Drive/Off: Best WWE Superstar?, Cena/Miz, MITB, Sin Cara, New Face of the WWE?

We’re back!

Welcome the 2^nd edition of the Drive/Off. If you missed last week's, this new concept is has been created to fuel the common art of debates. Like I stated last week, debates are healthy and a natural part of being in the Internet Wrestling Community (IWC). With each passing week, there’s a set of outrageous, factual, or unexpected news to hit the B/R from dirt sheets. Naturally, most of the IWC flock to the comment section to voice our opinions on the subject at hand.

On the other hand, the actions of WWE Creative tend to drive us to the brink of insanity. As they drive the thing we love the most into obscurity, our emotions tend to get the best of us, and where do we go to voice our opinions?

The comment section

This time the subjects will be different.

We won’t discuss any news of stemming from the Dirt Sheets but discuss numerous subjects pertaining to WrestleMania 27, new superstars, or general questions relating to WWE history.

In case you’re lost, there are five writers/commenters submitting our thoughts on numerous subjects relating to Professional wrestling.  Before we start, I would like to apologize to the numerous that applied but I want to keep the limit at five and assure each of you will have your seat in due time.

The floor is open.

Who's the All Around Best WWE Superstar and Why?

Rize:  The all-around best WWE Superstar has to be CM Punk. When asked that question, numerous guys come to mind. Christian, John Cena, Edge, and Wade Barrett are all candidates for the honor.  But to receive that honor you have to consider who is perfect in every field of the WWE.

Mic skills, charisma, and in ring ability are what make a great WWE Superstar and CM Punk is near perfect with each trait. If you take a look at history, CM Punk can portray any role to perfection. From the Straight Edge Superstar to the Messiah to the deranged heel, Punk can do it all.

Some may disagree, but I believe CM Punk was a great face too. From his debut on ECW in 2006 to his two consecutive MITB wins at WrestleMania, Punk was probably the hottest Superstar in the WWE. When he cashed in his MITB on Edge that fateful day, my markism reached new heights and watching my favorite WWE Superstar climb the mountain was great.

Another testimony to his character would be his 2009 feud with Jeff Hardy. We all know Hardy isn’t the best worker, but his popularity along with Punk's impending heel turn made that feud the best of the PG Era.

He went from being the biggest disappointment of 2010 to the biggest heel in 2011.

Who can argue with that?

Burn Again: CM Punk is the best all round star in the WWE today, followed by John Cena and Alberto Del Rio. Punk however; is on the unassailable top of the mount.

Beyond the shadow of a doubt, he is the best mic worker in the company today. He has that ease which comes only to the exceptional mic workers. No matter what kind of promo he is given to cut, he does it well. He can be serious, as he was with Hardy in 2009. He can be evil, as he was with Mysterio in 2010. He can be funny, as he was during his announcing stint, and during his feud with Cena earlier on this year. He is all you want in a mic worker, and that is being said, considering the restricted environment he’s working in. Say he had the freedom of content from the Attitude Era, he would have been regarded as the greatest mic worker of all time.

He is the best character actor in the WWE today: he clearly lives what he portrays. There is no role he can’t do justice to: be it a self-righteous Straightedge Superstar, an evil prophetic cult leader, or a deranged wrestler seeking for redemption against anyone who ever wronged him. That is a field where he is miles ahead of everyone else in the entire roster.

He is also good in the ring. I shall be the first to accept that his ring work is overrated by the IWC. But that doesn’t take away the fact that he does do a good job at it. The most striking feature about his style is that it is so remarkably different from everyone else’s in the WWE. It reeks of the Indies. That is probably why the IWC seems to be so fascinated with it. I personally am not a big fan of the independents, so that must be why I can’t appreciate it as much. I am sure though we can all agree that he is indeed a good in ring talent. The extent of the same may vary, but the essence remains unchallenged.

If there is anything he should improve at, then it is at being less talented. He is so far ahead of everyone in the WWE, that it is actually holding him back. He is in a position of infinite credibility, just like Chris Jericho. He can’t be buried. See for yourself: he was wasted for around 6 months, and then broke into a feud with John Cena out of the blue, and nobody found it out of place. That is what happens when you bring that kind of entertainment quality with your work. That is a true testimony of how well rounded he is.

