Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: WWE Pushing Hard to Revive Intercontinental Title

1. Intercontinental Championship On Its Way Back 

WWE is prepping for another golden age with the once-coveted IC title. After letting that championship leak the majority of its significance, the company is working hard to bring back its glory days.

That's welcome news, as the belt that Hall of Famers like Pedro Morales and Shawn Michaels once wore can and should be far more important than it has been in recent years.

The "restore prestige" mission has come from several directions. Announcers have talked far more about the title's history and its importance. WWE.com featured an Intercontinental Title Roundtable where former titleholders like Edge and Randy Orton talked about the belt.

The chase for that championship has also headlined several SmackDowns this year, including last week's show. Building toward the Ladder match for Bad News Barrrett's title, WWE showcased all the challengers in a Gauntlet match. 

In that bout, fans saw a glimpse of what the IC title can be—a celebration of wrestling in the land of sports entertainment.

Give us more action like this, WWE. Continue to let hungry wrestlers fight over the crown.

Having Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler compete for it has already created some buzz. Should those men and their opponents steal the show at WrestleMania, as many folks expect, that will only increase.

Bryan is the perfect fit as a champion who can alter how fans view the title. He's no midcarder struggling for the spotlight, as we have seen with many recent IC champs. He is a headliner with an ardent fan club who will bring added attention to the IC title picture.

Regardless of who comes out of WrestleMania as champion, WWE simply has to book him better than it has Barrett and others. It should replace non-title losses with hot streaks and thrown-together bouts for classic, well-built matches.

The move to restore the IC title's prestige can then be more than talk; it can be a long-awaited reality.

2. Hot/Cold Heading into WrestleMania

With WrestleMania XXXI drawing ever closer, WWE has made sure to have a trio of emerging stars avoid defeat. Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt and Rusev all have recent win-loss records that paint them as formidable foes and all-but-unstoppable forces. 

Barrett, on the other hand, has been asked to lie down far too often. His momentum has been generated instead by post-match attacks.

The Englishman is among the least successful Superstars in their last 10 bouts (excluding the Royal Rumble and matches taped for Thursday's SmackDown), according to CageMatch.net:

• Roman Reigns (9-1)
• Rusev (9-1)
• Bray Wyatt (9-1)
• Dolph Ziggler (8-2)
• Dean Ambrose (8-2)
• Daniel Bryan (7-3)
• John Cena (6-4)
• Seth Rollins (3-7)
• Randy Orton (3-7)
• Bad News Barrett (2-8)

Ziggler boasts a win in SmackDown's Gauntlet match and a singles victory against Bryan on Monday's Raw. That could well just be WWE's attempt to make it look like The Showoff is winning at WrestleMania, only to make Bryan's victory more of a "surprise."

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Dean Ambrose and Luke Harper

Before Ambrose and Harper go to battle at WrestleMania with the Intercontinental Championship hanging above the ring, let's travel back in time to their pre-WWE days. They collided for Dragon Gate USA in 2010, when they were known as Jon Moxley and Brodie Lee, respectively.

It's not a spectacular match, but it's certainly intriguing to see how much they have changed and how much their styles and personalities are the same.

Harper was every bit the brute he is today but has grown a lot as an in-ring storyteller. He is now one of WWE's most underrated talents, a star ready to break out.

As for Ambrose, it was clear back then that he was going to be a major success. His presence made him stand out early in his career.

4. Big-Time Star, Part-Time Champion

Brock Lesnar cut the whispers about his contract status short when he announced on ESPN that he has re-signed with WWE (h/t Complex):

That's excellent news for wrestling fans. As much as he might have wanted to see what he had left in him in terms of an MMA career, he is a far better pro wrestler than cage fighter, and the company has to be stoked to officially have him in the fold past WrestleMania.

He is a tremendous asset, but not as WWE champ.

His part-time schedule is fine. It has made him feel like more of an attraction. It has handcuffed the WWE title picture, though.

Officials can't book feuds properly without him showing up more. Paul Heyman has had to strain his back carrying the Reigns-Lesnar feud. 

And while the WWE champ doesn't have to defend the title at every show, The Beast Incarnate has put the belt on the line just two times in seven months. That won't cut it. 

WWE needs a champion who can be a more constant, integral part of its programming. It needs someone who can be a centerpiece.

It's hard to be the face of the company when you are only intermittently on camera.

5. WrestleMania WWE Title Changes

WrestleMania once almost guaranteed a title change at the top. The company has moved away from making The Showcase of the Immortals an annual championship transition.

