10 Mistakes WWE Must Not Repeat In 2017
4. Weakening John Cena's Character
If ever there was proof of a wrestling fan's inability to feel satisfaction, this is it.
For years, even Cena's most ardent fans - those old enough to get permission to use the internet from their parents, anyway - have for years longed for WWE to put even the tiniest dent in his armour. The Super Cena character has been protected with such counterproductive conviction, for years, that he was more of a top-level government secret than a professional wrestler.
The upshot, following years of predictable main events and a depressing dearth of star-power, is that when Cena loses, it means something. AJ Styles is such a made man that his losses to Chris Jericho and Roman Reigns are a distant memory. By defeating John Cena once, he actually lives up to his Champ That Runs The Camp nickname.
But WWE needs to exercise caution. When he lost cleanly to Dean Ambrose on the September 20 SmackDown!, it followed the SummerSlam shocker too closely to resonate. Accordingly, it did little to nothing for Ambrose. Though the Cena character wasn't harmed at all, and his in-ring schedule is, at last, showing signs of slowing down, a throwaway episode of SmackDown is not the show on which to experiment.