Would Lita Have Succeeded Today?

Earlier in the month, I speculated on whether Mickie James would have still been able to shine in this current dark age of the WWE diva division. Staying with this theme of successful divas of the past being able to succeed in this type of environment, how about Lita? Lita debuted as a periphery diva during the first dark age, which occurred between Sable leaving and Trish starting to be pushed as the centerpiece of the division. She succeeded in that environment and the WWE continued to run with her as a periphery diva when things got golden. Would the same thing happen today?

First off, this isn't about considering whether Lita would be treated well if the WWE brought her back for one more angle. Lita is already a WWE legend. She will be in the Hall of Fame one day. If she was brought back for another storyline or feud, she would be featured well. This is about whether or not Lita would have made it if she was just starting her WWE career around this time.

You go back over a decade to Lita's debut. If people in the WWE were to say that they didn't really expect Lita to connect well with the fans when she started out, I would probably believe them. She wasn't being pushed as hard as AJ Lee was to get her connected to the fans. Lita was connecting with the fans through using her high-flying moves to get involved in matches against the guys. The WWE, however, were the ones who put her in that position to do these things and gave her the green light to do it. And they made the decision to be consistent with her and move her up the ladder after that debut with Essa Rios. Where did she start? In the periphery. Where were they consistent with her? In the periphery. I bring that up to point out that Lita is not an example of a credible jobber becoming very over, then moving up to being a periphery diva. Lita climbed that ladder of success as a periphery diva. She started at the bottom of that type of career and worked up, if you want to look at it that way.

Essa Rios was part of the light heavyweight division. Lita then transitioned to teaming with the Matt & Jeff Hardy, who were one of the top teams of the tag division. Those two divisions were strong back then. Lita went from being paired with a guy in the light heavyweight division that was being pushed well to teaming with a tag team that was being pushed even better. And Lita was allowed to continue her high-flying ways with Team Extreme. She was also allowed to continue to mix it up with the men.

Lita definitely benefited from the company being more open to male-female violence back then. Not only did you see Lita hitting moves on men, and occasionally beating them, but she took some beatings. Austin and Triple H destroying her in the main event of Raw seems to be remembered just as much as Lita beating Trish Stratus for the title in the main event of Raw. And how many finishers from men had she taken throughout her career? Fans respect seeing that. Being willing to do it is only part of the deal. The WWE has to allow you to do it. And they did.

What kind of company do you have today? I don't even need to consider too much about the diva division. Lita was a female-wrestler periphery diva. The diva division today is still not about letting female wrestlers be the centerpiece and only one female-wrestler credible jobber has ever become very successful, and her story has not gone well. This is about whether Lita would have had a successful periphery career today. So what is different with the company today as compared to 2000?

First, you have no light heavyweight division and your tag division is nowhere near what it was back then. These are the divisions where Lita's career really flourished when she started, not even so much the women's division. If Lita were to debut in this era, who would she be paired with? A midcarder? Midcarders aren't being treated too well.

Second, it is extremely rare for the WWE to have male-female violence today. Having Big Show run over AJ Lee last year was probably the first big step in the development of AJ Lee as a periphery diva, but not much bumps from the guys for AJ since then. And even less for the other divas. As I said before, it was Lita hitting these high-flying moves against the men and trading blows that really helped her to connect with the fans. If you take that away and still try to find someone to pair Lita up with today, she would most likely end up like Rosa or Natalya.

Speaking of AJ Lee, the WWE already has a periphery diva in her that they are investing a lot in. If Lita was showing interest in making it in the WWE today, would the WWE even waste time considering grooming another female wrestler in the periphery? It is true that Chyna was already there when Lita debuted, but Chyna benefited from a hotter company than you had today and from the green light to mix it up with the men, much like Lita. The company is not as hot today. They have to rely on The Rock, a star from that time, to bring them results. They have the headache of trying to figure out what to do with their guys to make stars like The Rock and Brock Lesnar. AJ Lee is the most well-pushed diva you currently have. I don't think the WWE would even bother trying to develop another female wrestler as well as her right now. Their top priority is probably finding the centerpiece that will save their diva division.

Would Lita even get to debut in this diva division? The WWE seems content with using eye-candy divas to serve the purposes female-wrestler credible jobbers once served. Just a few weeks ago, they released Buggy Nova. She was a female wrestler who had a unique look. Lita was a female wrestler who did not look like the typical diva. That could be an indicator of whether Lita would even have gotten called up in this current division.

Would Lita have succeeded in this current diva division? The conditions that helped her show what she can do back then are not here today. You have no light heavyweight division, the tag division is mediocre, male-female violence is not really there anymore, and the company is simply not as hot as it was back then. The WWE already has a top star they are developing in the periphery. Their treatment of female wrestlers is getting worse, not better. It is questionable whether or not Lita would debut, let alone be pushed properly. Even though Lita debuted and succeeded in the first dark age of the diva division, this dark age is a different creature. I honestly do not believe she would have made it today. Her best shot might be the WWE deciding Alberto Del Rio needs a valet and Lita debuts right alongside a main-eventer. How likely is that? And it certainly wouldn't look like the career she did end up getting. The career she did end up getting and what she did with it does deserve to be respected. It may be a long time before any female wrestlers get those kind of opportunities again.  

Chris Jericho Returns Again

Last time, I made a comment about Jinder Mahal in lingerie. You end up getting Tensai in lingerie on Raw. I really should stop randomly mentioning Jinder Mahal. Bad things always happen.

A lot of things have happened in the WWE in the last few days. You have a Royal Rumble winner, a new WWE Champion, and some returns. I will talk about the return of Chris Jericho today. He returned at the Royal Rumble and looks like he will stick around. I'll get to the other things eventually.

The good about Jericho returning? The WWE gets some major star power heading into Wrestlemania. You always want big stars around for Wrestlemania. And you also get someone to make midcard matters more interesting. Jericho has a ton of main-event credibility, but with the main-event scene already clogged with Punk/Rock, Cena, Smackdown's title matters, Brock Lesnar, and so on, Jericho will be seeing more of the midcard than anything else for a while. Not a bad thing.  

What don't I like about Jericho's return? He is obviously back in his feud with Dolph Ziggler. I was hoping that Jericho would return down the line where Ziggler had already won the title. Jericho returning to rain on Ziggler's parade would have been a better story than Jericho coming back to feud with Ziggler while he still has the briefcase. Aside from two new sidekicks from a few months ago, not much has changed for Ziggler. At one point, I would say that the WWE is developing Ziggler's credibility well. Okay, he has the credibility. They are just dragging it on now. I couldn't have been the only one expecting him to cash in when Big Show attacked Del Rio on Raw. That could then lead to an eventual title feud at Wrestlemania between Ziggler and Jericho. There is still time to go that path. I think it would be the best choice for these two.

