The Miz Tops The PWI 500 List

[classicviolence]

This stupid. PWI officially loses all credibility with me. The Miz proved last week that he is a liability in the ring and as green as a gourd. PWI probably recognizes all of the championship runs he had plus the MITB victory of 2010. However 2 men still eclipsed the Miz in pro wrestling over the past year and a half:

Takashi Sugiura had a bigger 2009-2011 than anybody else in wrestling. Dominating the title chase in NJPW and NOAH. He just lost the GHC Championship after holding it for 17 months. Not to mention the match of his career with Minoru Suzuki.

Eddie Edwards was the 1st ROH TV Champion and held that title for months on end. Having amazing matches in ROH and NOAH. Drops the belt to Daniels after the classics they had and then went on the win the ROH Championship. Btw Eddie vs Davey just happened and is one of the best world title matches ever.

 

[Derf]

The PWI 500 list is made up with many statistics, including wins, losses, appearences, titles, etc. From June 1st, 2010 to May 31st, 2011, you can count on one hand the amount of times the Miz lost a match. He has a US title, WWE title, MITB, he even had a forgettable tag team championship run with John Cena (for all of 5 minutes). Plus, to those saying he was overshadowed in the Cena/Rock feud, I call bullshit. He firmly put himself in the middle of that promo vs promo war by making true of "Actions speak louder then words" by attacking John Cena multiple times leading up to Mania, and of course he also beat John Cena at WrestleMania, only the 2nd heal to ever win the ME. (Although both times the heal won the night still ended with The Rock standing tall)

Alot of people had a good year in that time frame, but not as good as Miz. Punk got shaved bald, followed by a losing streak, then injury leading to commentary. His hot streak didn't start till shortly before the rumble, 8 months into this list being compiled.

John Cena lost quite a few times because of the Nexus, and only held the WWE title for about 2 out of the 12 months in question.

Orton had a hell of a year, and I would be shocked to not see him in the top 3 here, but with his 3 month title run in there, half overshadowed by the fact that he was mearly a pawn in the Cena/nexus fued, drops him a point or two.

Miz was already on fire when the list started, he only dropped off the radar about two weeks before this list was done. Clearly, Miz won this this year.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Yeah, looks like it's gone about how I figured it would thus far. Some posters just flat out hate Miz, some are ragging on PWI as Miz is ranked ahead of people they personally like better and indy guys that the vast majority of American wrestling fans have never heard of are touted as being the best in the world. Nothin' wrong with that mind you, different strokes for different folks.

When it comes to The Miz, the simple truth is that he did something in the WWE that hadn't been done very often: he got people interested in the WWE Championship picture. Sheamus did something similar in 2009 but the simple truth is that it didn't cause nearly the same amount of buzz. Whether you hate Miz or you like him, he had you talking and wondering about the WWE Championship scene with interest and excitement. That's THE ultimate job of a World Champion. If fans don't give a damn, then it doesn't matter how good you look, how athletic you are or what kind of flashy moves you might have.

When you look at things as a whole, the only person that really comes close to Miz is John Cena. I could understand if Cena got the spot from the magazine, he's had a great year as well and has been involved in some big goings on. As far as the names being most tossed around, here's how I see it.

Jeff Hardy - Jeff Hardy has been one of the most talked about wrestlers if the year. Unfortunately, most of the talking has been little more than constant criticism over the fact that he's an admitted drug addict, could be going to prison, two completely mediocre TNA World Championship runs, embarassing TNA at Victory Road. None of the major goings on with Jeff Hardy warrants being honored or celebrated.

Mr. Anderson - Anderson was TNA's pet project for a little while. As TNA has done with other guys, they pushed Anderson to the moon in the hopes that he'd draw viewers. Nothing wrong with that as that's the idea. However, Anderson has never been weaker in his entire career than the two times he's been TNA WHC with both runs lasting a combined lackluster total of 64 days. Now, Anderson is reduced to the point of being just another lackey in Immortal.

