Ryback Rules

WWE have really missed out by not pushing Ryback. This time last year he was the company's hottest star, a status he'd achieved thanks to the rarely seen (probably contributing to its effectiveness) simmering push he'd received. Ryback was popular with fans and seemed like he could become the next major star. But somehow, somewhere, it all went wrong.

I suspect part of the problem could be the head writer changes WWE has experienced this year. Two new guys came and went in quick succession, which it would be fair to assume created instability. In such circumstances the writing team would have relied on the established likes of CM Punk and John Cena for the weekly TV shows. A newcomer like Ryback, not having an established enough character and perhaps being viewed as a pet project of the previous administration, would have been one of the first guys to find themselves shoved casually to one side. The famed McMahon mercuriality wouldn’t have helped his cause either.

Even if this instability is imagined it's certainly true Ryback has been handled incredibly poorly on television. Since WrestleMania he's been senselessly turned heel, gone on a ridiculous pay-per-view losing streak, been booked to play a bully and a coward, and been shunted from one forgettable programme to another with seemingly no long term goals and plans.

The 'Mania turn was the worst offence. It was done to provide WWE champion John Cena with someone to face after Rock's sudden exit from the league. It provided a great moment on the April 8^th RAW and 'Big Hungry' was utilised well enough during the feud but once it was over it became clear that WWE didn't know what to do with a heel 'back without being able to put him against Cena.

His feud with Chris Jericho should've seen Ryback built up as an unstoppable killer. The difference in size between the two and 'Y2J's' ability to sell a beating (which isn't extraordinary but is better than most) would have made that approach completely natural. Had Ryback blitzed through 'The Highlight of the Night' at Money in the Bank in a five minute match, countering Jericho's trademark manoeuvres with power moves and feats of strength, he'd have looked like the most dominant heel in the company.

'The Big Guy' could have been big business

At a time when WWE didn't have a clearly defined lead bad guy that would have been the best approach possible. If he had to be bad, and it had been decreed that he did, then the company should've been prepping Ryback for that spot. Obviously the plan at that point was to have Randy Orton turn and become the central villain (on the active roster at any rate, Heyman and Triple H consistently draw greater heat than him) but it wouldn't have hurt to strengthen Ryback before that point. It would have made him more valuable in his role and may even have fooled people into thinking that a heel Ryback versus babyface Daniel Bryan series was being built to. Going to town on a Ryback push over the summer could’ve fooled people into overlooking Orton (which isn’t exactly difficult to begin with).

With the benefit of having watched the bullying character for a few months it seems like a desperate attempt to give Rybers something to do that would keep him on the roster but required little attention or effort beyond a broad characterisation. In under a year he went from being potentially the next big headliner to abusing indy guys inexplicably dressed as catering staff.

It's almost as though WWE deliberately sabotaged the success of Ryback. That's a conspiracy theory that gets bandied about a lot regarding various wrestling stars and it's not one I usually give any credit. Here though it seems like a genuine possibility. It's hard to think of an alternative that explains why someone who was so popular has been bounced around with so little care and thought this year.

You need only look back at his outings at Hell in a Cell and Survivor Series last year for proof that Ryback was hot. The crowd were into him and wanted to see him win. He represented an alternative to Cena and the stagnant main event in general while still being very much a traditional WWE headliner. Had WWE stayed behind him, been more choosey about whom he faced and kept going with the policy of only having him lose due to shenanigans I think he could've been leading man material around now.

We'll never know though. The treatment he's had this year has ruined him. The treatment he’s received can’t be undone. It would be nigh on impossible for even the might of the WWE machine to return Ryback to his former state of popularity at this point. The best we can say about the situation is that it might serve as a lesson to those in charge in how not to handle a popular star in the future.

The Saddening Regression of Antonio Cesaro

United States champion Antonio Cesaro was conspicuous by his absence from WrestleMania XXIX and its pre-show. It was the same on the following night’s RAW. A lot of people were (and are) upset by this. Not because they were desperate to see the US title defended over ‘Mania weekend but because Cesaro is considered a hard-working guy who had earned a spot performing in front of WWE’s biggest crowd of the year.

While I’m not as irate as some by the supposed snub I can see why people would be annoyed. Since he debuted this time last year Cesaro has proven to be a capable member of the roster and entered numerous compelling performances against lesser wrestlers. He looks, acts, and wrestles like he belongs in a WWE ring. He had earned a spot at WrestleMania or the April 8^th RAW.

Cesaro not getting onto WrestleMania is hard to accept as a deliberate snub. The card was too full as it was, which is why the Rhodes Scholars and Bella twins v Tons of Funk and Funkadactyls match got pulled from the broadcast. WWE know what they’re doing when putting these events together. Cesaro has been portrayed as an important guy for the future and would have had a match if there was time.

That said he’s not going to be an important guy to the future if this lacklustre approach continues. The healthy push he’d been enjoying last year abated throughout WrestleMania Season as he lost televised matches to a seemingly endless stream of babyfaces who needed a win going into the big event. That’s acceptable to a certain extent, but if we’re to continue taking him seriously he has to be shown to be a winner.

 

He's Swiss you know...

 

More concerning is the way in which he’s been presented since the big show. He lost the US gold clean to Kofi Kingston and failed to take it back in a rematch. That move robs him of his faux pro-America gimmick, which had been a significant step forward. He’s left instead with the yodelling entrance shtick. That’s not something that’s going to rocket him to the top.

I’ve written before that once someone’s made it in WWE they can lose as often as is required. When you’re established in WWE fans are going to accept you as a star no matter what. Chris Jericho and The Rock are two guys in such a position. ‘The Swiss Superman’ is a long way from joining them.

That he wasn’t on RAW is a far more troubling sign than him being left off of WrestleMania. Time was found on the flagship broadcast for 3MB losing to the babyface trio of Santino, R-Truth and Zack Ryder. I mean… c’mon! If those six guys could appear on RAW there’s no logical reason Cesaro should have been skipped.

It would be easy enough to get Cesaro back on his roll. It’s not as though he’s fallen that far down the card or suffered an insurmountable number of losses. The next two months should see the very European superstar picking up wins on TV, including taking in a successful mid-card bout at Extreme Rules (or Backlash, as it used to be known). If he has to go back on job duty for a bigger star the smart thing to do would be to book the match for SmackDown. Fewer people will see it that way.

Long term Cesaro could be massive star for WWE. As I say, he’s got the look and wrestling ability and carries himself like he belongs. All he needs is time and some wins to establish himself.

How’s this for a booking idea? Have Cesaro get back to winning matches and have him lose to a headliner at Payback, then enter him into a Money in the Bank match in July. Have him come really close to winning but just miss out. He doesn’t need to get a world title this year. There’s no rush.

 
Come SummerSlam give him a feud with another established babyface like Sheamus or Alberto Del Rio and allow him a victory, proving that he’s on his way to the top. If it goes well enough he could be tested out against John Cena at TLC in December. That show’s been something of a test centre for the last two years. The trend should continue this year and Cesaro should be the man getting the tryout for the top.

WrestleMania XXIX review

The most remarkable thing about WrestleMania XXIX was that there were absolutely no backstage segments. When you write that about a WWE show you know that on some level it’s failed. The absence of skits should not be the most noteworthy thing about a show, particularly WrestleMania. It’s not that this ‘Mania was a bad one, it’s that it was a predictable one. A handful of minor surprises aside, one of which was the lack of an unadvertised but expected match, the latest instalment in the gargantuan WrestleMania franchise was a pedestrian one.

