Elimination Chamber, Sting, Alberto Del Rio and This Weeks Top WWE News

All right WWE heads, the Elimination Chamber is often thought of as the stop gap on the road to Wrestlemania, but not this year. The People's Champion, Dwayne Johnson, turned the world on its head by showing up on Raw. Now, the anticipation mounts. 

So, this week was an exciting PPV build up. A lot of people were wondering when the Rock would show up again, when Cena would confront him, and if there is any chance of him getting wrestling a match again.

Sting was also rocking the WWE message boards, as people were speculating about whether he'd finally appear on WWE programming this year.

So, there was a lot of business, but I was here to keep the Hype Machine alive. So here's a look back at the week that was leading up to the Elimination Chamber.  

WWE News: Is Justin Beiber a Clue to The Undertaker's Return?

Noel Vasquez/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 18: Justin Bieber plays at the 2011 BBVA NBA All-Star Celebrity Game at the Los Angeles Convention Center on February 18, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Noel Vasquez/Getty Images)

Is the WWE using the same gimmick they used to swerve people to the Rock's return?

The WWE has had trouble in the past few years keeping anything a secret. Thanks to the various internet dirt sheets, the WWE is finding that keeping a lid on things requires them to be a little more crafty.

Take the Rock’s return to Raw for example. Wrestlezone reported that all weekend they spread word around WWE creative that Justin Bieber was going to be the host of WrestleMania 27. They even entitled the script to Raw, “Leave It to Beiber.” Their goal was to leak it one way and then swerve it another.

The same could be happening for the infamous 2/21/11 promos that have been airing on Raw. If you haven’t been watching, the WWE has made it clear that the Undertaker is going to come back tomorrow night, but I don’t buy it.

If they're going to be that obvious, you could get the same reaction by just advertising the date as “The Undertaker Returns to WWE.” You could hype up that he’ll pick his Wrestlemania opponent. 

They aren’t wasting this marketing to go just the way we figured it would go. They are using this to push us in one direction, just to go another.

My money says it’s Triple H tomorrow night. He’s likely to fight the Deadman at Mania. Unless this is the Undertaker’s last match—then all bets are off.  But you are more likely to see Undertaker tonight than tomorrow night. 

WWE Elimination Chamber: Is Dolph Ziggler Showing Up Tonight?

Does the WWE Alumni Section Change Ziggler’s Status for Tonight?

So Ziggler is coming back tonight, right? As reported from several media outlets, Ziggler’s “firing” caused him to have to tweet and hint that he was heading to TNA. Anyone who believes that is high on drugs.

Ziggler has been moved to the Alumni Section of the WWE website, but that’s to fool 12-year-old fans who root for John Cena and buy arm patches. That’s not to fool the rest of the county. The Alumni Section means nothing.

So Ziggler should find his way back to the PPV tonight, but in what capacity? They have a spot open in the Elimination Chamber.

So follow me here: there are only 4 guys in the Elimination Chamber tonight? Raw has 6. What are the odds that Kofi ends up unable to wrestle and they put Del Rio in the Chamber? The next contestant in is the Undertaker.

What if Ziggler finds a way to somehow screw Edge out of the title and Del Rio ends up with the strap? Now Del Rio is the champ, Edge gets the rematch because he was the champ, but Ziggler cries that he loses out on a technicality and that he was the previous champ.

Now we have a 3-way card for the main event at Mania. Triple challenges Undertaker tomorrow night and we have most of the big matches set for Mania.

Either way, Ziggler will be there tonight. There’s no way he won’t (though now that I’ve said that, he won’t). 

WWE News: Chris Jericho To Shock The World?

Does Y2J have something up his sleeve?

So this is interesting: Jericho has been going around the country to promote his new book, Undisputed. His buddy, DJ Eddie Trunk mentioned on his website, "Seriously, congrats to my bud and what he will be announcing he is doing next will be a shocker, I'll leave it at that."

A shocker? Now, I was tipped off by a reader of my Wrestling news that Jericho had a book appearance cancellation, so I went and checked it out. Indeed, tomorrow night Y2J was supposed to have a book signing but he’s canceled that.

Now, I’m not saying he’s the guy in the 2/21/11 because that would be pretty disappointing, but it does make you wonder what he could be doing. He could be setting up for a big time reveal on Raw. I’m thinking that if he’s coming back, he’s coming back as the Raw GM.

It would be weird considering the GM has already caused a Jericho meltdown, but let’s just assume that if he’s the guy, than they would finally be rid of the generic Raw GM character.

However, while I agree that the Raw GM was a silly idea, I have to be impressed with the work that he’s done. He’s always fair, gets the matches right, and does his best to not be a major part of the story line. The moment they bring in a guy, they corrupt the program and it becomes about them. In my opinion, they should keep it going, because no one is dying to know who he is. 

Dwayne Johnson: Is John Cena Getting Angry At Him?

Did Cena just give away a spoiler alert?

Cena loves to talk, so it’s no surprise that Cena loves to tweet. This week though, he started up on the Rock again. Of course, his twitter fans have been asking him and he responded:

"I was gonna let him slide. But now I don't know? What u guys think? Holy response! Well then. Looks like this will be another very memorable week in the WWE."

That’s signaling to me that the Rock is going to be at the PPV tonight or Raw tomorrow. It’s unlikely that they would do a feud showdown on Smackdown. Although it will make sense for the Rock to visit Smackdown once because it is his show.

Still, expect things to reach another level this week. The WWE has to start making way to Wrestlemania. And you can’t have two skilled guys on the mic and not have a verbal showdown.

