John Cena's Sweet Sixteen

Over the last year much has been made of the fact that John Cena's next world title win will tie him with Ric Flair's record of sixteen. Ever since he lost his fifteenth world championship at SummerSlam 2014 we've been hearing rumour through The Dirt Sheets™ that WWE wants to have Cena's next win and the reign it kicks off be big deals. We heard it mentioned on-screen leading up to SummerSlam this year, Cena's first title shot since January's Royal Rumble, with him specifically name-dropping Flair and announcing that he wants to reach that milestone.

This makes sense. With only one man having been as prolific as Cena when it comes to winning world titles it's entirely understandable that WWE would want to focus on that journey as a story. Cena equalling a record tally is a logical, understandable plot for wrestling because it focuses on wins and losses and the importance of titles. It's also something that has never really been done before in wrestling, at least not in the exact circumstance of someone tying Flair.

The thing is that Cena's world title win won't see him equal Flair's actual record. It will see him equal the WWE approved record, the one that discounts a number of 'Naitch's' early NWA world championship victories. For what it's worth Flair is said to privately consider himself something like a twenty-one time world champ. Not that Flair's private feelings or the legitimate number of title reigns he's had actually matters. What matters is that Flair is known as a sixteen time world champion and Cena's next win will see tie this.

The once and future champ.

When it comes (and it will come) Cena's next WWE championship reign needs to be something memorable¹. Running through standard issue title defences against Rollins, Kane and Orton won't cut it if WWE wants to do the story they're going for justice. What is the story they're going (or will be going) for? That in winning sixteen world championships Cena, who is frequently lambasted as a poor wrestler with little understanding of selling and ring psychology, is every bit as good as Ric Flair, who is frequently held up as the greatest professional wrestler ever.

A long title reign will be needed to do this story justice and for a long title reign WWE will need plenty of challengers. Right now there are very few people who could believably defeat Cena on pay-per-view. The number who could defeat him for a world title is even smaller, especially such an importantly numbered title. And if a long Cena title reign is to work in 2015 or beyond then the audience should be able to feel that Cena could lose in any defence, adding to the drama of each match, therefore heightening reactions and making the achievement of each successful retention seem greater.

Had one of Cena's allegedly star-making feuds against Bray Wyatt, Rusev or Kevin Owens gone differently over the last eighteen months things could be different. Had Cena left any one of those feuds without getting a victory then the opponent in question would be perfectly positioned as a title challenger for 'Big Match John' come his next world title reign. They could have been presented as the only man of the last decade Cena had failed to defeat and a favourite in a title match against him. Basically, Cena losing more in these programmes would have made a victory for him at a later point a bigger deal.

Rusev in particular could have been great in this role. Had WWE thought enough about it 'The Bulgarian Brute' could have been built up as Cena's gateway to a sixteenth world title. Had Rusev dropped Cena on three or four straight pay-per-views he would have been established as a juggernaut and a natural contender to the WWE world title. He could have won that from Rollins, either in a singles match (in the right city Rollins could have played the face) or a three-way including someone like Ambrose, Lesnar or Reigns to give people a face to get behind, and gone on to have a few months as a dominant world champion. Cena could have gone on his undercard quest to find himself (the Open Challenge thing could have worked as Cena testing himself instead of as a US title reign) before challenging Rusev to a world title match and beating him. This would have seen Cena finally getting the victory that had eluded him, ending Rusev's undefeated streak, and equalling the sixteen title reigns record in one match.

But, sadly, nobody in WWE seems to think that far ahead.

The good news is that Cena's next world title win is unlikely to roll around until next year.  Roman Reigns seems like the natural choice to take the belt from current champ Seth Rollins, likely at WrestleMania 32 Star in Texas next April. It's unlikely Reigns' inaugural world title run would last less than four months, which would take him through to SummerSlam, a fitting stage for Cena's big win. Next August gives WWE plenty of time to rebuild Rusev, Owens and Wyatt, along with preparing other acts like Cesaro, Stardust and Ryback, giving Cena the stacked roster he needs to make his sixteenth world title reign the success it deserves to be.

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¹ The irony here is that Flair's final WCW world title reigns were massively underwhelming. The fifteenth world title reign of Ric Flair began on an episode of Nitro and lasted seven days, ending when he was stripped of the belt by Vince Russo. Jeff Jarrett then won the title later on the same show and lost it the following evening to Kevin Nash at a Thunder taping. 'Big Sexy' then handed the title back to Flair on the following Nitro², with Flair going on to lose the title back to Jarrett later on in the show.

Yes, that means Flair's famed sixteenth world title reign began with Kevin Nash handing him the belt and lasted less than two hours. Woooooo!

Jericho, the Countdown Tolls for Thee

We’re told Chris Jericho is the best in the world at what he does. Unless he means he’s the best in the world at making short returns to wrestling in between album recordings to produce boring matches and even more boring promos I think he’s wrong. And he probably doesn’t mean that. Because the thing with Chris Jericho, the thing that shines through in any interview he gives or any comment he makes on his podcast, is that he really believes he’s something special.

Back in the Attitude Era, yes, ‘Y2J’ was a man worth watching. The same can be said of the ultra-serious Jericho of the mid- to late-naughties. With the right opponent he’d put on a great match. With the right topic he’d give a cracking promo. He had a positive contribution to make and he was keen to make it.

Nowadays things are different. Jericho still seems eager to contribute, an attitude which is to be applauded, but he’s only willing to do so on his terms, which isn’t. By allowing ol’ ‘Lionheart’ to saunter back in whenever he fancies and pick who he works with (because he only agrees to return if what’s being offered is of interest) WWE ensures they have someone on TV who can’t build up any real momentum and who can’t fully draw people into a feud because it’s known that he won’t be sticking around for long. This can, and does, lead to people being shuffled into a rivalry with Jericho when his schedule permits, as opposed to when it feels natural.

You're 43, mate.

Jericho’s most recent return has seen him mostly working with Bray Wyatt. I don’t think anything about the programme enhanced Wyatt’s standing (or Jericho’s for that matter, not that that was the purpose of the exercise). He lost a poor match at Battleground, won a better but still not great return at SummerSlam, and then walked out of an enjoyable cage match victorious on the September 8 RAW. The feud also saw some forgettable matches pitting Jericho against Erick Rowan and Luke Harper and some weak verbal outings between the rivals.

The disappointing promos are the fault of both men. While they were never horrendous I think it was fair to expect more considering the reputation of both. Ultimately their feud was revealed to be about Wyatt taking exception to Jericho having called himself a saviour over the last fifteen years. It’s not the worst reason for two guys to wrestle but it’s also not the best, and they rambled around the topic a lot.

The match quality is also the fault of both men although Jericho, as the senior party who insists on coming back to work with the younger guys, should shoulder a little more of the responsibility. They improved over time but they never really clicked. It was also frustrating that WWE ended up giving away what turned out to be their best encounter on free TV instead pay-per-view.

 

And now Jericho's been slipped into a meaningless spat with Randy Orton. Because why not?

At this point I really wouldn’t mind if Jericho moved away from wrestling permanently. I’d like to see him return for a final, well planned run culminating in a retirement angle, ideally at a WrestleMania, because he’s earned that, both with his career in general and contributions to WWE specifically. But it’s been years since his work has been of the quality we should be able to expect of his experience and position on the card. It’s great that he’s willing to lose to younger guys clean and make them look strong, but how much does that mean when he’s not fully capable of doing it?

