What Do You Do With The United States Championship?

There is a tournament going on to find the #1 contender for the Intercontinental Championship. That makes things a little more interesting in the midcard. How about the other midcard title? Dean Ambrose is still holding that. And why? He is part of a stable that is currently feuding against a stable that has authority power. How can the heels stare at their enemies holding a title and not try to screw them out of that title? I know it is only the U.S. Championship, but this is the kind of thing that could help the title seem more important. Dean Ambrose could end up holding that title for a full year and it wouldn't be because he was doing such a great job during the reign. It would be because they tossed the title on him and never featured him properly as U.S. Champion.

What can the WWE do? What could they have done differently? First of all, I don't think it is necessary to rush Evolution vs. The Shield. Save it for after Extreme Rules. Have some singles matches first. Dean Ambrose vs. Kane for the title would not have been bad. Have Roman Reigns face Batista. Where would that leave Daniel Bryan? He has Kane in front of him. Would it really be bad if you let Randy Orton get his rematch he is entitled to at Extreme Rules? Give Triple H and Seth Rollins the night off. If that isn't what the WWE wants, have Seth face one of the other henchmen of The Authority. As you saw on Raw, a lot of heels are on the side of the corporate heels.

Of course, that will not be how things play out. What is left for the WWE to do? I am not saying any member of Evolution should take the U.S. title off Dean Ambrose. Those guys are all above that title. As I said before, there are other heels supporting The Authority. Let one of them take the title off Ambrose. Even better, make him defend the title in a gauntlet match. He might be able to overcome two or three guys, but then he eventually loses the title to someone like Rusev or Swagger. Then they can sell it as The Authority screwing Ambrose out of the title.

In a related note, I have seen talk that the reason they brought back the mask for Kane is because the WWE does not feel he has enough momentum in his current corporate state to be a challenge for Daniel Bryan. That might be the case, but there were definitely other ways to work around that without giving Kane a makeover. Have Kane attack Daniel Bryan with a weapon. Not only would Kane destroy Daniel Bryan, and look intimidating doing it, but you can develop a match at Extreme Rules around whatever weapon Kane used. Or a stretcher. Or an ambulance. Besides, Kane has destroyed Daniel Bryan already just a few weeks ago. I am still going to give WWE credit for deciding to not settle for that stuff and bringing back the mask. It causes better buzz than just an injury angle or developing a gimmick match. 

Let me switch gears. The WWE released initial numbers for Wrestlemania XXX. A million households. Sounds impressive. But you have to actually break those numbers down a little. 667,000 were WWE Network subscribers. Almost 400,000 were PPV buyers. I have seen some fans shocked that it was that high. I saw one guy on a message board a while ago say that Wrestlemania would be a "huge" success if it got just 150,000 buys. Yeah, well, I would love to see what adjective he uses after Wrestlemania got more than twice that. This number is actually not that shocking. I have been saying for a while that the WWE Network would not snag in as many casual fans as some might think. There are fans that just want to see Wrestlemania and don't care about the other stuff the WWE offers on their network. They wouldn't mind paying the huge price for it.

For me, the minimum Wrestlemania XXX had to get in PPV buys was 700,000. As I have said before, you would think the WWE would put their best foot forward for a Wrestlemania as special as this. And if the WWE did put their best foot forward, forgetting the WWE Network ever came out, you would expect a million buys. With the WWE Network, that kind of made it more difficult to set a benchmark. I don't agree with people that believe 150,000 would be amazing. I still say 700,000 is a good benchmark. 600,000 might have been even more reasonable, but I'm not dropping below that. Fact is, ratings were mediocre during this year's Wrestlemania season. The WWE failed to really create a feud that I think could draw in the casual fans. The story involving Daniel Bryan was epic, but it is more appealing to the regulars than the casuals. They didn't hype any huge celebrity or legend to be there. With all due respect to Hulk Hogan, if he could bring the results The Rock could, you would have seen it in the ratings even before Wrestlemania. You didn't. Financial reports have said that the initial numbers for the WWE Network were lower than many hoped for. The WWE will have to work to get 1,000,000 subscribers by the end of the year. Point is, you could just anticipate that this Wrestlemania would not draw as many buyers as it could have had. If the WWE pulled out their Network when The Rock came back or any of the other Wrestlemanias involving him in a major way recently, I am confident you would have had more subscribers and still more PPV buys than you have gotten. The WWE will tout the success of Wrestlemania XXX, but they could have done better.

