No Longer a Lord

What happened to the push of Tensai?

The former A-Train returned to the promotion to much fan interest after several years away from WWE wrestling in Japan. During this time he improved as a worker and became a genuinely big star for Pro Wrestling NOAH.

His return was not only heralded by a series of vignettes but also a new character that was different to everything else on the roster. With his height and bulk, not to mention his improvement in the ring, the feeling was that Matt Bloom would receive a big push under the new guise of Lord Tensai. There were rumours he would be associated with then on-screen boss John Laurinaitis and feud with John Cena. It looked as though Bloom was going straight to the top.

Anyone who has been watching WWE programming over the last six months will know that this hasn’t happened.

Things started off well enough. Lord Tensai won his first few matches via squash and the commentary team went out of their way to put him over as an experienced competitor, mentioning his time in Japan and the fact that he had had a less than stellar run in WWE a decade before. This is rare behaviour for Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler. That they were putting Tensai over indicated that management had big plans for him.

It was only a few weeks after he’d returned to the promotion that Lord Tensai was permitted the ultimate honour: he defeated John Cena. He didn’t do it clean, David Otunga, John Laurinaitis and his personal manservant Sakamoto all involved themselves in the no disqualification bout and Tensai used the dreaded Green Mist™ finish, but it was still a promising sign. That he was booked to beat Cena, the company’s golden boy, in any fashion was big news.

 

Tensai has proven a textbook example of how to bury someone. Good work, John...

 

From there it all just… stopped. Tensai toppled Cena in a few more outings but it didn’t take ‘The CeNation Leader’ long to get his win back. There was no pay-per-view clash between the two and Tensai found himself without any actual storyline. He was simply hired muscle that happened to be doing a Japanese gimmick.

It wasn’t until July’s Money in the Bank, three months after he had returned to WWE, that Tensai wrestled on pay-per-view. He made up the numbers in the World Heavyweight championship MITB clash. By this point fans had accepted he wasn’t going to be used as a headliner: he had been booked to lose numerous times to wrestlers of varying status, from Cena to Tyson Kidd, and had numerous tweaks made to his character (such as the loss of his Lordship) that made him stand out less.

It’s a pity. Had WWE formulated a plan for using Tensai he could have been an interesting addition to the main event scene. His size allows him a surprising amount of versatility: he could be booked as a monster against the likes of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, muscle around giants like Kane and Big Show, or have an intense “slobberknocker” of a match with a guy like Sheamus.

Tensai is one of the few men on the roster who can get a bearable outing from John Cena. WWE can still book this match whenever they like but we’ve seen it several times over the last few months and it won’t feel particularly special anymore.

Had Tensai decisively beaten Cena at Over The Limit and No Way Out he could then have been used as a contender to World Heavyweight champion Sheamus at Money in the Bank. Had that happened then ‘The Celtic Warrior’s’ run with Alberto Del Rio wouldn’t have outstayed its welcome and there would have been a purpose to Tensai’s return to the company.

As things stand right now Tensai is lost in the mid-card and doesn’t look as though he’ll be doing anything meaningful any time soon. Another wasted chance by WWE’s creative team.

Prime Time

At No Way Out, in one of the many unadvertised matches to make it on to a WWE pay-per-view this year, Abraham Washington (who now bills himself simply as AW) turned on his clients Epico, Primo and Rosa Mendes and helped the Prime Time Players win a four team number one contenders match, which also included the Usos and Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd. The likelihood is that this swerve turn was not the plan when AW originally became the manager of Epico and Primo. That doesn’t matter. It was a good move.

Since being placed with AW in the weeks following WrestleMania the former tag team champions have done very little. They originally joined AW’s All World talent stable because they were tired of being left off television. Ironically their affiliation with AW resulted in them getting even fewer matches but it didn’t matter, we were told they were biding their time and waiting before instigating their contractually obligated championship rematch.

AW becoming the agent for the Prime Time Players is a much better use of him. Titus O’Neil and Darren Young have few things going for them but they are at least enthusiastic about their job and appear dedicated to improving. AW will help cover their weaknesses and make them a more rounded act.