Depth In The Diva Division

There's this old episode of Yogi Bear where Yogi gets involved in a football game. As the guys on the team get taken out due to injury, the coach goes to the next guy on the bench. Guys keep on getting injured, the coach keeps on going down the line. Soon, no one is left. The coach is forced to send in Yogi.

That's the idea of depth that you hear about in some team sports. There is usually more than one person available to play a given position. When someone gets injured, ejected from the game, is playing badly, simply needs a break, or whatever, you have someone to take the spot. The person you start might usually be the best player and one you want to be out there. When he goes out, you want to go to your next best guy. Because of this, it isn't just replacing one body for another, but also trying to replace a good, prepared player with another who can get the job done.

Depth is obviously an issue in wrestling. When the WWE loses a top star, they have to call on someone else. This is usually not a huge problem in the men's division. You have so many men and top stars, you usually have someone you can go to when another top guy goes down, whether to injury, suspension, or what have you. When Cena got injured a few months ago, the WWE went with Ryback. When CM Punk got injured, The Shield got a PPV match. It is in the diva division that depth becomes a real issue. I have spoken about it many times, but I don't believe I have ever used this term to describe it. I think I'll start using it, so I that's why I'm talking about it now. If you are a sports fan, you might have already been familiar with depth. It might be easier to understand than me talking about centerpieces and the periphery. Let me just list a few instances where depth is worth discussing in the diva division.

First, I have to talk about Mickie James. How many times have I said that Mickie James was getting pushed mainly because she was the only convenient and qualified option around? If you look at the face options in the diva division at the time, there was not much depth. At one time, Melina, Beth Phoenix, and Jillian were the heels. You have good depth there. A lot of good options. The faces? Mickie James, Maria, and Ashley. This was when Candice Michelle, the centerpiece of the diva division, was out with an injury. Mickie James was most qualified out of all the faces to carry the division. That's how the WWE would use women with wrestling credibility. Could you imagine the situation you would have had if Mickie James suffered a serious injury around this time? Since the WWE did not have faith in pushing eye-candy divas as credible jobbers back then, they would have either have had to rush a face turn for a heel credible jobber or debut a new female wrestler from developmental. The WWE was lucky Mickie James was around.

The WWE's luck soon ran out. After the WWE released Mickie James, the only credible jobber available on Smackdown was Beth Phoenix. Outside of her, you had Kelly Kelly and Tiffany, two eye-candy divas. What kind of depth is that? Your centerpiece is a heel, so it would have been smart to have more options in the face credible jobber position. To top it all off, Beth Phoenix got injured. The WWE actually pushed Kelly Kelly and Tiffany more. Tiffany then got suspended and eventually released. You are left with virtually no real depth at all. It is no surprise the WWE soon unified the titles and the divisions. It is also no surprise that the WWE would warm up to the idea of using eye-candy divas as credible jobbers. If they saw that they could keep the division going without female wrestlers being used as jobbers and filler, why not give the eye-candy divas those opportunities. That widens the depth they could possibly have now. Tamina and Natalya are the only two female-wrestler credible jobbers. However, because the WWE can use eye-candy divas like Layla as credible jobbers, that gives them added depth. It gives them more options now, even though they still have issues with the centerpiece position.

Speaking of centerpieces, how about the greatest centerpiece the diva division ever had? Trish Stratus was fortunate to be in the diva division at a time when they had a lot of female wrestlers. From the time she started to be pushed as centerpiece, Lita was the only female-wrestler periphery diva. All those other female wrestlers were credible jobbers. Trish had no less than half a dozen women with solid wrestling training and credibility revolving around her. The WWE was always bringing in fresh options for her to work against. They were running an effective women's division. Not only were they investing creatively and had a centerpiece that was working out, but they had a lot of options to go to. However, as great as some people view this time in the diva division, it was showing signs of the issues you have had in recent years. When Trish returned from her injury in 2005, the only face divas getting action in the ring were her and Ashley. The heels were Victoria, Torrie Wilson, and Candice Michelle. You have one heel credible jobber and two eye-candy periphery divas. Prior to Mickie James debuting, you did not have a face credible jobber. If Trish had gotten injured again during that time, the WWE would have been in trouble. If Victoria had gotten injured, the WWE would have been in trouble. Trish Stratus eventually did get injured again a few months later. Because that psycho storyline was so rich, the WWE could carry it on with just Mickie James for a while. They eventually debuted Beth Phoenix, who became the only face credible jobber, since Mickie had turned heel. Beth then got injured. Those are depth issues you have at the credible jobber position. The WWE had some options on Smackdown to keep things fresh and bring in if injuries really proved to be too much, but it's plain to see the "Golden Age" was starting to lose some stability even while Trish and Lita were there.

Everything I have spoken about so far has been about depth issues for the credible jobber position. A lack of depth caused the WWE to continuously go to Mickie James. There was a time when there was absolutely zero depth for female-wrestler credible jobbers on Smackdown. Even during the best years of the division, a shortage of credible jobbers was starting to arise. You also have depth issues with the centerpiece position. Michelle McCool left, so they went to Kelly Kelly. They gave up on her and went to Eve. She left, and now we see who is next on the bench. As I said before, it's not just about replacing one body with another. You want to go with someone you have confidence in. In the WWE's mind, it seems to be less about having confidence in them and more about being willing to develop that woman into a major star. You have women on the bench, you have women you can go to, but it means nothing if the WWE does not put them in there. Then again, with the luck the WWE is having with their centerpieces, they might go through the entire depth chart and they will all flop for one reason or another. What's left then? Send in Yogi Bear? How about Jinder Mahal? Whoever looks better in lingerie? My money's on Yogi.

CM Punk Vs. The Rock At The Royal Rumble

It is rare these days to have the Royal Rumble match not close the Royal Rumble PPV. If there was ever a match where you would not mind the Rumble match not closing the show, it would have to be CM Punk vs. The Rock for the WWE Championship. Ever since The Rock announced his intentions to challenge for the title at the Royal Rumble and CM Punk attacked The Rock, this match has been anticipated. This match deserves to be the main event.

Should The Rock win? Some people complain about The Rock coming back and possibly being handed a title as a part-time wrestler. Did anyone complain when Moolah and Bret Hart won titles they did not really need? Their careers were already over. Of course, those two are legends and deserve the honor. The Rock can handle himself better in the ring now than those I just mentioned could when they won their final titles in the WWE. It should be a good match. It should also get people talking if Rock wins. Who better to end CM Punk's long run? And it's not like The Rock would have to hold the title too long. He has been working shows more regularly over the last few weeks than I would have expected. He's even been on Smackdown. I say he should win.

