching the guy..
I can get pissed watching him..  Same with Chyna..

SEAN FLYNN: I don't like the Undertaker.  I think he sucks the meat
missile.  Unlike other categories, that's all the justification I need to
vote him into first place in this one.  Billy Gunn gets second for being
an even worse version of Lex Luger, which I never would have imagined
possible.  Justin Credible gets third just for being himself.

CANZ: I think I'd hate Chris Benoit less if people refrained from
gathering in mobs of pitch-fork, torch wielding thugs to persecute me for
not ruining a new pair of pants every time he's on TV.

DONNY L: I hate Chyna I hate her so much, she feels it's okay for MEN to
sell for her but when she starts wrestling the women she doesn't feel like
they deserve the same respect.  I hate her for that

SIMON GRIER: Have I mentioned yet that I hate Chyna? An absolute
embarassment to the industry, well done Vince for getting rid of her. What
haven't I mentioned yet? Yeah, she still looks like a man even after
everything Vince paid. Buff Bagwell was a selfish jerk in WCW but I didn't
expect him to be enough of an idiot to continue his behaviour in the WWF
and MECW. Thankfully he was though, and is hopefully now working in
K-Mart. Or even worse, XPW. His partner in Crime Luger is also a welcome
removal from the fed.

ESTRAGAND: The fact that I'm voting for Shane McMahon in ANY category
involving the word "Wrestler" just annoys me to no end.

JOHN C.: Bagwell easily wins because I never thought he was a good
wrestler but this year he managed to suck even more than normal. At least
Chyna and Goldberg faked injuries long enough for me not to dislike them
as much. Is it any wonder that none of these people are involved with the
WWF now?

SCOTT CHRIST: Test can damn go to hell.

JOE GENTILE: God, I hate Chyna. I'm so glad she is gone. She had NO
talent, sucked in the ring, and had a voice that Horseshack from Welcome
Back Kotter wouldn't want.  Buff, screw you for what you did to the
Invasion, and Undertaker, please go away.

PIEMAN: Is there anyone left in the Buff Bagwell fan club?

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Well, I never thought anyone could beat out the likes
of X-Pac, Billy Gunn and Rock for this most prestigious of awards, and
yet, somehow, Undertaker manages to do so handily. Congratulations, Mark.
Now bugger off. Permanently. *Now*. (And I used to rather like him,
too...) X-Pac gets second, cause he's X-Pac. Rock gets third. He's a
pretty good wrestler and all, but I still hate his guts.

YNAE316: Shane McMahon, some cool spots, but NOT a wrestler, much less a
main eventer...

SHANE SPEAR: I've always hated X-Pac.  It could be the fact that his hair
is so greasy.  It could be that the most interesting thing about him is
whether or not he's going to have a beard next week.  It could be the fact
that he's a mini-Undertaker.  Anytime he jobs, you know he'll get it back
next week.  Ron Simmons needs to retire about a million times more than
the Undertaker.  I still hate HUGE Morris and his crappy moonsault.

SHAWN MULLIN: I hate Billy Gunn, Albert bores me to tears, and Shawn
Stasiak not only sucks as a wrestler, but he sucks as a one note joke.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Deteriorated Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the person whose skill has deteriorated the most over the
past year. This person should be a shadow of his/her former self.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Dusty Rhodes
  1991: Hulk Hogan
  1992: Hulk Hogan
  1993: Hulk Hogan
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Hulk Hogan
  1997: Roddy Piper
  1998: British Bulldog
  1999: Hulk Hogan
  2000: Undertaker

**2001**: Undertaker

272 first place votes
260 second place votes
249 third place votes

114 21 21  675   Undertaker
 21 16 18  189   Diamond Dallas Page
 10 24 21  164   Tommy Dreamer
 17 18 12  163   Tazz
 16 14  9  140   Buff Bagwell
 10 16 17  132   X-Pac
  9  7 15   96   Ric Flair
  5 14 14   95   Kevin Nash
  7 10 14   93   Raven
  4 12  9   74   Kane
  5 11  6   70   Sting
  3  9 12   66   Road Warrior Animal
  4 12  4   64   Billy Gunn
  6  6  7   62   Perry Saturn
  2  5  8   41   Faarooq
  0  9  7   41   William Regal
  2  8  3   40   Terry Funk
  4  2  4   34   Rock
  3  4  3   33   Chris Jericho
  3  3  3   30   Big Show
  2  4  3   28   Bam Bam Bigelow
  1  3  5   24   Rey Mysterio Jr.
  3  2  1   23   Steve Austin
  3  0  2   19   Masahiro Chono
  2  1  2   17   Lex Luger
  1  4  0   17   Mitsuharu Misawa
  2  1  1   15   Alex Wright
  0  3  1   11   Taka Michinoku
  2  0  0   10   Tatsumi Fujinami
  1  1  1   10   Eddie Guerrero
  1  0  2    9   Jeff Hardy
  1  1  0    8   Rick Steiner
  1  1  0    8   Negro Casas
  0  2  1    8   Lance Storm
  1  0  1    7   Saturn
  1  0  1    7   Mike Awesome
  0  1  2    7   Hurricane
  0  2  0    6   Chyna
  0  0  3    6   Booker T
  1  0  0    5   Tajiri
  1  0  0    5   Lita
  1  0  0    5   Keiji Muto
  1  0  0    5   Akira Taue
  0  1  1    5   Riki Choshu
  0  0  2    4   Jun Akiyama
  0  1  0    3   Test
  0  1  0    3   Scott Hall
  0  1  0    3   Justin Credible
  0  1  0    3   Heavy Metal
  0  1  0    3   Haku
  0  1  0    3   Hacksaw Jim Duggan
  0  1  0    3   Goldberg
  0  1  0    3   Chris Benoit
  0  1  0    3   Bubba Ray Dudley
  0  1  0    3   Bradshaw
  0  1  0    3   Billy Kidman
  0  0  1    2   Triple H
  0  0  1    2   Toshiaki Kawada
  0  0  1    2   Steven Richards
  0  0  1    2   Shane Douglas
  0  0  1    2   Sean O' Haire
  0  0  1    2   Scott Steiner
  0  0  1    2   Rikishi
  0  0  1    2   Gran Hamada
  0  0  1    2   Funaki
  0  0  1    2   Dusty Rhodes
  0  0  1    2   Dustin Rhodes
  0  0  1    2   D-Von Dudley

REJECTED

  1  0  1        Mick Foley
  0  1  0        Hulk Hogan

RYAN HALL: Taker, Gunn, Flair.  Taker needs no explanation.  Gunn is
relegated to Metal.  Flair has saggy boobies.

EDDIE BURKETT: The Undertaker is old.  The Dudleys are getting stale.
They need to find new teams to feud with, or to let Buh Buh on the mic.

HIRO: Tazz got fat.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  The WWF might want to reconsider that "Desire" video
package on the Undertaker that they've been running the past few weeks as
it only serves to remind everybody watching how bad UT has become.

JESSE HARALDSON: DDP went from headling WCW to being squashed by Kane,
Undertaker, Big Show, ect....

VIKRAM BIRRING: Does anybody remember the days when the Lightning Kid and
Jerry Lynn had great matches incessantly? Sean Waltman is the definition
of has-been: One who was once great and now is nothing but a decrepit
fossil of its former self. Tommy Dreamer also comes to mind.

KEN DREILING: How can I have Faarooq in a best category and a bad
category?  Best Brawler/Most Deteriorated...Oh yeah all he can do is brawl
anymore so he's getting damn good at it.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Why does everybody want Flair back? As a mouthpiece?
What, are eight or nine mouthpieces not enough for you? Anybody who wants
him back as a wrestler needs to be hit hard in the back of the head and
reminded that this is 2001. If you want the Flair of 10 or 15 or 20 years
ago, go invent a time machine and get him. I'm fine with him on the
sidelines.

CHIP BOOTS: Terry, just retire.  For real, this time.

SCOTT WORDEN: Taker has gone to shit.  from bad to shit..  shit, from shit
to shittier..  amazing..  It is like he can not be carried anymore..

CHRIS BIRD: Anybody else remember when Tazz was taller than he is wide?

CANZ: My picks are brothers. Both Heavy Metal and Negro Casas are
embarrassingly lazy nowadays. At one time both were in the elite of lucha
libre, now they are both extremely bad.

DONNY L: Can the Undertaker when this 2 years in a row:? every year he
just gets worse, his brother Kane has dropped in my opinion this year

PETER HAZLETT: Undertaker seems to have to really stretch it to get anyone
up in that powerbomb.  As for Regal, I hear he used to be good at this

ESTRAGAND: Not that Bradshaw was ever the Human Workrate Machine, but when
a guy's offense is reduced to ONE clothesline, that doesn't scream
"impressive".

PAUL PROSE: It's sad to see Perry Saturn reduced to fighting about a mop.
When the angle started it was funny, and it got Saturn some TV time, but
when the mop came into play, it ruined the matches he was in.  Hope Perry
can come back as a (sane) wrestler and find a spot on TV again.

KEVIN DOTEN: Sorry Ric, but every time I see you hit the mat, I worry
about you breaking a hip

JOHN C.: DDP, as much as he tries, is really starting to show his age. The
Undertaker improved over last year's performances but he's still in his
late 30s and he's not going to be what he was in the mid '90s. Raven used
to pretty awesome until age and alcohol caught up to him. Sure, he's
"clean"  now but he's too worn down to ever be anything again.

JOE GENTILE: Effort is no longer required as far as the Undertaker is
concerned. No wonder he sucks! There's a reason WHY all Tommy Dreamer does
is ask people "Can I get ya a water? Can I get ya a Coffee? Can I get ya a
Protien Bar???", he can't do anything else!  Ric, you have been and always
will be gold on the microphone, but please don't tarnish your legacy in
the ring anymore.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I didn't vote for UT here last year for some reason. To
make up for this obvious lack of judgement I shall, instead, happily vote
for him now. After all, the guy's earned it. He's a mere shadow of his
96-97 self, and for someone who was never exactly great, the drop in
quality is astounding. Second is Buff Bagwell. Like UT, he was never a
great wrestler, but just a few years ago he was at least a pretty decent
one. Now look at him... Hurricane gets third. I love the gimmick and all,
but his in-ring work's nowhere near where it was last year.

MATTY TONKIN: Its all about how they're booked, but all three of them
(Tazz, Storm & Awesome) could have been great in the WWF, but are now
nothing but a joke. Storm & Awesome were great in ECW & Storm was one of
the best performers in the old WCW, but they got lost in the InVasion. And
as for Tazz, well I just think it's a shame what has happened since his
debut. Nothing has gone right & I dont consider being a color commentator
& being "on TV every week" a worthy role for him.

YNAE316: Buff Bagwell:  Had tons of talent (imho) waaaaaaaaaaaay back in
WCW with Scorpio and the Patriot but seems awfully lazy nowadays... Luger
and Road Warrior Animal:  Actually liked them when I was a kid, but age
seems to have caught up to them

SHANE SPEAR: Faarooq is so broken down that it's sad to watch.  Plus, it's
holding Bradshaw down, which in my opinion is a shame because Bradshaw is
somebody looking to break out someday and it's not happening very fast.
Please retire Faarooq.  Undertaker is next on the list, but he isn't quite
at the level where he has to retire yet, it just means he's not a dominate
as he once was.  Same goes for DDP, who just needs to steer clear for
Vince because it's obvious that he's just a joke now.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Underrated Wrestler

Award Description:

To be given to the person whose ability merits a far greater push than the
person receives. There may be many such people, but the winner of this
award should have the most ability with least push.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Terry Taylor
  1991: Cactus Jack
  1992: Owen Hart
  1993: Chris Benoit
  1994: 1-2-3 Kid
  1995: Barry Horowitz
  1996: Owen Hart
  1997: Chris Benoit
  1998: Chris Benoit
  1999: D'Lo Brown
  2000: Al Snow

**2001**: Lance Storm

288 first place votes
282 second place votes
278 third place votes

 28 24 17  246   Lance Storm
 16 16  9  146   Christian
 16  7 12  125   Chavo Guerrero Jr.
 14 11  8  119   Al Snow
 11 11 15  118   Kanyon
  9 17  7  110   D'Lo Brown
  9 12 11  103   Raven
 12  6  5   88   Tajiri
  8  8  8   80   Jerry Lynn
  7  7  9   74   Rhyno
  7  8  7   73   Hurricane
  9  5  6   72   Booker T
 11  4  2   71   Edge
  7  8  4   67   Mike Awesome
  7  7  5   66   Billy Kidman
  5  5  6   52   Val Venis
  4  4  9   50   Rock
  6  5  1   47   Albert
  4  6  4   46   Dean Malenko
  3  7  5   46   Essa Rios
  3  6  6   45   X-Pac
  4  6  3   44   Taka Michinoku
  3  5  7   44   Tazz
  5  2  5   41   Rob van Dam
  2  5  6   37   William Regal
  5  1  1   30   Mike Sanders
  3  3  3   30   Eddie Guerrero
  3  2  4   29   Mighty Molly
  3  2  3   27   Perry Saturn
  3  3  1   26   Bubba Ray Dudley
  2  5  0   25   Matt Hardy
  2  3  3   25   Kaz Hayashi
  3  2  0   21   Naohiro Hoshikawa
  1  2  5   21   Steve Blackman
  3  1  1   20   Elix Skipper
  3  1  1   20   Chris Jericho
  3  1  1   20   American Dragon
  1  2  4   19   Diamond Dallas Page
  1  4  0   17   DISQO
  2  0  3   16   Chuck Palumbo
  1  1  4   16   Trish Stratus
  0  0  8   16   Steven Richards
  1  2  2   15   Riot
  0  3  3   15   Tommy Dreamer
  1  1  3   14   Funaki
  0  2  4   14   Jason Jett
  2  1  0   13   Satoshi Kojima
  1  2  1   13   K-Kwik
  2  0  1   12   Billy Gunn
  1  1  2   12   Kane
  1  2  0   11   Low Ki
  1  0  3   11   Doug Williams
  0  2  2   10   Test
  1  0  2    9   Sean O'Haire
  1  1  0    8   Steve Austin
  1  1  0    8   El Samurai
  1  1  0    8   Dr. Luther
  1  1  0    8   Chris Benoit
  0  0  4    8   Big Show
  0  2  0    6   Undertaker
  0  2  0    6   Hugh Morrus
  0  2  0    6   Black Dragon
  0  0  3    6   Takehiro Murahama
  0  0  3    6   Shane McMahon
  1  0  0    5   Yoshiko Tamura
  1  0  0    5   Wendi Wheels
  1  0  0    5   Triple H
  1  0  0    5   Tigre Blanco
  1  0  0    5   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  1  0  0    5   Spike
  1  0  0    5   Osamu Nishimura
  1  0  0    5   Olimpico
  1  0  0    5   Noki-A
  1  0  0    5   Nick Berk
  1  0  0    5   Mitsuya Nagai
  1  0  0    5   Masa Fuchi
  1  0  0    5   Kumiko Makaewa
  1  0  0    5   Kidman
  1  0  0    5   Kid Kash
  1  0  0    5   Juventud Guerrera
  1  0  0    5   Jungle Grrrl
  1  0  0    5   Jeff Hardy
  1  0  0    5   Jacqueline
  1  0  0    5   Guido Maritato
  1  0  0    5   Crowbar
  1  0  0    5   Crash
  1  0  0    5   Bam Bam Bigelow
  1  0  0    5   Alexis Laree
  0  1  1    5   Momoe Nakanishi
  0  1  1    5   Molly Holly
  0  1  1    5   Kurt Angle
  0  0  2    4   Kodo Fuyuki
  0  1  0    3   Zumbido
  0  1  0    3   Vinny Massaro
  0  1  0    3   Silver King
  0  1  0    3   Sheigo Okumura
  0  1  0    3   Shawn Stasiak
  0  1  0    3   Saturn
  0  1  0    3   Reckless Youth
  0  1  0    3   Mr. Gannosuke
  0  1  0    3   Latin Lover
  0  1  0    3   Keiji Muto
  0  1  0    3   Hardcore Holly
  0  1  0    3   Gedo
  0  1  0    3   Christopher Daniels
  0  1  0    3   CW Anderson
  0  1  0    3   Boom Boom the Volcano
  0  1  0    3   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  0  1  0    3   Bam Bam Bambi
  0  1  0    3   Azumi Hyuga
  0  0  1    2   Tatsuhito Takaiwa
  0  0  1    2   Survival Tobita
  0  0  1    2   Super Dragon
  0  0  1    2   Steve Corino
  0  0  1    2   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  0  0  1    2   Seijin AKKI
  0  0  1    2   Scott Steiner
  0  0  1    2   Sandman
  0  0  1    2   Poison
  0  0  1    2   Naomichi Marufuji
  0  0  1    2   Mario Mancini
  0  0  1    2   Lady Victoria
  0  0  1    2   Judo Suwa
  0  0  1    2   Jane Blond
  0  0  1    2   Jamie Knoble
  0  0  1    2   Ivory
  0  0  1    2   Farah the Persian Princess
  0  0  1    2   Chilly Willy
  0  0  1    2   Carlos Amano
  0  0  1    2   Bryan Clarke
  0  0  1    2   Bradshaw

RYAN HALL: Regal, Christian, Lynn.  Maybe they're saving Regal for when
Benoit comes back.  Lynn could easily spark a light-heavyweight division.

EDDIE BURKETT: Matt Hardy and Christian have lived in the shadows of their
tag team partners for too long.  Matt's singles run with the Euro title
earlier this year was good, but he lacked fresh competition (or compelling
booking).  Test is getting pushed, but I think too many people don't see
his ability, which he should demonstrate given time.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Until D'Lo Brown gets his chance again, he should win this
category every year. Accidents are horrible, but still, Vince can forgive
him. It has been about two years, you know. TAKA wrestled excellent
matches when he was in Japan. He can be a great babyface, or a hated heel.
If given the chance, many are convinced he has the ability to be a great
one. Ditto with Tajiri.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: I'm a little confused when people compare Christian to
Marty Jannetty. In case you haven't noticed, Christian doesn't suck. Yeah,
he'll never be WWF champion (unless he hits the juice!), but the guy is
more than deserving of immense respect and a spot at the top of the card.
He's become very good in the ring, he's got a "great look," as JR says,
and he's probably one of the top three or so promo guys in the WWF.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: Where's Crash?  I loved his stuff on Metal, now I can
find him at all!  He knows his stuff; it's too bad he doesn't have a real
finisher.

CHIP BOOTS: Mike Sanders needs to get on TV.

SCOTT WORDEN: Most underrated.  Al Snow yet again.. The Rodney Dangerfield
in wrestling.  no respect I tell ya.  Same foes for Storm and Raven..  So
many to list that are wasted.

CHARLIE CAMPBELL: So sue me, I voted for Billy Gunn...He had two bad
matches with Benoit and HHH and people want to crucify him.  He's been
pretty good since them, and he can still pop a crowd.

SEAN FLYNN: I think one day Bubba Ray will have a major singles push in
his future. He's big, has incredible stamina and agility for someone his
size (otherwise he never would have made it in the TLC matches), and can
be an incredible promo guy when need be.  Second is D'Lo who I miss and
hope returns one day to reclaim HIS European title.  Third is the only
thing I miss from WOW, and that's Riot.  She was fun, not horrible in the
ring, and had a charisma that was of a level not deserving of being in
WOW.

MARK POLISHUK: Chavo Guerrero could be such a major star, but the WWF
never let him do anything besides get beaten up in Alliance run-ins.

CANZ: Someone needs to push Olimpico and Zumbido before they get old and
fat and is pushed anyway. The Rock really isn't as bad as people say.

SHOCKER 2K: Rhyno used to be just one of those ECW guys who was gven the
title because he was there. When he arrived in the WWF, he was forced to
step up his game if he wanted to be there. And he did. Rhyno's been
absolutely amazing this year, and when he returns next year, he'll be a
sure-fire monster.

DONNY L: This is pretty interesting, I think it's a shame that Lance Storm
didn't get any push after the first few months of the Invasion. He's so
solid in the ring and pretty darm good on the mic, he should have been a
"A" show guy every week. Trish in 2nd I think she's still looked upon as
just the sexy blonde, I think she's pretty darn good. I think DDP still
could be pretty useful and the WWF has given up on him.

ESTRAGAND: Crowbar worked a WWF dark match in July, and was never seen
again? Blasphemy sez I. "We need...some wrestlers from the back. Can we
get some wrestlers from the back.."

JOHN C.: Christian is the best young wrestler in the business today. He
has the look, the workrate, the charisma, the mic work and the gimmick to
be a major player soon. Chavo Jr. was one of the few bright spots in WCW's
last days yet the WWF failed to use him when they acquired him. He's a
hard worker with good charisma that needs to be utilized a lot more. D'Lo
Brown has gone from a guy with the potential label two years ago to
somebody who got sent to the minor leagues. That's a shame because I
really think he's a solid all around talent.

JOE GENTILE: Tajiri was scorching hot at one time. Man, did the WWF kill
that heat. Kidman had an off-year, but can be used much better. I think
Trish Stratus is alot more talented than people give her credit for.

PIEMAN: I really don't think Christian gets enough credit for his
wrestling ability.  I think he has the whole package of wrestling skills
and excellent mic work.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Why is Lance Storm being buried? Did he forget to buy
Vince McMahon a birthday present? Did he show up for work one day half a
pound overweight? Did he accidentally step on the Undertaker's toe? I
mean, the man's one of the best wrestlers in the world, he was over huge
when he first debuted in the WWF, and then as IC champion. Then he jobs to
Edge and promptly vanishes from prime time! For shame. Raven and D-Lo,
both fine wrestlers who are being completely wasted, get second and third.

CHRIS LENING: TAKA Michinoku put on superb matches in five minutes, got
over on a silly gimmick, and generally continued to rule, and it pains me
he is not surrounded by title belts and adoration. Matt Hardy is just a
bunch of fun to watch. And Super Dragon may be the most overlooked of the
great crop of indy workers, especially after putting in an amazing
performance against Rising Son in a 2/3 falls match, which might be the
least typically "indy" independent match I've ever seen. It wasn't
gimmicky or spotty or hesitant. It was just a great match. Dragon has a
presence and an in-ring poise even some workers in major feds seem to
lack.

MATTY TONKIN: I have heard he has already been released, but I wished the
WWF could have found something for Essa Rios, one of the best in-ring
performers they had. Raven was fine as Hardcore champ, & then along came
the InVasion again & he disappears off to Jobberville, like all his team
mates.

YNAE316: Christian & Matt Hardy:  Unjustly labeled the "Jannetty" of their
groups.  Thing is, Jannetty was actually pretty decent himself.
Christian and Matt actually work better matches than Edge and Jeff.
Honestly, aside from his high-spots I think Jeff sucks!!!  Edge did same
great promos (on Billy Gunn and X-pac) but Christian actuallys gives
(always did actually) WAAAAY better promos than Edge.  Christian just
SOUNDS better on the mic than Edge. Jane Blond:  Actually had some GREAT
matches in WOW (especially with Roxy Powers) but was just a jobber.  A WOW
jobber who could actually WORK!!!

JEREMY SORIA: Basically the former Natural Born Thrillers.  They are good,
people. The WWF refused to give them a chance. If they weren't ready for
Raw, then leave them on SmackDown!, Heat, or Jakked/Metal (or whatever
their syndicated show is called now).

SHANE SPEAR: I miss D-Lo.  He was obviously the best talent the WWF had
going before they acted like he had the plague for that one move.  THey
said that they will be bringing him back soon, and I hope that's the truth
because they could really use him, in my opinion.  Essa Rios is somebody
that could light a fire in the light-heavyweight division, but since that
divious doesn't really matter, Essa get put on the "C" shows now.  Sad.
FInally, there's Albert, who has dissapeared after an I-C title reign that
really wasn't that bad.

ROB EVANS: Kidman has to win here.  Whenever I see him I think "Bret Hart
when he became a single's wrestler."  Somebody get Kidman a leather
jacket, sunglasses, and a push.

RYAN FAULCONER: Tigre Blanco does the flippy jumpy spinny stuff as good as
anyone but nobody talks about him. Gedo gets second because there are too
many people out there that still think he sucks. People thought the world
was flat at one time as well but even they eventually changed their minds.
The Gedo bashers are relentless

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: American Dragon is one of the top ten wrestlers in
the world, and no one knows it... yet.  Three, four, maybe five years from
now he's the next Benoit.  William Regal is so much better than he's able
to show on TV, and I blame that on Vince McMahon.  Doug Williams is
damned, damned good, and will be known soon in the world.