AW and the Prime Time Players: for better or for worse the future of WWE's tag team division

The PTPs have been getting regular matches on RAW and SmackDown, winning a lot, and have been allowed to experiment with their on-screen characters. Those are all signs that somebody in the organisation thinks they have potential. While I don’t agree with that view at least WWE are giving a new act a consistent push that is mindful of their current skill level.

I actually think part of the reason for switching AW over to the Prime Time Players was to allow WWE to book a tag team feud. With R-Truth injured he and championship partner Kofi Kingston are unable to engage in a proper feud right now. Using Epico and Primo as avenging babyfaces is a good way to keep building Young and O’Neil before they’re able to take the gold from Kingston and Truth. In the long run it will be good too: a deep doubles division needs more than one face unit and if Epico and Primo are handled well they could fit the bill nicely.

I would assume WWE will either wait until Truth is injury free or, if too much time elapses, book either some sort of injury angle with ‘The Suntan Superman’ that means Kofi must defend alone or find a replacement partner (I’ve suggested Zack Ryder for the role). Of those options I think the injury angle and handicap match approach is best as it clearly illustrates the underhanded nature of the Prime Time Players, and the unjust nature of the title change would make people anticpate a rematch that little bit more.

What scant future the WWE tag team division has is linked to the Prime Time Players. They may not be great but they’re better than nothing. On the bright side WWE clearly has interest in them and AW should help them a more bearable act. Sooner or later they’ll get their hands on the ugly tag straps: that’s when they’ll really have their chance to prove they belong.

No Way Out preview

Banned substances, a concussion, the Brazilian flag and a broken foot have all played a part in limiting WWE's booking options for this Sunday's No Way Out. Despite this I am confident it will be a satisfactory show.
 
Original plans for the show called for Randy Orton to tangle with Chris Jericho. ‘Y2J’ got himself suspended after an incident on a house show (read about that here), so WWE quickly rearranged things so that ‘The Viper’ would face Dolph Ziggler instead. Then Orton got suspended too (read about that here). Meanwhile Sheamus had been set to defend the World Heavyweight championship against Alberto Del Rio. Those plans changed too, after ‘The Essence of Excellence’ suffered a concussion at the June 5^th SmackDown taping.

Doing the smart thing WWE decided to once again rely on Dolph Ziggler to plug the gap. That's something I predicted would happen on Monday evening (see this). I'm glad it did: the styles of the two men complement each other nicely and I'm confident they'll produce something memorable.

Dolph Ziggler has the chance to impress opposite Sheamus at No Way Out. He'll make the most of the opportunity

 
I don't expect 'The Heel' to go over. Not only is he a late replacement for someone else (and for the record I don't think ADR would've won either) but WWE are building Sheamus into a babyface star. Part of their plan is to give 'Great White' a lengthy title reign. I can't see him losing the WHC until SummerSlam at the earliest.
 
Cody Rhodes v Christian should be a solid mid-card attraction. Both men are good wrestlers and get the desired reaction from crowds. This feud hasn't really been built up a great deal, which is surprising when you consider it's a pay-per-view rematch featuring two of the company's most reliable guys and there have been few other feuds draining TV time recently.
 
I'll be surprised if Rhodes regains the gold on Sunday. He had a month-long reign ended at last month’s Over The Limit: what was the purpose of that loss if he gets the title back again so soon? I predict a loss for Cody to free him up for bigger and better things in the coming months. Hopefully that will be a rivalry with Sheamus or CM Punk.
 
The Layla v Beth Phoenix match doesn't interest me any more than their match at Over The Limit did. The best we can hope for is a post-match return from Kharma to destroy Layla as ‘The Glamazon’ watches on, setting up a feud between the two. The match could really go either way, mainly because WWE pays so little attention to the booking of its women’s division these days. Kharma is the best thing that could happen to the Divas and their title right now.
 
For the third time in the space of four pay-per-views there is a stipulation bout that will see John Laurinaitis fired if he or a wrestler representing him suffers a loss. In this instance the stip is attached to the Big Show v John Cena cage collision. That, coupled with Cena's position as the face of the company and Show's as current most-pushed heel act, leads me to believe this match will go on last.
 
