Why Del Rio Deserves to Lose the World Heavyweight Title at SummerSlam

In the past, World Heavyweight champion Alberto Del Rio has claimed that greatness is his destiny.

And with his four combined WWE and World Heavyweight title reigns, one could make a case for him having achieved that level of greatness.

However, the case could also be made for him being one of the least interesting superstars on the roster. It could also be said that he is getting a great deal of attention due to his heritage and ethnicity.

Del Rio is generally renowned in the Latino community, and with the loss of Rey Mysterio and the incredibly lackluster performance by the much hyped Sin Cara, the company needed someone to fill that void.

So it turned him face from his brutal heel persona, and a star was born—for about a month or so.

Then it seemed as if the entire WWE Universe woke up and realized that Del Rio has portrayed the exact same character since his debut in 2010 and has not even portrayed it well.

Despite the fact that he does boast an impressive number of title reigns, in addition to winning the Royal Rumble and Money in the Bank (both in 2011), he has simply failed to meet expectations.

At first, his gimmick was slightly entertaining, with him driving into arenas in expensive automobiles and essentially telling people that he was better than them.

He has great size (6’5”), and his mat wrestling skills are some of the best in the company. His cross armbreaker finisher, while somewhat basic, is devastating nonetheless and nearly always secures him a victory.

However, for all of his above-average mat wrestling skills and his unbelievably brutal in-ring nature, Del Rio has never had the “it” factor that is necessary for a superstar to put a long-lasting mark upon the face of professional wrestling.

And his recent attack on his personal ring announcer Ricardo Rodriguez stood to halt any real popularity that he had, as Rodriguez was one of the only reasons that Del Rio was still relevant. The company needs to wake up and realize that Rodriguez was the one gaining huge cheers, and the crowd noise generally died out once Del Rio actually made his entrance.

Meanwhile, his SummerSlam opponent, former two-time World Heavyweight champion Christian, is a firm fan favorite and garners great reactions in nearly every scenario that he appears in.

His resume of accolades is far more impressive than Del Rio’s to boot, boasting two ECW World Championships, nine World Tag Team victories and four WWE Intercontinental title reigns.

He is also a two-time NWA World champion due to his time in TNA.

He is a proven commodity in the wrestling business, a legitimate draw and a solid fan favorite, which are all the direct opposite of everything that Del Rio currently is. That alone could be the reason that Del Rio loses the title on August 18th.

Let us not forget that the slogan on Christian’s t-shirt reads “Vital Element.”

For the sake of wrestling fans everywhere, let us all hope the it is the element to bring excitement back to the World Heavyweight title.