WWE SummerSlam Results: 8 Reasons Alberto Del Rio's Title Reign Will Be Short

It was his destiny...and he fulfilled it.

That's right. After a wild SummerSlam pay-per-view and episode of Monday Night Raw, Alberto Del Rio is the WWE Champion.

There have reportedly been numerous plans for Del Rio to win his first World title in the WWE, but those plans always wound up changing. Not this time, though.

Del Rio cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase at SummerSlam, and he's now the holder of the top prize in all of the WWE.

But don't get to accustomed to seeing Del Rio holding the WWE Championship and parading around like he's the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Here are eight reasons why Del Rio's title reign won't give Bruno Sammartino anything to worry about. 

8. He Can't Carry the Raw Brand

This is just personal opinion, of course, but I don't think Alberto Del Rio is capable of carrying the Monday Night Raw brand like the WWE Champion is supposed to do.

The show's ratings have been down pretty much across the board for years now, and even compelling storylines haven't led to a dramatic, long-term increase in ratings.

Just look at the recent greatness of CM Punk.

He's been the hottest and most popular act in the wrestling business for a couple of months now, but his reign as WWE Champion didn't cause any earth-shattering increase in viewership.

In fact, ratings even declined at times during his title reign, which some might say factored into the WWE brass's decision to get the title off him.

Now, my question to you all is: If Punk can't bolster the TV ratings, then why would Del Rio be able to?

Despite support from some of us on the Internet, Del Rio doesn't have anywhere close to the fan support that Punk and especially Cena has.

Don't be surprised to see the ratings drop with Del Rio as the WWE Champ and to see him drop the belt as a result. 

7. The Survivor Series Requirement

While some may argue that Survivor Series is no longer a "Big Four" pay-per-view (and I might agree), the WWE makes sure that its top stars headline the show.

Since 2005, the WWE Championship has been held by only three wrestlers when heading into the Survivor Series pay-per-view: Edge, John Cena and Randy Orton.

Obviously, those are three of the most decorated wrestlers in WWE history, and this seems to be a pretty good indication that the WWE likes its big dogs to carry the WWE title prior to the show.

Now, with all due respect to Alberto Del Rio, he's nowhere near the level of those three guys just yet. As a result, I don't think he's going to be holding the WWE Championship come Survivor Series.

Expect one of Raw's top two stars (CM Punk or John Cena) to be doing that.

6. The Christian Treatment

At the ending of last night's Raw, John Cena ripped on Alberto Del Rio for being an undeserving WWE Champion who "got lucky."

It seems that Cena isn't a fan of the way Del Rio won the title and will do everything in his power to take it from him.

Sound familiar? Because it sure sounds a lot like the rivalry between Randy Orton and Christian to me.

When Christian won the World Heavyweight Championship for the second time, he did it in a very cowardly way--by spitting in Orton's face.

It could be said that Del Rio did the same thing, taking advantage of a beaten and battered CM Punk to win the WWE Championship.

And cowardly champions usually do one of two things. They either hold onto the title (for a long time) by any means necessary, or they lose it when their cowardly tactics stop working.

Which category will Del Rio fall into? 

5. The Past Indecisiveness with Del Rio

If you clicked the link in the introductory slide, then you know that Alberto Del Rio was reportedly in line to win a World title on four occasions before plans eventually changed.

Now, if WWE officials had that much difficulty deciding when to put the title on him, imagine how many times their plans will change during Del Rio's actual title reign.

I like to think that it will probably go a lot like a woman's shopping trip.

A woman tries one dress on, looks at herself in the mirror and realizes that she looks pretty hideous. So, what does she do?

She puts on a different dress, of course.

Well, if company officials decide that Del Rio doesn't look good as WWE Champion or that something's even slightly off, then they're going to head to the changing room and once again alter the plans for Del Rio.

4. Too Many Title Contenders on Raw

Raw's main event scene is jam-packed right now, with a number of guys who'll be gunning for Alberto Del Rio's WWE Championship as long as he's holding onto it.

There are the obvious potential challengers (all faces): John Cena, Rey Mysterio and CM Punk.

Then, there are some less obvious heel and mid-card ones who might make sense down the road: The Miz, John Morrison and Kofi Kingston.

Then, there's the boss himself: Triple H.

Cena, Mysterio and Cena all have legitimate beef with Del Rio at the moment, so does Kingston and perhaps Triple H could down the road.

Any which way you slice it, however, Del Rio will have no shortage of challengers during his WWE title reign, which is precisely why it won't last long.

3. The Curse of Money in the Bank

When someone cashes in the Money in the Bank briefcase to win his first-ever World title in the WWE, what comes after usually isn't good.

Check out the post-cash-in title reigns of MITB winners who used the briefcase to capture their first World Heavyweight or WWE Championship.

Note: The exception to this rule is The Miz, whose first WWE title reign lasted more than five months 

Edge: Jan. 8, 2006 - Jan. 29, 2006

Rob Van Dam: June 11, 2006 - July 3, 2006

CM Punk: June 30, 2008 - Sept. 7, 2008

Jack Swagger: March 30, 2010 - June 20, 2010

As you can see, the WWE almost uses these post-cash-in title reigns as a way of gauging how they will book the champ going forward.

Deliver the goods like The Miz, and you'll get a long reign. Be booked like an idiot, as was the case with Jack Swagger, and your reign will be completely forgettable.

Let's see which category Del Rio falls into. 

2. The WWE's Tour of Mexico

It's no coincidence that Alberto Del Rio won the WWE Championship less than two months before the company heads to Mexico for a tour of the country.

In fact, according to WWE.com, history will be made in Mexico when the company holds it first-ever TV tapings in Mexico City.

Now, knowing all that, do you expect Del Rio to drop the WWE title before then?

I don't.

But I do indeed think that the main reason why Del Rio is now the WWE Champion is so that he can built up before the Mexican tour, where he will be welcomed as a national hero.

On the flip side, I don't think that Del Rio's title reign is much more than a marketing technique to increase the hype and draw more fans to the shows in Mexico, which is why he'll drop the strap shortly after the WWE returns to the States.

1. The Absurdity of the WWE Championship

Since July 17, I'd venture to guess that I've changed clothes about 30 times or so.

Funnily enough, that's the same number of times that the WWE Championship changed hands during that time span. 

OK, I'm obviously exaggerating a bit. But the WWE title has, in fact, been held by four different wrestlers (CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, John Cena and  Alberto Del Rio) in less than a month.

That's absolutely freakin' ridiculous.

That would be like me buying my mom a present (a purse or some stupid thing women like), then taking it away from her three days later and giving it to my girlfriend, and then following that up by taking the gift from my girlfriend and passing it on to the girl I'm cheating on her with.

It cheapens the value of the purse, right?

Well, so does having the WWE Championship change hands four times in a 30-day span, which is also a pretty strong indicator that Del Rio's not going to be WWE Champion for long.