Forum Files #20: Whose 2018 Will Be Best: Elias, John Cena or Braun Strowman

[klunderbunker]

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Here’s the latest WZ Forum Files topic:

Who Will Have the Best 2018: John Cena, Braun Strowman or Elias?

Earlier this week on Monday Night Raw, Elias, John Cena and Braun Strowman competed in a triple threat match. These are three people who seem to be on very different paths at the moment. You have the up and coming star in Elias, the aging veteran seemingly wrapping up his career in Cena and the established name looking for his big moment in Strowman.

So whose future looks brightest? WWE is clearly pushing Elias as something special while Strowman has won some big matches and been put in even bigger ones. Then you have Cena, who is always around for the big matches. Who do you think will have the best year? Let us know and see if your answer will walk with the monster along with the big match players.

 

[Spencesc11]

Vince seems pretty sold on Elias but unless he's moving to Smackdown I don't see a World Title reign on him anytime soon.

I'm guess Stroman at some point will defeat Reigns for the Universal Title after Mania. I would guess these 2 will dominate the main event sign on Raw most of 2018.

John Cena will probably be part-time again so I don't see him doing as much as either of the other to.

So with all that considered I would say Stroman.

 

[Vintage Punk]

I think both Elias and Strowman will have a big 2018. If it were up to me, I'd have Strowman reignite his feud with Roman sometime after Mania (of course after Roman defeats Brock since we all know this is happening.) They should turn Roman full heel night after Mania and eventually Braun should dethrone him.

As for Elias, he is a heel that has that charisma to be a babyface as he is entertaining and the crowd is with "walking with Elias" and really only start booing when he gets that real heel heat for talking about their city or sports team. He could easily transition to that tweener to babyface ala Rock. I would like to see him as IC Champ for awhile. Instead of making fun of cities, as a babyface/tweener champ, he can write songs about the opponents he faces. I'd have him dethrone Miz in a storyline where Miz turns on him after some perceived slight to Miz which would get Miz heel heat and Elias sympathy from crowd.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

How I see it, wrestling relies on spectacle. Probably now more than ever. When Cena comes in and wins a match, it's awesome but it's still normal. Elias does seem to be living for the moment, as he's bar none one of the most entertaining parts of Raw, and in essence WWE. Not bad for a guy who is making the most out of a Double J gimmick. But again, he isn't doing anything we haven't seen in some capacity before.

But Strowman...dear god this guy has become supernaturally strong. He keeps flipping over vehicles that shouldn't be tipped over by human beings. We've reached Taker levels of impossible with this guy, and I don't really see that changing much this year. I wouldn't even put it past WWE to somehow incorporate a nuke dropping on him and him walk away unscathed. He's obviously one of the best built monsters WWE has seen in ages, and a reasonable candidate for Universal Champion soon.

Out of the 3, Strowman seems to have IT right now.

 

[ABMorales787]

Braun. While Elias has potential for growth and is a solid character his ring work is extremely average. Meanwhile Cena is more than likely going to have another lax year.

At the very least, Braun can be plugged back into his program with Lesnar or with other big names right away. Elias isn't reaching his level for quite a while meanwhile Cena's a complete mystery.

 

[OYDK]

Cena will most likely be gone again for a while after Wrestlemania. And it seems his role as of late, when he is around, has generally been to put others over on his way out the door. I can potentially see two big programs on the horizon for John Cena though; the first being a Wrestlemania match with The Undertaker. The second being a title feud (most likely with Roman Reigns or Braun Strowman) en route to his 17th World championship. Other than that, I pretty much see Cena sticking to his current status quo, which means a generally average year.

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but between Elias and Braun, I think Elias has far more room for growth and I can see 2018 being a massive breakout year for him. Strowman has undoubtedly been 2017's MVP and while I do see a big 2018 in store for him, I'm not sure if he can keep up this sort of momentum long-term, much less build on it. There's only so many times you can see someone tip something over before you begin to become desensitized to it. And his heavily scripted, wooden promo style isn't going to help matters. While I'm a fan of Braun, and while I do see a title win in his near future, I also think he's pretty one-dimensional and that's going to hurt him in the long run.

Elias reminds me, on a much lower scale of course, of The Rock before he broke out as a mega-face. People generally seemed to hate Elias from the minute he debuted, but he has very slowly, week by week, been able to turn the tide by showing that he's one of the more entertaining talents on the roster. While his ring-work may leave something to be desired, there's no doubt that Elias has the chops to be a huge star in the WWE. I think his mega-push is coming, and I think it begins very soon after Wrestlemania. I really believe that whether a World title lays in Elias' 2018 or not is ultimately up to him. If he can run with the ball that I'm sure he'll be given sooner rather than later, there's no telling where his ceiling is.

To summarize; In 2018, Cena will be doing more of the same, Strowman won't be able to match his 2017, and Elias will show people that he's a star in the making.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'm thinking Strowman will ultimately have the better year. Strowman is something of an over the top spectacle that's able to work in the modern age, even with "smart" fans and that's doubly impressive when you take into account the fact that Strowman's fairly close to 7 feet tall, legitimately over 350 lbs. and a legit powerhouse. Those are traits that would normally make him public enemy #1 among lots of smarks and internet fans in general since Strowman didn't spend a decade or so on the indie scene or doesn't flip all over the place. I mean, Braun Strowman flipping over an ambulance and a semi is pretty ridiculous but it's also pretty fun because that's part of that over the top spectacle; you know it's not real but you suspend disbelief because it's just so much fun and that's an element in pro wrestling that's not around nearly enough anymore. For whatever reason, it's working with Strowman and if reports are true, then it's likely Strowman will win his first piece of gold this year after facing the Miz at WrestleMania. From there, I just see Strowman's star continuing to rise if he doesn't get injured or garner heat backstage. Strowman will be WWE and/or Universal Champion at some point.

That's not to say that John Cena can't have a big year, but I think it's fair to say that Cena's biggest days and years are behind him as he's now a part timer. If Cena faces Taker at WrestleMania this year and beats him, so what? The streak will have been dead for 4 years and Roman Reigns pinned Taker last year in what looked to be Taker's retirement. if Cena wins his 17th World Championship this year, there's a better than average chance that it's nothing more than a vanity run like his 16th reign was. Even though breaking Flair's official tally will be a big deal, there's just not as much impact about it as there would be if Cena was doing his thing night in and night out.

Elias has caught on with fans since coming to the main roster and he's fun, but he's not someone I think of when I think of when I picture someone who'll be "the man." I could see Elias making his way to SmackDown in the post WrestleMania season and wind up a top challenger for the United States Championship, with a strong possibility of becoming champion sometime this year. At this time, I think it's a proper spot for Elias and if he continues to improve the way he has, then I see no reason why he can't be someone who makes an occasional trip into the main event picture.