The New & The Old: What Watch For in WWE In 2011

New Year's Weekend is in the books, and 2011 is finally starting to replace 2010 in our mindsets.

With a new year brings new hope. Thousands of people around the country make their resolutions, in hope for a better year going forward than the year they can no longer improve on.

Heading into 2010, Sheamus was new to the main event picture, fresh off a shocking win over John Cena at TLC 2009 to earn his first world title.

One year later, the Celtic Warrior is the King of the Ring, a two-time world champion, and the man who has Triple H still out of action. He is arguably the second-hottest heel on Raw behind The Miz.

Whose 2011 will mirror Sheamus' 2010? Who will headline WrestleMania XXVII this spring? Who will become the newest Mr. Money in the Bank?

Let's take a look at what 2011 may have in store for the WWE Universe.

John Cena Will Win The Royal Rumble...And More

It was just three years ago when John Cena returned early from injury to win the 2008 Royal Rumble.

While his current injury isn't nearly as severe as the torn pectoral muscle injury he suffered three years ago, the song will remain the same when the 2011 Royal Rumble emanates from John Cena's unofficial hometown, Boston.

(Cena hails from West Newbury, Mass., less than an hour north of Boston.)

But the Royal Rumble won't be the only title Cena claims in early 2011. Many Internet reports have a Cena/Miz feud leading up to WrestleMania XXVII.

It's hard to imagine any scenario in which The Miz walks out of the Georgia Dome as WWE Champion. The Miz's first world title reign wasn't initially planned to be a long one, and having him hold the belt until WWE's biggest pay-per-view event gives him a title reign on par, in length, with the reigns Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, and Kane have enjoyed in recent memory.

Cena will begin his 10th world title reign April 3 in Atlanta, and for the third year in a row, John Cena will leave WrestleMania in possession of the WWE Championship.

Alberto Del Rio Will Become World Champion

Alberto Del Rio says he comes from the Mexican elite. Before 2011 comes to a close, he'll join the elite company of superstars who have called themselves world champion in WWE.

Del Rio's official arrival could come as early as this month, now that his program with Rey Mysterio has come to an end. All signs point to Del Rio entering a championship feud of some sort, either with Kofi Kingston over the Intercontinental Championship, or with current World Heavyweight Champion, Edge.

And while big, established names have dominated the recent list of Royal Rumble match winners, Del Rio appears to be the dark horse, the one superstar who doesn't have a WWE world title reign under his belt, who could win a spot in the main event at WrestleMania.

Jan. 30, 2011, likely won't be Alberto Del Rio's night. But his night will come.

SummerSlam 2011, coming to us from Los Angeles in mid-August, may be the night Del Rio shows the world that he truly is championship material.

A Money In The Bank Winner Will Lose His Championship Match

There have been eight Money in the Bank ladder matches. Six men—Edge and CM Punk twice, Rob Van Dam, Jack Swagger, Kane, and The Miz—have cashed in the briefcase, and all six have won the world championship in doing so.

Kane, in fact, is the only man to hold a world title in WWE prior to winning Money in the Bank. But a 24-hour reign 13 years ago barely counts.

Sooner or later, a Money in the Bank winner will lose their shot. WWE creative may make many questionable calls, but even they know the WWE Universe will start to expect every Money in the Bank cash-in to turn into a world title change.

2011 is the year when Mr. Money in the Bank will fail to win the world title with his Money in the Bank contract.

If creative plays it right, the loss can actually be the beginning of a feud between the yet-to-be-determined Mr. Money in the Bank and the world champion at the time.

The loss can fuel an underdog story, potentially ending with the so-called underdog climbing the proverbial mountain to become world champion.

If, however, Mr. Money in the Bank fails to earn the world title he chooses to compete for when cashing in, and creative decides to do nothing with the story, it will bury the loser of the match for an extended period of time.

2011's Money In The Bank Favorites

Each year, the announcement of the participants in the annual Money in the Bank matches is met with high excitement.

Kofi Kingston and Christian are becoming mainstays in the event, each participating in the match in each of last three years. Evan Bourne, Drew McIntyre, and Dolph Ziggler have been in the match in each of the last two years.

While predicting all of the competitors in the event is a near impossibility, here are a few names that appear to be locks for the match.

John Morrison - His style fits the match perfectly, and his push to the main event may begin with Money in the Bank.

