This Week in WWE: Burning Questions from This Week's Action

Last week was a great week for WWE TV, with PPV-quality matches taking place on both of the main shows.

This week's action featured two championship matches, including CM Punk defending his WWE Title against Alberto Del Rio on Raw and Daniel Bryan challenging Mark Henry for his World Heavyweight Title in a cage.

We also witnessed John Morrison's last match in the WWE (for now), a Smackdown Christmas Special, and a follow up to last week's "itbegins2012" YouTube video.

With all that being said, it's been a week that's left me with many more questions than answers, so here's my take on the week's action.

What Has Creative Got Planned for Cena Pre-Wrestlemania?

R-Truth's suspension for violating the Wellness Policy may have culled one of the best storylines of the year, and it has left Cena in purgatory in terms of a feud.

It's still almost four months before Cena's scheduled battle with The Rock at WM28, meaning that it is far too early to have these two exchanging words on WWE TV on a regular basis, so WWE are going to have to find something to occupy Cena for the coming months.

Murmurs around the IWC have called for a Fatal Four Way TLC match between Cena, Punk, Miz and Alberto Del Rio at the PPV but surely this would only be used as a starting point for the impending Miz/Punk feud.

I think I speak for the majority when I say a return to any Cena/Del Rio storyline would not be desirable at this point in time, but it does make you wonder who could possibly step up?

Maybe this could be Dolph Ziggler's chance to step it up a notch, as he's really been the star of Raw over the past few weeks.

What Was the Point of Piper's Pit?

Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this segment; however, it did leave me wondering why it was included in the show.

Of course, it convinced all of us that Cena was about to turn heel, and what better way to have done it than beating on a legend of the WWE. But he didn't, so why did WWE bother?

Piper's Pit could have been employed much more effectively closer to WM28, where the Rock and Cena could have both been involved making the main event of the PPV even more anticipated. Maybe we'll get a Cutting Edge or something similar nearer the time.

Either way, props to Roddy Piper, who could still teach half the roster a thing or two about promos.

Did John Morrison Hand-Pick His Final Opponent?

Now whether JoMo will ever return to a WWE ring again is unforeseen, but it seemed almost perfect that the man who "ended" his WWE career was the man who has been with him all the way on his journey.

Of course, we all know that JoMo and Miz both came up to WWE from Tough Enough, and formed a fantastically charismatic tag team that were World Tag Team Champions and WWE Tag Team Champions.

With Morrison fully aware that he was bowing out, did he want to give his old partner a helping hand in the heat department?

Was Brodus Clay and Twittergate for Real?

There's a few schools of thinking on this whole shenanigan. For those of you who live in a cave, pre-show on Monday night, Brodus Clay tweeted that he would "destroy" John Morrison, leading many to believe that he would  finally be re-debuting, and would be the one to write JoMo off of WWE TV.

In the end, this wasn't the case, as JoMo faced off with the Miz while Brodus was still nowhere to be seen. Now as I mentioned, there is at least three theories behind what actually happened.

A lot of people are under the impression that his re-debut was pulled from Raw because he had leaked the plans for the live show and was punished for his unprofessionalism.

Contrary to this, some think that Brodus was not going to appear on Raw this past week anyway, and the tweet was used as part of the storyline.

Could it actually be that Brodus just wrote this as a bare-faced lie? It's not impossible.

When Will Brodus Clay Re-Debut?

They've been putting it off for weeks now, and to be honest, it's a bit beyond a joke now. Of course I am referring to Brodus Clay's "much-anticipated" re-debut which was billed for the Liverpool show about a month ago and still hasn't materialised.

Do WWE Creative know what they want to do with him yet? I personally can't see an obvious choice for a rival on the roster.

The fact is, WWE have made out as if he is going to be a devastating addition to the roster, however in my mind they are going to have to work hard for me to think of him as anything but Alberto Del Rio's lesser sidekick.

The question is, will he be a main eventer or just another midcarder when he finally returns? The fact that his mic skills are equal to those of a house brick suggest the latter.

Can Dolph Ziggler Still Look Credible When He Drops the US Title?