It won't be a pretty affair. In fact it will struggle to be enjoyable. Both men can produce decent matches against the right opponent but not against each other. They've clashed before and have never created a bout anything better than adequate (and I'm being generous there). The match will inevitably feature a few failed AA attempts from Cena before he eventually powers Show up for the move towards the end if the match. Women and small children will then marvel at how strong Cena is.
 
Who's going to win? It's not as clear cut as previous Laurinaitis-centric matches have been. I'm going to predict a victory for Cena. There are rumours that a new job title will be given to Laurinaitis soon (Assistant to the Board of Directors has been mentioned) so a loss for Show seems a distinct possibility.
 
Will Vince McMahon recover from his storyline concussion and appear at ringside for this match? I think he will. If he does, a swerve-turn wouldn't surprise me. I mainly think that’s possible because over the years Vince has developed the habit of returning to television as a babyface only to become a heel again very quickly (and usually with a hilariously nonsensical reason for doing so).
 
The final match to mention is CM Punk v Daniel Bryan v Kane for Punk's WWE championship. 'The Big Red Monster's' addition to this match is peculiar at best, offensive at worst. I would imagine that Vince’s mindset is that fans are "wrong" to enjoy a match between two men who cannot be considered the creations of WWE. Kane has probably been stuck into proceedings because Vince sees it as a way of "proving" a star he "made" can make the match better.
 
He's wrong.
 
Another Punk v Bryan singles match after their excellent exchange at Over The Limit would have been a great addition to the card. The inclusion of Bryan's on-screen ex AJ was just about tolerable because it didn't detract from the assured quality of the bout. Kane takes things a step too far and can only harm the work rate of the encounter. At this point our best hope is that Kane gets moved on to something else and Punk v Bryan clash again at Money in the Bank.

This poster could indicate that AJ will cost Daniel Bryan the WWE title, but that would assume that WWE has booking plans in place months in advance at a time when these posters are created. That's not the case...

This match could still be the best of the night. Kane is not a bad wrestler, he just needs the right opponents in order to truly shine. The two former ROH stars certainly fit the bill there. Recent booking developments make AJ-related shenanigans inevitable but I'm confident they'll be kept to a minimum during the match itself. I'm predicting Punk will keep hold of the title.
 
On paper No Way Out looks as though it will be average. As I stated above I expect it to be at least satisfactory, and wouldn’t be surprised if it veered into very good territory. My advice regarding pay-per-views carders (read more on that here) has not been taken but at least they made the right move in giving Dolph Ziggler a match with Sheamus. I'm looking forward to that far more than I was the original Sheamus v Del Rio match. If Ziggler doesn't put in a world class showing on Sunday I'll eat my hat.
 
Predictions summary
John Cena to defeat Big Show
CM Punk to defeat Daniel Bryan and Kane
Sheamus to defeat Dolph Ziggler
Christian to defeat Cody Rhodes
Layla to defeat Beth Phoenix

The Way Out (of a Tight Spot)

Last weekend was not a good one for WWE.
 
First it was confirmed that tag team champion R-Truth has suffered a broken foot and will be unable to compete for the immediate future. That's the same problem keeping Kofi Kingston's last tag team partner, Evan Bourne, on the sidelines. Is KK cursed?
 
That was followed by the news that Alberto Del Rio may have suffered a concussion at the June 5^th SmackDown taping and be unable to participate in his scheduled World Heavyweight title match at No Way Out. That potentially leaves leaves current gold-holder Sheamus without anyone to face.
 
Sunday's No Way Out pay-per-view was already restricted by the lack of Randy Orton and Chris Jericho (who were scheduled to clash in a singles outing). Losing Del Rio is a further blow to an already bedraggled lineup.
 
At least they still have Big Show v John Cena. Phew!
 
While R-Truth didn't have a match announced for No Way Out there's a very strong chance something would have been set up on this week's TV shows. The company routinely relies on the tag champs to fill up the undercard and considering the lack of big names at the booking team's disposal I would have been surprised if 'The Suntan Super Man' (along with Kofi Kingston) hadn't been given something to do.
 
