Roman Reigns Vs. AJ Styles At Payback 2016: Final Preview

The situation is just ripe for something to happen. The WWE went with the face vs. face WWE Championship feud of Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles. What could they have been planning? Heel turn? Debut? Something to elevate one of these guys further? Something to silence the critics of Roman Reigns?

We have already seen two guys debut recently and get involved in this storyline. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson debuted and have been trying to side with AJ. He has stayed face, while the two goons have been obvious heels. It creates some drama. Will AJ embrace his old friends? Or will he continue to politely keep them out of his business? That might likely end with them having enough and beating him up.

The WWE could go the route of an even bigger swerve and have Roman Reigns be the guy that turns heel. Have him form a stable with Gallows and Anderson. Why would the WWE do such a thing? Fans are booing Roman Reigns. A lot of fans say they should just turn him heel. If a face is getting a negative reaction or just a mediocre reaction, an easy answer is usually to turn him heel. That would at least explain the boos or the dead reaction he is getting. Fans aren't reacting because the guy is a heel and they hate him. Heels often also play cooler characters that might help them get over. Roman Reigns played a heel back in The Shield. The group got over. They stayed over as faces. But it looks like the WWE might want to make Reigns a heel again. With John Cena coming back in a few weeks, the WWE might want to change up their top guys. Cena and Styles could be the top faces, as well as Ambrose and the possibility of Seth Rollins being face when he returns. There aren't a lot of great heels around. Reigns is feuding with a face now. He was feuding with a part-timer before that. Sheamus isn't pushed that well. Jericho is a part-timer. Owens is a midcarder. Can Roman Reigns be that top heel?

I would like to see a heel turn. If not that, debut someone else to be the leader of the stable. I do not want to see Gallows and Anderson just get tired of Styles not wanting their help and attacking him. That would be the simple story to tell. Things are already heading in that direction. Do a swerve. The WWE can create drama with whose side these guys are on and they should take advantage of it.

Who walks out of Payback with the title? Roman Reigns is a 3-time WWE Champion. Let that sink in. In less than six months, he has won the title that many times. He will eventually have a title reign that lasts a while. To have him lose the title so soon just seems ridiculous. Whether he turns heel or not, I say he retains here. There are a lot of different scenarios the WWE could have to have him retain the title, while still doing whatever turn or debut they might be planning to do. Just have the match end by DQ, then let the drama really unfold.

It might not be a match, but another big angle playing out at Payback will be Vince McMahon deciding who gets Raw, Shane or Stephanie. I am not going to complain about Shane losing at Wrestlemania and still running Raw. I won't talk too much about why I think segments like this should be on Raw, not pay-per-views. Fact is, the WWE is doing it.

How will this likely play out? I can see Triple H also coming back and some kind of match is made to decide things. But the WWE should drag this on a little to create drama. Shane gets Raw, while Stephanie and Triple H get Smackdown.

Return of the brand split? No. There is a lack of star power and the injury issue right now is just crazy. Bray Wyatt got injured recently. The WWE shouldn't tie their hands by committing to splitting up the rosters again. On the one hand, it should help them to make more stars by getting some guys away from Cena and Reigns, but the WWE is so inefficient right now, they would probably still mismanage it. Shane can run Raw and Stephanie and Triple H can run Smackdown without rosters being split. It could create some interesting tension and be a hot summer angle. It might even lead all the way to Survivor Series. Could they take it all the way to Wrestlemania next year? Let's not get too far ahead just yet. Right now, I do not think Vince will just give an easy answer at Payback and give control of Raw to either Shane or Stephanie and end it there.

Speaking of Raw, let me talk about ratings for a little. Raw last week was a taped episode as part of their European tour. A lot of fans read spoilers and decide not to watch. Ratings for these Raws are usually bad, as last week's was. You then get a bounce back the following week.

There was no bounce back. Viewership was 3,336,000, down about 6%. The rating came in at 2.2, down about 5%. That is pretty bad for a Raw that should have done better than a taped episode just one week ago. The WWE went against NBA playoffs, but they also had that excuse the week before and the games this week on Monday didn't have that much hype to them. Ratings aren't going to continue to sink forever, but this is an indicator that things can be pretty bad during football season in a few months. Will Raw drop below a 2.0? 

The End Of The League Of Nations

Alberto Del Rio had said in an interview recently that The League of Nations was finished. They didn't look like a unit on Raw this week. On Smackdown this week, without spoiling too much, it looks like another nail is being put into the coffin.

This is a group that could have been a lot better than they were. Even with Barrett being taken out, the trio of Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, and Rusev could have made an impact. Personally, I prefer seeing Rusev with Lana than Rusev with The League of Nations, but that's another issue. The stable still could have been good.

What about that feud with The Wyatts? Bray Wyatt's recent injury has ruined it. I think recent developments just further support that the feud really was out of lack of creative direction. If The League of Nations can't have that feud, they can't have any feud? Breaking them up is the only thing you can think of? With The Wyatts, it is no big deal. When Bray Wyatt returns, he can just jump to any feud. The WWE frequently has him just move all over the place. But it really feels like The League of Nations was the group that the WWE really didn't have any direction for.

Roman Reigns didn't bury the group. They still stayed together after Sheamus lost the title and eventually regained some of their momentum back. John Cena, the guy many fans say buries people, certainly didn't ruin them. I wouldn't even say New Day ruined them, although the WWE should have let two members of The League of Nations win the tag titles while they still had some momentum and were looking like a strong heel stable. New Day doesn't need them anymore. I would say that was the point the WWE really missed a chance to go somewhere with this group. The feud against The Wyatts likely would not have been as good as The Wyatts vs. The Shield.

Is there any hope for these three guys? Or are they all jobbers to the stars even as singles wrestlers? Even with the injury issues, I think the WWE had enough heels to work with Roman Reigns and AJ Styles. There's no need to turn anyone or free up people to serve that purpose. But I do not have confidence in how they will be handled. The WWE just debuted a bunch of guys. Cesaro returned from injury. Cena will return soon. Sheamus, Rusev, and Del Rio stood a better chance of being featured well as a group than they likely will on their own.

Charlotte Vs. Natalya At Payback 2016: Family Feud

Charlotte and Natalya have been feuding for the Women's Championship. Ric Flair has helped his daughter retain the title against Natalya already. Natalya is utilizing one of her relatives for their next match coming up at Payback. Bret Hart will be in her corner this Sunday.