Now that it once again looks like CM Punk's title reign may legitimately be coming to an end, how about looking back just a little at how he was booked. From the PPV he won the title to where we are now, how much has he been at the mercy of John Cena? Cena has main-evented 8 PPVs without CM Punk involved in the match. CM Punk was injured for one of those PPVs, so there is that possibility that Punk may have headlined that one. CM Punk and John Cena have been involved in main-event matches with each other twice at PPVs. CM Punk has gotten the top spot without Cena twice. The first came at a PPV where Cena did not compete at all. The second came at a PPV where an injury stopped Cena from likely facing Punk in the main event. The Royal Rumble and Summerslam have been the only two PPVs where attention was on other individuals in the main event. Sheamus won the Rumble and Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H headlined Summerslam. Cena has definitely dominated, despite not winning a World title or often being on the winning side of things during that time. If The Rock was not back, would CM Punk even have a chance at possibly being in the main event now?

How Do You Spend Your Sundays?

I am not going to critique John Cena's promo on Raw. Let me just say that it was not what I was expecting. The WWE was promoting that Cena was going to address the fans all night. The closing segment was either going to go to him or The Rock to further his own feud with CM Punk. I think they should have let The Rock and CM Punk close it. That isn't based on a feeling that the WWE Championship matters should be closing shows at all times. Around this time of year, you can understand wanting to hype the Rumble match. Cena's promo just didn't deserve to close the show. When the commentators were hyping it, they kept talking about this being Cena's year. You would think Cena would come out and do a serious promo about winning the Rumble and turning this year around as compared to 2012. Instead, he does a comedy promo on Sundays. It was like everyone wasn't on the same page on what should have been done. I am not going to rate it out of 10 or rip every aspect of the promo to shreds. I am just saying that it was not the type of promo I was expecting and it did not deserve to close the show. They easily could have had that huge rumble in the ring to preview the Royal Rumble match come sooner and have The Rock being laid out by The Shield end the night.

Who wins the Rumble? Despite not giving a serious promo and making it seem like a win this Sunday would mean everything to him, John Cena is probably still the favorite. Cena wins a title opportunity at Wrestlemania and The Rock wins the title from Punk. What better way for Cena to turn the year around than avenging his loss to The Rock from last year's Wrestlemania and winning the title for the first time in over a year at the same time? I would also say to keep your eye on Dolph Ziggler, but he really doesn't need it when he already has a guaranteed title opportunity with the briefcase. There is such a thing as trying too hard to make someone look great or credible. The WWE should just pull the trigger and go for it. Let him win the title. Aside from those two, no one really seems to have the major focus on them. Then again, Sheamus didn't have that major focus on him last year. He had a ton of momentum from winning matches, but not much hype was on him to win. You can imagine Randy Orton winning the match and challenging a heel that ends up with the World's Heavyweight Championship before Wrestlemania, possibly Ziggler. Ryabck would have been a very real possibility if Big Show still held the title. That would be an interesting match. In the end, Cena still seems like a good bet. One thing for sure, Jinder Mahal ain't winning anything.

Actually Using LayCool To Make Stars

Last week, I mentioned that Michelle McCool was not working out as centerpiece and that the argument can be made that a heel is supposed to make other workers look good. McCool (LayCool) never led to any faces becoming major stars. Blame the WWE more than The Bride of Undertaker. They should have handled things better. I want to suggest a way they could have handled it.

Before I go into that, let me make a comparison. Go back to that epic feud between Stone Cold and Mr. McMahon. Some might argue that Vince McMahon was Austin's greatest foe during the Attitude Era, not The Rock. That feud put Austin at the top. Some people argue that the reason it worked out so well is because people enjoyed seeing Austin beating up and humiliating the boss. It connected with the audience. They loved seeing that. Now, change two things. First, after Austin had owned Vince once or twice, depush Austin back to the midcard, killing his momentum. Second, keep bringing back Vince McMahon to make life hell for another face, then have that face own Vince once or twice, and then depush him like you did Austin. Repeat until Vince gets tired and leaves. Or dies. How effective would that have been? For one thing, Austin definitely would not have gotten the great career he did get. Second, I don't think this cycle would be effective. Vince McMahon would be the constant more than any single worker who gets a chance to stick it to him. In the end, none of these workers would really be making it and Vince McMahon would be the one persevering through it all to keep coming. Are the fans really going to love that story? They may enjoy the moments Vince gets beaten up and looks bad, but they'll probably end up seeing moments of the boss making life hell for people more than anything else. After a while, they will see no individual is ever really overcoming the boss and it would be annoying.

Compare that to LayCool. Vince is obviously a much better heel than them, but what about the storyline and the actual way they were used? That's my point. LayCool were bullies who made life miserable for many divas. They frequently got owned here and there, but not one diva who did get a moment over them ever got developed after to become a major star. LayCool remained on top. This is exactly the same situation you would have had if the WWE had handled Austin-McMahon like I just said. After a while, the audience will just get the idea that the bullies are never really going away and no one who is getting these moments over them can ever really end them. Remember how that LayCool angle ended? McCool was leaving. Layla beat McCool. The group collapsed on itself. It didn't put over any face that went on to become successful off that momentum. The WWE did not even move on to developing Layla as centerpiece. They tried with Kelly Kelly.

What should the WWE have done? As I have said before, I'm sometimes a bit of a pushover. I would give the WWE a chance to see if it works, but when they see the experiment is not working, they should have used LayCool to put over someone they could eventually develop as a major star of the diva division. Do something along the lines of what you had between Austin and Vince. I would have developed Natalya consistently after she beat them for the Diva's Championship. Remember when she put McCool and Layla through a table? That was a big moment. If they had been consistent with Natalya after that, that could have been an iconic moment in Natalya's success story. I'm not saying she would have ended up as big as Austin, but it would have been better strategy than overpushing two annoying heels in an annoying fashion. The WWE could have also tried this kind of thing with Kelly Kelly, but I think Natalya would have been the better choice. That's not my bias towards female wrestlers getting better, fairer opportunities talking. I think it would be more believable if a female wrestler had crushed the two bullies.

I already said what I thought of the LayCool angle from the standpoint of an analyst. It was not productive and not handled smartly. Speaking as a fan, that angle was one of the most draining things I have ever seen in the 15 years I have been watching pro wrestling regularly. I found it annoying, lame, and stupid. In a word, it was draining. I don't even find Vickie Guerrero as bad as LayCool. I am a fan of great heels. When I started watching, my favorites happened to be heels at the time. Unlike so many others, I didn't like Austin during his feud with McMahon. I did not find LayCool to be great heels. They tried to be great heels, and the WWE certainly did more than they should have in pushing them, but it was just a painful overload from them. I'm not saying that I would have liked them if the fans started booing them regularly. I'm not that kind of fan. I am saying that they were not the type of heels that I am entertained by. They were not the kind of heels that make me want to see them get owned, as I was discussing before. They were the kind of heels that make me not want to be a WWE fan anymore. I sometimes hear people saying that Cena annoys them so much that they want to stop watching. Cena isn't even a heel, but that's the best way to put how I found LayCool.

