10 Precise Turning Points Where WWE Did The Impossible
2. Cody Rhodes & Sami Zayn Get Over At The Same Time While WWE Boosts A B-Show
Ahead of Cody Rhodes' Royal Rumble 2023 return, there had been genuine concern from some corners of the fanbase that 'The American Nightmare' couldn't generate the type of reaction Sami Zayn had been getting from within The Bloodline during his absence.
Zayn's pops were referred to as "organic", which is understandable after years and years of promotional negligence, but unfair in this context. Nobody seemed to stop and think that maybe a Vince-less WWE had actually considered the upcoming converging plots, and might have also figured out the way to manage it
The Road To WrestleMania is long and winding, but it's so far so good for the two dovetailing stories between Rhodes and Zayn, and never was this clearer than in the build to Elimination Chamber.
The last big event before the really big event took place in Montreal, and was Zayn’s night before all hands moved to the Cody/Roman pump. To the consternation of plenty, he didn’t win, but the company were yet again keeping their eyes on the biggest prize even if it meant the hometown and sentimental favourite not leaving with WWE’s.
Drawing comparisons to Money In The Bank 2011, Elimination Chamber 2023 was held aloft as one of the biggest - if not the biggest - WWE B-Shows ever. The story had created a money-drawing monster in a slot normally rendered dead by default, and the biggest earner was still to come…