I have seen some fans say that the WWE's recent development of this feud shows a lack of confidence in the women. Does the WWE feel they need two legendary men to keep the fans interested in this women's feud? Well, I'm sure smarks would be more interested if Sasha Banks was in the match. That aside, I wouldn't have much confidence in this feud. Charlotte just debuted less than a year ago and has not really broken out on her own very well, even before she was paired with her dad. She also has not shown the charisma that will help her get over with fans that aren't going to be sold on her just for her athleticism. Natalya has been around for years and inconsistently pushed. I actually think she's starting to really connect better with the audience, but it's hard for some fans to care about someone that was completely lost in the shuffle not too long ago.

Back in the diva era, the WWE never created a truly successful star without some rubs from the men. Could Trish Stratus have been able to get over without interacting with the men? How about Lita? AJ Lee? Regardless of the answer, these women did have some big angles in the periphery that had a hand in their development.

Whether you want to think the diva era is over or not, the WWE is still relying on men in their women's matters. It probably is bad timing to do this so soon after they dropped the "diva" from their division and are trying to make it more respectable. The first feud should be purely between two solid workers. I would not say the WWE has made this too much about Ric Flair and Bret Hart, which is something some fans were dreading, but it is still not a great thing to do. This isn't your traditional periphery usage. You don't have a woman managing a man, involved in a romance angle with a man, or a woman even wrestling a man. This is two legendary men being in the corner of the women. It does seem a little more respectable than what the diva division is usually about, but it is still the WWE relying on men to help the women get over. And most likely, it is Charlotte they really care about getting over.

What happens in this match? Bret Hart will probably knock out Ric Flair, but I would expect Charlotte to retain. She just got the new title earlier this month. If anyone should beat her for it, it should be Becky Lynch or Sasha Banks. But I will say that Natalya does deserve to eventually get another title run. I would say she deserves it even more now than she did back when she won the Diva's Championship. She seems to have just broken out into her own more since then. Thank Total Divas for that? She just seems like a performer that is about more than just wrestling ability. That has helped her overness. Even if the WWE does not give her the title this Sunday, it would be nice for them to remain consistent with her with a periphery angle or a secondary women's feud outside the title picture. As for Charlotte, she can move on to Becky or Sasha.

How Goes Kalisto And His United States Title Reign?

Many fans would say John Cena helped the United States Championship. He elevated the title with his open challenges and the quality of matches he was putting on last year. Even his critics would praise him. He traded the title with the WWE Champion, Seth Rollins. The title just felt that important.

John Cena lost the title to the returning Alberto Del Rio. There wasn't a huge drop off. Del Rio won it in decisive fashion. The WWE tried to run some kind of gimmick between Del Rio and Zeb Colter. That flopped when the WWE ran with The League of Nations. Del Rio holding a title helped to give the group a bit more credibility. There might not have been regular open challenges, but the title still felt important.

Del Rio then traded the title with Kalisto. When it was all said and done, Kalisto was left still holding the United States Championship. The title definitely has been brought back down to mediocre levels. Kalisto did have that successful title defense against Ryback at Wrestlemania, but you cannot really say much else. He has been pushed as a tag-team wrestler with Sin Cara just as much as he has been pushed as a singles wrestler defending his title. I am not against one wrestler in a tag team holding a singles title, but what has been happening recently with the United States Championship shows why these kind of reigns should be short. Kalisto has two things going for him and the WWE isn't going far with either one.

Is he back feuding with Ryback? Ideally, the WWE should just have Sin Cara turn heel and have those two feud for the United States Championship. That would be a fresher feud. If they are serious about grooming Kalisto to be the new Rey Mysterio, he needs to break out on his own. He may be a great in-ring worker, but lack of individual focus on him will hold him back.

I do not think the WWE will be able to build him up to be the new Rey Mysterio. First of all, the WWE didn't really "create" Rey Mysterio. Mysterio was making a name for himself before the WWE signed him. He was having success in WCW. I'm not saying the WWE did nothing for him. He won a few World Championships in the WWE. Compared to Rey Mysterio, Kalisto does not have that kind of development pre-WWE. To make matters worse, the WWE was more efficient a decade ago when they had Rey Mysterio. Injury issues and the WWE becoming less efficient contributed to Rey being treated less spectacularly in his final years in the WWE. The WWE not being able to put proper individual focus on Kalisto is an example of inefficiency. Lastly, the WWE was willing to push Mysterio up the card. He went from winning Cruiserweight Championships to World Championships. How likely is it that Kalisto gets promoted? The WWE has a congested main-event scene, including part-timers and some guys currently injured. If they do not view Kalisto as an A-tier priority eventually, he will one day get lost in the shuffle for the sake of pushing some of these new NXT guys. And that's not how you make a new Rey Mysterio.

R.I.P. Chyna

Joanie Laurer (Chyna) passed away this week. Chyna obviously had various issues over the last few years, including drug issues. But she was a performer that stood out. She accomplished many firsts for women in the WWE men's division, including winning the Intercontinental Championship. She was one of the most popular women back in the Attitude Era. She was my favorite woman in wrestling at one point. She was one of my favorite things about wrestling back then.

What are her chances of getting into the WWE Hall of Fame? That was one of the things she was pushing for for a while now. Issues she had obviously kept her out. And she just kept on saying things and doing things that looked like it would make it harder for her to get in. The WWE would have a good reason to not want to give her a live mic. Now that she has passed away, however, the WWE might warm up to her induction. They are acknowledging her death. I don't know if it will be next year or some time down the line, but I believe she will get in. The WWE can just get someone close to her to give a respectable speech. The WWE does not have to worry about Chyna saying something to make them look bad. They might as well give her the induction and move on.

Maria In Charge

TNA had a ladder match involving the KOs this week. The winner is in charge of the division. Who won? Maria Kanellis. Arguably the least talented woman in the match won.

Maria is obviously having issues with Gail Kim. She cost Gail Kim the title. And now this. Let me tell you how I would like to see this feud go. I have said many times that TNA should start to build new stars in the KO division and stop having Gail Kim just keep dominating title matters. This current situation can be the perfect way to transition her to something else. The obvious story to tell is that Gail Kim will be the one to knock Maria out of power. But put more on the line. If Gail wins, she gets to run the KO division. Just to make things balanced and add more to the feud, if Gail loses, her TNA career is over. Gail would obviously win. Maria could have some heels try to assist her during the match, because we all know Maria is no match for Gail Kim. Gail can overcome them herself, or have some other face KOs help her out. Maria gets her comeuppance and Gail Kim gets something relevant to do for the rest of her time in TNA that keeps her out of the title picture for a while. She will still probably get one more "thank you" run before she does retire, but other women get a legitimate chance during this time. Of course, Gail Kim has to be willing to do this.