THE CUBS FAN: Jungle Grrl was so far and away a good worker getting great
(not a "good female worker", mind you, no qualifier needed) and so far and
above the WWF women (even Molly, who hasn't been helped by wrestling once
a month) that it make me sad when people talk about Lita being a great
wrestler. She had the moves, she seemed to be learning the psychology, she
had ring presence, she had the interview ablity (in multiple languages)
and she even has that exotic look (ie brown hair) they ended up finding in
Nidia. And she did it all barefoot! This is one of the really sad
disappiontment of WOW - if they had kept going and were running shows now,
and they kept progressing from show to show (the jumps in ring ability
from taping to taping were remarkable), not only would more people realize
what they were accomplishing, it'd could've changed the business. That
sounds unrealistic, but a promotion featuring women with goofy characters
and goofy storylines and three star and higher wrestling (and maybe even
making money at that point) seemed possible. Now? Footnote.

SHAWN MULLIN: How is it that wrestling companies are so blind to how
easily Lance Storm can get over as a heel?  The man, with absolutely no
time to develop a repour with WWF fans, was massively over as a heel IC
champ.  Yet he was ridiculously de-pushed to Hurricane's sidekick, and he
meant less and less each week.  DDP was a former world champion, a man who
could and can work really good matches in the right context, and someone
who had real ties to WCW.  So, what did the WWF do with him?  Turned him
into a stalker, put him in a no-win situation against the Undertaker,
destroyed his credibility and turned him into a cartoon character.
Absolutely disgusting.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Wrestling Gimmick

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestler who had the worst character gimmick in the
past year.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Mike Rotundo as Irwin R. Shyster
  1992: Papa Shango's voodoo
  1993: Doink the Clown
  1994: Doink the Clown
  1995: Dungeon of Doom
  1996: The Leprechaun
  1997: Glacier / Blood Runs Cold
  1998: Warrior appears in "strange mist" / forms One Warrior Nation
  1999: Beaver Cleavage (Chaz)
  2000: That 70's Guy / Not a Mullet / Fat Chick Thriller / Career Killer
        Mike Awesome

**2001**: Diamond Dallas Page as Sara's Stalker

275 first place votes
266 second place votes
262 third place votes

 42 37 12  345   Diamond Dallas Page as Sara's Stalker
 36 28 25  314   Lo Down as turban wearing charges of Tiger Ali Singh
 29 20 20  245   "The One" Billy Gunn
 12 17 21  153   Road Dogg and K-Kwik as rappers
 15 14 15  147   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley as owner of ECW
 15 14 11  139   Perry Saturn gets dizzy, falls for mop
 10 16 11  120   Right to Censor
 13 10  7  109   WCW/ECW Alliance
 11  9  9  100   Chyna as Women's champ, role model
 12  6  7   92   Diamond Dallas Page as self-improvement guru
  6 13 10   89   Misfits in Action
 10  6  8   84   Shane McMahon as unpredictable athlete
  8  8 10   84   Undertaker as American Bad Ass
  7  5  9   68   Buff Bagwell
  7  6  5   63   Hurricane as real life superhero
  4  4 13   58   X Factor
  2  6  7   42   Spike Dudley as Little Show
  3  4  7   41   Big Show, Big All Over
  4  3  3   35   X-Pac looks for respect
  1  5  7   34   Kwee Wee develops split personality named Angry Allan
  2  3  4   27   Tazz as guy who's pissed at Maven / everyone in general
  2  2  3   22   Jerry Lawler
  1  3  4   22   Scotty 2 Hotty
  2  3  1   21   Kurt Angle obsessed with breaking people's ankles
  2  1  4   21   Jim Ross being likable
  1  2  5   21   Shawn Stasiak as human Wile E. Coyote
  1  2  2   15   Mighty Molly as Hurricane's sidekick
  0  0  6   12   Tajiri, Torrie Wilson as a couple
  2  0  0   10   Test
  1  1  1   10   Slam Dunk
  1  1  1   10   Rock
  1  1  1   10   Albert
  1  1  0    8   Kurt Angle, milk drinking American hero
  1  1  0    8   Kane
  1  1  0    8   K-Kwik
  0  1  2    7   Tanja the Warrior Woman
  0  2  0    6   Terri Gold loves the kids
  1  0  0    5   Scott Steiner as Genetic Freak
  1  0  0    5   Mr. McMahon
  1  0  0    5   Mae Young as Gobbledygooker (?)
  1  0  0    5   Linda McMahon drugged up
  1  0  0    5   Jane Blond
  1  0  0    5   Genichiro Tenryu as "tradition smasher"
  1  0  0    5   Debra as The Cookie-Baking, Submissive Wife
  1  0  0    5   Chris Benoit as a "badass"
  1  0  0    5   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter
  0  1  1    5   Raven as smart guy who uses big words
  0  1  1    5   Boom Boom the Volcano
  0  1  0    3   Vince, Triple H & Austin teaming up for no real reason
  0  1  0    3   Team Xtreme
  0  1  0    3   Rhyno
  0  1  0    3   Lance Storm "Without Canada, Just Play Dull Guy"
  0  1  0    3   Ivory
  0  1  0    3   Fat Ohtani learns from defeat
  0  1  0    3   Eddie Guerrero Hangin' with the Hardy Boyz
  0  1  0    3   Booker T as a Wannabe Rock
  0  0  1    2   Wendi Wheels
  0  0  1    2   WAR
  0  0  1    2   Thurston R. Throckmorton III
  0  0  1    2   Justin Credible
  0  0  1    2   Goodfather
  0  0  1    2   Duchess of Queensbury
  0  0  1    2   Caged Heat

REJECTED

  0  0  1        Vince's Ass (time ineligible)
  0  0  1        "Tie" votes

RYAN HALL: Chaz, the fun lovin' Beaver Cleavin' Bin Laden look alike from
New Jersey!

EDDIE BURKETT: Lo Down in turbans did NOTHING to get two decent wrestlers
over with the crowd AT ALL.  If anything, it worked against them.  DDP was
never too believable as the stalker.  What does "the One" mean anyway?
The one of what???

HIRO: I can't believe Perry Saturn actually agreed to do this gimmick. The
things some people would do just to hold on to their jobs.

KEN DREILING: DDP/Stalker; I know WWF doesn't care about past storylines
from WCW; but DDP has always been about coming up from nothing to achieve
greatness.  His first WWF storyline is what?...Trying to beat one man for
instant fame.  Totally opposite of DDP's past character for years.
RDogg/K-Kwik The reason Too Cool worked was becuase other than the fact
they were flat out hysterical, everyone could tell it was a joke and they
were making fun of people.  RDogg/Kwik were a little too serious, Too Cool
was already doing well with a psuedo hip-hop gimmick, and wrestling fans
stereotypically are not that big of hip-hop fans.  Shane McMahon/athlete
seeing a normal guy wrestle and win just kills so much of the credibility
and our suspension of disbelief.

CHIP BOOTS: Chyna just doesn't work as a face Women's champ.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst thing was Chyna as the woman's champ..  and you
thought Harvey winning was bad.  That whole Perry Saturn turned out to be
absolutely nothing worth remembering.

CHRIS BIRD: Shane McMahon as a main-eventer. Uh huh. I think I'd prefer to
see Friar Ferguson in the main event before I see Shane again and those
stupid juke-and-jive punches. I knew Road Dogg, sir, and you are no Road
Dogg.

SEAN FLYNN: The Undertaker as the American Fat.er Bad Ass is just awful.
A big no-selling uninteresting redneck.  I've got cousins who can do that
for me for free, I don't need it on my tv.  DDP as stalker was an idea
that could have been interesting, but fell into the vortex of suck and
politics that is the Undertaker.  And Steph as the owner of ECW is
blasphemy, pure heresy.

CANZ: Do people really think Benoit is a bad ass?

DONNY L: Chyna womens champion, SHE is beneath even that title, not
vise-versa, DDP as a stalker is an awful way to bring him in, Lo Down in
turbans is offensive even for the WWF

PETER HAZLETT: Not bad gimmicks really, just very poorly done.

SIMON GRIER: Just why does Chyna think she's such a role model? And why
does she expect sympathy from the WWF's demographic? Just Shut up, Joanie.
And you won't even get to Hollywood, let alone succeed there. Lo Down's
turban-bearing shenanigens wasn't funny and didn't get them over while
insulting millions of WWF fans. The WWF failed to realise that for a
stupid thing like Moppy to get over its owner would have to be over in the
first place. Socko was over because of Foley. Moppy wasn't over because of
Saturn.

ESTRAGAND: A comic book-related gimmick would appeal to all sorts of
wrestling/comic nerds..if it was done right. Instead, the Hurricane is
reduced to cliched/steretypical comic book crap like "the Hurri-cycle",
"mild mannered Gregory Helms" and calling everyone "citizen".

JOHN C.: Is Billy Gunn as "The One" really a gimmick or a bad nickname?
Saturn getting dizzy was funny at first and pathetic later on. Seeing Dogg
& Kwik come out to dead silence as they did their rap was painful because
they were trying so hard to get over yet nobody reacted to them because it
was so bad.

JOE GENTILE: Rappers and wrestling don't mix. I hope K-Kwik/Road Dogg will
be the last attempt at this. The Tazz crap just sucked. Tazz, you are such
a BAD ASS, after watching you get squashed for the 40th time, I'd NEVER
mess with you! Undertaker's American BadAss means he no-sells everything
and rides a motercycle. The Gimmick Sucks.

PIEMAN: Oh, here's Billy Gunn again.  The One?  I don't think so.  He's
something, but it's not the one.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: First, Billy Gunn. So what does "the One" mean, anyway?
"The one wrestler guaranteed to interest absolutely no member of fandom?"
Second, K-Kwik and Road Dogg. Yuck. Yuck. Yuck. Musical wrestlers went out
of fashion after Honky Tonk Man lost the intercontinental belt. And
*rapping* wrestlers... were they ever even *in* fashion? Third, we have
Lo-Down in turbans under the expert care of Tiger Ali Singh. What an utter
waste of what could have been a fine team. And how could anyone honestly
think sticking *any* promising team with Singh would *help* them, anyway?
Poor D-Lo.

YNAE316: Mighty Molly as Hurricane's sidekick & Lo Down in turbans:  Talk
about lameand stupid Spike Dudley as Little Show:  Am I GLAD when they put
him back in Dudley fatigues...

SHANE SPEAR: First of all, who let Hugh Morrus lead a group?  Secondly,
who decided that Stephanie should be the owner of ECW?  WHY WHY WHY??

RYAN FAULCONER: Poor Booker T was stuck with the Wannabe Rock gimmick
because the WWF is run by morons..

THE CUBS FAN: Hey, WCW, thanks for taking a guy I adored on Worldwide and
making me want to flip anytime I saw him. I hope you go out of business.

SHAWN MULLIN: The whole Alliance concept was unbelievably stupid.  It's
like the WWF forgot that the whole reason people wouldn't accept WCW as a
face organization was because of how much they hated the brand... yet they
did everything they could (with the Alliance name) to NOT mention WCW and
the history it had with the WWF.  Why even buy WCW!? They could have just
put a big group of WWF wrestlers together who wanted to take over the WWF
and it would have meant just as much as the "Alliance" did.  God, they
missed the whole point, and it really makes me wonder if the writers
understand wrestling at all.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Wrestling Move

Award Description:

To be given to the move that is the worst thing you've seen this year.
This
shouldn't be given to a move that was flubbed by a wrestler - the move was
performed correctly, but was just too stupid for words. This move should
probably be a "finishing" move or something that was meant to be
spectacular.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Hulk Hogan's leg drop
  1991: Hulk Hogan's leg drop
  1992: Crush's Compactor head-vise
  1993: Crush's Compactor head-vise
  1994: Hulk Hogan's leg drop
  1995: Hulk Hogan's leg drop
  1996: Hacksaw Jim Duggan's taped fist
  1997: Hulk Hogan's leg drop
  1998: Hollywood Hogan's legdrop
  1999: Hulk Hogan's legdrop
  2000: Scotty 2 Hotty's Worm chop

**2001**: Chyna's handspring elbow

274 first place votes
265 second place votes
256 third place votes

 42 27 21  333   Chyna's handspring elbow
 40 19 18  293   Scotty 2 Hotty's Worm chop
 13 19 23  168   X-Pac's bronco buster
 15 18  9  147   Rock's People's Elbow elbowdrop
 11 13 16  126   Rikishi's Stinkface
 12 11 13  119   Rock's sharpshooter
 14  3  6   91   Billy Gunn's The One and Only cobra clutch slam
  8 13  6   91   Buff Bagwell's sleeper
  4  9 12   71   Undertaker's Old School ropewalk forearm smash
  9  4  6   69   Billy Gunn's Fame-asser
  7  7  6   68   Big Show's Final Cut
  5 10  6   67   Test's big boot kick
  7  7  5   66   Torrie Wilson's handspring elbow
  7  7  5   66   Rock's Layin' the Smack Down punch
  4  8  6   56   Lita's moonsault
  6  4  6   54   Undertaker's Last Ride powerbomb
  3  7  6   48   Haku's Tongan Death Grip nerve hold
  6  4  2   46   Big Show's Alley-oop
  6  0  7   44   Perry Saturn's catapult into Moppy/turnbuckle
  4  6  3   44   Lita's Litacanrana rana
  5  5  1   42   Chris Jericho's Lionsault quebrada
  3  5  6   42   Chris Jericho's Breakdown forward Russian legsweep
  2  5  3   31   Matt Hardy's second rope legdrop
  1  4  6   29   Dudley Boyz' Wazzup diving headbutt
  2  4  3   28   X-Pac's sleeper
  1  4  4   25   Lita's Twist of Fate neckbreaker
  1  4  3   23   Hurricane's Eye of the Hurricane
  0  4  4   20   Undertaker's jujigatame
  3  0  2   19   Edge's spear
  2  3  0   19   Rhyno's Gore spear
  2  1  3   19   Lance Storm's Canadian Maple Leaf half crab
  2  2  1   18   Rob van Dam's Rolling Thunder senton
  2  1  2   17   X-Pac's X-Factor facebuster
  1  2  2   15   Kurt Angle's anklelock
  2  1  0   13   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter's Farmer's Roll
  1  2  1   13   William Regal's Union Jack neckbreaker
  0  2  2   10   Matt Hardy's Twist of Fate neckbreaker
  1  1  0    8   Slam Dunk's chokeslam
  1  1  0    8   Rock's Rock Bottom uranage
  1  1  0    8   Chris Jericho's Walls of Jericho crab
  1  1  0    8   Billy Kidman's Kid Krusher
  0  2  1    8   Bradshaw's Clothesline from Hell lariat
  0  0  4    8   Spike Dudley's Dudley Dog bulldog
  1  0  1    7   Tazz's Tazzmission kati hajime
  1  0  1    7   Lana Star's mirror to the head
  0  0  3    6   Shane McMahon's shooting star press
  1  0  0    5   Yutaka Yoshie's Thesz Press
  1  0  0    5   Shane McMahon's sharpshooter
  1  0  0    5   Scott Steiner's Steiner Recliner camel clutch
  1  0  0    5   Rob van Dam's van Daminator spin kick into chair
  1  0  0    5   Perry Saturn's punches
  1  0  0    5   Perry Saturn's Moss-covered, Three-Handled Family Gredunza
                 swinging fishermanbuster
  1  0  0    5   Kurt Angle's Angle slam
  1  0  0    5   Jeff Jarrett's Stroke forward Russian legsweep
  1  0  0    5   Jeff Hardy's Swantonbomb senton
  1  0  0    5   Cien Caras' chops
  1  0  0    5   Chris Jericho's bulldog
  1  0  0    5   Big Show's Curtain Call
  0  1  1    5   Kanyon's I'm Better Than You reverse uranage
  0  0  2    4   Slam Dunk's airplane spin
  0  1  0    3   Undertaker's chokeslam
  0  1  0    3   Tank Abbott's punch
  0  1  0    3   Summer's surfboard
  0  1  0    3   Mitsuharu Misawa's tiger suplex
  0  1  0    3   Masa Chono's Yakuza kick
  0  1  0    3   Low Ki's kicks
  0  1  0    3   Farah the Persian Princess' Persian Carpet
  0  1  0    3   Chuck Palumbo's Jungle Kick superkick
  0  1  0    3   Chris Jericho's running forearm
  0  1  0    3   Booker T's Book End uranage
  0  1  0    3   Billy Gunn's jackhammer
  0  1  0    3   Big Show's chokeslam
  0  0  1    2   Shane McMahon's jumping chairshot
  0  0  1    2   Scotty 2 Hotty's bulldog
  0  0  1    2   Paisley's handspring elbow
  0  0  1    2   Lotus' handspring elbow
  0  0  1    2   Lita's forearms
  0  0  1    2   Kronik's High Times double uranage
  0  0  1    2   Kane's big boot
  0  0  1    2   Jeff Hardy's double legrop
  0  0  1    2   Jane Blond's missile dropkick
  0  0  1    2   Hardcore Holly's Alabama Slam double leg slam
  0  0  1    2   Great Sasuke's Space Flying Tiger Drop
  0  0  1    2   Dudley Boyz' Dudley Death Drop flapjack/neckbreaker combo
  0  0  1    2   Chyna's giant swing

REJECTED

  1  1  3        Booker T's Spinarooni (not a move)
  1  0  0        Hulk Hogan's legdrop (ineligible time)
  1  0  0        "Tie" votes
  0  0  1        Hulk Hogan's bulldog (ineligible time)
  0  0  1        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Chyna and Torrie:  If I wanted gymnastics I'd watch ABC on
Saturday afternoon.

EDDIE BURKETT: I wanted to vote for Sid's leg breaking jump off the top
rope, but I didn't know if that was eligible.  That said, Torrie Wilson
CAN'T do a handspring elbow, the Tongan Deathgrip LOOKS dumb, and
Undertaker will KILL someone with that move if he isn't careful.

HIRO: The Rock needs to learn on how to properly do the Sharpshooter. He
effectively turned that move into a joke.

KEN DREILING: Don't put Torrie's handspring elbow on TV again.  I've seen
cat turds look better than that.

CHIP BOOTS: Everybody knows that the Hulkster is the only one who can get
away with a legdrop finisher.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst move was Chyna's handspring "elbow"  If they called it
a handspring "back splash" then I would not vote for it..  The Rope walk
has to go, and so does taker.. and Slingshot into Moppy..  oh my!

F-MAN: As Mick Foley said, "The People's Elbow, which is the most
ludicrous thing I have ever seen in wrestling...", and I can't agree with
him more. The part I can't believe is that sometimes, the elbow is The
Rock's finisher, and people are laying down for it! If it was a Randy
Savage top-rope flying elbow, I can see laying down for that, but the
People's Elbow is nothing more than a glorified elbowdrop.

CHRIS BIRD: Chris Jericho's Breakdown deserves special mention in the
"good wrestlers with bad finishers" category. Jeff Jarrett is the only
wrestler who's ever even made the forward Russian legsweep look slightly
good. Jericho's version is a bad version of a clumsy and undramatic
finishing move that should simply be retired immediately.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1.  Show's 4th rate rip-off of Helms' move shows how lazy
Wight is.  He'd have been dumped a year ago had it not ben for his huge
contract.  2.) Chyna's "gingerly back into handspring" must make Muta
cringe every time he sees it.  3.) Has Lita ever actually hit her
opponents' chest with this move?

KEVIN WONG: You know, it's amazing how inconsistent wrestlers can be with
their signature moves.  Chris Jericho, Billy Gunn, and Lotus are all
guilty of that.  Actually, it's not fair to single out Lotus.  Chyna,
Terri Gold AND Torrie Wilson can't do a handspring elbow either...

DONNY L: Stinkface another reason to be shamfull of being a wrestling fan.
Chyna handspring (slowmo)elbow is brutal. Matt Hardy second rope legdrop
o'doom huge set up for such a lame move, the uhhh doens't help it any.

PETER HAZLETT: I like Jericho, but I am not sure I have ever seen him
actually hit this.  As for the Ankle Lock, there are too many ways to get
out of it, more coming every week.  The Broncobuster is just not right.

SIMON GRIER: The One and Only is a ridiculous move. It just looks awful.
The Stroke was a bad move when Jarrett did it *properly*, Y2J's version is
just awful.  A move like The Worm or the People's Elbow is good because it
pops the crowd - but it needs to be set up with a good power move that
would keep a guy down. Rock's spinebuster does it - that pathetic variant
on the bulldog Scott Taylor uses doesn't, and makes the Worm's usage all
the more ridiculous.

PAUL PROSE: I think Test shows a lot of promise, but he really needs a
different finishing move.  Everytime he raises his leg for the big boot I
think "Hogan."  At least it's better than the elbow off the top rope,
which had "Savage" written all over it.

JOHN C.: If you were wrestling with Billy Gunn would you really let him
give you a cobra clutch slam? The guy screws up moves all the time and his
finisher doesn't make him look any better. I know smarks are in love with
Regal but his Union Jack is a weak finisher. Chyna's handspring elbow is
absolutely horrendous to watch. It's like watching a fat guy attempting to
do a cartwheel. The effort is there but there's no way in hell that it's
going to look good.

CHRIS GRIMM: The People's Elbow is insulting to the Rock's opponent,
insulting to the fans and insulting to the sport.  The fact that a simple
elbowdrop is sold as being about as devastating as a gunshot wound is
insane.  The Last Ride is a cool move, in and of itself, but deserves
mention here since the Undertaker comes damn close to crippling someone
with it about once every three weeks.  Remember when he almost dropped
Test on his head about three times?  The Rock's "sharpshooter" basically
only exists so Vince can recreate the Montreal screwjob every six months
or so.  It looks like hell anyway.

SCOTT CHRIST: Chris Jericho's version of the stroke is the worst thing
I've ever seen.

JOE GENTILE: Chyna's Handspring Elbos is the worst.... nah, it's just too
easy, I'll move on.  Why does Matt Hardy make such a big deal of a second
rope legdrop? And then, there's the W-O-R-M which stands for Worst
Offensive Wrestling Move.

PIEMAN: Do you think Lita has actually ever hit anyone with her moonsault?

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: The Worm and the People's Elbow are easily the two
stupidest moves in "Sports Entertainment". So why is it that they're also
two of the most popular? Either deserves to win but the People's Elbow
isn't really a finisher (Rock's proper finish is still the Rock Bottom),
whereas the Worm is (God knows why), so the latter gets the nod. Since
Rikishi was kind enough to bring back the stinkface during his brief,
uneventful return to babyfacedom, I can, fortunately, vote for it in third
place.

YNAE316: Rock's Layin' the Smack Down punch:  Utterly ridiculous Summer's
surfboard:  Actually applied it decently, but actually pushing itas her
potential FINISHER??? Big Show's Alley-oop:  Pretty effective from that
height, but just LOOKS silly...

SHANE SPEAR: The "old school" move sucked back then, and it still sucks
today.  It's just an arm-wrench Michael Cole!  TELL IT LIKE IT IS!  The
final cut and eye of the hurricane were both the same move, and in all
reality, it's just a clothesline while falling down.  Lame.

THE CUBS FAN: No offense to the Great Muta (and maybe Molly) BUT they
should just ban the handspring elbow if so many women are going to do it
so horribely.

MATT SPAULDING: No one nominated the Steiner Recliner?  SHAME on you
people.  Lance Storm's too good to be using suck a crappy finisher.  Same
for Jericho and the Breakdown, which doesn't look good and can never be
sold properly because to do so would break your face. 26.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Match

Award Description:

To be given to the worst wrestling match you've seen this year, either
live, on TV, PPV, or in an arena, or on tape. If it took place in the past
year, it is eligible.