Some fans are looking at that 1,000,000 and are ready to praise Daniel Bryan as the greatest draw of all time. I feel like posting a picture of Bad News Barrett. I won't. But I do have some news for those fans that might be most unpleasant. The WWE offered Wrestlemania at a very cheap price for those who subscribed to their network. For $9.99 a month, you get the PPVs (special events), past content, and original content. Fans would have been eager to get that regardless of whom was in the main event. They are not necessarily subscribing just to see Daniel Bryan. They want to scoop up that good deal. Moreover, I already pointed out that the actual PPV buys for the event were lower than you would hope for a Wrestlemania following in the line of 1,000,000 buys you have had with The Rock. If this Wrestlemania had done a great job in creating hype, whether you want to praise Daniel Bryan for it or not, you would expect more than a 1,000,000 domestic households in between WWE Network subscribers and PPV buyers. The WWE would have met that 800,000-subscriber benchmark some analysts came up with and the WWE would have roped in a lot of casual fans to want to order. It seems the WWE did a better job promoting the WWE Network than developing a great Wrestlemania season. And the cheap price was the real draw.    

Last thing, I spoke to my cousin recently. I was actually surprised when he told me he subscribed to the WWE Network. He isn't as into wrestling anymore as I am. He was when he was younger. And he does still read dirtsheets. I don't consider him a true casual fan. Over the last few years, he has watched Wrestlemania either through illegal streams or at a friend's house. That is an example of the WWE getting someone to pay to watch Wrestlemania that would normally not pay for it.

Corporate Kane To Bring Back The Mask

This week's Raw once again seemed more about relying on the past to deliver now. And I am not just talking about Evolution officially being back. I'll admit it, I loved hearing that theme song again. But that's another issue.

It seems the monster will be awakened once again. Kane is bringing the mask back. Let me just get what I don't like about it out of the way right now. So soon? He just had the mask taken away from him less than a year ago. I figured the mask might one day return, but not this quickly.

Aside from the suddenness of this change for Kane, I have no problem with this. When I analyzed the top search terms for my blog last year, I pointed out how popular Kane seemed to be. Specifically, fans were very interested when he came back with the mask a few years ago. They were interested in that new look. The WWE knows what it is doing. They created a ton of buzz before with Kane and they will do it again. They even created a hype video for Kane on Raw. They mean to draw interest with this and they will. Fans will be interested. I am not saying ratings will zoom to a 4.0, but this will get people excited.

Should Kane have some kind of special attire when he comes back as a masked monster? When Kane came back the last time with the mask, he also had the metal mask with him. How about mixing together the mask with his corporate look? Yes, I have horrible fashion sense. But is it really as bad as what Kane has been wrestling in since he went corporate. Aside from the return of the mask, I think a lot of fans would be interested to see what Kane will look like, if he does reinvent himself. WWE.com can add it to a top 10 list they make in a few years.

This means more for Kane than just a wardrobe change. They are making his character monstrous again. It never lasts long, but it is usually good when it happens. The worst thing they could do is have Daniel Bryan make Kane look absolutely weak and foolish. I know a lot of fans are crazy for Daniel Bryan, but the guy does not need to look untouchable now that he has won the title.

Is this the start of a title feud between Kane and Daniel Bryan? Evolution seems to be preoccupied with The Shield. Batista and Orton will eventually get title shots against Daniel Bryan. Even Triple H might put himself against Daniel Bryan again. For right now, however, a title feud between Kane and Daniel Bryan might be good. And it might be exactly what they are aiming for. Bring back the monster for Daniel Bryan to overcome him. Thing is, it has to start by making Kane look good next week.

Corporate Evolution

I have been complaining for months that The Authority did not have a legitimate stable surrounding them. The Shield looked like they would break up at times, and they have now officially turned face. Randy Orton and Triple H looked like they were always an inch away from starting a feud between themselves. The New Age Outlaws, who had not been relevant in the WWE for over 10 years, came back to support The Authority for a while. They forced Big Show to work for them. It just looked shaky for too long.

Things have changed. It seems like Randy Orton and Batista have gotten on the same page as Triple H. And Kane is still a member of the group. That is pretty much Evolution right there. With more of a corporate twist with The Authority. And I like that direction. Makes a strong heel front.

What do I have to complain about? I would not be an Internet wrestling fan unless I complained, right? First, this is kind of a change of direction from what you saw from the last few weeks. Randy Orton, Batista, and Triple H looked like they were all against each other. They wanted the title. Triple H had enough of their complaining. Randy Orton wasn't measuring up. Batista was insulting Stephanie McMahon. All of a sudden, you have a solid stable. That is, for a week, anyway. Can't tell whether WWE's inconsistency will hurt that new direction. And there is a second thing I did not like. When Batista and Orton went out there together, they just seemed like Triple H's mindless brutes. Triple H is the top heel and Orton and Batista are just his henchmen, along with Kane. Their individuality just seems killed. How long will that last. Right now, I don't think any of this is a big deal. They can always revisit the issues between Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista down the line. When that happens, Randy Orton and Batista will step out of Triple H's shadow and be more interesting. Overall, I think having them join forces will be good and it negates all the complaints I have.