The fact that ADR has to sit the show out is a greater concern because he had a match announced. WWE have been preparing a proper feud between Sheamus and Del Rio for a couple of months which makes this news even more irritating for the organisation: they must continue to wait before promoting Sheamus v Del Rio one-on-one on pay-per-view. That was to be one of the key matches of the show and the company now has to scrabble to find something suitable to replace it.
 
Fortunately neither problem is insurmountable. In fact it's an opportunity for the promotion to surprise its audience and give new talent a chance to shine.
 
Truth's injury is mainly a problem because he's recognised as a champion. WWE do not rely on him to shift merchandise or carry big feuds, he's just there to produce mid-card matches that keep the audience happy until more important performers comes along. As such it's not too difficult to find a replacement for him.
 
Sin Cara is an option: putting him in a tag team decreases his in-ring time without decreasing his standing in the organisation, and his style would mesh well with Kofi's. Personally I'd give the spot to Zack Ryder as I believe he's more over, has more potential to become a big star and would find greater chemistry with Kofi.
 
The simplest solution is to have Kingston cut a promo on RAW acknowledging Truth's injury before announcing Ryder (or whoever) as his new tag team championship partner. Follow that up with them winning a match against one of WWE's handful of other units (Hunico and Camacho would be my choice) only to get attacked afterwards by Epico and Primo. Have Abraham Washington declare that the former champs are (finally) ready to have their contractually obligated rematch at No Way Out and there's a decent mid-card bout with a reason for happening booked and ready to go.

Zack Ryder would make a good tag team partner for Kofi Kingston

 
Finding a new challenger for Sheamus may at first seems difficult but the obvious thing to do is hold a number one contenders battle royal on SmackDown and have Dolph Ziggler win. This approach could also be used to elevate a new babyface star by having them survive continual elimination attempts and being the final man thrown out by 'The Show Off.' Justin Gabriel or Tyson Kidd would be the ideal candidates but Derrick Bateman or possible even a newcomer from FCW could work too.
 
Ziggler has warranted a higher position on the card for a while now and this is the perfect way to give it to him. He's talented enough to leave the option open for a title switch on the big night, though I think that would be ill-advised. 'Great White' needs a lengthy run as champion if he is to become the top face WWE want him to be. He has more potential opponents as champion than does 'The Heel.' He needs the belt until at least SummerSlam if I'm any judge. Ziggler or ADR should be used to relieve him of the it only when the time is right.
 
If WWE were to take this approach I think No Way Out would be a solid show. If Del Rio does end up missing the card I truly hope Ziggler gets to replace him. He's WWE's best bet for a new headline bad guy right now.

Sixty Days Without Orton

Last week WWE announced the suspension of Chris Jericho. This week they've announced the suspension of Randy Orton. While 'Y2J's' time off is linked to his behaviour at a house show 'The Viper' finds himself on the sidelines due to a violation of the company’s Wellness Policy.
 
This is Orton's third suspension during his WWE career but only the second that has been Wellness related. Previously he has served a thirty day suspension for smoking a banned substance backstage and a sixty day suspension due to incidents related to his anger management issues (which he has since overcome if you believe what he says in interviews). This now puts 'The Apex Predator' in the undesirable position of being one Wellness slip-up away from a future endeavour.
 
It also leaves WWE with a big gap to fill at the top of their next pay-per-view. Orton and Jericho had both been a part of the excellent four-way World Heavyweight title bout at Over The Limit and work had already begun on the plan to segue them into a one-on-one feud for No Way Out on June 17th. When it was announced Jericho was being suspended the silver lining was that somebody would get promoted for a supershow showdown with Orton. With both men suspended WWE finds itself lacking two established stars that could work with an upper mid-card talent and give them the rub.

Randy Orton is going to have lots of time for sitting down over the next two months

 
It's not all bad though. While an Orton v Jericho match would have been a nice addition to the PPV it hadn't had that much time dedicated to it, meaning the amount of effort that has been wasted is minimal. Furthermore WWE can always book the feud later in the year and there's now free time at No Way Out to give to some of the roster's fresh prospects. Coincidentally this is exactly what I discussed in my previous article (which you can read here).

