Reported by Mike Siciliano of WrestleView.com
On Saturday, September 15, 2007 at 9:47 PM EST

This chapter of the Palace has two parts. One part will be obvious, the picks for Unforgiven, which I will do later. The second part, will be the 200th column celebratory idea that I had planned 3 columns ago, but had to scrap till now because of obvious headlines.

Welcome to the Palace Report Card.

I won't lie, I stole this idea from a magazine that's out recently. I won't go in to as much detail as that magazine goes, but from the response that I have gotten through reader emails, you are apparently interested in what my thoughts on some of these talents are. This idea has already begun on my blog at mikesiciliano.blogspot.com (a link will be available at the end), and it will continue and proceed further there. Anyone that has been suggested that is not listed here will be written on in a future blog entry in some form. I invite feedback there at any time on these opinions.

Here I will detail, from a list of the talents that you the fans have provided, from my own thoughts and past experiences, the top 20 stars of today and tomorrow, with a letter grade, and my thoughts on their career up to now, and the future.

20. Jimmy Rave
Rave has all the talent in the world to be a heel in major capacity for a long term. There must have been some serious falling out for Rave to leave ROH, and my only hope is that TNA doesn't end up burying him because he's not a WWE re-tread. He's young, he has charisma to spare, and he has the attitude to go places. Hopefully, someone else believes that.
Grade - C

19. Mr. Kennedy
Truthfully, he would be in my top 5 if he hadn't lost so much of his own credibility with the recent issues in WWE. Now, his best move, and unfortunately, it doesn't appear he's doing so, would be to shut up, follow orders, and keep quiet. Hopefully, someone will muzzle him before he does something he can't recover from. As it is, it'll be light years before he's ever as close to the world title as he was after Wrestlemania 23.
Grade - C

18. Rey Mysterio
Mysterio's health will be his biggest concern. He can still provide all the entertainment bang for your buck, but if he can't hold out to the strain of main event matches, which is obviously where Smackdown and WWE need him to be, his time will be short lived. He's this far down because of injury, not because of his resume.
Grade - C

17. Shawn Michaels
Again, down this far from injury, my question is simple. Is Shawn Michaels considering a walk away from the ring, with the recent issues that have plagued WWE? Reports I have read show that WWE has tried to get Michaels to come back, and he's balking at it. Why? Is his health an issue, or is his beliefs coming in to focus, or do we not know as much as we should know about the WWE's troubles? That uncertainty, and his lack of current product drops him on this list to this level. He'll still get a high grade, however, if you consider a C a high grade.
Grade - C

16. Kurt Angle
I have to recognize Kurt for basically keeping TNA alive. Although it may be more creative's fault than anything, at least Angle has been able to withstand the pressure, and lately, begin to show signs of handing off the torch to other talents, as evident of the X title loss to Jay Lethal. With that being said, and his past resume in full consideration, I'll put him on this list, for his current prowress, and hopefully, he'll stay around and improve, rather than deteriorate, as we all had suspected.
Grade - C

15. Davey Richards
Continuing to evolve as a top heel in Ring of Honor's No Remorse Corps alongside Roderick Strong and Rocky Romero, Richards has all the tools to make it big in the business. And the advantage here is, he has a ton of time on his hands. Some more experience in Japan would certainly benefit his future, as he has already done one tour with NOAH, and has had experience alongside KENTA. With all that already in his blossoming career, there's not much bad things to say about this guy.
Grade - C

14. AJ Styles
From my own head, this guy is one of my favorites. And what puzzles me is this. Styles went back to playing a heel, like he did in the beginnings of TNA. But when he was a heel in TNA in the beginning, he was good. Cocky, arrogant, all the primary qualities a heel should be. Now, he's just plain playing someone who's stupid. And this is such a waste of talent. Styles may possibly be the most athletically gifted man on the planet inside the ring, and he's being portrayed as a goofball. That lack of smarts on TNA's part drops him in this list, and only affords him a C grade. And that hurts for me to say, because this guy has all the tools.
Grade - C

