WWE Road to Wrestlemania 29 - John Cena Beats CM Punk To Face The Rock

Midcard Titles

After spending much of 2012 establishing the midcard and building up the titles, WWE has dropped the ball and left many of the second tier superstars in flux. This is nowhere better seen than in the two holders of the midcard titles, US Champ Antonio Cesaro and Intercontinental Champ Wade Barrett. Firstly Cesaro, who has in fact looked strong throughout his reign and continues to impress. His feud with The Miz has helped to build him some heat and the two have put on decent matches. On Smackdown Cesaro faced The Miz in a 2 out of 3 falls match, with Cesaro taking the first pin, Miz the second, and Cesaro finally taking the decider. This is the third title match The Miz has lost, and the 2 out of 3 gimmick is normally reserved for the finale of a feud, so this could well be done now. But then the question is where does Cesaro go? On Raw he lost to Randy Orton, a match that has been repeated several times in recent weeks. Cesaro now has no clear opponent, and thus no feud for anyone to get invested in. If it is not to be The Miz, Cesaro needs a strong opponent to face at Wrestlemania to put him over and firmly establish him as a threat. The returning Christian could be an option, or even Rey Mysterio if he can handle it. Cesaro's problems pale into comparison though to those of IC Champion Barrett. Since winning the belt from Kofi Kingston - another who has been forgotten about - Barrett has had no clear challenger, no storylines, and has picked up several losses. He has lost to the likes of Randy Orton regularly, and even got thrown into a doomed storyline with NXT Rookie Bo Dallas, which now mercifully appears to have been shelved. He gets little TV time, and has done little to establish the IC Title, which has gone backwards since Cody Rhodes lost it to Big Show at Wrestlemania 28. There seems to be some chance of a feud between Sheamus and Barrett, based solely on Sheamus having a few digs at Barrett's role in an upcoming WWE film. On Raw, Barrett came out, both men tried to hit the other with their finishers, both failed, and that was it. The chances of the match happening though are hampered by Sheamus' continuing issues with The Shield. A match between the Irishman and the Englishman at Wrestlemania is promising, but Barrett needs something quick to drag him out of his current mire. Prediction: Due to the lack of investment in the midcard titles it is nearly impossible to predict what will happen at Wrestlemania, but with a (barely) educated guess, perhaps Cesaro will beat Christian to retain, while Sheamus will win the IC Title from Barrett.