ECW Region, Calgary Subregion, Round 1: (6) Chris Jericho vs. (27) Samoa Joe

[dakikko049]

This is the closest one yet for me haha. I think I'm gonna go with Joe. Jericho is an unbelievable talent. He works the crowd so well and has such a great pro wrestling resume, I truely believe he is the best in the world at what he does and few could disagree. However at the end of the day, Joe is a once in a lifetime guy. He's my favourite ass-kicker time guy of all time that you just know is going to "kill" whoever he gets in the ring with. I say Chris jericho throws everything at him but Joe gets the win in the end after what would be without doubt an awesome match.

 

[peterpib2]

Jericho is amazing and he is my second favourite wrestler of all time....but...something is telling me to go for Samoe Joe.

Jericho's current job is putting guys over. And he's amazing at that. Look at what he did to Punk and other superstars who he has put over. Y2J has had his prime and now its time for Joe. Joe splashes Jericho for the win!

 

[Tastycles]

I definitely don't care about this enough to get into this one as much of many of you, but for me it's Jericho all the way. Jericho has, at times, been put over some of the biggest stars in wrestling, whereas Joe gets cast further aside every time someone who has ever had any moderate success elsewhere is hired. Joe is a relic. He was a big deal 4-5 years ago. In TNA. That's it. Jericho has been a big deal in the Attitude Era, and he is a big deal now. Nobody has ever asked Samoa Joe to save them. Except from his moobs. Put a t-shirt on, Joe.

 

[Adalam]

Two very solid performers if Samoa Joe is in shape. Both have interesting styles and both can really entertain if given the right stuff to go off of. Both are former World Champions, Jericho more recently than Joe, and both can do some damage on the stick, though Jericho is far and away the best talker among full time wrestlers right now. In the end, I'll hand the win to Y2Jeritroll and hope for the best.

 

[Jaffa]

Jericho hands down. Chris Jericho other than a leg drop can basically do every wrestling move around after all he is the man of 1004 holds. Joe while he is fast can not do everything that Jericho can do.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

It's just hard for me to envision Joe losing to the Codebreaker and Jericho hasn't been that strong in submissions.

Let me help you envision Joe losing to something else then, if it'll ease your mind...

Number 425: Reverse Gory Special Powerbomb.
Number 426: Ring Rope Drop from Tilt-a-Whirl Clothesline
Number 427: Inverted Facelock Brainbuster Suplex
...
...
....
.....
....
...
...
Number 734: Spinning Back Elbow Splash
Number 735: Arm Bar
...
...

Bitch please. Samoa Joe can take his flabby ass back to Samoa (read: Orange County, California). Matching up Joe with Chris Jericho is like re-visiting Brock Lesnar and Zack Gowen. Like Sheamus in all of his matches between January and WrestleMania 28. Joe is the Orlando Bloom to Jericho's Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean; out-classed in just about every single way. Only bad creative decision-making could save Joe from tapping out to the Walls of Jericho. Maybe in a long feud Joe could get the first win, followed by several humiliating loses, but not in the first round of a prestigious tournament. No way.

Arm Bar, muffucka.

 

[radec]

jericho is the first ever undisputed champion. what has joe done to beat that? good wrestling? jericho is as good and better. Jericho has more memorable matches and what not. Jericho wins.

 

[Hamed786]

Jericho is an excellent wrestler, so is Joe. But saying Joe beats Jericho is like saying Juventud was better than Shawn Michaels. OK maybe I went overboard there, but Jericho is much, much better

 

[ABMorales787]

Both men are known for being jobbers to the stars at the end of it all. Chris' claim to fame is the fact that he became Undisputed WWF Champion because Triple H was injured at the time. Samoa Joe on the other hand was one of ROH's revolving door of golden boys and wrestled in TNA's most famous match. Both have bloated internet hype and sport egos. As far as I'm concerned, neither man is all that. I ain't voting.

