WWE SmackDown: Burning Questions to Address After Sept. 27 Show

After Tuesday's WWE SmackDown, it's hard to know whether fans should ready themselves for a series of curveballs.

John Cena's talk of chasing history makes it seem as if another world championship is on the way. Bray Wyatt retreating from his own refuge leaves the audience awaiting another stumble for him ahead. Dolph Ziggler's promise to hang up his boots if he can't beat The Miz makes one wonder if he would actually follow through on an early departure.

History says that Cena will win and Wyatt will lose. Logic says that Ziggler will stick around after teasing an exit from the WWE circus.

But those aren't all safe bets. WWE may be gearing up to spring a few surprises for its fans on subsequent SmackDowns and the No Mercy pay-per-view on Oct. 9.

Is John Cena's 16th World Title Reign Inevitable?

The subject of Ric Flair's record came up when Cena sat in on commentary as Dean Ambrose tried to reclaim the WWE World Championship from AJ Styles. Cena noted that he wants to tie Flair's unmatched mark of 16 world title wins. He is only one win away from doing so.

As Cena talked of looking to become the greatest ever, it was clear that this will be a major part of the Ambrose-Styles-Cena storyline.

WWE loves pushing the present as the best thing we've ever seen. If the company can trumpet Cena as better than Flair and show the numbers to prove it, it will be. 

Does that spell doom for Styles? Is he suddenly a lame-duck champ?

Cena will win the WWE title again. He's been claiming that prize again and again since 2005.

The uncertainty lies with the timing of that achievement.

Styles has been red-hot in the ring since joining WWE in January. WWE has positioned him as a key member of the New Era, and his run as SmackDown's top dog has only just begun.

Pushing The Phenomenal One off the mountain at No Mercy would be too early.

Cena will continue to close in, though. The countdown to his record-matching feat is ticking.

What's the Plan for Curt Hawkins?

Every week, fans get a new set of Hawkins-centered jokes, a few glimpses of the returning Superstar and little else. He has been "coming soon" for a long time.

On Tuesday's SmackDown, he promised an announcement for next week.

Will that be in taped form, too? Will we actually see Hawkins live on the blue brand? And then what?

His vignettes haven't explained anything about who he is or what he wants. They have just been a play on the Chuck Norris facts memes floating around the internet.

Whatever WWE has in mind for the former tag team champ will be a surprise. And it will likely flop. It's hard to imagine this gimmick turning into anything.

Fightful.com has already given up on Hawkins:

Hawkins is likely to find himself where Darren Young is right now—floundering after WWE handed him an incomplete idea to work with. The returning grappler's character, though, has even less depth at this point than Young's.

Is Bray Wyatt Headed for Another Fall?

Randy Orton dared to enter Wyatt's lair. He not only didn't fear The Eater of Worlds, but he also sent Wyatt running once he discovered him in the darkness.

The segment was plenty creative and created a memorable atmosphere, but it's hard not to worry the interaction these two had in Wyatt's eerie world was an indication of what's to come.

Wyatt couldn't take down Roman Reigns, Cena or Undertaker. Facing Orton could be a major career boost for him, but not if The Viper runs all over him as those men did.

After Orton sneaked up on Wyatt, the guys at the New Age Insiders podcast joked about The New Face of Fear's future:

Sometimes, it feels as if that's how things will unfold. Wyatt always promises to bring fury and chaos before he ends up losing. He has been the monster the majority of the village has conquered. 

The Orton-Wyatt showdown on Tuesday night may not be a predictor of the feud's outcome, but fans will have a hard time believing that until they see otherwise. 

Is This Really the End for Dolph Ziggler?

A tearful, emotional Ziggler slid all of his chips to the center of the table on Tuesday's SmackDown. In order to get The Miz to give him another chance at the Intercontinental Championship, he put his career on the line.

Now Ziggler will either become IC champ at No Mercy or retire.

Is this just a means to create drama surrounding the feud, or is The Showoff really leaving? Ziggler (36) isn't exactly at retirement age. In addition, according to PWInsider.com (h/t Bill Hanstock of Cageside Seats), Ziggler signed a new deal with WWE in 2015.

If Ziggler wanted to get out, though, he and WWE could have come to some behind-the-scenes agreement.

Cody Rhodes left recently after being frustrated with his position in the company. Ryback, Alberto Del Rio and Wade Barrett all took similar paths. Ziggler has as much to gripe about with his booking as those guys.

And with him doing stand-up comedy and acting lately, it's conceivable he wants to venture elsewhere for a while.

The uncertainty surrounding his possible exit is, however, just what WWE wanted to create. The latest Ziggler-Miz showdown is suddenly bolstered by huge stakes, and the result will be far more significant than normal.

It's best to savor The Showoff while one still can.