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

574 first place votes
565 second place votes
559 third place votes

320  74 38 1898   Triple H
150 167 75 1401   Chris Benoit
 21  69 96  504   Kurt Angle
  8  58 49  312   Rock
 15  43 47  298   Chris Jericho
  9  20 35  175   Yoshihiro Tajiri
  2  14 37  126   Booker T.
  0  19 27  111   Lance Storm
  9   8 13   95   Toshiaki Kawada
  2  13 19   87   Eddie Guerrero
  3  13 16   86   Jeff Jarrett
  2   7 13   57   Jerry Lynn
  1   8 11   51   Mick Foley
  1   3 10   34   Dean Malenko
  2   3  4   27   Kenta Kobashi
  2   3  4   27   Cima
  1   4  3   23   Mike Awesome
  2   2  3   22   Aja Kong
  1   3  3   20   Steve Austin
  3   1  0   18   Scott Steiner
  1   3  2   18   Mitsuharu Misawa
  1   3  2   18   Jun Akiyama
  0   2  5   16   Rob Van Dam
  1   2  2   15   Hardcore Holly
  2   0  1   12   Mariko Yoshida
  1   1  2   12   Minoru Tanaka
  1   2  0   11   Tomoaki Honma
  2   0  0   10   Dick Togo
  1   1  1   10   Steve Blackman
  0   2  2   10   William Regal
  0   2  2   10   Kane
  0   2  2   10   Great Sasuke
  1   1  0    8   Hijo del Santo
  1   1  0    8   D'Lo Brown
  1   0  1    7   Mayumi Ozaki
  0   1  2    7   Masato Tanaka
  0   0  3    6   Undertaker
  1   0  0    5   Trent Acid
  1   0  0    5   Shawn Michaels
  1   0  0    5   Sandman
  1   0  0    5   Hayabusa
  1   0  0    5   El Samurai
  1   0  0    5   Christian
  1   0  0    5   Cat
  0   1  1    5   Steve Corino
  0   1  1    5   Al Snow
  0   0  2    4   Super Crazy
  0   0  2    4   Shinjiro Ohtani
  0   0  2    4   Lita
  0   0  2    4   Kid Kash
  0   0  2    4   Crowbar
  0   0  2    4   Akino
  0   1  0    3   Tazz
  0   1  0    3   Suwa
  0   1  0    3   Rey Mysterio Jr.
  0   1  0    3   Onryo
  0   1  0    3   Naoki Sano
  0   1  0    3   Mari Apache
  0   1  0    3   Kintaro Kanemura
  0   1  0    3   Goldberg
  0   1  0    3   Essa Rios
  0   0  1    2   X-Pac
  0   0  1    2   Vader
  0   0  1    2   Twiggy Ramirez
  0   0  1    2   Sabu
  0   0  1    2   Naoshi Sano
  0   0  1    2   Mr. Gannosuke
  0   0  1    2   Meng
  0   0  1    2   Masked Angel Rosetta (Hiromi Yaginuma)
  0   0  1    2   Lenny Lane
  0   0  1    2   Kaoru
  0   0  1    2   Justin Credible
  0   0  1    2   Jushin Liger
  0   0  1    2   Jeff Hardy
  0   0  1    2   Bret Hart
  0   0  1    2   Azumi Hyuga (Tomoko Kuzumi)
  0   0  1    2   Alex Porteau

C. JOSEPH HOFFMAN: Could have been a Toss up between the top two.  Benoit
gets the nod based on widespread coverage of his matches (starting in WCW
in Nov. 1999 and now in WWF)

RICHARD BEAUBIEN: The wrestlers of the year in 2000 in North America is
HHH, and it's hard to argue against it. This is a reluctant vote for him,
but a vote none the less because the man is, as he says, the Game. Quite
simply HHH had the best overall year of any wrestler in the business; he
drew money, he wrestled great matches, he cut great promo's, and he worked
the backstage politics like only a member of the famed Clique could. Love
him or hate him, he's definitly been the man in 2000 in the business, and
it doesn't look like his grip on power is fading.