 

[siny4459]

chris jericho because he really is the best in the world. joe never won an undisputed championship

 

[pipebomber]

Jericho... Joe is underrated in my mind.. but Jericho has main evented wrestlemania more than once... Jericho has put on great matches with HBK, HHH, Edge, Orton, and more recently Punk, Jericho is gunna be the victor here

 

[Celtic Tiger]

Joe is great for a man his size but he is
Not in the same league as Jericho..
Would be a match I would defo like to
see but never will mores the pity but at
the end of the day there would be one
man standing tall..
Winner Y2J

 

[Larry]

Like a lot of others here, I love Samoa Joe. I've always liked the Samoan wrestlers, and it could be argued that skill wise Samoa Joe is the best Samoan wrestler ever. He's unique to a lot of the others in his character which is something that has always drawn me to him. He is still a traditional Samoan bad ass in some ways, but his gimmick is completely different, and his wrestling style is largely different than most of them too. I thought he was a breath of fresh air when he came around really, because he also doesn't have the traditional muscled up wrestler look, but is still physically imposing and exceptionally talented for his size.

That said, as much as I love Samoa Joe I just couldn't see him beating Chris Jericho. I think he'd get out-quicked, out maneuvered, out-slicked by a veteran wrestler, and ultimately run ragged by the pace Jericho could set against him. Let's say this is a 30 minute match, I've got to give Jericho the edge in stamina at least. I also have to give Jericho the nod in pedigree. Samoa Joe is no slouch and he's learned from many great teachers all around the world, wrestling all across the globe at every level of the business, just as Jericho has done. The reason I give Jericho the edge here though is because he has been to a level Joe has yet to achieve, all reasons for that considered. I'm not saying it's just because Jericho has been in the WWE either, but as a result of being in the WWE he has been in many more matches of greater magnitude than anything Samoa Joe has ever even conceptualized in his mind as being remotely possible for him to be in. Jericho has headlined the big shows, he's been in the bigger pressure situations, and he's beaten better than Samoa Joe on that stage. That's a big part of the pedigree leading up to this match, and I don't think it can be ignored. I think this would end with at least one codebreaker after a fast paced, tiring match for Samoa Joe around the 20 minute mark.

 

[The Gribbler]

Although I like Joe, I gotta give it to Jericho on this one. In my opinion Joe falls flat for me on the big stage (never bought him as TNA champion) while Jericho shines when he needs to and when he doesn't need to.

Jericho with the codebreaker after about 25 minutes of hard wrestling.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

This has been EXTREMELY hard to call!

You would think comparing a man who had an unmemorable title reign in the number 2 company to a man who is the first ever Undisputed Champion in the history of wrestling, the most successful Intercontinental Champion of all time, who wrestled all across the globe and is has been a top star in the biggest promotion on the planet for over a decade would be easy.

But

Joe on his day is a phenomenal wrestler. The series of matches between Joe/AJ/Daniels are still awesome to this day, and the face-to-face with Kurt Angle on his TNA debut is legendary. For his size, Joe can really move in the ring, and I would like to see the 2 men attempt to lock in their various submission holds on each other.

It would be a match of the year contender for sure, anticipated almost as much as Jericho v Punk, but in this one I see Y2J coming out on top after a gruelling match.

Winner: Chris Jericho

 

[Alex]

It is hard to call. Both men are very good technical wrestlers and are fairly even. Joe has power on his side and can move really well for a big guy, but Jericho's faster and knows how to counter quite a lot of big moves.

Both have had brilliant technical matches with various people and both have achieved quite a lot. However I think Jericho wins in the mind games department. Sure you can argue Joe and the Nation Of Violence but compared to what Jericho can do that sucked.

I see a good back and forth match with Jericho doing some mindfuck on Joe to make him lose concentration just long enough for Jericho to pull off a win.

 

[Slyfox696]

I cannot believe this has been debated to this point. Joe is a mediocre wrestler who can work one style of a match competently. Jericho is an all-around worker, who can have quality matches with all types of wrestlers in all types of styles. Joe is one of the most overrated workers the IWC has ever had, and Jericho, while not on the same level as guys like Flair, Cena, Austin, or even HBK, Hart, etc., is still far and away better than Joe.

This has to be Jericho by a mile.

 

[The Wrestling God]

It is in Canada for gods sake Canada may be "Bizzaro Land" but they love Chris Jericho he goes over

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I voted Jericho. Some very convincing arguements have been made for Joe. He was unstoppable for a while till he became a main eventer. Ironically, when he became one he started losing more regularly. Chris may have never been the top guy of the company but even with Joe, I do not think that the case is as clear cut. It could be said that Kurt was still the top guy in TNA when Joe won the title.