Should Randy Orton and Batista win the tag titles? They had a chance to do it last week. The WWE could book them to do it. The only other heel team that really has a good chance to get the titles is The Wyatts. If Orton and Batista do win the titles, that can lead to The Shield eventually regaining it from them. Now that The Shield have been rejuvenated as faces, another run with the titles may not be a bad idea. And winning them from Batista and Orton would be big. It isn't like the WWE is likely to do too much more with The Usos. With the tag division still being so mediocre, The Usos have pretty much run through everything. Only thing left is to develop the team they will eventually lose to. Orton and Batista would not be bad. It would help this heel stable look even better.

Daniel Bryan: The Next John Cena?

I have spoken about whether or not Daniel Bryan should be pushed as the centerpiece or featured as the face of the company before. I am not revisiting that topic today. This is another issue.

Aside from being the centerpiece and face of the company, John Cena is a character. He is a character a lot of people do not like. He overcomes the odds, he bounces back from beatings like nothing happened, and he sometimes sounds like a politician during his promos. He has held this character for close to a decade. People hate how stale he has become.

Is Daniel Bryan the next Cena? The odds were certainly stacked against him recently. What did he do? Overcome. It looked like he was injured. What does he do? He just seemed to shrug that off after winning. And to top it all off, a lot of his promos recently have sounded like what you would expect out of John Cena. Being an underdog is one thing, but you really can make the argument that the WWE is developing Daniel Bryan to have the kind of character John Cena has. And I have noticed some fans already bringing it up.

Of course, Daniel Bryan has a few things going for him to save him from getting Cena-like reactions. He is a better wrestler. I don't think the WWE can ever do anything to ruin that. And he is still insanely over. They might be able to eventually ruin that. Maybe. Moreover, he has not become as stale as Cena. If they succeed in making Daniel Bryan stale, then they might succeed in ruining him. I am not saying they would intentionally do that, but it might be a side effect of attempting to developing Daniel Bryan to have John Cena's character, if that is the road they are heading down.

Do they really need to give Daniel Bryan these types of feuds and storylines that make him look like Cena? The Rock and Austin did not have that kind of character. The Rock electrified. Austin raised hell. Cena overcomes odds. All these guys feuded against the authority figures above them during their time in the company. But they all had different characters. The way they are handling Daniel Bryan, his character is looking more like Cena's than any other wrestler's. I cannot imagine Daniel Bryan electrifying like The Rock. He does have the fans going crazy, but he doesn't go about it like The Rock did. I cannot imagine Daniel Bryan raising hell like Austin. He has gotten the better of The Authority now, but not through the elaborate segments in which Austin did it. I don't need to imagine Daniel Bryan overcoming odds like John Cena would. I see it happening.

Personally, Daniel Bryan does not annoy me as much as Cena. I am more annoyed by the reaction he gets. It has gotten too insane. Blame the WWE for that. They shouldn't have played with those fans. And those few fans that are picking apart Daniel Bryan and comparing him to John Cena may just be over-analyzing it. If and when the majority of fans start turning on Daniel Bryan, then you can start looking at why that is. Right now, he is still very over and is getting what he deserves.

Let me go back to what I talked about a few days ago about the WWE Network and Wrestlemania. I said that Wrestlemania XXX should get at least 700,000 PPV buys to really match what you would want out of a Wrestlemania this special. I did not really explain very well how I came up with that benchmark number. I don't want it to seem like I am pulling numbers out of the air. Outside of the big four WWE PPVs (Wrestlemania, Royal Rumble, Summerslam, Survivor Series), these "special events" typically get over 100,000 buyers or 200,000 buyers. Usually somewhere around there. Survivor Series may not be that big anymore, but that is another issue. Point is, how do you go from those kind of numbers in recent years to all the way to 1,000,000 for Wrestlemania? That is a difference of roughly 800,000 buys. Who are these people? Wrestlemania is the biggest wrestling event of the year. It creates hype. That hype is what draws in the casual fans, as well as some regulars that always watch the big event, if usually no other PPV of the year. As I have said before, I don't think the WWE Network will be that appealing to casual fans. Even a lot of regular fans may not be willing to subscribe, whether due to money issues, technical difficulties, or whatever. Even though the WWE Network has 650,000 subscribers, don't automatically assume that it is taking a huge chunk out of that 1,000,000 you would expect for big Wrestlemanias. Wrestlemania is a major success because it is a top draw for the casuals, those fans least likely to get the WWE Network. Wrestlemanias in recent years have drawn roughly 800,000 more than the regular PPV buys. I think having a 700,000-buy benchmark is fair. I am giving them some leeway. The Network got a lot more subscribers than I thought it would, but when it comes to how many people actually bought Wrestlemania out of the non-subscribers, I am not confident this Wrestlemania came up with great numbers.