HIRO: No doubt about it, WCW's loss is WWF's gain. Benoit brought all of
his tricks when he moved to the WWF, and he had some tremendous matches
both on TV and PPV.  Jericho benefitted most from Benoit's move, all of
their matches have been either the highlight of a PPV or the saving grace
of it. Even on his own, Jericho rarely disappoints. Triple H had awesome
PPV matches with Mick Foley, Rock and of course the two Chrisses (Chris
Benoit and Chris Jericho), as well as being an awesome heel (and
'tweener), so I think he deserves 3rd.

DEAN RASMUSSEN: Aja Kong rocked like a fricking QUEEN this year. Her MOTY
candidate with Meiko Satomura ruled in thoroughly different ways that her
MOTY candidate against KAORU ruled- the former being a really good
approximation of Tsurta vs Misawa and the latter being a good
approximation of too crazy old broads beating the hell out of each other
with chairs and tables. Toshiaki Kawada would be number one, but all of
his stuff is on hard to find All Japan cliptastic commercial tapes so I
didn't see enough to put him over the top, but his AWWWEEESSSOME match
against Kensuke Sasaki puts him into the fromt-running for RSWP-I fiscal
year 2001 wrestler of the year.

CHRIS BIRD: Triple H should walk away with this award in a heartbeat. He's
got a fantastic string of matches under his belt, including no less than
seven four-star matches. He's made the likes of Hardcore Holly and Taka
Michinoku look like credible threats to his title reign. He's been drawing
mad money, his merchandise sales are huge, he's a superb interview - this
is really a no-contest, so much so that even many of the puroheads are
giving him their vote. Second goes to Chris Benoit, who actually had an
even better year than he did last year (where he was Wrestler of the
Year), wrestling countless good matches with practically the entire WWF
roster and improving his interview skills - in any other year, he'd walk
away with this, but this was the Year of Triple H, so there you go. Third
place is Chris Jericho's, for his proven drawing capability, an extremely
strong year's worth of work against Triple H, Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle,
Eddie Guerrero, and even Chyna, and just generally being entertaining. I'd
also like to give an honorable mention to the oft-unfairly maligned Jeff
Jarrett, who's doing as good a job with the crap WCW feeds him as just
about anybody could, and who has wrestled consistently well this year.
Better luck next year, Dubbajay.

BRUNO PULVER: Scott Steiner is for real. Scott Steiner defines the meaning
of HEEL

MICHAEL BANKER: I would have put Mick Foley on the list, but he just
didn't wrestle for enough of the year.

JASON BOUGGER: Triple H/Rock/Angle:  The generic choice for top 3, but
they really did have it all this year.

JUSTIN McGROTTY: Would have nominated Super Crazy as best wrestler if he
was listed...

ALEX BECKERS: First two were easy... Tajiri was a tough pick from the rest
of them.

MATTHEW HEMING: The only thing I really miss now that ECW isn't on TNN is
Tajiri, because there is no chance he will ever appear in either of the
national feds.

ROBERT STRUPP: Triple H has been the Best Wrestler all year. In the last
12 months, he has had the most amazing string of matches. He had two
excellent brawls with Mick Foley, a very good match with Vince MacMahon,
wrestling heavy matches on tv agains Chris Jericho (twice), Chris Benoit,
and TAKA Michunoku, a Wrestlemania Main Event that was very good despite
the presence of the Big Show and Mick Foley, and a run against the Rock
that brought out the best matches Rocky has had in the last three years.
Chris Benoit gets my second place vote, because I believe he should get
all or most of the credit for the improvement in the upper-mid card, and
later the Top of the card. Booker T has had a very strong run as WCW
Champion, and has been solid all year for a company that spent most of the
year in a horrid funk.

BEN WEINER: To hell with it, I'm giving it to Benoit.

