Damage Control: What to do now?

[NegativeFeedback]

Assume you're Triple H. You just signed your old buddy Batista to a contract and unofficially promised him the Royal Rumble win and WrestleMania main event in negotiations.

You just turned Daniel back into a face and the crowd is red hot and needs him in the Rumble. Without going back on your word, you let Batista win the Rumble, but the crowd just shat all over him.

What do you do now????



I think what I'd do is keep running with Batista as the top face, but have him badmouth Daniel Bryan, saying he's a B+ and regular stuff like that. Have Batista all buddy with Triple H too.

At Elimination Chamber, have Bryan win the WWE title. And then have Batista beat him to a pulp the next night, officially turning heel.

It's then Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Batista for the WWE title.

I think it's the perfect damage control for right now. Staying the course with this bullshit Batista push is not the right call.

 

[whkfc]

Problem is you still watch. You still pay for ppvs you still attend shows. So WWE doesn't care at least not anymore Vincent Kennedy McMahon used to give the people what they wanted not anymore. They know what the people want better than the people. I think the next step is to give Daniel Bryan a one on one title match on RAW vs Orton. Have Orton win clean and finish off this Bryan problem they have once and for all. And I believe it is becoming a problem for them.

 

[JJ15776]

I agree, except I don't think that's damage control. I think that has been the plan all along. Not the Batista heel turn part, which I agree would be damage control and a very good idea, but I have no doubt they've planned for months now for Daniel Bryan to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The only question was who he'd best. And once a Randy a Orton best John Cens in their match, we knew Daniel Bryan wouldn't win the Royal Rumble because Orton and Bryan have already had too many one on one matches. It was always either going to be a one on one match between Cena and Bryan(which would've my choice, no question) or a Orton-Batista-Bryan triple threat.

For as much as people like to rip the WWE, it's easy to forget that they get things right 99.9% of the time. They'll get this one right too. Batista needed the RR win to establish himself as a real threat, Bryan will find another way to get into the title match, and he'll end the show at WrestleMania with the title. Just as he should.


...of course, if he doesn't, I'm done with WWE.

 

[thebarber]

Well I think it is pretty clear HHH is looking after his buddies. Batista is now stuck in the WWE Title match at Wrestlemania, this will suck balls. Lesnar was made to look unstoppable tonight, he is WINNING the Elimination Cjhamber match, whether it is for the title or not remains to be seen. After tonight, the rumoured Wrestlemania matches of CM PUNK VS TRIPLE H, JOHN CENA VS BRAY WYATT are now obvious. Orton vs Batista Im not sold on, this could be booed completely out of New Orleans. I think Reigns and Bryan need to be involved in the main or semi main event. Nobody wants to see Bryan vs Shemaus for the third time in 4 years at Mania.

Returning to the OP, if I was Helmsley/Vince, after what I saw tonight, I would be doing everything in my power to either:
A: Have Shawn Michaels return for a one on one match with Bryan at Mania 30 and put him over.
B: If WWE do not sign Sting, have D Bry vs Undertaker and have him end the streak. Vince/HHH are destroying a huge amount of money and giving the fans what they want ie: Daniel Bryan winning the WWE title on ppv

 

[NegativeFeedback]

Problem is you still watch. You still pay for ppvs you still attend shows. So WWE doesn't care at least not anymore Vincent Kennedy McMahon used to give the people what they wanted not anymore. They know what the people want better than the people. I think the next step is to give Daniel Bryan a one on one title match on RAW vs Orton. Have Orton win clean and finish off this Bryan problem they have once and for all. And I believe it is becoming a problem for them.

Speak for yourself. I haven't watched a PPV live in a long time. This was the first time since WrestleMania 29.

I spent WM24 watching Michael Clayton on DVD because of my indifference towards Triple H/Cena/Orton. And I spent WM25 marathoning through The Wire. And at WM27, I'm pretty sure I spent it playing Assassin's Creed Brotherhood all night.

I didn't catch up with the shows until they were online and I could fast-forward through the b.s.

I've been doing it for years, and not just with Mania. I for one only watch what interests me, and this year, it seems like there's VERY LITTLE of that.

 

[ice82683]

no need to damage control. the money is in the build. Stone Cold Steve Austin was very popular when he faced Bret Hart at WM13 (1997) as the heel. He was even more popular at Summer Slam '97 while Bret went on to defeat Taker at Summer Slam. Austin didn't win the belt until WM 14 and that turned out well for him.

Then again you have the Mick Foley case. Very popular and was given 3 short runs with the belt. His career turned out well.

I think this is doing nothing but helping Bryan be a more long term guy in the company's eyes. Just my 2 cents on that.

Onto the topic. I turn Dave heel on Raw, and continue teasing Randy not being backed by the Authority. Turn him face and you can possibly salvage this situation.