State Of The WWE Diva Division: April 2014

After AJ Lee retained the title at Wrestlemania, I was thinking about once again bringing up Ivory's title reigns during the first dark age. I was going to argue why Ivory was not really the centerpiece of the diva division back then and why you should not consider AJ Lee the centerpiece now. I do not think I need to do that right now.

Paige made a sudden debut on Raw this week and ended the longest reign with the butterfly title any diva has ever had. That was a shocker. The feud between Paige and AJ Lee is obviously just beginning, but this is where you will start to see whether or not the WWE is serious about developing AJ Lee as the centerpiece or she will be shipped back into periphery angles. One push or one title reign does not make you the centerpiece. Since her feud with Kaitlyn, the WWE had not developed one good feud for AJ Lee. All her feuds were about inserting a ton of momentum into a challenger, having AJ retain, and moving on. Even her feud with Kaitlyn was also an extension of periphery matters, AJ's breakup with Dolph Ziggler and Big E getting involved. If the WWE is serious about developing AJ Lee as the central focus of the diva division, this is a perfect opportunity to develop a credible jobber to put her over. That credible jobber would be Paige.

Some fans seem to already be acting like Paige is the best thing ever in the diva division. They are already moving on from AJ. You have to love these neckbeards. Do I think the WWE will phase AJ out and start giving Paige the type of push AJ had a few years ago? No to both of those ideas. This is not the end of AJ Lee and I do not expect Paige to get a hard push in the periphery. If anything, it's beginning to look a little more like the first dark age. Emma and Paige have both debuted this year. The WWE might be going back to once again utilizing actual female wrestlers more as credible jobbers. Although some fans may be very excited about recent developments, I am not convinced the agenda that makes the diva division what it is is over yet.

After Paige did win the title, I did a little thinking ahead. Assuming they didn't just do this to cause some buzz and will be dumping the title back on AJ Lee, who is likely to take the title off face Paige? I am thinking heel Summer Rae. And a day after Paige won the title, the WWE did something with Summer Rae. They had her split with Fandango. That makes me believe even more that they are preparing her for her solo career. But what a horrible way to do it. On Twitter? This is the woman they could try to develop to be their new centerpiece. You should be doing things to really help this woman get over. I have said before that relying on Total Divas to do it will not work. It does not get as many viewers as Raw. And now you run an angle on Twitter for something that should be getting segments on Raw or Smackdown? Fandango has moved on to Layla as his dancer. You would hope that Summer Rae still gets some kind of feud against them, but that does not seem to be happening right now. You look at some of the storylines past centerpieces of the diva division have had. Sable stood up to Marc Mero. Trish Stratus stood up to Vince McMahon. These are storylines that help to build the character of these eye-candy divas and help to connect them more with the fans. Even AJ Lee got some of that, even though she remained a top periphery diva. Of course, doing it like that might make Summer Rae a face. They might not want to do that or turn Fandango face. But a simple Twitter angle is so dull. Another sign of what to expect out of the Reality Era? Fact is, with some kind of creative interest being put into Summer Rae, a woman who fits with the classic image the WWE wants in their centerpiece, I am not ready to believe the WWE is changing into a direction that is truly favorable to female wrestlers. If anything, it's beginning to look a lot like 2000. You have your top periphery diva in AJ Lee (Lita/Chyna), your possible future centerpiece in Summer Rae (Trish Stratus), and a credible jobber in Paige (Ivory/Jackie/Molly Holly).

Aside from the few women I just spoke a lot about, the rest of the division just seems buried. You had all those women getting a shot at the title at Wrestlemania. None of them did it. The next night, Paige does it in an instant. I am not implying AJ Lee buried them. The WWE is the one not developing great angles for them. Emma is still with Santino and Layla is now with Fandango, but it is only a matter of time before those two guys are lost in the shuffle again. And their divas will likely go with them. And that endless feud between Santino and Fandango is not exactly exciting. That lack of creative depth is still there. You had the opposite in recent years. The woman holding the title would sometimes not be getting anything meaningful to do, but you had interesting angles in the periphery with AJ Lee. Now, all the attention is around the title matters, but you have a boring periphery. When will things balance out?

Your New Heyman Guy: Cesaro

After Cesaro won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, I was ready to talk about just that. I was going to compare it to Damien Sandow winning Money in the Bank. Both situations were the biggest wins in the WWE career of the respective wrestler. Both led to them getting good midcard feuds. Sandow got a good feud against Cody Rhodes and Cesaro is entering a feud with Jack Swagger. What happened on Raw now gives me something else to talk about. Cesaro ditched Zeb and joined Paul Heyman.

