Sam's 4 to vote 4

[Uncle Sam]

Sam's 4 to vote 4
My idea of campaign headquarters being used by, well, anyone and for, well, anyone these days, I've decided it's time to steal someone else's idea. The Canadian's. He made a "4 to vote 4" last time, if you remember. Art is theft.

Here is - in no particular order - my four to vote for:

#1 Brock Lesnar:

This took a lot of thinking over. I was trying to come up with names who legitimately should have a chance of tearing a whole in this thing but have, for no apparent reason, been denied all to easily. Brock Lesnar is the number one name in that category. Last year, he got fairly far. The final 32, I believe. He went out to Benoit in the end. Some good arguments were presented on Benoit's end, don't get me wrong.

However, Brock Lesnar is perhaps the most destructive force in pro wrestling. With him, that's much more than some hollow marketing spin. He is the real deal. I'm sure you're all sick of big men that can move quickly, but here's one. Poor in no area of wrestling, Brock has immense strength, arguably the best mat technique out there, agility impressive for any wrestler, never mind just one for his size and unsettling sadism. This is the man that made Hulk Hogan his bitch and smothered himself in his blood. There were very few that weren't outright devoured by this guy. He was WWE Champion until his final month in WWE. How did he lose the belt? Well, he was making Eddie Guerrero look like a joke, but got speared by Goldberg and then frog-splashed by Eddie to be screwed out of the title.

Cruiserweights simply can't dance around this man; he'll snatch them out of the air and break them over his knee. Big man can't rely on their weight to keep them grounded - this is the man that broke the ring using the Big Show. Anybody in the middle better hope they have something special up their sleeve - something even more special than The Undertaker, The Rock, Hulk Hogan and countless others had. Telling a story? It'll be the story of how you ended up in a wheelchair.


#2 AJ Styles:

The greatest cruiserweight of all time. Dean Malenko? Overrated. Jericho? He hits girls. Mysterio? Even when he was good, he got a beating every other week. Jeff Hardy? Sloppy as fuck. Shelton? You're kidding, right? Hornswoggle? Wait, I didn't think of Hornswoggle... Countless rhetorical questions? Annoying, I know.

AJ is so much more than the token TNA wrestler in this list. He's unfairly talented. I hate to be that guy, but what a move list. He is the genuine human highlight reel. The guy packs a punch, too. He's not one of these pussy "oh noes, no turnbuckle, what does I do!?" high flyers. No, this guy's gone toe-to-toe to Hernandez. You guys remember Hernandez, right? Big guy. Didn't make the list. Shame.

Does AJ have a legitimate chance of winning this? If it were up to me, yes. But it isn't, so probably not. I think he can be pushed fairly far though.


#3 Jeff Jarrett

For my money, the most underrated wrestler of all time. Whereas guys like The Rock benefited from limitless WWE exposure, Jarrett's been limited with WCW and TNA, but has been a much bigger success than many people are willing to give him credit for. Jarrett held the WCW belt 4, count 'em, 4 times. OK, this wasn't really in a time when that belt was the belt to win in professional wrestling, but it's still quite an achievement - even if it isn't quite five times, five times, five times, five times, five times!

In TNA, Jarrett has been the undisputed king... of the mountain. Sure, you can say it's because he's responsible for his own booking but you still vote for Triple H, don't you? Jeff Jarrett, my friends, is a great heel.

If I were to be honest, I'd say he was smarter than Edge. Sure, Edge can come up with all these complex ways to get himself back on top, but Jarrett is clever enough to keep himself on top, using whatever means, necessary, for a long, long time, even if he is completely outmatched. He knows how to win, and he knows how to not lose.


#4 Chris Benoit

Chris Benoit has made Triple H tap out to the Crippler Crossface. Chris Benoit has made Shawn Michaels tap out to the Sharpshooter. Chris Benoit... look, he's beaten a lot of guys, OK? Just trust me on this. I'm not going through his OWW profile, I'm not that sad. There's not a region he could draw that would be to his disadvantage; even TNA!