It's become very obvious in the past few weeks that Dolph Ziggler is ready for the main event. Recently he has put on some great matches, most notably with CM Punk and Randy Orton, which has really staked his claim as one of the best workers in the WWE.

The problem is that he will have to lose his current title before he can move onto a bigger and better feud, although the WWE will have to make sure that they don't put him over as too weak when he does drop it.

The obvious choice for next Champion is Zack Ryder, who will likely have a championship match with Ziggler at TLC, and you have to think that the only way that they can keep Dolph credible is to add in outside interference of some variety, most likely involving Vickie Guerrero.

He doesn't need Vickie anymore, so it wouldn't be much of an issue if they went their separate ways so Ziggler can focus on the big titles and Vickie can focus on developing the heel personas of the younger stars.

In relation to the last two slides, she could likely do wonders for Brodus Clay's career.

Is Randy Orton WWE's Biggest Asset Right Now?

This thought crossed my mind during the Ziggler/Orton match on Monday night, and if it was me answering the question, then I'd say that he is.

While stars like Cena and Punk sell millions of dollars of merchandise, Randy Orton is doing his bit for the future of the WWE which is putting over the younger stars.

In the past couple of months, he has taken losses to Wade Barrett, Dolph Ziggler and Cody Rhodes, in matches which could be earmarked in the future as ones that put them on the road to becoming main-event stars.

Up until a few months back, it would be unbelievable to think that Orton would lose clean(ish), but the way that he has been working with some of the company's potential stars of the future shows that he is a versatile star and a fantastic worker.

I think you'd struggle to find a bigger asset than him right now.

What Does second2012 Tell Us?

Just like "itbegins2012" before it, "second2012" sparked yet more rumours as to who could be behind it.

As many of you may know, it's been leaked on many wrestling forums and sites that the vignettes are supposedly for Chris Jericho, however let's take a look at a couple of the clues from the video, some which you might have missed.

Throughout the video, a globe is present in the background of the classroom, which has been linked to the moniker of "best in the world," further suggesting that it is indeed Chris Jericho, who will be returning to claim back what is rightfully his in the form of that nickname which CM Punk has adopted.

One glaringly obvious addition to the video is the girl in the background at the very end. Now a couple of articles on B/R have mentioned the idea that the girl and boy could be Stephanie and Shane McMahon who are returning to take Raw back from Johnny Ace.

The final clue, which is the one you probably didn't notice, comes at 0:14 where if you look closely you will see "DX" on the buttons on the boy's sleeves. Coincidence? Just the way the light reflects off of the buttons? We'll have to wait and see.

I, like the rest of you, will be eagerly awaiting the next vignette which I think will be under the name "january2012" or "coming2012."

Is Kane Going to Come Back as a Heel?

OK, so it's almost set in stone that Kane is coming back with a mask in some capacity, whether it be his old mask or whether it will be a new and improved version.

When he does return, he has to turn heel, otherwise he'll be the biggest joke in the company since the Gobbledy Gooker. Everyone is expecting him to come back and feud with Mark Henry, but I think they could get more out of his character by letting him feud with the Big Show.

There are several reasons why this would work, the first being that Mark Henry needs to focus on his impending feud with Daniel Bryan; therefore, to place him in a feud with Kane would not be productive.

This ties in with the next reason, which is that the feud between Show and Henry needs to end fairly soon, and what better way to finish it off than Kane costing Big Show his last chance?

Possibly one of the most important reasons is that a feud with Show would draw heat because he's a massive face, and it would really give Kane a chance to exercise his monstrous side.

A feud with Henry is definitely in his future, just not yet.

Is D-Bry a Face, a Heel or What?

D-Bry's promo on Monday night proved that he has more talent on the microphone than he's been given credit for. However while great, it was pretty confusing in terms of what angle the WWE are taking with him.

His MITB cash in last week was a very cowardly heel tactic, but when Teddy Long said that the cash in wasn't valid, he was suddenly a face again.

Then came his interview with Michael Cole on this week's Raw, where it was difficult to tell whether he was speaking as a face or a heel, and at the end he kicked Mark Henry in his "injured" leg which received a mixed reaction from the crowd.

