We’re just hours away from the biggest event of the wrestling calendar, the grandest stage of them all. This years looks to be the best yet. Eight matches, most of them should provide something to take away with, not all of them will obviously, the Divas match will be piss poor I don’t doubt – they always are, and I don’t know why WWE bothered including some of the so called talent that they decided to go with, but we all expect great things for once from the rest of the card.
In previous years Wrestlemania has been complete horse shit. Who can forget Wrestlemania 25 only saved by Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker? The main event for the WWE Championship was absolute tripe, the World Heavyweight Championship Match was predictable and a waste of time and the under card stank worse than a tramps pants in the sun. And then there was the Iron Man Match at Wrestlemania 12 for the WWE Championship between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. Which I enjoyed at the time, and still do today to an extent! But there was no getting away from the fact that it should have been a ladder match instead of a one hour Iron Man match. For a match and event built and billed so heavily around Shawn Michaels’ boy hood dream coming true, Wrestlemania 12’s main event should have been ten times better. Looking down the match card, I’m pretty sure most of April 1st won’t be a waste of our time. Fingers crossed.
Now let’s take an honest and brutal look from the top to the bottom of this year’s card, to be held on April 1st, from Miami Florida.
The Rock vs John Cena
Ok, well we all know this one. Not much more needs to be said on the front of John Cena and the Rock. I’m sure if you look on all the other wrestling sites you’ll find al you need to know about both men and the match itself.
As I’ve said before this match is going to be the biggest match of the year, even if it is truly horrendous, and at this stage that is a possibility. Let’s not forget that John Cena is a truly awful wrestler and performer on ever level and The Rock has a tendency to be a little selfish in the ring, as seen at Survivor Series and the run up to The Rock and John Cena vs The Miz and R-Truth. The Rock could have shown John Cena the way to behave to under card talent and also eased the ill feelings towards him in the locker room (and there is plenty from the likes of C.M. Punk who thinks the Rock is selfish. Also Bret Hart has come out and commented on the Rock hogging the limelight from the young talent or something. Isn’t Bret Hart the one who hogged the limelight from younger talent at Wrestlemania 26? When he and Vince McMahon contested the worst match in Wrestlemania history). All that needed to happen was for The Rock to be beaten down once or twice by Miz and Truth to give them some momentum going into the event. Did that happen? No! Maybe it was WWE creative that put the kibosh on that or maybe it was old Dwayne himself. All I know is that the match at Survivor Series only existed so the Rock could dust off the ring rust and he and Cena could set up the Mania match even more.
I’ve been surprised by the lack of build up in the recent weeks, on television at least. Ok, there have been snipes and comments on twitter and so on, but on screen there has been so little to get our teeth into that it’s hard to image what WWE are going to fill the highlight package with on the big event. There’s been a soul destroying and maybe slightly humorous music contest and then all it’s been is jibes back and forth. Cena calling the Rock, the Rock calling Cena! At times it’s been like standing in a playground listening to the kid who thinks he’s popular and the kid who knows his popular slug it out with words. We’ve had the obligatory fruity pebbles comments and the fans seem to love it, whilst John Cena’s responses to the Rock have hardly covered him in glory. For some reason, WWE and Cena himself think it’s clever to answer back with some comment that makes look an absolute tool. Although John Cena has been elevated by The Rock during their little spat each week in the ring. WWE should have at least allowed each man one offensive move in the build up. If the Rock had have hot Cena with a Rock Bottom through the announcers table one week and Cena had have retaliated with an attitude adjustment through the announcers table the next, then we could have really gotten behind this match. As it is, the last physical contact between the two was at Survivor Series in November 2011 – so someone please tell me what WWE has done in the last month to hype this match to Wrestlemania Main Event standard?
Even so, you can bet this match will go on last, Vince may like to throw away opportunities, but even he can’t squander this one. To spend a whole year hyping a match with the tag line ‘Once in a lifetime’, and then put it on mid card would be a waste of time for everyone involved. At time of writing this WWE bigwigs still hadn’t come up with a finish for the match that would protect Rock and Cena. If Rock loses to Cena by pin fall then it may deface his reputation to be beaten by someone as limited as Cena. If Cena loses to the Rock by pin fall then all of the little idiots that buy the crappy merchandise WWE pedals out for him may lose faith and cease purchasing the crap. If either lose by disqualification or count out then it devaluates the main event of the show and the event itself. So what do WWE do?
Myself, I can only think of one possible solution. John Cena must turn heel on the Rock. Somehow, someway! It’s the only logical thing I can think of to end a match that could give Cena’s career a huge boost. He’s been treading water for years no with the same old gimmick and the same old shit week after week. If Cena turns heel at Wrestlemania like Bret Hart did on Stone Cold Steve Austin at Wrestlemania 13, then a heel Cena losing to a face Rock would be a great conclusion. On the flip side, of a face Rock was to lose to a heel Cena then maybe it would take the sting out of it for people like me, who despise Cena. Either way, WWE are not going to get a better chance to turn Cena. It’s Wrestlemania or never. WWE could even use a Cena defeat at Wrestlemania 28 to turn him heel the next night on Raw, which would then open up a whole load of opportunities. Either way, one man has to lose by pin fall.