This isn’t to knock it. As I say, it wasn’t a bad show and predictability issues aside it was mostly good stuff. There were better wrestling matches at shows promoted by other companies over the weekend, but that’s always true. As a complete package no other promotion in town (and there were a lot in town over the weekend) could hold a candle to WWE. This show avoided becoming one of the worst WrestleManias ever and failed to make itself stand out as one of the best. That’s about what I, and most other people, expected.

I was unable to watch the pre-show due to a failed internet connection. Reading about what happened I didn’t miss much, although I’m told Jim Ross and Dusty Rhodes were on commentary. I imagine that was good value. The only match on offer was Miz’s victory over Wade Barrett for the Intercontinental championship. It’s been compared to their match on RAW (also won by ‘The Awesome One’). Nothing about that description makes me sorry I missed the title change.

The rest of the pre-show? Video packages. WWE didn’t want that crowd peaking early.

The show proper kicked off with the six man tag team match pitting Randy Orton, Sheamus and Big Show against Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. It wasn’t what I’d expected to open the show but it proved a good choice. Fans popped huge for The Shield (probably because they believed in them) and remained lively throughout the encounter.

The action mostly stayed in the ring. This was presumably to allow the big boys to make more impact with their ringside antics later. There were surprisingly few finishers wheeled out in this one. I don’t recall either ‘Great White’ or ‘The World’s Largest Athlete’ hitting the Brogue Kick or the choke slam, for example.

Orton tried to make up for it. He did his rope drape DDT and caught Seth Rollins with an impressive mid-air RKO, much as he did with CM Punk two years ago. This was after he’d tagged himself in on Sheamus, leaving Big Show miffed on the apron. Seconds after hitting the RKO Orton was speared and pinned by Roman Reigns as Big Show just stood there. The Shield boys picked up a successful WrestleMania debut.

After the match ‘The Giant’ and ‘The Viper’ argued. The idea is either that Orton’s a glory hog and his selfishness cost the team a win or that Big Show isn’t a team player. Neither option wows me. Shaymo glomped his way into the ring but got caught with a dodgy looking WMD from Show. Orton got lamped too. Show than wandered backstage. Probably in the direction of catering.

Match number two was Ryback v Mark Henry. It was one of the results I was most certain about. Of course it was going to end with ‘Big Hungry’ effortlessly hoisting Henry up for his Shellshock finisher. It was going to be a magical WrestleMania Moment™ that we would all marvel at for months and look back on fondly in years to come. It was going to be the moment Ryback’s push got back on track. It was going to be the moment it became clear Ryback will win a world championship this year but soon this year. It was going to be the moment where Ryback transcended humanity and became a god.

Unfortunately nobody told WWE’s booking team any of this and so the match ended with Ryback picking ‘The World’s Strongest Man’ up for the Shellshock only for Henners to grab the ropes, causing Ryback to fall down and get squashed. Henry then pinned Ryback in genuinely the most shocking result of the night.

Yep, Mark Henry won quite literally via squash.

We still got to see the Shellshock on Henry because Ryback jumped him after the match. That the move occurred outside of a match makes its status as a legitimate WrestleMania Moment™ questionable. It certainly put a stop to Ryback attaining godhood.

Basically what we learnt from Ryback v Mark Henry is that Henry is a deceptively crafty veteran who WWE have decided to keep strong at the expense of their hottest non-main event act. Oh, and that Ryback’s a sore loser who jumps people after they’ve pinned him clean.

We could very well be on the cusp of another strong push for Mark Henry. Don’t be surprised to see him challenging for either of the company’s two world titles in the next few months. A body slam challenge rematch with Ryback at Extreme Rules seems like a strong possibility too.

 

"I lost on pay-per-view again?"

 

That match was followed by the tag team championship contest, Ziggy and Big E (pronounced here Biggy) challenging Daniel Bryan and Kane. They didn’t get very long, which was about what I’d expected. They also crammed a whole bunch of stuff into what time they did receive. Which was also about what I expected.

In an amusing nod to last year’s WrestleMania Ziggler started off the match by getting a kiss from AJ Lee. You know, because that’s what Bryan did last year before he got pinned immediately after a Brogue Kick in a match that lasted eighteen seconds. Bryan rolled up ‘The Show Off’ for a near fall that the crowd were amazingly hot for. Ziggler just managed to kick out.

The opening moments were white hot. Fans bellowed “Yes!” as Bryan battered Ziggler with stiff kicks. He nailed ‘The Heel’ was a dive to the outside too. It was the chance to back one of the most talented and respected wrestlers in the world that fans had been robbed of last year. They seized on it this time and made every second count.

Langston was put over as a beast, overpowering Kane and tossing Daniel Bryan about like a proverbial ragdoll. Neither that nor Ziggler’s athleticism were enough though. Team Hell No retained their belts in a short but incredibly satisfying bout. I think this is probably the best Kane match at the event since he wrestled Kurt Angle at WrestleMania X8 (that was eleven years ago).

Fandango’s debut was up next. His ring entrance was second only to that of Undertaker. Not even John Cena got a special entrance this year, and he makes a habit of it. I’d expected Fandango to get a quick pin on ‘Y2J’. That didn’t happen. They instead had a very good ten minute match that showed Fandango can wrestle as well as dance.

 

In twenty years this entrance routine will be as meaningful as Undertaker's

 

Fans were into the bout, supporting Jericho and reacting well to the ballroom dancer’s heelish attitude. The finishing sequence was good: Fandango reversing the Walls of Jericho into a pinning predicament that got him a three count. It was the best debut realistically possible for him. I hope WWE doesn’t waste it and keeps using him well. He could mean something if they don’t mess up.

Up next was a P Diddy concert. It was as nauseating as you’d expect.

Jack Swagger, the number one contender to the World Heavyweight championship, did not receive a televised entrance. That indicated that he wasn’t going to be winning, and he didn’t. The crowd responded well to Alberto Del Rio’s entrance, including being very into Ricardo Rodriguez, but switched off once the match started. I can understand why: the match wasn’t bad but it wouldn’t have looked out of place on RAW. Perhaps we just have to accept that racism isn’t the heat getter it used to be.

There was no cash-in from Dolph Ziggler. I think everyone watching the show had expected that. It seemed like the logical thing to do to. It would have given Ziggler a WrestleMania Moment™ and set him up for a massive push. Maybe instead of having him be the first guy to cash in the briefcase at ‘Mania they’re going to have him be the first man to let it expire.

CM Punk was played to the ring by Living Colour, the guys who own the rights to his non-WWE produced entrance music. They were greeted more warmly than P Diddy had been earlier in the show. I was hoping they’d stick around to play Undertaker to the ring. It wasn’t to be.

‘The Dead Man’ stalked out to his regular funereal music. There was a nice effect as he emerged through the smoke: people, I assume we were supposed to think they were dead or ghosts or something, clawing at his robe from the ground. It was suitably eerie. Also pleasing to see was that some fans still hold their lighters in the air when ‘Taker enters the arena. That’s got to be one of the oldest traditions in the company.

Sadly Undertaker avoided a replay of last year’s fantastic hoodbotch spot. I would have marked out for that.

The first move of the match was a slap to the face of the Undertaker from Punk. He followed up with some elbows and a second slap. ‘Taker grabbed him by the throat but Punk retaliated with a kick to the head before getting dropped with a boot to the face.

They went outside, brawling over to the Spanish announce table. Undertaker slammed Punk into a turnbuckle and then draped him on the apron to hit his old leg drop spot. Fans belted the pair with duelling chants. The atmosphere was great just minutes in.

