Wade Barrett Injury: Latest Updates and News on WWE Star

In the latter stages of RAW's 10-man battle royal on Monday to decide WWE Champion CM Punk's opponent at WrestleMania, Big Show tossed Dolph Ziggler out of the ring and onto Wade Barrett and R-Truth, causing Barrett to suffer a partially dislocated elbow.

According to WWE.com, Barrett will undergo an MRI to determine the full extent of the damage, and he is expected to be out of action for six to eight weeks. The time table makes it unlikely that he will return in time for WrestleMania unless he is a fast healer.

The injury occurred 41 days before WrestleMania, and the low end of his recovery time in 42 days, so a return isn't impossible, but it's unlikely. Barrett isn't currently involved in a big angle, but his injury comes at a bad time since something big could have been planned for him on April 1 in Miami, Fla.

There have been rumors that the Money in the Bank ladder match might make a return to WrestleMania 28 since the Money in the Bank pay-per-view was removed from the lineup this year. If that is the case, then you would have to think that Barrett would be among the favorites, along with the likes of Cody Rhodes and Dolph Ziggler.

If the company has handpicked Barrett as the next rising star, then it would certainly be a shame if this elbow injury caused his push to be delayed. Barrett looked to be on the ascent to the main-event scene throughout the fall, as he scored great wins against the likes of Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and Sheamus.

Barrett had been rolling through the competition, and it seemed like the "Barrett Barrage" was an unstoppable force. After Orton returned from his minor injury, however, he defeated Barrett and ultimately finished off what was left of his push.

The creative team generally starts and stops pushes at the drop of a dime, though, so there's no reason why Barrett couldn't have been the Money in the Bank winner, which would basically make him an automatic future world champion.

There's no telling what, if any, plans were in place for Barrett at WrestleMania, though, so there's no use in speculating. When you get down to the nuts and bolts of things, Barrett is fantastic on the mic, solid in the ring for a man of his size and he has a great look, so he figures to be a future star regardless.

Barrett has been on the precipice of being a world title contender multiple times, both when he was leader of the Nexus and when he was on a major winning streak a few months ago. He hasn't gotten there yet, but he's only been in the big time for a year-and-a-half, so there's plenty of time.

If the plan is for Barrett to win Money in the Bank and he's sufficiently healthy in time for 'Mania, then he should compete. But if there is any chance of him re-injuring the elbow, then it makes sense for him to take as much time as he needs so as not to risk what is a very bright future.