WWE's team of writers have until Monday to concoct some entertaining and engrossing mid-card storylines to fill the next fortnight of television with. The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Santino and Zack Ryder are all deserving of increased exposure and would benefit greatly from working in a feature pay-per-view bout. The tag team of Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd looked promising before 'There Werewolf of Cape Town' got injured, a match between them and Truth in Paradise (or whatever they're being called this week) would serve as an ideal pay-per-view opener. Meanwhile Antonio Cesaro, Damien Sandow and Ryback are all making steady progress establishing themselves in WWE and would receive a boost by having a match announced for a supershow.
 
Now is the perfect time to reward these men by giving them time to shine on a big show. The key is to give every match a little history so shows don't feel rushed and cobbled together.
 
Randy Orton made a foolish mistake. He's fortunate that he's in the position he's in: being one of WWE's few bankable stars he can afford to do things like this and suffer only light repercussions. If he were further down the roster he would risk having his push curtailed and perhaps even getting fired. As it is he will return to the same spot he's had for many years once he’s served his sixty days because WWE finds it so difficult to create stars of his level.
 
It's not fair and it's not right but that's the WWE system for you. Nothing will protect ‘The Viper’ in the future though. His next violation will be his last. Let's just hope he learns his lesson before both he and the company he works for pay the price.

Over The Limit preview

WWE has been doing great work introducing new wrestlers to its TV product since WrestleMania. It's a shame the approach hasn't been extended to pay-per-views. Newcomers Damien Sandow, Ryback and Antonio Cesaro are all absent from this Sunday's supercard. Instead of an announced match featuring one of the newcomers WWE are (apparently) trying to establish as the stars of tomorrow we have a show with only five confirmed bouts, one of which features a clash between on-screen authority figure and failed wrestler John Laurinaitis and limited, overexposed muscleman John Cena. The supposed stars of tomorrow don't get a look-in.
 
When Cena v Laurinaitis was announced I assumed shortcuts would be added in the form of a relaxed rules gimmick match or guest referee (I was hoping David 'Botch Machine' Otunga). That would have allowed the combatants the luxury of having to worry about match quality even less than they will anyway. Surprisingly no shortcuts have been added. Instead WWE have stuck to this being a straight singles match, even going so far as to introduce a stipulation that anyone caught interfering would have their contract terminated.
 
Unfortunately that presents us with an all too predictable finishing sequence. Monday's RAW saw the storyline firing of Big Show because he failed to provide a satisfactory apology for making fun of John Laurinaitis's voice (yes, really) which the GM had made a sackable offence the previous week.
 
That development could be leading elsewhere but it seems to me a very simple way of having someone interfere in the match without terminating them. Big Show could help Laurinaitis to win, regaining his job and setting him up as the next opponent for Cena. The stipulation that Laurinaitis will be fired if he loses (an addition made by the Board of Directors) makes me inclined to believe that Cena is going to lose this one. There are no alternatives for the on-screen authority role (no, Triple H isn't an option: he's being used as a recurring character and is preparing for a feud with Brock Lesnar) so if Laurinaitis lost who would take over?
 
I expect the match will go on last and be an absolute abomination. Laurinaitis is a trained wrestler but he's not wrestled regularly for over a decade. By all accounts (including YouTube) he wasn't much good even in his "prime." There are men in WWE who may be capable of dragging a bearable match from him but John Cena certainly isn't one of them.
 
While Cena v Laurinaitis exemplifies the sports entertainment approach to wrestling WWE has popularised over the past three decades it could be considered that the WWE title match between champion CM Punk and challenger Daniel Bryan represents independent wrestling at its finest. Both men made names for themselves prior to signing with WWE, in particular Ring of Honor where they both enjoyed reigns with the promotion's prestigious world belt. They are not sports entertainment Superstars, they're wrestlers.
 
The expectations for Punk and Bryan to produce something memorable are understandably high. Both have received strong pushes over the last year and both have formidable reputations when it comes to quality wrestling bouts. This is undoubtedly the match that should go on last but I'm sure it's destined to play second fiddle to Johns Cena and Laurinaitis.
 
I expect this match to be the best of the night. I'm picking CM Punk to leave as the champion. I wouldn't be massively surprised if Daniel Bryan won because he's so talented and someone WWE management clearly see as a reliable headliner but such a switch would jar with recent booking. It's not impossible but it is unlikely.
 