Back in the ring ‘Taker took control, wringing Punk’s arm and kicking him in the chest to go for Old School, his rope walk elbow drop spot. ‘The Voice of the Voiceless’ countered by pulling ‘The Phenom’ down into the ring and then hit the move himself, following up with a Russian leg sweep for a two count.

Punk applied a submission hold to the arm for a brief rest. That didn’t last long: ‘Taker powered out and whipped his foe across the ring. Punk baseball slid kicked Undertaker on the outside and followed up with an axe handle smash off the top rope. Back in the ring he went for another pinfall. Once again he only got two. If The Streak ever ends it’ll take more than a double axe smash to get the job done.

Punk wrung ‘Taker’s shoulder and barged it a few times (another old Undertaker move) before ‘The Last Outlaw’ retaliated with a punch. Punk ducked a second punch and hit a swinging neck breaker which earned him another two count.

Undertaker hit a suplex and charged Punk in the corner. He got a boot to the face for his trouble. ‘The Second City Saint’ went for Old School again but Undertaker tripped him, causing a painful rope straddle. Punk took a tumble to the outside, setting Undertaker up for his top rope dive to the floor. Heyman put a stop to that by leaping (I say leaping, I mean climbing quickly) on to the apron. As Undertaker had him by the throat Punk snuck in with a springboard clothesline for a two count.

Punk hit his high knee and then clotheslined ‘Taker down, following up with the Macho Elbow. That got a two count. Cole reacted like the elbow was going to win the match for Punk. The audience knew better.

Punk signalled for GTS and pulled ‘Taker up. ‘The Dead Man’ slipped out and caught the 434 day WWE champion with a choke slam for a two. Lawler told us he thought that was going to win the match for the Undertaker.Yes. Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler expected us to believe he thought Punk was going to go down to a choke slam, at WrestleMania, when we hadn’t even seen a Tombstone.

The two returned to their feet and exchanged punches. ‘Taker nailed Punk with a corner clothesline followed by Snake Eyes. He tried the big boot that usually follows but Punk got him with a leaping heel kick. Punk clotheslined Undertaker to the outside and then headed over to continue clearing the Spanish announce table. ‘Taker stopped him and went for a Last Ride through the table. Punk slipped out and dropped Undertaker backwards on to the table with a kick to the head. He then clambered up to the turnbuckle to hit a Macho Elbow.

The table no-sold it. That ruined what Cole had described as Punk’s WrestleMania Moment. Punk rolled back into the ring at around four count from the referee. Undertaker just made it back at nine. Puunk crawled over to attempt a cover but Undertaker pulled him in for his Hell’s Gate submission. Punk reversed into a pin attempt, forcing Taker to break the hold. It was then time for the Anaconda Vice.

Undertaker’s shoulders went down for a two count before he did his old sitting straight back up spot, with Punk still applying the hold. ‘The Second City Saint’ sold that moment beautifully. They went back to their feet. ‘Taker went for a choke slam. Punk slipped out and hit a GTS but Undertaker managed to stay up by bouncing off the ropes, coming back to scoop Punk up for a Tombstone piledriver.

Punk kicked out.

The two traded blows on their knees, gradually standing back up. The crowd cheered and booed with each punch, favouring Undertaker. That surprised me. I didn’t expect CM Punk to get that heavily booed in this one because he’s so over. ‘Big Evil’ went for a choke slam again, but Punk flailed about, escaping and dropping referee Mike Chidoa into the bargain. He dropped ‘Taker with a spinning back kick and then scored with another high knee.

‘Taker surprised him with a Last Ride attempt, only for Heyman to pass the urn to his charge as he was carried into the centre of the ring. Punk walloped ‘Taker with the prop and then mimicked his traditional post-Tombstone pin. Chioda made it back up to count a two in what was a the most convincing false finish of the bout.

Punk signalled for a Tombstone and went for a GTS. I’ve no idea what the fake call was about. Probably more cheap heat attempts. ‘Taker fought out of the GTS and went for a Tombstone. CM countered that with another GTS attempt, which Undertaker fought out of. He hit Punk with the second Tombstone piledriver of the match, finally pinning him after twenty minutes of solid action.

It was the match of the night.

Following his victory Undertaker was described as the most incredible performer in the history of WrestleMania by over-excitable hyperbole merchant Michael Cole. He’s very good but I’m not sure he beats Shawn Michaels. Unless of course Cole’s talking in kayfabe terms regarding wins at the event.

 

21-0

 

Undertaker then did his kneeling pose to the urn, looking a little teary as he did so. It was, I presume, a tribute to Paul Bearer. He then walked up a smoky aisle with his beloved golden prop, stopping only to do the arm raising pose he first introduced when he was a biker over a decade ago. It’s moments like that that remind you what a confusing gimmick the Undertaker actually is.

The eight person tag match pitting the Rhodes Scholars and the Bellas against Tons of Funk and the Funkadactyls should have gone on after that. Undertaker v Punk had been so good that nothing was going to adequately follow it. Sticking those eight out there would have cooled things down and encouraged the crowd to be more excitable for the two remaining main event matches.

They ended up being cut from the show, most likely because of time constraints. Hey, Fandango’s dancers had to be shown and there was no way the company could have cut back on video packages for Cena and Rock. The eight person match was the obvious thing to lose.

Triple H and Brock Lesnar went out there and lamped one another in twenty-four minutes of near silence. It wasn’t a wrestling match, it was a worked fight. As worked fights go it wasn’t bad. Sadly, as mentioned above, the crowd was still coming down off the excitement of The Streak’s continuation. They just weren’t terribly interested in this.

Neither was I, ultimately. The entrances provided more entertainment. Brock Lesnar looked like the most dangerous and threatening man on the planet as he walked to the ring while the Castle Grayskull prop was dusted off and wheeled out for ‘The Game’. Speaking of H3’s entrance: he had a mysterious luminous liquid on his stomach. That’s where fancy entrance lighting doesn’t do you any favours. My guess as to the origin of this was that Steph has a special way of wishing Hunter good luck before his matches.

 

A teary-eyed Castle Grayskull watches Triple H's WrestleMania entrance

 

There was plenty of ringside brawling and rest holds disguised as MMA chokes and arm submissions in this one. The kimura lock may be a legitimately dangerous hold but in the worked environment of pro wrestling it comes across as a way to give competitors a breather. Because it is.

The predictable spots were wheeled out. Heyman interfered and ate Sweet Chin Music from Michaels. Triple H brought out his trusty (rubber) sledgehammer. Triple H survived an F5. Lesnar survived a Pedigree (and also botched it). Michaels took an F5. Lesnar brought some steel steps into the ring, for vicious shenanigan purposes. ‘The King of Kings’ locked ‘The Pain’ in his own signature hold, the aforementioned kimura lock, and the former UFC champ refused to tap. It’s worth noting that he called for help from Heyman though.

In the end ‘The Cerebral Assassin’ won after doing his big yell (the one that never really caught on as a finisher taunt), lamped Brockster with his sledge, and then hit a Pedigree on the steel steps. The two matches a year career will continue. It lasted roughly the same time as CM Punk and Undertaker’s match did but had a far slower pace and was nowhere near as enjoyable.

The Hall of Famers were introduced to the stage. Far too much camera time was dedicated to Mick Foley and nowhere near enough was given to Trish Stratus. Booker T seemed to enjoy himself, laughing and pointing into the crowd. Most of the others seemed to be taking it a little too seriously. Trump looked like he didn’t really know what to do. Bob Backlund squatted and roared. Bruno Sammartino got the biggest reaction by far, and deserved it. He looks very spry for a man in the latter half of his seventies.

