If you don't count battle royals and celebrities, the only people to headline a WCW PPV in their last three years that never had before are Goldberg and Kronik (who were squashed by Goldberg in a three minute match).
Since The Miz headlined WrestleMania XXVII roughly three years ago, the only fresh face WWE has put in a PPV main event is John Laurinaitis.
That's probably not good, right?
Well, and Daniel Bryan as well, let's not forget to mention him a million times today.
But really, isn't there a famous saying about how if you do the same stuff over and over again and expect a different result then something really good happens? I forget how that one goes.
d) vince was more than willing to show ass in the end
ReplyDeleteR-Truth and Litlte Jimmy would like to have a word with the e-mailer.
ReplyDeleteI have to assume Vince and Co. are thrilled to death with the A.C.A.
ReplyDeleteRelevant application of that famous saying: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrS22HYW74Q
ReplyDeleteJohn Morrison main evented Extreme Rules 2011, R-Truth main evented Capitol Punishment, Del Rio main evented Vengeance, Ryback main evented Hell in a Cell, Ziggler main evented TLC 2012, and Daniel Bryan main evented Summerslam 2013.
ReplyDeleteand don't forget Michael Cole showing us how to install the WWE App!
ReplyDeleteYea he headlined SS vs Hardy before but Punk has become a *made man* the past few years
ReplyDeleteHe must mean other than all of those.
ReplyDeleteThat doesnt seem right at all. What about Del Rio and Ryback? I think Ziggler headlined one. Jack Swagger was a world champ (lolol).
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that none of those guys clicked -- though Ziggler was never given a chance really.
You figured it out, I knew the emailed was wrong. Seems like they've cycled a bunch of guys through. I guess Sheamus headlined prior to 2010? He's another "fresh" face,
ReplyDeleteThat "Insanity" thing would only apply if WWE would be losing money however.... Would work perfect with TNA and their heel stables.
ReplyDeleteOh, no worries, different guy.
ReplyDeleteThis emailer has a horrible memory.
ReplyDeleteThe "making new stars" theory is so lazy to me. Who besides D Bryan the past few years really ever reached that "breakout" point and had the longterm potential to be a draw? I can't think of any.
ReplyDeleteThere's an opportunity cost in "creating new stars." You have to push them, put them over others, drop known commodities down the card, etc. Yea, they obviously should be trying to find the next money drawing star but sometimes that guy just isn't on the roster or hasn't surface yet.
Sheamus main evented Fatal Four Way in 2010.
ReplyDeleteSting: Legends contract, DVD, HOF...then in-ring, inVasion: the Lost Chapter.
ReplyDeletePlus, wasn't Sheamus one of the guys Bryan already beat CLEANLY in the build up to Summerslam?
ReplyDeleteMonty Hall appears or I riot.
ReplyDeleteYes. They'd find a way to screw up a Cruiser show pretty easily. Probably by putting the belt on Torito.
ReplyDeleteI think this poster on Reddit sums it up well:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/1wabb5/update_the_2014_royal_rumble_was_the_ninth_orton/
In short, Royal Rumble 2014 was the NINTH Cena vs. Orton PPV singles match and EIGHTEENTH PPV match to feature them against each other in any form (Elimination Chamber, 3ways, 4ways, etc.) Elimination Chamber 2014 will now mark the nineteenth.
The only feuds that come close are HHH/Rock (13 times in any form), Taker/Kane (12 times), Austin/Undertaker (11 times), and Michaels/HHH (10 times), but only Taker/Kane have had nine PPV singles matches, and that's over a period of 12 years (1998-2010). For Cena/Orton, it's only been seven years.
Going through his posts there are some specific stats, but I think that alone tells the tale about how stale the main event scene is.
You forgot Ryback
ReplyDeleteI was just going to post something to that effect. Not to always focus on Punk/Bryan, but they are good examples of guys who had main evented PPV's in the past (Punk pre-MITB, Bryan's WHC run) without necessarily being viewed or presented as "top" guys.
ReplyDeleteSince it was over 4 years since their last series of matches, I really don't have that much of a problem with this non-WM program. Lots of young fans have probably never seen it. As long as it ends at the next PPV, no problem here.
ReplyDeleteNot to defend WWE, but this person is missing a lot of headliners WWE has tested out . And I'm talking wrestlers in the final match of a PPV. You have:
ReplyDeleteExtreme Rules 2011: John Morrison in 2-on-1 tag with Miz against Cena
Capitol Punishment 2011: R-Truth vs. Cena
Royal Rumble 2012: Not final match due to 30-man, but Ziggler-vs.Punk for WWE title
Hell In A Cell 2012: Ryback vs. CM Punk
TLC 2012: Ziggler vs. Cena if the RR main event for Ziggler wasn't enough
Summerslam 2013: Daniel Bryan vs. Cena, then Orton
Five guys counting Bryan they've had in the final match of the night who hadn't done it before.
