WWE TLC 2011 Results: Zack Ryder Beats Dolph Ziggler and What It Means

It was the culmination of a hard fought battle for Zack Ryder, as he started 2011 with little-to-no air time, to becoming the United States champion by defeating Dolph Ziggler at WWE TLC.

It was an emotional win for the man from Long Island, as family sat ringside for this match.  Ryder may need to drop the Internet championship for now, as he continues his quest up the WWE ladder.

In my opinion, it was predictable that Ryder would win the belt, as a loss here would have buried "Long Island Iced Z." Considering that of all people, John Cena was backing the kid up and how over he is with the crowd, it's easy to say he will be getting screen time for the foreseeable future.

What does this mean for both Superstars involved with this match?  Well...

Dolph Ziggler

It may have been a step back, but big things are in store for the former United States champion.

Ziggler is a great talker and is already proving himself to be a main-event performer for a long while.  He is still young and barring any injuries, we could see him get a WWE championship shot in the coming months.

The question is whether or not he drops Vickie Guerrero's services.  To be truthful, she generates a lot of heat for Ziggler, but when it comes down to it, her job is to make Ziggler over as a heel, which she has done already.

Besides the interfering and the general characteristics she has as a heel manager, what more is she there for?

Her job is done and just like any good manager, she needs to find a new mid-card talent and bring him up through the ranks, or she can always stick to Jack Swagger and we can finally see the Swagger/Ziggler feud everyone was talking about a number of months ago.

Either way, The Miz dropped his United States championship to Daniel Bryan a couple months before winning the WWE championship last year.

In 2005, John Cena dropped his United States Championship to Orlando Jordan right before he beat JBL at WrestleMania 21 to win his first WWE Championship.

See where I'm going here?

Zack Ryder

For Zack Ryder, the fun is just beginning.

The old saying in wrestling is that it's a lot harder to hold onto a championship than actually chase a championship.

What it means for Ryder is that he could be in store for a lengthy run as United States champion.  He has already legitimized the title by showing how bad he wanted it and now, the sky is the limit.

There just seems to be a problem with all this.  Who does he feud with next?  Does he continue a feud with Ziggler, who seems destined for bigger things, or does he take on a newcomer, perhaps a Brodus Clay?

Whatever WWE creative comes up with, the one thing this win means is that Ryder saved his job in 2011 with everything he has done.  He followed the steps, took it slow and turned himself from a jobber to an Internet sensation, and the support garnered from that got him back on TV and got him the biggest push of his singles career.

Woo woo woo, you know it!

What do you think?

Mark Pare is a WWE Featured Columnist. You can follow him on Twitter and don't forget to check out his sportswriter page.