With the news that the Rock will probably be back at SummerSlam and definitely signed up for Wrestlemania 29 next year, then something tells me that this isn’t the last we’ve seen of this feud, no matter who wins or loses. The Rock vs John Cena will no doubt eclipse everything else on the show just because of the aura the match has brought to the big event and the media anticipation that has been involved. Can it really be a classic? I doubt it very much, but it should be essential viewing just to see if WWE have the bottle to do something with Cena.
As for the result, I can’t see (as much as I want to) an outcome. Wrestlemania is emanating from the Rock’s hometown of Miami Florida. His family will be in the front row, his friends. I can’t see him willingly lose in front of his hometown. On the other hand it has been the Rock who has gotten the upper hand in previous meetings, which usually means that the opponent on the end of the beatings and verbal humiliation is the one who come out on top. In this case, it would be Cena. I cannot see John Cena or WWE being willing to let the walking merchandise stand (and the man who has struck a deal with Fruity Pebbles to have his face on the cereal boxes – he can thank the Rock for that) look at the lights for a returning legend. If Cena does win though, either way, face or heel, then it’ll be a slap in the face to all long time fans. Then again when has Vince ever cared about what the fans, the people who put money in his pocket, think?
I have read a large amount from people on this match. The public, some who want The Rock to kicks Cena's arse, some who want Cena to kick the Rock's arse. Other people in the know in wrestling. The most intresting thing I read is also the most ridiculous. A writer, who shall go unamed, has said that The Rock has been away in Hollywood too long. That 'The Great One' will enter Wrestlemania and see it as just another performance, as where John Cena just needs to concentrate on being a wrestler. Just two things people; 1) John Cena lacks the ability to be a proper wrestler. He's had 8 years to up his game and hasn't done so and 2) The Rock seeing Wrestlemania as 'another performance'? Are people forgetting that The Rock also fought at Survivor Series, where he looked a million dollars better than John Cena and also looked like he hadn't been away. So how said writer can say that The Rock will see the biggest event and possibly the biggest match this century as just another performance, when he took his tag team match at Survivor Series seriously, is just plain dumb.
The last thing I will add on this match is that if John Cena should win, then real wrestling fans will know that it will be thanks to The Rock. When WWE tempts a big talent back, such as The Rock, or Stone Cold or someone of that standing, then they do so on the talents conditions. This was never more evident than in 2005 when WWE hired Hulk Hogan back to face Shawn Michaels at SummerSlam. Hogan would only return if he was to defeat HBK on the show and then quite one month later when WWE asked him to return the favour and lose to Shawn on the following pay per view. If The Rock (who din't need to come back - let's not forget that he makes millions in Hollywood; the makes more one one film that he made in one year in WWE) says that he doesn't want to lose to Cena, then there's nothing WWE can do about it. Considering that WWE booked the Rock a year in advance, and that he'll be back at Wrestlemania next year and possibly SummerSlam in August, then WWE want to keep on his good side. So says goes. If John Cena does defeat The Rock on Sunday April 1st, then it's because the Rock has decreed that is what will happen. Let's not forget that this result could alter people's perceptions of both. My main concern is that if the Rock loses to Cena, then the gimboids and morons who claim to know everything when in reality know nothing of this business, will come out saying that John Cena is the best wrestler in history and that he's better than the Rock. When in reality, he's not even in the Rock's league. WWE'S attempt to portray both men as equals has been fair, in reality those of us who know, know different. I'm sure John Cena will give his all at Wrestlemania, he just will never be as good as the Rock, or Triple H, or Shawn Michales, or The Undertaker or Ric Flair. It's about time the wrestling world learnt the difference between a great wrestler and a great entertainer. The other thing the Rock has to think about is his legacy. Should he lose to the talentless Cena, then it may do more harm than good. On the other hand, John Cena has the chance to appease long time wrestling fans and their animosity towards him, should he lose to the Rock and show the proper amount of respect for a man that helped pave the way for him. I know thousands of people that would see Cena in a different light, should he be the one to leave Wrestlemania the loser. One things is for sure, should the Rock win or lose, then he'll always be loved and respected by the wrestling world. And really, he's already won. If he beats John Cena then all the better. If he loses to John Cena then he'll be applauded for coming back just to lose and for doing his best to put over, and give a boost to the repetative career of a talentless money maker who really doesn't care for the business, only for its cash bonuses.
If WWE are looking for a career push at the end of the show then Cena will win. If WWE are looking for that happy, sentimental, godd feeling ending then the Rock will leave victorious.
I have read a large amount from people on this match. The public, some who want The Rock to kicks Cena's arse, some who want Cena to kick the Rock's arse. Other people in the know in wrestling. The most intresting thing I read is also the most ridiculous. A writer, who shall go unamed, has said that The Rock has been away in Hollywood too long. That 'The Great One' will enter Wrestlemania and see it as just another performance, as where John Cena just needs to concentrate on being a wrestler. Just two things people; 1) John Cena lacks the ability to be a proper wrestler. He's had 8 years to up his game and hasn't done so and 2) The Rock seeing Wrestlemania as 'another performance'? Are people forgetting that The Rock also fought at Survivor Series, where he looked a million dollars better than John Cena and also looked like he hadn't been away. So how said writer can say that The Rock will see the biggest event and possibly the biggest match this century as just another performance, when he took his tag team match at Survivor Series seriously, is just plain dumb.
