Wrestler of the Year

CM Punk.In 2012, nobody could touch CM Punk, and the WWE champion received more nominations than anyone, or anything, in any category of this vote. The 34-year-old grappler cemented his place among WWE's untouchable elite by wearing the title throughout the entire year - a remarkable achievement for a grappler in this era.

Punk often played second fiddle to John Cena, yet amassed a body of work that was the envy of every grappler on the scene. Televised matches with Mark Henry were extremely compelling, while his feud with Chris Jericho yielded a fine WrestleMania XXVIII bout, and a cracking Streetfight at Extreme Rules. His series with Daniel Bryan barely grazed main events, yet resulted in WWE's most consistent tussles of the year.

In July, Punk turned heel, attacking The Rock on Raw's 1000th show, memorably hyping their Royal Rumble 2013 clash. At Night Of Champions, his match with John Cena was one of WWE's most exhilarating contests of the year. His November 12 angle with Jerry Lawler angered some fans, but was unquestionably another great showing for him on the microphone, facilitating an even better one with Mick Foley. He lost a little momentum in all-too-basic matches with Ryback, but ended his year on a high note, with a staggering exchange opposite Ric Flair on the December 17 Raw.

Punk has hit numerous home-runs over the past 24 months, having been afforded a greater opportunity to shine than any unconventional superstar that came before him. WWE has made mistakes with him, but he continues to excel as someone who appeals to sections of the fan-base who are disillusioned with the overall direction of the company.

Totals: 1. CM Punk: 62%; 2. Austin Aries: 22%; 3. Bobby Roode: 5%

Others (inc. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, James Storm, and Kevin Steen): 11%

Awards issue is Issue 89, You can purchase it from the front page of the site.