I think the story isn't how WWE isn't attempting to make new stars, but how they're quick to second-guess themselves and go back to the tried-and-true Cena/Orton/Batista/Triple H/Brock group from the early 2000s.
WWE is only going to truly work to establish new stars when their pre-existing stars aren't available. WWE didn't lean on HBK and Hart until Hogan was out. WWE didn't lean on Austin until HBK and Hart were out the door. WWE didn't truly lean on Rock until Austin & Triple H were out with injuries. Brock came up when Austin was truly gone for good. Triple H came to the very top when Austin/Rock/Brock were all gone. Cena came up when the old guard of Triple H/Angle/Jericho were ready to go part-time.
ReplyDeleteIt won't be until Cena is stricken with a major injury, takes some time off, or gets on bad terms with Vince that there's going to be room for WWE to try someone new.
Kofi had a chance before he was deemed stupid (x3).
ReplyDeleteYeah, Kofi has been my favorite for years, he was soooo close. :(
ReplyDeleteReigns does have the "IT" factor 100x over, so I'm looking forward to his push. His facial reactions alone scream "Main eventer" .
I have not vetted the picture, But perhaps they did this.
ReplyDeleteR = Wrestlemania 1 buyrate (unknown)
X = Wrestlemania 1 revenue.
Y = Wreslemania 2 revenue.
Z = Wrestelmania 2 buyrate.
Y/Z = (Wrestlemania 2 revenue per person)
X/(Y/Z) = R (Calculated wrestlemania 1 extrapolated buyrate.)
This assumes that the revenue per person would be about the same.
Oh, I think plenty of people noticed that, but the marketing was so good and the profits increased so much that nobody cared about the switch to corn syrup.
ReplyDeleteA lot of guys have headlined. The problem is, this company won't stick with any of them beyond their token one-off main event. Maybe if they bothered to do something with R-Truth or Ryback or work with them rather than see a lower buyrate and shunt them down the card, they wouldn't be in that predicament.
ReplyDeleteEver since Mother Angelica died there HAS been a lack of religious call-in shows featuring half-dead people!
ReplyDeleteI think it's your last point that's most important: of all the guys you've listed, none of them would main event a PPV at this point in their careers. Heck, even putting Miz, R-Truth, Ryback, or Ziggler in the Elimination Chamber match in February would unfortunately seem like they're just space-fillers in comparison to Cena, Orton, Bryan, and Sheamus because they're not promoted as stars.
ReplyDeleteWhich means we're probably stuck with Big Show in the Chamber. ugh.
That's actually a wonderful point.
ReplyDeleteZiggler absolutely could- and should- have been a bonafide main eventer. Ditto Morrison.
ReplyDeleteNope, this is Kenta Kobayashi... but he just goes by KENTA.
ReplyDeleteMaybe a Paul Bearer impersonator contest!
ReplyDeleteLOL... That wasn't even an insult, it was 100% legit.
ReplyDeleteI see now- Kenta Kobashi and KENTA Kobayashi are two different people.
ReplyDeleteThe bad news is, there are so many old-timers clogging up the top of the card that it'll take more than Cena's absence to change things. Just look at last fall....with Cena hurt and Bryan red-hot, the solution was to make friggin' Big Show the de facto top face.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of building new stars, how come IRS didn't come out to give the rub to new sponsor Jackson Hewitt?
ReplyDeleteMan, that's some fantastic insight.
ReplyDeleteWord see Lee, A.J. and Ambrose, DeN.
ReplyDeleteKENTA is Kobashi's protégé, the name is in tribute
ReplyDeleteYou have not seen Machine Gun's house......600k seems on the low side.
ReplyDeleteBULLET CLUB WORLD DOMINATION
ReplyDeletestep 1: almost complete
This has been mentioned many times I think, but perhaps it's because they are a publicly owned company and trying to maximize their profit to Wall St, they are probably very reluctant to go "outside their box", or if there is some agreement with Mattel saying "John Cena must have X amount of time on tv" (just as a hypothetical example). I think a lot of this would possibly change if they weren't public, but that's probably a genie that's very difficult to put back in the bottle.
ReplyDeleteWe'll see. The Bryan/HHH staredown seems destined to end up in a video package somewhere, though I still fear Sheamus is gonna turn on Bryan at the Chamber and give us a Mania rematch nobody wanted.
ReplyDeleteWeirdly, if they shuffled things around, I'd be down with Bryan/Taker and Sheamus/Brock; Sheamus' "fuck it, I'm here to fight, fella" version of his character is a perfectly natural fit to try and take on Brock, and he's pretty willing to bump for a guy his size.