Over the past week, we have discussed at great length the various things that WWE can do with this Punk storyline, but I think there is one option that has been in the back of everyone’s minds. An option that we are all scared is what is actually going to happen on July 17th. We get another Super-Cena showing, Punk is pinned (or worse taps) and our “Summer of Punk†comes to an abrupt end as we fade out on Cena holding a once again championship over his head. The fact that on this week’s Raw (or last week, for those who read the spoilers) Vince came out and proclaimed that Cena would be fired if he loses seems to cement the idea that Cena will in fact be keeping the belt after MITB. That is, unless WWE actually pulls the trigger on this. That is, unless Cena actually gets fired at MITB.
Not that I expect WWE to actually fire their main superstar, nor do I even want that. But just imagine the backlash of WWE losing not only the championship but their star player both in one night. The last time a PPV came even close to ending with that kind of impact was last year when Cena was forced to temporarily join Nexus, and even that would be dwarfed by the potential outcome of MITB. And Cena, who has been rumored to be working with an injury as of late, could probably use a few weeks of to rest. Not that I really expect Cena to leave. It seems that when Cena gets fired, he somehow ends up with more screen time each week than when he is actually working for the company.
Still, even if Cena manages to keep being on every episode of Raw, he can make some impromptu promos where he calls out CM Punk. Demands a rematch for SummerSlam. I don’t know if the rematch clause would work when the current holder of the title is no longer under contract, but they’re already so loose with the rules about that clause, they can simply say, “Sure, why not?†Or if Cena is fired, I guess he wouldn’t have anything better to do than to simply follow Punk around the country and pester him with “Gimmie my belt back.†Until Punk finally agrees to defend it again on WWE soil. Anyway to keep this angle going to SummerSlam and beyond.
I want to take some time here and talk some more about the ending of Raw with Vince McMahon because, in case you couldn’t tell by the column title, I’m a rather big McMahon fan. But I want to start before he even gets into the ring. As McMahon is stepping under the ropes, a sign held up over his shoulder is clearly visible and reads, “Cena Turn Heel.†A sign like that, one clearly acknowledging, the fact that WWE is scripted, seems to be one that would be taken away and not allowed on television. But Cena brought up the stories of signs being taken away at the top of the show. Could this mean that WWE is no longer confiscating signs? Or was that sign so prominently displayed to help prove that point. (Cena also mentioned that Daniel Bryan was fired for being to aggressive, while up to this point we had been told that he had been let go by Nexus for showing remorse.)
Vince did not seem to be in full-blown McMahon character this time. Sure he ramped it up for the final “You’re fired!†but for a large part of the speech, he seems calmer, almost subdued. Ever since his last WrestleMania match, it has seems like we are coming to the end of the Mr. McMahon character. As he has been coming out less and less. Nowadays, even when he does come out it’s not to be a heel chairman of the company, but instead to make an announcement to the audience. In fact he has been cheered in some of his recent appearances. I have to wonder how many more times we’re going to get to see Mr. McMahon strut down that ramp.
But now, on to the actual words in the ring. The biggest thing about the whole segment was supposed to be that Cena might be fired in a few weeks, but McMahon said something else that caught my ear. Something that I didn’t even notice he first time I watched it. Last week, CM Punk called himself the best wrestler. Even when the promo has been replayed on Smackdown and again on Raw, the word wrestler was still there. Then Randy Orton used the word wrestler in his now infamous radio interview. Videos have been on the web this past week, showing John Cena calling himself a professional wrestler in front of crowds during the WWE’s Australian house shows. Now, Vince McMahon, the chairman of the company said that he didn’t want Punk to win and take the championship to another WRESTLING organization. If Vince said it, does that mean we can all go back to being happy calling it wrestling. No more remembering to say superstars? No more fears that my kids are going to grow up excited to see EntertainmentMania? I home so.
Random thought: If McMahon was so worried about Cena losing his match at MITB, why doesn’t he simply make it an “I Quit†match? Because I don’t think that Cena can lose those. In fact after a relentless forty-five minute beating, Cena still seems to be able to win them with nothing more than a particularly angry glare to his opponent.