One of the best technical wrestlers in wrestling history - putting him on Bret Hart and Kurt Angle's level, both of whom he was put on great bouts with - a fantastic submission artist and an all around tough son of a bitch, Chris took his opponents out strategically, wearing them down and making them tap. I mean, he modelled himself of the Dynamite Kid, but pretty much surpassed him.

There's not a soul in this tournament that Benoit can not beat. I mean that sincerely.

[Father:_Polley]

I'll assume 4 is to follow shortly

Honestly, I think Brock and Edge are very strong candidates. Brock just needs someone to really get behind him to push him up the polls, while Edge is always going to get the popular vote.

As much as I love AJ though, I think the lack of exposure outside TNA will hurt him, but I'd still love him to do well

[Uncle Sam]

I've been having a very difficult time who I should bring in to complete the foursome. I have, however, managed to narrow it down to eight options. There's no particular theme linking them together.

Though I have no illusions of the poll exceeding ten votes, please vote not on who is your favourite, but who would be the most interesting competitor, perhaps someone's who's criminally underrated or hasn't got as far as they should before. My slight favourite is Jarrett, so I'll be giving him my vote.

[Kevin "Big Monkey" Nash]

I definitely think you should go with Jeff Jarrett. Why? Because he is criminally underrated. At least in my opinion. He's brought TNA to what it is today and also has alot of accomplishments. He is a dark horse, but I think you could definitely pull it off. I'm supporting Sting mainly, but I have no problems with supporting a few other guys. Jeff Jarrett would be one of them.

[HBK-aholic]

I think a Benoit one could be good - I know I'll be backinghim throughout the majority of the tournament. It'll be interesting to see whether wrestling fans can put his death behind him to give him the finish he deserves in the tournament, or whether some will blindly vote against him and forget about all he did for the business because of what happened at the end of his life.

[Uncle Sam]

Benoit's death wasn't put behind him last tournament. There was a thread pleading for people not to vote for him, comparing him to Hitler.

In fact, I don't think fans should put Benoit's death behind them. His reputation is reduced for a good reason. I just simply plead for them to not factor in his grizzly final hours when deciding whether he could make Crash Holly tap out.

[HBK-aholic]

Benoit's death wasn't put behind him last tournament. There was a thread pleading for people not to vote for him, comparing him to Hitler.

In fact, I don't think fans should put Benoit's death behind them. His reputation is reduced for a good reason. I just simply plead for them to not factor in his grizzly final hours when deciding whether he could make Crash Holly tap out.

His reputation should be reduced, yes. People shouldn't respect him, as they wouldn't respect any other murderer, but you hit the nail on the head in saying they shouldn't let it affect what they think he could do, which is what I was getting at. Benoit was one of the best, and his death shouldn't stop people voting for him in a wrestling tournament.

[Kevin "Big Monkey" Nash]

I agree with Sam. We as wrestling fans only look at the wrestler himself. Also being that this is a wrestling tournament, Benoit the man should not be taken into account. He accomplished alot in wrestling and we the fans respect him for that. Not what he did outside the ring. I still think you should go for Jeff Jarrett though. Dark Horses are always fun to back.

[OIL]

Vote for Benoit.

Look at the wrestler, not the man of his last few days.

It's the only way to truly see what a fantastic wrestler he was.

[klunderbunker]

Savage. the most well rounded of those on the list.

[klunderbunker]

Yeah I think so. he's got more than enough followers already. Will and Shango have him covered.

[Uncle Sam]

Edge now has his own campaign HQ. Reckon I should drop him from the list?

[Uncle Sam]

The poll is now for three and four.

[Uncle Sam]

I've removed Cena, Orton and Undertaker, considering they've all since earned their own campaign headquarters. This narrows us down to five men. If you'd voted for Cena or Orton - the Deadman had no votes whatsoever - you should hopefully be able to revote.

[Murfish]

Chris probably will not get a HQ thread, so go with him.

[Father:_Polley]

Jarrett - you owe it to yourself to get the man who made TNA on his way to greatness. Well, actually you don't, but Savage and Angle will get one and you've already put Joe above AJ so he's a lost cause. Benoit is too controversial to be worth backing because he'll have the 'Vote for him because of who he was' camp behind him already.