For most of her run since coming back to TNA in 2011, I would not say Gail Kim was really the centerpiece of the division in the same way the WWE has a centerpiece. She was a part of TNA's rotation for a while. There was a span when the title went from Brooke Tessmacher to Madison Rayne, back to Brooke, to Tara for a while, to Velvet Sky, to Mickie James, and then to ODB before Gail Kim got it again. During this time, not only did Gail Kim not hold the title, but she was not featured as that serious of a threat to the title. She got title shots, but so did other women. She was sometimes used to put over other women. She got some non-title stuff to do, but not always anything too major. Her feud with Taryn Terrell during this time was praised, but it didn't get really heated until last year. It is not unusual for the centerpiece to sometimes trump title matters, but I don't feel Gail Kim really did that back then.

Recently, Gail Kim is looking more like a true centerpiece.  She is just coming off a lengthy title reign. Her feud with Maria feels more important than the KO title. The Decay kidnapped her. It just seems a lot of things are running through Gail Kim right now. She is getting better creative investment in her. If Gail was more over, I would say TNA should just keep going with her until she does retire. But she's not.

There are a lot of young women in TNA and in the independent scene that can use a great push. TNA cannot count on taking women from the WWE and running on their star power. WWE doesn't release people on a regular basis anymore. With the recent feminist revolution, female wrestlers there may not likely want to quit to come over to TNA. TNA has to do something they have never really been great at doing. They have to make their own stars. And it might be easier if Gail Kim was doing something on the periphery of the title scene. Gail simply losing to these other women is not enough. TNA does not need to job her out. These younger women need better creative investment and hype. Maybe TNA can practice with Gail Kim now with how they are pushing her, but they eventually have to give the younger women that kind of treatment.

Back to Maria. I have said before that TNA can beat the WWE at their own game. The WWE has pretty much beaten their own diva division into the ground. There is supposedly a new women's division there, although they still have divas, like Lana, Summer Rae, and Maryse, who returned one night after debuting the new Women's Championship. And TNA has a woman that doesn't represent serious women's wrestling get a big push. I am not against eye-candy performers in wrestling. Even if they never become serious in-ring workers, these women can still find a role and often be very entertaining. And I think this current storyline with Maria in TNA has great potential, especially if TNA handles it like I mentioned before. But from the standpoint of fans of serious women's wrestling, TNA's recent actions might be viewed as dumb. Oh well!

TNA has always had eye-candy women in their KO division. Even when things were a lot more respectable and you would read reports of TNA's women's segments drawing the highest ratings, there were eye-candy women around. And for the most part, TNA has done a great job integrating these women into what they do. Taryn Terrell, an eye-candy diva from the WWE that never looked like a serious in-ring worker there, looked legit in TNA last year. Not only could she handle herself in the ring, she had an appealing look and was portraying a great heel character. And even though Maria is not treated as legit, she is still getting matches. You have a respectable women's division that was pretty efficient that featured both female wrestlers and eye-candy performers, some of which became solid in-ring workers.

I cannot say that about the WWE right now. Yeah, wrestling fans are so excited about "divas" being dropped, the new title, and women's wrestling being taken seriously. Respectability is obviously there. But they are very inefficient. They have a ton of dead weight on the roster. They cannot possibly consistently feature even the major female wrestlers (Charlotte, Paige, Sasha Banks, and Becky Lynch). With the rotational system TNA runs, there might be some periods where certain women were left with nothing to do for a while, but it isn't as bad as the WWE right now. TNA never had this much dead weight. There are women not going anywhere that you just know are not going to get the opportunity to go anywhere, like Tamina and Alicia Fox. The WWE also does not have great characters and their feud development is dull. All this hurts their ability to be efficient.

And the WWE, so far, has not done a great job integrating eye-candy workers into the new division. There are still divas there. And Lana was a great one. Instead of the WWE keeping the ball rolling with her, even if only in the periphery, they bring back Maryse. The WWE cannot just use these women as jobbers to the female wrestlers and only let them beat other women being pushed as lowly as them. It was not unusual to see eye-candy divas be used as jobbers even in the golden age. Because they lacked wrestling credibility and were not treated as serious threats, I would not call them credible jobbers. But what kept these women over is that they were still given meaningful things to do to help portray their characters and their sex appeal. Divas right now are not consistently getting that. Consistency matters. Lana never got pushed to the moon, but she got over because the WWE put her in a position to do her act and be sexy. And that is all it takes. And now they are doing some of that with Maryse. But will she eventually get lost in the shuffle? A lot of wrestling fans do not want these type of women to get involved in too many of the matches because they will hurt match quality. Okay, but that does not mean they should be pushed so inconsistently and poorly.

TNA has definitely dropped the ball with some women over the years. You can criticize them for pushing Maria. But for all their faults, I would say they have done a better job of balancing a respectable, efficient women's division with featuring both solid wrestlers with eye-candy performers than the WWE has been doing in the last few months.    

Roman Reigns Vs. AJ Styles: The Plot Thickens

Ever since the WWE went with AJ Styles as the #1 contender for the WWE Championship, there just felt like the WWE might be aiming for more than just a title defense for Roman Reigns. The first two weeks have been pretty lackluster for the feud development here, but business picked up this week. AJ Styles actually interacted with two men he knows very well, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. They looked like they would be on his side. They even attacked Roman Reigns on Raw. AJ Styles has not turned heel and is saying he had nothing to do with all that.

It is not surprising that these three men would interact. Wrestling fans are excited for the Bullet Club. Should the WWE have handled things differently? How about have Gallows and Anderson debut at Payback by getting involved in the title match? There is something to be said for foreshadowing. Plant the seeds of things to come. Should the WWE have handled their debut last week better? Have them interact with AJ Styles sooner? I would let it go. No big deal.

What might be a bigger deal is the WWE relying on a stable that doesn't have that mass exposure. Over a decade ago, the WWE brought in the NWO, a legendary stable born in WCW. They took a group from a promotion that was actually beating them in the ratings for a while. It also helps that Hall, Nash & Hogan had a history in the WWE before the NWO. But just focusing on the stable, that was a WCW thing. The Bullet Club is not the NWO. They are not coming from a promotion that can say they are a legitimate rival for the WWE. Wrestling fans may be excited for this and getting Twitter flooded with Bullet Club stuff, but there might also be some fans wondering why they should get excited for Festus.

