John Cena, The Undertaker, The New Day and More from the Year-End Mailbag

As 2016 draws to a close, many people around the world are ready to move on. In the negative landscape of social media, 2016 has been deemed a cursed year and will likely be remembered for a slew of high-profile celebrity deaths—including beloved pro wrestlers like Chyna, Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten—and easily the most polarizing election in United States history.

2016 also had its ups and downs in WWE, and as the company continues to struggle to create new stars, it may finally be on to something with the brand split, which has created opportunities for up-and-comers. Many are looking at the pushes of Braun Strowman and Baron Corbin—who have become hot topics in this mailbag of late—as budding successes. But if WWE isn't careful, its fickle fanbase could just as easily turn on them.

Fool Me Once, Reign on You?

Not a darn thing. Both are being presented as dominant, oversized villains, and fans are taking to them. The same could be said about Roman Reigns when he was the heel muscle of The Shield. Things started to get rocky with Reigns when WWE turned him babyface, and reports began to leak about WWE officials being high on him, per PWTorch (h/t Keith Harris of Cageside Seats). From there, entitled wrestling fans turned on Reigns, and the hardcore contingent continues to resent his push.

WWE will not have this problem with Corbin or Strowman as long as they remain heel. If fans think they're being "pushed too soon," good. That natural resentment only serves to enhance a heel's character. Both Corbin and Strowman have connected with fans as heels, although Strowman's impressive rise has begun to garner him somewhat of a babyface reaction, as was apparent this past Monday in Chicago.

Meanwhile, Corbin is naturally unlikable and is a homegrown WWE talent who was recruited from the NFL. There is a natural tension between him and the professional wrestling fans. He should never be a babyface.

Sleep in Style?

John Cena vs. The Undertaker may be more likely in the WrestleMania main event. There's a chance this match could be contested for the WWE Championship, as it's hard to imagine a scenario where AJ Styles defeats Cena for a third time on pay-per-view. But then again, if Cena defeats Styles, that would mean a record-tying 16th world-title victory.

This match could end in a disqualification, with The Undertaker making an appearance to give the fans a satisfactory payoff. Cena and Styles feel like the two WWE Superstars most likely to face The Undertaker at WrestleMania.

It's worth noting that fans chanted "Undertaker" during Cena's return promo on SmackDown Live in a moment that seemed to throw him. Despite that, WWE's YouTube channel kept this portion of the promo in the clip.  

Freebird Universal Rule?

Unfortunately, having one African-American world champion in WWE is a rarity, so there's not a great chance of there being three. And while it's easy to assume that having three WWE Superstars carry a world championship would hurt its value, which it probably would, this could also make a currently stale championship more interesting.

If The New Day carried one championship as a stable, especially if it's the Universal Championship, it would have to do so as a heel faction. The idea of three people being able to defend one title at any given time is one of the more heel-leaning concepts I've ever heard of. In order to get fans used to this idea, The New Day would have to do so with a secondary championship—maybe the U.S. title—to test the waters. 

A common complaint of pro wrestling is that everything has been done. A Freebird Rule for a single championship, however, is uncharted territory in WWE.

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.