Matt Offermann:  The best all-around superstar in the WWE today is an extremely tough question. While most people will say Cena and by most means they are right, but I am going to choose another person for debate views. Wade Barrett. His mic skills are amazing for being relatively new. He has great wrestling skills and as we have seen twice now he has proven to be a good leader in a stable.

George Rader: In my opinion, the all-round best superstar in the WWE is CM Punk. The guy has no flaws. He’s great on the mic, great in the ring, and can perform well with any superstar in the ring. Punk has great potential to be one of, if not the top star in the WWE. He’s one of the most entertaining superstars on the roster and one of the main reasons that I tune into Raw on Mondays.

Charlie Groenewegen: The all-around best Superstar in the WWE would have to be John Cena. Cena is good on the mic and good in the ring. He has a strong and very large fan base and can rally up the CeNation within minutes. He also has the superman like strength. He once lifted Big Show and Edge in an F-U at the same time. Unreal.  Cena is the best in WWE today.

WrestleMania 27: John Cena Vs. The Miz, Who Wins and How Will Rock Play into It?

Rize: Unlike his past opponents, I’ve actually considered that Miz could defeat John Cena. Cena and Rock are embroiled in this war of words and it seems as if Miz is become increasingly agitated by it. Cena has taken his attention off his WWE title match and placed it on downing The Rock.

Most presume that this will ultimately lead to his downfall but I disagree. It seems too obvious that Cena would drop his guard so the Miz could come in and retain the gold. A bit too obvious if you ask me. John Cena has headlined every WrestleMania since 21 and has never lost a singles match at the event.

I say his streak continues and he defeats The Miz at WrestleMania. The Rock will come out after the match and the two will engage in a confrontation. I see it going two ways, Rock and Cena brawling with Rock dropping Cena with a Rock Bottom.

Or, Cena and Rock embrace at the site of Miz's prone body. The whole angle would’ve been something to make Miz feel as if he were comfortable and had the advantage from day one.

Burn Again:  I’d love to see the Miz taking the win, but then: I don’t see it happening. Cena will win, like he always does: by overcoming the odds. Surprisingly, The Miz has a better chance at winning than any of Cena’s previous opponents did, which includes Batista, Triple H and Shawn Michaels. That however, doesn't mean that he is going to win. I am placing my money on Cena, though I’d love to come up on the losing end.

I see The Rock getting involved in the match in a big way. He might be at ringside, for the introductions, commentary or interject himself as the Special Ring Enforcer. He’ll probably try to screw both guys on multiple occasions, and having altercations with them. I think there might be a couple of Rock Bottoms in store for the match as well: one for Cena and one for the Miz. In the end, I expect him to give Cena the clean win, and hand the title over, in a ‘passing the torch’ kind of segment. The Miz can try to attack him, for having cost him the title, but end up getting laid out by an Attitude Adjustment by Cena, followed by the People’s Elbow. All in all, I see it transpiring a lot like WrestleMania XIV did, with Cena playing Austin, The Miz Shawn Michaels, and The Rock Mike Tyson.

Matt Offermann: John Cena vs The Miz at Wrestlemania 27. The one way I can see it playing out is like this. Obviously Cena wins. After the match Miz calls out the Rock and blames the loss on him. They have a match, after Rock wins Cena comes out and they make up. As Cena is holding up Rocks hand they hug, then Cena hits the AA.

George Rader: I’m going to go with John Cena in this match. Cena has been out of the title picture for a while now, with the whole Nexus angle and all, so I see him coming out on top at Wrestlemania 27. 
At this moment I’m not quite sure how the Rock will play into this match but if I had to guess I would say that he will come out to confront Cena after winning the WWE Championship and I see them staring each other down and then the Rock drops him with the Rock Bottom and hits Cena with the most electrifying move in sports entertainment history, the People’s Elbow.

Charlie Groenewegen: The Miz will win at Wrestlemania. Over the past few weeks he shown that he won’t be ignored going into Wrestlemania. He laid Cena out two weeks in a row and even mocked “The Great One” The Rock. I can see The Rock costing Cena the match and making Cena an even bigger babyface and making Miz a bigger heel. Some way. Somehow The Rock will take part in the WWE Championship match.

Who Is the Greatest Talker in WWE History

Rize:  The Greatest Talker in WWE History would have to be The Rock. When cutting a promo, the main purpose is to gain the response of the crowd. Whether it’s to rile them up or receive as much heat as possible, the talker's priorities are to obtain their reaction.