[CCS]

I'd love to see Chris Benoit win the tournament. Just for it to be kinda a big fuck you to the media.

[Mr. TM]

I'd go with Kurt Angle. He is a great wrestler, with not as much support as other wrestlers. Though because of the negativity surrounding Benoit, maybe he would be the better guy to throw some support behind.

[Kevin "Big Monkey" Nash]

Although it wouldnt be a fuck you to the media now would it? This is just a forum. It's not like CNN is going to come here and start a news story about Chris Benoit winning a WZ tournament. Lets be real. Jeff Jarrett...

[Uncle Sam]

I like Savage, but he has been a finalist before. However, I feel that he's still not nearly as much of a shoe-in as Austin, Undertaker and Michaels to get far and may need support. Then again, he was the man that brought the Vader bandwagon to a - albeit difficult - halt. He really is fantastic; perhaps the best on the list.

Jarrett is someone I can see myself enjoying supporting. He's shown he really can hang with the best but never gets the credit that he deserves. I mean, this is a man that took Kurt Angle and gave him his best matches since Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker. And that's just talking about his ridiculously successful TNA days - his WCW days are blissfully ignored, even though he was a multiple world champion there.

I don't particularly like Benoit. However, I'd imagine that supporting him would be a very, very interesting experience, but wonder just how rewarding it would be. I'd likely be accused of being immoral for my support of such a figure, but who doesn't like a little bit of controversy? Though I can't see it happening, if he won the tournament everyone's heads would collectively explode, Scanners-style.

Angle? C'mon, that's too obvious for me, isn't it? But why should I deny myself the opportunity to support my favourite wrestler, someone who I legitimately believes deserves the crown over everybody else? I don't have to explain my reasons for liking him - I'm sure you're all vaguely aware of what they are by now. If not, take a guess.

Samoa Joe is just someone I threw in to see if anyone would vote for him. Apparently not. Though fun did come last time around when I maintained that Joe would defeat Sting in an Iron Man match. Few people other than Jake agreed, but putting forward that argument was a highlight.

Right now, I'm thinking of picking Jarrett and Benoit to complete my foursome. Double J leads the vote, but that's counting mine.

[OIL]

You've got to go with Benoit.

Forget the fact that he's one of the greatest wrestlers ever, it would shut up the people who drone on about his last few days & allude themselves to the great carear he had.

[lionheart01]

Well it seems im in the minority when I voted for Samoa joe, in my opinion he deserves it the most out of that list.

Jeff Jarrett- Just no way, I havent seen anything good out of him since his first run in the wwe

Kurt Angle- Definatly not, just because kurt is vastly overrated

Chris Beniot- Doesnt deserve it after what he did outside of the ring

Randy Savage-Will get enough support anyway, and probably his own campaign headquarters soon

So that leaves Samoa Joe, who definatly deserves a good run. While his TNA championship run was somewhat lacking, Samoa joe IMO has been the most valuable wrestler in the last three years outside of Cena. Currently he is being set to carry TNA in the Future. Also Sam youve said it yourself, that samoa joe has the potential to be the future of professional wrestling..

[HBK-aholic]

Well it seems im in the minority when I voted for Samoa joe, in my opinion he deserves it the most out of that list.

Jeff Jarrett- Just no way, I havent seen anything good out of him since his first run in the wwe

Kurt Angle- Definatly not, just because kurt is vastly overrated

Chris Beniot- Doesnt deserve it after what he did outside of the ring

Randy Savage-Will get enough support anyway, and probably his own campaign headquarters soon

So that leaves Samoa Joe, who definatly deserves a good run. While his TNA championship run was somewhat lacking, Samoa joe IMO has been the most valuable wrestler in the last three years outside of Cena. Currently he is being set to carry TNA in the Future. Also Sam youve said it yourself, that samoa joe has the potential to be the future of professional wrestling..

That right there is why you should choose Benoit. In fact if you don't add him to your 4, I'll make a Benoit HQ. Just because of what happened in the last day of his life is awful, we shouldn't automatically discount everything he did inside the ring - it'd be stupid.

