Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: A Bray Wyatt vs. Triple H Feud Needs to Happen

1. Bray Wyatt Must Play The Game

As Wyatt stared down Triple H while wearing a predatory grin, he stroked the champion's title in a half-sultry, half-menacing way.

In that instant, WWE teased what a feud between these two could be. Without a word spoken or punch thrown between them, sparks started to fly. The audience roared at this unexpected sight.

Scott Fishman of the Orlando Sentinel noted how much fans reacted to the idea of Wyatt vs. Triple H:

The fleeting staredown has long been a way for the company to test the audience's interest in a possible story. When Braun Strowman and Big Show shared a faceoff this January, the reaction was mild. Not surprisingly, we haven't see those two engage in a long feud afterward.

When The Wyatt Family and The Shield drew battle lines in 2014, energy churned in the arena, anticipation rose. A similar energy pulsated when Wyatt glared at The Game on Monday's Raw. 

Even as much as WWE has beaten Wyatt and his crew into the ground, there is still a desire to see him rise. He is one of the most exciting young stars on the roster today. Wyatt's presence, verbal skills and uniqueness have him ready to be one of the next cornerstones for WWE.

A wise way to allow him to make that ascension is to first morph him into a babyface. Fans have long shown they want to root for him. They light his way to the ring with their phones and have gladly sung along to his hymns.

As Jim Ross wrote on his blog, "Wyatt is a major, character 'face if WWE ever decides [to] pull that trigger."

If WWE makes that happen, Wyatt would be refreshed. Taking advantage of his momentum would require him to take on the right rival.

Right now, Triple H remains WWE's most reliable villain. He flourishes as a tyrannical ruler and is still an elite big-match performer. When Daniel Bryan needed great opposition as he made his way to the WWE title, Triple H helped him there with a great match at WrestleMania XXX. Roman Reigns is set to get the same treatment at this year's WrestleMania.

Triple H playing that role for Wyatt is a no-brainer.

Rather than The Eater of Worlds being plugged into a cookie-cutter narrative, the strangeness of his character would force WWE to come up with a new angle for these two rivals. There can still be an executive-versus-rebel dynamic, but it will feel fresh with a monster playing the antihero.

Credit: WWE.com

Defeating a future Hall of Famer in Triple H would help Wyatt wash away the memories of his losses to Reigns, Undertaker and John Cena. And judging by how thrilled fans were just to see the hint of a Triple H-Wyatt rivalry, the ride to that climax promises to be a successful one.

2. Rebuilding Ryback

Backstage on Monday's Raw, Kalisto found himself looking up to Ryback. The Big Guy made it clear he would be on the hunt for the United States Championship Kalisto now possesses.  

WWE has slowly been preparing Ryback for contention.

Looking at his CageMatch.net profile reveals he has rattled off five straight wins. From February onward, he is 7-2.

His victims, though, have only been small fries so far. His winning streak has seen him take down the likes of Tyler Breeze and The Social Outcasts. To get fans to take the powerhouse seriously as a man worthy of a title shot, he'll need to add some bigger names to that list.

He's been an afterthought for so long that a couple of wins over low-ranking wrestlers just won't cut it. 

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Hayabusa

A magical performer is no longer with us. As Houston Mitchell of the Los Angeles Times reported last week, "Hayabusa (real name Eiji Ezaki) died Thursday from a brain hemorrhage."

Before the in-ring accident that paralyzed him, he was a special talent and one of the best things the Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling promotion had going. His 1994 showdown with Jushin "Thunder" Liger is a display of how artful high-flying wrestling can be.

And his story is a reminder of how much risk wrestlers take each night for the sake of our entertainment.

4. Austin Aries Will Be a Bedrock for NXT

NXT will simply be better off with Aries around.

A veteran of the mat game, a great storyteller and an in-ring artist, Aries will make booking NXT in the near future far easier. He gives officials a top-notch option to plug in, someone who can elevate wrestlers on the cusp of stardom. 

Baron Corbin attacking him during his debut clearly points to them feuding. That's great news for The Lone Wolf. Aries is the kind of wrestler who will lead him to the best matches of his career. Plus, Aries being such an indy favorite will make it easier for Corbin to garner heel heat.

Then it will be off to rivalries with all the NXT grapplers just beginning to make their mark. Expect Aries to then become a measuring stick for emerging prospects. 