Previous Winners:

  1990: 06/13/90: Ric Flair vs. Junkyard Dog (CoC XI)
  1991: 05/19/91: El Gigante vs. Sid Vicious (SuperBrawl)
  1992: 01/18/92: Beverly Brothers vs. Bushwhackers (Royal Rumble)
  1993: 04/04/93: Hulk Hogan vs. Yokozuna (WrestleMania IX)
  1994: 09/18/94: Jim Duggan vs. Steve Austin (Fall Brawl)
  1995: 03/19/95: Hulk Hogan vs. Vader (Uncensored)
  1996: 03/24/96: Hulk Hogan & Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair & Arn Anderson &
                  Lex Luger & Kevin Sullivan & Meng & Barbarian & Ze Gangsta
                  & Ultimate Solution (Uncensored)
  1997: 10/26/97: Hulk Hogan vs. Rowdy Roddy Piper (cage) (Halloween Havoc)
  1998: 10/25/98: Hollywood Hogan vs. Warrior (Halloween Havoc)
  1999: 09/26/99: Al Snow vs. Big Boss Man (Kennel from Hell) (Unforgiven)
  2000: 06/25/00: Pat Patterson vs. Gerald Brisco (hardcore evening gown)

**2001**: 07/02/01: Booker T (WCW) v. Buff Bagwell (RAW)

257 first place votes
238 second place votes
234 third place votes

 87 27 16  548   07/02/01 Booker T (WCW) v. Buff Bagwell (RAW)
 36 35 18  321   09/23/01 Undertaker & Kane (WCW tag) v. Kronik
 18 20 25  200   08/20/01 Diamond Dallas Page v. Sara (RAW)
 13 23  5  144   01/21/01 Ivory (Women's) v. Chyna
  9 17 14  124   06/24/01 Undertaker v. Diamond Dallas Page (confrontation)
  9 12 17  115   07/22/01 Earl Hebner v. Nick Patrick
  5 18 16  111   08/19/01 Kane & Undertaker (WCW tag) v. Diamond Dallas Page
                          & Kanyon (WWF tag) (cage)
  8 10  9   88   10/29/01 Vince McMahon v. Shane McMahon (RAW street fight)
  5  9 18   88   04/01/01 Ivory (Women's) v. Chyna
  8  6 14   86   11/26/00 Mancow v. Jimmy Hart
  7  8  6   71   01/14/01 Totally Buff v. Goldberg & Sarge Dewayne Bruce
  6  4  7   56   01/14/01 Scott Steiner (WCW) v. Sid Vicious v. Jeff Jarrett
                          v. Road Warrior Animal
  6  7  1   53   04/01/01 Twenty Man Gimmick Battle Royal
  2  6 11   50   04/29/01 Chris Jericho v. William Regal (Duchess of Queensbury)
  4  5  4   43   02/26/01 Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley & William Regal v. Trish
                          Stratus & Vince McMahon
  1  2  5   21   04/16/01 Jeff Hardy (IC) v. Triple H (RAW)
  3  1  0   18   10/18/01 Maven v. Tazz (SmackDown!)
  2  0  4   18   02/18/01 Rick Steiner (US) v. Dustin Rhodes
  2  1  2   17   02/25/01 Jerry Lawler v. Steven Richards
  1  2  3   17   07/22/01 William Regal v. Raven
  1  1  4   16   01/14/01 Team Canada v. Filthy Animals (Penalty Box)
  2  1  1   15   11/19/00 Steve Austin v. Triple H (no DQ)
  0  4  1   14   10/22/01 Hurricane (Euro) v. Bradshaw (RAW)
  2  1  0   13   03/18/01 Chuck Palumbo & Shawn O'Haire (tag) v. Totally Buff
  1  0  4   13   04/29/01 Steve Austin (WWF) & Triple H (IC) v. Undertaker &
                          Kane (tag)
  1  0  4   13   02/18/01 Scott Steiner (WCW) v. Kevin Nash (loser leaves
                          town, no DQ, FCA)
  1  1  2   12   12/10/00 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Rock v. Triple H v. Rikishi v.
                          Undertaker v. Steve Austin (Hell in the Cell)
  2  0  0   10   09/??/01 Giant Silva v. Scott Norton
  2  0  0   10   06/04/01 Trish Stratus v. Terri (bra and panties)
  2  0  0   10   02/04/01 Selina Majors v. Thug (cage)
  1  1  0    8   10/26/01 Vampire Warrior v. Luna Vachon (Black Wedding)
  1  1  0    8   10/08/01 X-Pac (LtHvy) v. Scotty 2 Hotty (RAW)
  0  1  2    7   10/26/01 Adara James v. Queen Bee v. Violet Terossi v. Danny
                          Dominion (Skin To Win)
  0  1  2    7   07/22/01 Trish Stratus & Lita v. Torrie Wilson & Stacy
                          Keibler (bra and panties tag)
  0  2  0    6   04/01/01 Chris Jericho (IC) v. William Regal
  0  0  3    6   08/19/01 Booker T (WCW) v. Rock
  1  0  0    5   11/19/00 Rock v. Rikishi
  1  0  0    5   08/06/01 Rock v. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley (RAW) (? - maybe
                          they meant Rock v. Shane street fight?)
  1  0  0    5   07/06/01 Masa Chono & Scott Hall v. Keiji Muto & Jinsei
                          Shinzaki
  1  0  0    5   05/20/01 Triple H (IC) v. Kane (chain)
  1  0  0    5   04/01/01 Rock (WWF) v. Steve Austin
  1  0  0    5   03/01/01 Cien Caras v. Perro Aguayo
  0  1  1    5   09/17/01 Rock v. Test & Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley (RAW
                          handicap)
  0  1  1    5   07/22/01 APA (WWF tag) v. Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire (WCW
                          tag)
  0  1  1    5   05/20/01 Steve Austin (WWF) v. Undertaker (NHB)
  0  1  1    5   02/04/01 Jane Blond v. Tanja the Warrior Woman
  0  1  0    3   11/12/00 Jado & Gedo & Kaori Nakayama v. Pat Tanaka & Brad
                          Elliot & Damian Blade
  0  1  0    3   10/01/01 Booker T & Test & Rob van Dam v. Chris Jericho &
                          Kane & Undertaker (RAW)
  0  1  0    3   08/09/01 Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire (WCW tag) v.
                          Undertaker & Kane (SmackDown!)
  0  1  0    3   06/24/01 Kurt Angle v. Shane McMahon (street fight)
  0  1  0    3   02/25/01 Kurt Angle (WWF) v. Rock
  0  1  0    3   02/04/01 Danger (WOW) v. Terri Gold
  0  0  1    2   07/09/01 X-Pac (LtHvy) v. Scotty 2 Hotty (RAW)
  0  0  1    2   06/25/01 Edge v. Billy Gunn (RAW)
  0  0  1    2   05/20/01 Chyna (Women's) v. Lita
  0  0  1    2   04/19/01 Edge & Christian (tag) v. Undertaker & Kane
                          (SmackDown!)
  0  0  1    2   04/01/01 Right to Censor v. APA & Tazz
  0  0  1    2   02/17/01 Ric Blade v. Sick Nick Mondo
  0  0  1    2   02/04/01 Disciplinarian v. Bronco Billie
  0  0  1    2   02/04/01 Beach Patrol v. Farah & Paradise

REJECTED

  3  1  2        "Anything with..." votes
  0  0  1        Rick Steiner v. Shane Douglas (?)
  0  0  1        Ivory (Women's) v. Chyna (Which one?)

RYAN HALL: Taker-Kane/Kronik HANDS DOWN.  This match simply spoiled the
PPV.  I had to hit my brother several times to stir him from his slumber
after this one.

EDDIE BURKETT: Buff Bagwell killed the WCW invasion.  I hate it when
Undertaker and Kane squash the tag champs for the sole purpose of fueding
with other people.

TEDB512: I suspect it's mostly forgotten, but HHH vs Hardy on RAW so
elegantly crystallized how the WWF lost all momentum.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Booker T and Buff Bagwell's RAW debut may not have been
the worst match of the year from a technical standpoint, but it
effectively killed an entire angle.

CHIP BOOTS: The whole Taker/Page feud was botched, but having him job to
Sara on Raw was just stupid on so many levels.

SCOTT WORDEN: Taker/Kane vs Kronik was hideous... as was Taker/Kane vs
DDP/Kanyon.  Ivory vs Chyna at WM18.. um, no thank you..  Also, Ivory vs
Chyna at the Rumble.  I guess we need shitty matches to appreciate the
good ones or to make the crappy ones look great..

SEAN FLYNN: The main event of the WOW PPV not only made me want to hang
myself, but made me cease to believe in the existence of God, for no
loving Lord could have allowed his children to watch such crap.  The
UT/Kane v. Kronik match was just brutal to watch, and easily the worst WWF
match of the year. Y2J/Regal in the Duchess of Queensbury match seemed
like a leftover Russo idea gone horribly wrong, and was a total waste of
the talents of both men.

SEBASTIEN FERLAND: It's not his fault, but Taker's always pitted against
someone he hasn't wrestled yet... been there for 10 years. But I enjoyed
HHH vs. Taker, basically the beginning of Deadman Inc.

CANZ: Cien Caras vs. Perro Aguayo from the PPV is what you what to show
people if you want them *NOT* to try and appreciate lucha libre. You may
want to show it to them if they are bound to a chair, Clockwork Orange
style and in possession of a large bank account though.

DONNY L:  Booker v. Buff has to be the worse match of the year, come on
that match switched the WWF for there orginal plan and revamp the entire
angle and fire Buff. Taker/Kane v. Kronik was brutal and another firing of
the performer. Chyna no selling Ivory was pathetic.

SIMON GRIER: Injury angles are a part of wrestling, but the Chyna one was
taken too far. It'll be the boy who cried wolf next time there is a
serious injury. It also killed what had been a red hot crowd at the
Rumble, and the heel-heel confrontation between HHH and Angle suffered as
a result. There were worse matches than Booker T v Bagwell, but that gets
2nd just because it was such an important match and they blew it. Whose
idea was it to have Sid jump off the top rope?

ESTRAGAND: Hebner vs. Patrick.. shouldn't this have been a "blindfold
match"? ...yuk ...yuk

MICHAEL STAKELY: This match KILLED the Invasion angle right off the bat.
Fortunately Booker T. was retained and Bagwell was allowed to go off and
destroy his career.

JOHN C.: I really like Booker T. but his match with Bagwell on Raw in July
was atrocious. I don't think it was Booker's fault though. Bagwell was the
wrong guy to put in the first WCW match and the crowd wasn't going to
react positively to it anyway. It was a disaster and the first sign that
told us the invasion was a failure. Any Ivory vs. Chyna match could be
chosen but I went with the "classic" at the Rumble because Chyna's acting
post-match was so bad. Seeing Sara Undertaker pinning DDP pretty much
proved that Vinny Mac had no intention on building the WCW name.

JOE GENTILE: Buff Bagwell nearly destroyed the wrestling world in a single
match... damn. The DDP/Sara match was a travesty beyond words, and Chyna
was just OOZING in arrogance at WM X-7. Im so glad the bitch is gone.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Booker vs. Bagwell, the match that may have
singlehandedly scuppered the invasion angle, of course. Kronic vs.
Taker/Kane gets second. It was easily bad enough to win, but Booker vs.
Bagwell was a more important match, as much as it pains me to not vote for
an Undertaker match in first place. McMahon vs. McMahon from 10/29 gets
third. Yes, gentlemen, the solution to having too many McMahons in the
storylines is to stick them in the main event instead. Of course it is. :P

MATTY TONKIN: If you enjoy two wrestlers standing around & two wrestlers
rolling about on the mat, then this match (Taker & Kane vs DDP & Kanyon)
is for you. And 90% of women's matches are not even worth watching (& that
includes the bra & panties, etc matches).

SHANE SPEAR: The gimmick battle royal was SUPPOSED to be bad.  I mean, it
was announced by Mean Gene and Bobby Heenan.  It would be a crime if I
didn't vote for this here.  Kudos to the WWF for coming up with a real
original idea here.  The ACTUAL worst match was the black day in Tacoma.
Dead Crowd + Buff + Booker + WCW = FAILURE!

ROB EVANS: For a match of such significant importance in wrestling history
Booker v. Bagwell (WCW on RAW) absolutely sucked.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Booker T v. Buff Bagwell... the only match that
managed to ruin a promotion in what was it, ten minutes?  Hell, they
ruined the promotion as soon as they started "wrestling."  As for the
other matches, well, hell, Undertaker sucks.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Feud

Award Description:

To be given to the feud that nobody cared about at all this year. When
they were pushing the feud on TV, you'd go to the fridge for a snack.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Hulk Hogan vs. Earthquake
  1991: Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter
  1992: Ultimate Warrior vs. Papa Shango
  1993: The Undertaker vs. Giant Gonzalez
  1994: Doink vs. Bam Bam Bigelow
  1995: Hulk Hogan vs. Dungeon of Doom
  1996: Big Bubba vs. John Tenta
  1997: Nation of Domination vs. Disciples of Apocalypse vs. Los Boricuas
  1998: Warrior vs. Hollywood Hogan
  1999: No Limit Soldiers vs. West Texas Rednecks
  2000: Big Show vs. Big Boss Man

**2001**: Undertaker vs. Diamond Dallas Page

266 first place votes
256 second place votes
252 third place votes

 59 35 16  432   Undertaker v. Diamond Dallas Page
 49 20 25  355   WWF v. Alliance
 18 19 18  183   Billy Gunn & Chyna v. Right to Censor
 22  9 15  167   WCW v. Battledome
 13 18 18  155   Chyna v. Ivory
 10 20 21  152   Lita v. Chyna
 12 15 18  141   Right to Censor v. Right to Nudity
 16 11 13  139   Vince & Linda McMahon v. Shane McMahon & Stephanie McMahon-
                 Helmsley
  9 13 10  104   Undertaker & Kane v. Steven Richards & Kronik
  5 14 14   95   Linda McMahon v. Vince McMahon
  3  7  8   52   Undertaker & Kane v. Rikishi & Haku
  5  3  4   42   Booker T v. Rock
  3  7  3   42   Kane v. Albert
  3  5  5   40   Undertaker & Kane v. Steve Austin & Triple H
  3  3  6   36   Tazz v. Maven
  3  2  6   33   Dean Malenko v. Lita
  2  5  3   31   ECW v. Network
  2  4  4   30   Perry Saturn v. Raven & Terri
  1  5  4   28   Magnificent Seven v. WCW
  2  3  3   25   Dudley Boyz v. X-Factor
  2  3  3   25   Chris Benoit v. Billy Gunn
  1  6  1   25   Rock v. Booker T
  1  5  1   22   Tazz v. Jerry Lawler
  2  3  1   21   Edge v. Christian
  2  1  2   17   APA v. Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire
  1  1  3   14   Insiders v. Natural Born Thrillers
  2  0  1   12   Big Japan v. CZW
  2  0  0   10   Billy Gunn & Big Show v. Edge & Christian
  1  1  1   10   Trish Stratus v. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  1  1  1   10   Rock v. Steve Austin
  0  2  2   10   Chris Jericho v. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
  0  0  5   10   Torrie Wilson v. Stacy Keibler
  1  1  0    8   Terri Gold v. Mystery
  1  1  0    8   AJPW v. WAR
  0  2  1    8   Chris Jericho v. William Regal
  1  0  1    7   Alliance v. WWF
  0  1  2    7   Undertaker v. Steve Austin
  0  1  2    7   Undertaker v. Booker T
  0  2  0    6   Kane v. Big Show
  1  0  0    5   Steve Austin v. Kurt Angle
  1  0  0    5   Steve Austin & Triple H v. Hardy Boyz
  1  0  0    5   Spike Dudley v. Hurricane
  1  0  0    5   Perro Aguayo v. Cien Caras
  1  0  0    5   Goldberg v. Totally Buff
  1  0  0    5   Chris Jericho v. Chris Benoit
  1  0  0    5   Big Show & Spike Dudley v. Dudley Boyz
  0  1  1    5   Dudley Boyz v. Hardy Boyz
  0  0  2    4   Selina Majors v. Thug
  0  1  0    3   Vince McMahon v. Trish Stratus
  0  1  0    3   Stacey Keibler v. Torrie Wilson
  0  1  0    3   Kronik v. Taker & Kane
  0  1  0    3   Kronik v. Harris Boys
  0  1  0    3   Kane v. Chris Jericho
  0  0  1    2   World Wrestling Federation v. World Wildlife Fund
  0  0  1    2   Test v. Edge
  0  0  1    2   Shocker v. Emilio Charles Jr.
  0  0  1    2   Scott Steiner v. Sid Vicious
  0  0  1    2   Rock v. Kurt Angle
  0  0  1    2   Hardy Boyz v. Steve Austin & Triple H
  0  0  1    2   Dusty Rhodes v. Ric Flair
  0  0  1    2   Booker T v. Steve Austin

REJECTED

  1  0  0        "Tie" votes
  0  1  0        Vince Russo v. Hulk Hogan (ineligible time)

RYAN HALL: WWF v Alliance should win this by a larger margin than
anything.

EDDIE BURKETT: The WWF vs. WCW/ECW Alliance was a HUGE disappointment.
Part of the reason was that Taker vs. DDP sucked alot.  Also, Undertaker's
feud with Steven Richards was too short to mean anything at all.

HIRO: WWF effectively buried Booker T by making him lose to the Rock twice
in this feud. I feel sorry for Booker, I really do. The WWF vs Alliance
feud was also disappointing, to say the least.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Did Chris Benoit actually *have* a feud with Billy Gunn?
Must have missed that one.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Chyna and Lita's quasi-lesbian angle was more creepy than
anything else.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: WCW/Battledome: a feud so bad, I forgot it happened, and
yet, there were WORSE ones this year.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: I wish I could vote for "any feud involving mutual
respect."

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: In the Greek epic The Iliad the story reaches its climax
when Achilles' friend Patrocles dies at the hands of Hector, the noble
Trojan warrior.  In the epic fued of Perry Saturn vs. Raven, the fued
reaches its climax when loner Raven puts crazy Perry Saturn's love
interest (due to massive head injuries), Moppy the mop, into a wood
chipper.  'Nuff said.

CHIP BOOTS: The Taker/Page feud was an embarassment.

SCOTT WORDEN: Taker and DDP was the worst feud.. Totally booked like
crap.. DDP was not allowed any heat and we had to see Taker's wife.. Well
good for you Mark.. Do you think you would have gotten the butterface is
you were not rich?  don't think so..  Ivory and Chyna was horrid and so
was Lita vs Chyna..

JASON MEAD: The things I hated most (as noted by my selections) all
involved women.  It's not a coincidence, by the way, because the women
that are currently in wrestling all suck.

SEAN FLYNN: Steven Richards had the reverse midas touch this year.  Billy
and Chyna vs. RTC was just awful to watch as they made up the worst
interview pair in wrestling history.  RTC v. RTNudity was not only
horrible, but downright offensive to me.  I mean yeah, wrestling is a
man's soap opera, but Kitty was an embarrassment to the opposite sex and
truly degrading, even by WWF standards.  And Steven was involved, thought
the only bright spot in Kronik' s brief WWF tenure, and horrible feud with
the Fat Boys (UT/Kane)

CANZ:  I can't believe I used to have to sit though Cien Caras and Perro
Aguayo matches. And write about them.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1.  The Dueling Spankers.  Oh boy.  2.  The Kane-Albert 1/2*
classics.  Augh.  3.  Where to begin with this crap?  Yet another angle
WCW didn't think through before going with it.  What exactly is Battledome
supposed to be anyway?  Honorable mention to the "feud" involving Jesse
Ventura and Rusty Tillman.  This was the big sign the XFL was in trouble
when Vince had announcers go after coaches.

DONNY L: Taker/Kane v H/Austin can't think of a worse main event for the
WWF then this.

SIMON GRIER: Gunn & Chyna v RTC - great, a feud involving 6 people whose
best worker is Val Venis. And it went on for SIX DAMN MONTHS. Kronik v the
Harrises was on the LOD-DOA level of boringness, and RTC v RTN was a dull
and pointless feud.

ESTRAGAND: WCW vs. Battledome? Battledome? Why'd they hook up with
Battledome? Answer- Because the hardcore cast of "Full House" was too
expensive.

JOHN C.: The 'Taker vs. DDP feud was fun for about ten seconds. Seeing DDP
as the stalker was a nice surprise but from there it was downhill. His
heel promos were horrible and the fact that 'Taker no sold everything made
it painful to watch. The Lita vs. Chyna "spanking" stuff was equally bad.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: WWF vs. Alliance, unfortunately. Primarily because it
should have been so good. There was actually worse feuds this year (such
as my runners up), but this one definitely deserves to win this category.
Mcmahon vs. McMahon vs. McMahon vs. McMahon vs ... etc. gets second. I
hear that the McMahon family's pet gerbil was next in line to get involved
in this feud until they decided to scupper it at Survivor Series...
UT/Kane vs. Austin/Triple H gets third, encompassing Austin vs. Taker and
Kane vs. H. An everlasting feud that no-one wanted, needed or cared about.
Joy.

MATTY TONKIN: Booker T vs Rock was typical of the whole InVasion. WCW
never had a chance & neither did Booker T. Which is fine cause he sucks.
Again, Taker vs DDP could have been fine, except that DDP was squashed
every single time, so where was the entertainment in that ??

YNAE316: Edge v. Christian:  Could have been MUCH better, potentially
career making,but it lasted only ONE FREAKING MONTH?????????????????????
Terri Gold v. Mystery:  What a lame feud.  Lasted all of two shows
althoughan event like Mystery mugging and should stealing the belt should
have lasted a good month of two (assuming of course they lasted that long)
WCW v. Battledome:  Just lame.  How many people actually WATCH Battledome?
Is it still on???

SHANE SPEAR: When the blow-ff of your feud was getting pinned by your
opponent's WIFE, something is WRONG.  Very, very wrong.

THE CUBS FAN: If there was a "most underrated crappy angle", ECW vs
Network would win. In it's favor was that no one was watching ECW and the
McMahon family saga going on longer and making less sense.

MATT SPAULDING: Undertaker vs. Stalker Dallas Page: Why?  Kevin Nash and
Page vs. the Natural Born Heat Killers: Why?  I made RTC vs. anyone my
third choice because they were all so bad it was unfair to single one out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Disappointing News item

Award Description:

To be given to the wrestling news item that most disappointed you when
heard of it. When you first learned of this news story, you couldn't
believe that it was true, and when you learned that it was, you were
bummed out for a while.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Scott Steiner gets injured
  1992: Legion of Doom: Hawk & Animal split up
  1993: WWF brings Hulk Hogan back and gives him the title
  1994: WCW signs Hulk Hogan and makes him World champion
  1995: Death of Eddie Gilbert
  1996: Scott Hall and/or Kevin Nash leave WWF and/or join WCW
  1997: Death of Brian Pillman
  1998: Death of Louie Spicolli
  1999: Death of Owen Hart
  2000: David Arquette wins WCW World heavyweight championship

**2001**: Chris Benoit out for the year after neck surgery

282 first place votes
276 second place votes
271 third place votes

 41 53 25  414   Chris Benoit undergoes year-ending surgery
 53 13 12  328   All nationally televised wrestling companies except WWF go
                 under or on hiatus
 24 33 29  277   Triple H injured, out several months after surgery
 23 24 12  211   ECW declares bankruptcy
 20 19 23  203   WWF books subpar Invasion angle
 30 10  9  198   WCW folds, sold to WWF
 12 12  7  110   Hayabusa suffers paralysis after landing on head
 11  2 12   85   Jerry Lawler quits WWF
  6  8 12   78   Eddie Guerrero misses several months undergoing rehab
  4  5 15   65   Shawn Michaels' WWF return postponed indefinitely
  5  8  7   63   WCW fails to get new television show after WWF purchase
  7  5  3   56   Death of Terry Gordy
  4  4  9   50   WWF doesn't sign big name WCW talent
  2  6 11   50   WWFE devotes significant energy to doomed XFL
  2  5  7   39   Stephanie McMahon cuts questionable promo on 9/14 SmackDown!
  3  4  4   35   WCW television cancelled
  2  4  5   32   Undertaker reportedly refuses to job
  4  0  5   30   Death of Chris Adams
  2  4  4   30   WCW & ECW workers forced to turn down workrate
  4  2  1   28   Dean Malenko announces possible retirement
  1  2  8   27   SportsLine shuts down WrestleLine
  0  5  4   23   Rhyno gets injured, out for rest of year
  0  7  0   21   Declining ad rates cause wrestling web sites to fold/inundate
                 viewers with ads
  2  2  2   20   WWF ratings drop steadily as Invasion continues
  2  2  2   20   Stephanie McMahon gets breast enhancement
  2  1  3   19   Fusient doesn't buy WCW
  0  2  5   16   BattlArts shuts down
  0  3  3   15   WOW loses $6 million in six months, disappears into
                 "reorganization"
  0  3  3   15   Mick Foley written off TV for months, returns only to plug
                 books
  1  1  2   12   WWF books Rock title win over Booker T
  0  4  0   12   Hulk Hogan reportedly center of new promotion
  2  0  0   10   WWF announces "Tough Enough 2"
  0  2  2   10   Mikey Whipwreck retires
  0  2  2   10   Kenta Kobashi out for year with injuries
  1  0  2    9   WWF releases Tori
  0  3  0    9   WWF runs Chyna neck injury angle
  1  1  0    8   WWF hires Paul Heyman
  1  1  0    8   Rock returns to wrestling after making film
  1  1  0    8   Death of Rhonda Singh
  0  2  1    8   WWF considering signing Hall & Nash
  0  0  4    8   WWF signs Kronik
  1  0  1    7   Miho Wakizawa retires
  1  0  0    5   WWF off of Dutch TV
  1  0  0    5   WWF might be interested in Goldberg
  1  0  0    5   Rock leaves wrestling to make film
  1  0  0    5   Keiji Muto wins All Japan Triple Crown
  1  0  0    5   Eyada cancels Wrestling Observer Live
  1  0  0    5   Death of Helen Hart
  1  0  0    5   APW's "King of the Indies" tournament loses $10,000
  0  1  1    5   WWF sends Sean O'Haire to OVW
  0  1  0    3   WWF cuts American Dragon & Spanky
  0  1  0    3   WWF books Stephanie McMahon as ECW owner
  0  1  0    3   WWF books Kurt Angle heel turn
  0  1  0    3   Taka Michinoku injures shoulder
  0  1  0    3   Ryuji Yamakawa bruises brain
  0  1  0    3   Reggie Bennett retires
  0  1  0    3   Perro Aguayo returns to EMLL
  0  1  0    3   Kana Mizaki retires
  0  1  0    3   Brian Johnston suffers stroke
  0  0  1    2   WWF releases K-Kwik
  0  0  1    2   WCW doesn't start seperate company
  0  0  1    2   Undertaker marries
  0  0  1    2   Stevie Ray loses commentary position
  0  0  1    2   Steve Corino announces retirement
  0  0  1    2   Kanyon injured
  0  0  1    2   Internet writers, wrestlers mysteriously buy ridiculous
                 MECW hype
  0  0  1    2   Hulk Hogan plans return to WWF
  0  0  1    2   Haku disappears from WWF TV
  0  0  1    2   Candy Okutsu retires

REJECTED

  0  1  2        Duplicated votes
  1  0  0        Death of Yokozuna (ineligible time)
  0  0  1        Jerry Lawler returns (ineligible time)
  0  0  1        "Tie" votes

RYAN HALL: Lawler quitting the WWF has taken away so much from the show,
although Heyman has tried hard to replace him.

