2 21 11 - The aftermath and likely WM27 implications

So the Elimination chamber has been as well as the concurrent episodes of Raw and Smackdown. Held back on posting until I watched the Smackdown ep, expecting more to be revealed, but that didn't happen much, at least in terms of Christian.

So a quick rundown of happened:

- Christian appeared after the Smackdown Elimination Chamber match to defend Edge from an assault by Alberto del Rio. However, the fact that he did not appear on Smackdown last night AT ALL now has me convinced about what his fate will be at Wrestlemania.

- As expected, 2 21 11 marked the return of The Undertaker. However, he was partially upstaged by the return of Triple H as the Undertaker finished his entrance. Neither said a word. Neither threw a blow. They stood. They stared. They signalled. They left. It was one of those moments where actions said far more than words. And it promises a top line match at Wrestlemania.

- Cena fired a salvo back at The Rock. He actually did quite well with it. The Miz was pretty weak.

- Jerry 'The King' Lawler drew a line in the sand and challenged Michael Cole to a match at Wrestlemania. Looks set to play out how Bret 'The Hitman' Hart vs Vince McMahon did. Cole will eventually accept. Something will happen to make things look dire for Lawler, but he will prevail and get his long overdue Wrestlemania moment.

- The Tag Team titles got tossed around like hot potatos. Cena and The Miz ended up with them for about 5 minutes before Miz threw the rematch by taking Cena out. Typical leadup to Wrestlemania and again goes to show the Tag Team titles mean next to nothing these days.

- 'Dashing' Cody Rhodes returned on Smackdown with an impromptu appearance by his Hall of Fame father, Dusty 'The American Dream' Rhodes. Dusty set up Rey Mysterio to get jumped by Cody. Obvious implications.

- Big Show beat Wade Barrett by countout then scared off The Corre. More obvious implications.

- Vickie Guererro got 'fired' as a result of the 'Teddy' Long attack saga. Clearly she will be back, but not for a while, I'm guessing.

- CM Punk/The Nexus and Randy Orton continued their standoff.


So, what is this all implying for WM27?

1. Triple H to be the 19-0 victim for Undertaker's streak at Wrestlemania? Okay, perhaps in leadup/recent storylines, this comes out of nowhere. But face it - this will be a great match. Who honestly wants to see Undertaker vs Kane after seeing it three times in a row late last year?? Or that Undertaker has beaten Kane twice at WM already - a third time would mean little. And we saw Triple H beat Sheamus at WM26. Those storylines can wait for Extreme Rules or even later down the road. 'The Streak' means too much to have it slandered by a weak match. Two seasoned icons returning on the same night, crossing paths and deciding to face off on the big stage? Makes sense. Undertaker will likely move on to 19-0.

2. Cena likely to beat Miz. Really, Miz has been booked very weakly since he got gifted the belt due to storylines running dry late last year. Having to face off several times with the 61 year old Lawler did him no favours. And Randy Orton clearly had to lower his performance level to make the Miz look competent. And for the 7th WM in a row, Cena is in a title match...*shrug* This is likely Cena's obligatory 'at least one title per year since I'm the face of the company.' Hopefully both can lift their levels - especially Miz or his title reign will be an even bigger stuffup than how Jack Swagger's title reign was handled last year. But perhaps the bigger question is will The Rock interfere? How will he influence the match?

3. Edge vs Alberto del Rio. del Rio has received momentum in droves since he entered the WWE last year. He was given the Royal Rumble win. And the last three Royal Rumble winners have gone on to lose their title match. Seems unlikely for it to happen yet again - it would really devalue the Royal Rumble. del Rio to win but for revenge to be waiting in the wings from Christian.

4. Lawler vs Cole. Lawler will win. Enough said.

5. Rhodes vs Mysterio. Mysterio had loads of momentum last year as well as a title reign. WWE wants to push Rhodes big time - they need more mid-carders to be able to provide good matches. I'm thinking Cody Rhodes will get the win here.

6. CM Punk vs Randy Orton. Orton was in title matches for virtually all of last year. CM Punk had a terrible 2010 thanks to Serena's IRL stupidity causing the end of the Straight Edge Society. CM Punk needs momentum. The crowds want CM Punk to have momentum. But Orton has had to job to The Miz for a fair while - will WWE force one of its bigger stars like Orton to lose a PPV match for close to half a year? For the sake of momentum, I'm thinking CM Punk will win, otherwise 2011 will fizzle for him and make a lot of viewers mad.

7. Big Show vs ....Ezekiel Jackson? I think it will specifically be Jackson because the Tag Team titles usually get one of the early matchers at Wrestlemania, meaning Gabriel and Slater will be out of the picture. Wade Barrett seems too prominent to waste on a 4 vs 1 match. And it's mainly Ezekiel Jackson who's gotten the better of Big Show in recent weeks. Likely that Big Show will win, but that it happens in a way that Ezekiel Jackson can show people he's worthy of moving past The Corre and maybe head after the Intercontinental belt in the next few months.

8. Money in the Bank Ladder Match. There will be one. And judging by the timing of recent events, it seems that Christian will be the likely winner, as it would set up the perfect way to get the Alberto del Rio feud back on track along with the momentum needed to make it believable. Christian is one of the best at ladder matches and is in need of momentum big-time. His return at Elimination Chamber indicates he will be at WM27. But the only person who he had feuds available for was Alberto del Rio, who already has a match. This match would be the ideal type for Christian to win. Other likely competitors will be Daniel Bryan, Kofi Kingston, Drew McIntyre, Wade Barrett, R-Truth, John Morrison, Jack Swagger. Maybe one or two others. If Christian isn't scripted to win this one, it had better be John Morrison. Heels have won this match quite a bit lately - it's time for a genuine high-flying face to. Morrison may end up getting a real title shot and win late this year. Christian is the one that really needs the momentum after six months out with injury. It all depends on whether McMahon can overcome his resentment of Christian.

9. There's usually nine or ten matches at Wrestlemania. Likely the Divas belt will get defended. Eve Torres currently has it, not sure if she still will come April 3. If she does, I think she'll retain. If she loses it by then, I think either Beth Phoenix or Kelly Kelly could end up with it at WM27. But there really isn't much storyline to go off lately since Lay-Cool are the only ones appearing often.

10. Tag Team. Gabriel and Slater currently have the titles. Main problem is who would they feud with? The Santino/Kozlov feud seems to have run its course. Maybe The Usos will reappear and give the title some relative respect? Aside from that, I can't see who would verse Gabriel and Slater. Then again, WWE threw Morrison and R-Truth together at the last minute to make a match for it vs Miz and Big Show last year. Either way, probably won't mean much with March already approaching and little time to give a feud momentum.


So there's 10 probable matches which would be enough to fill the WM27 match card for the required screenign duration. I don't see US or Intercontinental defenses happening -  Daniel Bryan just doesn't have a heel to feud with at all on Raw. Kofi Kingston is good ladder match material and the feud with Jack Swagger doesn't seem to have enough punch to it to dictate a singles match. Not to mention it would leave the Money in the Bank match too low on competent participants. Usually a balance of faces and heels winning at Wrestlemania - my proposed results indicate either 6-4 to faces or 5-5 tie if those are the matches that will happen. My main concern is the Cena vs Miz match - I'm just not sure if it'll be that watchable. Or maybe the clash of egos will be enough to fuel a crowd frenzy. All in all, looks like a decent match card, should be a good event. In fact, WM27 had BETTER BE. This year's Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber were predictable and regretful. But with The Rock hosting, hopefully it will be memorable and get 2011 back on track.