5. Rhyno Running for Office

Rhyno (Terrance Gerin) could soon be the first former hardcore champion to be elected into the House of Representatives.

Gerin announced he is running for Michigan's 15th District seat. While his campaign is sure to draw a lot of snickers, the powerhouse is dead serious about getting elected and making an impact afterward.

Making sure Michigan's schools have the tools they need is one of the issues on his mind. In an interview with Alex Marvez of Fox Sports, Gerin said that trying to educate children without adequate supplies "would be like telling me to do my job without a ring. It would have to be a falls-count-anywhere brawl."

6. WrestleMania at the Citrus Bowl, the 1st Go-Round

Florida will be home to WrestleMania once more; WWE announced that the Orlando Citrus Bowl will host WrestleMania 33 in 2017.

The last time The Show of Shows came to that stadium (WrestleMania XXIV), WWE left happy.

As seen on the WWE corporate site, 74,365 fans piled in to see the event, and it garnered $5.85 million in ticket sales. Both numbers set records for the Citrus Bowl. It boasted the seventh-highest attendance in WrestleMania history.

While the mammoth AT&T Stadium is sure to set records this year, WWE will know that the following WrestleMania will generate robust numbers as well. 

7. Doing Right by Angle

As Kurt Angle said goodbye to TNA, the company that has been home to him for 10 years gave him quite the sendoff.

TNA's United Kingdom shows were billed as a farewell tour for the former world champ. Angle went up against some of TNA's best talents from Drew Galloway to Bobby Roode during that span. 

There has been a good amount of hoopla around him, and TNA has shown great class in how it has handled his exit. He more than deserves it. He was a centerpiece for the company and in a way its heart for the past decade.

8. Big Boss Man's Best

As first reported by CBS Sports' Adam Silverstein, The Big Boss Man (Ray Traylor Jr.) is headed to the Hall of Fame this April. The nightstick-wielding big man was known more for his character than his in-ring acumen, but he had a number of standout bouts during his career.

Watch him in action in his top matches to truly appreciate his resume.

• Big Bubba Rogers vs. Ron Garvin: Starrcade 1986 (Street Fight)
• Big Boss Man vs. Hulk Hogan: Saturday Night's Main Event, May 27, 1989 (Steel Cage)
• Big Boss Man vs. Mr. Perfect: The Main Event, Oct. 30, 1990
• The Boss vs. Vader: Spring Stampede 1994
• Big Bubba vs. Sting: WCW Nitro, Feb. 26, 1996

Many fans will most remember the Boss Man for his work in the Attitude Era in battles against Undertaker and Al Snow. It was before that, however, that he best channeled his physical gifts into performances on the canvas. Regardless of what name he went by, he was a heavy-handed bruiser with surprising agility for a man his size.

9. Painting Shane-O-Mac the Right Way

To convince fans that Shane McMahon has a shot to take down Undertaker at WrestleMania, WWE has its work cut out for it. That process is going well so far, though.

On Monday's Raw, WWE pushed a lot of the right buttons to play up McMahon's chances against his heavily favored foe. 

John "Bradshaw" Layfield ran down the list of big names Shane-O-Mac has defeated throughout his career—Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, Big Show, etc. There was no need to mention how long ago those victories occurred or how much help McMahon needed to earn them. Mentioning the past like this just served to remind the audience that McMahon knows how to pull off an upset.

WWE also wisely aired a video recalling his biggest moments. Showing us McMahon at his best is a good move.

And when he and his father were done bickering on Monday's Raw, Shane had to fend off a crew of security guards. He got to show off his striking skills as he cut down the would-be obstacles. Having McMahon take down a bulking Superstar would have been hard to swallow; WWE scripting him to take out some cronies was the better choice.

The next step is to take care of the Undertaker side of this story. Why he's fine with being a pawn is the question that needs to be answered soon.

10. On Hulk Hogan/Terry Bollea

The Hogan vs. Gawker trial has been bizarre from the outset. One of its oddest digressions was when jurors had to listen to a discussion of his penis size compared to that of his wrestling alter ego's. Moments like that leave one pondering just how deeply entrenched wrestlers are into their characters.

As Brandon Howard of Voices of Wrestling wrote, the trial has been a psychological exploration of that idea:

It's been an unsettling, uncomfortable journey thus far. Here's hoping it all wraps up in a hurry.