Dolph Ziggler's Career-Saving WWE No Mercy 2016 Win Must Be Start of Huge Push

It's a familiar position for Dolph Ziggler—the precipice of superstardom.

He finds himself standing there yet again after winning the Intercontinental Championship in a career-versus-title match at WWE No Mercy 2016. The Showoff looks ready to climb onto the top tier and is the center of great buzz and the talk of what could be. Again.

After Sunday's SmackDown-exclusive pay-per-view, Ziggler is on the verge of moving past the midcard and finding a home on the marquee, but only if WWE commits to him.

Ziggler's career to this point has been a series of almosts and what-ifs. The story is the same each time. He pours his heart out onto the canvas and into every microphone he is handed and achieves some career-altering triumph, only to watch WWE fail to follow up on it.

That can't happen this time around. 

Ziggler's pursuit of The Miz has led to the best work of his career. The IC champ has captivated as his desperation has grown—as he tearfully talked about his failures and promised to retire if he didn't beat The Miz at No Mercy.

Adam Pacitti of WhatCulture tweeted how this rivalry has bolstered The Showoff:

And the apex of that feud arrived on Sunday night. The Miz battered Ziggler for much of their bout, but Ziggler fought on, flourishing in the gutsy babyface role that has been his calling card. Their match arguably outdid the stellar AJ Styles vs. John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose Triple Threat bout.

Ziggler was convincingly desperate to win and stave off retirement. His body language, his overflowing emotion, upped the theatrical nature of the match. Each time it looked as if The Miz had him beat, the audience seemed to hold its breath. 

This is what Ziggler is capable of when he has an angle with depth and a match that matters.

The power of the story and the excellence of the performances of both Ziggler and The Miz made their clash worthy of the headlining spot, even if WWE thought otherwise and put Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt on last. 

Miami Herald writer Scott Fishman is among those who believed the IC title match should have been No Mercy's main event:

Moving forward, that spot befits Ziggler. Now that he is the IC titleholder and fresh off nailing a grab-the-audience-by-the-throat moment, WWE has to consider moving him upward. 

In the past, the company has chosen to let potential catalysts dissipate in regard to him. 

When a concussion interrupted his World Heavyweight Championship reign in 2013, WWE didn't offer Ziggler a chance to climb back into that spot. It didn't matter that he and Alberto Del Rio had pulled off a picture-perfect double turn. It didn't matter that the crowd erupted when a heel Ziggler cashed in his Money in the Bank contract months prior.

By the time Battleground rolled around that year, WWE had relegated Ziggler to the pre-show.

At Survivor Series 2014, Ziggler was a central figure in the PPV's main event. He survived every unfair obstacle thrown at him, and with Sting's help, he secured the win for Team Cena to oust The Authority from the WWE.

That felt like the precursor to Ziggler's move into WWE's top tier. It wasn't.

An IC title run followed, but within a few months of his major moment at Survivor Series, he was just another guy. Ziggler wrestled on the pre-show for Fastlane 2015, was booked in a crowded bout for the IC crown at WrestleMania 31 and was soon rubbing his face in Sheamus' buttocks.

Just this summer, WWE again found a way to spark interest in Ziggler and again teased that he was set to soar.

Ziggler surprisingly earned a world title shot at SummerSlam against Dean Ambrose. But his trip into contender status came after bleeding momentum for months. It was hard to take Ziggler as a serious threat. A rushed build couldn't overcome that.

As a result, Ziggler and Ambrose produced a disappointing match that didn't engage the crowd. Ziggler slid down the card afterward...until he stepped up to The Miz.

Again, he emulated the phoenix and rose. He and The Miz quickly made their battle SmackDown's top feud. Ziggler's passion thrilled. His bouts with The Miz wowed.

Despite how much The Miz was killing it as a narcissist champion, WWE shifted things Sunday. Ziggler is now tasked with following The Miz's quality work.

As Justin LaBar, host of Chair Shot Reality, pointed out, WWE better have something good ahead:

The last times Ziggler held the IC title were mostly forgettable. His reigns were short, inconsequential and not enough of a priority. 

Per WWE.com, The Showoff won the IC crown three times in 2014. One time he held the belt for just 23 days. He also had a 36-day reign that year.

Rather than undercut him like that, WWE has to take advantage of Ziggler's momentum. It needs to continue to make the Intercontinental Championship a high-profile prize. The company has to pit Ziggler against a quality rival and put the kind of effort into their story as it did with Ziggler vs. The Miz.

There is a chance here to build on Ziggler's latest electric moment at No Mercy.

If now is not the time to get behind Ziggler, then that time may never come. Fans have seen so many false starts with his race to the top that it gets harder to buy into him. Eventually, WWE is going to try to rev up the Ziggler engine, and it won't start.

The audience will have already dismissed him as a man destined to never stand on center stage.