SummerSlam 2014 review

August 25, 2002. SummerSlam. Brock Lesnar, Paul Heyman in his corner, stood across the ring from record-setting seven time WWE champion The Rock. He had been built up as an unstoppable monster and everyone knew he was taking the gold from ‘The Great One’.

August 17, 2014. SummerSlam. Brock Lesnar, Paul Heyman in his corner, stood across the ring from record-setting twelve time WWE champion John Cena. He had been built up as an unstoppable monster and everyone knew he was taking the gold from ‘The Leader of The CeNation’.

It’s funny how things sometimes work out in WWE. I suspect the original plan for SummerSlam was not Lesnar v Cena but Lesnar v Bryan. The parallels with his first title win twelve years earlier would still have been there but they wouldn’t have been as strong. He’d have been (we can assume) defeating an undeniably popular champion in D-Bry but not a record setter or the face of the company. He also wouldn’t have been facing the only man who’d beaten him who he hadn’t beaten back since his return to WWE in 2012.

WWE was blessed with this main event. But before it came, there was an entire show. We should probably start by talking about that.

Hulk Hogan kicked things off with a hype promo. He didn't go to the ring. Instead he stood at the top of the ramp, letting informed fans know that his presence would be mercifully brief. ‘The Hulkster’ reminded everyone that SummerSlam is important and that the WWE Network costs just $9.99 (though he failed to specify that’s a monthly charge). That was his entire involvement. Good call from WWE. If there’s a star of Hogan’s magnitude available for a packed show they should use them, but only in a very limited role.

A video aired looking at the evening's chief feuds. Stephanie McMahon was referred to as 'The Billionaire Baroness'. That was pretty amusing. The video was, predictably, of a pretty high standard. The WWE team had done a good job putting it together.

The opening match saw The Miz defending the Intercontinental championship against Dolph Ziggler. 'The Awesome One' wittered on about being a legit movie star as he walked to the ring. He's not. He also promised to beat Ziggler. He wouldn’t.

Ziggler threw himself about on offence in the opening moments, which the crowd ate up. Miz took a powder a couple of times before taking control with a rough Irish whip and a kick to the temple. A "You can't wrestle!" chant broke out as he applied a sleeper. Ziggler started a comeback with a fist to the gut as Miz went for axe handle, following up with a neck breaker.

Miz dodged a Fameasser and threw the challenger over the top rope. Dolph skinned the cat back into the ring (which always seems strange outside of a Royal Rumble setting) and went for a super kick. Miz shied away to protect his face so Ziggler school boyed him. Miz kicked out. Dolph countered a figure four and gave Miz a big punch and a super kick for a two count. It was pretty convincing.

Title changes were a theme on this show.

Miz left the ring again, grabbing his belt with his intention clearly being to leave. Dolph caught him with a baseball slide but then found himself in Miz's devastating figure four moments later. It’s so devastating, in fact, that Miz never wins with it. Ziggler escaped after a minute or so and flattened Miz with a Fameasser. The champ no sold it and immediately floored 'The Show Off' with an SCF. The crowd roared approval when Ziggler kicked out. They roared louder moments later when he gave Miz a Zig Zag and pinned him to earn his second Intercontinental title.

It was a great opener. They packed a lot in to their slender run time and the crowd was into both guys. I hope it signals a new beginning for WWE's mid-card, one in which Ziggler and the IC title are the centre of attention and the importance of the white belt is emphasised. But I’ve expressed this sentiment before.

Backstage Brie Bella was interviewed. She said the (storyline) charges she'd be held over earlier in the week were bogus, called Steph a "she-beast" and announced she'd take her out (presumably meaning “of action” as opposed to “for a nice dinner”). She said her actions would be what’s best for business.

Out in the arena Paige skipped out to the ring to get her Divas championship back. The match was preceded by recaps of the two previous title changes between the two (in April and June on post-PPV episodes of RAW) and a handshake... which quickly turned into biting from AJ. They brawled around ringside before Paige took control by dropping AJ first face onto the crowd barrier.

The champ came back when she shoved 'The Anti-Diva' off the top rope to the floor and then followed her down with a cross body block. Moments later they were back in the ring and AJ was kneeing Paige in the face. Paige tried for the Paige Turner. AJ reversed into the Black Widow. Paige reversed that into the Ram-Paige small package DDT. That earned her a three count and her second Divas title. They had the best match they could with not much time. I'm still convinced they could do something special if they had fifteen minutes to play with.

Match three was a flag match, the winner of which would have their nation's flag hung over the ring as a statement of "pride and superiority." So that was something. JBL channelled the Cold War as Rusev and Lana walked to the ring. It's only been over for a few decades, after all. After Lana had called Hollywood a "golden fantasy land" and made a reference to “happy endings” Jack Swagger was marched to the ring by some US army dudes. That got the chant you'd expect and a decent pop for 'The Real American'.

Rusev jumped Swagger before the bell and had the ankle lock slapped on him for his trouble. Lana tried to call the match off claiming Rusev was too hurt. The match took place anyway, Rusev selling his ankle throughout. For his part Swagger sold his ribs, which had been (storyline) injured a few weeks earlier in a comical flag assault by Rusev. The injuries were introduced in part to make Rusev's victory, which he was awarded after Swags passed out in the Accolade, more impressive: 'The Super Athlete' was able to win despite suffering a serious injury seconds before the match began. Very Kurt Angle.

Rusev crushed.

After the match Rusev kicked Zeb Colter. Because you can never get enough cheap heat. The Russian flag was raised above the ring and the country's national anthem was played. The audience wasn't happy. The Rusev push continues.

Match four was Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins. It was preceded by a lengthy video looking at their history in The Shield and the feud they've had since Rollins turned on his comrades, essentially dissolving the group. I say it was a match, it was more a fight. The two concentrated more on closed fists than arm drags. Which made complete sense considering their history.

I'd expected the lumberjack stip to be something of a hindrance but they made good use of it. First they got over the unhinged nature of Ambrose's character by having him attack lumberjacks whenever he was tossed out of the ring. Then they used them as a human crash mat for diving and apron-to-the-floor suplex spots.

The former teammates eventually spilled out of the ring, passing the lumberjacks as they brawled into the crowd. That brought out Kane, who dispatched the mid-card to retrieve them. Ambrose was carried back to the ring while Rollins tried to make his escape. He got caught by the babyfaces and bodysurfed back to the ring, a lovely target for ‘The Lunatic Fringe’ to leap off the top rope onto. In the ring Seth escaped a Dirty Deeds but got flattened by a Nigel McGuinness-style rebound lariat. Ambrose gave him a Curb Stomp for good measure. The cover was broken up by Kane, which brought Goldust into the ring. He took a punch, which triggered a lumberjack brawl. The confusion allowed Rollins to sneak his Money in the Bank briefcase into the ring. A thump from that put Ambrose down for the three. It was a cracking, wild match, the finish of which kept things alive between the pair for another month without harming either's standing.

Up after that were Bray Wyatt and Chris Jericho. Before going further I'd like to note that Wyatt was wearing his brown leather apron when he entered. They had a solid match, one noticeably better than their Battleground offering. I think I'd probably have enjoyed it more if I were more invested in the 'Y2J' character. But I'm not. He doesn't interest me. If a wrestler can't make you care about them are they really that good? I’d argue they’re not.

