Last week, during a special Social Media SmackDown, the WWE Universe made their voice heard, loud and clear. Via Twitter, the fans selected Dolph Ziggler — ahead of United States Antonio Cesaro and Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett — to face World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio in an explosive matchup tonight. But is Del Rio biting off more than he can chew?
With things already heating up between the reigning titleholder and his dangerous No. 1 contender, Jack Swagger, on The Road to WrestleMania, Del Rio could find himself in over his head against the fans’ choice.
Not only is The Showoff one of WWE’s most athletic and confident competitors — with Big E Langston and the unpredictable AJ Lee in his corner — but he also still holds the Money in the Bank contract, which guarantees him a title match against Del Rio at a time of his choosing. So could Del Rio, in effect, be handing Ziggler the perfect situation to cash in that opportunity?
Last week on SmackDown, Roman Reigns accidentally bumped into Big Show during a post-match brawl against Sheamus and Randy Orton and the giant retaliated with a devastating KO Punch. Then, immediately following Monday’s Raw — in a WWE Active exclusive — Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins attacked The World’s Largest Athlete, hitting him with a titanic Triple Powerbomb.
Now, with a match against Sheamus scheduled for tonight, is the giant going to be ready for the fighting Irishman? Will Big Show sport any lasting effects from The Shield’s vicious attack? Even if he doesn’t, will his focus turn toward vengeance, causing him to fall short in his match against one of WWE’s toughest competitors? Ultimately, have the treacherous trio done enough damage that they have already cost him his Friday night showdown against his longstanding rival?
At least one Superstar wasn’t in the spirit of “Old School” Raw this past Monday. The No. 1 contender to the World Heavyweight Title, Jack Swagger, made quick and brutal work of WWE Hall of Famers “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Sgt. Slaughter and Dusty Rhodes, delivering a crystal clear message to Alberto Del Rio and anyone else who disagrees with his views in the future.
With the outspoken and controversial Zeb Colter by his side, Swagger has looked “inspired” and dominant in recent weeks with his own vision of the nation, gathering momentum toward the biggest match of his life on April 7. In advance of his enormous and personal clash with Del Rio at The Show of Shows, there is no telling how the “Real American” and self-professed “Founding Father” will next choose to show their “patriotism.”
For WWE Tag Team Champions Team Hell No, 2013 began very tumultuously. Yet on Monday’s Raw, it appeared that Kane and Daniel Bryan might actually be back on the same page. Shaking off the arguments and strange match stipulations that characterized their previous week’s matches, they showed excellent teamwork in picking up a victory over the always dangerous Prime Time Players.
With a match scheduled for SmackDown tonight against 3MB’s Heath Slater and Drew McIntyre, will Team Hell No’s union hold strong?
After weeks of build-up, it looked like the mysterious Fandango was set to make his debut last week on SmackDown. But the tango-dancing Superstar declined to appear until Matt Striker learned how to pronounce him name properly (it’s FAHN-DAHN-GO). Then on Monday’s Raw, he declined to debut against Kofi Kingston, again due to issues with the proper pronunciation of his name, this time committed by Justin Roberts.
Tonight, Fandango is again scheduled to make his long-awaited debut. Will the two-stepping combatant finally waltz between the ropes? Or will the WWE Universe again be left hanging by the strange Superstar who goes by the name Fandango (wait, FAHN-DAHN-GO).