Bleacher Report - Wade Barrett

Wade Barrett's WWE Career Has Been a Waste

Drake Oz — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 08:00:01 -0400

Wade Barrett lost the Intercontinental Championship at WWE Payback, but that loss was just the latest example of the creative team royally screwing up the career of a once promising superstar.

Remember, it wasn’t all that long ago that Barrett seemed destined to become one of the WWE’s top long-term heels. It was only in 2010 that Barrett was the leader of the buzzworthy Nexus faction and was feuding with the likes of Randy Orton and John Cena over the WWE Championship.

Barrett was only a rookie then, but he didn’t seem like one. He showed such tremendous poise and promise on the mic, and he seemed destined to be the biggest star to come out of the first season of NXT.

But oh, how times have changed.

No longer is Barrett feuding with the WWE’s biggest stars in the main event picture. No longer is he considered to be world title material. No longer is he someone who is consistently making an impact.

And it’s all because Barrett’s WWE career has been a tremendous waste of both talent and opportunity.

Barrett, of course, has the talent to make it big in pro wrestling. He proved that in 2010 when, although he had only been on TV for a handful of months, the fans were buying into him as a legitimate main-event-caliber superstar.

He had a lot of people talking during his time with The Nexus because of his great promo skills, his ability to get himself noticed and the undeniable impact he made in the WWE in such a sport span.

What’s crazy, though, is that Barrett has improved a great deal since then, mainly in the ring. He probably wasn’t ready to be a main-event in-ring performer back in his early days with The Nexus, but now, he’s easily one of the best big men in the business.

Although creative hasn’t always had his back, Barrett has put on plenty of great matches with the likes of Sheamus and Randy Orton, and he’s proved to be—although maybe not an elite wrestler—a consistently reliable in-ring performer.

Unfortunately, his unquestionable talent has been wasted because the WWE has missed out on a number of opportunities to utilize it.

Take, for example, Barrett’s surprising jump to SmackDown in early 2011 and his subsequent formation of one of the worst stables in recent memory, The Corre. Why on earth did the WWE completely kill Barrett’s momentum by moving him to the less-watched blue brand and then making him a part of an absolute joke of a stable?

The Corre accomplished nothing for anyone involved in it, most of all Barrett. It took one of the highlights of Raw in 2010 and almost instantly turned him to an afterthought on SmackDown in 2011.

The WWE tried to change that by giving Barrett an Intercontinental Championship run, but that seemed like nothing more than a step down after Barrett was main-eventing just six months prior. Take into consideration that his title reign featured no memorable matches or feuds and that he lost the belt to Ezekiel Jackson of all people, and it’s safe to consider that reign a total failure.

Realizing that, the WWE attempted to build Barrett back up later in the year by putting him in a notable feud with Orton. The rivalry between these two was actually pretty solid, but Barrett came out of it no better off than he was beforehand—no world title opportunities, no significant push, nothing.

As a result, Barrett entered 2012 with far less momentum than he probably should have. But things would get even worse when Barrett went down with a major injury on the road to WrestleMania 28.

The creative team reportedly had big plans in store for Barrett at the time, according to this report from PWinsider via WrestlingInc.com, but the injury derailed those plans as he wound up missing roughly half of the year after undergoing elbow surgery.

At least initially, it appeared as if Barrett’s injury might be a blessing in disguise, though. As his return neared, the WWE began airing vignettes promoting Barrett’s return as the “Barrett Barrage,” and many thought that this meant a huge push was on the horizon for Barrett.

But that huge push never came.

In fact, nothing really changed for Barrett upon his return. He was “pushed” by squashing lower talent upon his return, but he never got back to that main-event level, instead winning the Intercontinental Championship only a few months after his return.

That could have been a nice little stepping stone to catapult Barrett to the world title picture. Instead, it became a huge curse.

Almost the instant that Barrett won the Intercontinental Championship, the creative team decided to start having him lose what seemed like 90 percent of his matches. Whenever he wrestled a non-title bout, it was a safe bet that he was going to lose—no matter who he was facing.

Barrett lost and lost and then lost some more, so despite holding the once prestigious Intercontinental Championship, he lost virtually all of his credibility. He became a jobber to the stars, and even after he won the title back from The Miz the night after WrestleMania 29, nothing changed.

Barrett still loses about 10 times more often than he wins, and as a result, he gets little reaction from the crowd with anything that he does. His promos generate the dreaded “What?” chants from the crowd while his matches generate crickets.

His momentum has been completely killed, and after first making a monumental splash in the WWE with The Nexus three years ago, he’s done next to nothing in the three years since then.