Wade Barrett - If Barrett's momentum had been sustained after the initial Nexus feud with John Cena, I could potentially agree. However, since that feud ended, Barrett has floundered. He went from main eventing ppvs and taking John Cena to the limit to heading to SD! with a very lackluster IC title run where he lost more matches than he won before ultimately dropping the title to Big Zeke Jackson. I'm hoping his feud with Sheamus can get him back on the right track.

Sting - Sting is a legend, a great legend with an impecable legacy. But, generally speaking, I simply don't see anything he's done as being nearly as interesting as The Miz. Sting himself was actually out of the picture for quite a while before coming back and assuming the tired and boring role as "TNA savior", that he's played off and on since first coming to the company. Now, he's running arould doing a cheesy rip off of The Joker and takes the title from a very weak champion.

So aside from John Cena, Miz's chief competition for being "#1" in the PWI 500 is a drug addict, an overrated internet darling, a fizzled out rising star and a senior citizen .

 

[Miz_Mark]

Miz deserves this award, plain and simple. No other performer over the time period had the kind of a run or did more for the business than Miz did. He proved he belongs in the top tier of professional wrestlers in the industry today. After busting his ass and fighting his way up the ladder, he was finally giving a shot, and man, did he run with it. The single most entertaining thing over the time period of the award, without question. He went at it with the best of the best and proved he is their peer, and busted his ass to make every bit out of the push he was given, proving to any reasonable observer that he is one of the best talents in WWE today and a sure fire main eventer for years to come.

 

[red ass skull muhfukkah]

I have no problem with Miz being #1 on the list. At first you read it and think it's a little off, surely someone else has made a bigger impact than Miz over the last year. But other than Cena, no one has.

In the last year he's gone from one of the most hated wrestlers that no one thought would amount to anything to one of WWE's top stars and main eventing Wrestle Mania. Add in him working with a variety of different workers from DBD to Morrison to Orton to Cena. His matches still aren't the best around, but I feel he gets the job done well enough and can generate massive heat that only Vickie can match.

It's hard to argue against him, long U.S. Title reign, Money in the Bank, ShowMiz, and one of the most hyped feuds in a long time and Main Eventing Wrestle Mania, just in the last year or so. He deserves it.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

The only reason why I'm not furious over this is because I know the PWI 500 is not about the 500 best wrestlers in the industry. If it was, either Bret Hart, HBK, or Kurt Angle would've topped all of the lists between 1994-2010. The PWI is about the 500 people with the best accolades of the year, which Miz unquestionably has. Miz has won countless titles and had a significant reign with the title, so despite how bad he is I can accept that he's number one on the PWI 500 because he is "such a hard worker" and Vince loves hard workers

 

[Hoganistheman]

That just goes too show you how poor the state of wrestling is now. The Miz is good don't get me wrong but not that good,I'm look at some of the guys who have topped that list and tell me if he is in that league ! Wrestling is not what it was but we all know that, bc he is midcard at best

 

[The Holy One]

This was the right decision. Other than Cena, you can't bring up another wrestler who accomplished as much as the Miz did in that time period. From US and Tag Team Champ to MITB to WWE Champ, he wasn't joking when he told Maryse on the first week of January 2010 that "this is the year of the Miz." He's had great matches with DBD, Morrison, Cena, Orton, and Jerry Lawler of all people. He elevated to a mainstream status that really only Cena had enjoyed, as far as current wrestlers are concern, up to this point. Haters can say what they want but the Miz deserve this award and there's not a person that you can put ahead of him.

 

[MizfitPeep]

I agree with this decision completely. The rankings cover June 1, 2010 through May 31, 2011. During that time Miz, won Money in the Bank, pretty much rocketed to the top where he cashed in on Randy Orton, then held the championship through Wrestlemania where he was in the Main Event. He was in the opening match at WM last year, & not even on the main card the year before that. Because of the year he's had, he's now a legit contender for the championship. Not to mention for part of this time, he was United States Champion.
As for the person who said Barrett was on a PPV poster last year & Miz wasn't. That doesn't really seem to matter. Last spring Christian was on the poster for Fatal 4 Way & he wasn't even on the card.