The last thing I will add on this match is that if John Cena should win, then real wrestling fans will know that it will be thanks to The Rock. When WWE tempts a big talent back, such as The Rock, or Stone Cold or someone of that standing, then they do so on the talents conditions. This was never more evident than in 2005 when WWE hired Hulk Hogan back to face Shawn Michaels at SummerSlam. Hogan would only return if he was to defeat HBK on the show and then quite one month later when WWE asked him to return the favour and lose to Shawn on the following pay per view. If The Rock (who din't need to come back - let's not forget that he makes millions in Hollywood; the makes more one one film that he made in one year in WWE) says that he doesn't want to lose to Cena, then there's nothing WWE can do about it. Considering that WWE booked the Rock a year in advance, and that he'll be back at Wrestlemania next year and possibly SummerSlam in August, then WWE want to keep on his good side. So says goes. If John Cena does defeat The Rock on Sunday April 1st, then it's because the Rock has decreed that is what will happen. Let's not forget that this result could alter people's perceptions of both. My main concern is that if the Rock loses to Cena, then the gimboids and morons who claim to know everything when in reality know nothing of this business, will come out saying that John Cena is the best wrestler in history and that he's better than the Rock. When in reality, he's not even in the Rock's league. WWE'S attempt to portray both men as equals has been fair, in reality those of us who know, know different. I'm sure John Cena will give his all at Wrestlemania, he just will never be as good as the Rock, or Triple H, or Shawn Michales, or The Undertaker or Ric Flair. It's about time the wrestling world learnt the difference between a great wrestler and a great entertainer. The other thing the Rock has to think about is his legacy. Should he lose to the talentless Cena, then it may do more harm than good. On the other hand, John Cena has the chance to appease long time wrestling fans and their animosity towards him, should he lose to the Rock and show the proper amount of respect for a man that helped pave the way for him. I know thousands of people that would see Cena in a different light, should he be the one to leave Wrestlemania the loser. One things is for sure, should the Rock win or lose, then he'll always be loved and respected by the wrestling world. And really, he's already won. If he beats John Cena then all the better. If he loses to John Cena then he'll be applauded for coming back just to lose and for doing his best to put over, and give a boost to the repetative career of a talentless money maker who really doesn't care for the business, only for its cash bonuses.
If WWE are looking for a career push at the end of the show then Cena will win. If WWE are looking for that happy, sentimental, godd feeling ending then the Rock will leave victorious.
Whatever happen on April 1st, WWE has one last chance to do something amazing with John Cena. Let’s just hope we’re not adding that chance to list of wasted opportunities that goes on as long as the Nile. And whatever happens, whoever wins or loses, then this should be one big victory for the wrestling world.
Winners Prediction: The Rock
Hell In A Cell Match
Special Guest Referee: Shawn Michaels
The Undertaker vs Triple H
The most interesting information to come out of this match isn’t the fact that it’s a Hell in the Cell match. It’s not even the fact that Shawn Michaels is the special guest referee (I did predict that weeks ago), it’s the fact, that the Undertaker – at this point in time anyway, is going to wrestle the match bald. Yes, bald. After Undertaker took a leave of absence following last years great Wrestlemania match with Triple H, pictures surfaced on the net of him bald. People though he had cancer! He hasn’t, he just chooses to look like that for some reason. God knows why. A few days ago, more pictures surfaced picturing the Undertaker, his wife Michelle McCool and a member of the public in Florida. Taker was still bald. Even worse, it appears that his skin around the top of his arm pits is beginning to sag horribly. With the tattoos he looks like someone has baked him. He looks truly awful. Old beyond his years.
Undertaker, by WWE creative decree had to wear a wig to appear in angles leading up to Wrestlemania. Which is just a pointless exercise! Aren’t people going to ask questions now? It almost necessitates Undertaker wrestle bald, because a wig is easy to conceal under that hat he wears, when it all comes off, how easy will it be for the Dead man to wrestle with a wig on? I’m not saying he won’t, all I’m saying is prepare for a shock at Wrestlemania. At least in the hair department!
A shock in the result department will be unlikely. In fact you might as well put your money on Ric Flair making a return to WWE at Wrestlemania, winning the WWE Championship and going on a one year undefeated run with it. It won’t happen. And neither will Triple H defeat Undertaker in Hell in a Cell. I agree that the match should have been a Cell match, for a feud ender it is everything it should be. In reality though, WWE’s ban on blood is going to make it look just a little phoney. There should be blood in a Hell in a Cell match, it draws out how serious the match and feud is to the two participants. Unless WWE relax that rule for the night, then we can be assured to have a claret free match. It’s also unlikely that WWE will allow Undertaker and Triple H to leave the Cell and ascend to the roof where tension could be built to such a degree that it could even provide some unexpected entertainment. Vince like to play it safe, even at Wrestlemania and he won’t take the chance of two of WWE’S most valuable talents injuring themselves, should the roof buckle or give way under their collective weights.
We can expect though a hand from Shawn Michaels. When HBK retired in 2010 he vowed never to wrestle again. And for two years we took his word on it. Now though, WWE are looking to tempt HBK back to the ring and are keen to announce Wrestlemania 29’s Main Event on the April 2nd Raw, to add interest as did with Rock vs Cena. And unfortunately my good people, WWE is looking to have Triple H vs Shawn Michaels as the Mania 29 main event. Why?!!! Are WWE insane? They’ve already been slated time and time again for not giving enough up and coming talent the chance to take the places of old and tired legends, so they decide the best option wouldn’t be to push a new talent like Dolph Ziggler to Wrestlemania main event standard, no, lets put two tired of veterans in a match that we’ve all seen a hundred times. Sometimes I give up with guessing what WWE are thinking.
