All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

[Chrisksaint]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

I'm torn between Matrix and Storm's

[DJ]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Good stuff, guys. By the time I saw the PM invite, the draft was already underway.

[st0rmb11]

Re: all-time wrestling draft results...

I would love to open up the discussion of which matches that we listed would you most love to see?

For example, I love The Matrix's Taz vs Mr. Perfect match. I would love to have seen that one go down in real life. Same with the Edge vs Macho Man.

and OSU's Jericho vs Bret Hart Iron Man match. Instant classic, in my opinion.

[Redacted01]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

fair enough, i will remove them from my tag division.

Even with the loss of that tag team, yours is still a very sound brand.

[Streets]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Here’s my quick breakdown on each company… and again these are just MY thoughts from my limited perspective.

OSUFan_88
Your roster is littered with people who cannot cut a promo to save their lives. Aside from Jericho, who is that wrestler that is going to cut a great promo to make the fans care. If two wrestlers have a 5 star match and no one is there to watch it, does it exist? This is all the more concerning with the fact that you had the #1 overall pick and took the man who was the “face of the WWE” during their biggest economic downturn. I see this as a niche federation like TNA or ROH and in an All-time draft you are looking for something to put WWE to shame. I feel as if you went with your heart instead of your head but to your credit, you knew the criticism would be coming, know exactly what it is you want in your company and went out and got a roster to reflect that. I simply feel many of the guys you wanted could have been had later due to them not being as big of draws as other guys.

55
This is by far one of the deepest rosters out there. You had some really good picks at each draft spot. Sting in the second round was an amazing pickup and can be a huge draw for you. However, I don’t see Sting and Flair being enough to bring in the masses over some of the other brands (Didn’t work for WCW). However, you make up for it in depth. What I like about your draft is that you went with more versatile guys. Workers are a dime a dozen, but you also have guys who can cut promos just as well (Flair, DiBiase, Eddie, Jake, Foley). The biggest complaint I would have would be casting too wide a net. Trying to be something for everyone can be great, but you can lose yourself in the process. I appreciate the ambition by going old-school, new school, hardcore, high flying, technical, smarky, marky, international, national, etc. but like I said, too wide a net can often lead to a lost identity. The mission statement didn’t help because it didn’t give me a feel of what you’re about other than “we’re the best and have something for everyone”. To your credit you did get a lot of old school steals.

The15thunter
You have the strongest top of the card bar-none. I also believe you have the strongest tag division littered with real tag teams (SMART move taking Animal early, making Hawk worthless, then snagging him in the bonus round essentially getting a 2 for 1). The fact that you managed to pull both Hogan and Austin is outstanding. Easily the top two draws in the draft. Then you have three of the greatest technicians in Angle, Benoit, and Lesnar. All three of which can feud for an eternity (or until Benoit snaps… then I hope you have a good lawyer). I appreciate the business model and you have a roster that looks like it could gel. My only complaint is that beyond the main-eventers and tag teams, the undercard looks a bit weak compared to some of your peers.

st0rmb11
The first thing I looked for in the draft is to see where HBK went, and I was shocked to see he fell to #4. Shawn isn’t my favorite wrestler ever, but I don’t deny that he is the best combination of ring and mic skills ever. Your roster is filled with workers who can flat out entertain. DX, Punk, Booker, Christian, etc. You also have an in-his-prime Goldberg which was a nice touch. I also love your mission statement in that you gave a feel for what you’re about. The biggest problem is the bottom half of your roster is filled with guys I really don’t care about, prime or not (Kofi, Regal, Rikishi, Holly, Test, Abyss, etc.). A few of these guys are good, but too many in an all-time draft didn’t do much for me. I do appreciate your inclusion of the women though.

TheMatrix31
This is where my bias comes in, because I think we have similar tastes when it comes to wrestling, but I am a fan of this roster throughout. I like your idea of going with versatility and grabbing dynamic personalities who can thrive as a face or a heel. Overall, this is a very deep, versatile roster. You have my favorite undercard with guys like Perfect, Miz, Del Rio, Bulldog, Giant, Shamrock, etc. Your main event is weaker compared to the star power of your contemporaries, but it’s versatile and deep enough that you are set up for the long haul. You might not have Hogan and Austin feuding for an eternity, but you have Warrior, Edge, Cena, Rock, Savage, etc. and a bevy of mid-carders who can (and have) easily transition up. A lack of tag teams is a glaring weakness in your roster though and is a major oversight.

This is hard, but in order I’d have to go…

1. TheMatrix31
2. 55
3. The15thunter
4. st0rmb11
5. OSUFan_88

I am shocked no one picked up Andre the Giant. Hunter could have gotten him in the last round just to recreate Hogan-Andre. I am not shocked that that Adam guy who does all the video work for WWE wasn't selected as an "extra", but he should have been. His work is so unbelievably underrated in hyping PPV's returns, retirements, whatever.

[The15thunter]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

andre wasn't an option because he debuted before 1970.

[Streets]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

andre wasn't an option because he debuted before 1970.

Oooh, forgot that rule.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Like I said, Streets, that's why I went out and got some of the best managers. BTW, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall were not bad at promos. Bret got better with age/the end of his WWE run and I did take guys like Goldust and Cody Rhodes for some more character/promo guys.

But i understand, looking at the other organizations, no one is going to look at my roster and be wow'd by story lines. But I'll have 5* classics every night. And that's not something that will appeal to you.

Again, my entire federation is a mix between ROH style and early 90's WWE.