Beth Phoenix v Layla should have been built up into something special but the creative team have let the Divas down. Again. WWE has the talent to create a decent Divas division (Layla, Phoenix, the waiting-in-the-wings Kharma, Natalya and the ever-improving Tamina) but continually fails to do so. Because of this approach very few people actually care about the Divas or their title. It's almost impossible not to regard women's matches on a WWE show with disinterest.
 
I imagine this will be standard Divas fare. That means it will be booked as filler. I will only be interested in it if Kharma returns, which isn't an impossibility. She could come back to attack the winner, establishing her as the next challenger. In an ideal world that would be Layla, which would allow Kharma to capture the pink belt in a squash and have Beth Phoenix chasing her.
 
A winner? I'll pick Layla. Why? I'm hopeful WWE are going to do the right thing.
 
If the Divas division is in a bad way the tag team scene can only be described as worse. The doubles gold is thrown on to any two convenient singles guys who aren't doing anything else and gets sporadically defended before a new duo gets slotted together at the last minute to take the gold, leaving the original duo to fade into obscurity and never regain their prize. It's a frustrating approach as there are so many men on the roster doing nothing of value that it would easy to create three or four new teams and start work on rebuilding the division. The company sees no value in tag teams though, so we're unlikely to see that cycle change any time soon.
 
The match in and of itself will be good. Ziggler is one of WWE's best talents while Kingston and Swagger could both be bigger stars than they are if given the chance. R-Truth is the odd one out in that he's never going to produce the best matches on a show but he does stand out thanks to his gimmick. It should be a fun diversion. Ideally it will open the show or be placed around the mid-way point to break things up a bit. If we get to see 'The Show Off' interact with Little Jimmy so much the better.
 
As good as Swagger and Ziggler are as a team and as much as they would be the ideal candidates to head the division I don't think we'll see a title change. The promotion seems intent on pushing Air Truth, or whatever name they're going by this week, for the foreseeable future.
 
Finally there's the four-way World Heavyweight championship match. Had WWE concocted a long-term booking plan they could have given us two singles matches at this show and held off the four-way for next month's No Way Out. A World title match between Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio and a number one contendership match between Orton and Jericho (ending in some form of shenanigans to get them both into the title picture for June) would have been the better approach.
 
That would have allowed the four-way to come about naturally and given each man more room to breathe as a performer, rather than all cramming into one match slot. It would have bulked the card up to six matches too. That would have been a big positive: a five match pay-per-view seems a paltry offering for the biggest wrestling company in the world.

Proof, if proof were needed, that being on the poster of a WWE pay-per-view does not ensure the show will be built around you

 
The booking of Orton over the last few weeks could be the groundwork for a heel turn. That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing: while he keeps getting good reactions as a blue eye he's not been part of a decent feud since the beginning of the year and there are several babyface stars 'The Viper' could elevate if he were to switch to the dark side. If that is the plan I don't expect him to turn at Over The Limit. While WWE generally rushes things these days they tend to book their bigger stars with care. It's something to bear in mind though.
 
I'd like this match to be great. It has the potential to be but something tells me it will fall short. Its quality will depend on Jericho not being sloppy and the crowd popping for face versus face action when 'The Apex Predator' and 'Great White' clash. Neither is assured.
 
Sheamus is my pick to win. WWE are said to want him to have a lengthy title run (which I agree he needs as it would help to establish him as a reliable good guy that fans can believe in) and I'm of the opinion that none of the other competitors have been adequately prepared to replace him at the top.
 
On the whole OTL looks like another lacklustre WWE B show. However I'm pretty sure that was the sentiment I expressed before Extreme Rules and that turned out to be very good. Laurinaitis v Cena aside (and even that has novelty value) every announced match could conceivably be worthwhile if given enough time and the right finish. Let's hope WWE pulls off another surprise performance.

Predictions summary:

John Laurinaitis to defeat John Cena
CM Punk to defeat Daniel Bryan
Sheamus to defeat Alberto Del Rio, Chris Jericho and Randy Orton
R-Truth and Kofi Kingston to defeat Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger
Layla to defeat Beth Phoenix