My Lead Up to Wrestlemania

I just read an article called 'my perfect build to WrestleMania' and it was pretty good, I really liked the Royal Rumble part so I thought I might as well write my own ideas for the road to WrestleMania, this isn't an attempt to crap on TJ Duncan's article but simply an alternative.

If you've read "Crunch Time: What the WWE Needs to Do Regain Respect" by me, there was a section about the Rumble so this article will be pretty similar but just a bit more fleshed out.

ROYAL RUMBLE 2009

Jeff Hardy is backstage doing an interview, he's talking about how he is going to defeat Edge, he then says no matter who wins the rumble whether RAW, ECW or Smackdown he'll beat whoever he has to face at WrestleMania.

Then Randy Orton walks in on the interview and says he's going to win the royal rumble and then Jeff better watch his back because when he does win the rumble it doesn't matter who he faces he'll be a champion the night after Mania. 

Jeff argues back and squares up to Orton, Orton intimidated signals to the back and Priceless come out from the shadows, seeing his brother outnumbered Matt comes to back up his brother Jeff.

Orton warns Matt that his title could be his after Mania too. Orton tells them both to watch their back because no matter what they do he'll be in the main event when WM25 comes around.

Edge vs. Jeff Hardy

La Familia joins Edge at ringside, halfway through the match Matt Hardy runs out to help his brother seeing that La Familia is getting a little too involved. Soon La Familia gets sent to the back by the ref after trying to distract Jeff. 

Later on in the match Jeff has Edge ready for a swanton bomb, but out of nowhere Legacy come from ringside and attack Matt. Jeff distracted by this gets off the turnbuckle and aids Matt, the Legacy cower to the backstage area, Jeff helps Matt up and returns to the ring but out of nowhere Edge runs and spears Jeff getting the cover.

Postmatch

Jeff angered by his loss attacks Cody Rhodes and takes his place in the Rumble.

ROYAL RUMBLE Match

Jeff enters at No. 4.

At the No. 21 mark, Orton is shown heading to the ring but from nowhere Matt Hardy runs out and attacks Orton with a chair claiming that he knew it was him that set Legacy on him and Jeff, costing Jeff the title. Orton knocked out is seemingly out of the Rumble.

Jeff still isn't eliminated and gets to the final two with HBK; JBL comes out and orders HBK to eliminate himself saying that he wants to be RAW No. 1 contender (he lost against Cena earlier in the night).

HBK, distracted, is eliminated by Jeff, who dropkicked Michaels over the ropes. Jeff's music hits and starts celebrating it's made out for about three minutes that he's won the rumble and JR is saying 'good night folks' (almost as if the little copyright logo is going to appear and the show is over) when as Jeff is still stood on the turnbuckle celebrating Orton runs out with a plaster on his head and pushes Jeff off the turnbuckle and over the ropes.

Jeff’s music stops and Orton stands in the ring with his arm raised, Jeff looks on in amazement from the outside. This goes on while JR shouts ‘My God, what’s just happened; who has won the royal rumble?’

RAW (weeks leading up to No Way Out)

Orton comes out at the start of the show and tells everyone that the fans didn’t see it coming, Matt Hardy didn’t see it coming, and most of all Jeff Hardy didn’t see it coming and that he is the rightful winner of the Rumble.

Jeff’s music hit’s and comes to the ring, he says when Orton was ruled out of the rumble by the medical staff he lost his chance in the rumble and that Orton’s appearance at the end of the show didn’t effect the result because as soon as HBK went over the ropes and his feet hit the ground and Jeff was declared the winner that was it and he had won.

Orton is about to complain when Shane’s music hit’s he comes to the ring and sides with Jeff saying that as soon as Orton was taken out and someone took his place Orton had no business in the Rumble match and that there had already been 30 people enter the match and a Rumble can’t have 31 (for storyline purposes; I know they’ve already had 31 before).

Shane declares Jeff is the No. 1 contender, Stephanie McMahon joins them in the ring and says that when Orton was attacked, the medics never consulted her so she never ruled Randy Orton out of the Royal Rumble and she never decided that there should be a new No. 21 entrant, so in her eyes Randy Orton was still the 21st entrant and as GM of RAW her decision is final.

Shane says that they will both have to reach a decision by the end of the show.

The two McMahons come to the ring at the end of the show, Stephanie announces that they have not come to a decision and by next week they’ll have one...

Halfway through her sentence Vince’s music hits and he comes out explains that he is sick of watching them fail to run the show and announces that they’re both Fired!

NEXT WEEK Vince announces that as the main event there will be a battle royal to decide the new temporary GM until he can find a new one and that anyone can compete, also Randy Orton will face Jeff Hardy in a No. 1 contender match.

Later that night Hardy defeats Orton, but in the battle royal Orton wins and is the new GM of RAW.

Orton says that he has managed to convince Vickie Guerrero to give him Hardy (to stop him facing Edge) and that Orton now decides what happens to Jeff.

He says that he may be the number one contender but he’ll have to defend it against the Legacy in a handicap match next week on RAW who’ll be representing him and that he’ll be special ref.

NEXT WEEK Jeff loses the match and Orton has won back his WrestleMania title shot.

NEXT WEEK Vince returns and says that he couldn’t find anyone to be new GM as apparently no one wanted the job as they have had threats to their family by someone, Orton who’s in the ring smirks at this.

Vince then says Orton didn’t let him finish and that he couldn’t find one until now. Vince says he isn’t pleased but he hasn’t fully recovered and it’s the only man he felt could restore law and order to RAW: Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Stone Cold says while he can’t take Orton WrestleMania title shot away from him he can give the No Way Out title shot to Hardy, so if Hardy wins they may be seeing each other again at Mania.

NO WAY OUT

Jeff Hardy defeats John Cena and is the new world heavyweight champion.

WEEKS LEADING TO 'MANIA

The week before WM 25 Austin announces the title match will be a TLC match and so Orton doesn’t receive any outside help he’ll be special ref. Vince then comes out and says if he lays a hand on Jeff or Orton he’ll lose his job.

WrestleMania

The two trade control of the match. Towards the end of the match Legacy run out to aid Orton, Austin fights with them but they outnumber him. Matt Hardy runs through the crowd and fends off Legacy, the Hardy boys and Austin stare down on Orton, Orton tries to explain but Austin orders the Hardys to attack Orton (he can’t or he’ll be fired).

Jeff walks to Orton but Orton stands there and smirks at Jeff, Jeff looks at Orton puzzled but then Matt suddenly kicks Jeff in the stomach and hits the twist of fate on Jeff shouting that there’s only room for one hardy with a title in the WWE and it isn’t going to be Jeff.

Orton climbs the ladder and Austin looks on knowing he can’t do anything otherwise he’ll be sacked. But just as Orton is near the top of the ladder Austin grabs Orton’s tights but Orton shouts at Austin to think about it and that he’ll get fired.

Austin lets go and Orton gets the belt and is the new champion.

(Matt Hardy had been working with Orton all along and they faked the attack at the rumble.)