The Slammy awards are WWE's way of recognising the best moments and wrestlers in the year, but all too often it ends up being a whitewash. Vince McMahon will just fix it to suit his narrative needs. Even this year, with fans voting via social media, WWE could still end up rigging it. Fans aren't paying to vote and there is no independent analyst, so WWE will feel justified in doing whatever they want. Another criticism of the awards is the category choices. A 'Hashtag Of The Year' award is just another lame attempt at satisfying WWE's fetish for social media. Instead of that nonsense, how about the following alternative awards, designed with the smarter fan in mind.
11. Technically Skilled In-Ring Wrestler Of The Year
The Superstar Of The Year is such a Vince McMahon thing, focusing on an all round WWE game, rather than in-ring wrestling. The winner tends to be more about "sports entertainment", as was the case last year when Roman Reigns won. As an alternative, and something sure to please the smarter crowd, WWE could have a separate award for in-ring worker of the year. This would be about those wrestlers who excelled in technique, athleticism and work style. Key nominees would have to be the likes of Tyson Kidd and Finn Balor, wrestlers who are so technical that they make their ring work look flawless. But it would really come down to three names this year, Cesaro, Seth Rollins and Sasha Banks. The work that Banks did was sensational against Charlotte, Becky Lynch and especially Bayley in NXT. As for Seth Rollins, he was involved in the match of the year with John Cena and Brock Lesnar at Royal Rumble, and his work was consistently elite throughout the year. However, Cesaro has to be the winner of this award. His freakish strength combined with his timing and execution is what makes him the best technician in the company. The guy is pure brilliance, his matches are a thing of beauty. Whether it is a major or minor match, he always brings a top level performance. Winner: Cesaro