Anyway, Undertaker’s streak is so protected, as it should be, that there isn’t even the slightest chance of him losing to Triple H. And who would believe it anyway? Undertaker has beaten Triple H at Wrestlemania 17 and Wrestlemania 27. Why would this year be any different? The plan at this moment is to have Shawn Michaels cost Triple H the match in some way. Not on purpose, maybe just counting the three for the Undertaker will make Triple H call HBK out on raw the next night. Maybe by the time WWE gets to Mania, they’ll have scrapped the plan and gone with an even worse one – which I have mentioned below. It would be a really bad idea to bring Shawn out of retirement. His farewell was so emotional that no comeback could ever be as good. He’d be doing himself an injustice, the Undertaker (who Michaels mad a promise to, that if he’d be the man to retire him then HBK would never wrestle again: HBK knows what a broken promise like that feels like – Ric Flair returned to the ring after promising Michaels in real life, that HBK was the one to retire him then Flair would never wrestle again), everyone who believed HBK and the final match itself, which cannot be outdone by a match with Triple H.
At Wrestlemania 28 I have no doubt at all that Undertaker will go 20 – 0 and hopeful, if he hasn’t retired by next year (which he really should, he’s working on numerous injuries) then WWE needs to find another opponent for him, fresh and someone who looks like they really could end the Streak – even if that is never going to happen. A classic in the making, no dount. Let's just hope that the fans haven't put too much of an expectation on the match and both men - otherwise we could be a little dissapointed.
Winners Prediction: The Undertaker
WWE Championship Match
C.M. Punk (Champion) vs Chris Jericho
If WWE’S plan to have Shawn Michaels vs Triple H at Wrestlemania 29 goes awry, then the next plan is to ring back Stone Cold Steve Austin and pit him against C.M. Punk. Seriously WWE? Another old, retired, beaten up veteran in the main even of a show that should be used to create legends? If WWE are going to go with the legend thing, then leave out the new talent all together. Because legends are notoriously selfish and hardly ever want to put over new talent, even if it means that they could be the ones to make a career. They’re not interested. So I suggest, since the Rock is coming back at next years event, have The Rock vs The Undertaker. It’s a match that has never been done at Wrestlemania before and one that would draw the millions. That way WWE could concentrate on putting other talent over without worrying about the legends ego getting in the way.
Onto the WWE Championship Match! Which in truth, I don’t hold out much hope for. Chris Jericho has looked great since returning to WWE, but once again, lacks that certain something that really catapults him into ‘dangerous heel’ territory. Unless WWE are going to continue on with the C.M. Punk vs John Laurientis feud after Wrestlemania, and have Laurientis cost C.M. Punk the title at Wrestlemania, then I don’t see any scenario that could benefit WWE by having Chris Jericho as WWE Champion again. Jericho’s Wrestlemania 18 main event against Triple H was largely a bore as was his Wrestlemania 26 World Heavyweight Championship defence against Edge. Both should have been world beaters, both were bores. Chris Jericho in the WWE Title picture is lacklustre, he belongs in the mid card fighting over the Intercontinental Championship. Personally, I’d have replaced Jericho with Ziggler and placed Y2J on Team Johnny, where he could have helped the under card talent have real Wrestlemania moment.
C.M. Punk’s title run has been better than some, worse than others. WWE have found a niche for him in the Stone Cold rebellion role against his tyrant boss, and it’s a role that they should exploit for everything they can. This could be huge. It’s well documented that Punk is a top class wrestler, against Jericho though, I can’t imagine this match being anything but a mid card effort at best. At previous Wrestlemania’s Punk has been awesome. Winning Money in the Bank twice, contesting a real barn burner against Randy Orton etc. This year though, Punk is going to have to pull something special out to make this match stick in the memory.
All things considered, C.M. Punk will retain at Wrestlemania 28. WWE have invested big bucks in him this time. They’ve given him the role that was loved by fans when Austin was portraying it. They’ve even started and by the time Mania goes on air possibly finished a C.M. Punk bio DVD filled with his best matches and a sit down interview. There’s no way I can see WWE taking the belt and heat off of him, on the grandest stage of them all. If Vince is good at one thing, it’s making money. All they have to do now, to take Punk up a level, is take that awful smug grin off his face and the rest of the company is his platform. Wrestlemania 28 and beyond could be the launching pad C.M. Punk needs – if he can weather the bad performances of previous Wrestlemania’s by his opponent.
Winners Prediction: C.M. Punk
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Daniel Bryan (Champion) vs Sheamus
Along with the main event, this is going to be the hardest to call. I can’t imagine Daniel Bryan going much further as Champion. For a man of his size and weight, WWE by their own standards were taking a risk putting the belt on him to being with. It was never in any doubt after Bryan won Money in the Bank that he’d be champion, and again, there’s no doubt he’s main event quality. I’m just not sure Sheamus is anymore. In 2009, Sheamus was a hot heel. In 2012, Sheamus is a tepid face. I can see no gain in making Sheamus World Champion at Wrestlemania. At Wrestlemania 26 he lost to Triple H in a decent effort and last year his United States Title match against Daniel Bryan was relegated to pre-show because it wasn’t deemed important enough to be on the main show.