ALEX GIPSON: This was the year I became a Benoit fan, as he really caught
my attention after winning the Intercontinental belt at Wrestlemania,
defending it almost week in and out in consistently good matches. Triple
H, of course, literally stepped up his game this year, and the Rock
continues to amaze me week in and out; his adaptability is incredible.

CHRIS OSTER: Is there any doubt?  Triple H was THE MAN this year.  He rose
far above the naysayers (myself included) who said he didn't have what it
took to be a dominant heel OR a credible champion.  He has carried the WWF
on his back this year, and looked damn good doing it.  And, oh yeah, he's
produced the greatest string of main-event matches since Bret Hart and
Shawn Michaels were on top.  What hasn't he done?  Well, he hasn't been
announced as both the WCW and WWF champion in the same year...Chris Benoit
gets my second-place vote.  Another solid year from everyone's favourite
technical marvel.  Third place goes to Kurt Angle.  I mean how can you NOT
give a vote to a guy who's gone from dark matches to the WWF title in one
year?

EDC: Triple H had a banner here, really stepping up his game and in ring
persona. Benoit is approaching slowly but surely, but lack of Crowd heat
is keeping him down at this point. Kawada gets up here for being Stiff all
these years

ANDREW BAYER: OK, so I primarily watch the WWF, but tell me Triple H
hasn't been godly this year. Eddie is just wonderful, whenever they
actually let him be the dickish heel that he does so well. And
Benoit...there's a reason the upper-card has been getting so technically
decent in the WWF lately, and I'd say Benoit's feuds with Rock, HHH, and
Austin have something to do with it.

DUDICALY2K: BEST WRESTLER: I'm sure HHH is going to win in a sweep, but
he's had a year for the ages. The one thing that sets him apart from any
other character is that he has been for the whole year fun. He relishes
his asshole persona, he made quite the fun little "faux face" for a few
weeks and on top of it, he has really good US pro-style matches with a
variety of different wrestlers.  Chris Benoit is just an awesome wrestler,
capable of having good matches with Sid Vicious.  He'd get my vote if HHH
didn't have a Pedro Martinez-esque year. Kawada remains the stiffest
wrestler in the world, complete with his trademarked stoicism, and saw a
lot of other wrestlers just up and leave his promotion. Kawada rules.

DANIEL HERMAN: Benoit gets my nod for getting top matches in little time
on TV from most of the WWF top-card. Naoki Sano I love because he can
wrestle. Naoshi, who is different, is a great little Japanese Indy worker
with lots of spunk.

SCOTT W.: Chris Benoit can probably carry a dead guy to a watch-able
match.  The man is amazing.  Kurt Angle and Tajiri run a close 2nd and
3rd.  I went with Angle cause of the gold medals.  Tajiri is coming close
to being a new god.

CHANCE50JR: From the number of PPVs headlined to the transition to heel to
face and back, Triple H is my wrestler of the year.  A close second is
Kurt Angle, who really amazed me with two things- his style in the ring
and his style on the mic.  It's true (it's true) he has some things to
work on, but he's done more in his first year than some wrestlers have
ever done in their careers.  Finishing third is a sentimental pick, The
Rock, who, yes, he was the face that drove the WWF and wrestling in the
absence of Stone Cold, but would not have been nearly as successful if HHH
hadn't been the force that he was.

DONNIE VOMIT: No question, it was Triple H's year.  He was in the best two
matches and three of the top five.  Although I've never hated HHH, he's
certainly a lot better than I ever expected him to be.  Benoit's made
improvements in his mic work while bringing back workrate to the WWF main
event.  And Angle is the champ for frick sake!  One year ago when he
debuted, his gimmick was so tongue in cheek that people weren't sure if he
was trying to be a face.

