This is something that Ive talked about on recent episodes of Wrestle Talk TV. With the exception of John Cena, nobody has any kind of protection in booking any longer. Rusev was kept strong and undefeated to build him up as a threat to Cena, but once he lost twice to Cena, he quickly tumbled down the pecking order, settling in the mid card. Kevin Owens came in with a bang by pinning Cena clean in his first match on the main roster, before losing twice to Cena and suffering the same fate as Rusev. Cesaro has been woefully underused, despite fans clamouring for him to be pushed through the glass ceiling. When Tyler Breeze joined the main roster from NXT, he defeated Dolph Ziggler (another underused talent) at the Survivor Series to establish him as a new star, only to lose a rematch to Ziggler the very next night on Raw. This 50/50 booking does nobody any favours. It doesnt define anyone as anything special, and so the fans dont feel emotionally invested in anyone. When Stone Cold Steve Austin was on a tear in the late 1990s, he very rarely lost, and when he did, it was usually due to a screwy finish. This kept him protected as an upper echelon star. The same goes for The Rock, Undertaker, Kurt Angle and the top-of-the-tree superstars of that era. When they did lose, it meant something. When they won, it meant something too. During the Monday Night Wars, the then-WWF created new stars because their hand was forced by WCW taking iconic main eventers like Hogan, Savage, Piper and Flair away from them. Now, with the WWE having a top-line monopoly on the wrestling business in the US, it feels like there is no sense of urgency, even with television rating slipping to historic lows. 2016 needs to be the year that they start to define who the headliners truly are, and start protecting them.
Dean Ayass is a well known name to British wrestling fans. A commentator, manager, booker and ring announcer who has been involved in the business since 1993, Dean's insight into the business is second to none.
