WWE/TNA: My Top 10 Moments of the Week (Jan. 8-13)

Another week of wrestling has come to an end.

I got to say, I thought this was a weak week for WWE and TNA.

Raw was lackluster and overall disappointing.

SmackDown was better than last week, but still wasn't the greatest.

TNA Impact Wrestling put on a good show, but it wasn’t as good as last week.

Even TNA’s pay-per-view, Genesis, last Sunday was not as good as expected.

I was barely able to come up with 10 moments I enjoyed this week, but I did come up with them nonetheless.

Here are my top 10 moments of the week.

10. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater

I thought this was a good match. Both wrestlers put on good performances here and gave the fans some nice back-and-forth action.

Justin Gabriel picked up the victory with the 450 Splash, and he was the right person to win this match.

Gabriel is incredibly talented in the ring and deserves a push of some kind.

Heath Slater doesn’t really get the credit he deserves. WWE doesn’t really let him wrestle, but when they do, he puts on a good show with his opponent.

The Hornswoggle factor was entertaining, and it’s good to see he still has a place in the company.

He shouldn’t be involved in major storylines, which is why I liked his involvement here.

I hope Gabriel and Slater go at it a few more times to help build themselves up by trading victories.

I’d like to see Gabriel go up against Cody Rhodes for the Intercontinental Championship soon. I think the two of them could deliver some great matches together.

9. Someone Other Than Mickie James and Gail Kim Got TV Time

I’m talking about ODB, Winter and Angelina Love here.

ODB took on Winter and defeated her with her finishing move, The Bam. They had a decent match but it could have been better.

What mattered here was that three Knockouts who have taken a backseat to Mickie James and Gail Kim have finally gotten some real television time in the division.

I would have preferred to see Angelina wrestling in the match, as I feel she’s the better performer between her and Winter, but she was still there, so it’s better than nothing.

ODB winning gives me hope that she will be entering into the hunt for the Knockouts Championship soon.

I got a bad feeling that we’ll see Gail defend the title against Mickie again, though.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of Gail Kim and a big fan of Mickie James, but they’re overshadowing everyone.

TNA has 11 women on their roster and only two of them get the spotlight most of the time. It’s time to remind the fans that there are nine other female performers who want the title.

This past Thursday was a step in the right direction.

Now I’d like to see Sarita back in the ring and with a title around her waist sooner rather than later. She’s one of the best TNA has and she’s only used as a valet.

Come on TNA, get with the program and continue giving us more of the other Knockouts!

8. Brodus Clay Is the Funkasaurus

After weeks and weeks of hype, Brodus Clay finally made his WWE debut.

And what a strange debut it was.

When there were videos hyping his return they showed him absolutely dismantling everyone in the ring. When the music hit and the female dancers came out, I immediately thought that Flash Funk was about to return to the WWE.

Then Brodus Clay strutted his way out to the ring dressed like a cross between the Godfather and Ernest Miller.

He quickly squashed Curt Hawkins then proceeded to dance with his backup dancers.

The Funkasaurus got over quite big with the crowd, and there quite a bit of positive feedback on Twitter.

I originally dreaded Clay’s debut/return to the WWE because it just kept getting pushed back. I figured that when he came back, it would be a huge disappointment and nobody would care.

WWE made sure that didn’t happen and came up with a gimmick that would get the WWE Universe talking.

The Funkasaurus is here, and he’s here to stay.

7. Samoa Joe and Magnus Remain as a Team

At the conclusion of a tag-team match that saw champions Matt Morgan and Crimson defeat Robbie E and Robbie T, Samoa Joe and Magnus hit the ring.

They beat down the champs and left them down and out as they posed with the belts.

I was afraid that Joe and Magnus would be split up after their loss at Genesis, but my fear was subsided Thursday night.

I love the fact that TNA is keeping them together. They really make a great team and bring a lot of intensity to the ring.

Joe and Magnus are two wrestlers on the TNA roster who have been underutilized as of late.

Joe was on a disturbing losing streak until the Wild Card Tournament began, and Magnus was just nowhere to be found.

After the British Invasion lost a feud to Mexican America, both Magnus and Douglas Williams just disappeared.

Putting Joe and Magnus together as a team was a great idea by TNA.

They work well together and would make great tag team champions if TNA lets it go far enough.

6. Cody Rhodes’ Promo

Before his match with Ezekiel Jackson, Intercontinental champion Cody Rhodes headed to the ring with a microphone in his hand.

He went into the Texas town’s Spanish population and how the only English they understood were the letters “I.N.S.”

He discussed being a champion for five months, which surpassed the likes of Pedro Morales, Tito Santana, Booker T and his own brother Goldust. He was going to pull an Ultimate Warrior and be both the Intercontinental and world heavyweight champion.

His first step would be winning the Royal Rumble.

