WWE: 10 Reasons Mark Henry's Run Will Not Last

After 15 years of toiling, trudging and tinkering with his character, Mark Henry has finally risen to the top of his chosen profession.

His perseverance is a testament to not just any wrestler in the business but anyone in general. This is a man, who with great promise, signed a 10-year, $10 million WWF/E contract in 1996 after appearing in the Atlanta Games.

Issues with his weight, not living up to expectations and not getting "over" in wrestling parlance meant going back to the drawing board a few times, which meant being demoted back down to the developmental leagues to brush up on the basics and refine his skill set.

Henry's will to overcome and continuously improve were eventually rewarded. He is now the World Heavyweight Champion, an accomplishment that came true after successfully applying the "World's Strongest Slam" to Randy Orton at WWE Night of Champions.

At WWE Hell in a Cell, the "World's Strongest Man" proved to be surprisingly dominant again against the "Viper," stirring excitement, speculation and questions among WWE fans.

Henry has finally made it as a ruthless, formidable heel not seen since Triple H's rise to prominence. Surely, he is a refreshing alternative to the trite "cowardly heel" cliche that has pervaded the WWE sphere for far too long.

Who is going to unseat the unstoppable?

Ideally, a long and prosperous run for the possessed mammoth of a man would go a long way in establishing a new star. After all, the one to finally end Henry's reign of destruction would garner instant credibility.

Unfortunately, certain circumstances, past precedence and salient signs indicate a premature end to Henry's ascendance...

Reason 10: Vince McMahon Will Move on to Someone Else

Granted, Triple H might be the onscreen power broker, but Vince McMahon is still very much in charge, pulling strings and not pulling any figurative punches in the "gorilla position."

Over the years, as business-savvy as he might be, McMahon has been known to be manically indecisive about storyline developments involving the talent, who may or may not be in his good graces.

It's no secret Mark Henry has literally had to work his way into Vince McMahon's field of vision after it had been tarnished following years of disappointment from the Olympian.

One ingratiating characteristic Henry has going for him, which might be the prime reason why he was never "future endeavored," is his extraordinary size.

McMahon loves big, burly wrestlers who dwarf the average denizen, always larger-than-life caricatures able to capture the hearts and minds of the audience.

Henry is a tree trunk of man, on top of the world, but he also has many demerits in his history not soon to be forgotten by the impresario who signs his paychecks.

The battle to impress the boss will never cease, as Henry will have to turn each preconceived notion around individually.

Not to mention having to overcome younger, bigger and more marketable talent who can be molded from unblemished dough.

Essentially, Vince might just change his mind and move on to someone or something else, which he's been known to do quite often. For a billionaire like him, actions are taken and decisions are implemented for the express goal of making money.

Reason 9: Potentially Poor Booking

It's no secret the WWE writers are not the crack staff most would have you believe. They are obligated to answer to the whims of not only the boss, but his daughter, son-in-law, corporate sponsors and several other competing agendas.

Henry might be the uncanny force of nature he is today, but who's to say next week on Raw he won't cower in fear and run away from an oncoming "babyface" attack like so many heels before him?

Sheamus is the best example in recent memory of a wrestler who was portrayed in dominant fashion only to suddenly have his character emasculated. Last year, the "Celtic Warrior," like Henry, could not be budged, harassing everyone in his way.

Then, when the Nexus started to cause chaos, Sheamus could be seen visibly under duress, retreating from imminent danger. At that point, Sheamus' character was undermined but not irreparably damaged until "tea time" with Santino and Kozlov when the first-ever Irish-born WWE Champion was depicted as not only a craven character but a comedy act as well.

Will the same fate await Mark Henry? Might we see him dancing to the "beat," bring out long-stemmed roses and preside over the "kiss cam" like The Great Khali, another example of a giant monster turned milquetoast?

Reason 8: Possible Underexposure

The WWE has to juggle priorities: there are spots to run, angles to organize and segments to oversee back-to-back, on live television or in post-production.

Many wrestlers have been a victim of poor prioritization. Look no further than Alberto Del Rio, who after winning the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell, received almost no exposure on Raw and maybe one contrived acknowledgement of his second title victory and reign.

In order to re-establish him as a credible character, Henry needs to be featured consistently on WWE's flagship show, Monday Night Raw, as opposed to Smackdown, which attracts maybe half the viewing audience.

If he's going to play a starring role in a match or angle one week, he needs to be given the time and opportunity to follow up on it in subsequent weeks.

In other words, he needs to be considered of high importance and priority lest he gets lost in the shuffle, which many of his cohorts can attest to being a victim of, such as Morrison, Kingston, Barrett and McIntyre.

Reason 7: Injury Prone

One of the reasons why Henry was sent to the developmental leagues was due to poor weight management, and by extension of that, the susceptibility of injury.

Henry, who is only 6'1," carries inordinate mass for his height in disproportionate places. Case in point, how often do you see anyone, let alone wrestlers, have a train-wide torso?

The incessant bumping, grinding travel, lack of rest and overall inability to maintain 100 percent health will prove challenging for any wrestler.

However, Henry just isn't any wrestler; he is a 380-pound behemoth, who has been plagued with injury before and is likely to catch the bug sooner than later.

Being out of action due to injury usually causes fans to miss the performer in question, often turning a returning heel into a babyface. Moreover, because fans' attention-spans are finicky and mercurial, it will be of great effort for someone like Henry to re-familiarize the fanbase to his new role.

Reason 6: Age

Yes, Mark has been under WWE contract for 15 years, but he's also 15 years older than when he first started at the age of 25.

The "World's Strongest Man" was a ripe apple ready and primed to be taken a bite into by the WWE powers-that-be. Now, at 40 years of age, compounded by wear and tear, the inevitability of Father Time is creeping up.

