WNS Column: The Elbow Drop #02

Welcome to The Elbow Drop, squared-circle-goings-on from a passionate wrestling observer. 

 

We are at the mid-way point between PPV's, the heady stink of napalm (General Adnan's?) from Battleground has just about wafted away, and WWE is preparing to dust off the Summerslam set and wheel it back into the Staples Centre once again. Many things have happened on and off tv in the last few weeks, but rest assured my friends: this is the event after WrestleMania that WWE likes to get right.

 

Ah WrestleMania. The 30th WrestleMania in fact. It all seems so long ago. WWE was in bullish mood following the spectacular supershow in New Orleans. Hogan was back in the ring with Austin and The Rock, Daniel Bryan was causing all sorts of upsets with victories over Triple H, Orton and Batista in the same night, and men old enough to know better cried into their bottles of Coors Light as CM Punk failed to take a plane to Louisiana. Six months later, the WWE Network has been an unmitigated failure (in boardroom terms at least). This thumb to the eye for investors has been followed closely behind with a sub-standard TV deal with the USA network. The result? Share prices have tumbled and the WWE are facing loses of $50 million for its big foray into broadcasting.  

 

It does not look good for Vince and family.

 

The McMahons have acted in the same way as they usually do, by sacking of a bunch of low-to-middle earners from within the company (WWE closed its entire WWE Magazine operation) and 'future-endeavoured' a bunch of jobbers (Brodus Clay, Evan Bourne and Drew McIntyre notable recipients of the pink slip).

In the ring, Daniel Bryan, the man chosen by the fans to lead the company for the foreseeable future, has been further sidelined by a longer than anticipated retire from neck injury, and the belts have been given to the ever-reliable and ever-present John Cena (snore...). 

 

All that being said, I'm optimistic for Summerslam. 

 

The card is taking shape, at time of writing we have had Y2J vs Bray Wyatt confirmed; hopefully after some sparring time on the microphones, this version might live up to expectations. Wyatt needs not just a win here, but a memorable match and performance to give him back some much needed crowd belief. The fact that he is not running with Cena anymore has to be a plus for him. 

Same goes for Roman Reigns. That he has been given a feud with Randy Orton is a huge blessing to them both. Orton, arguably the most solid all-rounder in active WWE service looked positively invigorated on Raw last week as he mercilessly beat down the former Shield big-guy. If as expected, these two go head to head at Summerslam, it could tear the house down. I'm also intrigued as to whether Reigns can turn it on in singles competition...

 

Brie Bella will take on Stephanie McMahon, who hopefully by Summerslam, will be walking properly again after her stint of hard time. I'm sure this will be up there with a season finale of Breaking Bad for drama. Yep.

Add in to the mix a title match between A.J. and Paige and you have a full three minutes of Diva's action. Should be just enough time to go make that coffee, if like me you'll be watching at 3am in the morning in your underpants.

 

Finally, Cena vs Lesnar. 

If their match at Extreme Rules 2012 was an indication of how this one could turn out, we could be in for a treat. I couldn't take my eyes off that match (it was probably the best Cena bout in years) and I have high hopes for this one. With the added heat of The Streak being broken at WrestleMania XXX and Paul Heyman delivering some of his most impassioned promos in ages, it means revisiting this rivalry doesn't feel like a backward step.

 

Against the backdrop of behind the scenes turmoil, the WWE looks like it has a promising PPV on the slate, and quite frankly, right now Vince needs it. He has been in trouble many times before, much worse than this he'd probably wager. However he has the blueprints in his armoury to get out of the mire, and first on his plan of action will always be to deliver a kick ass supercard.

 

For more wrestling comment you can follow me on Twitter @johnpaulboi

 

Thanks for reading.