So why does WWE think we’re going to care about a match that relegated last year, this year? Because the belt is involved? Or maybe it’s because Sheamus is Triple H’s project! And now we’re getting closer to the truth. Triple H took to Sheamus. He had the size and ability to be something great. Until WWE Creative got their hands on him! His U.S Title reign was a gigantic flop and were his two WWE Championship runs. This is going to be no different. It is interesting though that Triple H once said that putting he and Chris Jericho in the main event of Wrestlemania 18 instead of the Rock and Hogan (which was much better) was a correct decision, because if they hadn’t have been in the main event then it would have taken the heat off of the title. It’s funny he says that only when it’s him in the main event competing for the title. Last Year the focus wasn’t on the title it was on the Rock. The year before the main event was Shawn Michaels vs Undertaker. I’ve lost count of how many times a World or WWE Championship has given way to an angle or wrestler deemed more important at Wrestlemania! If the company isn’t about the two world titles, then what is it about and what are the wrestlers meant to be competing for?
We’ll get back to Sheamus vs Daniel Bryan in a moment, now let’s look at the matches or people which have taken the focus off of the two main titles. The Rock vs John Cena (Wrestlemania 28). The Rock (Wrestlemania 27 – built all around him). Shawn Michaels vs the Undertaker (Wrestlemania 26). Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker (Wrestlemania 25). Ric Flair vs Shawn Michaels (Wrestlemania 24). Battle of the Billionaires (Wrestlemania 23 – even though Shawn Michaels vs John Cena for the WWE Championship was spectacular – Cena deserved some credit for that). Shawn Michaels vs Kurt Angle (Wrestlemania 21), The Rock vs Stone Cold Steve Austin and Vince McMahon vs Hulk Hogan (Wrestlemania 19), The Rock vs Hulk Hogan (Wrestlemania 18). The only Wrestlemania’s where the title really mattered were Wrestlemania 17 when The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin contested an impeccable match. Wrestlemania 20 when Chris Benoit won the World Heavyweight Championship in an emotional match after 18 years of trying to become champion and Wrestlemania 22 when Triple H and John Cena fought a good match. How can WWE expect us to take the two main titles seriously this year if they’re not even in the main event spot?
This is a particular letdown for Sheamus. The man was pushed to win the Royal Rumble. By WWE law (which changes weekly) the winner of the Royal Rumble gets a ‘Main Event’ match at Wrestlemania. Tell me what the chances are of Sheamus vs Daniel Bryan beating The Rock vs John Cena to the Main Event is? In WWE’s eyes, a main event match is now a match which constitutes a main event. So a match for the World Heavyweight Championship is classed a main event match. It’s funny how they don’t include that detail in the Royal Rumble rules isn’t it? All four men (Punk, Jericho, Bryan and Sheamus can feel aggrieved) that their spot has been stolen.
The plan after Mania is for Sheamus and Bryan to continue the feud. If it were me, I’d have Bryan retain at Wrestlemania, and for not have Sheamus take the gold. He’s much better as a heel. The reception that Sheamus got after winning the rumble was lukewarm, not the reaction a man who is going to Wrestlemania to fight for the supposed grandest prize should be getting. I can’t see anyway forward with this feud that would help either man. It may be a cracking match if Sheamus lifts his game, not one I think I’ll remember in five years time. And that is what WWE have done to Sheamus. Turning him from a good heel, to an instantly forgettable face! This goes to prove that WWE do not value their two main titles as much as they used to, instead all their planning has gone straight to the top of the card. It will be up to Bryan and Sheamus to put on a classic, if they stand any chance of making this Wrestlemania, their Wrestlemania.
Just because he’s the apple of Triple H’s eye, expect Sheamus to walk away with the gold.
Winners Prediction: Sheamu
WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Cody Rhodes (Champion) vs Big Show
Wrestlemania 28 will be the make or break of Cody Rhodes’ career. The man who has been so good in recent months comes up against the biggest road block of his career. Cody has contested good matches with Booker T over the I.C Title and had some cracking matches with Randy Orton (who should have been inserted in this match instead of the lumbering Big Show). Cody Rhodes is working with numerous injuries and now finds himself having to carry Big Show through this encounter.
Big Show has been ok at best, in his feud with Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry in January for the World title. In this spot, Show should shine. He won’t. The man has neither the ability or the personality to put Cody Rhodes up there with the big names. A win over Big Show will do nothing for Cody Rhodes’ career. I only hope it doesn’t put it back a year. Had WWE been wiser and put Randy Orton in the match, then Cody Rhodes, with Orton’s help (Orton does have the ability to make a career) could have had one of Wrestlemania’s biggest upset victories. Randy Orton wouldn’t have been affected by losing to the upcoming Intercontinental Champion and would have been credited with putting over a career that is eventually going to lead to the World title.
The best we can hope for, for this match is that Big Show doesn’t run through Rhodes in three minutes. That would be the end of Cody’s push for good. No one is going to believe in a man that has held the I.C title for so long and had so many good matches with it, who is then literally run over by a talentless door stop. Rhodes has to put up a fight and must be given the opportunity by the bookers to make Big Show look feeble. I have to reiterate – Big Show’s career is dead in the water. He can neither gain anymore notoriety by beating Rhodes and taking the gold or lose any notoriety by being defeated by a great champion! We’ll see how serious WWE is about Rhodes and his long term on the night. Until then, I’ll fear the worst.