One of the reasons fans have said in the past that the WWE is awful these days is because they don't have any real competition. If they did, that would motivate them to work harder. That would also provide them with ideas to take from their rivals. You have still seen the WWE and TNA seem to work off of each other at times during the years, but how much of that has really been successful for the WWE? It sure hasn't helped TNA. And now, the WWE is aiming even further down, taking ideas from promotions that have even less notoriety in the American market than TNA did in it's peak. The WWE has to be careful with this. You are appealing heavily to a certain type of fans, but there are a lot of viewers out there that won't know what to make of this. They might feel left out.

All that aside, who turns heel in this situation? You can have AJ Styles embrace his former comrades and screw Roman Reigns. The WWE can pull the swerve and have Roman Reigns turn heel and align with Gallows and Anderson. Fans won't let up on Roman Reigns. The WWE might as well turn him heel eventually. Cena can continue to be portrayed as an eternal face for the rest of his career. No one else needs to be treated like that.

Another option I see fans bringing up is Finn Balor debuting and leading Gallows and Anderson. They all have that common bond. Even if they don't debut him now, it seems likely Balor will eventually get involved with this group, since the WWE is embracing the Bullet Club. They can't hide his involvement with that.

There is an option I have not come across anyone else bringing up. It is probably the weakest option. Both AJ Styles and Roman Reigns stay face and both just feud against Gallows and Anderson. No turns. No debuts. The whole situation is just used to put over the two faces in the end, with Roman Reigns also being paired with someone rowdy smarks love in an attempt to help him get over with those fans. Sounds like something the WWE might do, but I am hoping for better.

All That Talent, But No Stars

I sometimes say that the women's division has no stars right now. And part of me usually feels guilty and I add that I am not saying that there is a lack of talent. Why not spend some time to further explain what I mean?

A few weeks ago, I was watching a basketball game and the commentators started to discuss the decision by some head coaches to rest star players. Even before they clinch the best seed possible, and sometimes even before they clinch even a playoff spot, a coach might decide to rest some of his best players just for the sake of resting them. The commentators pointed out how this is disappointing to fans that come because they want to see those stars. Stars do exist in sports. Fans are literally falling over the railings to get Steph Curry's autograph. They want to see these guys do their thing.

One of the commentators compared it to fans buying tickets for a Bruce Springsteen concert, then being told when they got there that Springsteen would not be performing, but some other talented singers would be. A lot of fans would be disappointed by this. No offense to those talented singers, but fans paid to see a certain star. When it comes to basketball, fans will still get to see some talented players play. You have to have something going for you to be playing for an NBA team. But they will not get to see that star they were excited to see.

Of course, there are some lovers of the game that will still be interested even with stars resting. Not only am I thinking of fans of the team wanting to see them still win, but there are fans that want to see fresh talent and young guys getting an opportunity. They sometimes may play even hungrier than the stars when given an opportunity. In the Springsteen example, there might be some lovers of music that wouldn't mind hearing a talented singer, even if they are not famous. In these situations, talent is all you need. You don't need the hype or to be one of the greatest.

Back to wrestling. Back to that women's division in the WWE. Honestly, I do not think they have stars. What they have is talent. Combine that with vocal wrestling fans being rowdy these days, and these being the kind of fans that care very much about talent, it is not hard to imagine that these performers might get a lot of love.

Problem is, you cannot be fooled by those fan reactions and stuff on the Internet. This is an era where the product is terrible and ratings are declining. Who are these fans that are reacting to what is going on? Because there very well are fans that aren't into it.

I watched that match between Charlotte and Natalya last week. Natalya actually got a good reaction. They weren't even in Canada. Natalya is not someone that has been pushed very well in all her years in the WWE. She has gotten some good reactions here and there, but I would not normally consider her among the most over women on the roster. I know some fans are high on Sasha Banks, but if Natalya could connect that well with fans, what more could Sasha offer? I would say even Becky Lynch can get that same respectable reaction. And don't forget Paige. But what should you make of this? Is it really that you have at least four faces in the division that are very over? Or is that connection based off of their wrestling talent, which will connect them with wrestling fans, and the fact that they are faces, who will do things that are supposed to be cheered? Who is really excelling? Who is really connecting with the fans the way a star should?

If the WWE can take any woman with solid wrestling ability, run her through NXT for a year or two to develop her further and get wrestling fans excited for her there, and then push her as a face on the main roster and she will get cheered just as well as these other women I mentioned, then these women really aren't stars. You just have a strategy that is appealing to wrestling fans. And you have to wonder if and when fans will get bored of this.

I would say overness is the main thing to look at. I know I brought up fans paying to see stars in my basketball and music examples, but the environment is so terrible in the WWE, you cannot go by the ability to draw. Even men thought to be draws and treated as draws cannot bring a consistent boost to numbers. Just go by popularity to determine the stars. When it comes to the women's division, who is it? Who really are the most over divas? Who go beyond just appealing to those fans interested in talent? I don't think anyone is there. The WWE may be pushing Charlotte pretty well, but she is not connecting with the fans properly. The main faces seem to be getting the same level of reactions. The divas, like Lana, have potential, but the WWE is not handling them well. So far, I just see women with talent benefiting from the current system. I do not see anyone excelling enough to be considered a star. And that is why I say there are no stars in the women's division.

Charlotte And Natalya Feud Over The Women's Championship

I am not a big fan of two feuds going on right now that I recently talked about. That would be Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles and The Wyatts vs. The League of Nations. One thing I can say, however, is that these are fresh feuds. Roman Reigns has never faced AJ Styles. The Wyatts have never feuded against The League of Nations. Even though I think the WWE should have gone down different paths with all these guys, at least it is something different.

The current feud for the new Women's Championship is Charlotte vs. Natalya. They had a title match on Raw this week, but the feud isn't going to end on a DQ win for Natalya. This match is not fresh. These two have faced each other a few times already. They faced each other for the old butterfly title at Roadblock a little while ago. They feuded in NXT years ago. I know you can't have a one-match rivalry, but I would have liked to have seen either something fresh here or a continuation of Charlotte going against either Becky Lynch or Sasha.

This is just another example of how the women's roster can have so many names, yet a lot of matches still do not feel fresh. Charlotte debuted on the main roster less than a year ago. Natalya was irrelevant for much of the time since Charlotte debuted. And yet, these two have already faced each other a couple of times on the main roster already before this week, not even counting NXT or house shows. Charlotte has looked better in this rivalry.