The finish saw Wyatt get the advantage with a Samoan Spike and a Sister Abigail into the barricade before rolling him into the ring for a second, more traditional, Sister Abigail. Jericho was certainly protected by that: he only fell after he'd absorbed two finishers. 'The Eater of Worlds' took a microphone and said Jericho had found out what it meant to follow the buzzards. Then he sang.

Then, finally, it was time for the much-anticipated return to the ring of Stephanie McMahon. The former women's champion (because that's what Steph is) wore an outfit not dissimilar to Seth Rollins’, confirming another member of The Authority as a fan of Agents of SHIELD.

Brie threw some arm drags in the early going. Steph sold well but acted like the Hulk when she was on offence. The latter was pretty irritating, partly because Brie's selling didn't match (not should it have done, Stephanie should have acted more realistically). Mrs Bryan tried a suicide dive but took a punch to the face from the boss, followed by an impactful DDT. Brie came back with some kicks and a Thesz Press. She got a two count from a missile drop kick and pummelled Steph afterwards.

At this point Triple H strode out to ringside, followed by Nikki Bella. As Tripes stood on the apron, Nikki swatting ineffectually at his ankles, Steph went for the Pedigree. Brie countered into a Yes Lock, because married female wrestlers can only use their husbands' moves. 'The Game' yanked the ref from the ring before a Steph tap could be witnessed. Brie smacked him with a baseball slide and started a "Yes!" chant. The crowd got into that.

Who saw this swerve coming? Most people, to be honest.

Nikki slipped into the ring, pretending to stop Steph escaping before elbowing Brie in the face and hauling the boss to her feet. A Pedigree later Stephanie's music was playing. The Authority celebrated in the ring, slapping an unconscious Brie about because that's what heels do, as Nikki stood at ringside with a vacant expression on her face. She was probably meant to be emoting something. Remorse that things had to go that way? A feeling of vindication that her selfish sister had received her comeuppance? Who knows? The match, for the record, was exactly as good as it needed to be.

The penultimate bout saw Randy Orton tussle with Roman Reigns. They'd clashed a few times on RAW since WrestleMania and been involved in a ladder match and a four-way dance on the previous two pay-per-views so while this was a first time pay-per-view meeting it did not feel as fresh as it could have done. Still, both men got good reactions and Reigns was sporting some natty blue ring attire. That was nice.

They had a proficient match. It veered far too close to the standard Orton offering to be anything more. It wasn't bad but it wasn't as good as it could have been. The pace was just too slow, as it tends to be with Orton. The good news was that the crowd responded to Reigns when they needed to. That must have pleased the WWE creative heads.

The closing moments were pretty good, albeit played at the same glacial pace as the rest of the match. Reigns got a Superman punch but his follow up spear attempt was reversed into a power slam. The draping DDT set Reigns up for an RKO but he pushed out of it. A second Superman punch was reversed into an RKO. That got a believable false finish. Orton brought out his rarely seen punt kick but Reigns swiped his foe's foot aside and felled him with a spear. Roman Reigns got a victory in his first one-on-one pay-per-view match.

Lesnar versus Cena predictably had the best video of the night. Cena said he'd beat 'The One' and keep his championship. Lesnar said he'd leave Cena in a puddle of blood and urine and vomit. It was a great tone setter that would have served as an excellent introduction to the characters of both competitors, as well as conveying the significance of the meeting.

Lesnar's entrance was met with a roar of approval. Cena's was met with heavy boos. That trend continued during the in-ring introductions and throughout the match itself.

Champion and challenger started off pummelling one another on the mat. 'The Beast' quickly got the best of that and gave Cena a textbook F5. It was a great decision to through that in within the first minute as it brought the crowd to their feet and emphatically set Lesnar up as having the advantage. From there the match was practically all Lesnar. He mauled Cena around the ring, stomping, kneeing and suplexing him. That went on for several minutes, Cena only mustering a very brief comeback when he rushed Lesnar into a corner a fluttered at him with punches.

After a series of German suplexes Cena managed a sturdier comeback. Lesnar scooped him up to attempt an F5 but Cena escaped and gave him an AA. 'The Pain' kicked out of that, doing The Undertaker's sudden sit up afterwards. He was the first man back to his feet. Cena dashed at him but got taken down and pummelled with heavy rights and lefts. Then there were more German suplexes (in total, we were told, Lesnar landed sixteen German suplexes throughout the match) and shouts of "Die!" from Lesnar.

Brock Lesnar. Four time WWE champion.

Cena swiped Lesnar down to mat to apply the STF. Lesnar rolled out of it and smashed him in the face. Then he scooped him up and drove him into the mat with the second F5 of the match. A three count later and it was over. Brock Lesnar had won his fourth WWE championship.

Men and women in the crowd were shown looking shocked. A kid flickered across our screens, looking close to tears. The commentary team gushed about how impressive and dominant Lesnar had been in the match and reminded us that he's called 'The Conqueror' for a reason. The final shot of the show was Lesnar standing tall with the WWE championship and World Heavyweight championship belts slung across his shoulders.

The match was not a masterpiece. But to expect a masterpiece would have been to miss the point. Lesnar does not produce great wrestling matches. He hurts and dominates people, and that’s exactly what he did here. It was the most one-sided Cena match I can ever remember seeing. For that matter it was the most one-sided WWE championship match (that wasn’t some sort of angle) that I can ever remember seeing. It established Lesnar as unstoppable, a man who can and will obliterate anybody placed in his path.

Taken as a show on its own merits I think SummerSlam was probably the strongest WWE offering of the year so far. There wasn’t a single bad match and every match had a reason for happening and told a story. The first four matches were all very good or better, the McMahon v Bella match was surprisingly enjoyable, and the main event was, if nothing else, a compelling spectacle.

Taken as a show preparing things for the future SummerSlam is even better. There’s no guarantee WWE are going to follow through on the potential Ziggler as IC champion offers or make the AJ and Paige feud compelling, but they could do both and there are things that they will do. Ambrose and Rollins will keep their grudge alive. Something will happen between the Bella sisters, enjoyable or not. Most significantly Reigns’ ascension will continue and Lesnar has been set up as a monster champion. If the last two points don’t intertwine at WrestleMania 31 I’ll buy a hat and eat it.

Another Conversation With Dan Pryce

Last December I adapted a lengthy exchange left on a Facebook comment into a blog post (read it here). It was between myself and Dan Pryce. People who pay too much attention to this blog may remember Dan being referenced before and since that conversation-cum-blog post but it remains his sole contribution.

I thought it would be nice to change that. Because Dan’s a naturally funny and smart guy and it comes across surprisingly well in text (perhaps it helps if you know him, I’m not sure). Facebook conversations about wrestling between he and I are pretty frequent but it’s rare for them to rival the length and all-encompassing nonsense of the previous conversation post.

But there was one from the beginning of August that was mostly focused on the SummerSlam main event and what will follow it. As I still agree with everything I wrote here I thought it would be sensible to post this instead of retyping it all in a more traditional style. For the record Dan actually started the conversation with “In other news.” I want to clarify that so it’s clear nothing’s been cut out.

