Opinion
Is WWE Trying to Lower Expectations For The Undertaker vs John Cena?
I’m going to be blunt here: I don’t want The Undertaker vs. John Cena to happen. I think this is a match that stopped being relevant in 2014 when the Streak ended. That said, it seems to be a given by now that Taker/Cena will probably happen at WrestleMania, but it also seems that WWE is trying to head off fan disappointment by lowering expectations of what kind of match this is going to be.
Since 2003-2004, John Cena has been a babyface. Now how he was perceived by the audience has changed from super over babyface to heelish and everywhere in between, but his behavior lately has been obnoxious. He has not only called out the Undertaker, but insulted him at every turn, even implying that Taker had lost his balls. Not only is it incredibly disrespectful, but it’s not true. It takes a lot of balls to ignore a blowhard who keeps egging you for a fight. The Undertaker doesn’t owe it to Cena, or the fans, to give him that match at this stage of his life and career.
That said, I do think this match will happen, but WWE is setting it up so that fan expectations for this confrontation are low by making Cena such an obnoxious bully that fans will just want Undertaker to appear so Cena will shut up about it. It also paves the way for a short encounter instead of a 30-minute match.
The reason why I think they’re doing this is because The Undertaker’s match with Roman Reigns was HEAVILY hyped, as it should’ve been, and did not live up to hype. This is not a condemnation of Reigns or Taker, they did the best they could with what they had to work with, but Taker’s movements were so limited, it really hurt the match and disappointed a lot of fans. By making Cena so unlikable and making Undertaker appear to be pushed into this match, WWE can give the fans what they want but also hedge their bets against fan expectations.
Here’s how: Cena gets in the ring at WrestleMania and is still whining about Taker not answering his challenge, the lights go out and we get the American Badass or Big Evil entrance (Probably American Badass because Kid Rock is there), The Undertaker comes out on his motorcycle, gets in the ring, has a face off with Cena, beats Cena up, maybe hits the chokeslam and leaves. Fans get what they want, Taker gets to end his career with his head held high, everyone wins.
Will WWE do that? I don’t know, I can’t see them wanting to risk fan disappointment by putting The Undertaker through another long match like last year, even with a new hip. Having a quick and dirty not-match would give the audience an encounter they want, seeing Taker shut John Cena up, and let Taker have one last moment at WrestleMania as a victor, instead of the sad finish we got last year. I think we could all live with that.
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Opinion
Chris King: Is Brock Lesnar Truly Retired?
Brock Lesnar retired at WWE WrestleMania 42, right? Are we totally sure? Chris King asks…
Brock Lesnar retired at WWE WrestleMania 42, right? Are we totally sure? Chris King asks…
At WrestleMania 42, ‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar took off his boots and gloves following his loss to Oba Femi. Lesnar has done it all inside of his twenty-four-year career in professional wrestling. He’s a ten-time WWE Champion and former UFC Heavyweight Champion, and he’s one who ended The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania.
While Lesnar was in the ring, he was visibly overwhelmed with emotion and crying while he thanked the fans in his own way. The Beast even threw up an x to signal to Paul Heyman, his longtime friend and advocate, that this was not scripted and was real. There had been rumors that Lesnar and Oba were supposed to have a series of matches before everything went down at Mania.
‘The Career Killer’ Gunther was doing Heyman’s bidding as he faced Seth Rollins for a favor. For a while now since Gunther retired Goldberg, John Cena, and AJ Styles, the rumor has been Gunther was set to retire Lesnar in his hometown at this year’s SummerSlam event. There’s been no confirmation if Lesnar is truly retired, but on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, we saw Heyman talking with General Manager Nick Aldis. Later that night following Rhodes’ match against the debuting Ricky Saints, Gunther choked out the WWE Champion. Could this be the favor from Heyman?
I know in the world of professional wrestling we live by the mantra of “never say never,” but what if Lesnar is actually retired and this was WWE’s way of shutting down those rumors about Gunther and Lesnar? What if Gunther’s next program is chasing after the WWE title, and where is Randy Orton at in all of these plans? There are so many questions that need to be answered, hopefully soon!
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Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
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THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
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SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
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Opinion
Chris King: Defend The Intercontinental Championship At Backlash!
With WWE Backlash upon us, Chris King wants to see Penta defend the Intercontinental Championship in Tampa!
With WWE Backlash upon us, Chris King wants to see Penta defend the Intercontinental Championship in Tampa!
This year’s annual Backlash showcase is only a few days away, and while there are many big matches announced, one that definitely should be isn’t on the card. In my opinion, outside of Roman Reigns/Jacob Fatu and Seth Rollins/Bron Breakker, the Intercontinental Championship scene has been stellar over the last month.
Penta has been an excellent champion, especially after his triumphant title defense in a ladder match against JeVon Evans, Rusev, Dragon Lee, and the Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania 42. Their ladder match at Mania was one of the best that WWE has produced in a while.
The momentum never stopped, as on the post-Mania episode of Monday Night Raw, ‘All Ego’ Ethan Page made his debut and was quickly inserted into the Intercontinental title scene. Page had a fantastic showing against his longtime NXT rival Evans and picked up a big win in his debut match thanks to an assist from Rusev.
All Ego immediately joined forces with ‘The Bulgarian Brute’ Rusev, who was also vying for the Intercontinental Title in his own right. On this week’s episode of Raw, Page and Rusev defeated Evans and Penta. All Ego pinned the champion, making a huge statement and putting him one step closer to getting a title shot. For the past few weeks I’ve been anxiously waiting to see if WWE was going to add this incredible fatal four-way match for the Intercontinental Championship, but it hasn’t happened yet.
As much as the WWE Universe enjoys witnessing great matches on free television, I truly believe all four superstars deserve the chance to showcase their talents on the PLE. While Penta has done a terrific job as the intercontinental champion, it’s time for a fresh face to hold the prestigious title. Page would make a great braggadocious heel that would help elevate the Intercontinental Championship to new heights!
Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - 4 Corners Podcast (sports)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
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