EDDIE BURKETT: Two great wrestlers go down for the year, and ECW goes down
forever.  That all sucks from all angles.

HIRO: The injuries of Chris Benoit and Triple H, two of the top wrestlers
in 2000 was indeed a blow to the American wrestling scene.

NATE GURNETT: I have to run.  Last comment.  I miss WCW.  I really do.  I
put up with the Russo crap.  I put up with Dusty Rhodes.  I put up with
Tony Shitovone.  I put up with Bitchman and Hogan.  Why?  Oh, yeah,
because of the crusierweights and periods like the last 3 or so months,
when they had good booking and were really entertaining to watch.  Ah,
well, que sera sera.

TEDB512: The last thing this crowded roster needs (with cuts coming) is
Tough Enough 2. I can't stand the Tough Enough concept.

KEN DREILING: Seeing good quality workers go down is always terrible.
And WCW being off TV...No more options, no more choices.  I can look back
to the early Monday Night days of telling my college roommate he's dumb
for wanting to watch Raw, it's nothing but a cartoon show, WCW actually
had good wrestling. My entire wrestling life WCW (and NWA)  has been
there.  Now it's gone.

CHIP BOOTS: ECW deserved better than to go out like they did.

SCOTT WORDEN: Taker not refusing to job is very dissapointing.  I mean,
what does he want?  a pension.. Make sure his SSI kicks in before he
retires from the WWF.  The guy still has a name and could make a new
star..  he won't,c cause he is an ass.

CHRIS BIRD: ECW and WCW folding was horrible, not just because it put guys
out of work and left us with less wrestling on television, but because now
there's no real alternative to the WWF product, and stagnation is already
setting in. Oh, how I hope the XWF catches on...

SEAN FLYNN: The loss of Benoit not only made me lose my favorite wrestler,
but cost them a main event talent who was more than happy to help other
people get over, unlike some other members of the top card.  Seeing Flair
in the WWF now post Survivor Series serves as a reminder of how cool the
Invasion could have been had they popped for the big names.  And hearing
that UT was trying to torpedo young guy's pushes is an ominous very
Nash-esque portent for the WWF locker room.

CANZ: As bad as WCW was on it's deathbed, the last thing I want is for
Vince to get his claws on it and monopolize American Wrestling. Before I
had a choice of which horrible promotion I did not want to watch- now I
have none.

SHOCKER 2K: I miss Triple H. :(

KEVIN WONG: Since it would spoil my vote, I'll put it down here.  The most
disappointing news item from the last 50 years happened on September 11,
2001.  I'm sorry, everything else is a pebble on the road in comparison.

DONNY L: The worse news had to be ECW/WCW folding, it's just sad. I didn't
think I would mind it too much but I really took for granted and
alternative.

SIMON GRIER: It seems wrong to rank the deaths in wrestling this year
according to which is saddest, so I just left deaths out completely and
voted for ECW's collapse, WCW's collapse, and the WWF's subsequent
inability to get TV for WCW.

CHRIS GRIMM: WCW got what it deserved;  aside from the nWo angle, it's
never been anything but an also-ran.  ECW was actually cool at one point.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Benoit and Triple H's injuries get one and two. Shawn
Michaels' non-return gets third. He's my all-time favourite wrestler, I'm
biased.

YNAE316: Was a big fan of the "Gentleman" and World Class back in the day.
(That's what actually caught my eye loooong before the WWF aired out in
our parts...) Lots of my favorite sites have loooong since gone down
(Scoops, Wrestleline, Wrestlecrap...) and those PESKY ads.

JEREMY SORIA: Chris Adams dies. It's sad because like some other wrestlers
who dies under similar circumstances, you see how they fall from grace,
yet couldn't see where they were going in time to save themselves.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Obnoxious Personality

Award Description:

To be given to the person who just rubs you the wrong way. This could be
anybody involved in the wrestling biz.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Dusty Rhodes
  1992: Vince McMahon
  1993: Vince McMahon
  1994: Hulk Hogan
  1995: Eric Bischoff
  1996: Eric Bischoff
  1997: Eric Bischoff
  1998: Eric Bischoff
  1999: Eric Bischoff
  2000: Vince Russo

**2001**: Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley

279 first place votes
269 second place votes
259 third place votes

 79 30 18  521   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 41 26 27  337   Buff Bagwell
 12 24 24  180   Vince Russo
 19 15 12  164   Vince McMahon
 13 18 15  149   Chyna
 14 15 15  145   Shane McMahon
 12 10 16  122   Jerry Lawler
 15  8  7  113   Paul Heyman
  6 14  7   86   Tony Schiavone
  6 11 11   85   Goldberg
  4 11 15   83   Mark Madden
  4 12 13   82   X-Pac
  6 10  9   78   Michael Cole
  7  4  4   55   Jim Ross
  4  4  6   44   Billy Gunn
  3  6  3   39   Undertaker
  4  3  2   33   Diamond Dallas Page
  3  4  2   31   Hulk Hogan
  3  2  5   31   Debra
  2  2  7   30   Eric Bischoff
  2  3  3   25   Kevin Nash
  2  4  0   22   Rock
  1  3  2   18   Linda McMahon
  0  4  2   16   David McLane
  2  0  2   14   Steven Richards
  2  1  0   13   Rob van Dam
  1  0  4   13   Scotty 2 Hotty
  0  3  2   13   Steve Austin
  1  1  1   10   Lilian Garcia
  1  0  2    9   Tazz
  1  1  0    8   Jeff Hardy
  0  0  4    8   Triple H
  1  0  1    7   Big Show
  0  2  0    6   Motoko Baba
  0  2  0    6   Chris Jericho
  0  2  0    6   Bret Hart
  1  0  0    5   Tajiri
  1  0  0    5   Lita
  1  0  0    5   Hiroshi "Rossy" Ogawa
  1  0  0    5   Grandmaster Sexay
  1  0  0    5   Doc Marlee
  1  0  0    5   Bill Alfonzo
  0  1  1    5   K-Kwik
  0  0  2    4   Lex Luger
  0  1  0    3   Terri
  0  1  0    3   Perry Saturn
  0  1  0    3   Kevin Kelly
  0  1  0    3   Jonathan Coachman
  0  1  0    3   John Collins
  0  1  0    3   Joey Styles
  0  1  0    3   Jim Cornette
  0  1  0    3   Ivory
  0  1  0    3   Gene Okerlund
  0  1  0    3   Antonio Inoki
  0  0  1    2   Terri Gold
  0  0  1    2   Ric Flair
  0  0  1    2   Rev. Aladdin Sane
  0  0  1    2   Molly Holly
  0  0  1    2   Kazunari Murakami
  0  0  1    2   Justin Credible
  0  0  1    2   Jeff G. Bailey
  0  0  1    2   Hurricane
  0  0  1    2   Genichiro Tenryu
  0  0  1    2   Crash
  0  0  1    2   Christian
  0  0  1    2   Brian Knobs

REJECTED

  2  0  0        "Tie" votes
  0  2  2        Non-industry "personalities"
  0  1  1        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Who does Goldberg think he is?  His big mouth doesn't impress
anybody.

EDDIE BURKETT: Vince + wrestling = you must be an asshole.  DDP is
irritating.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Steven Richards is the new age Paul E. Dangerously. Vince
McMahon is just a sick puppy.

CHIP BOOTS: I hope Goldberg stays gone for good.

SCOTT WORDEN: I hate Russo. I hate Bischoff..  I hate Madded, Ryder, and
whole lot more..  Russo the most though.

CANZ: If Vince McMahons goal is to make people such as myself hate him
then he is succeeding. I'm just sorry that almost everyone else who hates
him is a sheep that tunes into his circus of a wrestling promotion and
even pays for his PPV's.

SHOCKER 2K: Is it just me, or has just about every single Hart alive today
proven to be some sort of giant jackass at some point or another? Diana
Hart's book not only pushed this one over the edge, but strapped a rocket
to its back while catapulting it on the back of a giant kangaroo.

DONNY L: I hate Chyna, she want's to be in a fantasy world and win men,
fine with me but then to return the favour she didn't want to do the same
for the women doens't get more obnoxious then that. Buff is 2nd because he
had a second chance to save his career and was so full of himself he
didn't think it was necessary to get in shape.

PETER HAZLETT: For Heyman it worked well...

SIMON GRIER: I've probably said enough about Chyna in all the other
"worst"  catergories I've voted for her in. Totally Buff also reek of
obnoxiousness.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Steph. X-Pac. Chyna. I think these choices are very
much self-explanatory, yes? Thought so. Honourable mention to Vinnie Mac.

CHRIS LENING: The only time I liked Stephanie McMahon was when I was able
to fast forward through her time on screen, and when Austin was being a
dick to her. Paul Heyman said nothing worth listening to after "Feel this
moment for the rest of your life," so seeing as how he had some three or
four months of color commentary following this sentence, that accounts for
a whole lot of suck. Vince McMahon will probably win 1st next year for his
recent ass exploits, but he was merely irritating this year, as compared
to infuriating like his daughter and former rival.

MATTY TONKIN: Please someone get rid of Lillian Garcia. Cant remember
wrestlers names, cant remember who holds titles & cant interview
backstage. What exactly is her role besides screwing up about 50% of
introductions.

YNAE316: Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley:  That screechy voice!!! Paul Heyman:
His being obnoxiousness isn't actually a bad thing, it's a good thing!!!!

SHANE SPEAR: Jim Ross hit a new level this year with the blatant Austin
hating/loving.  If I had heard THE OLD STONE COLD one more time, I
would've put my TV through the window.  PLUS, Undertaker's name is NOT
Booger Red!  Buff and Steph are not far behind.

MATT SPAULDING: I'd like to line up Madden, Russo, and Bagwell and beat
them with blunt objects until their mouths bleed.  And I'm not a violent
man by nature.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Second

Award Description:

To be given to the manager who outperformed their peers at ringside and
behind the microphone in interviews.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Jim Cornette
  1991: Bobby Heenan
  1992: Mr. Perfect
  1993: Jim Cornette
  1994: Jim Cornette
  1995: Jim Cornette
  1996: Sunny
  1997: Chyna
  1998: Chyna
  1999: Dawn Marie
  2000: Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley

**2001**: Stacy Keibler

256 first place votes
247 second place votes
232 third place votes

 39 25 14  298   Stacy Keibler
 35 25 20  290   Lita
 21 20 28  221   Mighty Molly
 25 11 10  178   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 18 16 14  166   Paul Heyman
 12 13 17  133   Trish Stratus
  5 20 24  133   Torrie Wilson
  7 23 13  130   William Regal
 14  9 10  117   Sinister Minister
 11  8 18  115   Shane McMahon
 11 12 10  111   Steven Richards
  9 11 11  100   Ric Flair
  9 14  5   97   Ivory
  8 11  9   91   Bill Alfonso
  8 10  6   82   Dawn Marie
  5  4  2   41   Cyrus
  5  3  1   36   TARU
  4  0  1   22   Debra
  1  3  4   22   Terri
  1  1  4   16   Vince McMahon
  2  0  2   14   Leia Meow
  2  0  0   10   Kenny Bolin
  1  0  1    7   Thug
  1  0  0    5   Shoichi Arai
  1  0  0    5   Mike Sanders
  1  0  0    5   Candie
  0  0  2    4   Lady Victoria
  0  1  0    3   Synn
  0  1  0    3   Sir Ronald J. Niemi IV
  0  1  0    3   Shuehi Yoshida
  0  1  0    3   Sara
  0  1  0    3   Major Gunns
  0  1  0    3   Jeff G. Bailey
  0  1  0    3   Francine
  0  1  0    3   Father Juan Valdez
  0  0  1    2   Tori
  0  0  1    2   Masato Sasaki
  0  0  1    2   Lance Storm
  0  0  1    2   Head
  0  0  1    2   Harvey Wippleman
  0  0  1    2   Dewey

RYAN HALL: Lita, Heyman, Shane.  Best of a bad bunch.  Heyman is great
WHEN he's managing.

EDDIE BURKETT: Steven Richards and Ivory tended to both draw the right
amount of heat for themselves and generally are effective as seconds.
Molly Holly did well in her role as Holly cousin/Spike's
girlfriend/sidekick.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Stacy Keibler wins by a leg.  Well, two legs.

JESSE HARALDSON: Stacy Kiebler is simply the hottest woman ever in
wrestling.

AMI: Cyrus is a throwback to the good old days.  You have a male manager
that's a great talker, and adds to the appeal of an angle, rather than
take away from it.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Sinister Minister may be the last great male second. I
miss the days of Slick and Paul E. at ringside spouting off. Managers with
actual talent, what a concept.

SCOTT WORDEN: Sinister Minister was the best manager when he was still
around..  Hey, am male manager with heat.. that is number 1 by default
right..  Dawn Marie is 2 cause she always has a place in my heart for
her..  Honestly, I have to give Lita props too.. She helps the Hard y's
win, like how the outside person should..  give her that.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: Best Second? Too. Many. Choices.  I went with (in
order): Dawn Marie (I miss ECW), Torrie Wilson, Terri (I miss Alexandra
York), Leia Meow, Chae, Alexis, Mortimer Plumtree (best on the mic since
Corny in his prime), Adara Jaymes, Steph, Lita.

CHRIS BIRD: Molly Holly is cute.

SEAN FLYNN: All my votes for this come from ECW, as they were the only
ones who seemed to be able to make seconds interesting.  I miss the
Sinister Minister, and hope that one day the WWF might be able to find a
spot for him, so while I wait, I'll give him a first place vote here.

KEVIN WONG: As of late, there has not really been such a thing as a "good"
second.  Therefore, this category gets no votes from me.

DONNY L: Molly is easily the best, who ever she hangs with they become
better (see Spike, Hurricane), Regal little time w/ Tajiri was better then
most managers are.

PETER HAZLETT: Love Stacy, just keep her out of the ring, you don't need
that.

ESTRAGAND: Worst promotional move of 1999? The Baltimore Ravens let Stacy
Keibler walk.

JOHN C.: There has been such a lack of managers that I almost voted for
Moppy.  Instead, I just picked the hottest girls by going with Torrie,
Trish and Molly.

JOE GENTILE: Trish Stratus, I mean, come on LOOK AT HER!

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I think this category now tends to translate as
"hottest woman". Therefore, my votes go, in order, to Torrie Wilson, Lita
and Mighty Molly. The last two get extra props for being a factor in
matches they're at ringside for. Torrie gets props for, well, for being
Torrie. :)

CHRIS LENING: Yeah, I voted for Torrie Wilson because I think she's
attractive. I am a petty, superficial man. Of course, giving me the names
of some lucha ring girls could dramatically alter my ballot. But Regal and
McMahon actually seemed to care about their wrestlers, and that's all I
ask for in a second.

BEE MONTEVERDE: The WWF needs Mike Sanders!

RAGEROCKRR: There are no good managers or seconds left.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Announcer

Award Description:

To be given to the commentator/announcer who makes the most insightful and
entertaining comments while pushing his product.  "Ring announcers" don't
qualify here.  As of 1992, the difference between this and colour
commentator will be enforced.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Jesse Ventura
  1991: Jesse Ventura
  1992: Jim Ross
  1993: Jim Ross
  1994: Jim Ross
  1995: Jim Ross
  1996: Jim Ross
  1997: Jim Ross
  1998: Jim Ross
  1999: Jim Ross
  2000: Jim Ross

**2001**: Jim Ross

274 first place votes
238 second place votes
212 third place votes

197 28 15 1099   Jim Ross
 38 73 30  469   Joey Styles
 12 47 43  293   Scott Hudson
  3 28 27  153   Michael Cole
  5 17 33  142   Mike Tenay
  2  7 16   63   Kevin Kelly
  3  8 10   59   Tony Schiavone
  2  9 11   59   Gene Okerlund
  0  6 10   38   Jonathan Coachman
  2  7  2   35   Carlos Cabrera
  4  0  4   28   Alfonso Morales
  2  3  0   19   Paul Heyman
  1  0  1    7   Lee Marshall
  1  0  1    7   Akira Fukuzawa
  0  1  0    3   New Japan's Tv announcer (?)
  0  1  0    3   Crowbar
  0  0  1    2   Vince McMahon (eligible?)
  0  0  1    2   Les Thatcher
  0  0  1    2   Kris Kloss
  0  0  1    2   Eric Garigulo

REJECTED - not play-by-play announcers

  1  0  1        "Tie" votes
  1  0  0        Howard Finkel
  0  1  1        Duplicated votes
  0  0  2        Tazz
  0  1  0        Joel Gertner
  0  1  0        Jerry Lawler
  0  0  1        Don "the Dragon" Wilson


RYAN HALL: Ross, Styles, Cole.  Ross up there with Monsoon as the best
ever.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Picking Jim Ross as a 3rd place vote in this category is
almost as bad, if not worse than picking him as Worst Announcer, but I
think it fits. He's lost a TON of his believability this year, and it's
sad.

SCOTT WORDEN: Jim Ross may say things wrong like names, but he is still
the best.. He makes things sound good and when something is bad, he will
say it..Unless it is Taker and Kane wrestling, in which they are studs and
stallions and hosses.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: Best Announcer? I still miss Gordon Solie.

SEAN FLYNN: Joey Styles was the most interesting, exciting announcer in
wrestling for years, and though ECW is gone, the memory of the "OHMYGOD!"
will live on for me.  C'mon Vince, he's so much better than Michael Cole
and Kevin Kelly, hire him for God's sake.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. JR.  'Nuff said.  2. Kevin Kelly gets it for being less
annoying than Cole and knowing some of the names of moves.  3.  Joey gets
it for old times sake.  RIP ECW.

DONNY L: Jim Ross is still the best announcer in the buisness, I think
Styles and Tenay are 2nd and third too bad neither have a job right now I
guess the WWF only wants bad announcers

JOHN C.: JR is way ahead in this category with nobody in sight. I miss
Joey Styles enthusiasm and Gene Okerlund made me laugh at 'Mania so he
comes in third.

JOE GENTILE: It's sad: What was a neck-and-neck race every year between
Ross and Styles is now over. For the final year, I went with Ross, then
Styles, and Cole third because no one else is left.

CHRIS LENING: Dr. Alfonso Morales spontaneously bursts into song in the
middle of calling matches. You can't touch that.

YNAE316: Mike Tenay:  I actually think Tenay was underrated.  Sure he was
kinda dorky, but he actually knew his shit...

SHANE SPEAR: Yes, Michael Cole is better than Jim Ross.  He uses the names
of mid-carders finishing moves (I think Cole is the only one who knew the
name of the Edge-O-Matic.)  He may have the lamest hair-cut in the world,
and he may sound desprate sometimes, but he ISN'T a hype machine, and he
does at least call a match.

THE CUBS FAN: Jim Ross is an alright guy but he was slipping when he was
pulling XFL duty and he's not as good as he has been in the past and
there's no one better. Cole has gotten better but there's far too many
times where he seems just like an voice and attitude the WWF liked but not
someone who's that knowledgable about what's going on in front of him.
Coachman does that A LOT. Nothing more needs to be said about Tony, but
eventually the madness destroyed whatever was intersting and fun to listen
to in Tenay and Hudson. Maybe the product drug Joey Styles down or maybe
Joey Styles just followed in it's wake, but he was no better, to me. And
all of this doesn't seem like a trend that's changing.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Colour Commentator

Award Description:

To be given to the colour commentator who provides the most insightful and
entertaining comments.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Bobby Heenan
  1992: Bobby Heenan
  1993: Jesse Ventura
  1994: Bobby Heenan
  1995: Bobby Heenan
  1996: Bobby Heenan
  1997: Jerry Lawler
  1998: Jerry Lawler
  1999: Jerry Lawler
  2000: Jerry Lawler

**2001**: Paul Heyman

280 first place votes
260 second place votes
239 third place votes

164 51 10  993   Paul Heyman
 58 70 19  538   Jerry Lawler
  4 33 40  199   Tazz
 14 21 30  193   Bobby Heenan
  7 12 26  123   Stevie Ray
  1 17 25  106   Al Snow
  6 15 12   99   Cyrus
  2  6 23   74   Tajiri
  2  7 18   67   Joel Gertner
  3  4  6   39   Crowbar
  2  4  4   30   Steve Austin
  2  4  4   30   Mike Tenay
  1  3  5   24   Mark Madden
  4  0  1   22   Leobardo Magadan
  0  5  2   19   Juventud Guerrera
  1  1  3   14   Scott Hudson
  1  2  0   11   Jim Cornette
  2  0  0   10   Ron Niemi
  1  1  1   10   Larry Rivera
  0  1  3    9   Konnan
  1  1  0    8   Jim Ross
  1  0  1    7   Hugo Savinovich
  1  0  0    5   Michael Hayes
  0  0  2    4   William Regal
  0  1  0    3   Miguel Linares
  0  0  1    2   Steve Blackman
  0  0  1    2   Kurt Angle
  0  0  1    2   Bruno Sammartino (?)

REJECTED

  2  0  0        Joey Styles
  0  1  1        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Lawler, Heyman, Tazz.  Quickly drops off after the first two.
Lawler the best ever.

TEDB512: Lawler's much missed, but nobody puts over the angles themselves
better than Paul Heyman.

MPWG: Anyone that votes for Madden needs to be shot, or forced to watch
one of his Nitro broadcasts.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: If Paul Heyman really hates doing color commentary, why
is he so good at it? I remember renting an old WCW tape years ago --
mostly because I wanted to see Oz, who was sadly cut from the commercial
release -- and seeing JR and Heyman doing the announcing. I really only
knew Heyman as the ECW guy, and I was taken aback by how good he was on
color. In 10 years, he hasn't lost a step.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: Why is Tajiri better than Tazz?  "OH MY GOD! ROCKET
BUSTA~!"

CHIP BOOTS: Paul Heyman is one of the best color commentators ever.

SCOTT WORDEN: Sorry, but I have to go with Lawler..  So glad he is back..
I give Heyman his credit to.  He did a great job when he was there.

CHRIS BIRD: It's a pity Paul E and JR hate each other because god, Paul's
one of the best colour commentators to come along in ages. Now that
Lawler's back, I miss Paul E more than ever.

SEAN FLYNN: Stevie Ray on color commentary was one of the only bright
spots of the end of WCW.  His surreal commentary, inane ramblings, and use
of "fruit booty" made it almost bearable to watch them.  I'd much rather
have him on Smackdown than Tazz or Lawler.