 

[Dagger Dias]

PWI has officially lost every last ounce of respect that I ever had for them. I get it, Miz worked hard to get where he is. That doesn't mean he is championship material, let alone deserves to be ranked PWI #1. Whoever made that decision needs to be fired. Miz does not deserve this ranking because he has NO in ring skill whatsoever and will never be believable as a top guy. Ever.

 

[H33LTurn]

Yeah, everyones going to piss and moan about this because Miz is Miz and for some reason its cool to hate on the Miz. Really I've never seen concrete reasons to hate on Miz. His promos are some of the most interesting I've seen as of late. His in ring work is about as good as anybody else's in the WWE. He has the look and the persona. Hes a fun guy to watch.

That being said, Miz deserves to be #1. He was the most must see champion of 2011. Not Cena, he holds it all the time, not Kane, he was just holding Taker's place. He main evented Wrestlemania and proved that he could hang in there with guys like The Rock and Cena.

 

[He's Phenomenal]

I actually thought this was a piss take when I saw the thread title on the main page. But this is actually for real?

Now I can't really comment on the year Miz has had, as I lost interest in WWE a couple of years back. But I've got a mate who watched WWE when the Rock returned and he used to refer to Miz as "the other guy in the Rock/Cena feud". That doesn't sound like "the best" to me.

Anyway I would say the guy who's had the best year in pro wrestling would be Mr Anderson. Bully Ray would be a close second but his year didn't start until October.

 

[Poop Master Flex]

He had the biggest year so it should be no surprise he was at #1.

Throughout the year he was Tag champ, US Champ, Mr. MITB, WWE Champ, was in some great matches, great feuds and even main evented Wrestlemania, I don't think anyone comes CLOSE to the year the Miz had last year.

Personally I think he most certainly deserves the #1 spot this year, he had a tremendous year, was given the ball, ran with it and ran hard, sounds like a #1 pick to me.

 

[RicoLen]

The Miz
Edge
Alberto Del Rio
Davey Richards
John Cena
Kurt Angle
Sting
Kane
Randy Orton
Sheamus

Not a bad list, all things considered.

I'm happy for The Miz. He's certainly my top draw over the last year. He's not a no talent wrestler, he's been on PWI's most improved wrestlers list 2 years in a row, and at this point he's pretty solid. He's not Kurt Angle, obviously, but he's good now, and he has definitely paid his dues by today's standards. 20 years ago, he'd have pretty much paid his dues to get the IC title, and for me it's pretty easy to look at him like that too, and in that light, I think he deserves that old school prestige. By today's standards, yeah he's a main eventer for sure, and he was the reason I came back week after week in 2010 after having not watched wrestling since 2004. The Miz went from tag champs with Big Show, to US Heavyweight champion, who lost to Bret Hart (on the record books that looks pretty good regardless for Bret's condition or the quality of the match) and then won MITB and beat Orton for the title and defended against Cena at Wrestlemania. He was not only a superstar on the rise he was huge. That's the right guy, no question about it.

 

[TheKingHustla]

I think it has to do with all over appeal. I mean, during that time, Miz was champ, he was on tv and doing a lot of things. On top of that, he went from a nobody to THE somebody of that time, even beating everyone's favorite SuperCena and SuperOrton on a number of occasions. He deserves it.

And of course people are gonna say Cena and Orton but this isn't "who is the favorite guys of the WWE" list. If it was, of course those two would be tops. But honestly, they don't impress anymore, and they've both been extremely stale and the same for a long time. Miz, on the other hand, gave the fans a breath of fresh air, even if many didn't like it. He was a heel that people hated.

And maybe the people over at PWI are tired of Cena and Orton too, like the rest of the world.

 

[ThatGuy99]

He deserves it for his accolades, but not for his skill in the ring.
Botching moves is one thing, but The Miz is still quite green. No one whose main evented Wrestlemania should be as green as he is.
He may not botch his moves very often, but his moves aren't difficult. AT ALL.
And in between moves, he's very stiff, sluggish and slow.

I used to really like the Miz, but it seems to me that lately, he's more interested in being in the public eye than he is at getting better in the ring.