With Brock Lesnar once again riding off into the sunset, it would make sense to give Heyman a new guy to keep him active. Last year, that was Curtis Axel. Let me compare Cesaro to Axel. I just felt that push for Curtis Axel was doomed from the start. Not only was he not over, but they did not even push him properly. He was more of a pawn developed for the larger feud between Punk and Heyman than anything else. Will Cesaro end up like that? Is he only getting this push alongside Heyman to keep Heyman relevant? I would hope not. Cesaro has really developed himself to get over. He can be a great midcarder. I think it is too soon to talk about making him World Champion. There is nothing wrong with being a midcarder. There is nothing wrong with feuding with a few top guys now and then without ever winning the top title. Push him as a B+ player or an A- player. I wouldn't be quick to say he is bringing A+ overness, but that vocal audience is connecting well with him.

Is he a face or a heel? Paul Heyman, a known heel, is his manager. He is feuding against Jack Swagger, another known heel. He is getting face reactions, but that does not determine whether or not you are a heel or a face. Right now, he is in tweener territory. He should go complete face soon. It will be interesting to see how that works with Heyman.

Is this the kind of change CM Punk would love to see? What more will it take to bring that guy back? You have a lot of new talent and over talent getting pushed better now. Focus on new talent. Isn't that what TNA has been trying recently? WWE trying to follow TNA's lead? Whatever the motivation may be, this still may not work out for the WWE. TNA's focus on new talent will fail them. They couldn't take established stars and utilize them properly to help the company grow. They have not figured out how to handle stars as stars. What is all that new talent going to do for you if you can't feature them to connect with more than just wrestling fans and your core fanbase? The WWE's problem is still that their midcard is a mess. I saw a lot of filler matches on Raw last night. Cesaro vs. Swagger will be a breath of fresh air in comparison to all that, but can they keep the ball rolling after that? They didn't with either Damien Sandow or Cody Rhodes.

All this is nice. Cesaro getting a big push. Daniel Bryan finally gets a legitimate run with the title. Debuts coming. You have to keep in mind, it has to draw. There is a difference between being over and drawing. Ratings have been mediocre for a while now. If viewership sinks badly with the new direction the WWE might be heading in, they will have pretty much every right to move on to something else. That means possibly returning to the Cena quo. As long as the WWE gives these guys a fair, legitimate opportunity, it is up to them to prove that they can actually help the company grow, or at least stop sinking.

The WWE stock has been hit hard in the last two days. When the stock dropped the day after Donald Trump "bought" Raw, I said it was foolish to automatically blame it all on that. If you looked at how the market was that day and the WWE's own numbers throughout the day, it seemed more likely that overall market factors were the main reason for the WWE's decline on that day. The whole market took a hard it that day. The market isn't exactly amazing right now, but it does seem like this drop is happening independently of the overall market. There is an article explaining why that drop might be here.

Numbers are out for the WWE Network. They actually got more subscribers than I thought they would get. However, they seemed to have fallen short of some original estimates. Getting over 650,000 is still pretty good. I'll get to what that means for Wrestlemania in a minute.As for just expectations for the WWE Network, I keep on hearing that the magic number is a million subscribers by the end of the year. It is to be expected that the most subscribers would come before Wrestlemania. How many more can they really expect? How many international fans will get it? Moreover, I already see some fans wanting to cancel. Of course, you have a 6-month commitment. And it is the failure to get a better number that seems to be hurting the WWE stock right now the most. Hype for the WWE Network was one of the factors that helped boost the number a few weeks ago. It should be no shock that investors not seeing a number they like in terms of subscriptions will react. This is something that will appeal to the core fanbase of the WWE the most. The WWE better start pandering more to them. Daniel Bryan should hold the title for the rest of the year. Cesaro should be pushed to the moon. Give CM Punk anything he wants to get him back, even them ice cream bars. And if the content on the WWE Network gets stale, you can expect people to eventually cancel after the 6 months.

What does this mean for Wrestlemania XXX? I was saying that you should expect the WWE to want a lot of buys for a Wrestlemania so special. You had to give a little leeway for those watching it through the WWE Network. Given how many subscribers they have, do you automatically say that there should be about 350,000 in PPV buys from non-subscribers? Not so fast. As I said before, it is the core fanbase that is more likely to subscribe, not the casual fans. Wrestlemania is supposed to be a major success because of the casual audience it will draw in. How many of that 650,000 even would have bought Wrestlemania? Some of these WWE loyalists use illegal streams, watch it at a friend's house, simply read what is going on online, or other things like that. And just because someone subscribed, that does not mean that they were able to watch Wrestlemania on it. They might have had to work at that time, were having technical difficulties, or something like that. Point is, despite the number of subscribers, I would still have high expectations for the number of PPV buys. I will grant them a little more leeway. I would expect around 700,000 PPV buys. In terms of PPV buys, that might be horrible for a Wrestlemania in this age, but when you add in those that watched it on the WWE Network, it is a great number. The WWE pretty much roped in more of their regular fans to pay to watch Wrestlemania with the cheap price of the WWE Network, but was Wrestlemania good enough to get the casual audience?