The WWE need to make a definite decision as to how they want to book Bryan in the coming weeks and just need to do it.

This 'tweener persona he has at the minute isn't working, and I can't help but feel that WWE Creative are going to let him lose the briefcase one way or another because they just don't know what to do with him.

I don't think he's going to make it to WM28 with the MITB briefcase intact.

Is Alberto Del Rio out of the Main Event Picture?

With the end of the Punk/Del Rio feud on the horizon, you've got to wonder whether Del Rio will still be in the main event scene by WM28.

With the next couple of months teed up to have feuds such as Miz/Punk, Cena/Rock and Orton/Barrett, you have to think that Del Rio's only chance of staying in the main event scene is by engaging in some sort of feud with Sheamus.

Of course, Sheamus is from Smackdown while Del Rio is from Raw, but I'm sure we all know that the brand extension is pretty much non-existent nowadays, so this would barely be an issue.

Del Rio has great ability in the ring but it is time for the Creative team to develop his character a bit, because it's getting stale.

The tribute to Eddie Guerrero between Del Rio and Punk on Monday was great, and I think Del Rio could really use a "lying and cheating" gimmick similar to Eddie's in order to move his career on.

What Was the Point of the Ridiculous Divas Match on Smackdown?

Smackdown's holiday special started fairly embarrassingly with the Divas of the WWE contending in a "Mistletoe on a pole" match which involved the Divas battling it out in order to get to the mistletoe on a pole first.

The prize was unspecified, however in the end it turned out to be a kiss from any Superstar of their choosing.

The most ridiculous thing about this match is that there were a couple of occasions where Divas like Alicia Fox could have wandered over to the pole unattended and just grabbed the mistletoe.

In all honesty, this match signifies everything that's wrong with the Divas division, as it pretty much showcase poor in-ring ability coupled with a stupid stipulation.

Kharma needs to have her baby, dammit.

When Cody's Finished with Booker T, Is Goldust Next?

Following his small segment on Tuesday's live Smackdown, it got me wondering whether Goldust would be getting back into the ring anytime soon.

Lo and behold he starts a petition on Twitter (#areyouseriousbro) to try and get himself a match with his half-brother Cody Rhodes at Wrestlemania 28.

While the WWE have said that they don't want this match on the grandest stage of them all (assumedly having other plans for Cody) however they would be open to staging this match at one point or another.

One thing I'm not so keen on about this idea is that we've had so many WWE legends come back recently, some for no real good reason as they can't really wrestle anymore. Will Goldust be able to hold his own in the ring? I'm sure we'll find out in the coming months.

Is David Otunga About to Get a Push?

Otunga was given a "Miracle on 34th Street Fight" on Tuesday, which was his first in-ring appearance in months however it was nothing more than a glorified squash.

Otunga has been developing his persona over the last couple of months, doing his best impression of Carlton Banks and spouting legal garbage here, there and everywhere.

For some reason, there's something I like about the potential of this gimmick and I'm quite interested to see where it's going.

But whom will he feud with?

Is D-Bry Going to Become a Credible Threat to Henry's Title?

Mark Henry vs. D-Bry is really a David vs. Goliath battle, but in the era that we're calling "Reality," are the WWE really going to let someone of Bryan's size take the title from someone of Henry's size?

There were several moments in the main event of Smackdown that it crossed my mind that WWE Creative could give D-Bry the title, because in all honesty, I tend not to rule anything out with the WWE, no matter how ridiculous.

The fact is, for D-Bry to take the title in a realistic manner, the deck is going to have to be stacked against Mark Henry, either in terms of stipulation or by situation.

In terms of stipulation, a cage match seemed like a perfect chance for Bryan to steal the title by quickly hopping the cage or out of the door while Henry was down or distracted, which would have eliminated the aspect of "out-wrestling" the World's Strongest Man.

By the term "situation," I of course refer to any injury which Henry might be carrying prior to a match which Bryan could pounce on and take advantage of.

What? Henry had an injured leg on Tuesday and Bryan still couldn't beat him? I'm out.