13. Bobby Lashley
Lashley did his part as well as he could keeping ECW alive after the RVD debacle and Big Show's departure. Two major players were out of the picture, and Lashley kept the brand afloat. He had a good reign as US champion, along with his two ECW title reigns, as well as a positive run with Vince McMahon directly. And I don't think that anyone in the company can feud directly with Vince McMahon, so someone at WWE has to think this guy has the tools to suceed. So do I. He's down here because of injury, but his past resume garners him a spot on this list. Hopefully, with the right push, Lashley will return to prominence soon in WWE. They need him a lot at this present point and time, even with the shadows that loom.
Grade - B-

12. Matt Hardy
This guy has really had the feud of his life on Smackdown recently with Montel Vontavious Porter. No question about it, anything he did with Edge has paled in comparison to the work he has done alongside MVP fighting for the US title, and bickering as WWE Tag Team Champions. This feud, single handedly, has made Matt Hardy a major title contender, and has forced me, against all of my heart felt feelings, to put him as high on this list as I have. Trust me, I didn't want to do this, but I had no choice. His resume at present is that damn good.
Grade - B-

11. Brent Albright
Someone who benefitted so much from departing WWE is the former Gunner Scott, The Shooter, Brent Albright. I remember seeing him in the gauntlet series of matches in Long Island a while back for ROH, and how he DOMINATED that match. He has done tremendous work all throughout ROH, and made it to the semifinals of the NWA World title tournament. That to me is the mark of someone who has found his niche in the business, and has turned an experience that ended sour, in to something very positive. This guy has the toughness to be around for a long time.
Grade - B-

10. Mark & Jay, The Brisoe Brothers
Not may tag teams in any company can fly as much as these guys and can hit as hard as these guys. I haven't seen one bad match from these guys, period, ever. This could be the one tag team that have the size of cruiserweights, but hit as hard as super heavyweights. I guess that's why they're basically carrying the Ring of Honor and Full Impact Pro tag team divisions. These guys are quickly becoming one of my favorite tag teams ever, and they're sure to be garnering more major league attention from ROH themselves, and perhaps even outside of ROH.
Grade - B

9. The Latin American Exchange
This is, truthfully, a respect gesture to a former ROH World Champion, Homicide. LAX has been the best thing to come out of TNA's tag team division since AMW and XXX, and TNA has seen fit to disband AMW, and have XXX do midcard work, while they hand the tag team gold to a former NFL football player. So bluntly, LAX's problem is not LAX, it's TNA. But, if they continue to do the marquis matches outside of TNA, as evident as their recent match in JAPW vs. Samoa Joe and Low Ki, they're liable to get more marquis work inside of TNA. For now, let's see what happens.
Grade - B

8. Samoa Joe
Joe could've been the NWA champion on a couple of occasions. He's had a shot at the TNA title at Slammiversary in King of the Mountain, and has, since then, been the whipping boy of half of the damn roster. Is he capable of carrying a company? I think his 21 month reign in ROH as World Champion answered that. However, he's been relegated to stooge in TNA due to creative garbage, and with that being said, who knows what's going to happen next. For now, he's on a par with the AJ Styles of the world, basically stuck in limbo while TNA has another train wreck of a product to try and muddle through. I don't know what's going to happen next with Joe, but it would not surprise me one bit if he pulled an Austin Aries, and left TNA when his contract is up, and returned to ROH. ROH has the PPV deal, and has been beginning to tour outside of the northeast, and there, Joe is definitely going to get a main event push. I think that will happen, Joe will be back in ROH before the end of 2008. I said it. It's printed and published. Mark it down.
Grade - B

7. Abyss
See Samoa Joe. He's had all the chances in the world to evolve in to a monster, and he's been able to go forward, and then back, due to the suits in the back of TNA, or his own skills, I'm not sure. Now, he's involved back with Jim Mitchell and Ricky Banderas in a feud that may eclipse some of the more vicious feuds in TNA in the past. Abyss has the talent to move up and be world champion again, if given the opportunity. Abyss has an NWA world title reign on his resume, and that, along with his potential, garners him this top 10 ranking.
Grade - B