 

[MisterRob]

This ranking is proof of two things:

1) How meaningless the PWI ranking actually is. When the Miz is ranked number 1, any year, its jus proof how offbase the criteria these people use really is. The Miz isn't the best at ANY one thing in the WWE or the business right now, let alone a combination of things, and this ranking is laughable. No matter what you judge the Miz on you can name someone (or many) who are far better at it then he is and was this past year.

2) How sad the state of the WWE (and wresting in general) is. When the Miz is number one, and there's no one better then him (supposedly) in the WWE, it has to be one of the saddest eras in company history. Every era before this, and every past WWE wrestler whose reached number one on this list, far, far overshadows the Miz on every level. This ranking just depresses me about the state of wrestling and the WWE.

 

[lastoutlaw11]

I will say this if miz is #1 than after 6 months as champ durin the time period used I can't argue with it. However i will say this had jeff hardy not screwed up the anti-christ of pro wrestling should have been #1. Also, I do believe ther is 1 man who could truly lay claim to #1 over fiz...I mean miz and that is the one and only rated r superstar who had it not been for a bogus world title loss to dolph ziggler would have had just as long a run as miz as champ and retired on top and helped his boy reach his dream which is more than we will ever say for miz.

 

[Magma101]

This ranking is proof of two things:

1) How meaningless the PWI ranking actually is. When the Miz is ranked number 1, any year, its jus proof how offbase the criteria these people use really is. The Miz isn't the best at ANY one thing in the WWE or the business right now, let alone a combination of things, and this ranking is laughable. No matter what you judge the Miz on you can name someone (or many) who are far better at it then he is and was this past year.

2) How sad the state of the WWE (and wresting in general) is. When the Miz is number one, and there's no one better then him (supposedly) in the WWE, it has to be one of the saddest eras in company history. Every era before this, and every past WWE wrestler whose reached number one on this list, far, far overshadows the Miz on every level. This ranking just depresses me about the state of wrestling and the WWE.

The ranking isn't about the top wrestler in the business, it's about who had the best year. In one year, Miz won: Unified Tag Titles, US Championship, MiTB WWE Champion. Nobody can compete, therefore he is #1.

 

[CelticCorey]

PWI has officially lost every last ounce of respect that I ever had for them. I get it, Miz worked hard to get where he is. That doesn't mean he is championship material, let alone deserves to be ranked PWI #1. Whoever made that decision needs to be fired. Miz does not deserve this ranking because he has NO in ring skill whatsoever and will never be believable as a top guy. Ever.

Do you think Punk could be believable as a top guy? With all due respect and you are one of the posters I respect most on here, I don't see how anybody could say Punk looks believable as a top guy and Miz doesn't. Miz doesn't have the ring prowess Punk does; but he showed me on Monday Night against Mysterio that he CAN wrestle.

Punk may have superior ring skills but let's look at Miz/Punk.

Miz and Punk have a similiar height, a similar weight, if Punk is the best promo cutter in the company Miz is probably right behind him.

Not to mention, since you told me about kayfabe and all (Remember the thread where I called SD directionless?) Well KAYFABE wise, who has had a bigger year than Miz has had this past year? I think some have an argument but they fall short.

 

[hollowpoint]

As much of a MIz fan I am not, during the period in question, the Miz definitely held his own. I like to think of it as attrition. He was the champ on the best company in the business and he held the title for a considerable run. Throw a WM victory over Cena in there and you got a #1. I don't really agree with it so much, but I understand it. He's improved his stock drastically over the course of a year.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I don't see how anybody could say Punk looks believable as a top guy and Miz doesn't. Miz doesn't have the ring prowess Punk does; but he showed me on Monday Night against Mysterio that he CAN wrestle.

That match was good because of Mysterio. Miz does have enough in ring ability to be US or IC Champion. That's it though. I stand by my previous statement that whoever at PWI chose Miz for #1 deserves to lose their job. They clearly have absolutely no clue what wrestling is about.

Miz and Punk have a similiar height, a similar weight, if Punk is the best promo cutter in the company Miz is probably right behind him.

Miz is excellent on the mic compared to most of the guys in WWE. I'll give him that. He SUCKS in the ring though. People gave guys like Batista a hard time about lack of in ring skill, but at least all of those guys were believable as a top guy. Miz is not and in my opinion he never will be.

