Cena and No. 1 Seeds Advance, Rhodes Impresses in 1st Round of Mark Madness

Mark Madness started off hot with a few surprises, but it was a pretty status quo first round as John Cena and all the No. 1 seeds advanced. 

In one of the few first round surprises, Cody Rhodes tied for the most votes of the round.  Rhodes earned a very decisive victory over TNA's Anarquia with 311 votes, matched only by CM Punk's blowout victory over Rob Terry. 

The biggest first-round upset saw Ted DiBiase (12th seed, 45th overall) unseat Gunner (5th seed, 20th overall) as the spirit of March Madness carried over to the professional wrestling ranks with the famed 12-5 upset—an institution unto itself.

DiBiase has clearly been aided by his recent surge in social media this past year via his DiBiase Posse parties, and he will now look to keep the dream alive against fourth-seeded Alberto Del Rio. 

For the second year in a row, John Cena amassed the lowest first-round votes among No. 1 seeds albeit in a comfortable victory over Brian Kendrick with 83 percent of the vote.  Fellow No. 1 seeds Bobby Roode, Randy Orton, and CM Punk all received 89 percent, 96 percent and 99 percent respectively. 

This otherwise ominous first-round statistic for Cena could serve as a good omen for the WWE top star as he went on to win last year's Mark Madness tournament after "suffering" the same opening-round fate. 

The story now shifts to the second round, which will be sure to bring the fireworks.  In many peoples' eyes, this is where the tournament officially starts with juicy matchups that could endanger top seeds.  Here are just some of the second-round slobber knockers to watch:

A.J. Styles (7, 28) vs. Zack Ryder (2, 5).  In a second-round contest that will pit last year's runner-up vs. a huge favorite this year, Zack Ryder and A.J. Styles will provide the winner with an enviable amount of momentum. 

Styles overachieved in last year's tournament, holding a small lead over John Cena up to the final minutes before eventually losing an epic voting showdown. 

Styles' 2011 Mark Madness magic seems to have carried over to this year after the former TNA Heavyweight Champion trounced fellow former TNA Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett with 92 percent of the vote. 

Ryder is no slouch either as he cruised to a victory over the Great Khali with 91 percent of the vote.  Expect a back-and-forth contest between these two popular Internet fan favorites. 

Austin Aries (7, 26) vs. Daniel Bryan (2, 7).  Another No. 2 seed could be in for the fight of his life as popular message board messiahs Daniel Bryan and Austin Aries square off in an ROH throwback. 

With both stars finding success in national promotions as smaller heels, it will be intriguing to see whose hardcore fanbase barks louder. 

Daniel Bryan beat up on Zema Ion with 95 percent of the vote in the first round, while Aries impressed with a 78-22 blowout win over 10th seeded D'Angelo Dinero in a surprisingly uncompetitive tilt. 

Dolph Ziggler (5, 17) vs. Sting (4, 16).  It's old school vs. new school in the most even second-round match up in terms of seeding, and in turn, a match that could go either way. 

Sting isn't nearly what he was in his prime, but his name still carries a lot of (figurative) weight and as a higher seed against a fading Ziggler he finds himself in a much better second-round position than last year when he ran into then-WWE Champion and No. 2 overall seed the Miz.

Ziggler's seemingly endless potential to one day be a top star should figure to help him in this round against Sting, who may be competing in his final Mark Madness tournament.  

Other tourney notes...

*20 WWE Superstars are still alive while 12 TNA Superstars are alive. 

*Bobby Roode seems to have the toughest road to the final four for a No. 1 seed.  Next round could see him run into dangerous fourth seed (13th overall) Alberto Del Rio, and should he survive he will have to contend with Zack Ryder, A.J. Styles, Kurt Angle or Wade Barrett in the Elite Eight. 

*Sheamus and Chris Jericho go one on one in the second round.  This is a rematch of the final two participants in this year's Royal Rumble.

*Anarquia and Rob Terry's three votes in the first round tied for an all-time low in Mark Madness history. 

*The Sweet Sixteen could see Daniel Bryan take on Sheamus and Kane battle Randy Orton.  These are both WrestleMania XXVIII feuds, with Orton and Kane likely to be announced as a match soon.  A Miz-Truth Sweet Sixteen match is also a possibility.  This too would be a simulation of an actual feud from recent memory.

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