Interestingly though, a vote on a different wrestling website stated that only 50 plus percent of people actually want to see Rhodes retain at Mania and 42 percent want Big Show to become the new I.C champion. Are you out of your tiny minds people? WWE has only just gained some respect back for the title after years of burying it with talentless morons. Put the belt on show and all that great work Rhodes and WWE have done in the past few months will be gone in an instant. Let’s hope WWE see the big picture and Rhodes walks out of Florida the WWE Intercontinental Champion. Otherwise, I don’t see where he or the title can go from there.
Winners Prediction: Cody Rhodes
12 Man Tag Team Match
Team Teddy vs Team Johnny
Team Teddy: Santino Marella (Captain), Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, Zack Ryder, The Great Khali and Booker T vs Team Johnny: David Otunga (Captain), The Miz, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger and Drew McIntyre.
When the match was announced, I could be forgiven for having low hopes. WWE at Wrestlemania has a piss poor track record of promoting tag team matches of any kind on the grand stage. The Miz and Big Shows tag team title defence at Wrestlemania 26 lasted less than three minutes. The Core vs Nexus received the same treatment as did the awful six person intergender tag match at Wrestlemania 27 in which John Morrison and Dolph Ziggler captained their two female understudies (had it been a one on one then it could have been great). And then I looked past that and to the wealth of talent on show David Otunga, Mark Henry and the Great Khali being the exceptions.
Let’s look at what this match can do for each team member. Team Johnny was originally meant to have Christian on it, but Captain Charisma re-aggravated an injury on the Wrestlemania go-home Raw and had to be replaced by Drew McIntyre. Drew has been buried so deep over the months that I expect him to be involved barely, merely as cannon fodder for Team Teddy. Jack Swagger has received the same treatment from WWE since his disastrous World title run and by rights should have asked for his release by now from WWE (NJPW would love a guy of his size and ability). To shine in this match, Swagger needs more than ten minutes in the ring with someone like Kofi Kingston, to show what he can still do and maybe put himself back on the map somewhere. The two men that will benefit most from this match on Team Johnny are Dolph Ziggler and The Miz. Ziggler is a massive talent that will be WWE Champion before the year is out and the Miz just needs WWE to believe in him again instead of making him a laughing stock. If the Miz was to get the pin fall over someone as important and talented as Kofi Kingston or Booker T, then the rehabilitation period would being for the Miz and he could be back in the WWE title picture by SummerSlam. Dolph Ziggler doesn’t need to get the pin for the team victory, he just needs to give a great performance. Ziggler is in line for more main event treatment after Wrestlemania so a strong showing against a lumbering Khali and a just as good as he used to be Booker T would go down a storm. As mentioned, Mark Henry can advance no further from this match and should not have been included (even though I have a feeling he’ll be the one to make the pin fall) and David Otunga is just a bore. He could sit backstage all match and no one would notice the difference. If he can actually wrestle, then now is the time to prove it.
Team Teddy, I’d have though, will not win this match. Because they don’t need to and it doesn’t fit with the rules! If Team Johnny win, Laurientis gets control of both shows – same applies if Team Teddy wins (Teddy Long gets control of both shows). Should this happen, WWE has no story for the next half of the year. Should Long’s team win, then C.M. Punk is in trouble, because he has no storyline for the next four months. Team Johnny must win to advance the Punk vs Laurientis storyline. If John Laurientis is in control of everything, then that would make the Punk / Laurientis feud even hotter.
Onto Team Teddy! For some bizarre reason WWE chose United States Champion Santino Marella to captain the team, when Kofi Kingston would have been much better and benefited more. Santino may be entertainment value, but I can’t see him adding anything to this match at all. And can someone please kill off that bloody awful cobra thing he does? Kofi Kingston and R – Truth have the most to gain from this side. Kingston is so close to being pushed to the main event picture he can almost touch it. A great series against Ziggler, Miz and Swagger in this match would give WWE creative all the ammunition it needs to make the change for Kofi, from mid carder to main eventer. His feud with Randy Orton a few years back was immense as was his United States Championship feud with Dolph Ziggler and for a time, his tag team with Evan Bourne. Wrestlemania 28 is Kingston’s time to shine. R – Truth doesn’t belong in the main event, but he could be a great Intercontinental or even United States Champion candidate if he comes out of his shell and shows what he really can do (which is a lot). As K-Kwik in WWE in 2000 he was decent, as Ron Killings (His real name) in TNA he was awesome. R-Truth needs to shut up and step up if he has any chance of making it past the shallow end of the talent pool. Booker T is a golden oldie who still has so much talent to give, and is willing as he showed with Cody Rhodes to give the young guys a leg up. Booker T is already a legend so doesn’t need to do anything spectacular other than give Miz a base on which to build his future. If WWE can work this out then The Miz pinning Booker T would boost the Miz and set up a feud between Booker and Miz for the next few months (a feud which Miz desperately needs to shine again. Look what a feud with Booker T did for Cody Rhodes: add to that a run as Laurientis’ right hand man for getting the victory and Miz could be made again). The Great Khali should have been released years ago and can add nothing further to this match. Surely someone who needed the exposure would have been a better candidate, than this lumbering giraffe!