In any case, Joe has been inconsistent. He has had some highs but some terrible lows. Jericho has always been an upper midcarder who transitions into a main eventer whenever a vacancy arises. Joe has some good feuds with the likes of Angle but some terrible ones with the likes of Pope. Joe has given one or two good promos but some average ones as well. I do not like Jericho a lot but and this might be the only round where I vote for him. I am basing my vote on his consistency here.

 

[Natural Selection]

I cannot believe this has been debated to this point. Joe is a mediocre wrestler who can work one style of a match competently. Jericho is an all-around worker, who can have quality matches with all types of wrestlers in all types of styles. Joe is one of the most overrated workers the IWC has ever had, and Jericho, while not on the same level as guys like Flair, Cena, Austin, or even HBK, Hart, etc., is still far and away better than Joe.

This has to be Jericho by a mile.

I am shocked as well. Listen to Slyfox, he's usually right anyways. I can't believe the Jericho loses a lot argument is holding as much weight as it seems to be holding here. Wrestling is a wheel a wheel that goes round and round. One moment you may be becoming the first ever undisputed champion the next your jobbing to Heath Slater. The same argument we all use for Ziggler applies to Jericho. Why does he have so many loses? Simple because he is not only good with his end of the ring work, but its damn hard for a Jericho opponent to come out looking bad. He elevates everyone that steps into the ring with him. He tells amazing stories from bell to bell. On top of all that he has the ability to suck you into every single one of his storylines constantly making you crave for more. In almost all Jericho feuds you find yourself half way through it saying "I hope this never ends" In the end head to head Joe's accomplishments pale in comparison to Jericho's, even on Jericho's worst day and Joe's best I still take Jericho. Albeit I may be a little biased on this one.

 

[CrissSpades]

Chris Jericho is my pick! Joe is good and can move fantastic for a guy of his size. But Jericho is just overall the better wrestler.

 

[Natural Selection]

Of course, I assume this is supposed to contribute to some sort of "longevity" argument, but I would argue that that's irrelevant in a tournament like this. When it comes down wrestler to wrestler, each at their peak, it doesn't matter who has had the longer, more prosperous career. What matters is who the better wrestler is, and that's Samoa Joe, the man that's put on more entertaining matches, and has been more dominant than Jericho ever has.

Completely agree which is why Jericho should win. He is a better technical wrestler and has the ability to do more in the ring. He's faster, he can fly higher, has more diverse and realistic looking submissions. Head to head the ONLY thing Joe has the upper hand on is strength. Although I am not a fan of Joe's to began with I won't deny that he is a good worker, that would just be stupid. So once again Jericho by a mile

Dragon Saga, one thing you seem to be overlooking is that we are supposed to judge these guys based on their prime.

If that's the case then Austin will win this tournament every year for a long long long time to come.

 

[Jaffa]

It is in Canada for gods sake Canada may be "Bizzaro Land" but they love Chris Jericho he goes over

No its because Jericho is Canadian which is another reason why he would win. While i like Joe he would never beat Jericho anywhere imo especially in Canada

 

[The Brain]

If that's the case then Austin will win this tournament every year for a long long long time to come.

I don't know about that. If we aren't judging them by their prime what are we judging them by? Today? If that's the case I need to rethink Animal vs. Andre The Giant. I still haven't voted on this one. I see both sides to this match. The truth is I don't know a whole lot about Samoa Joe. I'm under the impression that he was a dominant figure in TNA and ROH for a fairly significant amount of time given thier short history. Normally I'm a little hard on those two promotions but I don't want to ignore them completely. If I'm not going to give consideration to their biggest star (?) then I pretty much have to ignore their existance all together.

 

[Peoples_Champ]

Jericho takes this one in a close, tightly contested affair. Joe's moveset and quick pace would work well with a technician like Jericho. But Jericho has not only the advantage of championship experience, but also fighting in his home country is definitely a benefit. A hot Calgary crowd can definitely tip the balance. Seeing Jericho beat Joe in an ECW match with tables, ladders, chairs and everything else would really make the crowd unglued.

Tough draw for Joe, but hopefully he'll get a better ranking next year.

Jericho by submission, 34 minutes.