Is The Shield Angle Stale?

TNA is actually doing a better job with their big stable angle currently going on than the WWE is doing with their answer to it. The Shield has actually not even been around as long as Aces & Eights. How could they have possibly gotten staler than something TNA has been doing for months longer?

I'm glad the WWE is not trying to shove the injustice excuse down throats. No one is really buying it. But the WWE is making a mistake I was hoping they would avoid. They are dragging this on without revealing what these guys are really about. It has already been established that they are attacking random people and helping CM Punk when he needs it. But what's next? They are just going to feud with Ryback and another two guys? They moved on from Ryback and Kane and Daniel Bryan. Orton and Sheamus next? The storyline development isn't there.

What made the Nexus angle so much better? Aside from the fact that having a lot more guys made them more of a threat, the actual storyline was made into the most important thing going. It overshadowed even title matters. I might normally complain about something like that, but it was done well. Right now, The Shield only gets involved in one segment each show they are involved. They are not always involved in the main-event segment. The storyline is just barely connected to CM Punk, who has his own matters with The Rock, and is focused mainly on upper-midcarders and main-eventers not involved in the World title scene. It doesn't have the hype and focus that Nexus had. Things would probably be different if Cena was involved.

I said that TNA is doing a better job with their current stable angle. How are they doing it? By playing with who the members of Aces & Eights are, for one thing. Mike Knox is no big deal, but revealing Taz as a member was unexpected. Should the WWE add more members to The Shield? I don't think that will help much. The intrigue here should be lying in who the leader is, assuming it is not one of the members of The Shield. Could you imagine how much of a letdown it would be if it is revealed that CM Punk was really the leader the whole time? That is the obvious choice that they have been teasing for so long. It would be even more dull if it was just The Shield working for themselves. They have to add more to it than that.

A year ago, the return of Chris Jericho was very disappointing. A lot of hype, then nothing came of it. You can make the argument that that was the whole point. It eventually led to this storyline that Jericho could not win the big one. Okay, let that one go, but I'm starting to get that same vibe from this stable storyline. It had potential, yet part of me believed that it was not going to work out well. It's turning into a mediocre Nexus. Even TNA is doing better. This is down there with Jericho's return last year. Thank God The Rock is back to help the WWE create hype. How they are handle The Shield isn't helping much.

Raw's 20th Anniversary

I was so busy talking about the divas this week, I did not get much of a chance to talk about this week's Raw. This week's Raw was hyped as their 20th Anniversary show. They had a milestone show just less than a year ago, so it was understandable if this show wasn't as packed as that one.

That being said, I still found this week's episode to be disappointing. I wasn't expecting much in terms of returns of big legends. It was great seeing Flair again. Mick Foley was there. The Rock was there to further his feud with CM Punk. I was expecting more in terms of big segments. Miz and Flair had a segment. Rock was in the main-event segment. The Shield did their usual thing, which is starting to get stale, but that is a topic for another day. Kaitlyn won the title, but I cannot consider that a big deal for someone who is not yet an established star. She did have her hometown on her side. There was a cage match between Cena and Ziggler, but I wasn't feeling hyped up for that. It was between being an average Raw and the kind of Raw you would expect for a milestone show.

This milestone Raw brought a 3.19. Last year's milestone Raw, which was the highest-rated Raw that year, got a 3.86. If it was not for that episode of Raw, last year's average rating would have been a lot worse than it was. What could the WWE possibly put together to avoid further slipping this year? The year has started solidly, staying above a 3.0 so far, but what happens when The Rock leaves and Wrestlemania season ends? Those 3-hour Raws will hurt again. And if the product becomes even more stale, you can expect even worse numbers than last year. What will end up bringing the best ratings for Raw this year? What will bring those results near a 3.86? It doesn't look like it will be their 20th Anniversary show.

Changing directions. A while ago, I remember hearing that Rikishi said on Twitter that he was glad to see Tamina getting time on Smackdown and getting the win. Yeah? And where's Tamina now? I mean no disrespect to either Rikishi or Tamina. Now that Eve is gone and the title is on a face, Tamina will most likely get pushed to put over Kaitlyn eventually, whether the WWE decides to develop Kaitlyn as centerpiece or treats her as interim centerpiece. It just goes to show that you cannot say what kind of career a diva is getting just off one match, one month, or even one push. Yes, Tamina got a televised win recently. But it was not connected to anything at all. Why should I make too big of a deal out of it? If Rikishi can get excited for Tamina getting treatment like that, that's fine. I don't think that's a fair opportunity at all and it will not lead to improvement in the diva division.

Tainted Success

You are probably aware of the recent controversy with  Lance Armstrong. The other week, I read about some major names in baseball being left out of induction in the MLB Hall of Fame. In both situations with Armstrong and the baseball stars, you have individuals who accomplished great things having their legacies tainted by the same thing, drugs. They cheated. They took shortcuts. The result is a tainted legacy for many of these individuals.

Let's start with the obvious question. Should wrestlers who took drugs be left out of the WWE Hall of Fame? Of course not. Wrestling is not a competitive sport like cycling or baseball. These wrestlers go out there to perform to give the fans a show. That is what it is all about. There are definitely some guys who took steroids currently in the Hall of Fame. Keep them there. More than likely, they still earned their legacies.

Now onto what I really want to talk about. Taking performance-enhancing drugs is viewed as taking a shortcut in many fields. Is that the only shortcut to success in the world? Of course not. In pro wrestling, can you consider it a shortcut for those wrestlers given great careers that they did not actually earn? The idea the WWE sells is that they push what the fans want to see and you have to get over to get the great career. That's the way it should work. That is the way it sometimes works. Some wrestlers start out with mediocre careers for years, they prove themselves through the midcard, and they get the better career eventually. That is like what happened with Eddie Guerrero. However, you also have some guys who seemed to have a great career the moment they debuted, then got over after already being pushed well. That's Brock Lesnar. He was getting a big push right from the time he debuted. What kind of overness did he have to warrant that kind of push? The WWE rigs the playing field for certain individuals. They use people to put over these individuals, never giving these people those same opportunities and treatment. Does that count as a shortcut? Does that taint the success of these guys who got these great careers and earned the overness after the fact?

I don't think it should taint their legacies. They still earned their success. Those guys who are used to put them over, they still usually get other opportunities to still show what they can do and connect well with the fans.