MARCUS SPARKS: Nobody's stepped it up like "The Game" has this year.  
He's worked a versatile number of styles and did them all well.  Chris
Benoit is still the best technical wrestler in the US.  Eddie should be
applauded for not letting his forced association with the WWF's "heat
sink" lower his standards in the ring.  2. MARCUS SPARKS: Lots of people
will say The Hardy Boys and The Dudley Boys for this, but the Dudleys have
been turned into one-trick ponies (the *yawn* tables) and the Hardys are
just highspot machines.  Edge and Christian have nicely put together the
package of what a tag team should be - good teamwork and versatile styles.  
The Acolytes are perhaps the best power team in wrestling at the moment
despite being pigeonholed by WWF booking.  Tajiri and Mikey are the 2nd
best tagteam in ECW, but since Doring and Roadkill managed not to get
nominated...

JOHN C.: This year was definitely the year of The Game, Triple H.  His
emergence this year was tremendous as he became a terrific worker capable
of carrying anybody to a good match along with his improved skills on the
microphone that made him the most complete package the WWF has seen since
HBK in the mid-90's. He was an easy number one choice in a year that
featured the emergence of plenty WWF stars. At number two, I have to go
with The Rock because of his improved work in the ring, his excellent
promos and his ability to make all of his matches watchable. Picking a
third person was tough although in the end I had to go with Kurt Angle
because he was impressive from start to finish. Angle just beat out Chris
Benoit and Booker T. in the end because Benoit's three months in WCW hurt
his career more than it helped him and I couldn't put Booker any higher
because his competition is nowhere near the competition in the WWF.

GREG NECASTRO: Could anyone have a better year than Triple H?

JOSEPH MICELI: Tajiri is just plain fun to watch, but Benoit is the man.

MATTHEW HUBARTT: I intentionally left off Steve Austin due to his inaction
for most of the past year. However, no one can deny the size of the pops
he still gets.

STEVE SHIVES: This was really a no-contest--Triple H just ran away with
it.  Who would've thunk it, too--the guy who NOBODY wanted as champion
just a little over a year ago is suddenly the best heel World Champion
since Ric Flair's hey-day.  He was involved in the best angle and the best
feud, too.  If there was a category for "Smartest Man in Wrestling", he'd
win that, too.  Let's hope he doesn't go all Hogan on us. I'll keep my
fingers crossed.  Benoit and Jericho get second and third place,
respectively, for me, since they both had great matches with Triple H, had
great matches all year with each other, and Benoit even got some good
stuff outta The Rock, too.

TONY LING: I don't think there's much in the way of debate here.

ANDY P. GOSS:  My criteria here was simple: the person had to earn a world
championship, and had to be involved in many consistent matches, with a
share of making the opponent look good and making himself look good.  All
three of these people did that.  Kurt Angle's rookie season makes him the
MVP with his ability to juggle storylines and play the old-school cowardly
heel.  WCW MVP Jeff Jarrett has been the consummate professional, and one
shudders to think about how he'd do in the WWF.  Jerry Lynn, meanwhile,
deserved more than a one-month reign as ECW champ.  Remember: he was RVD's
successor in many people's books.

CHRIS BURKE: No question about it…this was the year of HHH.  Despite being
the only heel to go over in a WM main event, the guy proved he is the best
at almost all aspects of the industry.  He went from getting monster heel
heat to face pops, and then instantly went back over to heel…I’m not sure
anyone else in the industry could do that with the level of success that
HHH has.  His reign as champ was obviously great, and he brought out the
best in Foley and the Rock during their feuds.  Would have liked to see
him develop the Angle feud a little deeper, but I guess the return of
Austin threw a wrench in that plan.  Overall, thought, in 2000 HHH was the
best…the guy we love to hate, and hate to love.

JON WALTON: Chris Benoit is once again the best wrestler on the planet,
due to his ability to get the most out of nearly every opponent, and teach
those who are average (The Rock comes to mind) to take their level up a
notch.  Eddy Guerrero continues to be a joy to watch and Jeff Jarrett
absolutely defines the cowardly heel in today's wrestling universe.

SCOTT CRAWFORD: Jericho ALMOST got the duke for third place, as he
provided a lot of "holy shit" moments over the past year, but in the end,
I went with Benoit's consistency.

MARKUS: these 3 guys all entertained me the whole year.

