WWE Night of Champions: Will Kane Stop Mark Henry from Winning the World Title?

The Hall of Pain. I like it.

Mark Henry has arrived, no doubt about it. This is the best he has ever looked, and he is riding the biggest push he has ever received during his time in WWE thus far. He is very convincing in his role as the intense monster.

Scratch that, he’s not convincing, he’s flat out living the part every time he steps into the ring.

Did you hear the reaction from fans when Henry stopped Zack Ryder from leaving the ring on SmackDown? The ominous moan that emanated from the crowd was not a statement of doubt, an overall consensus that Henry is too old, or not important enough, to be considered a legitimate threat to Randy Orton’s World Title.

Fans can see when a guy is primed and ready to take that next step. The result of several months of work put into Mark’s character have paid off, and now the dissenting voices that doubt his inability to perform at this level are being drowned out by the commotion that takes place every time Henry mauls an opponent.

A lot of fans love to point to the fact that Mark has been a part of some pretty embarrassing storylines in the past, notably the one involving a supposed affair with Mae Young. As if that somehow disqualifies him from being taken seriously now. Really?

If that’s the case, I suppose we should not take Triple H seriously either, due to the number of silly, irreverent, spots in the Attitude era of D-X. Let’s not forget the night he had simulated sex with a dead girl in a coffin—top that!

Business is business, and workers either choose to play ball and do what they’re asked to do in the name of getting over, or they can say no, and risk getting left out in favor of another man who really wants that spotlight. It’s as simple as that.

Mark has paid his dues, done everything asked of him, and now it’s his time to shine. He has taken advantage of it, and become the biggest, nastiest heel that WWE has seen in quite some time.

On paper, there is really no reason why Mark Henry should not defeat Randy Orton at Night of Champions and become the new World Heavyweight Champion.

The late Katie Vick’s former boyfriend would perhaps disagree with that statement.

How bad is Mark Henry? He took out Kane.

Let me say that again. Mark Henry took out Kane. Now, Kane is no different physically from any other WWE Superstar in the locker room, he is subject to injury like anyone else.

But, Kane has historically always been portrayed much in the same light as Henry now is. Big, tough, heartless and indestructible.

Mark putting Kane on the shelf proves Undertaker’s old point about the big dog in the yard. If that’s what you want to be, then you have to take out the hound who’s running the yard right now. That’s what Mark Henry did, and since then he has not looked back.

But, Kane is going to return eventually. Night of Champions could very well be the night that it happens. If that ends up being the case, then Kane will likely prevent Henry from winning the World Championship.

If that scenario unfolds, though Henry will not walk away with the gold, it will not really kill his push.

After all, Kane is Kane, and when that guy takes your head off, it belittles no one. His reputation proceeds him, and his ability to terminate any worker is without question.

If Kane does indeed intervene in Mark’s match, then the case can be made that "The World’s Strongest Man" would have won the strap, if not for Kane’s interference.

All the pieces were in place, he had the edge going into the match, and nothing could stop him from pinning Orton. It was his to win.

Suddenly, Kane shows up and ruins everything. Mark’s character will not be lessened in any way, he would still emerge as the unstoppable beast who hit a road block in the "Big Red Machine."

Kane’s return may or may not happen at Night of Champions, but when it does happen, Mark is most likely the first on his agenda. With that being the case, Mark’s position as the top threat to the World Title may actually be taken away from him. Becoming sidetracked in this feud could stop him from attaining the goal that many fans feel he deserves.

But, if being World Champion is not in the cards for Mark Henry, then at the very least he should come out of this angle with his head up. Penalizing him for being a notorious underachiever is simply not right, for when you have a worker with the size and ferocity of Henry, you do right by him.

Or, at least, you should.