When it comes down to it, The Rock has no equal in that department. Aside from the crowd, Rocks’ promos are almost unforgettable. Every time I’ve mentioned this subject, someone has brought up his classic promo in Toronto or the promo from Sacramento.

“I’ll be sure to come back when the Lakers beat the Kings in May”

While most define Rock as a comical promo guy, his recent promos against John Cena have displayed the serious side of The Rock and the promo from WrestleMania 17 highlighting his match with Austin was also a classic. Both men sat back stage and firmly responded to the other but informed each other that they would walk out as WWF Champion.

Some runner ups would be Y2J, Triple H, CM Punk, SCSA, Cena, or JBL.

Burn Again: If you were to judge mic work on grounds of pure delivery, I’d give it to Triple H. If you are more concerned as to how much emotional the given wrestler brings to his promos, then Mick Foley is the right answer. If you judge mic work by the extent to which you rile the crowd up, then it is the Rock.

In terms of overall promo quality though, that includes everything, there is only one clear cut winner, and that is: John Bradshaw Leyfield. Not only did he deliver his lines exceptionally well: with precision of stress and intonation, but also made every word resound with the audience. Obviously, they didn’t sing along with him, because his promos involved so much of innovation at every step. Scarcely repetitive, JBL always had so much to say, at it was all so clever.

He rarely ever lost track of his words. If you were to even consider his run as an announcer, then you know that his wit and sense of humor are unparalleled: his jokes were funny without being corny, or having some pointless references to sex. He catered to the intellectual audience: people who like to think over what they hear. Watching Smackdown in 2006-07 was a treat, majorly because you got to hear JBL announce. His reign as theWWE Champion from 2004-05 is one of the best reigns ever. Every week, JBL would cut an amazing promo addressing some kayfabe issue, and make it sound like a National Emergency. I can never get tired of listening to JBL: his promos were indeed the highpoint of mic work in pro-wrestling.

Matt Offermann:  The greatest talker in WWE history is a tough one to answer. There are so many great ones to choose from but the one guy that stands out to me is Y2J. There really is no specific reason on why he is the best you jut have to watch an old clip of him to really understand.

George Rader: I’ve narrowed it down to two great talkers: The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Both men were great on the mic, but if I had to go with one I would take the Rock. No one, and I mean no one, could deliver a promo better than the Great One. He could electrify a crowd like no one else. The Rock has given us some of the best promos in wrestling history. He could make you love him or hate him. The Rock is without a doubt the best talker in WWE history.

Charlie Groenewegen: This is tough to call but I’ll say The Rock. He is great on the mic. Face or heel he can cut great promos. He can draw great heat or great cheers. His war of words with John Cena is going great and Rock proved he still has the skills on the mic.

If the MITB Had Taken Place, Which Superstar Deserves the Briefcase?

Rize: Honestly, I’m upset that the WWE decided to take the MITB out of the WrestleMania. But with the MITB ppv, three matches would’ve been overkill so I understand their reasoning. My problem is that the ppv isn’t a solid replacement from the exposure of WrestleMania. Honestly, it doesn’t come close to winning it at the Grandest Stage of them all.

With that being said, I can only think of one man who deserves to win the Money in the Bank. Guys like Alberto Del Rio and Wade Barrett don’t need something like the Money in the Bank to win the World Title. They are the full package and the spot in the main event are cemented.

John Morrison deserves to win the Money in the Bank ladder match. In case you missed it, Morrison has performed a number of spots from the last string of pay per views. The Spider-Man at Royal Rumble and the Elimination Chamber has been the center of attention at the end of each ppv.

His ladder match with Sheamus at TLC was ranked the third best of 2010 and Morrison has been knocking at the main events door since Survivor Series. Morrison got a RAW title match with Miz but a title match on RAW? The match is the best of 2011 (so far).

The MITB is for an upper mid carder looking for that extra push to the main event and Morrison has no equal in that department right now.