JONAH ROSCH: I cannot put a single non WWF wrestler in this category, and
I don't like that. And it's not because I'm a WWF Mark. (It is partially
cause I never see any International wrestling, I'll give you that). Triple
H totally dominated a federation like I haven't seen since Vader in 93. He
gave great promos, solid matches, and acted like a true world champion,
and not just a wrestler with the belt. Chris Benoit was solid all year,
finally getting his due from the major federations. And there's just
nothing else you can say about Kurt Angle. From rookie to WWF Champion in
1 year. There are things I don't like about Angle, but not enough. It's
just a sad state when I cannot find a person in ECW or WCW to put in this
category.

EDDIE BURKETT: Triple H is THE GAME!!! 'nuff said.

JAMES HOWARD: Chris Benoit is a god. Chris Jericho is also a god. Triple H
is an *evil* god. Remember the days when wrestling fans only had one or
two gods to worship? Nowadays there's, like, twenty. ^_^

GEORGE JOHNSON: Are you sure this Triple H is the same guy I remember from
'95?

DAVE B: About a year and a half ago, I would have had him as worst
wrestler.  I couldn't stand him and felt his push was totally undeserved.  
But dammmmmn... he really has stepped it up and I truly respect the way
that Paul Levesque goes about his business behind the scenes.  He'll job
when required and is willing to bust his ass off in matches.  A true
champion.

JUSTIN SLOAN:  Other Best Wrestlers should include: Chris Kanyon, Vampiro,
Chris Jericho, Dean Malenko, Eddie Geurrero, and Jeff Hardy. I am from
Texas, thats why I like the Canadien wrestlers so much.  Wait a
minute.......

JOE GAGNE: Triple H is the Wrestler of the Year, no question.  He was the
top guy in the WWF, becoming the best heel in years and having an
incredible streak of awesome PPV matches.  Chris Benoit also had a great
year in the ring, greatly boosting the quality of wrestling in the WWF.  
Booker T was one of the few bright spots in WCW this year.

BOB MORRIS: Without a doubt, Hunter Hearst Helmsley proved every critic of
his wrong this year...many, including myself, thought he would never be
World championship material, but he proved otherwise this year. Hands
down, he deserves to be the wrestler of the year. Even though some are
questioning his motives backstage, there is no denying that he earned
every ounce of his push this year and proved he belonged in the main event
picture.

C READ: Just out of interest- has there been any singles matches that have
topped **** this year that hasn't involved one of those 3 (Benoit, Rock,
HHH)?

JPM38: Triple H hurt his back late in the year, and I'm sure it's because
he carried the promotion all throughout the year. He's had one of the
all-time great years in terms of dominance and money matches this year,
rivaling only HBK 96, Austin 97 and Flair in 1989. Close in the 2 and 3
spots are the Chrises. Benoit gets the nod because of his tremendous
improvement on the stick, and also the fact that Jericho has pretty much
died out after the awesome angle with Triple H.

JEREMY SORIA: The Revolution, minus Shane Douglas, jump to the WWF. Of
those that went over, Chris Benoit was the highlight there. But then,
isn't he always the highlight of every wrestling year?  Kurt Angle
deserves a top three status. Though he might have seemed way too green
about a year ago, in that time, he has developed a great sense of
wrestling and a riveting personality. He's not annoying enough to the
point that you hate him just because he annoys you.

RICK SCAIA: This category combines just about every aspect of a guy's
performance into one measuring stick, and then tosses in a heavy dose of
how valuable that guy is to his company on top of it all.  By those
criteria, Triple H is my hands down Wrestler of the Year.  He delivered
good matches and good interviews throughout the voting year, and via his
"marriage" to Stephanie McMahon, ensured himself a key spot as the Fed's
top heel, too.  Chris Benoit is almost certainly a more skilled in-ring
performer than anyone on this list, but he has yet to break through as a
man who can be counted on to carry his promotion for weeks or months at a
time; he gets stuck at #2. Jeff Jarrett rounds out the list at #3 for that
very reason:  he's been WCW's only reliable heel over the past 12 months,
and has pulled off the trick while being a steady in-ring worker and
interviewee.

NATHAN LONEY: When I think of the best wrestler, I think of the best
all-around wrestler.  Technical wrestler, brawler, high-flyer... and the
best for my money is Chris Benoit.  Especially this year, when he had a
year filled with some great technical matches and some great brawls.  My
second choice is Yoshihiro Tajiri, with a great combination of brawling,
technical wrestling, and high-flying (find some of his previous work in
Japan... awesome stuff). The Rock has had some great matches, and can pull
it all together.

BILL LEHECKA: Triple H is God. Benoit's a close second.  If Benoit was
actually given the WWF title instead of the TWO stupid-ass Dusty finishes,
then Benoit would be at a level above God.  I don't know what that level
is.  Kurt Angle is a demi-god.  He's close.  I mean, can anyone comprehend
this guy's meteoric rise?  And he's actually over!

MATT SPAULDING: Note the criteria: "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.*"  On that last point, I give the edge to The Rock, as his
ability and willingness to get and put people over was invaluable to the
further development of the WWF's talent base.  Also, Rock *was* the face
of the WWF to the mainstream media in its biggest year ever.  I'm not as
high on Triple H as most people, but there's no denying what the guy
accomplished, so he's a close second.

BLAZEJ SZPAKOWICZ: I don't think there's any doubt that this was the year
of Triple H. He was in all of the best matches (and carried many of them),
all of the memorable feuds, headlined some of the best cards in recent
memory... He is quite clearly *the* man in pro wrestling nowadays. Who'd
have seen that coming as little as 18 months ago? Not me, certainly. Chris
Benoit is, beyond a doubt, the best in-ring wrestler in the world today.
He's had a great year, too, churning out great matches almost weekly and
wrestling for the WWF title after less than a year with the company. *And*
he's finally picking up some interview ability too. Finally, Kurt Angle,
after only a year in the business, is the reigning WWF champion, as well
as being a great interview and a fine worker who just oozes talent.

THE TALBOTS: Triple H has proven himself the most adaptable wrestler
around. It doesn't matter what match he's in or who he's facing, he will
have a good match. He's the new Ric Flair.

ERIC STRAGAND: It really made my year (in wrestling at least), to see
Booker walk around with the strap for a few months. Angle's meteoric rise
was wel justified in my book, and gets him included here.

OCTAVIAN: workrate, technical ability, interviews, charisma, value to
his/her promotion:  HHH is in the top percentage of all except perhaps
technical ability.  Claiming top honors in four out of the five
requirements gives him the nod as Best Wrestler How dull would the WWF
have been without him this past year?

LAWRENCE BENEDETTO: Triple H carried the WWF

TANVIR RAQUIB: Lynn's mix of aerial and technical ability continues to
astound me. Benoit is not Allah, but he's close. And Malenko is 40 plus
and still rules. All three deserve a standing ovation everytime they walk
into their local supermarkets.

RAVI MISRA:  Rumored ego issues aside, Triple H was THE man in all of
North American wrestling last year.

ALEX CARNEVALE: Chris Benoit has cemented his reputation this year as the
best worker in the world.  His ****+ matches with Jericho, Rock and HHH
were unmatched in terms of workrate, and the development of his heel
character has gotten him more over than ever before.  Increasingly, he is
the man who will carry the WWF into 2001.  This is his year.

MIKE PLYLEY: Triple H had the best year in wrestling, hands down.  Just
think about how many ****+ matches he's had, and how long he's been able
to make the marriage angle last without it getting tiresome.  Is he the
greatest actual WRESTLER?  No, but he sure as hell works hard, looks
great, and has great mic skills.  I don't give a crap about his supposed
ego, all I know is what I see, and I see him as the greatest complete
package since Ric Flair.  Chris Benoit is still probably the best wrestler
I've ever seen, and the way he's presented himself in the WWF has been
great.  Two years from now, he will be an absolute legend.  And Jeff
Jarrett has been one of the only bright things about WCW this year.  Even
though he's been jobbed out of championship reigns left and right, and is
now fueding with midcard losers like The Cat and Buff, he's kept up the
work in the ring, and managed to stay over as a heel.