Drew McIntyre - There is a shortage of main-event superstars on SmackDown, and Money in the Bank has been the stage which best establishes new main eventers.

Kofi Kingston - It's beginning to look like Kingston is put in this match only because he is a high-flier. Maybe one day, Kingston will come down with the briefcase.

Daniel Bryan - Bryan appears to be on the road to the top of WWE, and like Morrison, he may head further down the path to the world title with a Money in the Bank win.

"Dashing" Cody Rhodes - His involvement in the No. 1 contender's match on SmackDown may not be the last time we hear Rhodes' name connected to the World Heavyweight Title picture.

The Undertaker Will Not Retire

After 20 years with WWE, you would think the professional wrestling career of Mark Calaway—or, as he's more popularly known, The Undertaker—would be coming to an end.

Something tells me the amount of time The Undertaker missed in 2010 will keep him around through 2011.

Maybe WrestleMania XXVII was supposed to be The Deadman's swan song. Paul Bearer returned to WWE, there was one last feud with Kane, and maybe, there was one last world title run laid in place for The Undertaker.

But, as has been the case over the past few years, a serious injury derailed those plans.

A lighter schedule in 2011 may be in the works, leading to The Undertaker's final match, at WrestleMania XXVIII next spring. One more run with the world title may be in order before the career of the legendary Deadman comes to a close.

And who would really believe Wade Barrett would be The Undertaker's final WrestleMania opponent anyway?

The Future Of The Nexus Will Not Be Bright

CM Punk took over as leader of The Nexus last week on Raw. It will likely breathe new life into a faction that was beginning to get stale.

But once The Nexus members go their separate ways, the road apart will be a rocky one.

The men to really keep an eye on are Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel. Slater and Gabriel had a short reign as WWE Tag Team Champions, but outside of that run, they have been little more than bystanders.

They have been given little time on the mic, and have rarely been seen on television working matches against superstars not named John Cena.

For better and/or worse, we have no idea how Slater and Gabriel can work on their own. WWE creative has given David Otunga a few chances to step out on his own.

Michael McGillicutty and Husky Harris are still relatively new to the scene, so time will tell what we may or may not be able to expect from them.

There are plenty of question marks to go around for the five remaining members of The Nexus. Uncertainty of this kind is rarely a good thing.

Superstars Who Could Step Into The Spotlight In 2011

Every year, we see superstars step up from relative obscurity to legit player. Sheamus represents one extreme, taking less than 18 months to go from main eventing Superstars to notching wins over Triple H, John Cena, and Randy Orton on pay-per-view events.

It will be hard to replicate the year Sheamus had in 2010, but here are a few superstars who could take the next step in their WWE careers in 2011.

"Dashing" Cody Rhodes - When Legacy split at WrestleMania last year, I questioned how Rhodes would separate himself from the faction. With his "Dashing" gimmick, Rhodes has done an excellent job establishing a new character for himself, and 2011 could be the year where Rhodes gets his first taste of singles gold.

Tyler Reks - For what it's worth, Reks absolutely ran through Kaval a few weeks ago on SmackDown. While one match is hardly a harbinger for future success, something tells me the newcomer will be a man to watch on Friday nights.

Mason Ryan - The true dark horse of 2011. Internet reports state WWE is grooming Ryan, the current FCW Florida Heavyweight Champion, as the next Batista-like superstar. We know WWE likes to use young superstars in the mold of established wrestlers of the past (The Miz/Chris Jericho, Sheamus/Triple H, Alberto Del Rio/JBL, etc.) and Ryan filling the void left by Batista's departure is something to watch for as 2011 unfolds.

Superstars Whose Star May Burn Out in 2011

As new superstars arrive on the WWE scene, others fade away to make way for the new blood.

The highlight name to leave WWE in 2010 was, of course, MVP. But many other superstars left the company throughout the course of the year, and the story will like remain the same this year.

Here are a few superstars to watch, as their departure from WWE may not be far off.

JTG - A solid in-ring performer, JTG just hasn't found a program since Cryme Tyme split up. He may follow former tag-team partner Shad Gaspard out of the company.

Joey Mercury - Talk about a man without a home. Since the Straight Edge Society disbanded, Mercury has been completely invisible. There's no real chance Mercury stays around unless creative suddenly finds a story for him.

Yoshi Tatsu - I'm not really sure what the plan was for Tatsu, but nothing has materialized in his time on the roster. That may be a negative sign for the high-flier.

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