WWE Elimination Chamber Results: Whose Stock Is Rising or Falling After PPV?

What goes up must come down.

That statement can apply to almost anything in life, but it's a particularly useful saying for a WWE fan.

The stock of any WWE superstar fluctuates almost as much as the weather, and it's at pay-per-views when those stocks tend to skyrocket or take a tumble.

That's especially true tonight, the night of the last PPV before WrestleMania 28, Elimination Chamber.

Some wrestlers are relishing in victory right now while others are wondering where it all went wrong and how they can get back on track.

So, whose stock is rising and whose stock is falling after Elimination Chamber? Let's take a look.

Stock Down: Dolph Ziggler

The fall of Dolph Ziggler continues.

"The Showoff" was rapidly climbing up the WWE ladder throughout the second half of 2011, but he's now headed in the opposite direction.

Ziggler was a complete afterthought in his WWE Championship feud with CM Punk, and at tonight's Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, he was the second star eliminated from the Raw chamber match after entering third.

While Ziggler performed well in the ring, like he always does, he's lost a lot of the momentum that he built up last year, and his WrestleMania plans are certainly up in the air. 

Stock Up: Wade Barrett

Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes had similar Elimination Chamber performances in that they both looked good in the ring and were integral parts of the match.

But Barrett started the bout as one of the first two competitors and lasted longer than any other entrant, so I'll bump up his stock ever so slightly.

This isn't to say that he's headed for a World title match or a major storyline anytime soon, but he fared much better than Rhodes, The Great Khali and The Big Show.

I think the WWE showed a lot of faith in Barrett tonight by having him make a big impact in Smackdown's Chamber match, even if he didn't win it.

Stock Down: Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes was his usual great self in the little time that he was actually in the Elimination Chamber match.

Unfortunately for Rhodes, Santino Marella rolled him up to eliminate him from the bout, and he was the first heel to find himself on the wrong end of a pin.

While Rhodes looked strong when he eliminated The Big Show and certainly didn't have a bad performance in the match wrestling-wise, I was disappointed both with the way he was eliminated and how early it happened.

I guess I might be over-analyzing this a bit because I'm such a big Rhodes fan, but it's a shame that he's sort of been stuck in limbo as of late.

Like tonight's PPV showed, the creative team can't seem to decide what to do with him, and they needs to figure that out. Soon.

Stock Up: Chris Jericho

Make no mistake about it, Chris Jericho's stock is at its highest point of his current WWE run.

While many fans thought that Jericho would emerge from the Raw Elimination Chamber match victorious, that didn't actually happen, but it's not like he lost.

Y2J was never pinned and didn't tap out, so I'll take that as a pretty concrete sign that the creative team was protecting him by doing that injury angle because they didn't want him to win the WWE Championship but couldn't have had him lose, either.

I usually hate this type of booking, but it actually makes sense in this scenario.

Jericho may be hurt, but unlike the other competitors in the Raw EC match, his WrestleMania aspirations are still alive and well after a memorable performance. 

Stock Down: Kane

Kane returned to the WWE last December with a new mask, new attire and a new-found mean streak.

He looked poised to become the top heel on Raw and dominate the WWE throughout 2012, and in many ways, he's done just that.

But then we all realized who Kane was feuding with: John Cena.

We all expected to see Cena "rise above hate" no matter what Kane threw at him, and—what do you know?—that's exactly what happened.

Cena beat Kane in an Ambulance Match at Elimination Chamber tonight, and with The Rock returning soon for his feud with Cena, there's no place for Kane to go but down.

He's likely headed for a full-on feud with Zack Ryder, which should get a solid amount of TV time, but he won't be headlining Raw now that WrestleMania is in sight.

Stock Up: John Cena

Much to the surprise of, well, no one, John Cena was able to rise above hate at tonight's pay-per-view.

It was the right booking decision to have Cena look strong in his last pay-per-view match before his WrestleMania 28 encounter with The Rock, but it's the same old story we've seen hundreds of times.

Cena overcomes the odds and beats the villain. Blah, blah, blah.

His stock is certainly up right now, but to be honest, it's never really down.

Stock Down: The Miz

Given all the rumors floating around about The Miz's apparent backstage heat, he certainly could have had a worse performance in Raw's Elimination Chamber match.

But despite lasting longer than I thought he would, The Miz (like most competitors in the match) was nothing more than filler in the Punk vs. Jericho story.

What a change from this time last year, when The Miz was holding the WWE Championship and heading toward a WrestleMania match with John Cena.