[st0rmb11]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Here’s my quick breakdown on each company… and again these are just MY thoughts from my limited perspective.

st0rmb11
The first thing I looked for in the draft is to see where HBK went, and I was shocked to see he fell to #4. Shawn isn’t my favorite wrestler ever, but I don’t deny that he is the best combination of ring and mic skills ever. Your roster is filled with workers who can flat out entertain. DX, Punk, Booker, Christian, etc. You also have an in-his-prime Goldberg which was a nice touch. I also love your mission statement in that you gave a feel for what you’re about. The biggest problem is the bottom half of your roster is filled with guys I really don’t care about, prime or not (Kofi, Regal, Rikishi, Holly, Test, Abyss, etc.). A few of these guys are good, but too many in an all-time draft didn’t do much for me. I do appreciate your inclusion of the women though.

Regal & Holly provide incredible work rate. I could send them out there every night, if needed. And I think you're sleeping on Regal's in ring ability and capability of putting on a great match. I got Kofi for the countless matches I can put him in with ECW era RVD, A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, Chris Sabin, CM Punk, etc. He gives me just another super athlete that can add to my already loaded "X-Division". I got Abyss for the "monster" factor. Rikishi was a huge fan favorite during the early years of the era that I got him during, but I also got his uber heel years, as well. I got Test for one reason, really. His years overlap with Triple H's, so I can recreate their feud. I had planned on taking Stephanie McMahon, but missed out on her. That would have made the Test pick look a lot better, I believe. Not sure what other guys you include in the "bottom half" of my roster, but every person I drafted was for a reason. You need "bottom level" guys in your organization - if you have 25 guys that are all "top tier" guys, you lose the ability to enhance talent, and you have no happiness in the locker room with that many "main eventers"

[The15thunter]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

The15thunter
You have the strongest top of the card bar-none. I also believe you have the strongest tag division littered with real tag teams (SMART move taking Animal early, making Hawk worthless, then snagging him in the bonus round essentially getting a 2 for 1). The fact that you managed to pull both Hogan and Austin is outstanding. Easily the top two draws in the draft. Then you have three of the greatest technicians in Angle, Benoit, and Lesnar. All three of which can feud for an eternity (or until Benoit snaps… then I hope you have a good lawyer). I appreciate the business model and you have a roster that looks like it could gel. My only complaint is that beyond the main-eventers and tag teams, the undercard looks a bit weak compared to some of your peers.

first off, let me thank you for taking the time to read through all of this and give us feedback. the hope was that guys would enjoy the read, find the strategies interesting and just spark some conversation, so i'm appreciative of you for indulging us.

secondly, thanks for the compliments on my business model and my main event acquisitions. i tried to take into account drawing power, in-ring ability, entertainment value, chemistry, potential down the road, and just how it all comes together.

i do wish to address your point about my mid and undercard. benoit, samoa joe, dynamite kid, jerry lynn, lance storm and chris candido could work amongst themselves for about three years without dropping below a 3 1/2 star match on their worst night. there's a lot of variety amongst them that would enable each pair of matches to stand out, for feuds to crossover, and for things to get really interesting, while still maintaining an upper-echelon in-ring product.

having mike awesome gives me the flexibility to have a guy with main event work-rate, size and look, but the ability to work with smaller guys without looking out of place of slow. i could feud him with almost anyone and tell either a story of an unstoppable goliath, two monsters, or a unique tale of styles. plus, having him and tanaka guarantees me a brutal, hard-hitting affair that could galvanize any crowd.

magnum t.a. and nikita koloff is a built-in money feud that could draw separate of my main events, as magnum was the hottest guy in the mid-80's and was going to supplant flair in flair's heyday. that is to say, he was on track to be hogan a year or two before hogan, although he likely wouldn't have risen to such meteroic heights, especially without the vince hype machine. but dude could work, could talk and could draw. his feud with koloff was cash money, and i could pull tully blanchard to feud with him before, during or after his work with koloff.

mr. kennedy was a guy who was going to be a wwe world champion multiple times, but either got screwed or injured every time. i think he could be built to main event status, or at least given the relevancy for people to care about him, mostly with hate, especially given the right feud partner.

and i don't think i need to really speak on the eight main eventers, but i can if needed.

just my thoughts, rationale and defense of my picks.

[woody2goody]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Storm, I thought your draft was the best. Your main eventers are an amazing combination of drawing power, in-ring ability, mic work and everything that makes a great wrestler.

There are a lot of guys who I rate highly in the mid-card too - Rob Van Dam, Steiner, Daniels, Rikishi, Swagger, Sabin and Kingston will provide great matches and entertaining feuds.

Add in the genius of Regal, the power of Test and Abyss, and all-round ability of Raven and you have a great roster.

[55]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

So, who were the best and worst picks in the draft according to where they were picked?

Best - John Cena in the 6th round.

Worst - Bret Hart at #1 overall simply because you could have probably had him at #8.

[st0rmb11]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

Best - either Cena in the 6th round, Lesnar in the 5th round, or Hogan in the 2nd round.


Worst - I'll own up to my own worst pick, Test in whatever round I took him in. I could've let him fall much further. a pick outside of that one, I would say Randy Savage 5th overall.

[The15thunter]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

i would say matrix picking taz in the 5th round is the worst pick.

[Streets]

Re: All-Time Wrestling Draft Results and Discussion (Poll Included)

I liked

Hulk Hogan at 8
John Cena at 26
Rey Mysterio at 40
AJ Styles at 44
Jeff Hardy at 49 (though I hated Matt Hardy at 52)
Kevin Nash at 50
Christian at 64
JBL at 69
Christopher Daniels at 74
Paul Wight at 75
Brian Pillman at 79
The Great Muta at 82
The Miz at 105 (biased as he is my favorite wrestler, but this was a mega steal, IMO)