So now, for the second time ever, Dan Pryce contributes to That Wrestling Blog…

***

Dan: In other news, would they do Sting-Lesnar? Would they?

Lesnar beating Cena, then Sting dropping from the rafters would be a mark out moment. The resulting match would be drivel.

Dave: They might do the match. The rafters should be out of the question after Owen. I'd rather they went territories: turn out the lights for long enough for Steve to walk to the ring then put them back on. Massive pop and Heyman can sell a heart attack. Everyone wins.

But let me put this to you: would you rather Sting or The Rock make a post-main event SummerSlam cameo?

Dan: Rocky. Just a big stare-down. Though I'm pretty sure they're keeping Lesnar for Reigns. Or the returning Bryan. Though Bryan may never return. I don't think Reigns will be ready, even by WrestleMania. So The Rock. That was a roundabout way of getting to the same conclusion.

Dave: I think they're definitely saving Lesnar for Reigns. Doesn't mean they can't give him Sting or Rocky to go over at NOC or the Rumble. Something about the stretch of shows from October to December makes me feel they're beneath Rock and even Sting, who I've never understood the appeal of.

I've no interest in Sting v Lesnar if it happens. In fact I think I’d actively be against it. There's no reason for it to happen. They're not the sort of names who get tossed into the same "dream match" scenarios. And it would be awful.

On a related note I could see Lesnar sitting out Survivors to save his dates and a ten man tag headlining instead.

Dan: I'd like that. He'll defend against Cena at NOC, in a rematch. Because: who else? Batista return? Possible? Imminent?

Dave: Actually I think Batista's a likely candidate for a post-SummerSlam main event cameo. Or a return on the following night's RAW.

Dan: I'd like an Authority versus everybody else tag match. They haven't done one yet. Survivor Series would be the best place to hold it. You could have a team led by Aitch and a team led by Reigns. Some kind of ridiculous stipulation involving title rights or company control or some such. I always used to enjoy that. Putting your company up casually in a match.

Dave: Vince was crazy about defending the company in matches. Why did the board stand for it?!

Survivor match pitting Team Reigns v The Authority would be excellent. They could do some interesting things with teammates turning on teammates to set things up for future feuds. Triple H, Orton, Batista, Kane and Rollins versus Reigns, Ambrose, and three others. The three others bit is where things fall down. They don't have a deep enough roster.

It'd probably be the Usos, which makes me want to weep.

Dan: Why they never do this anymore befuddles me. They could use Survivor Series to set up big Royal Rumble feuds to set up big 'Mania feuds. But there's no progression. Remember progression?

Dave: I do. Vince doesn't.

Dan: Stardust. Titus O'Gator. And Alicia Fox. That’s a team!

Dave: In fact, Wyatt could be face by then. There's potential in the Wyatt Family, Ambrose and Reigns teaming. Then the December show could have a six man of the Wyatts v Evolution.

Then they could slowly build to Wyatt v Trips at 'Mania.

This is pointless chatter though. Survivor Series will be headlined by Cena v Batista in a Lack of Interest on a Pole match.

Dan: Where is D-Bry? I miss him so.

I still don't miss Punk. I feel nothing about Punk's absence. I realise only that he kind of existed for about 8 months and I watched none of his matches after The Undertaker one.

Dave: Stopping robbers with a broken neck. If this were ECW that would become his chief gimmick. Heyman would be dressing jobbers as fans and having them leap the rail to get their necks snapped during D-Bry matches.

I don't miss Punk either. There was nothing for him to do and I wanted him to take time off. I am looking forward to his hypocritical return in time for a WrestleMania in a few years’ time though.

Dan: I can't think of any matches he could have, even now, that would interest me. His great foil was Cena. He needed Cena, and Cena needed him. They had fantastic matches.

Dave: The only fresh matches are singles ones opposite The Shield guys but none of them interest me, even though I like Regins, Rollins and 'Brose. Even Punk v Wyatt wouldn't do anything for me and I love me some Wyatt.

Punk v Bo would have held my interest before Bo's streak ended.

Dan: I'm excited for Lesnar to get the title, somehow. They should have given it to him earlier. Also, he should have a) beaten Cena in his first match b) never had one match, let alone three, with Hunter c) broken the Streak but tried to make a good match out of it.

Dave: R-Truth ending Bo’s streak is a perfect example of WWE ineptitude.

(At this point I posted a lengthy scenario detailing how Bo’s streak ending could have been a bigger deal. I’ve edited it out of this because it became this blog post. There didn’t seem much point in having it on the blog twice.)

Dave: Lesnar should've been undefeated since 2012. The Streak ending would've had more impact and been easier to accept were that the case.

Dan: That Bo idea would have been excellent. He's such a perfect character for that. I'd like him to start doing self-help videos.

Come to think of it, who will Lesnar face?

Cena. Done.

Triple H. No.

Bryan? Out.

Reigns? Mania is seven months away.

Dave: Orton v Lesnar is fresh, strange considering how long they've both been around. I'm desperate to see a mid-air reversal from an F5 into an RKO.

Bryan will probably be Lesnar’s Rumble challenger.

The other question is who will Reigns face? He needs to be prepared for a 'Mania main event against a former UFC champion and the man who ended The Streak in which the title's on the line. That's a tall order in seven months, and that's with him being pretty good now.

Lesnar v Cesaro is likely. It would have made a lot more sense to keep Heyman with Cesaro, obviously, which is probably why they got split. Nobody in WWE seems compatible with sense.

What we learned from this is that Lesnar's world title reign is going to be awful until its final couple of months. By which point people will have stopped caring.

Good luck, Roman.

SummerSlam 2014 preview

SummerSlam looks like one of the best WWE shows in some time. It’s perhaps the best looking WWE pay-per-view, as far as match quality as opposed to spectacle is concerned, of 2014 so far. There’s a big main event featuring two of the company’s biggest stars, for the WWE championship, supported by a collection of strong pairings all of which have at least some sort of storyline explanation for taking place. WWE’s usual approach towards pay-per-views (special events, call them what you want) is to have two or three big matches and a host of randomly tossed together filler bouts. This is a welcome change.

The main event of SummerSlam will be Brock Lesnar versus John Cena. We’ll come back to that below, and start instead on the second biggest match of the card. There are actually a few potential choices for that, part of the reason this feels like a more important show than the usual WWE PPV.

There’s Randy Orton v Roman Reigns, almost the archetypal secondary pay-per-view match, featuring as it does the company’s top rising star and the second most established main event name after Cena. There’s Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins, a feud between two over performers that’s been going for months without the two having an official (televised) singles match. It could even be argued that Swagger v Rusev is the second biggest match on the card thanks to a white hot catchphrase and ‘The Super Athlete’s’ Putin inspired heat.

But for my money the second biggest thing at SummerSlam is the Brie Bella v Stephanie McMahon match. Why it’s happening, from a company perspective, isn’t exactly clear: nobody has been crying out for either more Brie Bella matches or a ring return from Steph. The best reason I can think of is that WWE wanted to capitalise on how hated Stephanie has made herself and Brie’s marriage to overachieving yes man Daniel Bryan.

Stephanie has not wrestled since 2003, her last match being an I Quit outing against her own father. Because that’s the sort of thing Vince booked in those desperate post-Attitude Era days. It wasn’t a good match. What enjoyment could be derived from it mostly came from Vince’s lunatic facial expressions and heelish antics. Before that Stephanie had mostly appeared in short, forgettable singles matches and tag bouts where she did little but stand on the apron.