That isn’t Barrett’s fault. You can put that blame on creative.

But either way, the fact remains: Ever since The Nexus ended, Barrett’s WWE career has proven to be a complete waste of one of the most talented performers in the company.

Drake Oz is a WWE Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter!

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Curtis Axel's Intercontinental Title Win at WWE Payback was the Right Decision

Tom Clark — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 20:42:04 -0400

Curtis Axel is the new WWE Intercontinental champion. He won the title on Sunday night, June 16, at the Payback pay-per-view in a Triple Threat match against Wade Barrett and The Miz.

Though Axel is still somewhat an unproven talent in the company, I believe that putting the gold on him was definitely the right move.

As we all know, Axel is the latest client of Paul Heyman, a man who has been aligned with champions a few times over the years in WWE. From Brock Lesnar to CM Punk, Heyman’s influence has been undeniable.

From a storyline perspective, Heyman is the man who does nothing but lead talented WWE Superstars to the Promised Land.

And now we have seen the same with Curtis Axel.

From the moment that Heyman introduced Axel, the debate among fans has been raging. The fact is that Curtis is the son of the late Curt Hennig, known as Mr. Perfect in WWE, and that very well could have been the deciding factor when determining who should be given the spot with Heyman.

And the question that has been asked more than once is does he deserve it?

We are all aware of Axel’s past as Michael McGillicutty, a name that many of us have been trying very hard to forget. He honestly did not seem able to accomplish all that much the first time around, so how would that fairly unsuccessful past justify him being given this opportunity now?

For me, the question of whether he should be in the prime position next to Heyman was virtually a non-issue.

Axel is a talented guy, a third-generation Superstar who is skilled in the ring and in a company that thrives on men just like him. And the fact is that I personally did not see why he should not be afforded a chance to prove himself. He may have been in the right place at the right time, but he also was the right man for the spot.

He has a family history in the business, he has all the physical attributes to succeed, and he has been loyal to WWE. At any given point in his career as McGillicutty, Axel could have taken a walk, deciding that perhaps he was better off taking his chances with another company.

But he weathered the storm and now he is the new Intercontinental champion.

And for Axel to win the belt on Father’s Day is just icing on the cake. This also adds to his character and while fans may have a huge amount of respect for Axel’s father, the fact is that Mr. Perfect was a great heel. His son is now merely following in his footsteps.

For the championship itself, there was no better move at Payback. The truth is that despite how many times it appears as though Wade Barrett may be getting a bit further up the ladder, he always seems to go right back down to where he was before. He just does not seem to be able to keep his feet under him.

As for The Miz, I for one still do not see his babyface character being half as strong as his heel persona was. Combining that with the on-screen alliance with Ric Flair that I feel did not do very much for him, and we’re left with only one man who legitimately should have went over in this match.

This is just the beginning for Curtis Axel. Not only is he under the direction of Paul Heyman, he now has a championship belt to prove WWE’s commitment to him. He has the biggest opportunity of his career, and I cannot wait to see what will happen next.

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Why Curtis Axel Would Be a Perfect Intercontinental Champion

Bryan Haas — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:39:35 -0400

Since CM Punk lost the WWE Championship to The Rock in January, the WWE Universe has not seen a gold belt on a 'Paul Heyman Guy."

That fact could soon change though, as the newly minted Curtis Axel competes in a Triple Threat match at Payback for the Intercontinental Championship.

Axel, a third generation talent, has been the talk of the company in recent weeks, both for his ability to always seem to come out on top of his encounters with his opponents, and his ability to do so under questionable circumstances.

With wins over Triple H, Sin Cara, and WWE champion John Cena, Axel is beginning to amass a winning record that most competitors would kill for.

And frankly, this is a great spot for Axel right now. For weeks now he has been involved in matches with murky finishes, ones that leave fans wondering if he's actually a threat to their heroes, or if he's simply lucky.

By having him compete for a lesser title within the company, it allows Axel to build momentum, as well as compete against top level competition without placing the pressure of main event status on him right out of the gate.

In placing him into the match with the Miz and Intercontinental champion Wade Barrett, where he will replace the injured Fandango, the company has set Axel up on the brink of greatness.

And he has the tools to do it. While not a bodybuilder type or a bonafide seven-footer, Axel possesses several intangibles that many others do not.

First, he has history on his side. His father "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig held the Intercontinental title on two occasions. So his family name and the title may be synonymous.

Second, he is a grade-A worker, and trained with some of the real greats in preparation for some of their most important matches in recent memory.

