KCook on DVDVR posted some of the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame Balloting results. The Rock was the only person who got votes in this year, receiving 86% of the votes (and 100% of the active wrestler vote.) Three more, from the early days of wrestling, were also selected.
Lucha Names and other people who are making AAA cameos (60% gets you in)
59% Paco Alonso (+2)
58% Konnan (+4)
54% Villano III (+5)
41% Rey Misterio Jr. (first time on the ballot)
41% Dr. Wagner Sr. (-15)
34% Blue Panther (+10)
(don’t have last year’s numbers for)
12% Sabu
11% Gran Hamada
11% Vampiro
Over 10% keeps you on the ballot. Paco Alonso is creeping closer to election each year. This year’s poor CMLL performance should cause him to drop back a bit next year, but if they were judging things like I do, he wouldn’t have gone up this year either. He’s so close, he’ll get in.
Barring some major disaster, Konnan’s getting in. If AAA does run in the US, that’ll clinch it easily, but AAA becoming a hip promotion for insider fans again and staying that way till next year is all Konnan really needs.
I chalk up Rey Jr.’s numbers to people making the weird “first ballot” distinction and figure he’ll springboard in or close next year. I’m amazed Villano III went up, and he may actually have a chance since the Villanos seem to be around in CMLL for one more high profile match, which could be enough to push him over. Blue Panther is moving in the right direction, but not so close.
Wagner Sr. going down is odd, because it’s not like he his career is any different in 2007 than it was in 2006. It’s probably not a coincidence he went down by about the same much V3 and Panther went up. One of those three getting in might free up some votes (and establish easier standards) for the other two. This concept and the first ballot concept are things I dislike about hall of fames, but I know it happens.
You can find last year’s lucha results here, and the post I made talking about the candidates (many of the same ones) here. I don’t think I wrote anything up about this year’s list, but I do remember conversations about it with Joe Gagne on the show where we both agreed Rey Jr. should totally be in this year, and he was a little more uncertain (and correct!) about him not actually getting the votes this year.
I just don’t think enough Observer readers are familiar with Alonso. We only hear about him when his name makes the sheets due to a dispute with Santo, or something like that.
Alonso just inherited a company he really doesn’t care about and he almost made it in? For showing up to 4 business meetings a year?
Rey not getting in first ballot is a disgrace.
Villano III going UP shows how ignorant a lot of the people voting are. He either should have got in during the year 2000 or 2001 or he shouldn’t stand a chance till a year after his death.
I’m all for Konnan but him outranking Rey is mind-boggling.
You sure Vamp wasn’t 1% instead of 11%? I can’t imagine 11% of the voters being that stupid.
The reason why so many promotions have failed is because somebody within the company is concerned with being hip amongst the self proclaimed “insider” fans.
For that matter a lot of wrestlers have failed as characters for this same reason.
The Lutteroth family deserves some kind of representation in the Hall of Fame. This family had the vision to build their own venues, in order to generate revenue streams from ticket sales, ticket surcharges, beer, soda, sandwiches, rentals, etc… In the US concert business, Bill Graham was called a “genius” when he decided that concert promoters should own their own venues if they wanted to survive. The Lutteroth family had this vision long before.
Robert. Is it true that Alonso works from 11am-2pm? I heard he works ridiculously short days, which would explain why people say he does not care about the business.
I’m not privy to his personal schedule but it seems to be well known that Paco could care less and only approves the major storylines, none of which are his idea. It’s 99% hands-off so I don’t see why he belongs in a wrestling HOF.