What I’m getting at here is that Stephanie is not a skilled, talented, or experienced wrestler. What she and the match have going for them is her heat. People (by which I mean fans sitting in WWE audiences) really dislike her, and they’ll react to her in a match. Which is an entirely valid reason for booking the thing.

The match also has Brie Bella in its favour. She’s no Manami Toyota, she’s not even the more realistic target of Trish Stratus, but Brie Bella is good enough to have an entertaining eight minute, distractions-heavy scrap with an in-shape non-worker. Which is good, because that’s the task in front of her. Triple H will almost certainly involve himself, as will Nikki Bella. It’s not impossible that Daniel Bryan will make a surprise appearance, but it is massively unlikely.

Either woman could win. Stephanie could cheat to remind everyone what a dastardly heel she is. Brie could overcome the odds to demonstrate that she’s a spunky babyface (also prepping her for a crack at the Divas title, although somehow I think that’s far down the list of priorities). I would usually lean towards the heel winning in this scenario, but there’s no guarantee that Stephanie’s going to work a rematch. Without that we have to assume she’ll get her comeuppance here. If Steph does win it will almost certainly come after a Nikki Bella swerve turn, leaving us with a sister versus sister rivalry. I’m hoping we don’t see that because I think it would be dull.

Back with the other potential number two matches… despite liking Orton when he’s on form and enjoying the whole Reigns package since he split from The Shield far more than I thought I would their singles match here does nothing for me. Perhaps it’s because we’ve already seen quite a bit of them together in the form of six man tags, traditional tags, and recent brawl encounters (although that hasn’t hurt my interest in Ambrose and Rollins). Reigns should go over cleanly and move on to his expected collision with ‘The Game’. ‘The Viper’ doesn’t need a victory here and I don’t think there’s enough interest in the pair together for them to have another singles encounter at Night of Champions.

Reigns’s former teammates Rollins and Ambrose have had a heated rivalry based around Rollins turning on The Shield and joining The Authority. Strangely, Reigns got over the betrayal fairly easily and has focused himself on everything from doctoring coffees to winning the WWE championship (he succeeded at one but not the other). As already noted, this will be the first singles match between Rollins and Ambrose on WWE screens. A masterful job has been done on holding off on the pair meeting, teasing us with exchanges in multi-man matches and a bevy on run-ins and brawls. It’s helped to make this first match feel like a special event and has also fleshed out their characters: Rollins is happy to be the coward and walk out on a fight when it suits him, and Ambrose is a madman motivated by gaining retribution on his former friend, desperate to stop him succeeding whenever possible.

Unfortunately, WWE have let themselves down with the stipulation of this match. Ambrose won a beat the clock challenge (itself a massively stupid gimmick) to decide what sort of match he and Seth would have. He could’ve gone for a cage match to ensure he got his hands on his foe. He could have gone for a strap match, giving him the chance to inflict a nasty and satisfying kind of beating. He could have gone with a Last man Standing match, fighting Rollins until he was unable to stand. Any of these gimmick matches would have made sense from a storyline and a character perspective but WWE had booked two of them in the last six months and repeating gimmicks in that time frame seems to contravene some sort of company law (meanwhile the strap seems at odds with their current direction… I think). So Rollins and Ambrose will meet in a lumberjack match instead.

I’m predicting a Rollins loss here. The lumberjack gimmick is an easy way of having him lose in a protected, indecisive fashion, allowing the feud to continue. Which I think it will. Because there’s not really anyone else for either man to face until some new names get established as people we should care about. And because they’re only just wrestling a singles match after months of build. Clearly this is a feud in it for the long haul.

On that note, we have the Dolph Ziggler v Miz Intercontinental championship match. It would be nice to think that we’re finally seeing ‘The Show Off’ get his push refreshed but to be honest I’ve seen far too many false dawns from WWE to believe that just yet. In an ideal world the IC strap would go to Ziggler, here or at Night of Champions, and an athletic mid-card would be built around him. Fingers crossed that happens.

I think Ziggler will lose here, mostly because The Miz has only had the championship for a short time. WWE likes him a lot and it’s hard to imagine them switching the belt off of him so soon. If there’s a rematch at NOC I’ll pick Ziggler. I think Miz will leave SummerSlam as the champ. Whoever wins I think this will be one of the night’s best matches if they get more than six minutes.

While I don’t tend to be a fan of big lads in wrestling I also think that Swagger and Rusev could turn out a belter. They had an entertaining enough tussle at Battleground. There’s no reason they can’t do the same here. Cheap heat and casual racism aside I think the programme’s been really good. It’s proof that managers, which seemed to be going out of style at one point, can still play an important role.

I don’t think there can be any doubt that Rusev’s going to win here. He’s the man on the rise. That said a Swagger win is the prime candidate for a swerve on this show, and it could be used to launch Swagger up to the top. For a programme opposite fellow amateur standout Brock Lesnar, perhaps? In truth I don’t think we’ll see that, but it’s an option for WWE if they decide they want to do something unexpected.

Paige and AJ Lee’s frenemies story has gone off the rails since it started. There was a lot of potential there but it’s been wasted on the standard WWE approach. Paige has skipped out during AJ matches and distracted her. That’s about it. This was the perfect opportunity for WWE to present a serious plot about two women who consider themselves the best wanting to prove it by winning the championship. I suppose it still could be, but a sterling performance at SummerSlam would be a must. With the card looking the way it does I don’t think Paige and AJ Lee will have the time to give us that. I’m picking Paige to win the title back to create a reason for another encounter, perhaps one with a gimmick, at Night of Champions.

The final match to discuss before the main event is Bray Wyatt v Chris Jericho. After their letdown of a match at Battleground, mostly the fault of a sloppy ‘Y2J’ performance, and a series of nauseatingly tedious promos over the last month I’m not expecting much from them. Wyatt henchmen Harper and Rowan are banned from ringside, which should make Wyatt’s inevitable win mean more as he’ll have accomplished it by himself. And it is inevitable. WWE loves a three pay-per-view series and with Jericho having beaten ‘The Eater of Worlds’ at Battleground it’s his turn to lie down here.

Lastly there’s the main event. Brock Lesnar, the man who has been hyped as an unstoppable mercenary who cares only about himself, the man who did the unthinkable and broke The Undertaker’s WrestleMania undefeated Streak, will challenge John Cena, the fifteen time world champion who’s been the face of the company for nigh on a decade, for the WWE championship. With or without Daniel Bryan, the man who was almost certainly originally planned to headline this event opposite Lesnar, this is the biggest match WWE can promote.

Which is not to say it’s the best match they can promote. The match Lesnar and Cena had at Extreme Rules two years ago was rough, and that was when the pair had access to all the shortcuts a wild brawl offers. Part of the reason that match was not great is probably attributable to it being Lesnar’s first pro wrestling outing in several years. Things should be better here, but the match will still not feel the same as a Lesnar-Bryan match would have done, or as a Lesnar-Reigns match will. But, y’know, WWE is most often about spectacle, and their golden boy taking on the former UFC champion is just that.

