WWE News: Reviews, Analysis and Rumors for Week of July 22
WrestleMania may have taken place back in April, but there was certainly a WrestleMania-like atmosphere in the air on Monday as the 1,000th episode of Raw took place in St. Louis. It was billed as an absolutely massive event for the company, and it certainly delivered in that regard.
A little bit of everything happened on the show, which was the official launch of permanent, three-hour shows. Numerous legends, such as The Rock, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart and many others, made their return to the WWE.
None of that even compared to what happened at the close of the show, however, as a shocking heel turn may very well turn the WWE upside down. There was speculation that a major angle was going to start at Raw 1,000, and it appears as though those reports were accurate.
In addition to all of that, a title changed hands on Monday, and more information came to light regarding the rumored release of a popular diva. With so much and more taking place over the past week, this is certainly one of the busiest times on the WWE calendar.
Here are the latest news pieces and rumors from the WWE for the week beginning on July 22.
CM Punk Turns Heel at RAW 1000
1 of 5When John Cena announced last week that he would cash in his Money in the Bank contract against WWE Champion CM Punk at Raw 1,000, it set up a huge main event for one of the year's biggest shows. Big Show ultimately interfered and forced a disqualification as he attacked Cena, but then the real highlight happened.
Punk turned his back and didn't help Cena, which prompted The Rock to run out and take on Big Show. Just as The Rock was about to deliver the People's Elbow, Punk came back and hit Rocky with a clothesline followed by a GTS. Punk then took his title and stared menacingly as Jerry "The King" Lawler claimed that the champ turned his back on the WWE Universe.
My Take
I was fully expecting Cena to come out on top in this match, so needless to say, I was surprised and pleased by the result.
I thought that Punk was really good in his role as a No. 2 face, but a shakeup was needed. Punk has held the title since Survivor Series, but he has essentially played second fiddle to Cena and hasn't had what I would consider to be a memorable reign.
There is a real lack of top heel talent in the WWE right now, so the time was right to turn Punk. He is now the unquestioned No. 1 heel and can go head-to-head with Cena rather than remaining in his shadow.
Punk's heel turn had been teased based on suggestions that he was being overshadowed by Cena and others, and I believe that will be his main platform. It should make for an interesting close to the summer as the WWE Championship will be relevant again and won't take a backseat to Cena any longer.
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The Rock to Challenge WWE Champion at Royal Rumble
2 of 5It may have been put on the back burner a bit thanks to the events that closed the night, but one of the biggest announcements at Raw 1,000 was that The Rock would face the WWE Champion at Royal Rumble.
The Rock has said that his goal is to become WWE Champion once again. He will have that opportunity in January, as he will take on whoever has the title at that time.
There are plenty of different options that could take shape over the next several months. But the most likely candidates in terms of Rock's opponents would seem to be incumbent champion CM Punk or John Cena.
Whatever the case, The Rock will make one of the year's most important pay-per-views even better.
My Take
Whether you love or hate The Rock, I'm not sure how this development can be considered anything other than positive. Aside from the Royal Rumble match itself, the pay-per-view has grown a little stale over the years. But The Rock's return to the ring will reinvigorate it.
There is a huge angle of some sort being planned for The Rock at WrestleMania, so I believe he will win the WWE Championship.
My best guess is that Punk will retain until the Rumble as his attack of The Rock on Raw was setting up something further down the line. I anticipate "Stone Cold" Steve Austin helping The Rock win, which would create a match between Punk and Austin at WrestleMania.
Also, Cena would then win the Royal Rumble, and we would see Rock vs. Cena II at WrestleMania for the WWE Championship.
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The Undertaker Returns at RAW 1000
3 of 5The Undertaker didn't appear a single time between the build for this year's WrestleMania and the previous WrestleMania match against Triple H. So it was uncertain whether he would be at Raw . His segment wasn't necessarily an important one, but the creative team found a way to get The Undertaker involved. And the fans absolutely ate it up, as he is one of the most important figures in Raw's history.
Taker saved his brother, Kane, from a group beating at the hands of Hunico, Camacho, Tyler Reks, Curt Hawkins, Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre. Aside from Taker botching the removal of his hood, it was a fun segment, as the Brothers of Destruction reigned supreme once again.
My Take
Ignoring the fact that it didn't make sense for The Undertaker to help Kane after Kane essentially tried to kill him over a year ago, I thoroughly enjoyed this. I don't believe that there are any plans to utilize Taker again until closer to WrestleMania, so this was a way to get him involved with a huge show without putting him in a long-term angle right away.
Although I know there is no chance it will happen, the segment made me wish that a permanent reunion of the Brothers of Destruction would take place. Taker won't wrestle a full schedule, so that isn't a possibility, but the WWE has the potential for a great tag team division.
Brothers of Destruction, Primo and Epico, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara and several other potential teams could take the suffering division out of the doldrums. Since that isn't a possibility, though, I do anticipate Taker and Lesnar feuding closer to WrestleMania with a match taking place at MetLife Stadium.
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The Miz Defeats Christian for Intercontinental Championship
4 of 5Prior to leaving the WWE for a couple months to film The Marine 3, The Miz was in a bad way, as he was mired in a massive losing streak. He had fallen far over the course of the year after a fruitful run with the WWE Championship.
It turns out that the time away from the ring was very good for The Miz, as he came back with a new look and attitude.
Things got even better on Monday when he defeated Christian and won his first Intercontinental Championship. With the victory, The Miz accomplished a rare feat by becoming a Grand Slam Champion, having held the WWE, United States and Tag Team Championships previously.
Now that Miz is in a high-profile spot again, it will be interesting to see where he goes from here.
My Take
As a big supporter of The Miz, I was disenchanted by the way he was being booked prior to his hiatus. Now, I realize that it was just a way to write him off temporarily, though.
Miz will always have his detractors who claim he is terrible in the ring and is nothing more than a reality television star. But fact is that he has improved markedly in the ring since his debut and that he is one of the best talkers in the business currently.
The WWE clearly believes in The Miz as well, since he is a former WWE Champion and was given the Intercontinental Championship just a couple weeks after his return. In some ways, the IC title has degenerated into a meaningless belt, but I feel like it will be used to get The Miz back to main-event level, especially with so few high-caliber heels.
The best thing for The Miz would be a feud with Randy Orton and a match at SummerSlam in which Miz goes over and gets the rub.
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Kharma Confirms Her Release from WWE
5 of 5For the past couple weeks, there have been rumors swirling regarding the release of Kharma, as her profile on WWE.com had been moved to the alumni section. Nothing was confirmed until this week, however, when Kharma confirmed that she had been released, according to ProWrestling.net. Kharma also said that it didn't mean she wouldn't be back, though.
This entire situation is tough, because there were obviously huge plans for Kharma when she debuted last year. An unplanned pregnancy derailed things, however, and then a tragic stillbirth set her back emotionally.
Her only appearance since the pregnancy was a surprise entry in the Royal Rumble. Many hoped she would return to action after that, but it never came to be.
My Take
A lot of people probably want to blame the WWE for this, but I have a hard time believing that they released her simply because they couldn't figure out to do with her. Not much figuring has to be done when it comes to Kharma. Just have her come to the ring and squash someone as she had been doing.
The more likely reason for the release, in my opinion, is that Kharma still wasn't ready to return due to emotional distress.
My hope is that the WWE released her so she can take her mind of wrestling for a while, get better and then ultimately return to the company at some point. I could take or leave Divas wrestling, but it was definitely interesting when Kharma was in the fold.
It seems like the WWE definitely left the door open for her, so perhaps we will once again see Kharma wreaking havoc down the road.
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