After that it was time for the main event. Twice in a lifetime. Unless they do a deciding match at some point, in which case it will be thrice in a lifetime. It doesn’t seem too likely at time of writing but don’t rule it out.

This match can’t be described as a disappointment because that would imply I had in some way expected it to be good. It was what I expected: slightly better than their exchange at last year’s WrestleMania XXVIII but not as good as Rock’s matches from when he wrestled full time. It was an average Cena match. Is there any other kind?

The bulk of the match was rest holds and Cena stalling at ringside. Cena can last for a long time, I’ll say that for him. ‘The Great One’ cannot, not with his bloated Hollywood physique (which is not dissimilar to that of a Level Two Super Saiyan). In between these rests the two exchanged punches and the occasional kick. You can tell Rock rose to prominence during the Attitude Era.

Cole was hideous on commentary, mentioning several times that Rock and Cena knew each other well. They may have been feuding for two years but this was only their second match. So, y’know, Cole needs to chill out on the dramatics.

Rock hit multiple Rock Bottoms. Cena hit even more AAs. Rock used the Sharpshooter. Cena used the STF. Rock powered out of that at one point but on a show that had seen The Ryback Shellshock Mark Henry Rock’s feat of strength was never going to impress anyone. Rock hit a spinebuster and (eventually) a People’s Elbow. Cena used the Rock Bottom.

In probably the cleverest spot of the match Cena went for a People’s Elbow but hooked himself on ropes, making it clear he was suckering Rock in, a call back to Cena apparently costing himself the match last years by becoming overconfident and taunting ‘The Great One’. It was, in essence, an endless exchange of signature moves, but done without the thought, passion and linking narratives of Punk v Undertaker. 

Mercifully, after a mere twenty-four minutes, it was over. Cena won clean after ducking out of a Rock Bottom attempt and hitting the fourth or fifth (or maybe sixth or seventh) AA of the bout.

Yep, this again

 

Following the competitors had a chat and then shook hands. This got heavy boos but there were some positive claps and cheers mixed in there too. Cena then left the ring and ‘The Brahma Bull’s’ music came on. Rock kissed some ringsiders, ruffled the hair of the Cena fan and then met Cena at the top of the aisle. They saluted each other as if they’re in the ruddy military (they’re not) and then Cena raised his foe’s hand, with Rock awkwardly accepting and pointing at Cena. Rock left Cena to it after a while, letting the show go off the air with Cena bellowing that the champ is here.

It was WrestleMania by numbers. Big matches were given their predictable results, leaving the cobbled together undercard to deliver surprises. Triple H, Undertaker and John Cena had to win the top three matches, which is why we were treated to the surprised result of Mark Henry pinning Ryback.

To a lesser extent it’s why we didn’t see a Ziggler cash-in: that was deemed too obvious to be used as a surprise for the event. It doesn’t matter that it would have been an amazing moment and the right thing for Ziggler’s career, WWE doesn’t like it when we guess what they’re up to.

It wasn’t a bad show. It was just predictable. That and the undernourished lower card matches is what will stop it being considered a top ‘Mania.

Will we see Rock v Cena III? Like I said above it doesn’t seem likely at time of writing but it wouldn’t surprise me. If it does happen I think it should be at Extreme Rules next month. Get a decent buy rate for a B PPV and do something fresh for WrestleMania XXX, that’s what I say. Rock versus either Undertaker or Brock Lesnar could be good. There’s an entire year to build him up after his loss. Let’s just hope his loss doesn’t cause his personal life to spiral out of control as it did to Cena last year.

The Months After the Night Before

WrestleMania XXIX, like all good WrestleManias, is likely going to feature some title changes and heel and face turns, as well as the final in-ring appearances from most of the part time club for quite a while (and perhaps ever in one case). With their biggest audience of the year watching it's the perfect time for all of this. Old feuds draw to a close and new ones are started. It's as much a chance to convert casual viewers into full time ones as it is a payoff of stories that have been months in the making.

There are plenty of new directions open to WWE for Monday's RAW and beyond. Not all of them involve current members of the roster: there are several guys in NXT who are ready to be called into active service. The Rock is expected to stick around and wrestle at Extreme Rules. There's a chance Brock Lesnar will too.

But even if both men wrestle at the next pay-per-view they won’t be on every episode of RAW. Should some NXT stars debut before April vanishes from the calendar they won’t eat up much time either. That means WWE are going to have plenty of free time for their regulars.

Dolph Ziggler is one of the top names for a prime spot after WrestleMania. I'm expecting him to be the World Heavyweight champion by Monday. If I'm right he'll have cashed in on either Alberto Del Rio or Jack Swagger. That's an ideal starting point for a programme. Should Ziggler find himself opposing Swagger he can be turned babyface, although I think it's a bit early to go ahead with that and the turn should be teased for a while first.

The best option for 'The Show Off' post-'Mania would be a three-way feud with the Del Rio and 'The Real American'. That would allow him to play a tweener antagonising both his foes and encouraging a face turn to occur naturally. Y'know, by getting fans to cheer him while he's still officially a heel. A timely turn in the summer could see him prepped for a SummerSlam feud with Randy Orton. Assuming 'The Apex Predator's' a bad guy by then that is. Alternatively Big E could go heel on his boss and challenge him for the WHC at a summer PPV.

The guy on the right should be getting lots of screen time after WrestleMania

Should the Del Rio and Swagger dispute continue one-on-one without the World strap Ziggler will be at a slight loss for worthwhile opponents. Chris Jericho would be an ideal challenger but he will apparently be gone before Extreme Rules. Ziggler's best hope in this situation would be a programme with Sheamus, Orton or Big Show, all of whom seem unlikely because they're playing very different roles right now.

 

The likeliest thing I can think of is that he'll get paired up with Ryback or Mark Henry. There's no mileage in the current Henry v Ryback programme once we've seen 'Big Hungry' Muscle Bust 'The World's Strongest Man' (although it could run for years if Ryback botches his finish at 'Mania).

Henry and Ryback are an odd pair. They are very limited with regard to who they can work with. For Ryback this is because his status as a headline babyface is still precarious, mainly because losses have been heaped on him since his programme with Punk ended and his entire character is based around winning decisively all the time. For Henry it's because he's made from pure lard, becoming winded incredibly quickly and finding it tricky to provide quality matches to the masses.

Henry would best be used dominating expendable talent on TV and losing to worthwhile talent on pay-per-view. Any wrestler WWE wants to get over as a babyface would benefit from a win over a former World champ and an impressively large man like Henners. Such things mean something to WWE’s casual audience. I can't think of anything more worthwhile he could do than put others over.

Ryback's in a better position because he at least has fresh matches waiting for him with most of WWE's main event crew. That will keep him occupied on pay-per-views at least. Immediately after WM29 he could head into a programme with Big Show. While a Shellshock on 'The World's Largest Athlete' sounds like it should be WrestleMania Moment it's hard to imagine WWE keeping them apart for another year. It would be easy to set up the night after 'Mania too: Show could come out and say slamming Mark Henry’s not impressive, slamming him is impressive. A match at Extreme Rules would naturally follow.

Show's currently a face and assuming he stays that way inclined a showdown with 'The Human Wrecking Ball' is unlikely. That and a WHC programme with Ziggler aside Ryback could be placed into a worthwhile programme with Jack Swagger or Antonio Cesaro. The latter could lead to Ry's first title win. A comedown from the world championship? Yeah, why not? Rushing Ryback to the top is practically asking for fans to turn on him. He's done well to get over as a good guy. His popularity shouldn't be risked, it should be nurtured.

