At this point, what does WWE gain from having John Cena win the title this Sunday? What is the immediate match for Battleground? You can do Cena vs. Bryan, but it's been done before, and I don't think Cena in a transitional role is ever a good idea. The other alternative is that Cena beats Bryan, which puts him in deeper trouble with the fans that already love to hate him, and basically shatters any credibility Bryan has at taking his pre-injury spot back.
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Kane is winning the title. "There's always a Plan B" according to Seth Rollins. You would think the Authority wants to keep the title away from Reigns, but their ultimate goal may not be to put it on Randy Orton. The "swerve" will be that Kane IS "plan B" and that the Authority will have a "monster" they have "complete control over" and who could "never lose" to any mortal man. That's a lot of quotes, but I'd almost guarantee that's how the story goes down.
Why is this important? Because while Cena winning the title gives them very few story-driven opportunities, Kane winning sets up a bunch. First, and most importantly, Roman Reigns will be hot off being screwed by Triple H, Kane, Orton and Rollins at Money in the Bank, and will step up to challenge Kane at Battleground. He will lose – due in no small part to Triple H – which will set up the blockbuster match between Reigns and the Game for SummerSlam.
Meanwhile, Kane will carry the WWE World Heavyweight Championship into SummerSlam, and hand it back over to Daniel Bryan. Kane is the ULTIMATE transitional champion. You know the company won't want him as "the face" for too long, but anybody else winning that match is just a mistake. Del Rio, Sheamus and Orton – been there, done that. It's too early for Bray Wyatt, and Roman Reigns needs to chase the belt ala Bryan did earlier this year. His first title win must be HUGE. Putting the title on Cesaro this early is a recipe to screw over the rest of his career (see: Swagger, Jack).
John Cena and Brock Lesnar can still happen – if it was ever supposed to happen – without the title. Contrary to opinions I've heard on Twitter this morning, the title adds nothing to a program with two stars their size, and not having the title involved does NOT in any way make ending the Undertaker's streak "pointless". Remember that Cena beat Lesnar in 2012. In 2014, the legacy of John Cena – a man at the peak of his career, rather than at the end of it – is another notch in the cap of the Beast Incarnate.
Triple H? Check.
CM Punk? Check.
Undertaker? Check.
John Cena? Your next, buddy.
And of course, all those major wins sets up Brock Lesnar to have his final match with the WWE at WrestleMania 31, putting over – and this is a LONG-TERM PREDICTION – Roman Reigns in a match that hopefully bares no resemblance to WrestleMania 20.
So who wins Money in the Bank?
Probably Seth Rollins. Bad News Barrett was the favorite, but it's more than likely he'll be on the shelf. Dean Ambrose won't win because his vengeance needs fuel going into the next two PPVs. At that point, who is left? Out of Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, and Rob Van Dam, name me one person WWE management is going to have chase the WWE World Heavyweight Championship later this year.
My personal second favorite idea is to have The Miz return to replace Barrett, winning the briefcase, and sparking a huge push along the lines of his first. I know everyone on the internet hates The Miz, but that's exactly why I love him – few others draw legit heel heat like that dude does.
My personal absolute favorite idea is to have Dolph Ziggler win, partner him with Ric Flair, pass down the "Nature Boy" gimmick to the next big thing, and groom him to become WWE World Heavyweight Champion in the next year. Will that happen? Probably not. I'd bet a lot of money that it won't.
For those of you keeping track at home, my SummerSlam 2014 card looks like this:
- Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena
- Roman Reigns vs. Triple H
- Kane vs. Daniel Bryan for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
- Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose
Also Randy Orton vs. Batista, because one of them is going to get very sick of the Authority very soon.