Well KAYFABE wise, who has had a bigger year than Miz has had this past year? I think some have an argument but they fall short.

In terms of kayfabe, yes, Miz probably had the best year. You can only take kayfabe so far though. They could disguise a developmental guy as a janitor from the stadium and book him to defeat the current World Champion then keep the belt on this same janitor who has little to no in ring skill at all for 2/3 of a schoolyear, just like Miz. Would you be defending his case if PWI ranked him as number 1? No. The only difference between this scenario and what really happened is that Miz can do promos and has been on Raw for a couple of years. They can put the world title on someone who sucks, have the guy yell about how awesome he is on a daily basis, and have him be booked to win against legends and top guys all they want, but that doesn't change the fact that HE STILL SUCKS.

He does not deserve the honor of being #1 no matter how good he was booked this year. Period. To be called the best WRESTLER in the world, you need to either have a good amount of in ring ability, or be believable as a top guy in your wrestling federation. Miz comes up short in both of those areas. Now, Punk on the other hand.... He may not be much bigger than Miz but he can wrestle AND cut the best promos out of anyone in WWE right now. He is 100% believable as the best in the world at the moment. Had the rankings been a month or so from now he probably would have won and unlike Miz he actually deserves it.

 

[#hamler]

In terms of kayfabe, yes, Miz probably had the best year.

That right there, Pro Wrestling Illustrated has been known for years as being a kayfabe magazine. Why wouldn't they base everything off of kayfabe?

You can only take kayfabe so far though. They could disguise a developmental guy as a janitor from the stadium and book him to defeat the current World Champion then keep the belt on this same janitor who has little to no in ring skill at all for 2/3 of a schoolyear, just like Miz.

Well, if this janitor can generate as much heat as the Miz could during his WWE Championship reign and they built him properly then great.

Would you be defending his case if PWI ranked him as number 1? No. The only difference between this scenario and what really happened is that Miz can do promos and has been on Raw for a couple of years. They can put the world title on someone who sucks, have the guy yell about how awesome he is on a daily basis, and have him be booked to win against legends and top guys all they want, but that doesn't change the fact that HE STILL SUCKS.

Why does he suck? Because of his lack of in-ring skills? He's half decent in the ring and he does get a lot of boos.

He does not deserve the honor of being #1 no matter how good he was booked this year. Period. To be called the best WRESTLER in the world, you need to either have a good amount of in ring ability,

Like Deisel was in 1995.

or be believable as a top guy in your wrestling federation.

He was during his championship reign. You may not have believed it, but the truth is Miz put away Randy Orton (second biggest face on the company) and John Cena (largest face in the company) in a single year. Pretty credible if you ask me.

Miz comes up short in both of those areas.

I disagree with you on that. He is pretty bad in the ring, but that in no way means he can't be number one when he had the best years (kayfabe) out of anyone recognized by PWI.

Now, Punk on the other hand.... He may not be much bigger than Miz but he can wrestle AND cut the best promos out of anyone in WWE right now. He is 100% believable as the best in the world at the moment. Had the rankings been a month or so from now he probably would have won and unlike Miz he actually deserves it.

I agree with you there. CM Punk is one hell of a talent. Sadly, Punk missed the deadline. Miz deserves this bro.

 

[CelticCorey]

That match was good because of Mysterio. Miz does have enough in ring ability to be US or IC Champion. That's it though. I stand by my previous statement that whoever at PWI chose Miz for #1 deserves to lose their job. They clearly have absolutely no clue what wrestling is about.




Miz is excellent on the mic compared to most of the guys in WWE. I'll give him that. He SUCKS in the ring though. People gave guys like Batista a hard time about lack of in ring skill, but at least all of those guys were believable as a top guy. Miz is not and in my opinion he never will be.




In terms of kayfabe, yes, Miz probably had the best year. You can only take kayfabe so far though. They could disguise a developmental guy as a janitor from the stadium and book him to defeat the current World Champion then keep the belt on this same janitor who has little to no in ring skill at all for 2/3 of a schoolyear, just like Miz. Would you be defending his case if PWI ranked him as number 1? No. The only difference between this scenario and what really happened is that Miz can do promos and has been on Raw for a couple of years. They can put the world title on someone who sucks, have the guy yell about how awesome he is on a daily basis, and have him be booked to win against legends and top guys all they want, but that doesn't change the fact that HE STILL SUCKS.