Axel trained with The Rock to prepare for his WWE title match against Punk at the 2013 Royal Rumble.

He continued by training with another of Heyman's clients, Brock Lesnar to prepare for Lesnar's match against Triple H at Wrestlemania XXIX.

Finally, he has Heyman himself in his corner.

One of the greatest managers in history, Heyman legitimizes any superstar he aligns himself with. Whether it is physically getting involved in his clients matches, or just getting in the heads of their opponents, Heyman may be the biggest and most advantageous intangible of all.

At 33 years old, Axel is not exactly at the end of his career. But at the same time, if the company hopes to have him make any long lasting impression, they'd better get him moving in the right direction pretty soon.

The Intercontinental title is exactly the bauble that can allow him to do just that.

Already with one reign as half of the WWE tag team champions (with David Otunga), Axel has a chance to capture the title that his father held twice.

Regarded as one of the greatest Intercontinental champions of all time, and a WWE Hall of Famer, Hennig was the perfect balance of swagger, skill and intensity.

He was cocky on the mic, but always left the audience believing that he would back up whatever claims he talked about. His in-ring work normally left a statement, which more often than not began with 'Ladies and gentleman, here is your winner, Mr. Perfect."

And let's be honest, Axel's mic work is not incendiary. But that's why he has Heyman.

One of the best talkers in wrestling today, Heyman is the missing piece in today's wrestling scene that was dominated by managers with stables of clients in earlier decades.

With Punk, Lesnar and Axel in the fold, Heyman is beginning to build a faction that could rival some of the best of all time. Axel is the unproven link at the moment.

But a big title victory at Payback on June 16th could very well change that in convincing fashion.

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Why the Miz Should Win at Payback

Sharon Glencross — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 21:37:09 -0400

Let me me start off by saying something that many would consider bold. Something shocking. Something deeply controversial.

Mike "The Miz" Mizanin is actually a great babyface. And this is the reason he should come out on top in the Triple Threat match for the Intercontinental Championship at Sunday's Payback pay-per-view.

A large subset of fans have been lining up to trash the former WWE champion in recent years. While there are valid criticisms of the 32-year-old (no wrestler is perfect, after all), most of the main attacks regarding his WWE career seem unreasonable—and are easy to refute.

"He's not over as a babyface and people find him annoying," many complain.

OK, so how do you explain his WWE Studios film The Marine 3: Homefront, which was released in March, doing such great business? As The Numbers reveals, the film has sold 167,000 DVD copies in North America (as of May 26). Not only does this put it on track to be the biggest-selling WWE DVD of the year, as Dave Meltzer (via WrestlingInc) mentioned, it should be one of the company's best-sellers ever.

If Miz isn't over with fans as his critics claim, why did people turn out in their droves to buy a movie he starred in and that was marketed specifically around him?

"He's a former reality television star," is another insult usually thrown his way.

Hey, unless it's Honey Boo Boo or Teen Mom, reality television doesn't have the stigma it used to. In the entertainment business, it's just another way to get your foot in the door. Jennifer Hudson is an Oscar-winning actress and few use her history on American Idol against her.

Similarly, UFC's reality show Ultimate Fighter has churned out numerous major names in its near-decade long existence—Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans and Roy Nelson being the most notable examples—and you rarely hear anyone dismissing their accomplishments.

"He stole CM Punk's main event spot at WrestleMania 27, which Punk even complained about on his DVD!"

Let's be frank: WWE not yet allowing Punk to fulfill his dream of main eventing WrestleMania has nothing to do with The Miz or The Rock or anyone else. It's likely to do with Punk's own flaws as a performer (i.e. his inability to connect with casual fans and anyone else outside the IWC and hardcore base). If Phil Brooks could stop complaining and pointing fingers at other people for a minute, he might come to realize that.

"He can't wrestle!"

Again, this is an empty accusation. Miz has amassed an impressive body of work over the last few years, churning out great bouts with guys like Christian, Jerry Lawler, Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett. And even if you would want to give his opponents the majority of the credit, the simple fact is, a bad wrestler would not be producing good matches like this on a regular basis.

So, Miz is a lot more talented and popular than many are willing to give him credit for. And on Sunday he needs to win back the Intercontinental Championship from Wade Barrett.

Really, he's the best option.

Barrett's stock has fallen so far in the past few years, it's hard to believe this was once a man, as the leader of Nexus, looked set to be the top heel in WWE.

It's difficult to see how the belt helps the Englishman at all. Around his waist, it seems more of a dull midcard title than ever. In recent times only Miz, and Cody Rhodes before him, ever managed to make the title appear to be the truly big deal it was during the '80s and '90s.