6. Triple H
He could be #1. He could easily be the face of WWE. But, with his health, and hopefully, his desire to put others over, I'm going to be placing him here. I'll be honest with you. I hope he is not involved with the drug scandals. Him and a few others would seriously damage my desire to watch WWE in the future, if they were named as involved with this issue. For now, The Game is placed at #6, because he's not title worthy yet, but give it time.
Grade - A-

5. CM Punk
I am an ROH mark. With that being said, I should have Punk at #1, right? Wrong. He's not the face of WWE, yet. He could be, and HE SHOULD BE, especially with the gimmick/lifestyle Punk has and the issues facing WWE. But, for now, this is a make or break time for Punk. He has a major match for the title at Unforgiven, where he can begin to prove himself to the WWE brass that he is a main event player, and capable of carrying ECW. For now, he'll stay here in my book. Top 5 is I think worthy of the current ECW Champion.
Grade - A-

4. Montel Vontavious Porter
I've said on numerous occasions that guys like AJ Styles and Austin Aries are the future of wrestling in their respective companies. Well, right now, MVP could honestly be the future of the WWE. He is that damn good. He is in the feud of the year I think with Matt Hardy, and it's only getting more entertaining week in week out. When he eventually drops the US title, and it's inevitable he'll drop it to Matt in the future sometime, I would not be surprised one bit if MVP is Smackdown's future WHC.
Grade - A-

3. Edge
This hurts. Not because of anything else but the fact I don't like Edge. Not as a performer, I think he's terrific, but as a character. Which means, quite frankly, he's doing his job. He's supposed to make people not like him, and its worked. Edge is a main event. End of story. He's #3 on this list basically because he's hurt. He'd probably be ahead of the #2 guy if he was active as World Champion, but truth be told, the #2 guy I have is a legend, and I couldn't do that, active or not. Either which way, Edge is a future world champion again in the making, and probably the WM 24 main event waiting to happen. And he deserves it. I'd be lying or a fool to say anything less.
Grade - A

2. The Undertaker
A decade and a half of destruction could be ending next year, or is it? Who knows? The fact remains is Undertaker is headed to another Wrestlemania in the coming months, and probably in the interim going to face the major monsters on Smackdown, Henry, Khali, and the soon to be arriving Big Daddy V. With all that on the docket, and the simple fact that this guy has not been stale, old, or boring throughout his entire tenure in WWE, I can't not put him this high up. Only one guy beats him, and you all probably know who, but this guy is a legend, plain, simple, end of story. He is the phenom, and it would not surprise me one bit to see him World Champion again, sooner, rather than later.
Grade - A

1. John Cena
I know everyone probably figured this one out well before I started this column. Well, so be it. I think he is the WWE, in a nutshell. One thing I have to say, I hope, and pray, and I mean this, that John Cena is not implicated in the drug scandal. I would say this right off the bat, if John Cena is found to be guilty of steroids, I would be done watching WWE period. Not because of anything else but just the hypocritical aspect of WWE against its fans, I couldn't handle that. But, I digress.

Cena is the WWE, plain and simple. He is the face of WWE. He is the professional image that WWE should continue to market, love him, or hate him, and anyone, any celebrity that I could technically almost call a friend of my family, well, he's the #1 guy in my book in any list I could make.
Grade - A+

Like I said, people, OPINIONS. Just one man's thought on 20 different talents that have a huge up side in the business.


Picks for Unforgiven
I'll try and make the picks a little quicker than usual, since this is already a long one.

WWE Women's Championship
CANDICE MICHELLE vs. BETH PHOENIX
To my knowledge, this is Beth's first crack at the gold. Candice has improved, but I don't think she can stand up to the much more experienced, harder hitting Phoenix. I think we have a title change on our hands. That's worst case scenario. Best case is, they expand this feud for the time frame between now and No Mercy. I think that may happen, but I still think it will happen with Phoenix as champion.