[Kenan]

Benoit was one of the best wrestlers out there. He brought intensity to all of his matches and nothing less. People didn't truly appreciate his run as champion because most of the focus was on HHH v. HBK. He even got a good match out of Kane. I can see Benoit in the final eight especially if he is placed in an Iron Man Match because he can go for an hour like HBK and HHH. Even though I hated what he did, I'm not going to let what happened outside the ring tarnish what happened inside the ring.

[Harthan]

It's Angle and Savage for me, with Benoit coming really close. There's not been enough of Joe to endorse him when he gets against the big dogs, but I'll vote for him until he gets up against a clearly dominant opponent.

Jarrett is completely overrated and I'd only vote for him against the worst of the worst, to be honest.

[Uncle Sam]

How can Jarrett be overrated? Few people like him. Fewer are even aware of his achievements. He's hated. If that's overrated, then he must really, really suck balls. Which he doesn't.

[Tiger Wood's Harem]

Since you've already set up a thing for Angle, I wouldn't bother re-hashing it here. I'd say go for Jarret and Benoit, as they'll have less support than Savage. Savage seems to have grown a massive following lately.

[Uncle Sam]

I should probably come to my decision soon. Looks like Angle and Benoit. If it weren't for Styles I could have a bit of a technical theme going on here. Then again, I already gave Kurt his own campaign HQ. He's like my secret fifth man, so... Benoit/Savage? Savage does have a big fan base. Maybe I'll just go for Benoit/Jarrett.

[justinsayne]

It's Angle and Savage for me, with Benoit coming really close. There's not been enough of Joe to endorse him when he gets against the big dogs, but I'll vote for him until he gets up against a clearly dominant opponent.

Jarrett is completely overrated and I'd only vote for him against the worst of the worst, to be honest.

Jarrett might be one of the greatest heel s of all time, he is on of the most hated guys in the history of the business, very few have been able generated as much heel heat as this guy does, remember Slamaversery a few years back when he won the KOTM match, place looked like it was gonna riot, how many other guys can say they've gotten a heel reaction like that in the past 10 years?

[OIL]

Are you needing to find 1 or 2 more people to vote for?

[Uncle Sam]

Zwei.

[Theo "Hitman" Mays]

This was a tough choice for me between Benoit and Angle. Two of the best technicians out there. While Benoit will be diminished for what he did in his final hours (and he should be), this is a wrestling tournament and you don't consider what they did outside the ring, it is what they did inside, and there weren't many who did it like Benoit. One of those who could though was Angle. Angle is one of the best this business has. A great heel, good face, great in the ring, on the mic, and has a good moveset. It was close, but he slightly edges Benoit.

[Tastycles]

Savage. There's no point in backing Benoit, he doesn't stand a chance. It won't affect him as much as last year, but if he came up against someone moderately good in the 3rd round or so, he will go out.

[Uncle Sam]

Right, I've chosen my final two. I'll still be backing Angle and keeping his campaign headquarters open, however. That's not to say he's my number one guy - I have no order - I just put too much effort into that to throw it away.

So, it's Jarrett, Styles, Benoit and Lesnar as my group. My Elite Four, if you will. I hope you stocked up on Super Potions and status healers. You better not be carrying any HM slaves, motherfucker!

[Uncle Sam]

Right. Done. S'all good. Now we just wait and see what seeds they draw.

[Uncle Sam]

Angle drew WWE. Lesnar draw ECW. Styles drew TNA. Benoit and Jarrett both drew WCW. Good times.

[OIL]

Good choice with Benoit my man.

[Number$]

Nice Pokemon references Sam :)

[Uncle Sam]

Jarrett, Styles, Benoit and Lesnar are all still going strong, folks.

[klunderbunker]

I can't wait for Styles vs. HHH in TNA. Styles is the TNA HHH, so that is nothing short of an epic encounter.

[Uncle Sam]

I take it this will only be closed in the event that all four are taken out. Matter of fact, I decree that this will only be closed in the event that all four are taken out.