WWE Must Resist Booking John Cena as World Champ for Raw-SmackDown Brand Split

John Cena competed in a match against Seth Rollins on the June 27 edition of Monday Night Raw. If Cena won, he would have been added to the Triple Threat match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship Battleground on July 24. 

When he didn't win, many fans were likely shocked because Cena tends to win the big-money matches, and this one qualified as a high-profile match. But even though the temptation is there to put a world title back around Cena's waist, WWE must resist at all costs.

It's too easy, and easy is not always the answer.

Two years have passed since Cena held WWE's top championship. During that time, six men have held the belt, and three of them held it for the first time. It's no mystery that those three men are former Shield members—Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose.

WWE has seen a new day dawn on its main event scene, and that is thanks to the rise of these three dominant talents.

This is especially true in Ambrose's case, as he has never been hotter than he is right now. The one who was once seen by many as the low man on The Shield's rising totem pole is now on top of the industry.

After waiting and watching his teammates take turns with the belt, he's earned it.

But something's up, as Ambrose's title was referred to as the "WWE Championship" instead of the "WWE World Heavyweight Championship" on Raw. This suggests that perhaps a title split is coming, probably coinciding with the company's brand split between Raw and SmackDown.

By that logic, why not give Cena the second belt and leave Ambrose with his own title?

But this is about more than just giving Ambrose what he deserves and letting him continue with the belt he's earned. This is about not allowing Cena to steal the thunder that's being shared by the New Era of Vince McMahon's company.

It may sound like nothing more than just a storyline, but for fans, it means much more.

This is WWE turning the corner and moving toward the future. For arguably the first time during Cena's career, WWE is taking steps to move ahead. The focus has been on Cena for so long that many fans likely believed WWE as a company may have forgotten how to plan ahead.

It's been the Cena show for a long time.

Much of it was done out of necessity because, at any given time, Cena was the only one who could have been considered the true face of WWE. With the exception of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, few have been able to come close to Cena in terms of overwhelming fan response and popularity.

But those days are soon coming to an end.

AJ Styles, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, the team of Big Cass and Enzo Amore and Apollo Crews are getting it done at a high level. Then there's the NXT roster of Finn Balor, Samoa Joe and Shinsuke Nakamura; each has the potential to do big business on the main roster.

Even Roman Reigns, who many fans constantly compare to Cena, could become the hottest heel WWE has seen in years. If he turns on Ambrose upon his return and cuts one spiteful promo toward fans, the table will be set for a massive heel run.

The New Day and The Wyatt Family could be considered nothing more than midcard players, but there are seven men total here, which means seven opportunities to build main event stars. Then there's always Brock Lesnar, who may not be a young talent, but he can more than carry the weight of the card on any program.

WWE has options here. There may not be an obvious replacement for Cena, but that does not mean the company must stop moving forward.

Putting a world championship back around Cena's waist is not moving forward; it's taking a step back. He's a reliable top guy and a guaranteed draw, but he can be those things without being the champ as well. 

WWE must continue building for the next generation, and a big part of that revolves around the world championship. If the rising talents cannot receive the ball and run, then the New Era is just a meaningless tagline. Those talents deserve the chance to prove themselves, and Ambrose deserves the chance to continue with the championship.

Tom Clark can regularly be seen on Bleacher Report. His podcast, Tom Clark's Main Event, is available on iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Android, Windows Phone and online here.