Cesaro is possibly more in need of direction than any other noteworthy name in WWE right now. Feuding with Ryback would help Cesaro too. Failing that he could tangle with pretty much any good guy on the roster. Daniel Bryan would be my preferred choice. It could provide an excellent series of matches. Check out some of the matches they had before joining WWE to see what they're capable of together.

Two other guys in need of some proper direction are Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. They've been great since being slapped together out of the blue last autumn. Rhodes was pretty good before that, he just wasn't being given much of a chance to show it. 'The Intellectual Saviour' has been consistently excellent since debuting during the afterglow of last year's 'Mania XXVIII. No matter what dire segment he's been put into he's managed to shine by understanding his character.

 

Future tag champs? Don't get your hopes up

 

With there being so many mid-card heels on the roster right now the Rhodes Scholars are still best off remaining united. They could chase Team Hell No for the titles if they still have them. If not they could... well, they could do something. Hopefully WWE will see some sense and get some decent tag teams together soon. The Scholars could help the doubles division as champions. Failing that maybe Orton and Sheamus could stay together a bit after WrestleMania and feud with them and boost the tag scene.

That last suggestion seems unlikely to come about though. Orton v Sheamus was originally rumoured as a WrestleMania bout. It's now being rumoured for after WrestleMania. Rumours like this don't get started without a reason. Orton and Sheamus are fresh opponents for each other and they're both main event names. That they've been put together means WWE plans to split them. It's the way they write this stuff.

Assuming one man turns on the other at WrestleMania (I'm not convinced Orton will be the man to go bad) their feud is the kind that will run for months. They'll face off at Extreme Rules in May and Payback in June. They'll possibly even stretch to Money in the Bank in July. By that point I, and probably everyone reading this, will be sick of their promos on and matches against one another. Orton moving on to a WHC feud with Ziggler would be a good plan, as mentioned above. Sheamus would be well placed to elevate a mid-carder. Wade Barrett would be the best choice, followed by Sandow and Rhodes as singles competitors.

Speaking of Barrett I think he's losing the Intercontinental belt to The Miz at WrestleMania. If that happens an Extreme Rules rematch would seem likely. Barrett could regain the gold to keep the programme going and take us back to a time when the mid-card belts changed hands in feuds a little more routinely than world titles did. That's not likely though. 'The Awesome One' retaining and heading into a fresh feud would fit with the current WWE approach.

Should that happen Barrett could head into a programme with a babyface Big Show. I think they could have some pretty enjoyable matches. Victories over 'The Giant' wouldn't hurt 'The Brit with the Wit' (my suggestion for a Barrett moniker there) either.

That would leave Miz to segue into a feud with one of the various heels on the roster. Again Sandow and Rhodes spring to mind here. My top choice, however, would be Fandango. I think Miz, underrated as a loudmouth good guy in the 'Y2J' mould, could get some mileage out of that programme. Putting the belt on Fandango would help draw attention to him, make him seem credible (not everyone is a champ just a couple of months after their debut), and restore some prestige to the IC gold. It'd be a fresh match too.

I've already mentioned Team Hell No in passing. I've predicted they'll lose the titles (check out my WrestleMania preview here) at WrestleMania but I'm not totally certain on the outcome. I wouldn't be surprised if Ziggler and Langston left with the belts. Whatever the case Bryan and Kane need to lose them soon. They've got nothing left to do as champions and need fresh material.

 

I've suggested a programme between Bryan and Cesaro. ‘The World’s Toughest Vegan’ could also feud with Fandango, Barrett or Ziggler. A programme with Ziggler could be set up by having Bryan pin him in the WrestleMania tag match, which would mean he has a win over the World champion as the night closes. 'The Show Off' could then cost THN the tag straps on RAW to fuel the tension between he and Bryan.

Kane would do what Kane always does. Move into a back-and-forth rivalry with a heel that ultimately achieves nothing. Barrett would fit the bill. So would Cesaro. ‘The Big Red Machine’ could make an interesting first feud for Conor O'Brian too, especially if the direction I suggested for O'Brian here (basically a comedic take on the supernatural-inspired character he plays in NXT) were used. Both men would be doing similar things but on opposite sides of the heel-face divide. It seems an unlikely direction though.

It's pretty tough to see what The Shield will be doing after WrestleMania. Their programme with 'The Viper' and 'The Apex Predator' should be wrapping up on the big show. It's been going for months now. That leaves them with Big Show. He could either recruit two new guys to help him continue his fight or head off into a new singles programme.

Whether Show sticks around or not Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns would benefit from fresh opponents. Ideally they'd be put into the tag team division. That would allow them to compete regularly, have more of a purpose beyond endless run-ins, get them working with a wider variety of guys and bring some interest to a barren league. Should Bryan and Kane stick together The Shield would make good opponents but other acts would be needed too if staleness was to be avoided (The Shield targeted THN last year).

Of course the big two names working full time will remain CM Punk and John Cena. No matter who feuds with who nothing is going to change that in the near future. They will remain the stars around which the company revolves.

Cena is likely going to walk out of WrestleMania as an eleven time WWE champion. He doesn't need the belt to be over but WWE likes putting it on him. His status as top dog allows him to enter a feud with anyone. Fellow main eventers are obviously fair game while mid-carders can be scripted to target him to use him as a stepping stone to greatness. The outcomes of most of Cena's potential feuds will never be in question but that doesn't decrease their number.

It may be difficult to imagine any of the mid-card pack challenging Cena right now but WWE would have six weeks between WM29 and Extreme Rules to build someone up. That should be ample. And it's not as though they're averse to selecting guys below Cena's station to oppose him on pay-per-views (see the WrestleMania XXVII main event).

Cena versus Cesaro, Barrett, Rhodes or Sandow seems massively unlikely. With The Rock appearing at the Extreme show a third instalment in that rivalry seems like it could be happening. Lesnar remains a possible opponent too, and would help attract more buys than a rising mid-card guy.

A further option is Ryback. This could be done with both men playing face or with one as a heel. I don't think either's going to turn at WrestleMania but they could. Ryback chasing a heel Cena could make him a white hot star if he was presented correctly. Remember how fans backed him against the popular CM Punk last year? I think they'd be even more keen on him of he was battering the smug Cena character every week.

Ryback going heel would be absolutely stupid right now. He still has fresh opponents in his good guy role and I think fans would be willing to support him as they did in 2012 if he were simply booked better. That said if did happen there would be nobody better to turn on than Mr Merchandise. Their matches would be horrible atrocities that nobody should be made to witness... but kids would love 'em! The valiant Cena battling against an animalistic madman who spends matches bellowing and working stiff? The CeNation would lap up Cena’s struggle there.

 

John Cena's next opponent?

 

The only downside is that the dynamic could potentially switch Ryback back into a face. The best option with a Cena v Ryback feud would be to book each to their strengths. For Cena that would be childish promos to get his supporters to buy into the story and rile those already inclined to boo him. For Ryback it would mean snorting and roaring and making it look as though he's trying to maul Cena in any confrontations they have. An audience split should be sought. Trying to force one of the two into a face role wouldn't work.

Finally there's CM Punk. He will apparently take time off after WrestleMania. If that happens it won't kick in until Tuesday, there's no way WWE would do the April 8^th RAW without one of their lead players. Something could be set up for his return there. Someone could attack him and be credited with his absence or interrupt him to give ‘The Second City Saint’ someone to target upon his return.

