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TNA Power Rankings - January
By The Truth, MOP Squad Sports Staff Writer
Jan 10, 2007 - 12:42:48 AM

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Note: Unlike most other wrestling companies, TNA doesn't recognize the NWA World Heavyweight Championship as their top belt.  Instead they hold that title and the TNA X-Division Championship on equal regard.  Because of this I've divided the TNA rankings into 2 sections: the Top 5 Heavyweights and the Top 5 X-Division wrestlers. 

TNA Heavyweight Wrestler Power Rankings

Abyss - NWA World Heavyweight Champion

1. Christian Cage
After losing the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Slammiversary 2006 as a direct result of a Jeff Jarrett planned screw-job, Christian has been a man-on-a-mission to regain the gold, even going as far as bringing in his former WWE bodyguard Tomko to act as his, you guessed it, bodyguard.  After losing the championship in June it took Christian until December's Turning Point PPV before he finally got a rematch, a triple threat match against former champion Sting and current champion Abyss.  Abyss pinned Sting in that match but the issues weren't settled, leading TNA to sign another triple threat match at Final Resolution for the three men. 

2. Sting
Technically, Sting was never pinned or submitted to lose the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, he lost his title when he snapped in his match against Abyss at Genesis in November and was DQ'ed for pushing the ref - a move that, in the NWA, causes the title to change hands.  Sting would receive a rematch against Abyss at Turning Point in a triple threat match against Christian Cage (who was also never pinned or submitted when he lost the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in June) and was subsequently defeated by "The Monster" Abyss.  After the three men continued to go at each other on TNA's iMPACT program, TNA officials decided to sign another triple threat between the three men at Final Resolution.

3. Samoa Joe
After going on a tear through TNA's roster for his first 18 months, Samoa Joe was finally defeated in a one-on-one match by Kurt Angle at Genesis.  Following the loss Samoa Joe asked for and was granted a rematch at the Turning Point PPV where he returned the favor by forcing Angle to submit.  Joe then announced his intentions to begin a quest for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship but Angle finally goaded Joe into a rubber match set for Final Resolution.  Expect the winner of Joe/Angle III to become the "unofficial" Number 1 Contender and be rewarded with a title match as early as TNA's February PPV, Against All Odds.

4. Kurt Angle
Angle shocked the world by becoming the 2nd major star to choose to jump ship from WWE to TNA (following Christian Cage who jumped in 2005).  He shocked the world again when he ended Samoa Joe's 18-month undefeated streak at Genesis.  And he shocked the world again when he submitted to Joe in their Turning Point rematch (making Joe one of very few men to have made the Olympian "tap out" in his career).  Following the second Joe/Angle match Joe announced his attentions to capture the NWA World Heavyweight Championship but Angle finally convinced Joe to a third and final match at Final Resolution, a match that will, more than likely, crown the new Number 1 Contender to the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

5. AJ Styles
Styles is, unquestionably, the most successful competitor in TNA history, evident by the fact that he is currently the only man to have won the TNA Triple Crown by winning the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, the TNA X-Division Championship, and NWA World Tag Team Championships.  Styles has actually completed this feat a total of 3 times, making him the first, second, and third Triple Crown winner in TNA history.  He was also named TNA Superstar of the Year 3 years in a row (finally being unseated in 2005 by Samoa Joe).  Expect Styles to begin working his way towards his fourth NWA World Heavyweight Championship this year - just as soon as he's done with Rhino.

* * * * *

TNA X-Division Wrestler Power Rankings

Christopher Daniels - TNA X-Division Champion

1. Chris Sabin - Number 1 Contender
Sabin has been on a quest to recapture the X-Division Championship for months now.  Despite having lost title matches against champion Christopher Daniels at November's Genesis and December's Turning Point, Sabin has been named the Number 1 Contender and will challenge Daniels again at January's Final Resolution - this time in a triple threat match against the semi-retired X-Division pioneer Jerry Lynn. 

2. Austin Starr
Austin Starr is currently leading the PCS (Paparrazzi Championship Series) which is a Kevin Nash sponsored tournament to crown a new Number 1 Contender to the X-Division Championship.  Starr is leading the tournament with a total of 18 points having won the Musical Chairs Round, coming in second in the PCS Elimination Match at Turning Point and the Pogo Contest, third in the Limbo Contest, and fourth in the Push-Up Contest (having opted to finish the contest one-handed).  Starr has yet to capture the coveted X-Division Championship and hopes to change that, and a victory in the PCS would be a great way to start.  The PCS will wrap up at Final Resolution with the winner being granted the Number 1 Contender spot.

3. Jay Lethal
Lethal's 15 points are enough to currently place him in a tie for second place in the PCS.  Lethal, who has been the tournament's "token black guy", has come in first in both the Push-Up and Limbo contests, fourth in the Elimination Match and Pogo Contest, and dead last in the Musical Chairs Round after objecting to the chosen music.  Lethal is the youngest man on the TNA roster and has yet to win the X-Division Championship, a fact he hopes to change after possibly winning the PCS.

4. Alex Shelley
Shelley is tied for 2nd place in the PCS with 15 points.  Although Shelley hasn't won a single round in the PCS, he has had solid showings each week having placed 2nd in the Push-Up and Limbo contests, third in the Pogo Contest and Musical Chairs, and 5th in the opening Elimination match.  Shelley, like 3 of the other 4 members of the PCS, has yet to capture an X-Division Championship (Senshi, who is currently in last place, is the only former X-Division Champion in the PCS).

5. Sonjay Dutt
Sonjay Dutt, under accusations of being the tournament's resident "juicer" (although he's one of the smallest competitors - only being bigger than Jay Lethal), has scored 14 points and secured the number 4 spot.  Dutt's only victory in the tournament came in the Pogo Contest (despite being accused of wearing "illegal footwear" which were later approved under the tournament's "Bob Backlund system").  He initially won the Musical Chairs Round, having taken the chair when the music stopped, but Austin Starr (who is part of Kevin Nash's Paparazzi Productions stable with Alex Shelley) coerced Nash into restarting the music and stopping it when he was in position to win, causing Dutt to come in 2nd.  Dutt came in third in the Elimination Match and fifth in the Limbo Contest.  He was also given fifth place by default in the Push-Up Contest when a shoulder injury kept him from competing.  Dutt has also never held the X-Division Championship.


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