Lesnar is most people’s pick to win this, and with good reason. Cena does not need the championship to be over and it is an overly familiar scenario. Lesnar as champion, on the other hand, has not been seen for years, and hasn’t happened at all since he went away and further legitimised himself with a stint in the UFC. It could create interest for lapsed fans. It will certainly reinvigorate the title picture and the title itself.

The title is something that WWE wants reinvigorated for a reason. The long term plan looks very much like a Reigns v Lesnar match at WrestleMania 31. If ‘The Beast’ goes into that match having held the championship for over half a year, having defeated everyone put in front of him, starting with top boy Cena, and as the man that ended The Streak then it will look like unbeatable odds for Reigns. So it’ll be a sensational, star-making moment when he overcomes those odds and drops Lesnar to win his first world championship.

Lesnar versus Cena won’t be bad but I doubt it’ll be that great. There’s a good chance it won’t even be the best thing on the show, especially if you discount a sense of spectacle and focus on the actual wrestling. It’s designed as something to hook lapsed and casual fans, perhaps encouraging them to sign up to the Network, and as part of the building process for a future main event. On those grounds I think it, and SummerSlam in general, is already looking like a success.

Predictions summary:

Brock Lesnar to defeat
Brie Bella to defeat Stephanie McMahon
Roman Reigns to defeat Randy Orton
Dean Ambrose to defeat Seth Rollins
Rusev to defeat Jack Swagger
Bray Wyatt to defeat Chris Jericho
The Miz to defeat Dolph Ziggler
Paige to defeat AJ Lee

That RAW Recap 11.08.14

This week's RAW was final stop before SummerSlam 2014. WWE's final chance to persuade people that the card they've put together is not just worth their time but worth shelling out pay-per-view or Network money for. SummerSlam looks like a good show and WWE needed to do it justice here.

The programme kicked off with the obligatory welcome from the regular commentary team trio and a lurid graphic telling anyone who'd somehow dodged the social media blitz and news site spoilers that the show would feature a birthday celebration for Hulk Hogan. To that end presents, all wrapped in 'Hulkster' red and yellow, were heaped at the top of the entrance ramp. I'll put you out of your misery now and confirm that, sadly, Hogan did not open any of them. At least not on TV.

Lovely new T-shirt on Lesnar there.

Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman took the opening segment, a promo designed to sell the Lesnar v Cena match to "the CeNation." Lesnar had requested Heyman make this pitch apparently, although I find it tough to imagine a string of monosyllabic grunts intelligibly making the request. Heyman showed stills of Lesnar defeating The Streak (there was a pretty decent pop when Shocked Undertaker Guy was shown) and reminded everyone that as a rookie Lesnar had trounced both The Rock and Hulk Hogan, both of whom had disappeared after their respective losses. Heyman claimed that after SummerSlam Cena would be disappearing too, blissfully skipping over the fact that Rock disappeared to make a film and Hogan disappeared due to one of his many contract disputes. Amusingly Hogan's name got a mixed reaction, making him officially less popular than Shocked Undertaker Guy. And on his birthday, no less!

I was surprised when they acknowledged the Extreme Rules 2012 match between Lesnar and Cena. Heyman claimed that Lesnar had lost that match but won the fight, whatever that means. He also claimed that Lesnar was still suffering from diverticulitis (which he suffered from for years without realising it, and it really did end his UFC career) at the time but at this year's SummerSlam he'll be one hundred per cent. My favourite line of this rant was that the beating Cena will receive will be that of a Shakespearean tragedy, because there aren't anywhere near enough allusions to Shakespeare in wrestling.

Heyman finished up with an entertaining rap, playing off of Cena's old gimmick. Then he said the ring was Brock Lesnar's house and announced they were going out for dinner (yes, really) with a promise that they'd be back.

Flo Rida and Weird Al Yankovic wished Hogan a happy birthday via videos. Later in the show we were treated to similarly vapid messages from Drew Brees, AJ Hawk, Aaron Rodgers, Florida Georgia Line, and Larry King. I'd heard of precisely three of these people.

After a break Roman Reigns entered the arena for the first match of the show. Before that took place Kane strolled out in a suit and announced he'd been made Director of Operations again. Amusingly, he referred to himself in the third person when talking about the previous week's Reigns v Kane bout and also botched his lines when he said "six weeks" instead of "six days." I've missed Corporate Kane.

Reigns' opponents were RybAxel in a handicap match. The former Shield boy won by disqualification when Ryback and Axel wouldn't stop battering him at ringside. He gave both a Superman punch afterwards, with 'The Big Guy' also getting a spear. That was followed by a formulaic babyface promo most notable for once again demonstrating that trying to get Reigns to be funny helps nobody.

A clip for a Dean Ambrose DVD compilation in ten years time.

Rollins defeated RVD via curb stomp in the second match of the night. Afterwards Dean Ambrose exploded out of a large Hogan present and attacked him. Rollins ran off through the crowd. Ambrose reminded everyone about the lumberjack match against his former teammate and sarcastically plugged the WWE Network. It was funny, because Ambrose has the personality to pull off something that ridiculous, but it's not something WWE should make a habit of.

A Stephanie McMahon promo followed that. She brought Megan Miller, physical therapist to Daniel Bryan, into the ring. Coaxed by Steph, Megan claimed that she'd been having an affair with D-Bry. That brought out an angry Brie Bella-Bryan (Triple B?) to give Megan a slap and spear Stephanie. For good measure she put a Yes Lock on the boss before Finlay and Mr Jamie Noble arrived to pry her off. Stephanie said they'd finish things later on in the show. I'd be amazed if anyone in the building genuinely believed a SummerSlam match was being moved, unadvertised, to the pre-'Slam RAW.

After that Jack Swagger defeated Cesaro with the Patriot Lock. That was followed by a short, casual racism-stuffed promo from Zeb Colter. Rusev and Lana came out during their "We the people!" shtick. Flag waving ensued.

Next up was a sitdown interview with Bray Wyatt and Chris Jericho, taped earlier in the day. Michael Cole was meant to host it but he was dismissed within the first ten seconds by 'The Eater of Worlds'. Bray's opening gambit was to say that 'Y2J' is a disappointment to his father (a retired NHL player named Ted Irvine, for anyone who cares and doesn't already know). Of himself Wyatt said he wants to help people but that he's never claimed to be a saviour. I'm pretty sure he's claimed exactly that but his character isn't exactly meant to be trustworthy or entirely lucid so I suppose the lie can be overlooked. Then he descended into the normal Wyatt speak of monsters and heaven and hell and bubbling nonsense (there's a pale horse on the horizon apparently). Jericho said he's a survivor and promised he'll shut Wyatt up.

It wasn't the best segment. Wyatt functions far better when he has a live crowd to read. Jericho fell into the trap many long serving WWE stars seem to be falling into lately of referring to unlocking different levels if sadism within themselves. It's boring and illogical, particularly for a guy like Jericho who is still generally thought of as a technical wrestler, albeit one who's experienced a wide variety of gimmick matches. On top of that they appeared to be discussing which of the pair of them was and was not a saviour. Not exactly riveting stuff, is it?

Match number four saw Eva Marie pin AJ Lee off a rollup after Paige had skipped around the ring. The Divas champ is easily distracted. 'The Anti-Diva' then recited a poem. AJ then threw Eva into a crowd barrier. That was probably designed to illustrate how dangerous she is.

