Step Up Edition

Welcome to another edition of Inside The Wrestling Ring. As always, head over to our partner Clubkayfabe's podcast as well.

Of course the biggest news coming out of Raw this week is that John Cena is indeed not a super-man. Cena had surgery to repair a torn tricep, keeping him out of action for 4-6 months. My thoughts about Cena are well known. As a performer, he is the best on microphone (right now) but as a wrestler, to me, he leaves a lot to be desired. But no one has given more to the world of wrestling than he has. From his charity work to his promotions for the company, no one does more. And for that he will be missed over that time.

It would take the average person four to six months to recover from the surgery that he had, but let's face it. Cena is not normal. Back in 2007 he was injured in October and was supposed to miss about six months of action. Instead he appeared in the Royal Rumble of 2008 and won it. All I am trying to say is I would be surprised if he takes the full four to six months to recover from this injury as well.

With both John Cena and Sheamus out, there need to be some wrestlers who step up in the absence. So I thought I would take this opportunity to list who I think should step up and why.

Daniel Bryan is, of course, on top of that list. He is already on the verge (once again) of being that top tier main event status. He has the crowd behind him and is a great mat-based wrestler. Plus, while I would never consider him an aerial wrestler, he does fly a little bit.

Dolph Ziggler has now been on the cusp of being a main eventer twice in the last few years and this is a perfect time for him to shine. We know he is athletic and takes crazy bumps. He has everything it takes to be a main eventer with the company for years to come, plus the fans are behind him as well. With the three-on-one match he had on Raw this past week, I think it's safe to say he will be looked at to help carry the load in Cena's absence.

Another person who had a three-on-one match this week is Big Show. He has the experience of being a main eventer. He is just returning from injury himself, so I think that helps him as well.

There are two other guys that have been on the verge of main eventing before that I think can fill in for Cena as well. Cody Rhodes and Kofi Kingston are both capable of great matches with practically anyone on the roster. I have been a fan of both of them pretty much since their debuts, so this would be the chance if the WWE wanted to push them to do so. Rhodes is in a feud right now with Damien Sandow but Kofi hasn't done anything since his return. I would love to see him step up against Ryback for injuring him. Both Kingston and Rhodes are young guys with a lot of future ahead of them.

I would include Christian and Rob Van Dam in this, however, both would be temporary fixes. Both are getting up there in age (as is Big Show, I know). They are both talented wrestlers who have been around the business for decades and could help teach the younger guys a thing or two.

Maybe throw in an NXT guy or two like Adrian Neville or Kassius Ohno. I also would like to see Xavier Woods called up. He may not have experience in the WWE, but he was almost a main eventer at TNA for awhile and has plenty to offer the WWE as well.

You hate to see any injury, regardless of your feeling for any superstar or diva. Hopefully it gives guys a chance to "reach for that brass ring" and climb the ladder that they would not normally get a chance to do.

Special thanks to my wonderful editor who also doubles as my lovely fiancée!

My Wrestling Hall Of Fame-First Class

I understand that I can't always agree with who the WWE adds to their Hall Of Fame. So, I will do the next best thing. I will create my own! After every major PPV of the year, I will induct four wrestlers into my Hall of Fame. In addition, my fiancee will also induct a wrestler on her own.

Together, we can induct anyone regardless if they are still active or not. They could have competed for WCW, ECW, WWF(E), NXT, TNA or any other promotion in the world. I am sure that some of our choices will not be the most popular choices, and I am okay with that.

My first inductee is Randy "Macho Man" Savage.In his career in WWF and WCW, Savage won the WCW title four times and the WWF Title two more times. He is also a former Intercontinental Champion. Every single time he stepped in the ring, he put on great matches. His match with Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat at Wrestlemania III is a must watch for any young wrestling fan. For whatever reason, he isn't in the WWE Hall of Fame. But as a life long fan of the Macho Man, I have to say OHHHHH YEAH! He's in mine. For his career highlights take a look at this video that the WWE released at the time of his death.

The next inductee to My Hall of Fame is Mr. Perfect, Curt Hennig. Originally he wasn't the one the WWF wanted to portray the role of Mr. Perfect, Terry "Red Rooster" Taylor was. But Hennig won them over with his style and charisma and became the perfect choice. From everything I have heard about him, he was a great guy. Just listen to Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Wade Boggs talk about the day that Hennig saved his life Curt Hennig was a two time Intercontinental Champion as well as a United States Champion and WCW Tag Team Champion. But for whatever reason he never won a World Championship, which to me is mind boggling. After he died, he was inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007.

Another person who never won a World Title which to me never made sense is Andre The Giant. I refuse to acknowledge when he had the title for a minute before he was stripped by Jack Tunney. There is a reason why Andre was referred to as the Eighth Wonder Of The World. There was never and will never be another Andre The Giant. Granted his move set was very limited due to his enormous size, Andre was still an accomplished wrestler. And he was one of the few wrestlers in his day that transcended wrestling. You could ask non wrestling fans in the 1980s who Andre The Giant was, they could tell you. Hulk Hogan would most likely be the only other wrestler from the era that would be as easily recognizable. Who could forget his memorable role in The Princess Bride? He won the Tag Team Titles with Haku. Andre The Giant was the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame, and he is in my first class as well!

The next inductee is manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. What is there to say about him? Whether he was managing his stable of wrestlers The Heenan Family or was at the broadcast booth he was always entertaining. He seemed to enjoy being heel more then most people I can remember, especially back in the day. The chemistry he had with all of his broadcast partners has gone unmatched with the exception of Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross. I always enjoyed Heenan, whether it was in WWF or WCW. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. Right now that he has been fighting throat cancer.

The Final inductee of the first class of my Wrestling Hall Of Fame belongs to my Fiancee Lori. And she inducts The Big Show. I know that she has been a fan of his ever since she started watching wrestling. He is athletic for a big man. But I think what she likes most about him, and I completely agree, is how goofy he can be one second (Just watch Knucklehead) and how much of a force he can be when he wants to the next. If you look up accomplished wrestler in the dictionary, you will see a picture of the Big Show. He has won every title he could possibly have won. He has won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship twice, WCW World Tag Team Championship three times, ECW World Championship, World Heavyweight Championship twice, World Tag Team Championship 5 times, Intercontinental title, WWE Tag Team Championship three times, United States Championship WWE Championship twice plus a reign as the Hardcore Champion as well. If you don't think that he is one of the best big men of all time read this article from Bleacher Report.

So there you have it. The first class of Inside the Wrestling Ring's Hall of Fame. Check back around Summerslam for the next class!