He does not deserve the honor of being #1 no matter how good he was booked this year. Period. To be called the best WRESTLER in the world, you need to either have a good amount of in ring ability, or be believable as a top guy in your wrestling federation. Miz comes up short in both of those areas. Now, Punk on the other hand.... He may not be much bigger than Miz but he can wrestle AND cut the best promos out of anyone in WWE right now. He is 100% believable as the best in the world at the moment. Had the rankings been a month or so from now he probably would have won and unlike Miz he actually deserves it.

#1 I wouldn't go that far that the match was good BECAUSE of Mysterio. I was impressed by some of the new moves the Miz did that I hadn't really seen before and I feel that he did them in a clean fashion. Miz doesn't have to be a technical machine or anything. I'm somebody who enjoys ring work more than promo work but how often do people say Miz botches or are there reports about Miz messing up?

#2 Are you trying to compare the janitor thing to Miz being a reality star? I don't view him as a reality star I view him as a former WWE champion. He isn't the best ring worker but he can put on good matches with the right opponent. I feel the same holds true for others who have had main event exposure.

#3 As far as kayfabe and you saying how Miz still sucks, who else made such an impact on the wrestling business the last year? I am talking about somebody who dominated the mid card as U.S. champ, tag team champ, when he won the WWE championship the old WWE Universe Forums went APESHIT and made so many threads about him in such a short time. They buzzed about him so much.

Clean or not, this man defeated the second biggest name in the company three straight times for the WWE Championship. He still found a way to get it done.

Then there's the inserting of the feud with Rock and Cena. Look, with it being Rock and Cena, Miz sure did a nice job as the Third Wheel seeing as how he was main eventing his first Wrestlemania and that he was in his first WWE Championship reign.

When he came out dressed up as the Rock I bursted out laughing because that was so cool and the way he just manhandled Cena to end RAW was absolutely terrific.

I was marking out for sure when he gave the people's elbow and everything and he cut that promo on the Rock telling him to be "The best Ryan Seacrest you could be." Man I was eating that up.

Even though the Rock helped him win via Rock Bottom, it's still in the record books that the Miz BEAT JOHN CENA AT WRESTLEMANIA.

Prior to this year, John Cena NEVER lost a one on one match at Wrestlemania. The great JR acknowledged this during the match. Let's look at whom Cena has beaten at Wrestlemania one on one.

Big Show- Future Hall of Famer
JBL- Future Hall of Famer
HHH- Future Hall of Famer
HBK- Hall of Famer
Batista- Definitely worthy of a Hall of Fame spot.

#4 As far as Punk goes, the only thing Punk has an advantage over Miz is in ring ability but I do still believe Miz is capable of putting on a good match and is a clean wrestler. If Punk and Miz switched roles and it was Miz who cut that shoot promo I think Miz also would've gotten a great deal of exposure as well, perhaps to some extent a little more because of who he was before he came to the WWE and that he has mainstream appeal. I don't know how big of an impact it would've made if Miz was the one to cut the promo but not too many people are on Punk's level promo wise. Miz is one of them.

 

[theairforce1]

I am for one in favor of Miz being placed # 1. Since it runs from the June/July 2010-2011 time frame it makes perfect sense. Long US title reign (while holding that, he also held the unified tag titles, which is impressive) won MITB, cashed in on Orton, held the WWE title for 159 days (amazing as that was his first reign, im sure there will be many more) the only champion i can think who had a longer run in recent years was JBL. Sure Cena, and HHH have held it for a longer amount of time in 1 year, but there were losses and regains of the title in there. But as one poster put it, he was a mid carder given the chance to shine, and did it very well. He constantly gets better in the ring, is one of the best on the mic in recent memory, and sells his character. Is there anything else im missing here as to why he wouldnt be # 1? Oh yeah and for next year, I'm making the call early and saying CM Punk will be PWI # 1 for 2011-2012