WWE Survivor Series Results: Antonio Cesaro Beats R-Truth and What It Means

WWE’s Survivor Series pay-per-view saw Antonio Cesaro make short work of R-Truth in his latest United States Championship defense. What should have been Cesaro’s most impressive defense yet only proved what we already know—Cesaro is struggling to get over.

R-Truth was arguably Cesaro’s most notable challenger yet. As a former United States champion himself, R-Truth has had a much better track record than many of Cesaro’s past contenders.

Their match was decent at best and failed to connect with the live crowd in a meaningful way. What should have been Cesaro’s chance to establish himself and the United States Championship was just another forgettable match.

Cesaro has put his title on the line against the likes of Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel. While those matches weren’t well-received by the live audience, they were very entertaining contests.

At Survivor Series, R-Truth seemed like he was only going through the motions. Combine that with the fact that his character is awfully stagnant, and he’s a big reason this match was a flop.

R-Truth didn’t lose much and Cesaro didn’t gain much. This match hardly accomplished anything.

Sure, Cesaro can add R-Truth to his laundry list of defeated foes. That’s about all this match was good for.

Cesaro has had months to prove himself on the PPV stage. He’s been able to marginally connect with the crowd based on his in-ring talent alone.

This match proved, once again, that Cesaro can’t garner heat based on his performance between the ropes.

He needs more.

What this match means is that the WWE needs to get behind Cesaro more. Other than winning the United States Championship, he hasn’t come very far since his debut.

To progress, Cesaro needs to progress his character. He could benefit greatly from an actual feud. He needs a personal program because obviously having the United States Championship on doesn’t provide the necessary drama to put heat on Cesaro.

An actual feud would provide Cesaro with the opportunity to get mic time for something other than his five-languages gimmick. That would help advance his character, which is growing staler with each passing day.

If anything, he’s proven he has the ability to put on an entertaining match. A more personal, compelling program would help Cesaro establish his character more than anything else—giving him a much better chance to connect with fans and be the entertaining champion he should be. 

Michael Prunka is a Bleacher Report Featured Columnist and Sports Writing Intern. Stay up to date with him by liking his Facebook page and following him on Twitter.

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