PW Top 25: Twists, Turns & Deceit Equal Shift in Power

Despite countless attempts by former BR writer Nadene Dodge to prevent this from happening, the Top 25 returns with a special edition of the rankings. These also include the results of Sunday's Unforgiven. A time tested tradition returns with a vengeance. Here now is the new batch of the superstars who made the cut.

#1) Chris Jericho (RAW)

He dodged a fight last Monday night. He got his @$$ handed to him by Shawn Michaels at Unforgiven. But fate was smiling down on Jericho Sunday as he was able to escape as the new World Heavyweight Champion. But after escaping Batista, he has CM Punk this Monday night for the gold in a steel cage.

#2) Matt Hardy (ECW)

After countless tag title reigns, the Maestro of the V1 Symphony managed to achieve his greatest dream as he won the Championship Scramble at Unforgiven to win his first major World Championship in his hall of fame career. Matt Hardy, ECW Champion? Sounds good to me.

#3) Triple H (SmackDown!)

The King of Kings did the unthinkable by becoming the only man to defeat The Great Khali and four high caliber superstars in a span of one weekend. And being the sole survivor of this new match format has earned him the right to say that he is The Game, and that he is that damn good.

#4) Christian Cage (TNA)

The Instant Classic, though he didn’t know it, got a little help to get into the Four Ways to Glory Match at No Surrender. The good news about it is that he has a chance to defeat two of the legends that Sting has been rambling on about and then take out Samoa Joe to reclaim the TNA World Heavyweight Title.

#5) CM Punk (RAW)

The Straight Edge Superstar didn’t get the chance to prove Randy Orton wrong at Unforgiven. But that wasn’t his fault. It was Orton’s punt in the back. Despite all that, Punk gets a chance to reclaim his stolen championship next Monday.

#6) The Undertaker (SmackDown!)

The Phenom played mind games on Vickie the last two weeks. Then Vickie got some huge reinforcement in the form of the Big Show at Unforgiven. No matter the reasoning behind the attack, Show should be Taker’s hit list as well after Sunday night.

#7) Rey Mysterio (RAW)

The Showtime of 619 made his much anticipated return last week on RAW. Then he came back to in-ring action with a victory over The Dirt Sheet. Now he has to face the man responsible for putting him on the shelf next week on RAW.

#8) Samoa Joe (TNA)

The TNA World Champion came out looking for a fight with Sting. Instead, he got dropped by The Icon thanks to some interference ran by Kevin Nash. This Thursday, we expect both Joe and AJ Styles to get some payback on The Icon…and now Big Sexy.

#9) ODB (TNA)

The booze swilling, burrito eating vixen of the Knockouts made the open challenge to Kong, only to get assaulted by Kong’s handler Raisha Saeed. Despite all that, ODB will be looking for some payback on the final IMPACT before No Surrender.

#10) Batista (RAW)

The Animal unleashed his fury the last two weeks. After getting payback on Kane, Batista came within a heartbeat of becoming Champion until Jericho shattered those dreams. But he got some payback on Jericho and his buddies Lance Cade and JBL.

#11) Evan Bourne (ECW)

People can’t understand why Bourne is even ranked. But when you beat two former ECW World Champions and the current ECW Champion in a span of eight days, you have earned your right to be ranked among the best.

#12) Jeff Hardy (SmackDown!)

The enigma got the last laugh on all four men he would face at Unforgiven on SmackDown! Then he took it another step further by saying that for at least a little while, he was WWE Champion. Unfortunately, his dream of being the man came up short as Triple H managed to retain the gold.

#13) Abyss (TNA)

The Monster has made enough of an impact to land him a spot on the Top 25. After defeating Johnny Devine and staving off an assault from Team 3D, Abyss has decided that he will continue to impress his high school crush Karen Angle by throwing another open challenge this Thursday night.

#14) AJ Styles (TNA)

The Phenomenal One came up short in his match with Cage for the right to earn the final spot at No Surrender for the TNA Championship. But if I were Frank Trigg, I would take the rest of the week off. Not to lick his wounds, but to avoid getting sent packing from TNA…just like he was sent by UFC.

#15) Michelle McCool (SmackDown!)

The Divas Champion got a message from her Unforgiven opponent, Maryse this past Friday. But Maryse must not have gotten the memo that it will take more than some cheap tactics to dethrone Michelle as the Divas Champ got the victory over Maryse when it counted.

#16) Glamarella (RAW)

Whether you like them, hate them, or change the channel when you see them, the duo of Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella has been unstoppable since regaining their lost gold. But all good things should be coming to an end sooner or later. And Snitsky may be the man that could do just that.

#17) Big Show (SmackDown!)

The World’s Largest Athlete should give himself a pat on the back. He managed to send the asylum from RAW to SmackDown!, has been a force to be reckoned with as of late, and started possibly two rivalries in one weekend. Although he may bite his tongue next time and just chokeslam Vickie instead.

#18) Shawn Michaels (RAW)

The Heartbreak Kid proved why he is a showstopper this past Sunday as he got his revenge against Chris Jericho. But he may spitting out his beer after seeing Jericho walk into Fort Wayne, Indiana as the World Heavyweight Champion. But a win is the only way I could see HBK leaving the business.

#19) Team Priceless (RAW)

The World Tag Team Champions got help in retaining their gold. But without the Samoan with the bad ponytail and even worse mic skills, how long can the duo of Rhodes and DiBiase hold on to the gold before Cryme Tyme come back for revenge?

#20) Mark Henry (ECW)

The World’s Strongest Man is still that, but he is no longer champion. The Scramble made sure that someone would lose their title at Unforgiven. Unfortunately, Henry was one of the guys who lost their right to call themselves champion.

#21) Sting (TNA)

The Icon continued his campaign for respect by making an example out of Samoa Joe. After celebrating his newest anarchy moment with Kevin Nash, he then called out another TNA veteran who seems to be popping up at the most perfect of times. That superstar would be….

#22) The King of the Mountain (TNA)

For weeks, there has been speculation of his return, but anyone who knows TNA knows that they have been crossing the line since the start of 2008. Now the man responsible for the birth of TNA could be coming back to rid TNA of the virus known as Sting.

#23) CHL (Charles Haas Layfield) (RAW)

For weeks, Charlie Haas has been having an identity crisis. It started with “Charlito,” then continued last week with “Haas Cena” before culminating in one of the funniest ones of all: Charles Haas Layfield. How funny was it? JBL even had trouble keeping face while in the back with Batista.

#24) Frank Trigg (TNA)

There’s no real legitimate reason that Trigg is in the Top 25. But thanks to Trigg, Kurt Angle picked up two big wins over the AJ Styles. Last Thursday, he helped Christian Cage earn a spot in the main event at No Surrender by caning Styles. Does anyone really want to be Trigg this Thursday on IMPACT?

#25) Randy Orton (RAW)

The voices in Orton’s head must be conflicted. One moment, Orton is the guy you love to hate (actions at Unforgiven), and the next minute, he’s the guy you can’t help but cheer for (his bashing on current RAW Champions). Either way, we are getting close to the return of The Age of Orton. And both Jericho and Punk might want to beware of the wrath of The Legend Killer.

On Tap: TNA No Surrender (This Sunday 9/07)