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The 2016 Oklafan Mid-Year Report

Posted: Jul 19th 2016 By: CMBurnham

2016 is almost halfway done and we at Oklafan.com are pleased to release The Mid-Year Report. In this report, we'll look at the top 20 wrestlers of 2015 (as listed in the Oklafan Top 50) and see where they stand today, what they've accomplished and where they might be going. With a little less than 6 months left before the end of the year, some performers might need that extra motivation to kick things into gear. So, without further ado, let's get to it:

1. Mr. Nasty. A pretty good year for Mr. Nasty. His main focuses have been WFC and UWE, but he as also made appearances in ComPro. In WFC, Nasty has been working to help free Tim Rockwell from the clutches of the Caballero Cartel and now that that has been accomplished, he may be looking to once again reform the Soul Ryders. Or perhaps he may want to focus on long-time rival Jon Cross and capture the one title in WFC that he has never held: The WFC Championship. In UWE, last month, Nasty won the Sooner Stampede, which guarantees him a shot at the UWE Title in September at Showdown against Brian Breaker (or whoever the champion may be at that time). The biggest moment for Nasty this year may have been back in January when he and Jon Cross faced off for the SRPW Title, which Nasty finally won. Sadly, contractual agreements between Nasty (and several other SRPW talents) dissolved shortly after that and he was never able to defend the title, but that match is certain to be a top contender for Match of the Year.
Current ranking: #4

2. Riker. Riker has also been primarily focused on WFC and UWE. His recent showings in WFC have been quite impressive as he as put together quite a winning streak over the past few months. In FACT, his last loss there prior to this past weekend was to Mr. Nasty. Over in UWE, as part of the Initiative, he has been destroying the competition and is currently undefeated. Like Nasty, Riker also has made a few appearances in ComPro and he began the year as one-half of the SRPW Tag Team Champions with Abel, but was another of the talents who left that company after January. Perhaps Riker can find a way to reassert himself as the #1 person in whatever company he wishes to, like he did in 2015.
Current ranking: #2

3. Jon Cross: Cross was recently the subject of a short documentary that brought him quite a bit of attention from all around the state. There are many who would say that Cross is the best wrestler that most of this state has never seen. But Cross seems to be following the path that the previous two have, albeit without the appearances in ComPro. Cross is currently a dual champion, as he is both the WFC Champion and 1/2 of the UWE Tag Team Champions, and has been so since September 19th of last year. He is the only wrestler in recorded Oklahoma history to win 2 titles at 2 separate events on the same day. Cross began the year as a Triple Crown Champion, as he was the SRPW Champion, but like Riker and Nasty, departed the company after losing the title. Some feel that Cross may have missed out on an opportunity to take another step up in his career by capitalising on the publicity of the documentary. While still excellent when he wrestles, his low number of matches for 2016 can not be looked at in any way except a penalty against him.
Current ranking: #8

4. Double D. The man with the longest streak in the Top 10 looks to remain in that position. He reigned as IZW Champion for 4 months, losing the title on July 16 to Convict. He as finally decided to branch out to other federations after being an IZW exclusive for almost 2 years. ComPro has seen him a couple of times and IWR also benefited from his presence. But D is also beginning to look outside Oklahoma and expand his fanbase nationwide. Great for him, sad for Oklahoma as it may lead to fewer appearances here. Still, as long as he is here, D remains one of the best competitors this state has to offer.
Current ranking: #5

5. Jermaine Johnson: Jermaine was active for the first 3 months of the year, but an injury suffered in the TLC Tag Team Title match at Coronation put him out of action until about 6 weeks ago. Johnson has now reformed BLK-OUT with IWR Tag Team Champion Montego Seeka and looks to regain the IZW Tag Team Titles that they haven't held in over 6 years. If Johnson could have remained on the active roster, perhaps his ranking would be different, but hopefully he rebounds after this setback and ends 2016 on a high note.
Current ranking: Unrated

6. Drake Gallows: Until a couple of weeks ago, Gallows was the lone Triple Crown Champion in the state, as he was MSWA Mid-South Champion, WFC Hometown Heroes Champion and BCW Buzzsaw Champion. Still, holding 2 out of the 3 and competing in 4 feds in the state, working in front of a different crowd almost every week, is no small feat. Plus, he has competed in the most matches in the state (34, at the time of the ranking). All this makes it pretty apparent that allows is on the path to joining Double D and Dane Griffin as repeats at the top of the list.
Current ranking: #1

7. One Man Sam/Sam Stackhouse: For the most part, Sam as confined himself to competing in WFC and waging war against his former best friend, Drake Gallows. This obsession seemed to have panned out for Sam earlier when he beat Sam for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title, but legal action got that title change reversed. And because Sam has only been competing for WFC, he as not been nearly as active a competitor as he was last year. Sam is extremely talented, but if he wants to continue to be recognised as one of the best, he needs to show it more often.
Current ranking: Unrated

8. Wade Argento: On the surface, it seems like a lot of things are falling apart for Wade. He lost his ComPro Showtime Title in February and was never able to regain it. His faction, La Famiglia, recently turned on him. But he also gained the love and admiration of Killista and two have entered into a Facebook-official relationship. And this past weekend, Argento dipped his toe into brand new territory as he did his first broadcast as colour commentator for IZW. Argento has essentially been a ComPro exclusive for most of his career, but that may soon be coming to an end and things could be moving in a different direction for him.
Current ranking: Unrated