The diva division is a different creature. Women who are used to put over whom the WWE is developing to be a success usually don't get opportunities after that are better or just as good. Most of what they get after is mediocre. Trish Stratus will definitely be in the Hall of Fame, but how many of the credible jobbers used to put her over will? Maybe more for what they did outside of the WWE? They definitely don't deserve it for the mediocrity they received in the WWE. They definitely never earned the overness while in the WWE, with the exception of Mickie James. Should this kind of diva division taint the success of Trish Stratus? There is no denying that she succeeded, but she was the kind of diva the WWE likes to push as the centerpiece and she was never getting the kind of treatment of a credible jobber prior to the WWE pushing her well to get over with the fans when she was just eye-candy periphery. And you look at the current diva division. It is basically the same agenda. The WWE is attempting to have an eye-candy centerpiece, women with wrestling credibility are used as credible jobbers, and the only female wrestler supported to be a success is in the periphery. The only real change from then to now is eye-candy divas being less effective as periphery divas and used more as credible jobbers. Same diva division, but look at the quality and the failure to create stars. This is what Trish paved the way for? I think this current division should be seen as more of a slap in the face of Trish's legacy than the fact that the WWE developed her to be a success. She did succeed. For that reason, she will deserve her spot in the Hall of Fame.

What about Michelle McCool? Aside from Trish Stratus, her run as centerpiece lasted longer than any other woman pushed in this manner since the diva division started. But does she deserve to be viewed in the same way as Trish? McCool never got over. Some people can argue that McCool was a heel for most of her centerpiece run and heels are meant to make other people look good. Yeah? And how many faces actually became big successes off Michelle McCool? And even after a face got one over on the annoying LayCool, the centerpiece still got pushed hard consistently after. The WWE were not pushing a division that could deliver. The wrestling critics can look at how they were pushing McCool at this time and say they were pushing her very well. Yeah, that's true, but that's not the point. You don't push someone well for the sake of pushing someone well. You push them like that in hopes that they can connect well for the fans. McCool was a solid worker, but does that mean she should be inducted into the Hall of Fame? If a woman being a solid wrestler was a rarity in the world, then she should be. It isn't. Michelle McCool's career deserves to be inducted more than she does. She never did with it what a centerpiece is supposed to. And I wouldn't be surprised if she is inducted one day. The WWE cannot keep overpushing people the fans don't really care for. And they wonder why their ratings suck and they have to rely on stars from a decade ago to save them? Anyone pushed hard to be a success throughout their career who never earns the overness at all deserves to be in a Hall of Failure. It is not solely to insult them, but to remind the WWE of their own mistakes.

Mickie James and tainted success. What can anyone possibly say about that? Her ex wants people to believe that Mickie James slept her way to the top of a filler push back in 2008 and started to get over with the fans after that. He overlooks the fact that Mickie started to get over during her debut push and was maintaining the overness while she was not even being pushed prior to Candice's injury in 2007. That sure looks like an attempt to taint one's success. He's not the only one. Dirtsheets have said much to make Mickie look like she screwed herself out of the WWE, but they fail to see that she was never being pushed as Trish Stratus or Michelle McCool. She was being pushed as one of those women used to put over who the WWE wants to succeed. Should that be a chief reason why the success of a woman pushed as centerpiece should be tainted? Even when a credible jobber does do the impossible and get over with this kind of career, the WWE still pushes who they want to be a success and they screw the credible jobber. The playing field is rigged hard in favor of the centerpiece. Not only is there no real competition for the best worker to get the best spot, but a centerpiece who is not succeeding will still be pushed hard until she gets the overness to be a success. Or flops. Or quits. It never ends well these days. Mickie James took a career in which no woman had ever reached that height of success and she did it. Instead of being seen as a legitimate success, she has this legacy of tainted success.

Just to go back to the original thing I was talking about, how do I feel about the controversy with Lance Armstrong and the baseball players? I wouldn't have taken away Armstrong's titles and all that. I would induct those baseball players. You can say I'm a bit of a pushover. I'm more sour about people who are handed success than people who take shortcuts to succeed. If someone succeeds, I don't like denying them of their success. Let it be known their success was tainted, but don't take it away.

Eve Quits

Kaitlyn won the Diva's Championship, but that is really small news compared to what else has happened. Eve quit.

Eve was the centerpiece of the diva division. The WWE has lost another centerpiece of the diva division. If anything can possibly go wrong in the diva division, it looks like it will. Michelle McCool left in 2011. Kelly Kelly was let go last year. 2013 has just started and another attempt to recreate a centerpiece fails. I think Eve would have eventually worked out, at least better than Michelle McCool. Developing a centerpiece is like making an investment. You put something in and hope to get a good return. The WWE invests time, creative energy, and other workers to help the centerpiece look good. The centerpiece still has to work too, but the WWE usually ends up doing a lot of work for whom they want to be a top star, hence why it is usually easy to tell the difference between those pushed to be stars and those used to put over stars or act as filler when the stars are not around. You are going to get some filler now, but I'll get to that in a moment. Fact is, the WWE once again fails to get a good return on this centerpiece investment.

Is Kaitlyn the new centerpiece? She came to the WWE as a fitness model. Developing her as centerpiece would not exactly be the same as developing a woman who came to the company as a female wrestler as centerpiece, so you would still have the same diva division you have had for over a decade now. Female wrestlers would still not be featured properly. That's another issue. Even though Kaitlyn might still fit the basic profile of the kind of diva the WWE develops as centerpiece, I'm not convinced they want to push her in that position. I don't think she has the look they would want. I'm not saying Kaitlyn is ugly. I'm just saying I don't think this is who they would like to push in that way. There is also the fact that she is not great in the ring, but the story of a woman lacking wrestling experience being developed to be the best in the division is what the diva division is all about, in regards to the centerpiece position. Although Kaitlyn now holds the title, this may be a filler push.

Is Layla going to be centerpiece? Askana? Someone from developmental? If they don't have anyone they are willing to push as centerpiece under contract, you are going to be seeing a lot of filler. When the WWE gave up on Kelly Kelly as centerpiece, they had Eve to develop. Although Layla won the title, they were not pushing her well during that title run, which made it clear to see that she was not the centerpiece and would get lost in the shuffle like she has now found herself. You look back at Eve's run with the title, they featured her better than they did with Layla before her. Will they go to Layla as centerpiece now? She is the best option left. It wouldn't be shocking for the WWE to do this. Keep in mind that Eve had held the title twice before her recent run, but the first run came between the WWE giving up on Maryse as Raw centerpiece and moving onto Michelle McCool (LayCool) as overall centerpiece, then the second title win came when McCool was still in that position. Eve did not get featured well during those two reigns. It would not be out of the question for them to start pushing an eye-candy credible jobber as the centerpiece. It's not like they have a lot of other options. And yet, I don't think they will do it. I don't think there is anyone on the roster that they can really count on and are willing to give it to. The result? Filler. This is even the kind of division you are more likely to see AJ win the title in.