MARK POLISHUK: Heyman was such a welcome breath of a fresh air from
Lawler.  Paul E.  called the moves, talked up the wrestlers, was cognizant
about storylines, and managed to act excited yet not obsessed in the
presence of puppies.  Hopefully Lawler's hiatus gave him time to freshen
up his material.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. At first I thought Lawler would be missed greatly.  But
Heyman was so good I thought he was better than Lawler after a month.
Imagine, a color man getting over the matches and wrestling instead of
endless screams of "puppies!!"  He always at least three good lines a
show, and his attempt to plug the Divas video was classic.  Too bad he and
Ross don't get along.  Hopefully Heyman can do Smackdown and get the
mediocre Tazz (whose idea of insightful commentary during the 4-way TLC
was "I'm speechless Cole!") off the air.  3.  Juvi gets this for being so
damn funny even though he made virtually no sense.

DONNY L: Heyman was amazing this year, he and Ross was some of the best
play by play team I've heard in 10 years. Cyrus is like Heyman jr. love
his commentaring. Lawler is 3rd and decent but not even close to Heyman.

PETER HAZLETT: Heyman did whatever he could to promote the angle.  Nice to
see the King back, too.

SIMON GRIER: Heyman actually got the matches over rather than screaming
PUPPIES and I wish the King hadn't returned. Tazz was solid on colour but
deteriorated through the year. His banter with Cole on UK Heat is awful.
Regal was hilarious when he guested a couple of times on Raw. "You can't
do that, that's cheating!"

ESTRAGAND: Heyman was great as a full-on HEEL announcer. Calling Kurt
Angle "MY Olypmpic Hero", etc. Following in the mold of pro-heel
announcers like Jesse Ventura and Heenan... just not as funny. Stevie Ray
gets a point for introducing the phrase "YAKS" into our smark vocab.

JOHN C.: Heyman and Lawler are both funny. However, Heyman did a better
job of putting wrestlers and angles over. Heenan was great at 'Mania and I
miss him a lot.

JOE GENTILE: I am glad the King is back, but Heyman had better year. I
LOVED his JR impersonations!

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Okay, blasphemy time. Paul Heyman was a better colour
commentator than Jerry Lawler. Yes, really. I like Lawler as much as the
next guy, but it was refreshing to get a colour man who actually, you
know, *called matches*, rather than drooling over attractive women. Not
that there's anything wrong with drooling over attractive women, mind you.
Tazz and Al Snow get second and third. Yeah, I like them better than
Lawler too.

CHRIS LENING: I was unsure if Stevie Ray had actually called any shows
within the time period, but once I discovered he did, he automatically
took first, despite fine years from Tazz and Leobardo Magadan. Except for
those two, all other color commentatrs are nothing but fruit booties in
comparison to Stevie Ray.

YNAE316: I love Lawler, but admittedly, Heyman brought a lot more
CREDIBILITY to thetable in terms of getting over the matches, wrestler,
stories, etc.  Plus, I LOVED Heyman's shoot comments during the broadcast
like about backing up his broadcast partner, the Ross Report, etc.

SHANE SPEAR: Hehe, Tajiri is the best.  I wonder how he didn't get that
Smackdown gig.

ROB EVANS: Heymen has to win here.  Why?  He's a good heel and brings
wrestling tradition, history, and knowledge to the table.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: I was lucky enough to be at Paul Heyman's first RAW
on color.  But I don't think I truly appreciated his skills until we got
the King back.  Yes, Heyman was in a GODAWFUL angle.  Yes, he had to say
stuff he didn't want to.  But he sold the angle.  He always sold the
angle.

THE CUBS FAN: I'm voting Stevie Ray here because I might not get another
chance. You COULD make some "he acted generally intersted in WCW
programming long after the other announcers seemed to care less and were
working their own stuff - not that Stevie wasn't doing that a little
himself" case but I don't need to because it's my vote. I don't why
Michael Hayes isn't on Jakked any more but I do miss him - he was more
subtle in his hype and his act made whoever was sitting next to him tone
down their shilling a little bit, if that makes any sense.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Interviewee

Award Description:

To be given to the person who gives the best interview in the biz. This
could be a wrestler or a manager.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Ric Flair
  1991: Ric Flair
  1992: Ric Flair
  1993: Ric Flair
  1994: Ric Flair
  1995: Shawn Michaels
  1996: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1997: Stone Cold Steve Austin
  1998: Mankind (Dude Love / Cactus Jack / Mick Foley)
  1999: Mankind
  2000: The Rock

**2001**: Stone Cold Steve Austin

280 first place votes
277 second place votes
271 third place votes

 99 46 20  673   Steve Austin
 79 59 23  618   Rock
 23 16 24  211   Ric Flair
 11 26 38  209   Kurt Angle
 16 24 21  194   Chris Jericho
 10 17 26  153   Triple H
  8 10 16  102   Christian
  6 12 17  100   Paul Heyman
  4 11 16   85   William Regal
  4 10 14   78   Edge
  5  7 13   72   Mick Foley
  4  5  7   49   Hurricane
  3  4  3   33   Scott Steiner
  0  7  3   27   Rob van Dam
  1  4  3   23   Mike Sanders
  2  2  2   20   Booker T
  1  3  3   20   Vince McMahon
  1  1  3   14   Atsushi Onita
  1  1  2   12   Lana Star
  0  0  4    8   Tajiri
  0  2  0    6   Raven
  1  0  0    5   Hayabusa
  1  0  0    5   Black Tiger
  0  1  1    5   Chris Benoit
  0  0  2    4   Riot
  0  0  2    4   Mima Shimoda
  0  0  2    4   Diamond Dallas Page
  0  1  0    3   Steven Richards
  0  1  0    3   Shane McMahon
  0  1  0    3   Rhyno
  0  1  0    3   Mike Awesome
  0  1  0    3   Latin Lover
  0  1  0    3   Kaoru Ito
  0  1  0    3   El Satanico
  0  1  0    3   Dr. Wagner Jr.
  0  0  1    2   Tetsuhiro Kuroda
  0  0  1    2   Lenny Lane
  0  0  1    2   Kanyon
  0  0  1    2   Jungle Grrrl
  0  0  1    2   Faarooq

REJECTED

  0  1  1        Edge & Christian

RYAN HALL: Austin, Vince, Christian.  'He's not TENESSEE ugly' still
cracks me up.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Vince McMahon could lecture about the cycle of mytosis and
keep a crowd interested. He is the only McMahon who has "it."

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: What? (Yeah, I know that's unoriginal, but I'm hoping a
lot of other people will say it, too, thus creating a cool effect. Oops, I
kind of blew it with this parenthetical statement, didn't I?)

CHIP BOOTS: Kurt is number one simply because of his interview on
Smackdown before his No Way Out match with the Rock.  It's the best
interview I've ever seen.

SCOTT WORDEN: Now that Flair has joined, what about that future Rock vs
Flair promo possibly coming..

CHRIS BIRD: Who came up with a brilliant crowd-interactive catchphrase?
What? I said, who came up with a brilliant catchphrase? What? Who
reinvented their entire interview style and made it fresher and more
entertaining than ever? What? I said, who reinvented their interviews and
managed to be good without using their old catchphrases? What? WHAT? WHAT?

SEAN FLYNN: Austin's interviews were insane this year.  He was on a
different level than anyone else was, and showed his unparalleled acumen
for working a crowd with the "What?" catchphrase getting over.  Edge's
smark interviews were just hilarious to watch."It's called character
development!"  I missed Flair all year and voted for him in respect of
that.  Welcome back Nature Boy.

CANZ: Kurt Angle is the funniest man in wrestling today.

DONNY L: This year whenever Austin grabs the mic it was gold. what?

SIMON GRIER: Regal is just hilarious on the mic, going the full way with
foreigners stereotypes of us Brits. Angle is hilarious as well, and Rock's
ability to work 20,000 people into a frenzy is unbelieveable. Honourable
mentions to Austin, Edge and Chrsitian.

JOHN C.: It's tough to choose just three because there are a lot of great
talkers out there. Just like last year though, nobody tops The Rock. He
makes us laugh, he makes us take him seriously and he always finds a way
to make things interesting. Steve Austin really was in old form on the
stick this past year with his sharp wit and "what" catchphrase. Christian
consistently made me laugh and rarely had boring things to say.

JOE GENTILE: What?

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Oddly, I don't find myself voting for any of the usual
suspects (Rock, Austin, Foley...) here. First is Chris Jericho, mostly for
his amazing work towards the end of the year with the Rock. (I say that a
lot, don't I?) Second is Edge. I don't think he can cut a serious promo to
save his life (yet), but his comedy promos, like the semi-shoot rants
against X-Pac and Billy Gunn, are awesome. Kurt Angle gets third. Well,
okay, I guess these guys are among the usual suspects too. :)

YNAE316: Christian to me is really under-rated as a promo person. Though
not much of a talker, I LOVE RVD's promos/interviews with that "Stoner"
type of coolness.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Angle

Award Description:

To be given to the best angle you've seen in the sport this year.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Horsemen turn heel
  1991: "Real World Champion" Ric Flair challenges Hulk Hogan
  1992: Ric Flair "knew Elizabeth first"
  1993: WWF brings in Sean Waltman as 1-2-3 Kid
  1994: Shane Douglas forfeits NWA title moments after winning it
  1995: Barry Horowitz finally wins on WWF television
  1996: NWO forms and attempts takeover of WCW
  1997: Bret Hart turns on USA, reforms Hart Foundation
  1998: Mr. McMahon offers Steve Austin the easy way - or the hard way
  1999: "Countdown to the Millennium" ends with Chris Jericho's WWF debut
  2000: Triple H, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, Kurt Angle love triangle

**2001**: ECW joins WCW, forms alliance

272 first place votes
267 second place votes
257 third place votes

 54 24 20  382   ECW joins WCW, forms alliance
 35 29 27  312   Vince almost buys WCW, but Shane steals it out from under
                 his nose
 32 23 22  273   Steve Austin, Kurt Angle fight over Vince McMahon's affection
 27 32 13  257   Chris Jericho, Rock just don't like each other
 30 14  9  210   Steve Austin sells his soul for the WWF Championship
 16 12 14  144   Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit team
  9 21 16  140   Through carrying his trophy, Christian turns on Edge
  9 11 12  102   Kurt Angle's Milkamania runs wild on the Alliance
  1 22 15  101   Edge "shoots" on Billy Gunn, X-Pac
  9  7  6   78   Chris Jericho "can't win the big one"
 10  7  3   77   Triple H joins Steve Austin, Two Man Power Trip formed
  7  3  8   60   Chris Jericho, Stephanie McMahon endure Love/Hate relationship
  1  8 15   59   Rob van Dam just too cool to take sides
  2  5  7   39   Chris Jericho plays Vince's "Stand Back" video from the 80s
  2  4  7   36   Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle argue submissions
  2  5  3   31   Chris Benoit is injured in TLC III but comes back to win
  3  3  3   30   Triple H revealed as mastermind behind Rikishi
  3  2  4   29   Yuji Nagata, comeback king of the G1 Climax
  2  3  5   29   Shawn Stasiak's stupidity
  2  2  4   24   Having taken too many head blows, Perry Saturn falls for mop
  1  1  7   22   Triple H stiffs Austin on contract
  0  4  4   20   Steve Austin defects to the Alliance
  0  2  7   20   Molly Holly, Spike Dudley fall in love
  1  1  1   10   Eddie Guerrero starts hanging out with Hardy Boyz, hitting
                 on Lita
  0  2  2   10   Booker T attacks Steve Austin
  0  0  5   10   Alliance members seek out Rob van Dam for advice in Steve
                 Austin's absense
  0  3  0    9   Magnum Tokyo loses his hair in a match
  1  1  0    8   Ultimo Guerrero, Rey Bucanero split with Satanico
  1  1  0    8   Taro's retirement
  1  0  1    7   Tetsuhiro Kuroda attacks injured Hayabusa, becomes star of
                 promotion
  0  1  2    7   Steve Austin throws Kurt Angle's medals into river
  0  2  0    6   Tenryu and WAR declare war on AJPW
  1  0  0    5   Vince McMahon has fans decide which WCW wrestlers he should
                 hire on final Nitro
  1  0  0    5   Triple H vs Angle
  1  0  0    5   The Old Steve Austin returns
  1  0  0    5   Steve Austin/Triple H can't touch each other leading into
                 No Way Out
  1  0  0    5   Old AJW vs. New AJW
  1  0  0    5   Kumiko Maekawa screwing Watanabe, AJW, joining Mita &
                 Shimoda's group
  1  0  0    5   Kamala asks William Regal to rub the moon on his belly
  1  0  0    5   Jeff Hardy going over Triple H
  1  0  0    5   Hurricane seeks out evil-doers; wins European title
  1  0  0    5   Danger costs Riot her title shot
  0  1  1    5   Naoya Ogawa shows up at the first ZERO-ONE show
  0  0  2    4   Shane McMahon defends his mother's honor
  0  1  0    3   Triple H, Steve Austin can't touch each other until No Way Out
  0  1  0    3   Tomoko Watanabe interferes to beat on Maekawa in 11/23/00
                 match to help Ito/Nakanishi/Takahashi
  0  1  0    3   Steve Austin vs Rock
  0  1  0    3   Silver King becomes Black Tiger, the Japanese superstar
  0  1  0    3   Rock returns - who's side is he on?
  0  1  0    3   Mr. Gannosuke joins Team Kuroda
  0  1  0    3   Money Mark takes over NWA Wildside
  0  1  0    3   Lance Storm's anthem keeps being interrupted
  0  1  0    3   Kanyon becomes Invasion MVP
  0  1  0    3   Ice Cold loses her hair in a match
  0  0  1    2   Team Xtreme tease breakup
  0  0  1    2   Stoker Ichikawa gets his first win
  0  0  1    2   Shoichi Arai becomes Shuehi Yoshida's servant
  0  0  1    2   Ric Flair forms Magnificent Seven
  0  0  1    2   Kurt Angle dreams of repeating as King of the Ring
  0  0  1    2   Inoki and co. invade NJPW
  0  0  1    2   Hokuto/Satomura angles leading to their 4/29 match.
  0  0  1    2   Drew Carey at the Royal Rumble
  0  0  1    2   Chris Jericho vs Chris Benoit
  0  0  1    2   Chris Jericho finally, and methodically turning heel

REJECTED

  1  1  1        Ric Flair revealed as 50% owner of WWF (ineligible time)
  0  0  1        "Tie" votes


RYAN HALL: Austin and Angle were priceless together.  ECW reforming was a
memorable night of TV.

HIRO: The WWF got it right when they opened the WWF vs WCW feud with Shane
stealing WCW from Vince, but then it went downhill from there. If only
they kept the momentum from there, they could've sparked another wrestling
revolution.

KHENYIAN CHEUNG: Chris Benoit makes TLC III a hell of a lot more
interesting as he is Jesus to win the match.  First he dies (goes through
table), gets crucified and buried (stretchered off), then comes back to
life (reenters match), returns to the Father (conchairto to the ribs), and
has his disciples spread his words to all the nations in order to make
Christianity the biggest religion in the world (claims the titles when no
one's left, further elevating Benoit).  Ok, maybe I'm looking into it too
much, but you got to admit there's some sort of connection.

CHIP BOOTS: Stasiak just cracks me up.

SCOTT WORDEN: Bets thing this year was Rock and Jericho..  Just some good
stuff.  late in the year, so I think that will get the #1 nod from most,
like it did it from me.

NATRBOY72: 1) Kurt's Milkamania had me laughing so hard I literally fell
out of my chair, funniest angle since BWO as KISS, 2) Chris Benoit coming
back "injured" and winning TLC III put him on the verge on getting over as
a top star before the rug was pulled 3) Shane stealing WCW from Vince was
well booked and executed.

CANZ: Bucanero and Guerrero splitting with Satanico to form a revolution
in EMLL provided the best run the promotion has had in 4 years.

DONNY L: Angle/Austin kissing Vince's ass (not literally uck) was some
funniest thing I've seen. Jerihco/Rock was short during the voting period
but the little it was it was good. Jericho/Steph seems to always have some
good stuff as well.

PETER HAZLETT: You know, the WCW thing had a good start, too bad they
could not follow up

JOHN C.: Seeing Austin & Angle sing to Vince McMahon in order to be his
"favourite" was the funniest thing I've ever seen in wrestling. Sure, it
made their heel characters seem weaker but it was entertainment at its
finest. When ECW reunited on Raw in Atlanta it was a big markout moment
and seeing Shane on Nitro was also pretty damn huge.

JOE GENTILE: Let's face it, regardless of how it turned out, the START of
the Alliance angle was phenominal. I marked out BIG TIME for the Kurt
Angle milk truck incident, it was just so well executed. The Alliance
asking RVD for advide didn't go anywhere, but was very amusing while it
lasted.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: First, the return of ECW. It may have totally fallen
completely flat in the long run, but it was still the year's definitive
"Holy Shit" moment. It was also doubly great for being so unexpected. The
amazing angles leading up to Jericho vs. Rock get second, and should
probably win. Awesome, awesome feud, as I've said. Christian's heel turn
gets third. It didn't entirely pan out, true, but it was still one of the
best heel turns of recent times.

MATTY TONKIN: Austin as champion & paraniod leader of the Alliance,
interogating the Alliance members in the ring & singling them out for
praise or ridicule was pure gold. The funniest segments of the year. And
when ECW came through the crowd it was a turning point for the InVasion
angle. That was for around half an hour, until they joined up with WCW &
the whole angle returned to its mediocrity & never recovered.

ROB EVANS: Though they may have botched the whole invasion angle, you have
to admit the coolest moment of the year was that split instant that you
recognized that the wrestlers in the ring were ECW, only to have Paul
Heyman confirm it seconds later. "Feel this moment for the rest of your
life." Classic!

RYAN FAULCONER: Vince McMahon firing WCW wrestlers on national television
was perversely entertaining. I'm not sure if qualifies as an angle though
since some of it was apparently a shoot. Naoya Ogawa showed exactly how to
do a post-match angle at the first ZERO-ONE show so his party crasher
antics take second.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Organization

Award Description:

To be given to the organization/promotion that has the best product. This
is the organization whose TV and house shows you just can't miss.

Previous Winners:

  1990: NWA
  1991: WWF
  1992: WCW
  1993: SMW
  1994: ECW
  1995: WWF
  1996: WWF
  1997: WWF
  1998: WWF
  1999: WWF
  2000: WWF

**2001**: WWF

271 first place votes
235 second place votes
208 third place votes

213 19  8 1138   WWF
 14 76 39  376   ECW
  4 46 48  254   WCW
  9 23 19  152   NJPW
  3  9  9   60   WOW
  1  8 15   59   AJPW
  4  8  3   50   Toryumon
  3  7  6   48   CMLL
  2  7  5   41   NOAH
  4  2  2   30   AJW
  2  4  1   24   ECCW
  1  0  7   19   CZW
  2  0  2   14   Revolution Pro
  0  1  5   13   OVW
  0  2  3   12   XPW
  0  2  3   12   UPW
  2  0  0   10   ECWA
  1  1  1   10   PGWA
  1  0  2    9   FMW
  0  1  3    9   Zero-One
  0  2  1    8   Michinoku Pro
  0  1  2    7   NWA
  0  1  2    7   BattlARTS
  0  2  0    6   Maryland Championship Wrestling
  0  2  0    6   HWA
  0  0  3    6   NWA Wildside
  1  0  0    5   World League Wrestling
  1  0  0    5   WCPW
  1  0  0    5   IPW
  1  0  0    5   GAEA
  1  0  0    5   ARSION
  0  1  1    5   USA Pro Wrestling
  0  1  1    5   Stampede
  0  1  1    5   NEO
  0  1  1    5   JCW
  0  0  2    4   APW
  0  1  0    3   NECW
  0  1  0    3   MPW
  0  1  0    3   JAPW
  0  1  0    3   Exbury Wrestling Federation
  0  1  0    3   Border City Wrestling
  0  0  1    2   WrestleXpress
  0  0  1    2   NWWA
  0  0  1    2   Midwest Championship Wrestling
  0  0  1    2   IWRG
  0  0  1    2   Gateway Championship Wrestling
  0  0  1    2   GMW
  0  0  1    2   Extreme World Warfare
  0  0  1    2   Central Wrestling Organization (Colorado indy)
  0  0  1    2   'jd

REJECTED

  0  1  1        Duplicated votes
  0  1  0        WrestleLine (not a wrestling organisation)
  0  0  1        WXO (defunct)
  0  0  1        UFC (not a wrestling organization)
  0  0  1        ALLIANCE (part of the WWF)

RYAN HALL: WWF, ECW, WCW.  Can it be any other way?  The other 2 are out
of business.

JESSE HARALDSON: The UFC has made a comeback and the "High Voltage" show
they did was an example of how good the sport is.

TEDB512: Even though it has to be my #2, WCW was obviously rebuilding
towards the end, and it would've been great by now.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: I sadly find myself looking back at the last dying gasps
of the old WCW (specifically, the last month) nostalgically, compared to
the current WWF.

CHIP BOOTS: Voting ECW number one is just my way of saying goodbye to the
most innovative promotion ever.

SCOTT WORDEN: Best organization?????  I think this may be the last time
this is part of the awards..  WWF is always my favorite..

NATRBOY72: WWF and Toryumon put on the best shows top to bottom in 2001
getting first and second.  NOAH also did some good things making new
stars, using outsiders, and working with Zero One (and a few really dumb
things like giving Honda a title shot) for third.  It's hard to believe
how far New Japan has slipped.

CANZ: EMLL is the best promotion because it's the only one I even bother
to watch. Let the snobs have their all-workrate promotions and let the
sheep enjoy the circus of the WWF- I will take a balance between the two.

DONNY L: WWF by default I guess

SIMON GRIER: The most obvious no-brainer of a catergory since Hogan was
still around to win "Least Favourite." Up until Rock went off to make
movies the WWF was off the scale in awesomeness this year. They then
dipped a bit until the Great Canadian Elevation before the Invasion set in
- this was a bit substandard but still fresh and exciting. WCW was
probably better in its dying days than at any time in its history, with
lots of great matches and slow but sure elevation of talent in favour of
the old guard. ECW died a shadow of its former self but still provided
more entertainment in three months than XPW will in a lifetime. I don't
watch Puro.

ESTRAGAND: WWF as best AND Worst? sure. When they were on, nobody was
better.. and when they suck, they excel at that, too.

BRIAN SCALA: USA Pro Wrestling charts by default. There is such a small
number of nationally, recognized wrestling organizations that unless WCW
is re-born & Hogan's group starts in 2002, the categories for Best/Worst
Organization should be eliminated. The WWF was really the best & worst fed
at times. They, too, win by default.

JOHN C.: Gee, I wonder who is going to win this one.

CHRIS LENING: If November of 2001 had been included in the time period,
then CMLL would win on my ballot, but the suckiness of this month does not
count, so I cannot knock the many enjoyable shows I did see.

RYAN FAULCONER: New Japan, match for match, had the best company this
year. EMLL has the world's largest roster and can entertain from top to
bottom like only New Japan can.

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: ECWA has been the single most entertaining and
interesting promotion around this year, single-handedly responsible for
bringing a strong-style spirit to independent wrestling in lieu of the
highspots which had dominated before.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best TV Show

Award Description:

To be given to what is on average the best wrestling TV show. In 1994, TV
shows and major shows were given separate award categories.

Previous Winners:

  1991: 03/21/91: WCW & New Japan Supershow (aired on tape)
  1992: 01/18/92: WWF Royal Rumble
  1993: WWF Monday Night RAW weekly TV
  1994: WWF Monday Night RAW
  1995: WWF Monday Night RAW
  1996: WWF Monday Night RAW
  1997: WWF RAW is WAR (Monday Night RAW / RAW / War Zone)
  1998: WWF RAW is WAR (RAW / War Zone)
  1999: WWF RAW is WAR (RAW / War Zone)
  2000: WWF RAW is WAR (RAW / War Zone)

**2001**: WWF RAW (RAW is War / War Zone / RAW Zone)

275 first place votes
264 second place votes
243 third place votes

181  54 10 1087   WWF RAW
 49 145 28  736   WWF SmackDown!
 11   9 72  226   WWF Tough Enough
  4  17 29  129   WCW Monday Nitro
  6   8 23  100   ECW Hardcore TV
  9   7  3   72   NJPW World Pro Wrestling
  4   7  6   53   CMLL
  0   0 22   44   WWF Sunday Night Heat
  1   3 14   42   WWF Jakked / Metal
  1   4 12   41   WOW Women of Wrestling
  2   1  7   27   WWF Excess
  3   1  0   18   All Japan Women's ATHENA
  1   2  3   17   WCW Worldwide
  1   0  1    7   OVW weekly TV
  0   1  2    7   NWA Wildside
  1   0  0    5   Zenjo Satellite
  1   0  0    5   FMW That's Wrestling Show
  0   1  1    5   WCW Thunder
  0   1  1    5   Toryumon Vamanos Amigos
  0   1  1    5   GAEA G-Panic!
  0   1  1    5   FMW Lock Up
  0   0  2    4   CZW Fake You TV
  0   1  0    3   NOAH on Nippon TV
  0   0  1    2   Wrestling Power
  0   0  1    2   WWF LiveWire
  0   0  1    2   IWRG on ESPN2 Mexico
  0   0  1    2   All Japan on GAORA TV
  0   0  1    2   ARSION Stargold

RYAN HALL: RAW, Smackdown, Tough Enough.  RAW still gives the 'somewhat
unknown' feeling, and thus the edge over Smackdown.