In the old diva division, Natalya was a credible jobber. Names have changed and there is a new title. But has Natalya really been promoted to being featured better? Is she getting the opportunity to earn better? As I said, Charlotte has looked better in their past matches. Natalya has lost to her a lot since Charlotte officially debuted on the main roster. And it looks like this feud is just meant to put over Charlotte. Fans may be excited for this because things are more respectable and these are two solid workers, but I think the WWE could do better. It would be nice if Natalya would get a fair opportunity to be more than a jobber to the stars. It would be nice if the WWE picked a fresher feud. Even with the feud they are running with, it would be nice it was more exciting. If a feud isn't a generic title feud, then they'll probably start mocking family members and the dead. Cheap heat for the heel, but it just leaves a sour atmosphere in the division.

How Goes Reigns Vs. Styles?

The WWE is running with the interesting feud of Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles. Both guys are worth paying attention to right now for different reasons. Roman Reigns is the new centerpiece of the company and is having issues connecting with the fans. AJ Styles is a hot wrestling talent that just debuted a few months ago and has not really broken out yet. What could the WWE be thinking putting these two faces together in a feud? What has the second week of this feud brought?

This week has been pretty lackluster for this feud. Styles had to hold off Sami Zayn on Raw to make sure the title match did not become a triple-threat match. Roman Reigns was confronted by The League of Nations. Considering that heel stable had issues brewing with The Wyatts, smarter feud development for that might have involved them actually calling out The Wyatts, or something like that. Instead, they target Roman Reigns. The Wyatts come out to attack The League of Nations, helping Roman Reigns in the process. The main event for Raw was then Reigns and Bray Wyatt teaming to face Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio. The WWE Champion and the challenger for his title did not interact in these segments. That is not good feud development.

In slightly related news, Gallows and Anderson recently debuted. Wrestling fans were eager to see how they would debut. These are the guys that I felt the WWE could possibly debut as part of the Reigns/Styles feud. Even after they did debut this week, I have seen some fans speculate that they might still get involved in the eventual title match between Reigns and Styles. If the WWE was going to handle it like that, I would think they would just hold these guys off until then. Make their debut mean more by having them get involved in the title match. With how the WWE has handled their debut, I think it is less likely that they do get involved with AJ Styles, yet. But it is still a possibility to keep alive.

Overall, it has not been a good week for this feud. They are not developing enough heat between Reigns and Styles. Wrestling fans will be interested because most of them love Styles and hate Reigns. There is still plenty of time to develop something before Payback, but it will not work if the WWE just continues more of the same from this week. The WWE will probably not fix the issues Roman Reigns has with this feud, but this can be an opportunity to help AJ Styles get to that next level. CM Punk was a great wrestler before coming to the WWE. So was Daniel Bryan. But it took these guys some time in the WWE before they reached that next level in the WWE in terms of how they were connecting with fans, and thus truly earn a better career for themselves. AJ Styles is obviously the kind of guy to follow in their footsteps, but he is not yet at that god-like tier, if I can put it like that. This feud with Roman Reigns can do that for him, but not the way they have handled it this week.

Shane Keeps Rolling

Wins and losses really don't matter. Shane McMahon lost his Wrestlemania match to The Undertaker, losing the chance to run Raw. Vince McMahon still let his son run Raw, giving in rather easily last week. Shane was pretty much an afterthought. Shane did such an amazing job at that, they let him do it again this week.

This week, at least, he looked more like the guy running the show. That is an improvement from last week. But it has been a little bit boring. The show just feels too face-friendly. The WWE is putting emphasis on wrestling and letting new talent shine. But things just don't feel that exciting. It might be heaven for wrestling fans, aside from Roman Reigns being pushed, but I do not feel the WWE is doing what they need to do to excite the wider audience.

So far, has Shane been better or worse than The Authority? It's always good to shake things up a little now and then to break the monotony. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with giving fans a break from Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. I wouldn't say those two really became just boring. They became irritating. Shane is at least fresh. There hasn't really been any big change with him that will blow you away, but he isn't as annoying as The Authority became. Because of that, I would say Shane being in control is better than The Authority.

I don't think the problem with either Triple H or Stephanie McMahon is that they were terrible performers. The WWE just portrayed them in a terrible way. And because Triple H and Stephanie do have backstage power, perhaps they do deserve some of the blame for this. Their characters are just inconsistent. Back when there was a legitimate stable around them, they were frequently teasing tension with guys on their side. They often looked like they were making the kind of decisions or announcements that a face authority figure would make, even though they were heels. Example? How about when Stephanie McMahon was a part of the debut of Charlotte, Becky Lynch, and Sasha Banks? Are fans supposed to like her for caring about the women's division? Are they supposed to view her as just feeding her own ego? It was just until these last few months that they really started to embrace the heel characters they should have been playing all along. Don't tease being heels. Be heels. And just throw in regularly getting their comeuppance, these two could have been better heel authority figures.

The angle many fans are expecting is for Triple H and Stephanie to come back and feud with Shane over control of Raw. Sounds like the makings of a good summer angle. Thing is, why didn't they just have Shane win at Wrestlemania? They are working around the fact that he lost. They could have had him win and work around the fact that Undertaker can never compete at Wrestlemania again. It could have made for a big angle for Undertaker to somehow get another Wrestlemania match later on. It would have been better than the mediocre way they had Vince let Shane run Raw. I have seen someone suggest that Vince just decided to let Shane run things a few hours before Raw last week. Whatever the case, the WWE needs to plan things better than this.

The Wyatts Vs. The League Of Nations: Really?

The League of Nations won their Wrestlemania match against New Day. They got a title shot the very next night on Raw. I would have had them win the titles. The WWE had other plans. New Day retained and Barrett was kicked out of the group.

The Wyatts had an eventful Wrestlemania. Despite not having an official match heading into Sunday, they were used to put over The Rock and John Cena. The next night on Raw, they attacked the remains of The League of Nations.

Is the WWE really going with this feud? I talked about how Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles seemed like a suspicious feud to create right now. Should I have the same feeling for this heel stable vs. heel stable feud? This just feels like lazy booking. With the WWE running with Reigns vs. Styles, for whatever reason they might have, that takes away two top faces. Ambrose looks like he is going in another direction. And even if the WWE had pushed one of these other top faces against one of the heel stables, they would likely need a few partners to even things out. Even if one stable is able to get a proper feud, what about the other? Having the two groups feud is just an easy answer.