I think the way you’ll see this play out is that Cena will sort of bow to the Rock, and the Rock will have nothing of it. Cena will ride that underlying aggression to Wrestlemania. I think this is the perfect time to turn Cena heel.

Rock is the perfect target to swing Wrestling fans against Cena. So by having Cena play his role as reserved and non-confrontational you could set up for a big surprise when Cena turns on the Rock at Mania. This is the only way to go. Let’s hope creative feels the same way. They have to take the opportunity when the opportunity is there.

Plus, this gives every Cena match, even the played out ones, a new energy. 

WWE Elimination Chamber: Is There Another Ending For Lawler Tonight?

Could The WWE Title contender really have a shot tonight?

The WWE is in a bit bind with Jerry “The King” Lawler tonight at their Elimination Chamber. He’s been given the title shot against The Miz, but he’s also the last guy you would want to see win the title and take it to Wrestlemania.

So here is what we do know: Wrestlezone has been reporting for the last month that the King and Michael Cole are supposed to have it out at Wrestlemania, and its going to be a tag match. That means he’s not carrying the strap to Mania.

So….

He either wins it tonight in a one-and-done title reign, and loses tomorrow night on Raw thanks to Michael Cole.

Or…

He gets screwed by Michael Cole again and loses tonight setting up a fierce showdown next month.

I suspect Lawler doesn’t win tonight. Having a one-and-done champion seems useless. Plus, if Lawler loses tomorrow then wouldn’t he get a rematch? There are too many things to figure out. Assume that it will be Cole and Lawler with partners of their choosing.

It seems almost too easy, but you’d assume Alex Riley and Daniel Bryant will be Cole and Lawler’s partners respectively.

It’s this sort of thing that makes me hate fixed main events. Even if Lawler wins tonight you know he can’t carry the belt to Mania. So at best he’ll be a paper champion. The WWE loves to do this, though, it’s why they bring up guys like The Big Show to wrestle for title chances that they don’t have any hopes of cashing in on. Let’s hope they give us all a good main event. 

WWE News: The Lastest On Sting and his WWE Future

Any chance of seeing Sting before, or at, Wrestlemania?

The WWE is doing their best to keep secrets these days, but one secret that doesn’t need keeping is Sting’s contract status, and his future, with the WWE.

According to a WWE insider, and as reported on Wrestlezone several days ago, the WWE has had no talks whatsoever with  Sting.

This comes as a bit of sad news to those hopefuls who thought that Sting might show up tomorrow as the person behind the 2/21/11 promos. However, not only is Sting not in talks, it’s for the best anyway.

OK, I might catch a lot of heat for this: but I’m not the biggest Sting fan around. I don’t find him to be that good of a Wrestler, his mic work is OK, and his character never impressed me (especially not since he went Crow on everyone).

I guess the novelty of having Sting show up in the WWE would be fun to see, but in reality, he’d be relevant for the Pay Per View and not a moment after. He’s part of the problem in TNA: these older characters that no one cares about.

Still, if the WWE was so interested in getting Sting, they could have offered him some ridiculous pay day to wrestle for a month. Everyone could get their Sting fix and he could end up going back to TNA, where he would remain a relevant guy on an irrelevant program. 

Elimination Chamber News: Is Alberto Del Rio Going Intercontinental Tonight?

Is Del Rio getting a shot at the title tonight?

On the Elimination Chamber card, Alberto Del Rio is scheduled to fight in a non-title match against Kofi Kingston, but now the rumor is that Del Rio is going to have a shot at winning the Intercontinental title. Apparently, they are making Kofi put it on the line. This means in all likelihood that Del Rio is going to win tonight and it’ll be title for title at Wrestlemania.

I’ll tell you this: if Del Rio wins the IC title tonight and goes head-to-head at Wrestlemania with that belt still in tact, than I’m going to predict that Del Rio wins the WWE title.

Here’s why: let’s say he squares off against Edge and loses, now the fact that Edge has the IC title is hollow. It makes his victory seem less important by winning a lesser belt (even though he’d have two). But if Del Rio wins they he’ll be able to upgrade in that department, which means he’ll win the WWE Strap and have both belts.

Of course, the idea of putting 2 belts of very different quality against one another is a pointless idea as well. There is no reason why Del Rio should win a belt, unless the plan is certain he isn't going to wrestle at Wrestlemania (which is not certain).

They should be putting Del Rio in the Eliminaton Chamber and keeping Kofi off the Pay Per View. But since that isn't likely, you can bet Del Rio is going to be crowned tonight. 

WWE News: Could Nash Return to the Chamber?

When will the WWE see Kevin Nash again?

One of the biggest pops at the Rumble was seeing Nash enter the ring, but since then he is nowhere to be found. There is a lot of speculation on the duration and the nature of his contract. So what is his future?

One idea is that they are going to use him to be the Raw GM. This seems highly unlikely because it’s well known that he was just recently employed by TNA. So the idea that the WWE would use him on a storyline that has been  going for months seems a little out of the question.

Is it possible that Nash gets himself into one of the Elimination Chamber matches? Don’t count on it. If the WWE is going to make a splash, Kevin Nash is not the guy they want.

Personally, he’s better off working on the side. He isn’t nearly the big man he once was. He doesn’t have the mobility and his days are numbered. Plus, Nash was never that good to begin with. He’s better off making appearances here or there.

One possibility that has been thrown around, which could be good at Mania, is for him to reunite with Triple H and possible Shawn Michaels. Now, this only works if Triple H is fighting Shaemus, but if he is that could really work. So I’m going go ahead and assume that you won’t see him for another few weeks, but should expect him to play some role at Wrestlemania.