Needless to say, the WWE needs to start debuting more divas. They lost Beth Phoenix, a credible jobber, last year. They lose Eve, a woman being developed as centerpiece, just this week. You have a bunch of women already on the roster being wasted, but some of them are not exactly good enough in the ring to be a proper credible jobber or centerpiece. Of the three female wrestlers, only AJ is pushed well, and as a periphery diva. Tamina and Natalya are wasted. The WWE should debut someone with good wrestling ability, regardless of whether it is a female wrestler or eye-candy diva who became solid in FCW/NXT.

Let me end it with a comment on Mickie James. Mickie James was never the centerpiece. If you have never read my blog before, you are going to say I'm crazy. The WWE loved her! Always pushing her! She had to have screwed herself out of that great career! Take a second look at the situations in which she was being pushed. She was only getting legitimate pushes when being used to put over the centerpiece or act as interim centerpiece when the centerpiece was not around. That's not how you push someone you want to be over. In the roughly 6 years since Trish left, the WWE has gone through 5 centerpieces, and not one of them worked out as well as Trish. For years, the best thing they had was Mickie James, a credible jobber. She had the overness and earned it on her own. She is still active today. She has proven to be a loyal worker. She has not suffered an injury that has ruined her career. She is still solid in the ring. If the WWE had kept Mickie James and given her the career she had earned, you most likely would have had her still working out as the centerpiece today, instead of awaiting the WWE choosing their 6th centerpiece since Trish left. The division never would have collapsed like it did. I can't say whether or not the WWE regrets releasing Mickie James. It doesn't look like they have learned their lesson.

Would Mickie James Have Survived Today?

Recently, the development you see in the diva division that was not there for years is the usage of eye-candy divas to put over the centerpiece and act as filler when the centerpiece is not there. Years ago, those pushes went to female wrestlers almost exclusively. The eye-candy divas were mostly not as solid in the ring in years past as they are now. To put it another way, the WWE did not have confidence in the eye-candy divas back then for those kind of pushes in the same way as they do these days. Back then, most of those eye-candy divas were just used as periphery divas (valets, romance angles, assistants, and so on). The centerpiece was the only eye-candy diva developed consistently as a great wrestler. With eye-candy divas getting these opportunities, that has led to even less opportunities and more mediocre opportunities for the few real female wrestlers left that are credible jobbers.

Mickie James was a credible jobber. She was a female-wrestler credible jobber. Most people might say the WWE was pushing her well, but that ignores what other things were going on during that time in the diva division. During the time Mickie was there, you had centerpieces retiring, getting injured, flopping, needing to be replaced, and needing to be put over. These are the situations where you call on a credible jobber to be interim centerpiece or jobber to the centerpiece. Back then, the WWE was still giving these kind of pushes to the female wrestlers. Aside from Mickie James, Melina and Beth Phoenix were the primary credible jobbers being used. Gail Kim and Natalya were also used here and there to put over the centerpiece during this time. Fact is, Mickie James was frequently the only face credible jobber available when the need arose, which is why she got pushed so often. Let me give just one example. Remember when Candice Michelle got injured in 2007? That is the woman being developed as centerpiece. Who does the WWE push to take her place until she returns? The only other faces on the show were Maria and Mickie James. Maria was an eye-candy periphery diva and Mickie James was a credible jobber. It is not surprising that Mickie James got the push. Look at all the other situations Mickie James got pushed after that. She was frequently in the right spot at the right time to get the push. The WWE was not high on giving eye-candy divas those kind of pushes back then, although they did start to warm up to it near the end of Mickie's WWE run.

Even though Mickie James was getting pushed, this is not the kind of push that leads to success for the woman getting it, let alone lead to the woman getting it becoming the most over diva. Mickie James did that. What you witnessed the WWE doing with Mickie James in her final year is still be able to take advantage of her and hurt her overness at the same time. They were never pushing her as the true centerpiece, and definitely not as a periphery diva. But because they were low on options, Mickie James saw more time getting pushed, even though it was still credible jobber pushes.

Could Mickie James have endured the current diva division? As I said before, the WWE is not against giving eye-candy divas the pushes they usually only gave women with a lot more wrestling credibility. The two female wrestlers pushed as credible jobbers, Tamina and Natalya, have not had anything too important to do in a long time. Eve Torres is the current centerpiece. Layla and Kaitlyn have been used as credible jobbers. You can imagine Alicia Fox being used in this manner. The WWE does not even have to give a meaningful push to Natalya, the only face female-wrestler credible jobber. Now, what if Mickie James was still in this diva division? What if she still had the overness? Would the WWE have been successful in burying Mickie James in this diva division? There are two ways to look at this.

First, yes, they would succeed in burying Mickie James. Mickie was getting a lot of pushes back then mainly because the need kept on coming up to push a face credible jobber and she was often the only option. Things are different now. The WWE could get away with pushing Layla or Kaitlyn over Mickie James. They can just argue that they are giving these women fair opportunities. Without even being featured at all, except maybe on Superstars, large tag matches, and mediocre treatment that is always ending abruptly, you would assume Mickie's overness would dry up. She would become an afterthought, much like Gail Kim did.

The second way to look at this, what if not giving Mickie James even the usual credible jobber opportunities fails to bury her? This woman was not supposed to get over in the first place. They were never pushing her with the proper consistency, hype, and character/storyline development after she did get over, but she maintained the overness of a diva you would think was being pushed well. They treated her even more poorly, but she survived that. Keep in mind that Mickie went through 2 periods where they were not pushing her for at least 5 months. The first came when they started pushing Candice Michelle as centerpiece. The second came after Candice Michelle had flopped as centerpiece. They did give Mickie mediocre storylines during both periods, but they all ended abruptly without a proper finish and did nothing for Mickie James. It is comparable to how the WWE has recently been using Natalya. If Mickie James was in this current diva division, you would probably see her getting those mediocre opportunities again. Remember how fast Rosa's angle with Del Rio ended? Have any faith in Natalya's angle with Khali? That's what Mickie would be in for, and was even the kind of thing happening to her during those 5-month dry spells. Mickie James survived those periods and maintained the overness. It's not hard to imagine she might maintain the overness if she was being overlooked in this current diva division where it is even easier to overlook female wrestlers than it has ever been. If she did, the WWE would be in some trouble. Back then, because the WWE would still push Mickie James, everyone thinks they loved her and wanted her to succeed. They don't pay attention to the circumstances around those pushes and realize those were not the kind of pushes that lead to the woman getting it becoming that successful. In this diva division, if Mickie maintained the overness, people would definitely know something is wrong. Your most over diva is being blatantly under-pushed for the sake of models lacking that overness? The WWE would be on the spot a lot worse than they were back then.