There were still other options. How about continuing New Day vs. The League of Nations for one more PPV? Or how about having The Wyatts feud with New Day? Have Roman Reigns feud against The League of Nations. Have him feud against one member, two members, or possibly all three guys left in the group in a four-way match for the title.

Some people might wonder if the WWE is thinking face turn for one of these groups. I don't think that is necessary. The Shield vs. The Wyatts happened when both teams were heels. The Shield would eventually turn face, but it did not happen immediately with that feud. Besides that, the WWE just officially turned New Day face not too long ago. Do they really need to turn another team face? If a team does turn, the WWE will probably turn The Wyatts. The League of Nations just seem less likeable right now.

I honestly do not remember any fans being excited for a feud between these two groups prior to last week. Even since then, I don't feel the hype. Go back to The Shield vs. The Wyatts. Even before that feud got started, I remember fans wanting it. The Shield is the best 3-man group in recent WWE history. The Wyatts were hot back then. Many fans consider the 2014 Elimination Chamber match between these two groups the match of the year back then. Those expectations are not here. Sheamus and his crew are not The Shield. The Wyatts have been broken down and built back up a few times since that feud against The Shield. They have lost their edge. Moreover, Braun Strowman is not Luke Harper. Wrestling fans love Luke Harper. They are not so crazy about Braun Strowman. I do not expect this heel stable vs. heel stable feud you have right now to be as good as The Shield vs. The Wyatts. And I would be shocked if a 3 vs. 3 match between The League of Nations and The Wyatts gets match of the year for 2016.  

Roman Reigns Vs. AJ Styles: Really?

AJ Styles did not beat Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania. He did beat him the next night on Raw in the fatal four-way main event to determine the new #1 contender for the WWE Championship. AJ Styles is getting a feud with Roman Reigns. Right now, it is face vs. face.

I don't really like the recent booking. If they had Chris Jericho get the win at Wrestlemania, why not have him feud against Reigns for the title? Jericho is a veteran. He has the credibility of being a former World Champion. He had momentum from coming off a win at Wrestlemania, something no one else involved in that main event on Raw could say. He is a jobber to the stars, so losing to Reigns would not matter. And he also happens to be a heel, which would make for a smooth feud. People were negative towards Nikki Bella for saying in a promo that wins and losses don't matter. The WWE's booking sometimes says the same thing. I am not saying they should never have a person that loses a feud end up getting a better push than the person that actually won, but this is a situation where I would have liked to have seen the guy with momentum coming off of Wrestlemania get the push. He might seem more worthy. For the sake of not being predictable, you might sometimes have sloppy booking. Reminds me of TNA.

Instead of just complaining about what could have been, let's look at the feud that is here. Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles. This feud is suspicious. The obvious reason why is that it is face vs. face. Some people say that Styles is just here to be fed to Reigns. Well, you could have picked a heel to do that. Even with injury issues and whatever else, there were still options. I mentioned Jericho. Both Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio are former World Champions, as well as being heels. Their feud with The Wyatts is another issue. It did not need to happen. Instead of choosing a heel, the WWE went with a face. Both Roman Reigns are in interesting positions that makes this feud even more suspicious.

First, you have Roman Reigns. He is the new centerpiece of the company. Much like the previous centerpiece, he has issues connecting with the fans. Some might say Reigns is worse than John Cena. What is the WWE thinking putting him against someone his haters love? Reigns will be shredded by smarks even more. The obvious thing to say is that they will turn Roman Reigns heel. He has been acting a little more cocky this week. He's not a bad guy. He's not a good guy. He's just THE guy. I'm sure the WWE will be slapping that on T-shirts. If they don't fully turn him, this new character might just ruin him further. Smarks will continue to hate him. Some of the fans that do like him may sour on his cocky character and start disliking him. If the WWE can think they can give Roman Reigns a heelish face character that smarks will be drawn to, it may backfire.

AJ Styles has also been in an interesting position since debuting. The WWE obviously wants him over. They are not hiding that fans like him. They often promote it in an awkward way. Even though wrestling fans view him as a wrestling god, I am not sold the wider audience loves him as much. He is definitely not as hot as Daniel Bryan was during his peak. Is that the level of overness they hope to recapture to try to spark their declining product? No, they didn't want none when they had Daniel Bryan two years ago, but they might feel they need to manufacture that now. If advertising that fans like AJ Styles is not catching on with other fans to make him hotter, what can you do? How about act like you are holding him back like you did Daniel Bryan? The WWE had AJ Styles lose to Chris Jericho at his first Wrestlemania. Jericho himself has said he "buried" AJ Styles. Just great heel work or a new character trait for Jericho? Many fans also feel Roman Reigns will "bury" AJ Styles. Reigns himself is talking like Styles can't beat him. Is this all to make Styles seem like the underdog the company wants to hold back? It would not be as organic as what happened with Daniel Bryan.

It has only been a week. It is too soon to say what direction the WWE is going. But this is a suspicious setup with two men in interesting positions. Are they going for a heel turn? Is this to help one of these guys get to another level in terms of overness? Will they use this feud to debut certain individuals? I doubt the WWE just wants to treat this as filler. Let's see how they continue it.

Is That All, Shane?

Shane McMahon jumping off the top of the Hell in a Cell and crashing into the announce table was one of the most memorable moments of this year's Wrestlemania. But he ended up losing the match to The Undertaker. That was a disappointing outcome. A lot of changes could have taken place if the WWE did decide to go in a new direction. You have had some changes with the women's division, but there could have been more.

On Raw, however, it seemed like there was still a chance for something to happen. Vince McMahon came out to start the show and gloat. He got that lock box. He's still in control of Raw. Shane McMahon came out for one last farewell. Vince decided to let Shane run Raw for that night. For a little while, it looked like something big might still happen. This was the Raw after Wrestlemania. These Raws are known for big things happening, in addition to the rowdy crowd.

More disappointment followed. It didn't feel like Shane really left his fingerprint on Raw. A 4-way match was made to decide a new #1 contender for the WWE Championship. Sami Zayn was taken out by Kevin Owens. Cesaro replaced him in the main event. Wrestling fans love Cesaro, but this isn't really a big return. Nothing big happened. Shane didn't really seem to make an impact.