9. Brian Breaker: Breaker currently stands as a dual champion in UWE, holding the Heavyweight and United States Title, the only person to do that in the history of the company. Breaker had also been a regular competitor for WFC, but recent events involving the Oklahoma Athletic Commission lead Breaker to sever ties with any company in the state except ones running on Indian Land. This decision cannot be seen in any way but as a reduction in performance in the state, but Breaker does continue to take bookings in Missouri and may perhaps be looking to expand those opportunities now.
Current ranking: #47

10. Bobby Starr: Towards the beginning of the year, Starr was arrested in a sting operation for soliciting underage girls for sex. He is currently serving a prison term and in all likelihood will never compete professionally in the state again.
Current ranking: Unrated

11. Jordan Jacobs: Jacobs remains an IZW exclusive and recently won the Impact Player of the Year Tournament for the 2nd time. He used this opportunity to challenge for the IZW Championship, the one title he had never held in the company. Sadly for him, his plans were ruined by Convict (specifically) and The Future Hall of Famers (more generally) and once again, Jacobs finds himself on the outside looking in to the IZW Title picture. Jacobs needs to either capture that title or look to other federations for success if he wants to continue performing in this state. He is not any worse, but he is not getting any better by being stagnant.
Current ranking: #11

12. Nathan Estrada. Last year, Estrada took a huge leap of faith and ventured down to IZW. He has become a regular fixture there and this past Saturday become the #1 contender to the IZW Impact Division Title. At ComPro, Estrada defeated Killista in a less than chivalrous manner for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division title and held it a little over 2 months before losing to Adrian Dell. Estrada has also made sporadic appearances in MSWA and NWA-TXO. If he can actually turn this Impact Division Title opportunity into a successful win, it may catapult him into the Top 10.
Current ranking: #13

13. Tim Rockwell. Rockwell and the Caballero Cartel have continued their wars against each other for the entirety of 2016 and the war has become almost an obsession. Rockwell has not ventured into other wrestling federations, choosing to make WFC his home. And he has stated many times that to him, the important fights are not the ones in the ring, but the ones he is doing for the children with cancer. Rockwell remains one of only 3 wrestlers to have appeared in every Top 50 list, but this year may see the end of that streak if he does not end this blood feud with the Caballero Cartel.
Current ranking: Unrated.

14. Spike/Spike Lopez. Spike has not competed in Oklahoma since November 20, 2015.
Current ranking: Unrated

15. Richie Adams: Adams captured the ComPro Title on February 13th and continues to reign as champion as of this writing. As such, he has chosen to devote his full attention to ComPro and taking on all challengers for that title. He has been remarkably successful in that venture and hopefully he will look outside of ComPro in the 2nd half of the year to face some other challenges.
Current ranking: #17

16. Johnny Z: The Owner, Founder and Natural Born Leader of IZW spent the first half of the year focused on eliminating Brad Michaels from IZW. Having accomplished that, Z spent the next 6 weeks or so as Co-Commissioner of IZW. In that time, he was mysteriously absent and made no decisions whatsoever before appointing his brother Jeff as the Co-Commissioner in his place. That all makes sense now as Z was revealed to be a member of the Future Hall of Famers at Evolution on July 16th. Like Jermaine Johnson, Z has remained relatively inactive in the period since Coronation, but now that he holds the IZW Title, we can look for him to step things back up as far as in-ring appearances. Or can we?
Current ranking: Unrated

17. Kevin Morgan. Kevin Morgan tends to be a very hyper-focused individual and the current target of that focus is Aaron Neil and the IZW Impact Division Title. Morgan is an IZW exclusive and like Tim Rockwell, has been engaged in a feud so bitter that it almost cost him his career, thanks to actions Neil took before an event 4 weeks ago. Morgan and Neil resolved nothing in their most recent encounter and one has to wonder how much longer Morgan can withstand the tactics of Neil.
Current ranking: #9

18. Spyder: Arguably the most popular competitor on the SRPW roster, Spyder has chosen to rest his laurels there and it has paid off as he is currently the SRPW United States Champion. But the first half of this year saw him compete in BCW, BPPW and EmpCW as well and it is possible he may venture back to at least 2 of those federations again. Spyder seems to enjoy being a big fish in a small pond, but he would really be best served by venturing into other territories and learning from wrestlers there.
Current ranking: #22

19. Skylar Slice: She calls herself Dominant and there is no arguing that she lives up to that name in the ring. Currently a dual champion as she holds the IZW Womens Title and the MSWA Ladies Title, Slice has destroyed competition where ever she has gone. And she has one many places just this year, including ComPro, IWR and NWA-TXO. Slice also continues to venture outside of Oklahoma as well. The only thing stopping her from being ranked higher is her own success, as she is rapidly running out of competitors willing to step in to the ring with her.
Current ranking: #27

20. Ray Martinez: If Spyder is the most popular wrestler in SRPW, Martinez stands as the Most Hated. He is also the current SRPW Champion, having defeated Spyder for that vacant title. But he is facing strong challenges from Spyder as well as rookie sensation Christopher Dean and the returning Psycho Sawyer. Martinez only competes in SRPW and since they have dropped to just one event a month, it seems unlikely that he will be ranking this high in 2016. He needs to get back out of his comfort zone and try to duplicate his success in SRPW elsewhere.
Current ranking: Unrated