What do I think would have happened? Would the WWE have had an easier time burying Mickie James in this diva division or would she have beaten it and put the WWE on the spot? A lot of it depends on whether or not these other women are getting over. You have AJ Lee around. Could a successful diva created by the WWE help them get the fans to forget Mickie James? If this was the diva division they had back then, I believe they would have had the best chance of burying her. But after Mickie had solidified that overness, I don't think the WWE could get away with doing this to her without people wanting to know what happened. It wouldn't be as sharp as humiliating her like they did, but it would still stand out to treat a woman that over like this.

One last thing I want to say. Prior to this current development of giving eye-candy divas the kind of pushes you would give female wrestlers pushed as credible jobbers, you had eye-candy centerpieces getting injured too much and deteriorating in their wrestling ability. What does seeing eye-candy divas not working out in the ring motivate the WWE to do? Push them even more in the ring! Well...okay. I would agree that you shouldn't condemn all eye-candy divas too fast after a few bad results, but to hand them even more opportunities and to give real female wrestlers even less, and still not developing any of them to be centerpiece, just seems like a crazy decision to make after the bad luck they have had recently. Layla has improved very well in the ring and I do not consider her injury-prone, even though she was out for a year with an injury. She doesn't seem to be getting injured often. In general, however, I do not have that much faith in a lot of the other eye-candy credible jobbers. Who cares if I have faith? The WWE has faith, and that is what matters.

New World's Heavyweight Champion: Alberto Del Rio

A few weeks ago, Alberto Del Rio had a face turn that came out of nowhere. This week, he was a part of something else that seemed to come out of nowhere. He has beaten Big Show on Smackdown for the World's Heavyweight Championship.

I'm a Del Rio fan, so I'm not against him winning the title. I am also not against title changes happening on Raw and Smackdown. Mix it up a little, don't let it always happen on PPVs. And yet, I do have a problem. It was too sudden and not developed well. It was obvious Del Rio was entering a feud with Big Show. If they wanted to have the title change before the Royal Rumble, at least develop and hype that title match. As I said before, this title change came out of nowhere. The WWE is promoting it. Let's see how well ratings do with fans eager to see the title change.

I also don't like how strong they made Del Rio look in that match. It was a little much. It was the kind of thing you would expect from Cena. I didn't mind when the WWE was showing signs of making Del Rio into a master heel around his first title run, but I don't think every face they push in the main event needs to look superhuman. It does make Del Rio look good, but I'm not sure he really needed it.

Aside from those two issues, this situation is not horrible. I don't feel bad for Big Show losing the title. That's isn't an insult to Big Show. He had a good few months with the title. This isn't the same thing as Christian losing the title to Randy Orton on Smackdown. Not only did that come out of nowhere, a lot of fans viewed it as insulting to Christian. What happened with Big Show is not the same thing.

What Happens To Ryback Now?

Ryback did not win the WWE Championship against CM Punk on Raw. Punk does indeed look good enough to go against The Rock in a few weeks. But what about Ryback?

Obviously, since it was The Shield that cost Ryback the match, his issues with that group will continue. There are other people who still have issues with the group, including Randy Orton, so finding someone to team with Ryback in this feud will not be a problem.

Due to the recent title change, which I will talk about next time, it does not look like Ryback feuding with Big Show over the title will be an option right now. I still think that would have been a good option. Ryback has a lot of momentum. Continuing it in a big title feud would have been good. Ryback and Big Show could still feud without a title on the line.

Since I'm on the subject of titles, what about Wade Barrett defending the IC title against Ryback? That would be a drop from feuding against CM Punk for the WWE Championship, but Ryback and Barrett have that history. That alone should make for a good feud.

Whatever happens, Ryback is going to get a bit of a depush. It was bound to happen. The issue will be how they keep the ball rolling with him. They obviously cannot let Ryback not want revenge against The Shield. After that, a feud with Barrett would make sense. That should set Ryback on a clear track for at least a few months. I don't picture Ryback getting lost in the shuffle easily, even though this is the time of the year where it sometimes may happen.

The Punjabi Princess

The Great Khali, Hornswoggle, and Natalya. An odd team. They have been together for a number of weeks now. Hornswoggle and Khali have actually teamed up. Natalya has just been inserted in there. This is obviously not something that will do too much for the diva division, but it would be scary if the WWE tried to do something with the tag division with this team.

What does this mean for Natalya? Are they developing her to be a periphery diva? I don't think so. First, there is no real development for her. Second, she is not exactly paired with a guy that is being pushed well. The Great Khali has not been relevant in years. He beats jobbers under him, but is frequently used to put over stars above him. Third, I cannot imagine the WWE being consistent with Natalya after this team breaks up. Consistency is one of the main things to look at when figuring out what kind of career a diva is getting. Go back to when Victoria had that long partnership with Stevie Richards. How would you compare Stevie Richards back then to The Great Khali now? Regardless, Victoria didn't get another good relationship with a superstar after that. Victoria was an obvious credible jobber, much like Natalya. This isn't Natalya's first time paired with the guys, but DH Smith and Tyson Kidd were not exactly pushed well for years. Getting to the point, going back to the original question, what does this mean for Natalya? Don't get your expectations up for anything too great.

It is still good that Natalya is getting featured, even though the development is not there to help her get over. Just like the WWE did more with the divas during their first dark age, you had to wonder how long it would take for them to do it now. That dark age started after the centerpiece left the company and they did not have a proper replacement already on the roster. This dark age came about after years of failure to recreate a good centerpiece. Even though they have a solid centerpiece now, I wouldn't say the problem solved until Eve has really solidified herself in that position. Beyond that, they have a shortage of good credible jobbers. Natalya is one of the good ones. Using her against Eve would not be enough to fix things and get out of this dark age, but I would not be surprised to see them feud in time. Kaitlyn will most likely win the title, but Eve will regain it in time. After that, unless they make the better decision of debuting someone fresh, Natalya is a good choice to feud with Eve. Until then, Natalya is benefiting in this current dark age by getting some periphery angles.

And what about Khali and Hornswoggle? Could you imagine them winning the tag titles? It obviously doesn't look like the WWE will head in that direction, but this tag division revival is slowing even further with only two teams getting the main spotlight. The WWE just cannot bring themselves to use The Usos or The Colons better. Jobber teams. The WWE has now formed another random team with Khali and Hornswoggle. If this trio ever feuds with 3MB, Natalya would make Jinder Mahal tap in under a minute.

2012 Ratings Review

Now that the numbers have come in for last year's ratings, I will take this time to just see how the three main shows have done in the previous year. Like always, I get my numbers from Gerweck.net.