PAUL ZOROVICH:  Smackdown always seems to work better as a TV show than
Raw -- maybe it's the couple of days' editing time they have?

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: It's sad that I have to pick Tough Enough as the best
show of the year, but it was consistently entertaining, which is more than
I can say for anything else.

SCOTT WORDEN: SmackDown is the best show this year.. Seems like the better
matches were on it and the longer ones too.. less tackling until recently
it seemed.

DONNY L: Raw over Smackdown just because of the Ross is one hundred times
better then Cole

JOHN C.: Smackdown comes in first because I never read spoilers and I find
that there's more wrestling content on that show. Raw comes in second
obviously with Tough Enough rounding out the top three.

YNAE316: I actually liked the Tough Enough concept, though them letting
Bobbie Joe on probably ranks up there in the "dumbest promotional move"
category.  She admitted to usingthe WWF as a stepping stone to Playboy.
She would probably get there easier sending Heff a headshot orsomething.
They shoulda let in the Aussie chick they featured so much in the casting
edition.

BEE MONTEVERDE: At least Jakked had wrestling on it!

RAGEROCKRR: WWF Tough Enough was the only WWF show this year that I was
glad I tuned into it every time I watched it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Major Show

Award Description:

To be given to the best major event. This could be a pay-per-view, a TV
special, or any big arena event. In 1994, TV shows and major shows were
given separate award categories.

Previous Winners:

  1991: 03/21/91: WCW & New Japan Supershow (aired on tape)
  1992: 01/18/92: WWF Royal Rumble
  1993: WWF Monday Night RAW weekly TV
  1994: 03/20/94: WWF WrestleMania X
  1995: 08/27/95: WWF SummerSlam
  1996: 03/31/96: WWF WrestleMania XII
  1997: 04/14/97: ECW Barely Legal
  1998: 03/24/98: WWF WrestleMania XIV
  1999: 08/22/99: WWF SummerSlam
  2000: 01/23/00: WWF Royal Rumble

**2001**: 04/01/01: WWF WrestleMania X-7

264 first place votes
257 second place votes
248 third place votes

168 50  8 1006   04/01/01 WWF WrestleMania X-7
 17 47 43  312   01/21/01 WWF Royal Rumble
 15 50 31  287   02/25/01 WWF No Way Out
 13 19 23  168   03/26/01 WCW Monday Nitro (finale)
  7 16 30  143   08/19/01 WWF SummerSlam
  3 15 18   96   07/09/01 WWF RAW is WAR (ECW, WCW combine)
  6  7 16   83   10/21/01 WWF No Mercy
  5  5 12   64   06/24/01 WWF King of the Ring
  4  7 11   63   07/22/01 Invasion
  3  7  2   40   06/06/01 NJPW
  2  4  6   34   11/05/00 ECW November to Remember
  5  0  3   31   03/30/01 EMLL Juicio Final
  1  2  9   29   09/23/01 WWF Unforgiven
  2  2  6   28   01/07/01 ECW Guilty As Charged
  5  0  0   25   05/04/01 All Japan Women
  2  2  2   20   02/24/01 ECWA Super 8
  0  4  4   20   05/20/01 WWF Judgment Day
  0  3  4   17   01/04/01 NJPW Tokyo Dome
  0  2  5   16   03/18/01 WCW Greed
  2  1  0   13   02/04/01 WOW Unleashed
  1  2  1   13   12/10/00 WWF Armageddon
  1  1  1   10   06/06/01 AJPW Super Power Series Tour ending show
  0  2  1    8   01/14/01 WCW Sin
  1  0  1    7   05/22/01 FMW Sapporo Green Dome
  0  1  2    7   02/18/01 WCW Superbrawl Revenge
  1  0  0    5   07/27/01 NOAH Budokan
  0  1  1    5   06/08/01 AJPW Budokan
  0  1  0    3   12/17/00 WCW Starrcade
  0  1  0    3   10/28/01 NJPW
  0  1  0    3   10/27/01 APW King of the Indies
  0  1  0    3   10/21/01 WWF No Way Out
  0  1  0    3   09/16/01 AJW
  0  1  0    3   08/11/01 FMW Komazawa Olympic Gym
  0  1  0    3   03/02/01 Zero-One
  0  0  1    2   12/15/00 EMLL
  0  0  1    2   11/19/00 WWF Survivor Series
  0  0  1    2   09/28/01 EMLL
  0  0  1    2   07/27/01 AJW
  0  0  1    2   07/01/01 Toryumon Tercer Aniversario PPV
  0  0  1    2   05/05/01 FMW Kawasaki Stadium
  0  0  1    2   02/18/01 NJPW

REJECTED

  0  0  1        "Tie" votes

RYAN HALL: Rumble, X-7, No Way Out.  Close call - but come on, Rumble was
the return of the Honky Tonk Man!

VIKRAM BIRRING: The reformation of ECW was the biggest mark out moment of
all time. The WWF had the fans thinking the FTW attitude was back, along
with ECW. Too bad it lasted about 20 minutes.

CHIP BOOTS: No Way Out was, top to bottom, the best show I've ever seen.

SCOTT WORDEN: Wrestlemania 18 was a great show this year.. REALLY great..
No Mercy may have been the 2nd best show by the WWF with No Way Out being
number 3..  Some of the stuff on WWF TV sucked this year, but the ppv's
were not that bad.. I give them that..

SHOCKER 2K: Wrestlemania X-7 was so damn good, they even got me to call it
X-7. :P

DONNY L: No Way out was the best PPV of the year, Trips/Austin 2/3,
underated 4 way match w/ Pac,Eddie,Y2J & Benoit, even Steph v. Trish was
solid.. KOTR was 2nd with a great tournament, decent mainevent Austin v.
ChrisX2 and Angle/Shane killing having the most insane match of the year

JOHN C.: WrestleMania X-7 was the best PPV ever so it's the easy #1
choice.  Matches like Angle/Benoit, Vince/Shane, HHH/Taker, TLC 2 and
Austin/Rock made it unforgettable in more ways than one. There were some
bad stuff but nothing that took too much time. In second I like No Way Out
because it had the Austin/HHH MOTY, a terrific Angle/Rock title match, a
surprisingly good Steph/Trish match and the forgotten four way IC title
match. Royal Rumble had a great Jericho/Benoit ladder match, a solid main
event and a decent Angle/HHH title match. Summerslam and King of the Ring
were pretty good too.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Wrestlemania X-7, easily. No bad matches, about five or
six good-to-great ones. I think this may well have been one of the best,
if not simply the single best, Wrestlemania of all time. And that cover a
*lot* of territory... the Royal Rumble and No Way Out, the best PPVs in
their respective series since, erm, last year, get second and third.

RYAN FAULCONER: EMLL's March '01 PPV was a great show with two MOTYCs.
Super 8 2001 was was really really good as well and got me wanting more US
indies. EMLL's December 2000 PPV is third because its EMLL and yadda yadda
(see category 35).

WILL SCHLICKENMAIER: Even though it wasn't nominated, the ECWA Super 8 was
the best show of the year... tied if it could be with Wrestlemania 2001,
but since it can't, it can't.  Fact is, Wrestlemania was a great show.
GREAT show.  But as recent events have shown, it wasn't that important.
Austin's a face again.  McMahon's a heel again.  WCW is gone... the only
thing that's mattered since that is... well, not much, honestly.  Whereas
the Super 8 was so important in changing the face of independent
wrestling... it gets the edge.

SHAWN MULLIN: WrestleMania X-Seven may be the best overall wrestling PPV
of all time, let alone the best show this year.  There are little things
here and there they could have done to improve it, but it was as close to
perfect as they'll get.  The atmosphere was perfect, the wrestling talent
was unbelievable, and the work was great from top to bottom.  No Mercy
edges out the Royal Rumble for me because I really didn't enjoy the
HHH/ANgle heel vs. heel WWF title match upon second viewing.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Promotional Move

Award Description:

To be given to the best move made by a promotion this past year. This
could include giving somebody a push, demoting someone, firing someone
hiring someone, or anything of a promotional nature.

Previous Winners:

  1991: WWF signs Ric Flair
  1992: WCW signs Jake Roberts
  1993: WWF works with SMW & USWA
  1994: WWF pushes Bret Hart as champion again
  1995: WCW signs Sabu, Chris Benoit, Eddy Guerrero & Dean Malenko away
  1996: WCW signs Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Ted DiBiase & Syxx
  1997: ECW uses "working agreement" with WWF
  1998: WWF books Vince McMahon into top storyline role
  1999: WWF signs Chris Jericho
  2000: WWF signs Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Perry Saturn

**2001**: WWF adds ECW to "invasion" angle

269 first place votes
262 second place votes
257 third place votes

 42 28 17  328   WWF adds ECW to invasion angle
 40 11  9  251   WWF buys WCW
 26 24 19  240   WWF hires Paul Heyman
 18 13 26  181   WCW books Flair vs. Sting in final main event
 12 20 14  148   WWF breaks off negotiations with Chyna
 12 22 10  146   WWF pushes Chris Benoit
  8 21 17  137   WWF pushes Rob van Dam
 12 15 14  133   WWF simulcasts RAW on final Nitro
  5 20 24  133   WWFE shuts down XFL after one year
  9  9 11   94   WWF turns Steve Austin heel
  9  7 12   90   WWF books Chris Jericho to WCW Championship win
 12  4  2   76   WWF announces Toronto Skydome as location for Wrestlemania X-8
 11  4  4   75   WWF donates $1 million to New York City mayor's office
  8  8  5   74   WWF promotes Rock vs. Austin as WrestleMania main event
  7  3 15   74   WWF produces Tough Enough
  2 10 11   62   WWF, Buff Bagwell agree on release
  5  3  2   38   New Japan pushes Yuji Nagata to main event
  3  4  5   37   WWF books Kurt Angle to WWF Championship win in hometown
  3  2  6   33   WWF release Kronik
  3  3  4   32   WWF signs Booker T
  2  5  2   29   AJPW & NJPW make Keiji Muto six crown king
  1  5  1   22   WWF accepts Jerry Lawler's resignation
  1  2  1   13   ARSION & AJW work together
  0  3  1   11   Zero-One works with NOAH
  2  0  0   10   WWF signs Rob van Dam
  2  0  0   10   PGWA title defended in other organizations
  1  1  1   10   ECW goes bankrupt
  1  0  2    9   UFC pushes Tito Ortiz as their top star
  0  1  3    9   Sakie Hasegawa, Debbie Malenko return to wrestling
  1  0  0    5   WWF improves Jakked/Metal
  1  0  0    5   WWF hires Haku
  1  0  0    5   WWF drops Alliance angle
  1  0  0    5   WCW pushes Kanyon
  1  0  0    5   WCW doesn't use Hulk Hogan
  1  0  0    5   New-Japan co-promotes with All-Japan and NOAH
  1  0  0    5   Momoe Nakanishi wins JGP
  1  0  0    5   FMW pushes Onryo
  1  0  0    5   EMLL decides to push young talent
  1  0  0    5   Chyna poses for Playboy
  0  1  1    5   WWF redesigns SmackDown! set, graphics
  0  0  2    4   WWF books Edge to King of the Ring win
  0  0  2    4   WWF airs live SmackDown! after World Trade Center attack
  0  1  0    3   WWF teases "old Steve Austin" return for Invasion
  0  1  0    3   WWF teams up with Microsoft to promote X Box
  0  1  0    3   WWF superstars appear on The Weakest Link
  0  1  0    3   WWF doesn't hire Scott Hudson & Mike Tenay
  0  1  0    3   WWF cuts back on long show-opening promos
  0  1  0    3   WWF books lengthy title run for Steve Austin
  0  1  0    3   Tetsuhiro Kuroda becomes star of FMW
  0  1  0    3   Rock does The Mummy Returns
  0  1  0    3   Perro Aguayo forced into retirement
  0  1  0    3   Osaka Pro works with New Japan
  0  1  0    3   AJW pits new vs. old
  0  0  1    2   WWF ties Undertaker with over musical acts
  0  0  1    2   WWF showcases Trish Stratus on Excess
  0  0  1    2   WWF reteams Undertaker & Kane
  0  0  1    2   WWF pushes Rhyno
  0  0  1    2   WWF punishes Saturn by having Bradshaw stiff crap out of him
  0  0  1    2   WWF makes "Divas in Hedonism" video
  0  0  1    2   WWF considers hiring Scott Hall & Kevin Nash
  0  0  1    2   WCW signs Road Warrior Animal
  0  0  1    2   NJPW signs Masahito Kakihara
  0  0  1    2   NEO makes Lioness champ
  0  0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke and Kintaro Kanemura get back together
  0  0  1    2   Athtress Project

REJECTED - not in eligible time period

  2  1  0        WWF brings in Ric Flair
  0  1  1        WWF brings back Jerry Lawler
  0  0  1        Mr. T appears on RAW

RYAN HALL: The XFL was a joke, and the WWF being associated with it hurt
their image badly.

EDDIE BURKETT: For the WWF, buying WCW was the best way to shut the
competition down.  Another good business move was to put your two biggest
draws in one big match at the biggest show of the year.  Adding ECW to the
mix was a good way to pep up a stale invasion.

HIRO: The simulcast of Raw and Nitro was a historic moment, it got my vote
unanimously.

VIKRAM BIRRING: Thank God Chyna is gone. She never brought anything to the
table. She was too good for the women but too sorry for the men.

KEN DREILING: Adding ECW to the invasion angle was the smartest move, but
(big but) it was never capitalized on.  Chyna had nowhere for her
character to grow, so it's good they got rid of her (and she sucked too.)
Pushing Benoit provided us some of the best wrestling on US TV in a while.

CHIP BOOTS: I shudder to think what the WWF would be like today if they
hadn't hired Paul Heyman.

SCOTT WORDEN: WWF getting Heyman was the best thing I feel this year..
(The better started after the voting year ;) )

CHRIS BIRD: Even if you count the horrible Invasion angle against it,
you've still got to admit that the WWF purchasing WCW was a brilliant
business move. For chump change, Vince got access to a huge video library
and a group of young and hungry wrestlers. That's a bargain no matter your
opinion of the Invasion angle (which, once again, SUCKED).

CANZ: EMLL's decision to spotlight the younger talent and start phasing
out the geezers started it's hottest run in years, and brought the quality
of wrestling up to an amazing level.

DONNY L: One thing comes to mind, Chyna your Fired

JOHN C.: People like to bash the WWF in a lot of ways and they may deserve
it a lot of times but when they donated $1 million to help the people of
NYC they did the right thing.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: The winner here *should* have been WWF buying WCW.
Unfortunately, seeing as Vince and co. completely screwed up the resultant
angle, it really can't be. It's still a good promotional move in the long
term, though, (for the WWF if not necessarily the rest of the sport) so it
still gets a vote. My top picks though are: 1. the WWF hiring Paul Heyman,
resulting in a much-needed injection of new blood into the booking team,
far improved colour commentary (sorry, King) and a (temporary :( )
emphasis on actual *wrestling* and 2. the WWF giving Chris Jericho the WCW
Title. The man's been ready for quite a while. Giving him the WCW title
should (hopefully) finally put him over the top as a legit main eventer,
something that can only help the WWF, as they need more plausible main
eventers. Now let's see him win the unification WMX ripoff at Vengeance
and I can die happy.

CHRIS LENING: I voted for the Bankruptcy of ECW because the most fun I
ever had with ECW was reading about its legal woes on the Other Arena
(Creepy shot of Heyman scowling aside). Most Wrestling Angles aren't as
interesting as Heyman's legal issues.

JEREMY SORIA: WWF simulcasting on WCW Nitro would be the first - and last
- time it would happen... but it did get its job done:  getting more
people to order WrestleMania. And although the WWF's handling of the WCW
name was just the worst job that anyone's done with it, their purchase of
WCW was a very good promtional move so that most of the wrestlers would
still be working in some capacity without interruption. Too bad they
didn't get the stars they wanted, and too bad the WWF didn't properly
groom the right people for the spotlight.

RYAN FAULCONER: Adding ECW to the WCW side in the feud with the WWF was
brilliant...for twenty minutes. Too bad they couldn't follow it up. Osaka
Pro working with New Japan was a great move because it got Takehiro
Murahama more exposure and allowed various cool Osaka Pro workers like
Kuishinbo Kamen and Gokuaku Kaiju Z Mandora to work at ringside at NJPW
events. WWF buying WCW should have been first on this list but they
bumbled the whole thing so badly.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Second

Award Description:

To be given to the manager whose presence at ringside and during
interviews is really unnecessary. This person does little to enhance the
matches in which his/her wrestler(s) participates.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Mr. Fuji
  1991: Coach John Tolos
  1992: Harvey Wippleman
  1993: Harvey Wippleman
  1994: Harvey Wippleman
  1995: Harvey Wippleman
  1996: Teddy Long
  1997: Uncle Cletus
  1998: Eric Bischoff
  1999: Curtis Hughes
  2000: Mae Young

**2001**: Sara

254 first place votes
244 second place votes
230 third place votes

 55 53 22  478   Sara
 37 21 35  318   Debra
 35 25 29  308   Moppy
 37 22 15  281   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 13 22 23  177   Terri
 17 13 13  150   Lita
 15 13  9  132   Shane McMahon
  6 15  7   89   Steven Richards
  5 11 14   86   Nidia
  7  8  9   77   Jackie
  2 10 10   60   Torrie Wilson
  5  3  5   44   Goon
  4  5  3   41   Sal E. Graziano
  2  4  7   36   Mighty Molly
  2  3  7   33   Ivory
  1  6  5   33   Tori
  3  3  2   28   Bill Alfonso
  2  4  3   28   Trish Stratus
  3  1  4   26   Stacy Keibler
  1  1  2   12   Jade's grandmother
  1  0  0    5   Kevin Sullivan
  1  0  0    5   Kenny Bolin
  0  1  0    3   Lizzie Borden
  0  0  1    2   Vince McMahon
  0  0  1    2   Tiger Ali Singh
  0  0  1    2   Kat
  0  0  1    2   Dew

REJECTED

  0  0  1        Judy Bagwell
  0  0  1        Duplicated votes

RYAN HALL: Debra, Sara, Moppy.  Debra gets worse every time.  I had to
watch her 'cry' for nearly 10 minutes in Toronto when TNN was having
technical difficulties.

EDDIE BURKETT: Lita draws TOO MUCH heat for her T&A and detracts from the
Hardies wrestling abilities.  Also, she generally helps them cheat to win,
which is a trait I like in my heels, not my faces.  Trish and Torrie also
tend to be there just as T&A and aren't particularly useful.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Can I just tell you how much I HATED Moppy? I'm not
kidding, Moppy burned my ass to grandiose new heights. I hated Moppy so
much that I couldn't even get into Moppy being destroyed. Moppy made
Ernest Miller and X-Pac both look like La Parka. Die, Moppy, die.It was
one of angles where you're watching it, and you can't even justify to
yourself why you're watching wrestling. Lots of people make the Chavo/Pepe
comparison, but Pepe was a much better worker. Chavo pulled off "crazy"
better than poor, lost Perry Saturn, too. Perry, when your contract's up,
please, go to Japan where you can just shut up and wrestle without being
humiliated by crap angles that are worse than a lot of Vince's "gems" from
years past like Matilda getting kidnapped, Bossman/anyone in 1999-2000,
etc.

KEN DREILING: Why have a second that does absolutely nothing.  Sara bad
angle, and UT said he didn't want his family involved in wrestling,
right?!?

CHIP BOOTS: Terri is just horrible.

SCOTT WORDEN: I never liked how Big Sal would take Guido's heat.. I mean,
fans would chant at him instead of giving Guido heat..  He took more away
than gave.  What does Terri do other than get her nipples hard? And what
did Sara do,other than pin DDP?  ugh..politics right there with Sara.

F-MAN: Whoever thought up this gimmick for Saturn should be fired, NOW!
The worst thing is, Russo didn't think of it.

OTTO "HACK-MAN" HEUER: Worst Second? Easy: Debra, Sara, Fonzie.

CHRIS BIRD: Okay, why am I supposed to care about the Undertaker's wife
again? Oh, wait. I don't.

KEVIN WONG: In direct comparison to #30, "bad" seconds are everywhere.
Narrowing it down to Steph, Moppy and WOW's Goon was tough.

DONNY L: Has Terri ever helped someone get over since Goldust, Sara was
annoying as hell and Torri Wilson should be happy her presence made Tajiri
lame.

PAUL PROSE: Debra and Sara both do not belong in their husband's corners.

JOHN C.: Aside from Cloudy and Nicole Bass, Sara Undertaker was the worst
female in WWF history. Yeah, I'm even including Bertha Faye in this. Does
Terri Runnels ever do anything?

JOE GENTILE: If there is one person I miss LESS than Chyna, it may be
Sara.

YNAE316:  Goon (WOW):  What the hell was this guy anyway????????

RYAN FAULCONER: Lita's constant interference has turned the Hardy Boys
into a very stale act.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Announcer

Award Description:

To be given to the commentator/announcer who makes the dumbest comments
while pushing his product. This person probably gets you to turn down the
TV when he/she is announcing. As of 1992, the difference between this and
colour commentator will be enforced.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Vince McMahon
  1991: Vince McMahon
  1992: Vince McMahon
  1993: Vince McMahon
  1994: Eric Bischoff
  1995: Eric Bischoff
  1996: Eric Bischoff
  1997: Tony Schiavone
  1998: Tony Schiavone
  1999: Tony Schiavone
  2000: Tony Schiavone

**2001**: Tony Schiavone

248 first place votes
221 second place votes
203 third place votes

101 53 25  714   Tony Schiavone
 58 49 31  499   Michael Cole
 18 31 33  249   Jonathan Coachman
 12 16 30  168   Kevin Kelly
 17  5 14  128   Jim Ross
  9 18 12  123   Lee Marshall
 11 11 16  118   David McLane
  6 15 16  107   Scott Hudson
  2  8  7   48   Kris Kloss
  3  3  4   32   Joey Styles
  2  0  0   10   Jerry Lawler
  0  2  2   10   Mike Tenay
  1  0  0    5   Paul Heyman
  1  0  0    5   Joel Gertner
  0  1  1    5   Eric Gargiulo
  0  1  0    3   Lilian Garcia
  0  1  0    3   Gene Okerlund
  0  1  0    3   Carlos Cabrera

REJECTED - not play-by-play announcers

  6  4  7        Kane
  1  0  0        Lilian Garcia
  0  2  2        Duplicated votes
  0  0  1        Stevie Ray
  0  0  1        Dan "The Dragon" Wilson
  0  0  1        Arn Anderson

RYAN HALL: Schiavone looks like a beached whale

TEDB512: Michael Cole is unbelievably awful. He doesn't talk about the
matches. It's not like he even adds a single thing.

CHIP BOOTS: I had to put ol' Tony on there one last time.

SCOTT WORDEN: Th winner of the Tony Shiavone Award is??  Tony Schiavone

CANZ:  The best run the WWF had was when Jim Ross had lockjaw or whatever
and couldn't talk let alone announce. Here's a toast hoping he drowns in
his own slobber and shameless shilling.

DONNY L: So many to choose from here, K.Kelly and Coachman on Metal or
jakked whatever it's called is just the most awful thing you could ever
hear. Cole has been doing play by play for the longest time and hasn't
improved at all.

SIMON GRIER: Kevin Kelly is an awful announcer. He can never decide
whether to do PBP or colour, has no knowledge about wrestling and instead
stinks up UK Heat and Metal with stupid jokes about some producer named
Tommy Carlucci who no viewer is likely to know. He's now spread this to
Coachman, Cole, Hayes and Tazz as well. He also has a face you just want
to punch. Go away, Kelly you suck. We all know how bad Schiavone is, he
isn't even worth the effort of thinking up a joke about the greatest
whatever in the history of whatever. I hate Jericho, but feel the need
here to leech one of his catchphrases :  Mitchell Cole, would you please
shut the hell up? Please?

ESTRAGAND: Ross continually ridiculed WCW and its wrestlers. Take a drink
everytime Ross uses the phrase "HELL" "BYGAWD" "DAMN" "SOUL" or
"SONUVABITCH" Not even a drunken Southern Baptist preacher uses these
phrases at such a rate.