As much as Cena's current title reign does nothing for me
I do like the way he wears the belts.

WWE champion John Cena was up next, sporting a new red and yellow themed shirt no doubt inspired by the Hulk Hogan birthday bash. He mimicked Paul Heyman's style of delivery to begin with, which was a nice touch. He called Lesnar an arrogant bully who only cares about himself and said he'd never lie down for him, because he doesn't like him. Maybe he's been hanging out with Shawn Michaels. Acknowledging he's not unbeatable Cena said he would lose the title(s) one day but he'd make sure it wasn't to 'The Beast'. And speaking of that particular Lesnar nickname, Cena said he'd become a beast to fight one. So there you go.

Cena called Lesnar out. There was no response. So Cena spouted his catchphrases and left. It was an effective enough piece of work from Cena, although he veered to close to his comedy routine for my liking.

The payoff to the earlier Stephanie and Brie angle was next. Steph revealed Megan Miller was pressing charges against Brie for her assault. JBL called it "brilliant", which made it even harder to take as anything but a wrestling angle. Stephanie gloated.

Dolph Ziggler v Heath Slater ended with Slater winning by count out after 'The Show Off' was distracted by Miz (who'd been on commentary) and chased him around ringside. Ziggler gave 'The One Man Band' a post-match Zig Zag to make sure there was no confusion about who the real star was.

The evening's final match saw Randy Orton defeat Sheamus. The match itself was perfectly fine. They both did all their signature spots and seemed happy to leave it at that. The finish was above average though: Sheamus leapt off the top rope and got caught with an RKO.

Finally there was Hulk Hogan's birthday bash. The birthday boy passed the entire roster assembled at the top of the ramp and joined Gene Okerlund and Jimmy Hart in the ring. 'Mean' Gene then cued up a video package looking back at Hogan’s life, wisely focusing mostly on his original 80s run. It was a good piece of work. Hogan talked about getting presents from everyone, including a wonderfully fictitious anecdote about Vince McMahon giving him a birthday card with $9.99 in it so that he could subscribe to the Network (which told us months ago, multiple times, he'd already signed up for). They were then joined by Ric Flair, Paul Orndorf, Roddy Piper, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. The Outsiders encouraged 'The Hulkster' to tear off the red and yellow and don the nWo black and white. Hogan ripped off his shirt, revealing that he just so happened to be wearing the appropriate old WCW merch. Nash capped off the nonsense by starting to sing happy birthday. He was cut off by Brock Lesnar's music.

Lesnar just wanted a party of his own.

'The Pain' got in Hogan's face before Cena ran down to the ring to intervene. The SummerSlam opponents stared at one another for a moment before Lesnar stepped out of the ring and sauntered into the aisle. The final shot of the show was Brock shouting "I am a mercenary!"

The show achieved everything it needed to. Every segment was designed to highlight a SummerSlam match. Some matches may have benefited from a little more build (Ambrose v Rollins in particular) but on the whole everything seemed well judged. I don't think WWE could have done much better writing a RAW to create interest in this particular SummerSlam match. I'm that regard it was mission: accomplished. Hopefully they pull out all the stops and make SummerSlam a show to remember.

The Booking of 'The Beast'

Brock Lesnar’s going to be wrestling for the WWE championship at SummerSlam. Unless something spectacularly surprising happens at Battleground tonight he’ll be challenging John Cena. This is a match WWE have been forced into promoting. Their original plan of having Daniel Bryan defend against Lesnar had to be dropped when company bigwigs were told D-Bry would not be sufficiently recovered from neck injury to participate in the match. Cena, as the only other babyface on the roster over enough to function both as a champion and as an opponent for Lesnar, was the only logical choice for replacement.

Maybe Heyman and Lesnar will recreate this shot when Lesnar's fourth reign kicks off.

I don’t blame WWE for going with Cena v Lesnar as the SummerSlam main event. They are two of the biggest names in the company, arguably the two biggest, which makes a match between them a fitting headline attraction to what is traditionally one of WWE’s more important shows. Lesnar versus Cena for the title is a bout that should sell tickets, pay-per-view buys, and Network subscriptions (and for the record I think Bryan versus Lesnar would have performed pretty well too). Ultimately that’s all that matters in WWE, and, indeed, wrestling as a whole.

But overall WWE’s booking of Lesnar has been less than ideal. I’ve refrained from criticising WWE for their use of the man before now because his schedule makes it a tricky proposition. He’s so rarely been on television that it’s taken him over two years to accrue a decent number of appearances to look back at and comment on.

When he returned to WWE on April 2 2012 RAW Lesnar was immediately placed into a conflict with John Cena. They faced off at Extreme Rules in, fittingly, an Extreme Rules match. Lesnar lost.

It’s not fair to knock WWE for rushing ‘The Pain’ into a bout with their top star. At the time it made sense, for all the reasons noted above regarding their SummerSlam collision. Looking at what Lesnar’s done since it seems safe to assume that there was no intention that Lesnar and Cena would ever clash again. It was a big, impactful match to reintroduce Lesnar as a force and a concept to the WWE landscape.

The match result, on the other hand, was a mistake. Had Cena won that match only to lose a rematch and perhaps a third, feud-deciding bout the loss would have made sense. But as Cena and Lesnar’s conflict ended immediately after Extreme Rules it only served to establish that Lesnar, just like everyone else in WWE, was inferior to John Cena. For a man who was always going to be presented as a special attraction that was a problem and a mistake.

Lesnar followed the Cena match with a programme opposite Triple H. That started off with a win for ‘The Beast’, this time in a no DQ battle at SummerSlam. He was written off TV for the remainder of the year the night after, claiming that his victory over ‘The Game’ meant he’d accomplished everything in WWE. That was far from true, as we learnt at WrestleMania XXX.

Lesnar returned to WWE in January 2013 and continued his feud with Tripper. For four months. Four long months. Lesnar fell to ‘The King of Kings’ at WrestleMania XXIX before winning the feud in a cage match at Extreme Rules. The loss Lesnar suffered at ‘Mania was easier to accept than his loss to Cena. He’d already proven he could defeat Triple H and it was designed to set up their third and decisive contest. That that third and final collision was unnecessary and unwanted is irrelevant: the loss served a purpose.

The summer saw Lesnar deployed against CM Punk in a conflict based around their respective relationships with mutual associate Paul Heyman. Their one and only match went on second from last at SummerSlam. I was unimpressed by it, feeling it never really developed the intensity or level of spectacle it should have. The right man won though: Lesnar went over with an F5 onto a chair.

Since that victory Lesnar has had two matches. The first was at the 2014 Royal Rumble opposite Big Show. It was a short match intended to rehabilitate Lesnar as an unstoppable monster and did its job well. But as good as it was it would have been wholly unnecessary had WWE taken the precaution of planning out what they wanted to do with Lesnar when he first returned. They only needed to feed him the physical anomaly that is Big Show because they’d failed to safeguard ‘The Beast’s’ built-in main event aura.

The other match Lesnar’s wrestled this year was against The Undertaker. At WrestleMania XXX. You may have heard that Lesnar won.

 

Brock Lesnar. Not unbeatable.

