10 Ridiculous Wrestling Booking Decisions Nobody Can Explain
7. 3..2...For F*ck's Sake
Vince McMahon isn't stupid. He's egotistical, he's stubborn, and he's out of touch, but he isn't stupid - hence why Roman Reigns entered at #30 in last year's Royal Rumble match. Deftly deflecting attention away from the umpteenth Randy Orton push, McMahon put him over as the Lesser Of Two Evils. That catchphrase was never going to hawk any t-shirts, but then, it didn't inspire a #CancelWWENetwork hashtag, either.
Three years earlier, he must have been acutely aware that whomever occupied the same slot was in for a roasting by virtue of not being the insanely grassroots popular Daniel Bryan - which surely demanded a heel appearance. Even Vladimir Kozlov would have generated something approaching heat, in this context. Instead of potentially making one heel, McMahon elected to bury two babyfaces - one of whom he's still trying to replace to this day. Rey Mysterio entered the ring to a chorus of boos.
Did McMahon simply throw Mysterio to the wolves because he knew he was unable to cope with the brutal WWE grind, and had requested what Vince felt was too much in the way of compensation?
On the subject of Bryan, his mooted upcoming heel turn is allegedly driven by a desire to ruin him elsewhere - so the events of 2014 probably aren't that inexplicable.