JOE GENTILE: Come on! We HAVE to give this to Tony one last time!

CHRIS LENING: Tony wins just for old times sake. I mean, not that he
didn't blow in the waning days of WCW, but really, we should establish
this category to him in memoriam. Eric Gargiulo of CZW somehow did the
impossible and made bad matches seem even more terrible, thus edging out
XPW's Kris Kloss, who falls to third mainly because the episode of XPW I
stupidly decided to recap saw Kloss absent from the party. He nonetheless
sucks, though.

RYAN FAULCONER: Michael Cole gives me seizures and makes me wish I was
deaf too.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Colour Commentator

Award Description:

To be given to the commentator/announcer who makes the dumbest comment
while pushing his product. This person probably gets you to turn down the
TV when he/she is announcing.

Previous Winners:

  1991: Dusty Rhodes
  1992: Lord Alfred Hayes
  1993: Randy Savage
  1994: Dusty Rhodes
  1995: Steve McMichael
  1996: Dusty Rhodes
  1997: Dusty Rhodes
  1998: Larry Zbyszko
  1999: Jason Hervey
  2000: Mark Madden

**2001**: Mark Madden

245 first place votes
223 second place votes
205 third place votes

 60 30 20  430   Mark Madden
 27 23 14  232   Jerry Lawler
 26 22 18  232   Arn Anderson
 16 17 22  175   Tazz
 21 15 12  174   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 11 20 26  167   Vince Russo
  9 23 14  142   Stevie Ray
  9 11 13  104   Konnan
 11  7  9   94   David McLane
 12  4  4   80   Paul Heyman
 10  5  7   79   Mike Tenay
  5 11  9   76   Lee Marshall
  7  5  6   62   Al Snow
  6  6  7   62   Jim Ross
  3  7  9   54   Michael Hayes
  4  5  3   41   Trish Stratus
  4  5  2   39   Chris Leary
  1  1  0    8   Cyrus
  0  0  3    6   John House
  1  0  0    5   B. Brian Blair
  0  1  1    5   Kevin Kelly
  0  1  1    5   Jonathan Coachman
  0  1  0    3   Larry Rivera
  0  1  0    3   Joel Gertner
  0  1  0    3   DISQO
  0  0  1    2   Scott Hudson
  0  0  1    2   Larry Zbyzsko
  0  0  1    2   Dr. Tom Pritchard
  0  0  1    2   Bobby Heenan

REJECTED - not colour

  2  0  0        Tony Schiavone
  0  1  1        Michael Cole

RYAN HALL: Tenay scares me.  He gives off that child molestor vibe.

TEDB512: Al Snow is maybe the worst possible complement to Michael Cole.
Neither of them talk about the match!

MPWG: No will even comes close to Mark's level

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Heyman's "Alliance" work buried a lot of the good he'd
done up until that point. We'll see if he can turn it around this year
coming up.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: I really don't know whether David McLane is an
announcer or a color commentator -- probably color, I guess -- but he'd
qualify as the worst I've ever heard in both categories.

CHIP BOOTS: Anybody can yell "Puppies!" 200 times an hour.  That doesn't
make them a good color commentator.

SCOTT WORDEN: Did Madden actually think people may have liked him?  Glad
that guy is unemployed form wrestling.

CANZ: It took me about one minute of hearing the obnoxious voice of Paul
E. to realize he is truly as much at home with the equally repulsive Ross
as Lawer was.  I hope someone throws a brick at the WWF announce table.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1.  I think Chris Leary and Jonathan Coachman make the
single worst and most annoying announce team in wrestling history.  That
said, I'd STILL rather listen to them as opposed to the Great Blob that
is/was Madden.

DONNY L: I like Snow as a wrestler, but his colour was just bad. Arn
Anderson was on for one segment on Raw and it was one too many.

SIMON GRIER: A least Kelly is only the second worst colour guy, as he
isn't even close to being as bad as Madden. I hope people don't forget
Madden just because he was sacked early in the voting calendar - he was
more annoying in the first match of the first Nitro of the year than Kelly
has been in his whole career. Dr. Tom just tries too hard to be a heel
commentator and comes off a prat.

ESTRAGAND: Sorry, Arn. While he was a fantastic wrestler, his brief stint
as a color man seemed misguided. His voice was too quiet and muffled, not
reflective of the foreboding interviews he used to do.

CHRIS GRIMM: No one, and I mean, NO ONE adds less to the show than that
shreiking jackass Lawler.  And when we got Heyman to replace him, who
really missed hearing a creepy middle-aged man scream about any pair of
tits in the immediate area?  You did?  Really?  You're an ass.

CHRIS LENING: It is perhaps the most unfortunate aspect of my ballot that
XPW's sucktacular Larry Rivera can't even win third place here. Heyman was
a big fat sack of suck, Lawler was a shrieking fool with a perpetual
hardon, and John House managed to be a color man despite not having a
voice that is even remotely pleasant-sounding.

YNAE316: I love AA but he blowed pretty bad on that one edition of Raw

BEE MONTEVERDE: I put J.R. as worst color man for when he would replace
Tazz or whomever on Smackdown!. Listening to Cole and Ross trying to
adjust to eachother is miserable.

RYAN FAULCONER: Paul Heyman's ECW shilling and misogyny has been known to
cause wild epidemics of channelflipitis to break out in the Faulconer
household.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: Lots of people didn't do very well but no one deserves
singling out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Interviewee

Award Description:

To be given to the person who gives the worst interview in the biz. This
could be a wrestler or a manager.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Ultimate Warrior
  1991: El Gigante
  1992: Ultimate Warrior
  1993: Giant Gonzalez
  1994: Yokozuna
  1995: Hulk Hogan
  1996: Ahmed Johnson
  1997: Ahmed Johnson
  1998: Warrior
  1999: Sid Vicious
  2000: Hardy Boyz

**2001**: Linda McMahon

261 first place votes
258 second place votes
249 third place votes

 36 28 20  304   Linda McMahon
 31 23 19  262   Chyna
 28 27 13  247   Jeff Hardy
 29 16  8  209   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
 23 19 12  196   Billy Gunn
 13 12 12  125   Lita
 11 15 12  124   Matt Hardy
 14  8  7  108   Debra
  9  8 13   95   Test
  5 10 20   95   X-Pac
  9  4 13   83   Scott Steiner
  7  7  3   62   Albert
  4  5 12   59   Lex Luger
  1  9  9   50   Steve Blackman
  5  3  2   38   Rob van Dam
  2  6  5   38   Shawn Stasiak
  2  6  5   38   Rhyno
  2  7  2   35   Shane McMahon
  1  4  9   35   Undertaker
  3  4  3   33   Chris Benoit
  2  5  4   33   Perry Saturn
  4  1  3   29   Diamond Dallas Page
  2  3  4   27   Bull Buchanan
  1  3  3   20   Rock
  0  3  4   17   Spike Dudley
  1  1  3   14   Raven
  1  1  3   14   Jacqueline
  0  4  1   14   Justin Credible
  2  0  1   12   Summer
  2  0  1   12   Chris Jericho
  0  3  1   11   Rick Steiner
  1  0  2    9   David McLane
  0  1  3    9   Slam Dunk
  1  1  0    8   Lance Storm
  1  1  0    8   Kane
  0  1  2    7   Terri Gold
  0  2  0    6   Trish Stratus
  1  0  0    5   Pogo the Clown
  1  0  0    5   Hurricane
  1  0  0    5   Bradshaw
  0  1  1    5   Vince McMahon
  0  1  1    5   Tajiri
  0  1  1    5   Stacy Keibler
  0  1  1    5   Buff Bagwell
  0  1  0    3   Tazz
  0  1  0    3   Brian Knobbs
  0  0  1    2   Wall
  0  0  1    2   Vampiro
  0  0  1    2   Triple H
  0  0  1    2   Torrie Wilson
  0  0  1    2   Taka Michinoku
  0  0  1    2   Sid Vicious
  0  0  1    2   Sara
  0  0  1    2   Road Warrior Animal
  0  0  1    2   Quinton Jackson
  0  0  1    2   Harley's Angels
  0  0  1    2   Big Show

REJECTED

  5  1  0        Hardy Boyz

RYAN HALL: Linda, Chyna, Benoit.  Linda tries at least.  Chyna NEVER has
anything important to say.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst interview.. Never liked Billy and Steve Blackman is no
mic killer..

CHRIS BIRD: Linda McMahon phoned to tell me her acceptance of my
nomination of her for worst interview. Here's the transcription. "Dear
Christopher. <overlong pause> I am enthusiastic ... and proud to ...
accept your nomination... <pause> ...here in GREENLEAFCONNECTICUT! <pause
for cheers> Now I think ... ALL the people ... would agree with you. BUT.
<very long pause> I think we should let them speak their mind."

MARK POLISHUK: Test has the speaking ability of a jock trying out for a
high school play, and yet is still being pushed into a major position.
Sigh.

CANZ: I don't believe there is a speech impediment font yet so transcribe
a Chris Benoit interview as an example of how bad they are is quite
impossible. Keep this dwarf away from the mic!

MIKE JOHNSON: 1. Steph's promos literally make my skin crawl.  Her
screechy voice, her utter lack of acting abilty, ugh!  This is hopefully
the last of her for at least six months.

GREG SAKAKI: Team Xtreme should sweep the podium in this category.

DONNY L: Big Poppa Mumbles is first, Test is second and Xpac third

PETER HAZLETT: Does SMH always have to shrill like that?

SIMON GRIER: Chyna has an awful speaking voice, but it isn't how she
speaks that annoys me as much sa *what* she speaks. I am the greatest role
model, blah blah blah. She is a channel changer. Debra's southern drawl is
as awful as her fake appearance, and Gunn always looks as out of place
behind the mic as he does in the ring.

ESTRAGAND: Shane McMahon (may 2001): "Cuz ya see.. unlike you, dad... it's
not about me. It's about the WCW superstars".

JOHN C.: Has Billy Gunn or Jeff Hardy ever cut a good promo? Ever? Rick
Steiner just didn't give a damn about anybody in his last days.

JOE GENTILE: YA KNOW, YA REALLY DON'T NEED TO LEARN HOW TO DO
INTERVIEWS!!!!! AS LONG AS YOU CAN SCREAM ON THE TOP OF YOUR LUNGS LIKE
BRIAN KNOBBS, YOU'LL GET PLENTY OF TV TIME!!!

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Last year I didn't vote for the Hardyz here because
they don't talk, and I don't believe of accusing people of being bad at
something no-one ever lets them do. Well, now I have heard them talk on a
few (rare) occasions, and since they're more wooden than a rainforest,
I'll gladly vote for them. That said, they still need to talk more, cos if
they never do, they'll never improve. And however bad the Hardyz may be on
the mic, Linda McMahon still trumps them. Easily. So, 1. Linda McMahon, 2.
Jeff Hardy, 3. Matt Hardy.

CHRIS LENING: Scott Steiner wins an honorary third for being so bad an
interview it's unintentionally entertaining. Stephanie McMahon screeches
her way to second, avoiding first likely only because of the godliness
that is my Fast Forward button. But no interview I saw this year, even
from Stephanie, was half as bad as one from a certain Pogo the Clown in
XPW, as this corpulent pajama-clad person proceeded to just throw out a
metric ton of expletives, with almost no other emotion outside of slight
irritation. C'mon, if you're gonna say the F-word 700 times in three
minutes, at least make it seem like you're sorta pissed. It's like the
profanity equivalent of cold mechanical sex.

YNAE316: Gosh, what a waste of airtime....

BEE MONTEVERDE: Die Team Xtreme!

MATT SPAULDING: Steiner, Sid, and Justin, same three as last year.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Angle

Award Description:

To be given to the worst angle you've seen in the sport this year. It may
be the worst because of taste or because of execution.

Previous Winners:

  1990: Earthquake breaks Hulk's ribs & get well card drive /
        Black Scorpion (tie)
  1991: WWF exploits the Gulf war
  1992: Papa Shango curses the Ultimate Warrior
  1993: WCW's Cactus Jack gets amnesia; search leads to Cleveland
  1994: WCW gives Hulk Hogan the WCW Title
  1995: WCW bills Giant as Andre the Giant's alleged son
  1996: Jim Ross announces return of Razor Ramon and Diesel to WWF
  1997: Brian Pillman claims paternity of Dakota Runnells
  1998: "Mysterious laughter" source revealed as Chucky the doll
  1999: Big Show's father stricken with cancer; Big Boss Man exploits it
  2000: Mae Young's pregnancy results in birth of hand

**2001**: Triple H quickly returns from fall inside car dropped from forklift

261 first place votes
256 second place votes
251 third place votes

 25 22 25  241   Triple H crushed inside dropped car....but survives!
 22 26 15  218   Chyna, Lita feud over spankings
 16 15 18  161   Vince McMahon's divorce request leads to Linda being committed
 21 10  7  149   Chyna suffers "neck injury" at hands of Right to Censor
 21 11  5  148   Sara's stalker revealed as Diamond Dallas Page
 22  6  5  138   WCW, ECW form alliance
 13 14 10  127   Vince McMahon has Trish Stratus bark like a dog
  8 16 14  116   Perry Saturn meets, loses Moppy
 10 11 11  105   Booker T impersonates Rock, auditions for a movie
 10 10 12  104   Debra named Rock's manager at Wrestlemania X-7
  9  8 15   99   Stacy Keibler's baby revealed as stack of Sean Stasiak photos
  5 15  8   86   Mystery Man Revealed as Road Warrior Animal
 10  5  7   79   Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley buys ECW
  6  5 11   67   Steven Richards brings in Kronik to battle Undertaker
  5  8  3   55   Jimmy Hart challenges radio hosts
  5  4  8   53   Ric Flair forced to kiss an ass
  6  4  4   50   Billy Gunn, Big Show form team, search for respect
  5  1  7   42   Right to Censor tries to clean up WWF
  4  4  5   42   Kurt Angle defects to Alliance
  6  1  3   39   Triple H joins Steve Austin; they form Two Man Power Trip
  4  2  3   32   Goldberg's next loss is his last
  1  6  4   31   Debra's cookies taste bad
  3  3  2   28   Spike Dudley, Molly Holly really, really like each other
  1  2  8   27   William Regal invites Duchess of Queensbury to PPV
  4  0  2   24   David McLane courts Lakers exec Jeannie Buss
  1  5  2   24   Magnificent 7 take over WCW
  2  1  5   23   Kurt Angle copies old Steve Austin angles, catchphrases
  0  3  6   21   Steve Austin joins Alliance as Leader
  2  3  0   19   Kurt Angle obsessed with breaking ankles after title loss
  1  3  2   18   Torrie Wilson seduces Vince McMahon
  1  3  1   16   Steve Austin throws Kurt Angle's medals into river,
                 piledrives him
  1  1  3   14   Superhero-obsessed Shane Helms becomes Hurricane
  2  1  0   13   Kurt Angle threatens to throw Steve Austin into Detroit River
  0  3  2   13   Molly Holly becomes Hurricane's sidekick "Mighty Molly"
  1  2  0   11   Chris Jericho urinates in William Regal's tea
  2  0  0   10   Test joins Alliance, wins IC title
  1  0  2    9   Jade can't win a match; grandmother sad
  0  3  0    9   Genichiro Tenryu & Yoji Anjoh destroy AJPW Title Belts
  0  2  1    8   Maven, Tazz clash
  0  2  0    6   Torrie Wilson courts Tajiri
  0  2  0    6   Chris Benoit steals Kurt Angle's medals, hides in trunks
  1  0  0    5   Shane McMahon buys WCW
  1  0  0    5   Nonsensical face/heel turns during WWF/Alliance feud
  1  0  0    5   Misfits In Action
  0  1  1    5   Undertaker squashes everybody
  0  0  2    4   Undertaker won't leave Steve Austin's dressing room
  0  1  0    3   X-Pac unifies Cruiserweight and Light Heavyweight titles
  0  1  0    3   Vince teases return of "The Old Stone Cold"
  0  1  0    3   Kanyon joins Diamond Dallas Page to take on Undertaker & Kane
  0  1  0    3   Someone is beating up the Magnificent 7
  0  1  0    3   Jealous Christian turns on Edge
  0  1  0    3   Chris Jericho reveals Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley had surgery
  0  0  1    2   Tazz becomes Austin's whipping boy
  0  0  1    2   Supreme's burn injuries made a joke by XPW
  0  0  1    2   Rock taunts Booker T with a midget named Booker Wee
  0  0  1    2   Rock on "suspension"
  0  0  1    2   Patti Pep becomes Lana Star's personal assistant Patti Pizzazz
  0  0  1    2   Mystery steals Terri Gold's WOW Championship belt
  0  0  1    2   Jim Duggan joining Team Canada (eligible?)
  0  0  1    2   ECW vs. Network
  0  0  1    2   Chris Jericho dresses up as "He Hate Me"
  0  0  1    2   Beckie the Farmer's Daughter, Jungle Grrrl feud over who
                 has best splash
  0  0  1    2   AJPW vs. WAR

REJECTED - did not occur during eligible time period

  0  2  0        Vince McMahon forms Kiss My Ass Club
  1  0  0        "Anything with..." votes
  0  1  0        Test wins imunity battle royal
  0  1  0        Duplicated votes
  0  1  0        Alex Wright turns into Berlyn

RYAN HALL: Thank God they killed the 'Debra managing Rock' thing.

EDDIE BURKETT: Triple H's superhuman powers should have made him the
superhero, not Molly.  Molly should have cared more for Spike, at least
enough to give us some sort of feud between Spike and Hurricane.  Booker
auditioning for a movie was stupid, and the skits sucked to boot.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Again, too many bad angles to possibly vote for them all.

SCOTT WORDEN: Worst angle was Kronik attacking taker..  UGH oh, Chyna and
her neck getting hurt and then hurting it again at the rumble.  double
ugh.

F-MAN: Just like the whole Invasion angle, the WWF really dropped the ball
on this one. To introduce the first major WCW player in the WWF as a
perverted stalker is beyond me. DDP not only had to feud and job to the
WWF's #4 face, he also had to job to the guy's wife.

CHRIS BIRD: The DDP-as-stalker angle was simply one of the worst angles
EVER. People have wondered how they could have saved it (make DDP less
obsessive, let DDP maybe beat up the Undertaker once to show a bit of
dominance, whatever). The answer is simple: they couldn't. The stalker
angle was being rightly mocked from the get-go for being lame AND
offensive AND boring. To think that taking two respected names in the
sport and feuding them would be so misdone. (Also bad: Road Warrior Animal
as the Mystery Man at WCW Sin. Oh, that was laughable, indeed.)

SHOCKER 2K: What a steaming pile of crap the Invasion turned out to be,
eh?

DONNY L: Goldberg winning streak version 2.0 was a desperate move to get a
talentless musclehead over again..Vince making Trish bark like a dog was
the one time I actally question why I watch this..Trips being dropped from
a car, What? WrestleCrap where are you.

JOHN C.: DDP as Sara's stalker was the wrong choice. Triple H coming back
from the car dropping in eight days was way too soon. Chyna feuding with
Lita over spankings was dead before it started.

CHRIS GRIMM: Man, I wish that asskissing stuff happened a few months
sooner...

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: That ridiculous Triple
H-getting-stuck-in-a-car-and-falling-to-his-untimely-not-death thing,
hands down. I mean, it was a thoroughly idiotic angle in the first place,
but having the guy come back a week later with nary a scratch made it just
that li'l bit worse. The Linda/Vince divorce and nervous breakdown saga
gets second. It also gets extra marks for kicking off the magnificent
McMahon vs. McMahon vs. McMahon vs. McMahon storyline. Third is Kurt Angle
turning alliance. Sure, they salvaged it by having him be the mole, but it
still had plot holes you could drive Jupiter through.

YNAE316: Talk about Wrestlecrap....

MATT SPAULDING: Goldberg's "new" winning streak wasn't going to get
interesting until around the 160 mark anyway, and then to have him
actually lose is a hole WCW wouldn't have been able to dig out of had it
stayed in business.  Animal was the big surprise?  And Debra as Rock's
manager never got off the ground, and she was pulled from the role before
the match.  What?

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Organization

Award Description:

To be given to the organization/promotion that has the worst product. This
is the organization whose TV and house shows you wouldn't even think of
attending. Probably not even as a freebie.

Previous Winners:

  1990: WWF / AWA (tie)
  1991: WCW
  1992: WWF
  1993: WCW
  1994: WCW
  1995: WCW
  1996: AWF
  1997: WCW
  1998: WCW
  1999: WCW
  2000: WCW

**2001**: WCW

241 first place votes
217 second place votes
200 third place votes

 86 33 24  577   WCW
 52 37 32  435   XPW
 25 25 16  232   MECW
 16 29 29  225   WOW
 15 18 20  169   JCW
 18 14 16  164   WWF
  7 19 17  126   CZW
  6 16 14  106   ECW
  5  5  2   44   GLOOW
  2  3  6   31   BBOW
  1  3  6   26   Urban Pro Wrestling
  1  2  2   15   NOAH
  0  3  0    9   NWA
  0  2  0    6   AAA
  1  0  0    5   Stampede
  0  1  1    5   XWF
  0  1  0    3   XPF
  0  1  0    3   OVW
  0  1  0    3   NWA New England
  0  1  0    3   Big Japan
  0  0  1    2   Onita Puroresu
  0  0  1    2   Michinoku Pro
  0  0  1    2   HCWny
  0  0  1    2   CVW

REJECTED

  2  1  6   25   WXO (defunct - shouldn't have made nomination list)
  3  0  1   17   Alliance
  0  2  2   10   Duplicated votes
  1  0  0    5   AOL Time Warner
  0  0  1    2   any backyard feds.
  0  0  1    2   Heroes of Wrestling (defunct)

EDDIE BURKETT: WWF gets worst promotion not because its the worst
promotion, but because its the worst given the potential.  They can pretty
much have any wrestler they want, and put out whatever kind of product
they want, and while they are still entertaining, they are no where near
as entertaining as they could or should be.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Man, WOW was bad. Yet I loved it so much.

CHIP BOOTS: At least JCW keeps ICP away from most of us.

CHRIS BIRD: I'm not sure if I can vote for MECW in this, but hey, they
held a card once, so I figure that makes them count as an "organization".
Technically, at least.

CANZ: WCW dying was equivalent of Old Yeller being shot in the head. Too
bad Vince had the rifle.  AAA is really sad. One tape out of my archives
and I guarantee you will feel the same way, moreso if I snip the one
mini's match a month off of it.

SHOCKER 2K: How was the Alliance NOT listed as a choice for worst Org.?

MIKE JOHNSON: 3. Will somebody please tell me what MECW was?  Did it ever
have a TV show?  Did they run any more than one show?  Would anyone have
cared had it not been a slow news year?

DONNY L: WCW died and desered it.

SIMON GRIER: I haven't seen any of these three, but reading about them
gives me just cause to hate them and vote for them. I was just starting to
get over my XPW-phobia induced byt he pathetic invasion of Heatwave 2K,
when they powerbombed that guy whose name I forget through the flaming
table.  Absolutely idiotic. CZW are no better with their ridiculous antics
that are sure to end the careers of their young talent before the age of
25. Juggalo Campionshit Wrestling involves the clowns and thus gets my
vote ahead of a bunch of promotions that I've never heard of, a bunch with
good reputations (the Puro ones) and the three mainstream ones which were
all good this year.  (Even though two of them died.)

YNAE316: WOW:  Actually had tons of potential but I guess McClane just has
no luck...

MATT SPAULDING: WCW, MECW, XPW.  The first two are out of business; the
third, for the good of all that is holy, should be.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst TV Show

Award Description:

To be given to what is on average the worst wrestling TV show. In 1994, TV
shows and major shows were given separate award categories.