The Miz has been a lost cause on Raw as of late, and tonight's PPV didn't do anything to change his bad fortunes.

A year after headlining WrestleMania, The Miz is going to have to fight for a spot on the card.

Stock Up: Kofi Kingston

Less than a month after his memorable handstand spot at the Royal Rumble, Kofi Kingston delivered once again.

He didn't win Raw's Elimination Chamber match or even eliminate any other competitors, but his performance stood out more than anyone else's.

Some will say that Kingston is a "spot monkey" who was only thrown into this match to do just that (perform spots), but it says a lot about the guy and the faith the creative team has in him.

Kingston seems to be getting a decent push as of late and was the shining star of the WWE Championship match.

Of all the superstars who lost on Sunday, Kingston made the most out of his opportunity.

Stock Down: The Great Khali

The Great Khali lasted, what, like 30 seconds in Smackdown's Elimination Chamber?

I'm not complaining because watching him wrestle is worse than listening to Nickelback all day, but it just seems kind of pointless to put him in the match if he's going to be used like that.

Khali's spot should have went to someone else, but oh well, maybe Khali's mini-push is officially over now.

Turns out that wish I made when I got the longer half of the wishbone came true.

Stock Up: CM Punk

There's one thing we know for sure: CM Punk is going to WrestleMania.

Raw's Elimination Chamber match wasn't without controversy, but regardless of what happens with Chris Jericho's injury angle, it's pretty clear that Punk will be competing for the WWE Championship in Miami.

Punk eliminated R-Truth early on in the match and The Miz at the end of it, being booked strongly in the process and leaving the Chamber with his belt in hand.

He looked like a WWE Champion that the company has faith in, and his victory on tonight's pay-per-view likely means that he's going to hold onto his title until or perhaps past WrestleMania 28.

Lengthy title reigns are rare in today's WWE, but it seems as if Punk is going to break the mold.

Stock Down: The Big Show

The Big Show had been booked like a huge threat heading into tonight's pay-per-view and even early on in the Smackdown Elimination Chamber match, but his momentum came to a crashing halt thanks to Cody Rhodes.

After Rhodes hit Big Show with the Beautiful Disaster and a DDT (and Wade Barrett hit a top rope elbow drop), he got the pin on Show and eliminated him from the match.

Just like that, Show's World title aspirations went up in smoke.

Big Show has been in the World Heavyweight Championship picture since October 2011, but the only thing he's accomplished over the last four months or so is having the shortest title reign in WWE history.

His time as a World title contender is over, and it's all downhill from here.

Stock Up: Santino Marella

Wow. How over is Santino Marella?

The pops he was getting at tonight's pay-per-view were absolutely unbelievable. He had the crowd firmly behind him, and despite the fact that we knew he wasn't wining, you would have thought he actually had a chance to if you were just judging by the crowd's reaction.

I guess you can't fault the fans for buying into Santino, though, because he did manage to eliminate both Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett.

The dude may be a comedy figure in the WWE, but he's more popular than ever and will continue to shine as long as he's getting those massive pops.

Tonight was an unforgettable performance from Santino, one that means we'll likely see his push continue for the foreseeable future.

Stock Down: R-Truth

R-Truth had a "blink and you'll miss it" performance in Raw's Elimination Chamber match.

He was given a decent spot in the bout as the No. 4 entrant, but he still managed to be the first competitor eliminated when CM Punk hit him with a top rope elbow drop that isn't even a finisher.

I know that no one really considered Truth to be a serious threat to win the WWE Championship, but I expected him to have a solid showing because he's been pushed more than some other guys in the match.

So much for that, though.

Looks like Truth is going to be arguing with Little Jimmy rather than competing in any sort of high-profile match at WrestleMana 28.

Stock Up: Daniel Bryan

Two years ago, I don't think anyone would have imagined seeing Daniel Bryan heading to WrestleMania to defend the World Heavyweight Championship.

But thanks to his successful title defense at Elimination Chamber, that's exactly what he's going to do.

I'd bet that initial plans called for Bryan to lose his belt at tonight's PPV (probably to Randy Orton), but he's been ridiculously awesome as a heel World Champion, thus giving the creative team no choice but to give this guy what he deserves: a World title match at WrestleMania 28.

From indy star to WrestleMania headliner, Bryan's stock isn't just up. It's higher than it's ever been.

Drake Oz is a WWE Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter and ask him any wrestling-related questions on Formspring.