What would I have done differently? Where do I start? Here's an idea, how about Shane actually wins at Wrestlemania? No? Okay. How about Shane tries to create some drama with that lock box? How about he reveals what's inside to spite his father? How about he threatens to do it unless Vince at least lets him run Raw for the night? How about a bigger return in the main event of Raw than Cesaro? How about Raw ends in a controversial way to generate some buzz? The whole situation on Raw this week just felt like a huge disappointment.

One of the reasons it felt disappointing, the way they just had Vince so easily let Shane run Raw was just so weak. These two looked like they were having a real blood feud for a month. Vince was busting out the profanity. He was acting like Shane was no longer a part of his family. I don't care if Vince showed a little bit of heart towards his son on Raw prior to letting him run the show, simply letting it be so easy is dull. I also don't care if Vince thought Shane would flop if he ran Raw. Vince still let him do it that easily. It's like the WWE just decided to cruise through Raw.

Some fans have speculated that the WWE will run an angle where Vince is happy with how Shane runs Raw and they eventually do Shane McMahon feuding with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon for control of the WWE. I would say Shane did a mediocre job on Raw. If the WWE wants to sell that as amazing, I am not going to be surprised. Nevertheless, the WWE has to really handle this better. The story is not that intriguing.

What if that is officially it for Shane McMahon and this storyline? If it is over, then the WWE really did do this just to create drama to help save Wrestlemania. They didn't intend to create a big storyline off of this that would last months or even a year. They didn't intend to create legitimate, lasting change. They didn't even handle the angle right on the Raw after Wrestlemania. It was just a stunt to save the mediocre Wrestlemania season. I hope they are happy with the results.

Aside from the mediocrity of the night, how did the night after Wrestlemania do in terms of ratings? This is a night that does tend to do great numbers. Even last year, which was a mediocre Wrestlemania season in terms of ratings, saw the Raw after Wrestlemania get over five million viewers. Not this year. Just a little over four million viewers. Only the second highest viewership of the year, trailing the night after the Royal Rumble. 2.93 in the ratings. That ties the Raw post-Royal Rumble. The excuse is the college basketball championship game. Okay. NBA playoffs are coming up very soon. Raw will be in trouble there, too. It is pretty much all downhill from here. I doubt the WWE will create a great summer angle.

Something that stands out to me about the mediocre ratings this week is that the third hour lost almost 400,000 viewers. The last hour typically loses, but this last hour should not have lost that much. Sami Zayn was taken out of the match. Weren't fans interested in seeing who would get his spot? Cesaro is no huge star, but the situation should have drawn. You also have Shane McMahon running the show. Weren't fans wondering if he would do something controversial to end the show? He didn't, but once again, the situation should have drawn. And I don't think the WWE did anything in that third hour to get more fans interested for next week. As I said, it's all downhill form here.

Maryse Returns

The possibility that Zack Ryder would have his title reign end quickly was always there. And it happened. He lost the Intercontinental Championship on Raw to Miz. Oh, and Miz got an assist from his wife, Maryse.

Everyone knows Maryse was in the WWE before. She started out as the typical eye-candy periphery diva. She eventually got a title reign and became the centerpiece on Raw. She had some injury issues and her performance in the ring did not improve. Whether that had anything to do with it or not, when it came to unifying the titles back in 2010, Michelle McCool was the lone centerpiece. Maryse got depushed. Even after McCool retired, the WWE had an opportunity to go back to Maryse as their central focus, but they did not. Even though she would be listed in the category of failed centerpieces, the WWE still featured her well in the periphery. She had that angle with Ted DiBiase Jr. She was featured well in NXT, years before NXT became what it has become in recent years. But she left the WWE. Miz stayed. And now the couple is being featured together.

Maryse is still hot. I would also say she was one of the most charismatic eye-candy divas the WWE pushed as centerpiece. Definitely more charismatic than Michelle McCool. More charismatic than Trish Stratus. Going down the entire list of eye-candy centerpieces, I would argue Maryse is the most charismatic. But she never really got that over. She is an example of charisma not always leading to great popularity.

I would not have brought her back. I keep on saying this and I hate having to say it so often. But the WWE just keeps on bringing in more women. The fact that the wrestling careers of Brie & Nikki Bella may be over does not mean you need more eye-candy divas to take their place. There are so many women on the roster, without even having to take into account NXT. You have female wrestlers and you have traditional eye-candy divas. And the WWE just cannot be efficient with all these women. If the WWE did not have this issue, I would actually not mind having Maryse back. She could be great for the periphery. She has an appealing look and can play an entertaining character. If used right, she could definitely get more over than she did during her first run. But with the inefficiency of the current division, adding more women does not help.

The WWE has changed their women's division. "Diva" in now supposedly a bad word. You have a new Women's Championship, even though it will not have the same lineage as the original Women's Championship. Taking it all in, I am not impressed. What defines what the division is about isn't what you call it, what the title looks like, and what you call the title. What defines what the division is about is the women the WWE chooses to have on the roster and how they utilize those women. I didn't jump to talk about all this when I first read reports of the changes to the division and they debuted the new title. I wanted to wait to see how they actually handled things. After Maryse returned, I think I have seen all I really need to see.

It's still a diva division. I am still going to use the term. You have Maryse return this week. Last week, Eva Marie came back from NXT. Lana has been getting a push recently. Even with greater emphasis on wrestling and actual female wrestlers, there are still eye-candy divas and the WWE does not look like they are moving away from that. Can female wrestlers and eye-candy divas truly coexist? Or will the scale once again tip more in favor towards eye-candy divas sooner or later? An eye-candy diva pushed as a star held a title less than a year ago. To say that agenda is over so quickly is premature, especially with recent returns and everything else I mentioned.

Something I used to believe is that you can have only one eye-candy diva in the division and have all the other women be respectable female wrestlers. But if that one eye-candy diva is the centerpiece, it's still a diva division. That is not what you have now. What you have is a few female wrestlers being treated respectably, but then still a few eye-candy divas that are also being featured. Is Charlotte truly the new centerpiece? Or is all this because Nikki Bella got injured and the WWE is waiting on another eye-candy diva to work out? Could that eventually be Maryse?

Two New Champions At Wrestlemania 2016

Zack Ryder won the ladder match to become the Intercontinental Champion. Who saw that coming a month ago? Ryder wasn't even featured on the main roster back then. To state the obvious, his push came out of nowhere. He is a popular guy. This is his second run with a singles title, his first coming off a fan uproar twisting the WWE's arm a bit. Nevertheless, the WWE did not give him a legitimate push and his run with the United States Championship was short. How will this current push go? It is a possibility he is just a transitional Champion. Some fans wouldn't be surprised if he lost it tonight on Raw. Regardless, Zack Ryder got a Wrestlemania moment.

