The months of May and June can often be a tough time for the fans of the WWE. Usually, the WWE is experiencing their Wrestlemania hangover. It’s too early to start their big summer angle, and any top stars that returned for Wrestlemania are now gone. Extreme Rules is usually a good PPV, but anything after that is usually the WWE just throwing things together. Sometimes they stick to them, and sometimes they don’t. The WWE has changed a match for Main Event that was advertised on RAW in each of the last two weeks. Sure that’s minor, but it just shows how unorganized the WWE is at times. Normally around the end of June into the beginning of July, the WWE likes to start a big summer angle. We’ve had the Nexus, the CM Punk “Pipe Bomb,” and the CM Punk heel turn in the last few years. In July, we have the Money in the Bank PPV that usually tells us who the WWE has pegged as their next breakout stars in the company. And in August, the WWE has their big summer blowout with SummerSlam. By now, we can normally see or we read what the WWE has in mind for all of these events. But this year, we really don’t. And that is why, even though the product is struggling a bit, the WWE has a sense of unpredictability to it. And I like that.
For example, lets start with the Money in the Bank PPV. Around this time last year, the strong majority of people who followed the WWE could have told you that Dolph Ziggler was going to win the Smackdown Money in the Bank contract. On the RAW side, there was talk about John Cena winning the match. This year? I don’t even know where to start with picking a winner. Now of course a lot of that has to do with how terrible the WWE has booked the mid-card. Outside of The Shield, there really are no young up-and-comers ready to make the next step. That leaves this year’s field wide open. Will two members of The Shield win both matches? Will Daniel Bryan ride this recent momentum to another main event run? Or will the WWE finally get behind guys like Wade Barrett, Damien Sandow or Cody Rhodes and build them up to a main event level? There are a lot of possibilities for Money in the Bank this year.
And how about the WWE Title picture headed into SummerSlam? If the WWE is smart, they aren’t stretching out the John Cena/Ryback program all the way to SummerSlam. That would just be bad for business. So who does that leave as the next challenger for John Cena? I don’t think the WWE will put CM Punk right back with John Cena upon his return. Sheamus and Randy Orton are rumored to have a match at SummerSlam, and that is about the only match we’ve heard talked about for the show. Does Curtis Axel get a huge push to the top of the card? We’ve already seen John Cena vs Brock Lesnar, so that isn’t happening again. And The Rock isn’t coming back for another match in the near future. The WWE will have to think of someone to push as the next challenger to John Cena.
The Shield is the best thing the WWE has going today. Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns all have their own unique characteristics that make the group work. If the group ever breaks up, they all have bright futures as main event players. But for now, they all have gold. Does the WWE take the next step and elevate them to the WWE and World Title picture? Is there a new group of three that steps up to challenge The Shield? I still say the WWE missed an opportunity by not having The Shield take out Triple H, setting up The Shield vs Undertaker/HHH/??? at SummerSlam. That would have been a HUGE match. I don’t think the WWE can screw these guys up, and they should be in line for a huge summer.
What about the likely summer returns of CM Punk and Brock Lesnar? Punk is suppose to wrestle at Payback, but I honestly don’t see that match happening. It just further deepens the apparent rift between Punk and Paul Heyman. And I don’t think the WWE is going to do SummerSlam without The Rock and Brock Lesnar. While there is nothing lined up for Lesnar yet, you would have to assume that Lesnar’s next match is against CM Punk. There is no one else that is ready to face him. But we don’t know what is in store for Punk, who is arguably the second biggest star in the company after John Cena. If it was me, I would build up to Punk winning the Royal Rumble then fighting for the WWE Title at Wrestlemania.
Then there are so many other things that we don’t know the end to. Will Daniel Bryan be pushed as a top babyface after the eventual break-up of Team Hell No. As evident on this past week’s Smackdown, the crowd is ready to get behind him again as a top face. How will Dolph Ziggler continue his World Title reign? This recent concussion has put a damper on his reign, but I would still expect a decent run as World Champ once Ziggler returns to action. Then there are other top stars like Randy Orton, Ryback and Sheamus that are bound to have new programs in the summer. Will Randy Orton finally turn heel? Can Sheamus regain some momentum and become a top star in the WWE? And we don’t even know where the WWE will go with this Triple H storyline.
So while we sit here and watch the WWE drag its feet and put on nothing but average TV, we still don’t know what direction they will take with everyone this summer. There is a hint of unpredictability attached to WWE programming right now. Once these current programs are finished, we don’t know where a lot of the top stars in the company are headed. The possibilities are endless with John Cena, CM Punk, The Shield, Daniel Bryan etc. Does the WWE have a good track record with booking everyone the right way? No. But while I sit here and write this, I can’t help but be intrigued by what the WWE might have in store for us this summer.
Until Next Time,
Justin C
Follow Me On Twitter @JCWonka