Burn Again: There is only one answer to this, and it is Wade Barrett. And that would have been in the form of a consolation. Fact of the matter is, that Barrett should have been a WWE Champion already. Here is the list of opportunities they dropped with him:

The Nexus debut should have taken place at Fatal Fourway instead of Raw, where the rookies would have destroyed the 4 participants. Barrett would have interjected himself into the main event, and become the WWE Champion. I can see that they wanted to test the angle out before they went further with it, so they would be averse to going that way. So fine: there is no excuse for not having him win at Night of Champions where his guaranteed title shot was at stake. If not there either, there were three chances for him to win it against Orton. There is no reason why he shouldn’t have won the title there. In fact, he could have carried it all the way not WrestleMania, feuding with Cena: instead of getting squashed atTLC. Since they chose not to go with him there either, I don’t see why they didn’t give him the Royal Rumble. I like Del Rio for sure, but Barrett simply outshines him. In a fair world, Barrett would have won the Royal Rumble, and Del Rio would have won the Money in the Bank at WrestleMania.

Now since all these chances have been dropped with him, the least they could have done, is have him win the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania. But alas! There is no Money in the Bank Ladder match for this WrestleMania. Instead, he is involved in a random multiple man tag match. If he doesn’t win the Smackdown Money in the Bank this year, then it will be a travesty for sure. He deserves to have a World title around his waist by SummerSlam.

Matt Offermann: If the MITB match was to take place there is one guy that is a wild card that deserves to win it. Shelton Benjamin would be my first pick if he is back by then but for right now I would choose Chris Masters. It would make sense because we were told he would get a push after the Rumble and so far he has only beat Tyler Reks. Also I choose him because he could really bring out the MITB match.

George Rader: First off, I’d like to say that I am disappointed by the fact that there won’t be a MITB match at this years WrestleMania. But if there was one, I would give the briefcase to John Morrison. Morrison has proved to all of us that he can be one of the most entertaining and exciting superstars on the roster and he has had some pushes over time that haven’t really landed him anywhere.MITB would be a perfect start for Morrison’s main event push. The guy deserves it.

Charlie Groenewegen: There are a couple of people who come to mind. Christian, Drew McIntyre, Wade Barrett, John Morrison, Kofi Kingston and so on. They all deserve the briefcase but only one at a time. Christian just seems to be breaking into the main event scene with Del Rio and Edge. Barrett can make it to the main event without the case. Barrett is good on the mic and in the ring. After his feud with Big Show, Barrett will have his eyes on the gold. Morrison can make it without the case with his set of skills.

My answer is……Drew McIntyre! He is “The Chosen One” right? Why hasn’t he had a World title yet? WWE doesn’t have anything for Drew come Wrestlemania. Drew just needs that briefcase to bring him to the next level.

How Big Do You Expect Sin Cara to Become in the WWE?

Rize: By the frequency of the promos and my knowledge of him when he was in CMLL, he will become as big, maybe bigger, than Rey Mysterio. The rumors of Rey’s retirement come a lot more often nowadays. Some think Alberto Del Rio has been pushed to replace the distant Mysterio. I disagree with that and I feel Sin Cara will become bigger than Del Rio.

This guy was a bigger draw for Mexico in 2007 than John Cena was in the US for 2007. Those numbers speak for themselves.

Could he become face of the WWE? That rest solely in the hands of the WWE Universe. If his merchandise scales skyrocket like I think they will, he’ll have a great chance to become the Face of the WWE. He’s already bypassing FCW and English classes and at the age of 28, he has a lot of time to prosper.

We’ll just half to wait and see.

Burn Again: He’ll get as big as Rey Mysterio. His vignettes are indicative of WWE’s intentions to have him as the Rey Mysterio replacement. They’ve been trying to get him for a long time now: and have spent a lot of money in doing so. That is why he is bypassing FCW, and is being rushed to the main roster. I expect him to get rushed with, like they did in the case of Del Rio. The intensity might not be the same, because he is only 28, and could use a better settling time. However, there is no doubt that he will be a bonfire main eventer by 2013. I don’t see him becoming the face of the company or anything though, because that isn’t the style that WWE prefers to have in their top face. I don’t see him having lengthy 6+ month reigns as WWE Champion every now and then. I don’t see him headlining 5 WrestleMania’s in a row. I expect him to be, as I have already stated, specifically in Rey Mysterio’s shoes.

Matt Offermann: I never really have seen any of his matches but based on the moves they show on his promo, that is freaking extreme dude. I don’t know if they are planning on having Del Rio and Sin Cara have the same feud as Rey and Del Rio had but based on the sick moves Sin Cara can do I would love to see him as a heel.

