Superstar of the Year: This honestly is a tough one because both Daniel Bryan and CM Punk fit. But in terms of who has made the most impact and climbed to the mountain, it's definitely Daniel Bryan. Every time there's a main-event segment, his name is chanted whether he's involved or not. That is impact.
In Ring Performer(s) of the Year:
Daniel Bryan: In the main-event or not, whether top billed or not, he's delivered in the ring. He's smooth, hard hitting, quick, and technically oriented. What makes him so good to watch is the crowd eats up everything he does. He can have a scientific match and the crowd will stay with him.
CM Punk: A lot of what I said about Bryan can be applied here, though I do feel like there's been a bit of a dropoff to Punk's in ring execution, likely due to injuries. But he's been picking it up, and his psychology never waned.
Goldust: Polished. A man who hadn't been in the ring in years, steps in and it's like he never left. Another man who grabs the crowd's attention.
Antonio Cesaro: Undercard wise, this was his year. When given a chance, Cesaro displayed his ability. His match against Bryan back in July was excellent, as well as his work with Cena last month. And of course, his feud with Sami Zayn on NXT is one of the best of the year.
Randy Orton: This is a shocker, I'm sure. But once Orton turned heel, his in-ring work picked up for me. I enjoyed it and he showed a lot of growth since his last heel run.
Match of the Year (Top 5)
CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar, Summerslam: I had anticipated this match for a long time and it lived up to the hype. This was one of the most realistic, and brutal wrestling matches I had ever seen. This is how you do WWE drama, MMA styled stuff in the ring. Punk, Lesnar, and Heyman told an excellent story, and completely wiped the floor with the Triple H's attempted feud with Brock.
CM Punk vs John Cena, RAW in February: My favorite rivalry of the last few years. They have amazing chemistry and this was no different. They pushed each other and made it each other look like a million bucks. They pulled out new moves showing how desperate they were to win. Tremendous.
John Cena vs Daniel Bryan, Summerslam: This was a great match as I expected. Cena stepped out of the box and put in some mat wrestling, though the star of the match was Bryan. His first PPV main-event for the belt and he delivered. This was also pretty stiff. Cena had a shiner from one of Bryan's strikes. I think their eventual rematch will be even better.
Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro, 2/3 falls on NXT: If you haven't seen it seek this out. Sami Zayn, formerly El Generico in ROH, came and made a big splash. He was paired with Cesaro in a feud that culminated with this match. Smartly booked with some vicious moves and of course one of the craziest finishes I've ever seen.
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton, RAW in December: It's so odd. It's easy to say Bryan brings out the best in everyone, but with Orton, he just clicked. He's easily Orton's best opponent since Christian, and he may be even better. Orton just raises his game, and this was no different. They pulled out a MOTY candidate in one of the last RAWs of the year. I didn't expect that. Back and forth, with some good selling on both parts. Orton's desperate move at the end sold how dangerous Bryan is.
Feud of the Year: CM Punk/Brock Lesnar/Paul Heyman. The entire summer with these three was textbook booking. Starting with Punk wanting to go his own way without Paul as his manager, Paul turning on CM Punk and sending his monster to destroy his former student. And the promos from Paul and Punk were amazing. There wasn't a bad moment with this feud, and it lead to the match of the year. Perfect.
Promo of the Year: The RAW after the Money In The Bank pay per view. Paul Heyman's promo on CM Punk where he ripped on Punk and explained his betrayal, and Punk's rebuttal. It was a half shoot, and if you've seen Punk's documentary, you know what I mean. And it culminated with Paul saying "It's clobbering time!", signaling Brock Lesnar to come out and take care of business.
Cena's promo on the RAW before Survivor Series came in close.
Moment of the Year: Daniel Bryan defeating John Cena clean and winning the WWE title. Did not see it coming.
Most Improved of the Year: Randy Orton? It feels like he's gotten better as the months went on.
Diva of the Year: AJ Lee without question.
PPV of the Year: Summerslam. Good show, and the main-events were worth the price.
Best Newcomer: Sami Zayn. Great worker who's built up a great following on NXT. The Shield would be second. Or vice versa.
Most Overpushed:Curtis Axel without question. They didn't start him out right with Triple H burying him in the ring, and he didn't do anything noticeable. He's bland and lacks charisma, which is a shame considering he's polished in the ring and who his father was. After him, the Bellas with ease. No one cares about them. Their face turn has been laughable.
Most Underutilized: Dolph Ziggler. He honestly should be in the upper mid card by now.
Amazing how many good TV matches there were this year.
t:
