The Stockwell Section – The Road To Mania Begins…

Welcome to the first ‘Stockwell Section’. Previously called the ‘Stockwell Superstar of the Week’, I thought it appropriate to change the name because it’s always particularly hard for me to just focus on one star when I want to discuss so much more. Anyway, with that said, let’s move on…

 


 

The Royal Rumble has once again graced our screens and passed. Not the best rumble in recent memory, but this rumble had more developing stories then most rumbles of the past. By that I mean, that this rumble has left many of us questioning how the WWE are going to book the next couple of months in the build up to Mania.

Usually, at this time of the year we can see how the build up to the big stage is roughly going to pan out. Of course, nothing is certain in WWE and we are always somewhat surprised by a twist in storyline, but this year, it seems to be a little more complicated then usual in regards to how each star will be used, most importantly Shawn Michaels. The man who has finally broke Stone Cold’s record for the most elimination’s in the history of the rumble. Whilst still unannounced by WWE officially, Shawn surpassed Austin in his attempt to win the rumble so he may get another chance at Taker at the grandest stage of them all. Firstly, the way WWE is building Shawn and his obsession with Taker up at the moment, you can reasonably assume that we will get Part 2 of their epic battle from last year. However, with Shawn losing the rumble and therefore being unable to challenge Taker for the strap at Mania, the question is, how is HBK going to achieve his goal?

As it stands, HBK has two options at achieving his goal. Firstly, winning the title and offering Taker a shot at Mania, or secondly, winning Money in The Bank and cashing it in that same evening. Note that I didn’t say, HBK could win a number-one contenders spot in the chamber because as rumours suggest, that match will be for the strap. The other factor as to whether HBK can achieve his goal is Edge, how will Edge play his part over the coming months? If HBK was to win the title somehow and offer Taker a shot at Mania, would Edge decide that he wants the World Heavyweight Championship rather then the WWE Title?

What if Y2J were to win the belt and have Edge challenge him at Mania? Then I suppose that would free up Taker for the second encounter, but for management (by which I mean, Teddy Long) to just come out and say, ‘Taker, this match is going to happen’ would be nothing but anti-climatic.

If Edge faces one of the current champions, his feud with Y2J will lose its momentum. If HBK gets Taker again without finding a loophole to do so, the idea behind the second match would to lose its charm. Sure, HBK could abuse Taker until he gives in but it could take the respect out of the relationship and whilst the match will still be highly anticipated, it’ll leave a bad taste in people’s mouths as to how it happened. Also, on the other side of things, we have Triple H who one can only assume will be main-eventing once again but whose to how will he and WWE Champion Sheamus affect this whole situation?

WWE have themselves in an interesting predicament because they have already started building Edge and Jericho and to top it off, they have started to build a HBK/Taker 2, so over the next couple of months, the WWE have some hard work ahead of them in terms of original and compelling story telling because one slip could ruin a major story line heading into Mania. Luckily, it seems they don’t need to worry about Cena or Batista being in the main event picture who are seemingly going to be part of the Vince and Bret feud, which by the way I think is a remarkable pairing. Cena and Batista (whilst not up there as my favourite wrestlers) need to go head to head at the big one because it will draw, add the history of Vince and Bret to the mix and I feel you could have an explosive atmosphere at the event this year.

Finally, before I leave you once again, I want to commend CM Punk. For me, Punk was the highlight of this years rumble. Two things I don’t like regarding Punk however is first, how he was eliminated particularly early – I feel Punk could have given the match so much more if given the time. Secondly, I’m disappointed with the need HHH has to be in the main event. I’m hoping that he takes a step back for once, but at the moment it seems highly unlikely. The reasoning behind this is I believe HHH and CM Punk have had some great interaction over the last week or so and their work together at the PPV developed upon that. I’d like to see this build into a match at Wrestlemania but I can’t see it happening with rumours suggesting CM/Rey and HHH/Sheamus. Still, if WWE were to throw a curve ball with a CM/HHH match, I’d be quite happy and I’d be quite happy if Sheamus was not in the main event altogether. Drop him to MITB and have a Legacy Triple Threat for the belt I say.

Anyway, until next time…..

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