COLIN MacKINNON: I found it pretty difficult to narrow down the field for
Best Wrestler, but in the end, I decided to go with Kurt Angle.  The
reason?  Because I really can't think of a rookie wrestler who's managed
to do as much as Angle has done within the past year, From wrestling Shawn
Stasiak to wrestling The Rock for the World Title... He's not the best
worker, or the best heel, but he's a nice, complete package.  I have no
idea what'll happen in a year or two, but from what I saw this year, Angle
impressed me enough to earn the honors. Only argument I can think of is
that Vince pushed him to the top too fast, but at least the WWF managed to
create another main eventer to keep the scene fresh for now.

TOM CRUZ: I don't see how anyone can debate Triple H as the wrestler of
the year. He's really done it all this year. Great interviews, great
angles, and most importantly, great matches. Triple H has, through great
pacing and outstanding selling, put together some of the most dramatic
matches in WWF history. Similarly, Chris Benoit has put together an
outstanding year. Everyone knows how good this guy is, so I'll refrain
from saying more, short of that I'm a big fan. I was going to put Kurt
Angle third, but he actually hasn't impressed me too much this year in
terms of ring prowess. Sure, he's a great interview and all that, but for
an Olympic champion he sure seems reluctant to do mat work.

NICK RANGEL: Triple H had an unbelievable year, maybe the best in recent
memory. He's been the most credible standard bearer that the WWF has had
for a long time with matches that I never thought he had in him.

JEFF "FRO" WAHLMAN: HHH has truly had a MVP-type year between his steady
stream of ****-ish PPV matches as well as deep feuds with Cactus Jack,
Rock, Benoit, and Kurt Angle. Chris Benoit is great as always.  The Rock,
despite what some say, doesn't SUCK.  He's turned from a catch-phrase
machine to someone much more creative and his feud with Benoit really gave
his moveset a big boost.

PHIL PRZYBYLO: A superb year by many wrestlers, but Triple H has been
christened the new wrestling god with this year's performance.  No one can
really pinpoint what exactly he does so good, though.  He just
consistently put out 4-5 star matches every month. Rock and Benoit come in
second and third.  Rock would have a chance at one if it weren't for his
tendency to lean toward the Russo-style main events (pointless brawling
outside).  Benoit's personality almost matched his supreme work ethic in
the ring.

C McMURTRY: At this time last year, most thought Triple H was a paper
champion who was in the right place at the right time, resulting in him
getting the World Title. However, over the course of 2000, no one has had
great match after great like Hunter. Having 13 MOTY nominations should
prove that. I don't care how he kept himself in that top spot politically.
All I know is no one was on their game in 2000 like "The Game". Chris
Benoit, now out of WCW, was able to show what all the "smart" fans had
been saying all along: that he is the best wrestler in the world. He was
also, under the WWF machine, able to improve his personality, and it has
shown. Toshiaki Kawada gets the third spot because he was able to keep All
Japan afloat when, after Misawa and crew left, it didn't look possible.
His matches with Kobashi at the beginning of the year, as well as his
amazing Tokyo Dome bout with Kensuke Sasaki later on showed just why he
should have been the cornerstone of All Japan so many years ago.

JBELL55146: 3 Years ago I voted for Least Favorite Wrestler and hands down
I voted for Hunter. This year I voted him Wrestler of The Year and
Favorite Wrestler. How this is a strange sport. Nobody had the year he
had. Nobody was even close. All of his interviews were top notch, at a PPV
I don't remember him wrestling one match that wasn't **** or better, and
he just plain rocked the free world. Beniot had another great year winning
the WCW title and WWF IC title and again proved he is pound for pound the
best "wrestler" on the planet. And The Rock had great matches vs Benoit,
HHH and Kurt Angle and was THE babyface during the middle part of the year
while Taker' and Austin were both out.