Winner: Beth Phoenix

WWE Tag Team Championship
MATT HARDY & MVP vs. DEUCE & DOMINO
This is a tough one to call. I could see both sides winning. I think MVP & Hardy are transitional champions while continuing to build up their US title feud, but I could also see them winning the match, and continuing on and giving another team a shot at the gold. Besides, if the Untouchables are already dropping house show matches to Jesse & Festus, I sincerely doubt they're being placed back in line to take the tag team gold on Smackdown. MVP & Hardy squeak it out.

Winners: MVP & Matt Hardy

World Tag Team Championship
LANCE CADE & TREVOR MURDOCH vs. PAUL LONDON & BRIAN KENDRICK
I have a sincere belief that the brief time London and Kendrick were World tag team champs in South Africa was a prelude to this, as well as a carat for the fans in that country. Cade & Murdoch have served their purpose as tag team champs, and its time to pass the torch. That's what I hope will happen. Here's what I will be picking will happen.

Winners: Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch

I don't suspect a lot of title changes this PPV.

TRIPLE H vs. CARLITO
I like Carlito's haircut. But, he, like Booker, is doomed. I don't see H losing very much between here and whenever he ends up fighting for the title. And truth be told, this is basically being done as a second choice because WWE thought for certain by now that H would be facing Kennedy in probably a prelude to a world championship. Now, it's just been thrown together at the last minute. I dare anyone to challenge me otherwise in that thought.

Winner: Triple H

ECW Championship
CM PUNK vs. ELIAH BURKE
Punk vs. Burke match #594320289. But this time, its for gold. So, it's basically starting this all over again. Burke is nearly ready to take the next step, but I don't think it happens here. Here I believe is where CM Punk begins his quest to prove to the WWE brass that he is capable of carrying ECW in this time of need.

Winner: CM Punk

THE UNDERTAKER vs. MARK HENRY
I just hope that the Undertaker comes out of this healthy. Mark Henry reminds me of the Great Khali. Human destruction devices waiting to take their toll on the anatomy from lack of skill, or just general awkwardness. I hope WWE knows what its doing, because I think this is a bit premature to throw Taker to Henry right out of the blocks. We know Henry has a propoensity for hurting people, legitimately, and WWE cannot afford to have Taker reinjured.

Winner: The Undertaker

Take out that factor, and Taker wins. Henry has no chance in this match from a push standpoint. Guaranteed.

World Heavyweight Championship
THE GREAT KHALI vs. BATISTA vs. REY MYSTERIO
I am extremely grateful that WWE was not foolish enough to put a 165 pound returning star in Mysterio up against the wrecking ball of 420 pounds that is the champion. Although that being said, with the three men in the match, it should weaken the chances of the champion retaining, and personally, I don't see that happening. If Batista hasn't won the title back yet, he's not going to here. He's just here to make sure Mysterio comes out of this match alive. Plain and simple. Khali retains. Man, does that hurt to say.

Winner: The Great Khali

WWE Championship
JOHN CENA vs. RANDY ORTON
Is this finally the final chapter in the title reign of John Cena. It was Unforgiven 2006 where Cena recaptured the WWE title from Edge in TLC after Edge slapped Cena's dad. One year later, and Orton punts Cena's dad in the head, and Cena has a match for the title against someone he wants to destroy, (character wise). I haven't picked Cena in a long time, I think it's been two months, and he's burned me both times, against Lashley, and at Summerslam against Orton. My head's telling me to pick Orton here as well. But, for once, I am going to go out on a limb, and do this.

Winner: John Cena

I think he overcomes the emotion and retains. I think Cena holds on to the title until the eventual feud with Triple H, face or heel. I don't see anyone else coming and taking the gold beforehand.

We're done. Let's link up.

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Good night, everybody. Enjoy Unforgiven.

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