Starting with TNA Impact Wrestling, and before actually looking at last year's ratings, last week's show did a 1.14. That is actually a boost from previous months. Hyping Sting did bring results. It was almost the highest number since TNA changed their time slot and went live. The problem will be keeping the number that high. You go back to the start of 2012. TNA stayed above a 1.0 for 14 weeks. After that, things started to fall apart. The annual average was a 1.01. That is close to being under a 1.0. That number is still the lowest yearly average since around the time TNA started out on Spike. Look at the annual average through the years here. That is not a good sign for TNA. 2011 saw their best annual average. 2012 sees one of their worst. I don't believe they will keep the ball rolling well in 2013.

Smackdown is doing well. Smackdown's numbers through the years can be found here. It is down from last year, but still up from 2010. The problem you have is that staleness. The brand split is gone, so top names from Raw can be used more regularly on Smackdown, but I think they can do a better job by going back to developing one long-term centerpiece for Smackdown. They have been rotating centerpieces frequently. Whoever has the title has typically gotten the spotlight. That's fine, but I think putting the title on Randy Orton, for instance, and really pushing him consistently well even after the reign ends will do some good. Or how about giving Dolph Ziggler that kind of treatment? I don't like them rotating centerpieces every few months. TNA does that. It's not very effective. Nevertheless, Smackdown should be staying around the same area this year in the ratings.

And then you have Raw. John Cena is still the clear centerpiece of that show. Would things have been different had CM Punk not gotten injured? That's another issue. What about the ratings? The numbers here tell the story. 2.99. The worst you could have ever wanted. Impact managed to stay above a 1.0, but Raw dropped below a 3.0. Blame it on December. Three-hour Raws and football also hurt. The WWE will have The Rock to help them this year, but he did not save them from the big drop last year. Moreover, Raw was not 3 hours for most of last year. Unless they give up on 3 hours, it will be that long every week this year. That does not seem to be helping their numbers. Viewers don't seem to be sitting through it well. 2012 was the year of CM Punk's long reign and Cena never winning any titles (aside from the briefcase). Do you put the blame on the WWE for not freshening up their main-event scene more on Raw? Cena being out of the title scene did not stop him from frequently being booked higher than Punk. Even though both Punk and Cena suffered injuries last year, I don't think that had much to do with the long run of ratings below a 3.0. The WWE still tried to keep things interesting, but they did not follow through properly. Can Cena still deliver as centerpiece? Give him 2013, but if he can't deliver as everyone says he can, they need to try something else. Yearlong title reigns do not seem to be the answer. The WWE should be able to bounce back this year. A 2.99 is very low. I cannot imagine them doing worse. They just need to start utilizing other talent better and figure out what to do with Cena. Going back to 2 hours might also help those numbers look better.

CM Punk Vs. Ryback: Part IV

CM Punk retained the WWE Championship against Ryback at Hell in a Cell. He retained the title against Ryback and John Cena at Survivor Series. He was supposed to defend it against Ryback at TLC, but an injury ruined that. And now, that match will be happening on Raw next week.

With The Rock getting his title shot in just a few weeks, the WWE would have liked for CM Punk to go into that match with the title. Even though I was for Ryback winning the title a few months ago, I never felt he would be the one to actually defend against The Rock. The Rock only comes back to wrestle rarely. He should be going against stars that are already established, like CM Punk or Randy Orton. Ryback is still in the process of being developed. I pictured a scenario of Ryback winning the title, but then CM Punk regaining it in time to face The Rock.

How will CM Punk's injury impact things? Getting passed Ryback is only one thing. In a TLC match, the WWE can find a cheap way to keep the title on Punk, especially with everything currently going on. But will Punk be ready to put on a good match with The Rock? As I just said, The Rock only wrestles on rare occasions. When you get him in the ring, you have to try to put on a good match. A match that lasts only a minute at the Royal Rumble may be criticized by many fans, regardless of the outcome. People have been anticipating this match since CM Punk attacked The Rock on Raw months ago. Then again, how fitting would it be for Punk's long title run to end in seconds? That kind of story is not unheard of. Nevertheless, I think going for a good match would be best here.

Does that mean Ryback should win the title and face The Rock? He is healthy. I don't know if he will be able to put on a great match. The time for him to win the WWE Championship has gone by. In the coming months, going after the World's Heavyweight Championship would be better. And yet, he is in that position to win the title and possibly face The Rock, which would be the biggest match in Ryback's career. I don't think it is going to happen.

If I had to predict, I would say CM Punk retains here. How will his match with The Rock go? That will depend on what happens after Ryback is out of the picture. The promos alone should make a feud between CM Punk and The Rock worth it.

Wade Barrett Wins The Intercontinental Championship

Kofi Kingston has lost the Intercontinental Championship to Wade Barrett. This is a very good move to still keep some attention on Barrett. It is true that this is pretty much the same spot he was in almost two years ago. He beat Kofi Kingston to win his first IC title. He beats him again to win his second IC title. What does that tell you about the midcard? I would say that pushing some new guys would be nice. Nevertheless, this may not be the same as touching the main-event scene's fringes, as Barrett was doing prior to his injury last year, but a good title reign can help transition him back into that bigger push, when the time is right.

And what about Kofi? I just finished saying that a good title reign can help transition Barrett to a bigger push. Kofi Kingston is a guy that seems to be always moving in and out of title reigns, but he has always been a midcarder. I am not expecting a bigger push for him now. He will probably get another good show at the Royal Rumble, but he will still be in the midcard. There are too many top guys right now ahead of him. After Kofi finishes up with Barrett, should he move on to Antonio Cesaro? If they don't develop some singles feud for him, I can picture him once again getting lost in multi-man matches.

Del Rio Face In 2013

I like how the WWE is developing Alberto Del Rio for his first official face run. It is simple, but effective. Use Ricardo. Have Big Show bully Ricardo. It is a little bit of a stretch to see Del Rio caring for the guy he has pushed around himself at times, but I like the relationship development. It is the kind of thing you would have seen if the WWE did that storyline involving Rosa coming in between Del Rio and Ricardo. I think this will work out well, if they keep things fresh, of course.

Should Del Rio beat Big Show for the title? After a very long title feud between Sheamus and Big Show, the last thing you might want to see is a long feud between Big Show and Del Rio. Either do it or don't. Luckily, Elimination Chamber is coming up after the Royal Rumble. A multi-man feud will develop for that. You won't have to worry about a feud between Big Show and Del Rio going stale. The feud is still fresh now. But should Del Rio win? Considering there are fresh guys like Ryback and Ziggler waiting around, I don't think so. Ryback isn't in the hunt for that title now, but that is the title he should win, if he wins any World title in the coming months.

With Del Rio going face, that may thing the ranks for top heels. Who turns heel? That is a subject for another day.