The Streak Ends

That match between Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker did not turn out the way I was expecting at all at Wrestlemania. I was expecting a great match between the two. The match did not seem to be that great. And the finish? The Streak is over. Brock Lesnar has ended The Streak just like that.

The majority of people thought Taker would win this. The build for the feud wasn't that great, Brock got back the momentum heading into the PPV, the possibility of Taker putting his undefeated streak on the line against Sting was becoming a real, and all those other reasons you could come up with were there. The fans were just left stunned. Some people are saying that something had to have happened and the match outcome was altered. I am not going to run on that assumption. But is this how you really want one of the greatest attractions in the last decade of Wrestlemania to end?

I never got to talk about this, but what kind of wrestler do I feel should have ended The Streak? A lot of fans say that it should be some young talent that could use the rub to get over. I disagree. That would be a waste. If a wrestler cannot get over through his own abilities and the WWE giving him a great push, he does not deserve to be fed The Undertaker at Wrestlemania. The person that ended it should be someone more established than that. A top star. I would have had no problem with Triple H or Shawn Michaels doing it. Even John Cena would have made sense. And the build for the feud would have to be great. Triple H and Shawn Michaels had a great build against The Undertaker in the last few years. I could imagine the hype being there if Cena took on The Undertaker, as well.

How does Brock Lesnar stock up? I don't think he deserves it. Not only is he a part-timer, but I just don't think he really needed it or deserved it. He is definitely credible. I will not deny that he is credible. And the build up for this feud was just so mediocre. If they had done a better job, I might get that feel that Brock Lesnar deserved this. I don't consider him a true legend in pro wrestling to have deserved this.

The Undertaker is not necessarily retired yet. The idea many fans have had in recent years is that he would either retire with The Streak still intact or retire after being defeated. With the way things went down, I cannot imagine it ending like that. It doesn't have the feel that it is over for him. What is likely to happen? Taker comes out on Raw to give a speech, Sting intervenes, and next year's Wrestlemania is set? Some are already anticipating that. Whether that happens or not, I do not expect the end to come just like that.

You can expect Raw to get a great rating tonight. The last few weeks have not been what you would expect for Wrestlemania season. Barring people watching it on the WWE Network, I don't expect Wrestlemania to get a lot of PPV buys. But after what happened last night, and I'm not just talking about The Undertaker, you will get a good post-PPV bump. Is that how the Reality Era is going to work? They are creating buzz to get people to tune in.

Wrestlemania XXX Preview: Assorted Thoughts

The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal is a nice idea. The WWE was going to have some multi-man match to put guys on the card they couldn't build proper feuds for, anyway, so doing it like this makes it seem like more of a big deal. And you would want big deals at Wrestlemania XXX. Battle royals where nothing is on the line just seem so worthless to me. A trophy is on the line. It may seem meaningless, but I like it. I am one of those guys that wouldn't mind seeing King of the Ring make a return. Those kind of things are fun. I want to see something that grants an honor besides a guaranteed title shot. The Royal Rumble is important because the winner gets a title shot at Wrestlemania. The guy that wins Money in the Bank gets a title shot whenever he wants. Those things aren't honors in themselves. Tournaments and battle royals like this can make things more interesting outside of the major title matters. Moreover, it has gotten some good development in the past few weeks.

Who wins? Big Show definitely is a favorite to win. Miz has never been beaten on the Wrestlemania PPV. Then again, he can get tossed out and the WWE can still sell it as him never having been pinned or made to submit. It can be a big push for Rusev to get that big win at Wrestlemania. Sheamus is also a good possibility. Jinder Mahal? No, probably not Jinder Mahal. You might also get some surprise entrants. Out of the people I have named, I think Miz might win it. It would give him back some momentum and give him something to brag about. In case you haven't noticed, he's a heel again.

This multi-diva match for the Diva's Championship is something I don't like. For years now, if they haven't relied on tossing a bunch of divas together, they have relied on celebrities. Or a mixture of that. And this is the first time the title will be defended at the big event. You would hope it would be something special. It will be a special moment for the diva that wins, but I am talking about the build of the match. This match has just been tossed together because of something AJ Lee said about Vickie Guerrero. Vickie Guerrero wasn't even relevant before that! Even though I don't like it, I expected it. People actually thought AJ Lee vs. Naomi was something they would actually develop for Wrestlemania? Not likely. Not only does it not follow the recent trend of what happens to the divas at Wrestlemania, that match just didn't have a big feel to it.