Should he stick around Punk could spend his time trying to establish some new babyface acts. Feuds with The Miz or Kofi Kingston would be a comedown for him but a big boost for those guys. More likely are programmes with someone like Big Show or Daniel Bryan. A return to his ancient feud with Cena would be thoroughly unengaging but shouldn't be ruled out. Same goes for his programme with Ryback, although that would at least be less stale. 

If Lesnar's working Extreme Rules he and Punk could provide the biggest boost possible to the copper coin tag belts by teaming up. This would work very well if Team Hell No remain champions. The quality of Bryan v Punk is obvious to everyone and Punk has proven he can have good matches with 'The Devil’s Favourite Demon’. I'm pretty sure Kane and 'The Beast' could do some solid brawling and Bryan has proven many times throughout his career that he can have realistic interaction with men far bigger than he is, promising for potential interaction with Lesnar. The four could have a very good doubles match.

Long term there aren't too many fresh matches for Punk. There are even fewer for Cena. The man expected to walk out of MetLife Stadium as WWE champion has faced everyone on the roster numerous times. Some more recently than others but there's still not a noteworthy fresh opponent left for him. Punk's in a similar situation although he at least has Sheamus to tangle with (the prospect of that match doesn't fill me with joy). If built up right it could be a decent addition to an early autumn pay-per-view. It's not big enough for SummerSlam.

 

Pay attention to WWE’s programming over the rest of the month. I’m pretty some of this stuff’s going to happen.

WrestleMania XXIX preview

Considering it will be the biggest and most financially successful wrestling event of the year the booking of WrestleMania XXIX has left quite a bit to be desired. The stories for many of the top matches have been botched, the only one of the big three that's managed to weather the storm being Brock Lesnar v Triple H.

Perhaps WWE are simply content to rest on their laurels. They know this show will make money so why overanalyse things and risk making it a sub-par event. Coasting will get them perfectly satisfactory results after all.

Blue Steel

Outside of the three main event matches the one with the most hype, and very probably the best story behind it, is Alberto Del Rio v Jack Swagger for the World Heavyweight championship. 'The Real American' has become more relevant than at any other point in his career thanks to his xenophobic overhaul and pairing with Zeb Colter. ADR has worked out well as a babyface, although his job is understandably easier in Latin markets. This means that we could  see a pretty hot match.

'Mania tends to attract hardcore fans who will happily cheer heels over faces if the mood takes them. I can't see that happening here, what with Swagger being a beardy racist and everything. This will be a test for Del Rio's popularity and ability to get a reaction from fans when not opposing an established headliner. How well he fares will play a part in determining what role he plays in WWE's long term future.

If it's given the time I think Del Rio’s WHC defence could be the best wrestling match on the show. Immediately after Elimination Chamber I thought Swagger seemed destined to get the gold. Following his drug-related arrest his chances have fallen. No ramifications for that act of stupidity have been made public. If there had been some they would likely have cropped up on a rumour site or two by now. This lack of punishment makes me think that Swagger was originally going to win the title from Del Rio and that WWE has changed their minds as a way of teaching him a lesson (that lesson being “say no to drugs”).

While I expect ADR to retain the big gold belt I don't expect him to leave with it. Dolph Ziggler still hasn't cashed in the Money in the Bank briefcase he won last July, which grants him a WHC shot whenever he wants it. WrestleMania seems like a fitting time for 'The Show Off' to cash-in and I expect him to be successful. Not only would this make use of the talented and popular Ziggler (who I think is likely to turn face later in the year) but it could kick off a new three-way programme for the big gold belt.

Ziggler's scheduled appearance is in a tag team match alongside Big E Langston. Yep, Big E, the reigning NXT champion, will wrestle his first televised match as a member of the main roster at WrestleMania. That’s pretty much the ideal way to debut. And Langston’s not the only guy getting that treatment: somebody in WWE is taking pushing new acts seriously again.

Big E and Ziggler will challenge Team Hell No for the tag team championship. I don't think this match will get very long, unfortunately. I'm expecting Bryan and Ziggler to have a good wrestling exchange and at least one spot where Langston muscles Kane around. That would be fine with me. Bryan and Ziggler are two of the best on the roster and throwing 'The Big Red Machine' around will make Big E look good without asking too much of him.

It’s hard to pick a winner for this match, although Bryan and Kane need to lose the championships soon because their act has become tiresome. Both would benefit from doing something new. But if Ziggler's winning the World title (and I think he is, remember) giving him a tag belt too would be a peculiar move. Having two titles would be a good way to highlight 'The Heel' and could see a return of his two matches per PPV gimmick from late 2011. It’s just that it goes against WWE’s current booking practices.

Elsewhere on the undercard Ryback will tangle with Mark Henry. This is one of the matches I was alluding to earlier when I mentioned botched storylines. 'The Human Wrecking Ball' was originally announced for the six man tag match (see below, obvs). He was pulled from that after just a few days for a showdown with 'The World's Strongest Man', which was at one point advertised for an episode of SmackDown (it didn't happen due to an attack by The Shield).

A plot ripe with false advertising is not the best way to treat one of the top prospects the company currently has. WWE did it anyway. Because they know best.

I think Ryback seems a safe pick here. He needs rebuilding after losses to CM Punk at the end of last year, as well as his elimination from the Rumble by John Cena and his relatively clean loss to The Shield at Elimination Chamber. Once someone is established as a headliner in WWE they can lose as often as is needed. Before they've made it they need to show that they can win consistently. It's what WWE fans have been conditioned to expect from top guys.

This match seems like an elaborate excuse to have ‘Big Hungry’ hit his Muscle Buster finisher on ‘The World’s Strongest Man’. What a WrestleMania Moment™ that will be! It also has the added bonus of giving Michael Cole an excuse to get overexcited. I think we all want that.

Big Show replaced Ryback in the six man tag match. He will team with Randy Orton and Sheamus against The Shield. 'The Celtic Warrior' is cretinous but everyone else has something to offer. Rollins and Ambrose are both excellent and while I'm still not a massive fan of Reigns he's acceptable in small doses and multi-man outings. Big Show is Big Show. He'll be blown up by the time he gets to the ring, but he'll do everything with intensity.

Orton is probably going to be the star of this match. A heel turn has been rumoured for him for months and it's expected to take place here. The favourite prediction seems to be 'The Viper' blasting Sheamus with an RKO during or after the match. That would make sense from a storyline perspective and would set up the expected Sheamus v Orton programme, but people seem to be forgetting WWE's habit of changing plans that leak or seem obvious.

I don't think a Sheamus heel turn should be ruled out. Orton may have said he wants to play heel but that could be a ruse to misdirect fans. Or he could be denied his wishes as punishment for talking about them freely on Twitter. 'Great White' has been a disappointment as a headline babyface so a heel turn doesn't seem impossible. Orton is still a popular guy with fans. Turning him would freshen him up but it would cost the promotion more money than a Shaymo switch and be slapped with the dreaded predictable label.

I expect The Shield to win no matter what. I'm just not convinced it's 'The Apex Predator' who will go bad.

Chris Jericho v Fandango strikes me as an oddity. I’m not against the match being on the WrestleMania card. I’ve come around to the idea of ‘Y2J’ being used to elevate the ballroom dancer because WWE seems to be serious about getting the new act to stick.

Usually I’ll complain that I don’t think matches will get long enough. Here I’m going to hope they don’t. Fandango would be best served with a quick pinfall over ‘The Highlight of the Night’. Sticking in some stalling and a pre-match demand to have his name said correctly is fine, but once they lock up things need to be over quickly. Fandango’s still in a delicate position. Viewers need to be kept wanting more.

