WWE Extreme Rules 2016: 10 Things WWE Got Right
9. Ending The Kalisto Experiment
In 2015, the WWE United States Title felt meaningful for the first time in a long time when it was held by John Cena. His 'U.S Open Challenge' segments on Monday Night Raw were great, allowing new talent to regularly debut and excel in featured matches. After Cena's reign ended, WWE dropped the ball.
Neither Alberto Del Rio nor Kalisto could be considered excellent follow-up on Cena's tenure with the gold. In the case of the latter, the writers never really pushed Kalisto. Instead, he was painted as someone in over his head, an underdog who was constantly the weaker man going into title defences.
If WWE were unwilling to really get behind Kalisto, he's better off without the belt. Now, he can go back to his tag-team with Sin Cara and focus his energy there. Meanwhile, Rusev has been somewhat restored to his former status by virtue of holding the United States Title again.
Once more aligned with Lana, the potential is there to reprise the rivalry between Rusev and Cena. This time, the company have to pull the trigger on the Bulgarian's promise.