This match they are running with does not even have a big feel to it. AJ Lee? You can call her queen bee. This match is really centered around her. All the other divas are targeting her. Vickie Guerrero is targeting her. Is AJ Lee face or heel?  She continues to be the best-pushed diva of this dark age. She has better creative interest on her than anyone else heading into the match. I would expect her to win. Fans despise Vickie Guerrero more than heel AJ. The classic moment of Vickie raging over AJ Lee overcoming the odds seems likely.

How about Summer Rae? I could talk about Brie Bella, Naomi, Natalya, or any other diva. What does it mean that Summer Rae had a match on Raw and won it? I have said for a while that she is the likely candidate to follow in the line of Sable, Trish Stratus, and Michelle McCool. She seems to be breaking out on her own even more. Putting her on Total Divas is an easy way to give her some creative interest. Of course, that show gets less than half the viewers Raw gets. It would be smarter to develop her on Raw. And they did a little bit of that this week. Not only was there a match, but they aired footage of the Total Divas segment that set up this match. When Total Divas can lead to more depth in the diva division, it's good. But I think this is about more than just adding more to talk about in the diva division. They want to groom their new centerpiece. Are they ready to pull the trigger and give Summer Rae the title? I still think AJ is likely to retain, but Summer Rae winning would not be that shocking. Transfer AJ back into periphery angles by have her feud with Vickie Guerrero.

Let me go back to a question I asked many weeks ago. Over or under? Will Wrestlemania XXX get over or under a million buys? The last three Wrestlemanias all had over a million buys. The last three Wrestlemanias also had The Rock. Before that, Wrestlemania had 885,000 buys in 2010. I got my numbers from here. Can the WWE keep the ball rolling?

It all comes down to how well the WWE has created hype for the event in the last few weeks. No Rock, but Hulk Hogan has been around. You can expect Austin and other top stars of the past to also be there, but there has been no big hype for them. Just looking at the actual feuds, I don't think the WWE has created something epic that can draw in viewers outside of the regular wrestling fan audience. The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal is nice, but I don't think it is a big draw. Cena's feud with Bray Wyatt has led to some interesting promos, but it is no big deal. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar match does not have that big feel to it, in terms of how they have developed it. The Daniel Bryan saga has become epic, but I don't believe it will be enough to draw the interest of casual fans. The other matches are not worth mentioning. And I doubt the possibility of a surprise return from CM Punk will do much. Raw ratings have been pretty mediocre in the last few weeks. That doesn't mean Wrestlemania won't get a lot of buys, but it is one indicator that the WWE has not created great hype to get fans to tune in for Raw. If you can't do that, how much can you expect when trying to get fans to spend money for the biggest PPV of the year?

How will the WWE Network impact things? People that are subscribing to that will automatically get Wrestlemania. But how many people actually have it? From the few polls I have come across, the majority of fans will be watching the event through the WWE Network. Looking at some of those results, you might think a lot of people have subscribed and a lot of people will be watching Wrestlemania. Just keep in mind that these are wrestling fans voting on these polls. They don't represent other types of fans that will really influence how many viewers Wrestlemania gets. But it is obvious that there will be less people spending money to buy the PPV because they can watch it through the WWE Network.

This is Wrestlemania XXX. You would expect great buyrates for it. Wrestlemania 25 got less than a million buys. And I think this year's Wrestlemania will see a decline from last year. Just to allow a little leeway for people watching on the WWE Network, I would say 900,000 PPV buys would still be great. I am not too sure they will even get there. They have not created great hype.

Wrestlemania XXX Preview: Triple H Vs. Daniel Bryan & The World Title Match

This has been the best storyline for this year's Wrestlemania season. And it doesn't seem like it would have even happened if things had gone just as the WWE had originally hoped. This isn't just a feud between Triple H and Daniel Bryan over Triple H not believing in Daniel Bryan and always screwing him. This isn't just a feud between former Evolution members for the WWE Championship. It's all that combined.

Let me talk a little about why I like this feud. What I have found disappointing about certain other feuds heading into Wrestlemania is that they seem to be pretty simple. War of words and a few physical altercations here and there. And based on what happened on Raw for those feuds, it is easy to predict what is likely to happen. This storyline involving The Authority is not like that. It is more elaborate. They have had some good segments that go beyond just hyping a match. Yes, I did find some of these segments to be a little much, but the creative investment in this is much better than anything else. It's a storyline that actually makes sense. And it isn't as predictable as other matches. There is room for some swerves. And it's great that Stephanie McMahon is involved.

Triple H vs. Daniel Bryan is a feud they should have wanted to have since Summerslam last year. It would have been a feud 7 months in the making. Triple H vs. CM Punk has happened before and the issues between them were not really that strong in the last 7 months in comparison to the issues between Triple H and Daniel Bryan. As much as fans want to see Daniel Bryan in the title match, his match with Triple H is also big.

