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Picks by Mat Lavore of West Palm Beach, Fla.

1. Jeff Hardy - Sure, he doesn't have the best record as far as reliability goes, but right now he's arguably the hottest act in pro wrestling. Everywhere he goes crowds adore him.

2. Randy Orton - All around great performer. How can you not go with Orton?

3. Chris Jericho - Best heel in the business right now. 

4. Undertaker - I don't think age is even a factor anymore for Taker. He's stayed healthy long past the time anyone would have suspected, and in addition has just gotten better with age. A true phenom.

5. Edge - Next to Jericho, Edge is the best heel in the business. Always delivers on the mic and in the ring.

6. John Cena - Cena's goofball character may be tired now, but the man behind the character is probably the hardest working, most dedicated wrestler in the business today. Turn Cena heel and give him something fresh to work with and I think he'd be golden all over again.

7. Samoa Joe - Young, over, and a solid performer. 

8. MVP - The guy just keeps getting better. 

9. Santino Marella - Pulls more than his weight in the entertainment department. Marella is one of the highlights of Raw each and every week.

10. C.M. Punk - Over with the crowd, solid in the ring and behind the mic. Unique in character, look, and ring style. 

Picks by Mike Rose...

1. Shawn Michaels: A guy who's just gotten smarter and smarter in the ring as he gets older, and connects with people in a way reminiscent of the quiet, subtle work of Jake "The Snake" Roberts in the '80s. He also brings his legendary, iconic status.

2. Chris Jericho: A guy who's willing to reinvent himself time and again. He's been great as both a babyface and a heel, can wrestle great matches and cut great promos, and most recently he's shown that he's not afraid to be an old school heel who's working to not get cheered.

3. Edge: One of the best heels of this era. He's shown range, going from his days as a goofy comedy act to an angry, crazy heel. He's excelled as both a singles and a tag wrestler. I'd love to use him as a singles wrestler, as well as potentially reuniting him with Christian to help build a serious tag division.

4. Rey Mysterio: The kids love him, and even as he begins to slow down in the ring as he gets older, he's still not that old from a non-wrestling point of view and could get by on his gimmick alone for years and years to come. He's also good to reach out to the Latino audience, and it could be fun to use him to introduce some other Latino wrestlers and give them instant credibility.

5. Brian Danielson: A guy who can improve the work of everyone else he works with, and who could likely reach a new level himself by working more with his former teacher, Shawn Michaels. He also hasn't really been exposed on the national scene, and would help give a new promotion something that's seen as all its own.

6. The Brian Kendrick: Trained by Shawn Michaels, he's always been great in the ring. Recently, he's shown that he can deliver when it comes to promos and charisma. The chance to push a new star who hasn't hit the top yet, giving fans someone to identify with who's not one of the same old stars. He's also shined in the tag team ranks during his time with Paul London, so I'd be interested in potentially using him there as well.

7. Alex Shelley: Personality and in-ring work, and together with Chris Sabin, he's really shined in a tag team role. I think he's the stronger member of the team, so I'd go with him over Sabin, but would likely find him a new partner or bring in Sabin at a later point to put his tag skills to use. I think Kendrick could keep up with him, so seeing them as a tag team could be awesome. Still, he's great as a singles guy as well, and I'd be happy to use him there as well.

8. Randy Orton: Young, and I don't think he's peaked yet. A great, easy to hate heel, who works smart in the ring and is solid on the mic.

9. Christian: He peaked near the end of his WWE run, when he was underpushed given how much the crowd was into him, cutting great promos every week. He's been poorly used for much of his time in TNA, but putting him in a new context would be a great chance to reboot him, perhaps even teaming him with Edge as part of a tag resurgence.

10. Elijah Burke: He showed with the ECW New Breed gimmick that he had charisma, and he's also always delivered in the ring, despite not getting a sustained push since the end of the New Breed. I'd love to give him another chance to shine.

Picks by Joe Ma...

1. Edge. He has been the best heel in wrestling by far over the last couple years, so this one should be a no-brainer. He is at his best as a heel champion, who can win matches with his ability, but knows how to cheat to save his belt, constantly frustrating face challengers and producing PPV buys when a red-hot face comes along and challenges him (a la early-2008 Jeff Hardy). That is the role he would play in my company.

2. Chris Jericho. At the moment, he is the best heel in wrestling anywhere. Only time will tell if he can keep up what he's had in his feud with Shawn Michaels, which is almost the only thing keeping him out of my top spot. The other is that I feel he is better off in the upper midcard, as opposed to the main event, which is where Edge is best. These two are miles ahead of their nearest heel competitor.

3. Shawn Michaels. The name alone (for monetary and legitimacy-establishing purposes) is reason enough for him to be in the top ten. His incredible feud with Jericho vaults him into the top three. HBK is the most over babyface in wrestling, among kids and adults alike, and if there are no strong faces, then heels are no good. I would have Michaels #1, but his health is a concern, and I would not have him work many house shows, if any at all. The company's top wrestler needs to be able to work a full schedule, which is something Michaels, unfortunately, cannot do at this stage of his career.

4. John Cena. I really, really am not a fan of his. But there is no denying that he is a hard worker, and can rack up a lot of merch sales. He would be the perfect guy to chase after Edge's belt at the start of the company before giving way to a younger guy, such as...

5. Samoa Joe. A company with no young faces is a company that goes stale, and eventually bankrupt, quickly. Samoa Joe is a skilled ring worker, and while his promos could use some work, he belongs in the top ten.

6. C.M. Punk. See above.

7. Kurt Angle. The former Olympic gold medalist is still a great worker and a good heel.

8. Jeff Hardy. I thought long and hard about not putting him on here, but I decided against it. Hardy is ridiculously over, though he has lost steam since January, but his personal issues are a drawback. However, since I will not hold his WWE drug test results against him in my company, I figured he belongs.

9. Triple H. I hate his face character. But he wouldn't play that in my company. Plus, he's a big name, and if I want to make a true top company, I can't let any real big names escape.

10. Nigel McGuiness. For a while, I was convinced I would put somebody else here. I'm really not sure whether I can make McGuinness get over with so many other big names ahead of him, but he is great in the ring, and who knows, he may take of with a broader audience.

Others that I considered: Mark Henry (best monster heel in the business right now), Matt Hardy (to feud with his brother), John Morrison and The Miz (best tag team in wrestling?), MVP (young heel about to be huge).

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 today (Aug. 31). We will publish select top ten lists this week in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com.



Send feedback on this article to pwtorch@gmail.com and we'll regularly publish reader feedback in the "Torch Feedback" category on the Main Listing.

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