Recent history makes it less than a safe bet that Reigns will take Lesnar's belt from his hands:

Event	Winner	Previous Champion
WrestleMania IV	Randy Savage	Vacant
WrestleMania V	Hulk Hogan	Randy Savage
WrestleMania VI	Ultimate Warrior	Hulk Hogan
WrestleMania VII	Hulk Hogan	Sgt. Slaughter
WrestleMania VIII	Randy Savage	Ric Flair
WrestleMania IX	Yokozuna	Bret Hart
WrestleMania IX	Hulk Hogan	Yokozuna
WrestleMania X	Bret Hart	Yokozuna
WrestleMania XII	Shawn Michaels	Bret Hart
WrestleMania XIII	Undertaker	Sycho Sid
WrestleMania XIV	Steve Austin	Shawn Michaels
WrestleMania XV	Steve Austin	The Rock
WrestleMania XVII	Steve Austin	The Rock
WrestleMania XVIII	Triple H	Chris Jericho
WrestleMania XIX	Brock Lesnar	Kurt Angle
WrestleMania XXI	John Cena	John "Bradshaw' Layfield
WrestleMania XXVI	John Cena	Batista
WrestleMania XXIX	John Cena	The Rock
WrestleMania XXX	Daniel Bryan	Randy Orton

That is a total of 18 WrestleManias that crowned a new WWE champ. The 60 percent success rate is misleading, though.

In the past 10 years, the champion has failed to retain only four times. That's a far cry from WrestleMania IV to WrestleMania XV, where WWE went with 12 total title changes in 12 years.

And with Lesnar now re-signed, it's less clear whether Reigns will be the next new champ to emerge from WrestleMania or if The Beast Incarnate will continue the recent trend of championship retention.

6. Hulk Hogan Sits with Bill Simmons

In his latest The B.S. Report, Simmons talked with The Hulkster, focusing on WrestleMania and Andre the Giant.

It's a fun interview aided by Simmons' fandom. He clearly appreciates the art form and is in awe of much of what Hogan has to say. As he mentioned during his brief stint on commentary on Monday's Raw, Simmons is pushing for ESPN to do a documentary about Andre.

That absolutely needs to happen.

7. Great WrestleMania Openers

The smart move is to kick off WrestleMania with the Intercontinental Championship match. It's a surefire way to get the crowd fired up and generate momentum for the rest of the night.

Going with a Ladder match to open the show has been mighty successful in the past. A pair of Money in the Bank matches are among the five best WrestleMania openers:

• Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart—WrestleMania X
• Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio—WrestleMania XXI
• Money in the Bank Ladder match—WrestleMania XXIII
• Money in the Bank Ladder match—WrestleMania XXIV
• Daniel Bryan vs. Triple H—WrestleMania XXX

Guerrero and Mysterio were always great together. WrestleMania XXI is just one of many examples of that.

Bret vs. Owen is a must-see for anyone who missed out on it. It's the right blend of mat wrestling and storytelling, a show-stealer with few frills. Triple H and Bryan's instant classic last year was in that same vein.

8.  R.I.P. Perro

As reported by The Washington Post, among other outlets, Mexican wrestler Perro Aguayo Jr. died in the ring over the weekend. He collapsed after taking a routine bump in a match with Rey Mysterio and others.

The tragedy is a sober reminder of the fact that wrestlers risk their lives each time they entertain us in the ring.

It's a sad time for Aguayo's family and the wrestling family as a whole. What appears to have been a freak accident ended a promising career—and more importantly, a man's life. 

New Japan Pro Wrestling tag team The Young Bucks did well to sum up the situation on Twitter: 

9. The Case for Neville

NXT is making its way to WrestleMania. WWE announced on its official website that four NXT stars will compete in a tournament for a chance to enter the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

As fun as it would be to see Tyler Breeze or Finn Balor win that spot, Adrian Neville is the best choice right now.

The Man Who Gravity Forgot has maximized his stay at NXT. He's been the top guy, produced a litany of great matches and become far more comfortable on the microphone. He's ready to make the jump to the main roster, and this is an opportune time to do so.

Credit: WWE.com

Flashy, high-flying moves will get fans' attention. A strong showing in the Battle Royal will start his stint on the main roster in exciting fashion.

And WWE would be wise to make this tourney an annual tradition.

10. Go-Home Raw Earns the Wrong Reaction

The last Raw before WrestleMania ended with Reigns and Lesnar in a tug of war with the WWE title. It was one of the silliest, most disappointing endings to a show this important in recent memory.

Fans and critics lambasted it.

Andrew Goldstein, who previously worked for WWE Creative, was one of many folks baffled by the segment:

More failures like the one on Monday, and whoever penned that ending will soon be joining Goldstein in the "former WWE writer" category.