A Modest Blog on the Raw Title

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With Batista (again) out hurt (again) for at least the immediate future (again), the WWE is left (again) scrambling to fill his role as the Champion of Raw. On their three hour Raw, they scheduled Orton vs. Triple H vs. Cena vs. Big Show to fill that title hole and crown a new champion. It ultimately doesn’t matter who ends up winning this match, but what does matter is who ends up with the belt after the next Pay Per View.

Triple H vs. Orton is such a big feud with revenge at the center that the title would do nothing to enhance. These guys have been built such that they’re a top drawing program no matter what. Cena, likewise, is a ratings draw for kids no matter what he does. Placing him against a giant is the old Hogan standby, a conquering hero overcoming despite being physically overwhelmed. With Show injuring Cena and the inclusion of the Miz in the mix, this is both standard and fresh enough to not need the belt and still draw, regardless of how paradoxical that sounds. Well, someone from this match has to win the belt, so I’ll submit that it should be Orton or Cena and here’s why.

Scenario A: Orton wins the belt. MVP has been making noise about being number one contender for quite awhile now, revisiting this again on this past week’s Raw. With these title claims, should Orton win and Legacy leave everyone lying, he could immediately challenge for the belt at the Bash. At this PPV, he could win, with minor Triple H assistance to add heat to that feud, though minor assistance is the key part for MVP to remain strong as a new top guy. This would let MVP move into a top slot in a test role, with both Cena and Triple H drawing in strong feuds, he would be given a chance to shine and grow to eventually replace the unreliable Batista. MVP would be held over with a Triple Threat for a month or two before moving on to Big Show, Kane, or someone else transplanted from another brand to help him establish himself (really, this is the perfect use for Kane and would formerly have been JBL’s role).

Scenario B: Cena wins the belt and goes on to face Miz as revenge for all the crap he’s talked. Big Show isn’t done with Cena and costs him the belt at the PPV to Miz, who is newly a top heel. Raw really needs another top heel badly with only Orton and occasionally Big Show currently there, so Miz would fit the bill. The MVP run is better, as Miz could really stand an U.S. title run before being so elevated, but beating Cena and becoming a heel that cheat’s to win would really make him unique on the roster and allow him to draw great heat playing various enemies against each other. Everyone wants to punch Miz in the face anyway and that smarminess would really play well into his character.

So what do you all think of these ideas? What should be done with the Raw title?

I’ll be back tomorrow with my thoughts on ROH’s weekend cards and their PPV deal being “suspended.”

Glazer is a former senior editor at Pulse Wrestling and editor and reviewer at The Comics Nexus.