This isn’t about The Streak. As much as I disliked and disagreed (and still do) with WWE’s decision to have ‘The Dead Man’s’ WrestleMania record end Lesnar was a solid choice to award the feat to. He has the necessary star power and air of legitimacy. But it would have been far easier to accept him breaking one of the most impressive records in company if he had been on a tear since returning in 2012. Imagine how much more the Lesnar v ‘Taker match would have meant had Lesnar spent the previous two years obliterating everyone put in front of him. Such booking would, in hindsight, have been clear preparation for Lesnar conquering The Streak. That no such Lesnar record exists shows that there was no long term plan in place when WWE rehired the former UFC champ.

The same principle stands for Lesnar’s upcoming SummerSlam title challenge. Beating Lesnar would look like an impossible feat even for Cena if Lesnar had not suffered a WWE loss since his return and was coming off the crushing of The Streak. Once again, that was squandered by having him lose matches he didn’t need to, as much as some of the losses may have made sense at the time.

If Lesnar was currently “undefeated since 2004” he’d be one of the greatest star-making tools in wrestling, especially with his status as the Streak-ender and his assumed WWE championship victory at SummerSlam. The first person to beat him would be winning the WWE championship, beating the man who ended one of wrestling’s greatest winning streaks, and handing a loss to someone who had only tasted victory since 2012. It would be a massive status enhancer.

Lesnar’s reign is likely to end at the hands of Roman Reigns or Daniel Bryan. Probably at WrestleMania XXXI. That win will be a significant moment in either man’s career (should it be someone else entirely it’ll be a significant moment for them too). But with just a bit of planning it could have been more. Had WWE had the foresight to turn Lesnar into an unstoppable, unbeatable force they’d have a hot story, a hot act, and a way of making a new hot act on their hands now. Once again I find myself commenting that the long term planning in WWE needs looking at.

Night of Champions: The Long Game

It’s a little disappointing to say but the next several months of WWE pay-per-special-events look a little predictable. Most people I’ve spoken to are predicting the same winners for Money in the Bank (preview of that show available here). Cena, Rollins and the Wyatts are the important names people expect to go over. Lesnar’s involvement in SummerSlam has been confirmed, with a leaked poster making it look like a match between him and Cena is on the cards. And it’s been twigged that Night of Champions is going to fall around the expiration of any initial Network sign-ups, meaning WWE will want a big show to encourage people to renew their subscriptions.

I’ve written before that predictability in wrestling isn’t always a bad thing. A card can be thoroughly predictable while still be very enjoyable and providing surprises during matches, rather than in the results. But a few months of predictable programming pushes this feeling to breaking point. A predictable show is fine. A string of them is not.

Because I feel that the next few months in WWE seem easy to call I thought I’d post some predictions for beyond Money in the Bank.

The most obvious prediction to make is that Cena will enter SummerSlam as WWE champion and defend against Lesnar. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll leave Money in the Bank with the strap. He could just as easily win the title from a transitional champion at Battleground. The frontrunner for that spot would probably be Randy Orton, although Bray Wyatt and Sheamus could work too.

I don’t think the transitional thing will happen though. I think Cena will unhook the gold at Money in the Bank and make it through Battleground unscathed to defend against ‘The Beast’ at SummerSlam. What he’ll do at BG is beyond me. A title defence against recent foe Wyatt could just about work. So could a stipulation brawl with Kane. Cena’s been slipped into a feud with ‘The Demon’ in Bryan’s absence and it’s the sort of title match WWE would likely book on a filler show, which Battleground looks set to be.

Filler show? Well, yeah. I originally thought it had a chance of being a pretty significant piece of work, featuring Ambrose v Rollins and Orton v Reigns in singles scraps, but I’ve changed my mind since the need to stack Night of Champions with big bouts came up. I’m now expecting Reigns’ match with ‘The Viper’ to be held off until SummerSlam and the SummerSlam match against Triple H that I expected him to have to be pushed back until Night of Champions. Ambrose and Rollins can rumble at Battleground and SummerSlam without hurting the appeal of the match. They’d just need to be given a suitably enticing stip for their bout at ‘The Hottest Event of the Summer’.

This leaves me predicting four matches for Summerlam. Lesnar challenging Cena for the title and probably winning. Ambrose and Rollins having their second straight singles encounter, this time with an exciting gimmick added to keep it feeling fresh. Reigns KOing Orton with a Superman punch. And Daniel Bryan returning to action to gain retribution against the main who, in the storyline, inflicted the neck injury on him, Kane. I think it’s likely Bryan will be ready to return at Battleground but keeping him off that show saves his return for the bigger show and keeps ‘The Big Red Monster’ free to lose to Cena.

Oh, and one other SummerSlam match. I’m not interested in how they’ll get there but I think the Wyatt Family versus Stardust and Goldust seems like a logical thing to expect too.

Night of Champions is the real reason I’m writing this. Because I want to predict a few months ahead of time that it will see Daniel Bryan challenging Brock Lesnar for the WWE championship. That’s the biggest match WWE can promote right now. Were it not for Bryan’s injury it would have headlined SummerSlam (technically it still might but it looks unlikely right now). That it (probably) won’t will in fact been to WWE’s advantage as it gives them an excuse to hold the bout off for a show they need to make a must-see event.

Save it for Night of Champs, bro.

I’ve already mentioned that Triple H versus Roman Reigns will probably be on the card too. That match has already been teased. We’ve had a preview of it in the Shield v Evolution six man tags at Extreme Rules and Payback but by the time a September PPV rolls around those matches will be several months old, meaning that people won’t feel like they’ve already seen the match. To be honest I don’t think that would be the feeling anyway, rising star Reigns against seasoned veteran Triple H is a match with a fair amount of appeal even without the pair locking up beforehand. But a few months between the six man collisions and their first singles match can’t hurt.

By this point the Rollins and Ambrose rivalry will have very likely run its course. I’ve no idea who ‘The Architect’ will have moved on to but whoever’s holding the Intercontinental championship wouldn’t be out of the question. I’m expecting Rollins to have the Money in the Bank contract by this point (he’ll either win it at the show or Ambrose will and he’ll beat him for it during their feud), and he’ll need a reign as ‘The Man’ of the mid-card before going on to the world strap. That’s just the way WWE works.

Rollins wrestling for the IC title will free Ambrose up for a match with Orton. That’s another fresh match to slap on the Night of Champions card. And fresh matches featuring main names is what are what’s needed for that show.

If most or all of this happens I’ll probably feel pretty proud. But I’ll also feel more than a litrle deflated. For WWE to be so predictable for three months would be very disappointing. I don’t think they will be. They must realise how simple the layout of everything up to Night of Champions looks and I suspect they’ve got plans to chuck in some surprise. Hopefully that’ll start at Money in the Bank. If it doesn’t it’s going to be a long and boring summer.

***

For ease and simplicity here’s what I’m predicting for the next three pay-per-views:

Battleground:

Cena to leave as WWE champion
Seth Rollins v Dean Ambrose

SummerSlam:

Brock Lesnar to defeat John Cena for the WWE championship
Daniel Bryan v Kane in a stipulation match
Randy Orton v Roman Reigns
Seth Rollins v Dean Ambrose in a stipulation match
The Wyatt Family v Stardust and Goldust

Night of Champions:

Daniel Bryan v Brock Lesnar
Roman Reigns v Triple H
Randy Orton v Dean Ambrose
Seth Rollins to wrestle for the Intercontinental championship