Obviously, he is not someone to build the future around, as his day is now. WWE's playpen of believable heels ran dry and Mark was given one more shot to show his mettle and did so, finally enabling WWE to recoup some of their investment in him.

And Mark has done the best, maximizing recent opportunities that have been granted him. He has built an image where wrestlers who enter his "hall of pain" become rag dolls.

The hall might be wide open for business at the moment, but in no more than a few years, it will be closed, a relic of the past.

Undoubtedly, his reign is a short-term fixture to be appreciated by those who've followed him throughout his career.  He is a stopgap, a temporary solution, until a younger doppelganger comes along.

Reason 5: The Fans Are Still Not Completely Buying It

"What?" "What?" "What?"

That is the collective response Henry's in-ring promos elicit from the crowd. Henry might be more than serviceable on the microphone, carefully enunciating and delivering purposeful prose, but the fans are not listening.

By chanting "what," the WWE Universe demonstrates its irreverence towards Henry's new, unstoppable character. They're not buying into Henry suddenly being an unscrupulous, vengeful pit bull after years of making the audience laugh and cry.

Who can forget Mark's illicit and steamy affair with Mae Young? The time he felt up a transvestite and was surprised to find male genitalia? For that matter, who can expunge the lovable "Sexual Chocolate" from memory?

Many fans have still not forgotten "Mizark," or on a more serious note, his tearful and incredibly-moving eulogies paid to his fallen comrades.

It's hard to hate a man who is so likable, not to mention one whose lighter side we've seen on more than one occasion.

Henry's new persona is still a work in progress but might be halted if fans don't soon buy into him completely.

Reason 4: Not Too Many Credible Challengers Left

As we've already established, Henry is the fortified personification of Fort Knox. He has felled The Big Show in grand fashion, destroying his leg, and even soundly defeated one of WWE's biggest stars, Randy Orton, in consecutive matches.

Is John Cena going to be sacrificed to Henry like Orton before him? Doubtful.

The Undertaker? If anything, there's talk the "Dead Man" will add Henry as another notch to his undefeated WrestleMania streak.

Who else can Henry clobber en route to establishing himself as a main event mainstay?

There is Kane, and now a returning Big Show who is out to avenge his ankle, but those matches, if they happen, will have "bowling shoe tendencies" to quote Jim Ross.

Fans today cannot tolerate boring matches, especially on stages where they are expected to plunk down their hard-earned cash in order to watch.

And speaking of Ross, physically overpowering the former head of talent relations, who allegedly hamstrung Henry's pursuit for greatness, isn't going to solidify him any further in the eyes of the fans.

Henry is already running out of credible challengers, and when the well goes completely dry after a rehash or two, he'll find himself one if not two paces back.

Reason 3: Challenging to Work with in the Ring

No matter how popular you are with Vince McMahon, or the bookers, if you're not someone your colleagues wish to work with in the ring, where feuds culminate, you're not going to go very far.

Not too long ago, Randy Orton was quoted as saying that Henry was his least favorite person to work with in the wrestling ring. Reasons for backing up this claim include the fact the "World's Strongest Man" is practically immobile, ridiculously strong (as his moniker would suggest) and is known to accidentally hurt his opponents.

For instance, just a few weeks ago, in a planned spot, Henry legitimately injured Jerry Lawler after driving him through the announce table. To his credit, Mark was very contrite about it, but as past precedence suggests, those who build up a reputation for being difficult to work with (i.e., RVD) will not be given the full benefit of the doubt.

Reason 2: Long Title Reigns Are a Thing of the Past

Remember when Bruno Sammartino held the WWWF Title for nearly seven years, and/or when Hulk Hogan held the WWF Title for nearly four consecutive years?

With so many TV shows and PPVs to produce, in addition to the bevy of other programming options on television, the mentality in WWE is that fans must be kept enthralled at all times.

This has been translated to mean the title must change hands at nearly every PPV, giving the fans an incentive to purchase them.

Ironically, this approach might have the unintended effect down the line, but for now, the World Heavyweight Championship is no longer the prized possession looked at in awe by the audience.

More or less, it is a prop now, a baton if you will, handed off to the next wrestler-in-waiting.

Here today, gone tomorrow. What goes up, must come down. And really, for Henry, who has been booked exceptionally strong as of late, there is nowhere to go but down.

That being said, even if Henry loses his title, he has just a great a chance of winning it back; however, the appeal of being invincible will be gone and so will his peak as a wrestler.

That is, nothing will match his first title reign, which has turned out to be one of the rarer heel-flattering runs, a la Triple H before him.

Reason 1: Randy Orton Has to Overcome Him Eventually

Last but certainly not least, Randy Orton is the prime reason why Mark Henry's reign of terror will soon be coming to an end.

WWE now provides family-entertainment and happy endings for children all around the globe. Stemming from this philosophy is a lack of patience and "even-steven" booking that entails the babyface ultimately winning the war, if not the battle.

After being made to look uncharacteristically vulnerable at the last two PPVs, it's only a matter of time, perhaps at the next offering, Vengeance, when Randy Orton avenges his past two defeats, finally putting the monster in his place.

The likelihood of this has picked up even more steam with a recent rumor about a possible Orton vs. Daniel Bryan match for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 28.

It would be a sagacious move on WWE's part to hold off on not only a "fulfilling coda" benefiting Orton but allowing Henry to build more momentum to the point where he can be used to create a new star, as opposed to being used as fodder to indulge an already-established one.

Nevertheless, with Orton on tap to receive a third try at Henry in just two weeks at Vengeance, expect the run to end not with pomp and circumstance but with little fanfare.

What little fan reception to follow will be that of outcry at the injustice of it all, but that never curbed WWE from doing business the way it sees fit.