One match that I don’t think we’ll be wanting more of is the eight person tag team match. That the Rhodes Scholars have been lumbered with Tensai, Brodus Clay and four part time Diva wrestlers is an incredible disappointment. They’ve been so good as a unit that they deserved to be in a tag title match. At least they’re on the card, I suppose. That’s more than can be said for others who deserve it just as much.

We’ll probably have a clearer idea of who’s winning this match when we see where it’s placed on the card. It’s likely going to be strategically slotted in as a bathroom break after one of the bigger matches. If they’re following a heel win then it’s likely Tensai and Clay will go over, and vice versa. I’m going to officially select Damien Sandow, Cody Rhodes and the Bella twins to win. I care about the guys more, and the Bellas are better looking. It’s that simple.

Originally announced for the main card was an Intercontinental title match between former champion The Miz and current champion Wade Barrett. It got bumped down to the pre-show a week ago, likely because of time limitations. I think that’s fair enough. They’re still getting to wrestle in front of a WrestleMania crowd. In fact they’ll probably get a better reaction than they would on the ‘Mania broadcast because they’ll be one of the night’s first outings.

Barrett’s a Brit so I’d like to pick him as a national pride thing. Realistically I think ‘The Awesome One’ has a better chance. He’s not been pinned at WrestleMania and while I think it’s unlikely Miz is ever going to have an Undertaker style Streak I do think it helps his chances against a guy like Barrett. I think they’ll have a decent match.

On the subject of the pre-show I think there’s a good chance there will be a battle royal featuring everyone not in a match. With Antonio Cesaro not announced to defend his US title a battle royal defence could be booked. Alternatively ‘The Swiss Superman’ could face the winner of a battle royal.

If a battle royal for the United States strap happens I think it will come down to Zack Ryder and Cesaro. If Cesaro faces the winner my pick will be ‘Long Island Iced Z’. With this show being in Ryder’s home area he seems like the best bet to challenge Cesaro. WWE may go all the way and have him win but I think that would be going too far. Cesaro’s more valuable to the future of WWE. He should leave with the gold.

Another pre-show option is a Divas title match. It was hinted that Kaitlyn and AJ were going to square off at WM29 a week or two ago but no match was ever officially announced. If it ends up happening, and I think it should if enough time can be found, I’ll be picking AJ to win.

Then there are the main event matches. Cena v Rock II will go on last. I'm not sure which of the other two will get the higher billing but personally I think it should be Undertaker v Punk. For one thing Triple H v Lesnar is a rematch from last year. For another it's not as important as The Streak, despite its stipulations.

What 'The Game' versus 'The Pain' II has going for it over the other high profile bouts on the card is that it's not easy to predict. It's a no holds barred match which will see Triple H retire if he loses. The retirement stip had become surprisingly meaningful over the last several years, thanks to the send offs of Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels. Neither has wrestled again (in WWE anyway) after losing. That adds weight to the prospect of Triple H retiring here.

Before the retirement announcement I was in two minds as to who would win this match. The stipulation decided for me, really. I can’t imagine Triple H hanging up the boots quite yet. He’s too valuable as a part time performer. As long as he’s active ‘The Game’ will always be available to appear on a pay-per-view against a rising talent or a burgeoning main eventer. There’s not really anyone else who can perform that function.

Are WWE willing to put him on the shelf and deny themselves a reliable main event act? I don't know, but I know they shouldn't be. I think Lesnar needs the win more because he's going to be appearing in pay-per-view matches regularly (he signed a two year contract extension a month or so ago) and needs to be portrayed as a winner. But my feeling that Triple H remaining part time is good for business outweighs that.

That said how good would it make Lesnar look if he could spend the next two years of his WWE contract bragging about ending the career of the COO? Perhaps WWE has a long term plan based around that.

The Undertaker v CM Punk deserves to be in the semi-main event spot, despite the spectacularly botched nature of their feud. As the year began it seemed obvious that Punk would drop the title to The Rock at Royal Rumble and then segue into a programme with the Undertaker at or around Elimination Chamber. That's what's happened but not in the way that was expected.

For starters Punk had to win a match to earn the right to challenge The Streak. I can understand the logic behind that in the abstract, but when it came to bell time the match had no drama as there was never any doubt 'The Second City Saint' would win. From there Punk and 'The Dead Man' progressed into a feud based around the death of Paul Bearer. While that's something that needed to be addressed, considering how important Bearer was to the early success of the Undertaker, it shouldn't have been the focal point of a WrestleMania feud. Not on grounds of bad taste (Bearer's family have signed off on everything that's transpired on TV) but on grounds of logical storytelling.

What the programme should have been about was Punk's continued quest for respect. After focusing so heavily on being the longest reigning WWE champion in twenty five years the natural thing for Punk to do next is try to conquer The Streak. And that's what it should be about: ending The Streak to prove he's 'The Best in the World', not nicking an urn and getting cheap heat with backstage promos.

The match itself could be good, but it's not a foregone conclusion. Undertaker has looked decidedly gaunt during his recent appearances and it's well known he's got an assortment of injuries nagging at him. Punk's younger and more used to being in the ring but his body's taken a beating over the last several months too. It's rumoured he'll be taking time off after 'Mania to rest up.

Both men take pride in what they do so I'm sure they'll do everything possible to make the match memorable. Injuries may ultimately hamper good intentions though.

Will CM Punk beat Undertaker? No. No matter what people say about building Punk up and 'Taker wanting Punk to be the man to end The Streak it's not going to happen this year. There are still big matches with The Rock, Brock Lesnar and John Cena to be had. If Punk does end it it won't be this year. Undertaker's appearances have become a draw in their own right for WrestleMania. He, like Triple H but for different reasons, is too valuable to let go of yet. I also think that when he does decide to finish his career up we'll know beforehand: the knowledge would add drama to every attempted pin of that final outing.

Finally we come to Cena v Rock II. Twice in a lifetime, as the wags are saying. There are a surprising number of people taking issue with last year's tag line being violated. I don't really understand why. WrestleMania XXVIII was the most financially successful instalment of the series ever. Much of its success is credited to Rock and Cena. Booking a rematch may be dull but it's the smart thing to do. At least they had the good grace to get to it by Rock winning the title and Cena winning the Rumble, as opposed to them simply challenging one another and deliberately going against the once in a lifetime line.

I'd like this to be a faster match than they had last year. Nothing about 'The Great One's' performances at the Rumble and Elimination Chamber makes me think he'll be capable of that. The fact that he's keeping his muscle mass up for his part in Hercules doesn't bode particularly well either. Nor does the fact that he's facing John Cena, one of the most predictable men on the roster.

It won't be a great match. Bear that in mind and limit yourself to hoping they better last year's performance and it could be a bearable main event.

Cena is the obvious pick to win. Not only did he lose last year (meaning it's his turn to go over this time) but Rock is going to be taking another sabbatical after the show. He'll be on the April 8^th RAW and May’s Extreme Rules. Beyond those dates nothing's been announced regarding his WWE appearances before WrestleMania XXX, which he says he’s looking forward to wrestling at. It seems unlikely WWE would keep the title on him for another month after their big show.

WrestleMania XXIX looks like a bearable show. There's nothing about it that makes me think it can top 'Mania X7 as the greatest ever but it should avoid being counted among the dregs. It may have a few predictable outcomes in there but there are enough opportunities for surprises for that not to be an issue. Let's hope everyone tries to steal the show and forces quality up while they're doing it.

