Wrestling Awards

If theres anything that still seperates wrestling from the acceptance received by other (more 'legitimate') forms of entertainment its that it still has the shadow of kayfabe dragging behind it. I accept that there are reasons for this (risk of alienating young fans) but mostly I believe that its still a hangover from the 'are you saying what we do isn't real?' days that is holding wrestling back from the larger mainstream that Vince in particular would love to be a part of.

If you take a step back and look at wrestling as an industry and what it provides and the opportunities that it offers people from all areas of not just entertainment, but life, then it really should be valued more highly (or at least appreciated/respected. Hell, I'd take not ridiculed to be honest).

We're talking about an industry that offers acting, athleticism and choregraphy, yet is reviled by the acting, athletic or dancing communities. A business that offers chances to former football players, basketballers, actors, gymnasts, strongmen, reality tv stars, not to mention genuine career-wrestlers who were either born into it or grew up on it and aspired to be what they saw. Wrestling draws in talent from such a wide field, giving breaks on tv to guys like Coach, who went on to be a serious sportscaster, and giving another career to guys like Steve McMichael back in the day.

There really are countless examples of people reinventing themselves either through wrestling or after it, that it seems to me that the biggest thing holding wrestling back is wrestling itself, and that old-time mentality I referred to before.

I don't see why there can't be an independent(ish) award ceremony to honour wrestling each year. With real categories, not like the Slammys.

I don't care if it has more in line with the MTV awards than the Emmys, at least it would be a start. Sure, WWE would dominate but how is that different to Hollywood at the Oscars?

And the awards? Well feel free to propose ones below but I wouldn't mind seeing a genuinely voted-on-by-their-peers-awards each year in at least the following categories:

Best PPV
Best TV Show (single episode)
Best TV Show (overall)
Best Angle / Storyline
Match of the Year
Wrestler of the Year
Supporting Character of the Year
Promotion of the Year
Breakthough Star
Moment of the Year (fans vote)

I just think its time that wrestling took itself a bit more seriously - because if they don't, how will anyone else?

Best PPV: MiTB
Best TV Show: Even though I hate the word "supershow" the first one was great with some good matches.
Best TV Show: Raw
Best Angle/Storyline: Punk walking out with the title
Match of the year: Punk vs Cena MiTB
Wrestler of the year: Punk
Breakthrough Star: Cody Rhodes
Moment of the year: Punks shoot promo

I have deliberately done this on the WWE as I use to watch TNA a fair bit but I gave up about 3 months ago due to it just being a complete and utter mess and I do not really watch other promotions like ROH.

Like I say, I would imagine that if an awards ceremony was done now thats probably how it would pan out, very WWE-centric (nice take on the breakthrough award by the way).

I know PWI do one but that magazine was always so weighed down with kayfabe that it meant their awards were meaningless (Hogan was two-time wrestler of the year, for example, in 1991 and 1994).

I'd be all for PWI fronting a legit ceremony, but I just wonder why - having gone down the 'Entertainment' route years ago - Vince et al have never fully embraced it.

I really like the idea of a prestigious awards event that celebrates and rewards the wrestling industry as a whole. It's a shame that the promotions are not governed by a central authority such as the fa in football, this would help with some of the issues brought up in the original post about kayfabe etc. I would also like the hall of fame to be controlled by this authority and have it on the same night allowing other great wrestlers outside of the wwe be recognised as true greats. Obviously wwe and tna to some exstent would dominate the awards but if a smaller promotion or individual had excelled they could be rewarded.

WWE would probably avoid being a part of it at the risk of not winning an award and losing ciewers. It's a shame, but it's true. I think WWE are still extremley worried about losing their viewers to another company, probably because of the Monday Night Wars period.

And thats the issue I suppose - It shouldn't be a case of the WWE feeling that they would be embarrassed by other promotions - though given some of the answers given on the Why Do You Watch It thread a lot on here wouldn't mind seeing WWE entered in the National Soap Awards, a ceremony that is basically Eastenders v Corrie in all but name - it should be an annual event to pat each other on the back and celebrate the year gone by.

Vince should be the one pushing for this to legitimise the entire industry, the Hall of Fame would slot right in and it would sit perfectly alongside the Grammys, Baftas, Oscars, Tonys, Emmys and the Golden Globes in Awards Season, just before Mania. In a way thats what hes tried to do with the HoF night but as we run out of worthy HoFers we should start to look to the future, or at least the present.

I'd want The Rock to host the first one and I'd possibly even keep the Slammy name, but I am open to suggestions for alternatives...

Also, isn't it about time that the fans were able to see who came up with certain angles and stories so that we can look forward to their work (or not) in the future? Russo is a perfect example - depending on who you listen to hes never been the head booker in TNA or hes written everything for the last 3 years. The default setting is to assume if its bad its his work but is that still fair, given that its mostly based on his reputation from 1999-2001? Writer's credits would be a start, but why not an annual award for the best one? Crazy idea I know, to be rewarded within the wrestling industry, but it might just work...