What does this mean for Kevin Owens, the former Champion? It looked like he had a feud going with Sami Zayn. Assuming the WWE doesn't shoot the title back to Owens, this is now a non-title feud, if the WWE even cares to continue it. I don't like that. The WWE has not always been good with non-title feuds for midcarders. And these two are midcarders. These two could have had a great rivalry. Even before Zayn officially debuted on the main roster, this was a feud that had been given a few moments here and there on the main roster. A lot of times, the WWE just continues something from NXT without proper development. It is hard for a lot of casual fans to connect with that. But this is a feud that looked like it could have been something good. With the title momentarily out of the picture, I am not too confident in how it will go.

The other title to change hands is the WWE Championship. Roman Reigns did it. A lot of fans expected it. A lot of fans did not want it. It was also the main event of the show. It wasn't the greatest match. Fans in attendance, as expected, did not like Roman Reigns too much. In the end, I am glad the WWE actually did it. Some of these fans are just not giving the WWE a chance to build stars to draw in other types of fans. Not everything the WWE does is meant to appeal to one type of vocal fans. If Daniel Bryan was still around, or someone as hot as he was, then I would side with fans complaining about Roman Reigns being pushed ahead of the other guy. No one is that hot. That being the case, let the WWE build some new stars.

Of course, I do think the WWE shot themselves in the foot last night. They made a few mistakes that made things worse. First, why did they make this the main event? Shane McMahon lost to The Undertaker, but that match was huge. Not only was so much on the line, but it featured some big spots and carnage. Match of the night will probably go to the divas, but the Hell in a Cell match should have closed the show. Second mistake, why did they drag Wrestlemania on like they did? The show did not end when WWE PPVs typically end. They had The Rock go out there and kill time, including involvement from The Wyatts and John Cena. I know they had to do something with these guys, but I am sure some fans were getting antsy with how long everything was taking. Finally, the match itself was longer than it really needed to be. The WWE should not expose Roman Reigns like that. Spearing Stephanie got him cheered for a while, but he did not win fans over. Some fans were probably just happy the match ended, even if Reigns won. The WWE just should have managed the card better.

Previewing Wrestlemania 2016: The Main Events

There are two big matches at Wrestlemania this year. Two matches with high stakes. One of them is obviously the WWE Championship match between Triple H and Roman Reigns. The other match is even bigger. Shane McMahon faces The Undertaker inside Hell in a Cell. If Shane wins, he gets control of Raw. If Undertaker loses, moreover, no more Wrestlemania for him. It is obvious which match should go on last and be the true main event.

Let me start with Triple H and Roman Reigns. A few months ago, Roman Reigns seemed to be getting over with the fans. He attacked Triple H, the hated face of The Authority. He went on to win the WWE Championship from Sheamus. A little while after that, Roman Reigns lost the title at the Royal Rumble to Triple H. Triple H has attacked Reigns and took him out for a few weeks. He has done the typical heel promos against Reigns. And Triple H, the beloved mastermind behind NXT, has gotten cheered for it. What is going on here? Fickle fans? I would not say that. Many fans hate The Authority. Even smarks hate the group. But these same smarks love NXT. They love what Triple H has done to it. You can say Triple H is in a polarizing position. And this does not make it easy for Roman Reigns, the guy they actually want as the new centerpiece.

I have read some crazy reports that fans might walk out during this match. They hate Roman Reigns that much. I would expect boos if he won, but walking out is dumb. The hate towards Reigns is one of the reasons this match should not go on last. The WWE usually tries to not end Wrestlemania on a sour note. That sometimes might mean a heel winning, like last year when fans were against Roman Reigns winning and Seth Rollins ended up with the title. Heel Triple H retained the title at Wrestlemania 2000. Fans were not happy about that, but they got the consolation prize of The Rock taking out the heel McMahons, including a People's Elbow to Stephanie. There might not be a consolation prize if Reigns wins this year. More fans would rather heel Triple H won.

This whole feud seems to be going in the direction of Roman Reigns winning. He has been having issues with The Authority for months. He attacked Triple H. Triple H came back and took the title from Reigns. Triple H took Roman Reigns out for a few weeks. This should culminate with the face getting back his title at Wrestlemania. This is the kind of story fans expected with Daniel Bryan a few years ago. They probably do not want to see it here, but I am thinking the WWE will pull the trigger and make Roman Reigns a 3-time WWE Champion.

The show should end with the match where so much is on the line. Some people might even be confused by what is exactly on the line in Shane McMahon vs. The Undertaker. If Shane wins, he gets control of Raw. But the WWE has sometimes made it seem like control of the entire WWE is on the line. Vince McMahon has talked like he would be gone, as well as the rest of The Authority, if Shane wins. If Undertaker loses, this will be his last Wrestlemania. But some fans are reading that as meaning he will be fired. No, that is not the stipulation. The WWE has been rather unclear and shifty with what is on the line, I will give you that. If control of the entire WWE was on the line, they should have said that. If Undertaker's career would end if he lost, they should have said that. Since they didn't, I wouldn't expect things to actually be handled like that.

Can you blame them for making things seem more dramatic than they really are? There are so many injuries, including to top stars. The quality of the product is poor. Ratings are poor. Checking Ticketmaster just a little while ago, I still see Wrestlemania tickets available. The WWE might be able to handle that, but they definitely can't say Wrestlemania sold out in record time. They have to generate hype to make this Wrestlemania seem like a big deal. Looking at the entire card, this is the match that really stands the best chance to draw for them.

It isn't even a question of who should win this match. If Shane loses, things just fall flat. The status quo continues. The excitement that something new might happen takes a hit. The WWE would be dumb to do this. They can always work around the stipulation that Undertaker can never wrestle at Wrestlemania again. But Shane should win. As for what happens if he wins, I'll talk about that on Monday, if he wins.

The question you should consider is how Shane will win. He's not going to go in there and dominate The Undertaker. Will it come down to an extreme spot? Shane has done that kind of thing before. He gave a taste of it on Raw this week. Or will it come down to some kind of outside interference? Might the Bullet Club get involved? Some fans have been talking about that possibility. If Shane does cheat to win like that, that might make him look like a heel and influence the direction things can go. That's another reason I want to wait until Monday to talk about the direction things can go. Let's just wait to see how the WWE handles this match.