I have high hopes for this match, more than any other on the card. Not because it’s set up right, not because the crowd will love it. But because WWE has the chance to right the wrongs of previous months! Everyone who has the ability can come out of this looking strong and career can be rebuilt on this one match alone. Providing WWE gives this match longer than three minutes – it need at least thirty five to get everyone over who can get over. The best thing for this match would be for Khali and Henry to fight up the aisle and disappear for the whole match. Both are working with injuries and both just as dull as anything airing on Sky. I’m really excited about this match, and in particular the Miz, Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston’s futures afterwards. I’m looking towards a Dolph Ziggler vs Kofi Kingston mini feud to take us to ‘Over the Limit’ (This could be a modern day Triple H vs The Rock feud) and a Miz vs Booker T feud to take the Miz at least to SummerSlam.
Vince has the future of his business in one ring in Florida, it’s in his best interests to for once, do the right thing.
Winners Prediction: Team Johnny
Randy Orton vs Kane
Let’s keep this one short. This match should never have been made. Ever! Orton is too good, Kane is too bad. If Wade Barrett hadn’t have been injured before Mania then it should have been Orton vs Barrett. Of course WWE were going to have a Money in the Bank ladder match on April 1st and have Barrett compete and win that, getting him ready for a title run later in the year. Now though the plan is to move the match to SummerSlam when Barrett will have returned and have him win it then.
That doesn’t help Orton, who is lumbered with Kane. Surely it would have been better to have Kane and Big Show in the 12 Man instead of Khali and Henry and then put Orton against Rhodes as stated earlier. Kane and Big Show could have then fought to the back and stayed there and no one would have had to see too much of them and we could have escaped seeing Henry and Khali altogether.
This can not take Orton anywhere. Neither can it do anything for Kane. By being saddled with this match Orton will not get himself back into the main event picture. All that’s going to happen is WWE will book this match again at ‘Over the Limit’ and we’ll be forced to sit and watch a re-run of what can only be a bog standard match at best. WWE should have done something twice as better with Orton and used his many talents in other ways. WWE should be ashamed of itself.
Winners Prediction: Randy Orton
Divas Tag Team Match
Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos vs Beth Phoenix and Eve
Expect it to feel like someone has hit the snooze button when this one gets going. Kelly Kelly and Eve are awful wrestlers and Maria is the custom so called celebrity that WWE wheels out every year because thinks they will boost the ratings (she won't). Beth Phoenix must wonder what happened to her career. Personally, I’d ask for my release and seek employment in TNA (at least their women’s division matters).
Kelly Kelly needs to eat something before she wastes away. You can see her ribs, it’s getting disgusting. How WWE ever thought Kelly could get over in a match like this is beyond me. She’s the John Cena of the Divas division. I don’t care if WWE are pushing her for her looks or if its because they feel guilty about putting so much pressure on her to lose so much weight (not that she had anything on her anyway), but they need to do something fast. If WWE had persuaded Kharma to return after losing her baby in December and then inserted her in the match instead of either Eve or Maria (the latter is working with an injury from training for America’s Dancing With the Stars), then maybe it could have been a tad interesting. Phoenix vs Kharma would have had at least some appeal.
WWE cannot seriously expect us to care about this match. After years of trashing the Divas Division and devaluating the Women’s Championship, what is the best WWE hope can happen here? Fans are indifferent to Divas matches now, they don’t care about them, they don’t want to see them. What enthusiasm they had for the division was killed off expertly by Kelly Kelly and the Divisions booker in the horrible Beth Phoenix vs Kelly Kelly feud last year (which lasted months too long). So what do they decide to give us at Wrestlemania? Another Beth Phoenix vs Kelly Kelly encounter with two more useless beings thrown in. Let’s hope this match is either relegated to the pre-show or is given a mercifully short running time that you blink and miss it. After all WWE have more important things to put on the show (by their standards) like three music performances. It's funny, I thought it was a wrestling show, not the Grammy's. Still Executive Vice President Kevin Dunn doesn't know anything about wrestling, he prefers the music instead of the in ring action. No wonder the under card never usually stands a chance. This year though, it may just be a godsend if this match is either dropped to the pre-show or over in under three minutes. That way the music can go on without cutting time away from the all important 12 Man Tag Team Match (which is the most important match on the card for the future of this business).
Either way, you won;t remember this match the next night on Raw.
Either way, you won;t remember this match the next night on Raw.
Winners Prediction: Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos
Hall of Fame Inductees:
Yokozuna
Edge
The Four Horsemen (Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully
Blanchard, Barry Windham, (Manager) J.J Dillon)
Mil Mascaras
Ron Simmons
Mike Tyson (Celebrity Inductee)
Every year the Hall of Fame is a chance for us to thank our heroes. And unlike other years every one of these names deserves their place.