What exactly does Barrett gain from his association with the title? What does the title gain from being associated with him?

Curtis Axel, who was inserted into the match on Monday after a concussion forced Fandango to pull out, is also a less than idol victor. Axel is already struggling, thanks to one of the most ill-thought out "pushes" of recent times.

Hey, nothing says "big star" like Stephanie McMahon saying several times on television that she doesn't think you're worth Triple H's time and effort.

With this in mind, it's far too soon to give Axel a title. While he is a terrific wrestler, he needs to recover from the past few weeks first.

Let's be honest: WWE's babyface ranks are in a bit of a state. Sheamus behaves like a bullying jerk. Triple H is coming off as more and more egotistical by the week. Alberto Del Rio has all the charm and charisma of a plank of wood and John Cena is, well, John Cena.

So, hopefully, on Sunday, the company returns the Intercontinental title to one face they've actually been doing a pretty decent job with.

Read more Wade Barrett news on BleacherReport.com

WWE Payback 2013: Curtis Axel will Win the Intercontinental Championship

Tom Clark — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 07:50:35 -0400

Curtis Axel has been on a high since debuting as Paul Heyman’s newest client in WWE. He has scored victories over Chris Jericho, Triple H and even WWE champion John Cena. Now, he is heading for a triple threat match at Payback on June 16 for the Intercontinental Championship.

And he’s winning the belt.

I don’t often go out on a limb and make such predictions on a match. It’s been my experience that such speculation rarely leaves you any wiggle room and if you’re wrong, then you end up with egg on your face later.

But in this case, I’m fairly confident that my face will remain relatively egg free.

Axel’s WWE career since adopting his new moniker may not exactly be the stuff of legend thus far but the fact is that the company seems committed to giving him sufficient air time to work. Heyman speaks for him quite a bit in promos and when confronting other Superstars, but Axel has not remained silent.

And his work in the ring has been fairly impressive, as he has more than held his own up to this point. He does seem to be on the right track to becoming the next big thing in Vince McMahon’s company.

What better way to help elevate him even higher than giving him the Intercontinental Championship? To be honest, I felt this was a move that had to happen at some point for Axel. After all, the belt itself has traditionally been used as a springboard in the past for up and coming Superstars on their way to greatness in WWE.

Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, Shawn Michaels and The Rock are just a few names who wore the IC belt as a precursor to becoming WWE champion later on. They proved their mettle in the ring, defended the title on a regular basis and eventually won the company’s top prize when the time was right.

The keyword here is eventually.

This is where some fans may criticize the possibility of Axel becoming Intercontinental champion at Payback. Axel has only been Heyman’s client for a few weeks now and has had no real rivalries since he began.

Perhaps winning the belt now would be too soon.

But considering that the current IC champ Wade Barrett has not been presented as a dominant titleholder—and Fandango is out of the match with a concussion—Axel is in the best place to take the gold.

Of course we cannot forget about The Miz, who has been doing all he can to get over since turning babyface. He is the third man in the triple threat at Payback and has proven in the past that he is more than capable of being a relevant champion.

However I personally do not see the championship going back to Miz right now. I think that WWE is very confident in Axel’s ability to succeed and perhaps sees the perfect opportunity to keep advancing him upward.

Speaking of perfect, we also cannot forget about the fact that Mr. Perfect, Curtis Axel’s father, was a very talented Superstar and one of the best Intercontinental champions of all time. While Axel is not his father by any means, the truth is that WWE may very well be drooling at the opportunity to put Curt Hennig’s title belt around his son’s waist.

Giving Axel the championship now is only a rushed deceision if he is not mentally and physically prepared for it. If he cannot carry the belt with confidence and continue to keep working hard in what he does, then he will fail no matter when he wins the title.

And Axel is not a brand new WWE Superstar either, he has done this before. His past as Michael McGillicutty is well known by fans and he was very accustomed to being on TV during that time. For WWE to do the work to repackage him and present him with Paul Heyman means that they believe he is now ready to take the next step.

The Intercontinental Title will be good for Axel, it will help elevate him and he could actually help elevate it, depending on the feuds and storylines that WWE builds around him. The stronger he is, the stronger the championship will be. If it’s done right, it will be a great move.

Curtis Axel’s rise in WWE could take yet another step when he faces Wade Barrett and The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship at Payback on June 16. While some fans may feel it’s too soon for Axel to win, I believe there is no better time than now.

In fact, it could be perfect timing.

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