George Rader:  I expect Sin Cara to make a big impact in WWE. The WWE has been making a very big deal about signing him and due to the fact that he’s such a big international superstar I think the WWE will make sure that he’s utilized properly. Sin Cara has a unique in-ring style and I am looking very forward to seeing him in the WWE.

Charlie Groenewegen: Sin Cara will only gain a strong fan base by his high flying move set. Within his first year or two in WWE I’d expect him to be Intercontinental Champion at least once. WWE can make him big. They have been hyping his debut like crazy. The only problem is: Does he speak English? If not, don’t give him a mic! WWE gave Great Khali a mic and what happened? I think Sin Cara will be the next Rey Mysterio. WWE can and will make it happen.

Which WWE Superstar Has the Potential to Dethrone Cena as Face of the WWE

Rize: Which Superstar could dethrone Cena? The obvious choice would be The Miz. Unlike Sheamus, the WWE has enough faith in Miz to let him defend the WWE title at WrestleMania. He has already made multiple TV and promotional appearances but he lacks on thing.

His wrestling is still subpar and we have yet to see him play face. Besides him, I could see Punk dethroning Cena if we were living in another Era. There has been a lot of hints towards the PG Era ending soon and if the WWE were to revitalize the Attitude Era, CM Punk would have to be the first choice.

Randy Orton is very possible.

Putting my markism aside, if John Morrison had the proper charisma and mic skills, I would place him high on a list to dethrone Cena. While most hate to admit it, his popularity has grown a lot lately and his style would be something the WWE were looking for.

Clean cut, no known backstage problems, the audience, and decent enough merchandise sales. But once again, Cena is still young and can go on for years.

Burn Again: In terms of potential alone, there is CM Punk obviously, but then he won’t considering the era we are living in. If the product were to morph into a second coming of the Attitude Era, then I could easily see CM Punk attaining iconic levels of popularity, and becoming the biggest name in the industry.

Also, there is Alex Riley, who has everything you could ask in a top star. His only problem is his inexperience – he is too green, and is hence making errors here and there. Given a chance to shine in the mid card, brush up on his skills, gain confidence and thus shake off his greenness; I could envision him as a viable candidate for the next face of the company. But then, in his current position, I’d say there is ether chance of him getting released, than ever winning anything at all. For some reason, WWE doesn’t see much in him. They wasted him on Raw, and killed any momentum that he might have possessed at the end of NXT Season 2. He has been turned into a joke, the same level as Chavo Guerrero. There is no way he’ll ever get to any significant level, even though he had all the qualities to warrant it.

If I could take the liberty of considering wrestlers from outside theWWE, then I’d name Mr. Anderson. Now he was the best candidate of them all. Had he not been so injury-prone, I guess he would have dethroned Cena already.

Now, to speak in realistic terms, I believe that nobody on the current roster is going to replace Cena in any capacity. I am a supporter of the notion that we haven’t seen the next face of the WWE as yet.

Matt Offermann:  I don’t know many people that have the ability to take the throne from Cena that haven’t already been the face of the company. The one guy that I can see doing it would be Orton, or if he finally gets going and stops getting screwed John Morrison.

George Rader:   I’m going to have to say Randy Orton. Right now he is receiving louder pops than Cena and he is a fan favorite among the WWE Universe. Orton is well respected by his peers, he’s taken a veteran role backstage and he’s one of the best current superstars on the roster. I personally prefer Orton as a heel but there’s no doubt in my mind that he will eventually become the face of the WWE.

Charlie Groenewegen: Three people come to mind. They are Randy Orton, The Miz and Skip Sheffield. Vinnie Mac said Skip can become the second biggest face in WWE. When the boss says that, it’s usually a good thing. Randy Orton is super popular right now. Why? He barely talks and his character is stale and boring. He is not a good face. Miz can become the new face of WWE with his mic skills and a believable enemy. Miz can turn face and talk the crowd into his corner. I think Miz has the most potential to become the face ofWWE.

LMAO Moment of the Week

I couldn’t pass the up! CM Punk tweeted this to John Cena to diss him and The Rock!

Closing

Thanks for the reading the 2^nd edition of the Drive/Off and I ask that you tune in for next weeks. If you want to be a guest on this slide be sure to DM ahead of time. Keep an eye out for the slideshow/articles of this week and be well.

And remember, have faith.