Since winning the Intercontinental Championship, everything about Cody Rhodes has improved tenfold.

His in-ring ability was already good, but it has gone to great in recent months. His mic work is phenomenal now and is so much better than it was a year ago.

His promo on Friday’s SmackDown was great. He got great heat and it’s because of that Rhodes is one of the best heels in WWE.

While I don’t think he’ll have both titles at the same time, I believe 100-percent that Cody Rhodes will be world heavyweight champion by the end of the year.

5. The Four Horsemen to Be Inducted into the Hall of Fame

As a lackluster Raw rolled on, a big announcement was made in terms of the WWE Hall of Fame.

Earlier in the night, Edge was announced as an inductee, but to me that wasn’t the big one.

Soon the legendary Four Horsemen would be announced as being immortalized in the hall.

The Horsemen were formed in 1986 with Arn and Ole Anderson, Tully Blanchard, their manager James J. Dillon and the leader of the group, Ric Flair.

The group has broken up and reformed on multiple occasions, seeing such wrestlers as Barry Windham, Sting and Chris Benoit join the group throughout the years.

The Horsemen were a group to fear back in the NWA, while they were heroes in WCW as they battled the New World Order.

The Horsemen are without a doubt the best faction ever to grace a wrestling ring and this induction is well deserved.

My only question is this: Will Ric Flair be present at the ceremony? It’s not the Four Horsemen without the Nature Boy.

According to this video, he will be!

4. Bobby Roode vs. Jeff Hardy: TNA World Heavyweight Championship Rematch

Despite the ending, this was a good match. In fact, I kind of liked the ending. It keeps Roode’s heat intact while also keeping Hardy in the main-event picture.

Roode has become one of the best TNA has right now. He has proven time and time again that he can perform in the ring and he has become damn good on the mic.

Jeff Hardy has proved to me that he deserves this final chance. He seems rejuvenated in the ring and is back to wrestling good matches, something he wasn’t doing earlier last year.

Another reason why I liked the ending is because it has opened up many possibilities.

I think TNA will give us a triple threat match at Against All Odds among Roode, Storm and Hardy. Roode will retain after Bully Ray attacks Hardy.

That will setup the Jeff Hardy/Bully Ray feud and match for Victory Road and start the build up for the big Bobby Roode/James Storm match, hopefully at Slammiversary.

3. Daniel Bryan vs. Big Show: World Title Match

I enjoyed everything about this match.

Big Show’s dominance, Daniel Bryan’s desperation and even what happened to A.J. made for great storytelling.

This also continues the potential heel turn of Daniel Bryan.

Since winning the title he has become extremely cocky. Last week it seemed like he got himself intentionally disqualified and this Friday he may have put A.J. in harm’s way.

As Big Show started to chase the champion, Bryan ran past A.J. which resulted in Big Show running through her due to his size.

In the slow-motion replay, Bryan dodged her just enough so that when Big Show got to her there would be no avoiding her.

Big Show was clearly upset over what happened and it was an accident on his part.

Was it an accident, though?

Big Show is in no way in the wrong here. The blame could be pointed at Daniel Bryan.

Did he really put his girlfriend in the way of a giant just to get the match stopped? It sure looks that way.

2. James Storm vs. Kurt Angle: No. 1 Contender’s Match

I thought this was quite the good match. It featured nice back-and-forth action, more so towards the end, and had a nice pace to it.

I’m glad to see James Storm go over Kurt Angle here.

Angle’s been on top of TNA since he debuted in the company in 2006. It’s time for him to step aside and let others have the spotlight.

James Storm has come a long way since he started with TNA on their very first show in 2002. It took him 10 years, but Storm is finally at the top of TNA.

All he has to do is reach a bit farther.

Now as No. 1 contender, Storm gets to face Bobby Roode at Against All Odds. Something will happen, though, so that it’s not a one-on-one match.

I think the big Bobby Roode/James Storm match should be saved for TNA’s 10th anniversary show, Slammiversary in June.

What better way to celebrate 10 years than to have two TNA originals in the main event?

1. Abyss vs. Bully Ray: Monster’s Ball

TNA Genesis had a great card with potential to kick off 2012 on a huge high note.

Unfortunately, the pay-per-view was not as good as expected and was a bit of a letdown at times.

Then there was Monster’s Ball.

Abyss and Bully Ray put on a great match that brought me back to the good old days of Extreme Championship Wrestling.

Bully Ray’s extreme background mixed with Abyss’ style of wrestling very well and they delivered an insane match.

Everything from a chain to a board covered in barbed wire was used in the match.

These two really know how to sell a hardcore match.

This was the perfect way to end Abyss’ feud with Immortal and I hope that both the Monster and Bully Ray can move onto different things now.

I’d like to see Abyss get a shot at the world title while Bully gets the Television Championship and makes the belt important.