Previous Winners:

  1991: 07/07/91: WCW Great American Bash
  1992: 12/03/91: WWF This Tuesday In Texas
  1993: 04/04/93: WWF WrestleMania IX
  1994: WCW World Wide
  1995: WWF Mania
  1996: AWF Warriors of Wrestling
  1997: WWF LiveWire
  1998: WCW Worldwide
  1999: WCW Thunder
  2000: WCW Thunder

**2001**: (tie) WWF Excess / WCW Thunder

240 first place votes
227 second place votes
213 third place votes

 67 32 31  493   WWF Excess
 55 52 31  493   WCW Thunder
 23 30 11  227   WCW Monday Nitro
 26 17 10  201   XPW TV
 16  8 23  150   WCW Worldwide
  4 15 22  109   WWF LiveWire
  8 10 18  106   WOW Women of Wrestling
  9 13  8  100   CZW Fake You TV
  4 14 15   92   WWF Sunday Night Heat
  6 11  9   81   WWF Jakked / Metal
  8  1  2   47   WWF RAW
  4  3  8   45   WWF Tough Enough
  2  6  6   40   WWF SmackDown!
  3  2  2   25   UPW Live
  1  2  1   13   WWF Attitude
  1  0  1    7   ECW Hardcore TV
  0  0  2    4   WCW Saturday Night (Saturday Morning)
  0  1  0    3   WWF Saturday Night Heat
  0  1  0    3   AAA on Galavision
  0  0  1    2   WWF International Heat
  0  0  1    2   JWF TV
  0  0  1    2   Chaotic Wrestling Friday Night Chaos

REJECTED

  3  9  9   60   ECW on TNN (didn't air during eligibilty period)
  0  0  1    2   Wrestling's Ultimate Slams & Jams (not a TV show)

TEDB512: Tough call between Tough Enough (bad concept) and Excess (bad
show). TE's more generally disturbing, so I picked it.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, WOW!

CHRIS BIRD: Here's what I don't get. The WWF is willing to cut a
wrestler's push after two weeks if they think the reaction is poor. But
Excess has had horrible numbers since the beginning, and somehow they
don't think to change it? It certainly deserves a change. It's a boring
recap show hosted by Jonathan Coachman (a candidate for mandatory
sterilization if ever there was one) that each week clips a classic match
to near-unwatchability. And nobody watches it. Go figure.

DONNY L: Jakked/Metal is just brutal, the matches aren't that bad but the
play by play guys are some of the worse sound coming out of the tube (well
excluding boy bands)

SIMON GRIER: Enough said about the first two, XPW and CZW. Third vote to
International Heat which is a farce. For the best part of the year the
commentary team was two out of Hayes, Coachman and the abhorrent Kelly,
although they've now been replaced by Cole and Tazz who both half-ass the
show. We miss all the angles that take place on the MTV show instead
getting highlights of Raw and Smackdown which we've already seen. Billy
Gunn is an almost mainstay feature which is also bad, plus Channel 4
expect us to wait up to 2 in the morning to watch it. The pointlessness of
Superstars and awfulness of Classics were also considered for a vote,
while I haven't even seen Excess yet.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: Thunder and Nitro get one and two, obviously. Raw gets
third, in spite of me having voted for it in the Best TV show category as
well. Though it's had some great moments this year, it's also had long
stretches of being boring, annoying and hideously stupid. (These periods,
oddly, seem to coincide with the periods of most heavy McMahon-ness in
storylines. Odd that...)

THE CUBS FAN: Excess was a race to see who'd give up first, the fans or
the WWF, and I guess since the fans never bothered to show up, they won by
default. I could make a long list of the bad skits on Heat this year but I
don't want to remember them. No no no no.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Major Show

Award Description:

To be given to the worst major event. This could be a pay-per-view, a TV
special, or any big arena event. In 1994, TV shows and major shows were
given separate award categories.

Previous Winners:

  1991: 07/07/91: WCW Great American Bash
  1992: 12/03/91: WWF This Tuesday In Texas
  1993: 04/04/93: WWF WrestleMania IX
  1994: 06/19/94: WWF King of the Ring
  1995: 03/19/95: WCW Uncensored
  1996: 03/24/96: WCW Uncensored
  1997: 01/25/97: NWO Souled Out
  1998: 08/08/98: WCW Road Wild
  1999: 10/10/99: Heroes of Wrestling
  2000: 10/29/00: WCW Halloween Havoc

**2001**: 01/14/01: WCW Sin

213 first place votes
206 second place votes
191 third place votes

 35 27 12  280   01/14/01 WCW Sin
 30 19 11  229   04/29/01 WWF Backlash
 18 21 15  183   12/17/00 WCW Starrcade
 16 19 13  163   07/22/01 Invasion
 21  8 10  149   02/04/01 WOW Unleashed
  8 20 19  138   03/18/01 WCW Greed
 10 17 12  125   11/19/00 WWF Survivor Series
 11 12 14  119   02/18/01 WCW Superbrawl Revenge
 10  9 18  113   11/26/00 WCW Mayhem
  6 15 16  107   05/20/01 WWF Judgment Day
  8  7 12   85   06/24/01 WWF King of the Ring
  6  8  5   64   01/07/01 ECW Guilty as Charged
  7  2  5   51   10/26/01 World Wrestling Allstars Inception
  5  3  7   48   10/08/01 WWF RAW / RAW Zone (Austin wins WWF Championship)
  3  4  9   45   12/10/00 WWF Armageddon
  5  3  1   36   08/19/01 WWF SummerSlam
  3  1  5   28   12/03/00 ECW Massacre on 34th Street
  0  6  1   20   09/23/01 WWF Unforgiven
  2  1  1   15   06/14/01 ZERO-ONE
  1  1  0    8   10/21/01 WWF No Mercy
  1  1  0    8   07/20/01 New Japan Sapporo Dome
  1  0  1    7   02/25/01 WWF No Way Out
  1  0  0    5   12/26/00 i-Generation Rodman Down Under
  1  0  0    5   06/04/01 CZW Payback
  1  0  0    5   04/01/01 WWF Wrestlemania X-7
  0  1  0    3   07/02/01 WWF RAW is WAR
  0  0  1    2   06/24/01 WWF Judgment Day

REJECTED - not during eligible time period

  2  0  1        11/18/01 WWF Survivor Series
  0  0  1        08/13/00 WCW New Blood Rising

RYAN HALL: InVasion the big disappointment of the year for sure.

CHRIS BIRD: Invasion was simply a disappointment in every sense of the
word. It was an unimpressive show (practically every other WWF show this
year had a **** match, but this one didn't). It was the start of the worst
invasion angle, well, ever. And - well, that's really more or less it, but
those are two awfully good reasons.

SHOCKER 2K: Backlash had that horrible, piece of shit, non-main event to
it, didn't it? Yeah, that's the one.

DONNY L: Pick your ending days of WCW and stick there PPV's here,

MATT SPAULDING: It was a Sin that this pile of crap was even broadcast.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Worst Promotional Move

Award Description:

To be given to the worst move made by a promotion this past year. This
could
include giving somebody a push, demoting someone, firing someone hiring
someone, or anything of a promotional nature.

Previous Winners:

  1991: WCW loses Ric Flair
  1992: WCW bans off the top rope moves under Bill Watts
  1993: WCW tapes 13 weeks of TV at one time in Orlando, Fla.
  1994: WCW lets Hulk Hogan control his scenarios
  1995: WCW gives Hulk Hogan too much control
  1996: WWF lets Scott Hall and/or Kevin Nash go
  1997: Sting doesn't wrestle for the entire year
  1998: WCW sues Ric Flair, causing nearly five month absence from television
  1999: (Tie) WCW lets big names go / WCW signs musical acts for Nitro
  2000: WCW gives Benoit, Guerrero, Malenko, and Saturn requested releases

**2001**: WWF botches seemingly surefire WWF/WCW interpromotional storyline

264 first place votes
255 second place votes
253 third place votes

 45 19 11  304   WWF books subpar invasion angle
 25 33 26  276   WWFE devotes too much energy to doomed XFL
 29 18  7  213   Booker T vs. Bagwell first WCW match booked on RAW
 20 20 11  182   WWF buries WCW repeatedly
  7 12 11   93   WWF doesn't hire big name WCW wrestlers
  6  9 10   77   WWF books too many title changes
  8  6  7   72   WWF promotes Stephanie McMahon to head of creative team
  2 12 11   68   WWF pushes Stephanie & Shane McMahon / lets them wrestle
  4  7 11   63   WCW, Battledome "collide"
 10  3  1   61   WWF buys WCW
  5  7  7   60   WWF abandons push of Chris Jericho & Chris Benoit
  6  7  2   55   WWF signs Buff Bagwell
  4  7  6   53   WWF lets Undertaker stay in topcard / make others look bad
  8  3  1   51   ECW declares bankruptcy
  4  5  8   51   Stephanie McMahon cuts questionable promo on 9/14 SmackDown!
  4  7  4   49   WWF fires Kat, lets Jerry Lawler resign
  3  8  0   39   WWF doesn't secure television time for WCW
  4  5  1   37   Vince McMahon bullies Bob Costas in HBO interview
  2  4  7   36   WWF pairs Triple H with Steve Austin instead of turning face
  5  1  3   34   WCW promotes Jimmy Hart's DJ Challenge seriously
  3  5  2   34   WWF turns Steve Austin heel
  1  5  6   32   WWF ignores different preferences of old WCW audience
  3  2  5   31   WWF tones down "attitude"
  3  2  5   31   WWF buries Lance Storm
  3  2  5   31   MECW is formed, dissolves in two months
  5  1  1   30   WWF pushes Austin/Undertaker feud too soon after WrestleMania
  4  1  3   29   Time Warner waits too long to sell WCW
  4  1  2   27   Genichiro Tenryu books self-serving style
  3  3  1   26   Vince McMahon rehashes Montreal angle...repeatedly
  1  6  1   25   WWF books Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley as ECW owner
  2  1  5   23   WWF books X-Pac to two title wins
  1  4  2   21   WWF doesn't let WCW/ECW workers do highspots
  2  3  0   19   WWF books Steve Austin to belittle entire Alliance
  2  2  1   18   WWF doesn't keep federations separate from each other
  1  1  5   18   New Japan moves too far towards shoot style
  2  1  2   17   WWF halts Rob van Dam push
  2  1  1   15   WWF airs Excess
  0  1  5   13   WWF underutilizes Mick Foley
  1  1  2   12   WCW releases Crowbar
  0  2  3   12   WWF buries Booker T
  1  0  3   11   WOW utilizes 1980's/GLOW style
  1  0  3   11   AJPW books Keiji Muto to Triple Crown win
  1  1  1   10   WWF turns Kurt Angle heel so soon after title win
  0  0  5   10   WWF signs Kronik
  1  0  2    9   WWF books Chyna vs. Ivory
  1  0  2    9   WOW uses very few wrestlers with any wrestling experience
  0  1  3    9   WWF encourages highspot-heavy style, injuries mount
  1  1  0    8   All Japan works with New Japan
  1  0  1    7   WWF leaves status of women's title unclear for months
  0  1  2    7   WOW attempts pay-per-view too early
  1  0  0    5   WWF uses WCW and ECW stars as jobbers
  1  0  0    5   WWF signs Rob van Dam
  1  0  0    5   WWF pushes Rob van Dam
  1  0  0    5   WWF pushes Rhyno
  1  0  0    5   WWF hires Paul Heyman
  1  0  0    5   WWF has too many titles that mean nothing
  1  0  0    5   WWF fires Chyna
  1  0  0    5   WWF doesn't push Hurricane enough
  1  0  0    5   WWF creates "Desire" music videos
  1  0  0    5   WCW fails to elevate talent at the right time
  1  0  0    5   WCW US Championship is nearly forgotten
  1  0  0    5   SportsLine shuts down WrestleLine
  1  0  0    5   Billy Gunn becomes Billy G. for a week
  0  1  1    5   WWF hires, fires Kronik within month
  0  1  1    5   WWF doesn't use Kanyon enough
  0  1  1    5   WWF books Kurt Angle to WWF Championship win in hometown
  0  0  2    4   WWF sends Sean O'Haire to OVW
  0  0  2    4   WWF opens Tough Enough II to independent wrestlers
  0  0  2    4   WWF lets Sunday Night Heat program languish
  0  0  2    4   WOW pays for nationwide syndication
  0  1  0    3   Yuki Ishikawa closes down Battlarts
  0  1  0    3   WWF turns most former ECW workers heel
  0  1  0    3   WWF continues to give Jim Ross a paycheck
  0  1  0    3   WOW falsely announces Egypt tour
  0  1  0    3   Too many title changes
  0  1  0    3   Goldberg yells at Triple H at game show
  0  1  0    3   AAA debuts dozens of crappy gimmicks
  0  0  1    2   iGeneration Wrestling attempts to recruit former figure skater Tonya Harding and boxer Mia St. John
  0  0  1    2   WWF underutilizes younger WCW talent
  0  0  1    2   WWF only pushes former WWF Alliance members
  0  0  1    2   WWF keeps WCW/ECW around
  0  0  1    2   WWF keeps D'Lo Brown off television
  0  0  1    2   WWF gives away too many big matches on "free" TV
  0  0  1    2   WWF gives Spike Dudley too much TV time
  0  0  1    2   WWF doesn't forgive Jeff Jarrett
  0  0  1    2   WWF buries Raven
  0  0  1    2   WWF books Triple H to win over Kurt Angle
  0  0  1    2   WWF books Test to championship victories
  0  0  1    2   WWF airs live SmackDown! two days after terrorist attacks
  0  0  1    2   WOW tries to cram all of their wrestlers on the PPV card
  0  0  1    2   WOW repeatedly books 18,000-seat Great Western Forum
  0  0  1    2   WCW gives major stars huge contracts to sit upon
  0  0  1    2   WCW fails to give Goldberg a program with Steiner; instead,
                 jobs him out to selfish, untalented, heatless midcard tag
                 team
  0  0  1    2   ECW cancels Living Dangerously PPV
  0  0  1    2   Chyna promotes her Playboy spread

REJECTED - did not occur in eligible time period

  0  1  0        WWF moves to TNN
  0  1  0        WCW makes fun of Jim Ross on Nitro
  0  1  0        Giving birth to Stephanie McMahon

RYAN HALL: Vince, take the book off Steph and do yourself and us a favour.

HIRO: The WWF definitely mishandled the Invasion angle as well as Kurt
Angle's sudden heel turn.

TEDB512: The fact that Tough Enough 2 is open to indies means they're
depending on it as a major future talent source. Ugh.

VIKRAM BIRRING: First of all, wasted talents. Booker T, Taz(no extra z
from me), D'Lo, TAKA, Sho Funaki, Tajiri, Essa Rios, Jerry Lynn, Raven,
Christian, Mike Awesome, Chavo Guerrero, Dean Malenko, among others. The
fact is there is so much talent that some wrestlers are bound to be left
out of the shuffle.  That is why more than one company is a good thing.
Well, there is always Japan.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: WCW's desperate and embarrassing promotion of Jimmy
Hart's DJ Challenge should go down in history right next to the AWA's
moving their shows to an empty TV studio. Both were shameful and
frighteningly amateurish ploys that marked the last gasp of a dying
promotion. To a lesser extent, the same goes for the Battledome thing. By
the way, there are just so many awful promotional moves to choose from
this year. Can't I pick more than three? I had to give the last slot to
"WWF tones down attitude," which I guess is the root of a bunch of other
worthy candidates.

CHIP BOOTS: Vince's interview with Costas was an opportunity to make real
progress.  Vince blew it.

CHRIS BIRD: Hey, remember when Jim Ross begged us to write to our sports
sections and DEMAND that they cover the XFL fairly? Imagine if we'd done
that and all the sports sections started covering the XFL fairly and
suddenly WWFE had to deal with columns saying how bad it sucked!

SEAN FLYNN: This year was tainted for me as everytime something good would
happen I found myself waiting for the Undertaker to get involved and muck
it up somehow.  This ties in to my third place vote for burying Booker T,
as I just knew eventually he would be squashed by the Overeater.

CANZ: WWF buying WCW and ECW will mark the downfall of American Wrestling
when Vince doesn't have any more ideas to steal, talent to buy, or anyone
to one-up in terms of filth.

MIKE JOHNSON: 1.  Vince making JR plead with fans to save the XFL was the
ultimate in this laughing stock football league.  Bad telecasts, REALLY
bad football, the Jesse Ventura-Rusty Tillman "feud", the record-breaking
low ratings, oh did I mention the football sucked?

DONNY L: Without a doubt the worse thing this year was right after
WRestleMania, the WWF went with there chicken S way of booking and pushed
the Taker and Kane instead of someone new or still with some talent.

SIMON GRIER: I enjoyed Austin's heel work, but the ratings should show
what the casual fans thought of losing their two favourite babyface
characters in one night, and it was thus a poor move promotionally. The
matches in WWF are too bland, and all the workers should have more freedom
to hit good spots. I was hoping W/ECW talent would freshen things up, but
they just had to adapt to WWF style and looked out of place. WCW had one
money feud left by its last days - Goldberg and Steiner. Instead of going
with it though, Goldberg was jobbed out to Totally Dud, a team who were
undeserving to the max. Probably the last in what could be an encyclopedia
of WCW mistakes in the decade or so of its pitiful existance. Rest in
Peace.

JOHN C.: Buff Bagwell in the first WCW match on Raw? What were they
thinking?

CHRIS GRIMM: And here we see the biggest reason, if you ask me, that the
Alliance failed.  Did the WWF botch a "Can't Miss" storyline?  Only sorta.
Fact is, they barely even ran the storyline.  Fact is, as soon as ECW came
on board, the brandname disappeared and it became just another bigass
faction:  "the Alliance".  Except for title belts, the letters WCW were
never even mentioned after that point.  (And ECW seemed regulated to Paul
Heyman's hat...)  The XFL was a terrible idea from the start, and I can
barely express how glad I am to never hear about that abomination again.
Finally, the WWF has had an easy upper-midcarder in their ranks for years,
but D'Lo Brown has completely disappeared, due to an accident in a match
against Droz two years ago.  Come on, Vince, do you realize you might
actaully have a talented version of the Rock on your hands and you're
wasting it???

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: 1. WWF completely botches the invasion angle. This
should have been the biggest angle of all time, as everyone keeps pointing
out. It wasn't. Not even remotely. Screwing something this easy up on such
a grand scale is a work of sheer genius (or idiocy. You decide), and the
WWF deserves everything they got as a result. Such as this award. 2. WWF
fails to hire top WCW names. This was probably the main contributing
factor to number one. Leaving all the WCW wrestlers people might actually
care about out of the invasion, while certainly cost effective, just
wasn't very clever, was it? No wonder the invasion bombed. 3. WWF makes
Stephanie McMahon head booker. 'Nuff said.

CHRIS LENING: The Invasion bombing will probably win, and probably rightly
so, as it could have been some of the best TV ever, and instead, it
wasn't. I took the nomination of Benoit and Jericho being depushed to mean
the WWF's moving away from the unbelievably great month of TV prior to
King of the Ring, which might be my favorite point of the year
wrestling-wise. Ultimately, when the WWF took away the near-guarantee of
an excellent match or two every show, to make way for the Invasion, I went
elsewhere to find my wrestling. And Tenryu as booker gets third, as he
took a promotion I've heard some of the most glowing praise about, and
turned into a place so bad I don't even want to bother watching their
shows. New Japan had most of the better matches featuring Toshiaki Kawada
anyway.

ROB EVANS: Everyone says that the WWF botched the invasion angle, when in
reality they merely didn't sign the stars that would have made it
plausible.  Then again, WCW destroyed much of their star power, which is
why they sucked and were sold.

BEE MONTEVERDE: I kinda enjoyed the XFL. Too bad the media was so
biased...You want a WCW face people would recognize?
J-e-double-F-J-a-dub-R-e-dub-T!

RAGEROCKRR:  God it was a close call with a lot of categories for my
votes.  But this one was near impossible.  There were at least twenty
other nominees in this category I was tempted to vote for.  Perhaps the
WWF isn't as good a promotion as we once thought it was.

JUSTIN SHAPIRO: There are so many good ones here! I didn't even get to use
"WWF abandons push of Chris Jericho & Chris Benoit before King of the Ring
PPV."

THE CUBS FAN: Remember the rumor/joke going around, when Vince and Ed went
to WCW and didn't exactly put on a popular product, that they were sent
there by the WWF to destroy it's competitor? The (other) Vince sure
finished the job.

MATT SPAULDING: Want to know why ratings dropped after X-7?  Because heel
Austin didn't have a strong face to oppose him who could get him over as a
heel.  Triple H could have been that guy, but they kept him heel for
reasons I still can't figure out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

And now, the 'netter suggested awards!

BILL DEARTH: Wrestler of the Year:   kurt angle

Best Entrance:  HHH

Best wrestler autobiography:  Kurt Angle's "it's true it's true"

Best Catchphrase:   What?

Best Backstge Skit:  Sean Stasiak's tribute to Stone Cold

KERROTSNOT: Special Award Jobber to the stars:  Lil Spike Dudley

KEN DREILING: Suggestions for future categories:  I would guess since
mostly internet fans partake in these awards, that maybe some internet
related awards might be involved, although that would probably just lead
to bickering anyway:  Best News Site/Writer; Best Opinion Site/Writer;
Best Recap Site/Writer, etc.

STEPHEN TISZENKEL: Biggest Unanswered Questions Raised by the WWF vs.
Alliance Angle
1. What do they win by beating each other?
2. What, have contracts ceased to exist?
3. Why do WCW officials sometimes referee matches between two WWF wrestlers?
4. Why do WWF officials sometimes referee matches where WCW titles are at
stake?
5. So is the Alliance one organization or two?
6. Are guys like Steve Austin and Test under contract to WCW or the Alliance?
Or both? Or neither?
7. Why doesn't Vince just ban them from the building?
8. Why would a WWF or WCW wrestler ever agree to defend his title against
someone from a competing company?

GAIL GERALD: Most Boring Wrestler:Kane

Wrestler who either needs to retire or needs a change, period
1. Undertaker
2. X-Pac
3. Big Show

People who should never, ever use a mic
1. Stephanie McMahon
2. Chyna
3. Team Extreme

People who probably won't be taken seriously for a while
1. Hurricane Helms
2. Billy Gunn
3. Mighty Molly (only because of the gimmick)

People who should go to Ohio Valley Wrestling
1. Chuck Palumbo
2. Test
3. Albert

People who Vince wasted his money on
1. Taka Michinoku
2. Tiger Ali Singh
3. Billy Gunn

Wrestlers who I suspect are more talented than they appear on tv
1. The Rock
2. Shawn Stasiak
3. Tajiri

Questions I like to ask Vince McMahon
1. Will we ever see real wrestling?
2. Will anyone whose first name is Chris ever become a champion for longer
than five minutes?
3. Where will the Alliance guys go?

SCOTT WORDEN: Thank You it is gone award..  Wrestline

Wish it were gone award. The Smarks

Needs to join Sean Shannon Award Scott Keith

CHARLES BOTTS: additional categories should be The person we would like to
see less of and the person we would like to see more of. my vote goes to
Vince for least of and hard core holly for more of

ROBERT VAN PEER: Best Bump Taker: Referee Josh Milton WOW

Best Jobber: Hammerin' Heather Steele

DONNY L: best quotes of the year
1. J.R to Stephanie during the milkbath "The billion dollar princess has
just became the diary queen"
2. Austin after 'accidently" ripping Steph shirt off with the beer tray at
the beginning of the year "There's more foam in your bra then in my beer."
3. Heyman on why Christians parents didn't like him as much as Edge
"Christian's parents must have hated him. I mean I wouldn't have liked it
if my parents named me 'Jew'"

favourite female
1.Trish Stratus
2. Lita
3. Molly Holly

ESTRAGAND: Worst Wrestling site: LordsOfPain.net. CLICK HERE to see Billy
Jack Haynes' latest online commentary!

Best Philosophical Wrestling Question: Do Wrestlers Shave their Armpits?

Most Favourite Wrestling Sites:
1- slashwrestling.com (I'll kiss your ass and call it chocolate, dammit!)
2- KayfabeMemories.com (ever talked to "Crimson Mask"? he's amazing! I
shit you not!)
3- OurSoCalledSport.com

MICHAEL STAKELY: Most Ludicrous Commentary Moment
1st: Jim Ross and Paul Heyman debate whether or not Shane McMahon is as
athletic as Rob Van Dam.

The "Enough Already, Get off TV" Award
1st: The entire McMahon family.

The "Where the Hell are They?" Award
1st: 98% of the WWF, ECW, and WCW's cruiserweights and midcarders.

TOMMY MAES: Best Mic Skills
1. The Rock
2. Chris Jericho
3  Kurt Angle

Best entrance music
1. Triple H (Motorhead: The Game)
2. Edge (Rob Zombie: Never Gonna Stop)
3. Kane: Out of the fire

Worst entrance music
1. right to censor
2. X-factor-song by Uncle Cracker
3. The first Austin Alliance theme

Best mark-out-moment: Flair returns to the WWF

Most shocking moment
1. Austin turning heel at Wrestlemania
2. WCW and ECW invade the WWF
3. Austin joins the Alliance

Hottest female in wrestling
1. Lita
2. Stacy Kiebler
3. Torrie Wilson

TORYN ABRAHAM: Biggest Whinner:
1. Buff Bagwell
2. Nova
3. Goldberg

CRZ SEZ:  SEEEEEEEE YA NEXT YEAR!

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