Yokozuna was the greatest big man in wrestling history (much better than Andre the Giant). It didn’t matter how much he weighed (encouraged by Vince McMahon to gain weight for the role. Weight he could not shift afterwards), Yoko always gave his very best and most times his very best was more than expected. His matches with Bret Hart still stand today as some of the best matches a man of his size has ever had. People like Big Show and Mark Henry would do well to watch matches of Yokozuna and learn from him. It was a sad day when Yoko passed away, his life cut so tragically short by a heart attack after seeing a mouse right here in England. Yoko had so much more to offer the wrestling world (although not in WCW. Where he was heading after WWE, because Hulk ‘Selfish’ Hogan wanted to bring in all the people he’d lost to in WWE, just so he could beat them in WCW), and had he retired from wrestling before his death in his mid thirties, maybe he could have lost the weight and returned to WWE to help train some of the new guys. He would certainly have been a welcome addition and an inspiration. Though his roots and his family are still in the business (The Rock, The Usos, Tamika) and his lineage includes those Samoans who are no longer plying their trade in the ring (Afa and Sika, The Headshrinkers, Rikishi, Superfly Jimmi Snuka), the big man is no longer wither us. The wrestling world will always miss Yokozuna.
Edge had to retire last year, due to his back problems. If he had continued to wrestle then the ‘Rated R Superstar’ would have been in a wheelchair now. His final match contested at Wrestlemania 27 where he defeated Alberto Del Rio to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. Edge is part of only a handful of wrestlers who had the privilege of retiring as Champion. Edge gave us the best years of his career and in those came many a highlight. Every TLC match he ever wrestled, his tag team with Christian, those five second poses for the benefit of those with flash photography, his relationship with Lita which drew more smiles than frowns, his emotional first ever WWE Championship win at ‘New Years Revolution 2006’ when he speared John Cena for the victory after cashing in his Money in the Bank title shot and his ‘Rated R’ period which was just glorious. Edge will always be a WWE Universe favourite, no matter where he goes or what he does.
What can you say about The Four Horsemen? Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard and Barry Windham, along with their manager J.J Dillon were a formidable force in wrestling. Some of the greatest tag team matches of the time came from the Horsemen – and it is a name which lasted over thirty years, until WCW closed its doors in 2001. The Horsemen had many members including Sid Vicious and Chris Benoit, plus countless others. But it is the original four we pay homage to On March 31st and April 1st. Putting behind us the uproar that Ric Flair is still contracted to TNA but will certainly appear on stage at the Hall of Fame Ceremony, it will be a glorious sight for the original four and Dillon to be together again in public, maybe for the last ever time. It will be particularly emotional to see Barry Windham, after his heart attack not that long ago. I’m sure the segment will be dominated by people screaming ‘Woooo’ at Ric Flair, but I also know the WWE fans and wrestling fans alike, are appreciative enough to thank and pay homage to the guys as a group. And for their services to wrestling, they fully deserve their place.
Ron Simmons will go down in history as the first African American to ever win a world title. I remember it well, when Simmons pinned Lex Luger after a hell of a match to capture the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. It’s a moment I’ll never forget and neither will the wrestling world. The thing about Simmons is that he was never a great singles wrestler, he shone in tag team action first in ‘Doom’ with Butch Reed and their manager Teddy Long (who I hope will induct Simmons on the night) and then in the Acolytes with Bradshaw, later known as the A.P.A. The A.P.A were a highlight of the attitude era of WWE and that half thanks to Simmons knowledge in the ring. Between Doom and the A.P.A Simmons surfaced first in WWE as Farooq, sporting a stupid metal cap and awful blue singlet leading the Nation of Domination, which made a star of young man named Rocky Mavia (who later became The Rock). Simmons can take at least some credit for helping The Rock to where he is today and for providing people who have a different belief or a different skin colour with the hope and belief that no matter who you are, no matter where you’re from, nothing is impossible.
Mil Mascaras is world famous for his bright costumes, his wonderful masks and high risk moves. He was and still is a star in Mexico even though he has long since retired. Mascaras put shame to Sin Cara and those who followed in his footsteps. Many people tried to copy his style of wrestling but none could imitate it. Mascaras is a prime example why WWE should take off the title ‘WWE Hall of Fame’ and just make it ‘Wrestling Hall of Fame’. There are many out there who never fought for WWE who deserve a place in its hallowed halls. Mascaras is more than deserving of his place in the WWE Hall of Fame and if you’ve ever seen him in action, then you’d know why as well.
The celebrity wing has inducted many worthless inductees. William ‘The Refrigerator’ Perry (who coincidentally is built like one) and Pete Rose to name but a few! Perry competed in one battle royal at Wrestlemania 2 and Rose got tombstoned by Kane at three different Wrestlemania’s – and for some reason that warrants them both a place. Don’t ask me. This years inductee though does deserve his place. Mike Tyson may be better known for his boxing career, but in 1998 Tyson spent 3 months in WWE leading up to Wrestlemania 14 and the main event between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels. Tyson spent more time promoting a Wrestlemania than any other celebrity has since, and though he never actually competed, he is responsible for Stone Cold winning his first WWE Championship and that iconic moment at the end of Wrestlemania 14 when he knocked out Shawn Michaels. For these memories and for his time spent with the business, Mike Tyson is deserving of his place in the Hall of Fame.
Each mane above deserves the plaudits of a Hall of Fame induction. Each deserves to stand under those bright lights one last time. The Wrestling world thanks them for their commitment and their sacrifices to the business, I’m sure you thank them and I’m damn sure I do. While they were ‘ours’, our world was just a little bit better. When they went, it was a little bit darker. We can show them no other thanks than to welcome them into the Hall of Fame, and let them take their rightful place in the hallowed halls of history.
