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Picks by PWTorch.com reader James Haley II...

1. Rob Van Dam: Rob always stole the show with his performances on the old ECW pay per views. His matches would easily attract the attention of casual and hardcore fans.

2. Samoa Joe: Another person with a unique and entertaining wrestling style. A man his size shouldn't be able to do the things he can go. Could have classic matches with RVD

3. A.J. Styles: A great high-flyer that can compete with cruiserweights and heavyweights. I've enjoyed watching him develop his mic skills as well in TNA

4. Christian: One of the most charismatic performers in wrestling today. Few come close to giving better interviews. He'll also give 110% in the ring.

5. Fit Finlay: A strong brawler who will also give his all in the ring. Would also be a good asset for developing young talent.

6. Brian Danielson: An ROH favorite that wasn't appreciated in WWE. He would thrive in a promotion that emphasizes in-ring work instead of glitz and glamor.

7. Kurt Angle: A "real" wrestler that is marketable in and out of the ring.

8. Edge: See Christian.

9. Homicide: LAX is one of the best tag teams in wrestling. Homicide is also a strong singles competitor in a cruiserweight division.

10. Hernandez: Same as Homicide except he's a heavyweight.

Picks by PWTorch reader Nick Sanders...

1. Sting: I avoided picking guys like Flair, Hogan, Austin or Goldberg because they're currently out of wrestling, but I would pull out all the stops to bring in The Stinger. The only major star to have never set foot in WWE, there are countless dream matches you could run with. The most obvious being Sting vs...

2. The Undertaker: The Dead Man vs. The Man They Call Sting is one of the big, unfulfilled dream matches - along with Austin vs. Hogan - and both men are still in good enough shape to make it happen. The build-up alone would draw viewers in, and the big "first time ever" match would surely do great business.

3. John Cena: Aside from the obvious reasons for picking Cena (popular, sells merchandise, capable worker, good talker), he made the list because people have been waiting for him to turn heel for the past 3 years or so. There aren't too many wrestlers out there for whom a heel turn would be genuinely 'fresh', but in Cena's case it opens up a lot of opportunities.

4. Triple H: Another obvious pick, but he's a great all-rounder and incredibly over. He can work as a face or a heel, and he has the kind of stature that means a win over him is a real rub. Which brings me to the foremost reason he's on my list...

5. Jeff Hardy: Since they both ended up on SmackDown, surely it's only a matter of time before we see a proper feud between The Game and Jeff Hardy. He has a big fan base and he's still capable of putting on very good matches.

6. Edge: Probably the best heel in wrestling right now, despite losing momentum by dropping his belt and then losing matches to Triple H and the Undertaker. Again, we've yet to see a serious feud between him and Triple H.

7. Christian Cage: He was flirting with the main event before he left WWE and he's developed his character in TNA. Not only is he a very good worker, but he'd be a fresh face among the other WWE headliners. Plus, it leaves the door open for the return of Edge and Christian.

8. Chris Jericho: If Edge isn't the best heel in wrestling, then it might be Chris Jericho. His feud with HBK has shown that his best work is as a heel, and he can do serious heel work as well as the comedy stuff we've seen in the past. His hiatus from wrestling from 2005-2007 means that matches against most of the other guys on the list would still seem interesting.

9. A.J. Styles: A fantastic worker who, despite being misused, has developed more of a persona in TNA. He's never wrestled against most of the guys on the list, so there would be plenty of directions to go with The Phenomenal One.

10. Alex Shelley: As J.R. might say, he's a main event waiting to happen. As good as the Motor City Machine Guns are, I couldn't take them both and Shelley has more star power IMO.

Picks by PWTorch.com readers Brian Hamilton of Harrisburg, N.C...

1. Edge: The Rated -R Superstar is the best performer in wrestling today, especially on the microphone and backstage. He would be my dominant heel  World champion who would be a total jerk but also booked as the best wrestler in the promotion. He would win quickly and in a clean fashion in a majority of his matches and be the consumate arrogant heel.

