I typically do not write about wrestling or sports, but with WrestleMania around the corner I thought I would write an article or two. Wrestlemania is the grand stage of them all, where superstars are made and main events go down in wrestling history. The main event for this year does not excite me or catches my eye. On the other hand, the midcard title match for the U.S. title and the Intercontinental title do. The U.S. title match is John Cena vs. Rusev and for the Intercontinental championship we have a ladder match with 7 different wrestlers competing. These two matches have a story and many possibilities that can follow WrestleMania. You can purchase all your WrestleMania gear here.
To start with we have the United States Title match Rusev Vs. John Cena. At Fastlane, John Cena and Rusev gave one of the most high profile matches for a United States Championship title match in the last tens years, so it is only natural that they have another match. Furthermore, with these high profile matches the United States title becomes a respected title and is viewed as a true midcard title and not a useless title. WWE in the last few weeks has implied Cena will beat Rusev for the title, which would give the belt major creditability. Having a 15-time world champion carry a midcard belt helps to elevate the belt and bring the proper prestige.
To make the belt even more important is the current feuds that have been happening in the world between the U.S. and Russia so the element that a Russian is carrying the United States belt adds more fuel to the fire. After Cena beats Rusev, WWE has a few options depending on the Intercontinental Championship situation. The immediate option that WWE has is to allow John Cena to defend the belt and have the belt become a major boost for an up and coming star, ideally somebody from the NXT roster, credentialing the talent of that wrestler. John Cena can reestablish the respect of the United States title and prepare the younger and up and coming wrestlers for the future of the company, while still being the face of the company.
The other match will feature seven superstars, who are going to compete in a ladder match for the IC belt that will be hanging up above. One of these superstars will be Daniel Bryan. Daniel Bryan has just recently returned to the WWE after having serious medical problems. Much to the fans disappointment he did not win the Royal Rumble and had got eliminated early on. Then he had a match with Royal Rumble winner Roman Reigns where he lost again and is not allowed to challenge Brock Lesnar for the title. The WWE Universe as a whole is still fully supporting Bryan and wants to see him as a champion. So the possibility that Daniel Bryan will climb a ladder and pull down the IC belt is very strong. There are a few reasons this is a strong possibility. The first being that Daniel Bryan was in the main event last year at WrestleMania and had to relinquish his title due to an injury. Secondly, Daniel Bryan last year was the superstar that was closest to Connor the Crusher and is a liaison to the fund that the WWE has set up to help beat cancer. Finally, much like John Cena, if he wins the belt there are many options that can be implemented into future storylines. Daniel Bryan can do the exact same thing that John Cena would do with the title as he is a main eventer. He could hold and defend the title and then drop it to an up and coming wrestler to give them credibility.
With the possibility of both Cena and Bryan winning their WrestleMania matches and title belts makes a unique situation. Since the company is smaller and the world heavy weight and WWE Championship have been unified the possibility exists for an Intercontinental and United States Championship belts to be unified. John Cena has been known to get into feuds that turn into big merchandise plays. A Cena -Bryan feud would not only be a big merchandise play but would be a big selling point for a PPV. The merchandise play on this match is the audience is currently divided with Cena’s character. Half of them love him and the other half hate him. Given this information his merchandise would be aimed at a specific target and would do very well with that group. The WWE universe loves Daniel Bryan, as every fan is on their feet when he comes out. His merchandise would be aimed at the remainder of the audience, thus the WWE would be able to make many merchandise sales of T-shirts and other related items. Secondly, the match would be a selling point as it is a unification of a title with two of the best performers in wrestling today.
Currently, there are speculations about Brock Lesnar’s status staying with the company or being defeated at WrestleMania. With his status being undetermined both these belts and a possible unification of them is more important as they receive more TV time. Finally Cena and Bryan had one of the most entertaining matches at Summer Slam in 2013. This match could have started a rivalry but was cut short as Randy Orton cashed in his money in the bank brief case. Furthermore, John Cena needed to have surgery. When Cena came back Daniel Bryan was involved in another story. These two wrestlers have never had a rivalry despite facing off against each other for a WWE Championship. It is time to rekindle the rivalry and Wrestlemania can set that up. Both John Cena and Daniel Bryan are in story feuds that are currently ending and this is the perfect time to start a match between them.