Who wins? It would make sense for Daniel Bryan to win this match. The winner gets inserted into the main event. Two heels are already in the main event. No face? Daniel Bryan does have the momentum heading into Wrestlemania. Moreover, I can't imagine Triple H just rolling over and dying. Many fans have pointed out that there could be some kind of finish to make this a 4-way match. I could really see that happening. If not, Daniel Bryan gets the win against Triple H to advance to the main event.

Does Daniel Bryan win the title? After screwing him out of a legitimate run as WWE Champion for 7 months, the perfect place for him to get his big moment would be Wrestlemania. Some people talk like they have read Batista's contract and that he is guaranteed the title. Aside from those two, I would not mind Triple H winning it. How much bigger would Daniel Bryan's moment be if Triple H was the guy he beat to win the title? It would mean he would not win the title at Wrestlemania, but the moment might be even more gratifying for Daniel Bryan fans. What about Randy Orton? Even though I am a Randy Orton fan, I would be amazed if he retained the title this Sunday. Whom do I think is likely to win the title? I haven't read anyone's contract, but I will go with Batista. Daniel Bryan has the momentum. Not a good sign. If this is a match between just Daniel Bryan, Batista, and Randy Orton, it would be likely that Batista wins.

How about the mother of all swerves? What if CM Punk returns to get involved in the title match? Was the whole thing a work? Did they give in to his demands in time to bring him back for Wrestlemania? Whatever the case may be, CM Punk getting involved would make things even more interesting. Does he return to screw Triple H and help Daniel Bryan? The more interesting scenario would be him returning to screw Daniel Bryan. Why? He sold out? He got mad at Daniel Bryan becoming so successful? I had said before this year's Royal Rumble that it might be a good idea to one day have Punk get a corporate makeover. I didn't say it should be now. Too much going on now. And yet, there is that possibility. A lot of those fans that want to see Daniel Bryan win the title also want to see CM Punk back. What if CM Punk comes back to screw Daniel Bryan out of the title? That one will be hurting for days after Wrestlemania.

Wrestlemania XXX Preview: John Cena Vs. Bray Wyatt & Brock Lesnar Vs. The Undertaker

Cena has the momentum heading into Wrestlemania. That is usually a sign that the other guy is winning. Are they really going to do that to John Cena? Have him lose his fourth consecutive PPV match? Have him lose at Wrestlemania? Have him lose to Bray Wyatt?

It could all happen. I am getting that same vibe the WWE was giving off a few year ago when Randy Orton faced Kane at Wrestlemania. Orton looked strong before Wrestlemania. Since Wrestlemania fell on his birthday that year, that might make you think even more that they would let him win. He didn't. Orton still ended up winning the feud against Kane, and that is what will likely happen with Cena and Bray Wyatt. Cena will win the feud in the end, regardless of the outcome at Wrestlemania. Coincidentally, today happens to be Orton's birthday. Happy birthday to him.

I still don't get this feud. They are really making it sound like Cena has to "defend" his legacy against Bray Wyatt at Wrestlemania. They have pretty much already sold that Cena can rise above Bray Wyatt's mind games. But how exactly is Cena's legacy really in danger? He's lost at Wrestlemania before. People say that Bray will ruin Cena by beating him cleanly. Cena lost cleanly to The Rock at Wrestlemania two years ago. Bray Wyatt has been pretty much all talk. Even a win against Cena, even a clean one, will not ruin Cena. And the WWE has not done anything to really sell that Cena is in danger. This feud is overrated.

This feud will likely go on beyond Wrestlemania. It doesn't look like they would be ready to put Cena back in the title hunt. You have Triple H, Daniel Bryan, Batista, and Randy Orton all involved in title matters. It is not likely that they will all go their separate ways after this Sunday. And the feud between Cena and The Wyatts might actually get more interesting if given more time. They might actually do more to break Cena down. Even though I cannot imagine Cena losing again, I would say Bray Wyatt either wins at Wrestlemania or there is some kind of DQ to give Cena the win, keep Bray Wyatt looking strong, and extend the feud. DQs at Wrestlemania are so cheap.

This one seems obvious. Brock Lesnar has the momentum heading into Wrestlemania. There is also the possibility that Sting finally faces The Undertaker at Wrestlemania next year. You would want The Undertaker to remain undefeated for that. Put it all together, Taker wins this Sunday.

The match these two put on should be great. But the build up has been so basic. I didn't like last year's build between CM Punk and Taker. I didn't feel offended by what they did after Paul Bearer died. I just thought it was cliche and everything you would expect from the WWE and CM Punk. It didn't draw me in. The hype they created when Taker faced Triple H and Shawn Michaels prior to that was so much better. This year feels worse than last year. A bunch of promos. The few weeks they did have physical altercations, Taker dominated. The week before Wrestlemania, Brock gets back momentum. I know how great Paul Heyman is on the mic, but I just don't feel the hype.