2. A.J. Styles: A.J. would be the perpetual babyface challenger to Edge's championship. He would be booked to chase Edge for the title for an expanded period of time, always coming close but never quite able to wrest the belt from him. However, he would often get the best of Edge outside of the ring and behind the scenes.

3. Bryan Danielson: My #2 heel, he and Edge would be kept apart from interacting with each other for a significant period of time. Danielson would dominate the undercard, wrestling long, technical matches (much as in ROH today) and utilizing his submission maneuvers. In a few years, he will be ready for a breakout feud with Edge as a babyface and eventually supplant him as World Champion and he would be the equivalent of the US/Intercontinental champion on  my brand.

4. Batista: One half of the World Tag Team champions with John Cena, these would be my 'tweener champions, not quite babyfaces and neither full-fledged heels. They will defend their belts against anyone at any time.

5. John Cena: See above. They would rule the tag team division, becoming a modern day version of the Road Warriors of the 1980's. Also, as injuries occurred, they could individually step into singles feuds as necessary.

6. Evan Bourne: The babyface rookie, he would be a solid player on the undercard and booked as a role model for kids and teens. This fan base would be built around him and he could hold a third tier title such as the television title.

7. Mark and Jay Briscoe: I am counting them as one draft as they are known more as a tag team than individual wrestlers, unlike Batista and Cena. They would be the primary adversaries of Batista and Cena and these teams could intermittently trade the belts and feud with each other off-and-on for years to come.

8. Samoa Joe: Joe would be a Stone Cold like character and would move up and down the card, feuding with whoever was convenient and being the established renegade of the brand. He could wreak havoc on anyone at anytime and would be booked accordingly.

9. Kurt Angle: Kurt would be the "legend" on the card, feuding with Chris Jericho and nurturing the younger talent on camera and behind the scenes. he would only wrestle occasionally to protect his health and his matches would be showcases with the other talent.

10. Chris Jericho: The resident psychopath, I would book him exactly as he is being booked in his feud with Shawn Michaels. He would work as a heel with the upcoming talent, engaging them in prolonged feuds an order to build them up and eventually get them over. This would begin with a feud with Evan Bourne where he seriously injures him. He would then transition to a feud with Kurt Angle before Bourne returns, at which point his feud with Jericho will establish him as a star.



DRAFT INFO - INVITE TO PARTICIPATE

Since 1997, Pro Wrestling Torch has conducted "Priority Fantasy Drafts" about once a year, usually around this time of year. The concept is simple. If the existing national promotions went out of business and all wrestlers became free agents, and you had the budget to sign ten wrestlers before any other competing start-up company could even compete, which ten currently active wrestlers would you choose? The goal is to make money, not make you in particular happy as a fan or viewer. This is about the wisest business move. This should not be a roster for a vanity promotion that goes out of business or unnecessarily burns through money.

You can build your roster around whatever promoting philosophy you think would draw, though. If you think wrestlers only over 6-8 would draw best, draft them. If you think cruiserweights is the best approach, choose them. Or women. Young. Old. A mix of all of the above. It's up to you.

We invite you to send in your Top 10 Draft Picks this week. We will compile the results, which will be featured on PWTorch.com next week. An expanded list of vote-getters (Top 50) will be part of next week's special Draft Edition of the Pro Wrestling Torch newsletter (#1042), which will also feature a variety of staff articles related to the draft. This week at PWTorch.com we will also look back on previous draft results, so stay tuned.

When you send your top ten draft picks to us, you are invited to include a few sentences explaining each pick, making your case for why they deserve a top ten spot. Please send your picks numbered one through ten to pwtorch@gmail.com (put "Draft Picks" in the subject line, please). Deadline is this Friday (Aug. 29). We will publish select top ten lists this week in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com.

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