The real test will be for those of us sitting through it. Ten confirmed matches, three rumoured ones, and a musical appearance from P Diddy. The confirmed runtime for the ‘Mania show itself is four hours, with the pre-show taking it to five and the recently confirmed after-show stretching things to six. That’s a quarter of a day of live WWE coverage. Even for WrestleMania that’s pushing things.

Something tells me April 7^th is going to be a long night.

Predictions summary:
John Cena to defeat The Rock
Undertaker to defeat CM Punk
Triple H to defeat Brock Lesnar
Alberto Del Rio to defeat Jack Swagger
Ryback to defeat Mark Henry
The Shield to defeat Sheamus, Big Show and Randy Orton
Team Hell No to defeat Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston

Fandango to defeat Chris Jericho
The Rhodes Scholars, Nikki Bella and Brie Bella to defeat Brodus Clay, Tensai and the Funkadactyls
The Miz to defeat Wade Barrett

Doing the Light Fandango

When I first saw Johnny Curtis wrestle on NXT season four I thought he had the size and height to be a success on the main roster. He could talk and wrestle well too. Unfortunately that wasn’t enough to get a call-up back then.

Curtis won his series of NXT. That was supposed to entitle him to a main roster gig and a shot at the WWE tag team titles alongside his pro from the series, R-Truth. The heel turn of ‘The Suntan Superman’ put a stop to that: Curtis was left without a partner and his title shot was quickly forgotten about.

His short stint on SmackDown, which started several months after he’d won NXT, got off to a surprisingly promising start when he appeared in a backstage segment pouring milk all over himself. He appeared in several similar vignettes, each featuring some sort of play on words, over the course of the following months. It seemed as though WWE had decided to introduce him with a minor push as a member of the mid-card.

That ended up not being the case. In Curtis’s in-ring debut he was squashed by Mark Henry, becoming just another victim of ‘The World’s Strongest Man’s’ startling rise to the main event and the World Heavyweight championship. The Curtis push had been for nothing.

Following that JC became a regular on the never-ending NXT Redemption. He made a couple of appearances last spring when the show was restructured into its current format before disappearing. He continued making non-televised appearances on house shows and at TV tapings as Johnny Curtis, before finally being repackaged as Fandango in late October.

Before I address the Fandango gimmick it’s worth pointing out that not getting a main roster spot at any point over the last two years has probably helped ‘Dirty Curty’. Had he been promoted to RAW or SmackDown (the separate roster era was in its final throes at this point) Curtis would have been quickly forgotten about and sunk down into an enhancement role. At best he could have cobbled together a Zack Ryder-esque spot for himself, but that’s not what most wrestlers aspire to. Being held back on the NXT and dark match circuit allowed Curtis to keep improving.

 

Faaaaaan... daaaaaan... goooooo!

 

The Fandango gimmick is tremendous. It’s exactly the sort of thing WWE should be doing right now (and no, I’m not being sarcastic). The slow building nature of the push, the multiple delays with regards to the in-ring debut, and the story of the character wanting to have his named pronounced correctly (you've got to let the vowels breathe), are great.

The best thing about the persona is that Curtis doesn’t look or sound like anyone else on the roster. Everything from his ring gear to his entrance music sets him apart. At a time when the majority of WWE stars all look and sound like one another being distinguishable is incredibly useful.

There’s still time for things to go wrong. Ideally Fandango will win his debut match against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania but it won’t be disastrous if he loses. What will be disastrous is if Fandango suffers a quick loss to ‘Y2J’. Losing quickly after such an excellent build-up would be the Mark Henry incident all over again.

SummerSlam Suggestions

While WrestleMania XXIX hasn't taken place yet there's a good chance WWE's creative department are already looking ahead to WrestleMania XXX. Despite appearances these things aren't booked at the last minute. While it will likely be next year before the bulk of the roster get assigned to matches it's likely that the part timers, the guys who've helped to draw record numbers for 'Mania over the last couple of years, are being tentatively slotted into matches now. As they make fewer appearances and have more name value more attention is paid to how they're used. Makes sense to me.

WrestleMania XXIX and the April 8^th RAW are the perfect shows to begin building towards next year’s big show. There are plenty options. Undertaker's next opponent could be determined a year in advance. 'Stone Cold' could return to tease that long awaited showdown with CM Punk. Triple H and The Rock could agree to add one final match to their longstanding and storied rivalry. Brock Lesnar could announce that he’ll challenge for the WWE championship in a year.

The build towards WrestleMania XXX could be used to restore some prestige to SummerSlam. Yeah, the pay-per-view that used to be WWE’s number event card of the year, a spot which has been usurped over the last several years by the Royal Rumble. ‘The Hottest Event of the Summer’ could play host to a match (or better yet, matches) that set things in motion or built on already established storylines for ‘Mania XXX.

There are two scenarios I think could be of interest for next year’s ‘Mania. The first would be a Rock versus Brock Lesnar match. The build could begin after the Cena v Rock WWE title match, which will almost certainly be going on last at WM29. Cena's probably winning that but here winners aren't important: after the match CM Punk and Brock Lesnar, along with Paul Heyman, could rush the ring and beat down 'The Franchise' and 'The Great One'.

This guy needs to be in the SummerSlam main event

This would be particularly effective if Cena had just beaten The Rock to win his eleventh WWE championship and Rock was in the process of handing him the belt and raising his hand. I'm expecting this passing the torch shtick to occur so it's not beyond the realms of possibility. It would be a memorable a shocking close to a WrestleMania.

What makes it unlikely is that WWE like to end their pay-per-views, particularly WrestleMania, on positive notes. Two heels assaulting the company's top faces would scupper that. The potential passing the torch moment makes it more unlikely still.

The same effect could be achieved on RAW. Frankly that's the more likely place for something like this to happen. WWE typically uses 'Mania as the end point of feuds for bigger stars, launching fresh programmes the next evening. It would be more shocking if it happened at WrestleMania but RAW is likelier.

‘The Second City Saint’ and ‘The Pain’ would obviously need to explain their actions. That could take up the opening segment on either the April 8^th or April 15^th RAW, depending on when the assault happened. It wouldn’t take much to come up with motivation for them. Lesnar could say (probably through Heyman) that he hates WWE and wants to see the company destroyed. This is a motivation I’ve suggested for him before. I think it would be an effective and believable direction.

Punk’s reasoning could be that he’s tried for a year and a half to change WWE for the better but the fans turned on him and supported a company that would rather give them Rock v Cena II than the continuation of his celebrated championship reign. His expected time off could even be incorporated into the story. Reference could be made to him realising he couldn’t change the company from his couch. A comment about going back to sit on it until he’s ready to return would make perfect sense for the character and would keep him off TV until he’s ready to be brought back.

This would provide the perfect excuse to book a big tag team main event at SummerSlam: Brock Lesnar and CM Punk v The Rock and John Cena. While it wouldn’t be the best match ever it would be an effective draw for the show and could be used to tease the Rock and Brock singles clash.

The second scenario would be very similar to all of this, the main change being the omission of Lesnar. Punk could interfere in the WWE title match alone, or interrupt Rock and Cena on the April 8^th RAW. The aim there would be to book a John Cena v The Rock v CM Punk triple threat match for SummerSlam. A month or two ago a lot of people thought WWE were going to book this match for this year’s WrestleMania. Doing it at SummerSlam instead should boost the number of buys. A bonus is that there would be no clear winner: any of the three could walk out with the title.

Those are two matches that could turn SummerSlam into a must-see event. What are the chances we don’t see either of them take place?