 

[Romer318]

I don't know man, Batista winning only cements the fact that him and Triple H are butt buddies once again. No love was lost while big Dave was away, it's just sad that the WWE refuses to see what the fans want. But I still have faith that they'll do the right thing and make it a Triple Threat. No way Orton drops the belt before Mania in Triple H's mind a "Evolution" Main Event is the best option for the company. So stupid.

Someone mentioned this in another thread but they really might be saving Bryan for Undertaker at Mania. Taker has said he really wants to work with DB and I wouldn't be shocked at all if Daniel Bryan kills the streak.

 

[boywithbluehanger]

I want to know how this all ends. And I'm not talking about the storyline. I want to know what happens when Daniel Bryan becomes champion and gets a decently-lengthed reign. Does the crowd stay white hot for him? How long or quickly until they eventually cool down? Does Daniel Bryan get motivated by finally reaching the top of the food chain and get better on the mic? Because if the answer to these questions aren't in Bryan's favor, then we have another CM Punk situation on our hands. The company gave CM Punk the world (and the "fans" what they wanted) by treating him like the next big legendary superstar and they didn't get much in return. The crowd stopped the big pops, Punk lost his edge with his character, his input in the writing seemed lackluster, and the feuds were mostly predictable.

I'd like to think that they learned a lot of lessons from pandering to the "smarks" with CM Punk. And they're not going to allow all of us to screw them over again. Daniel Bryan is going to become the most deserving champion of all time and the hell his character is having to go through, is for the sole purpose to test all of our patience with the company. This is our punishment for being so loud and obnoxious about pushing various other guys in the past and them not getting over on their own talents. We've wasted the WWE's efforts to create new superstars for the future by assuming we know "what's best for business".

2011 was a year that a perfect heel Sheamus got pushed to the side on Smackdown, Edge was allowed to put the final nail in the coffin of ADR as a retirement gift on wrestling's grandest stage, Christian got the WHC, John Cena had a rare clean loss, and CM Punk became WWE champion. Talk about catering to what fans want. So 2012 should have meant far better ratings and crazy PPV sales, right? Yeah that's not at all what happened.

Yeah I'm going to guess that the WWE knows better now. Don't listen to the smarks. We only know what we want. We're not good businessmen. Daniel Bryan will get to the top but I get the feeling that our obnoxious majority is to blame for how long it's taking.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

We have another CM Punk situation on our hands. The company gave CM Punk the world (and the "fans" what they wanted) by treating him like the next big legendary superstar and they didn't get much in return. The crowd stopped the big pops, Punk lost his edge with his character, his input in the writing seemed lackluster, and the feuds were mostly predictable.

That is bullshit. They ruined CM Punk by knocking him down when he was on top. CM Punk was on top of the world with that promo, and even when he needed a John Laurinitis distraction to beat Cena, people were still firmly behind him.

So WWE makes him into a hypocrite that comes back the very next week, and then has him beat Cena with Cena's foot on the ropes, immediately making Punk look like a fluke winner. They then have Nash beat him up and Del Rio cashing in, making him lose whatever heat he had.

He then goes onto lose to Cena in a #1 Contender's match on Raw, and while Cena is playing hot potato with Del Rio over the title, Punk is jobbing to Triple H at Night of Champions. At Hell in a Cell, Punk then gets PINNED CLEAN by the dastardly heel who can't ever win a match. And at Vengeance, he gets pinned clean AGAIN by The Miz of all people.

By the time it was Survivor Series, they had completely killed his heat. He won the title that night and the people felt like he was just another top guy instead of "THE" top guy. He went on to have middle-of-the-card feuds with Miz, Dolph and Jericho while Cena hogged the spotlight. They had to turn him heel just to avoid making him look like a midcarder.

It was the writers' fault Punk didn't become a top guy. When you're main eventing shows with John Cena vs. John Laurinitis instead of CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan, you can't blame the fans for not mustering up enough interest.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

I think this whole thing is a work by WWE to build to the biggest pop in history at Mania. they are too smart to not do this. They even have Bryan on Twitter building it. they are literally trying to intentionally piss people off to create that epic moment when he finally overcomes. Whether it happens at Elimination chamber or not, im not sure. However, I think to build up and then have it happen at EC will not get what they are looking for. 90,000 strong chanting yes as Bryan wins the strap seems more like what will happen. How it will happen? That is the part they need to figure out. i dont think they will go to Mania with Bryan as the champ though, that kind of defeats the purpose of getting the biggest pop ever.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

I agree, except I don't think that's damage control. I think that has been the plan all along. Not the Batista heel turn part, which I agree would be damage control and a very good idea, but I have no doubt they've planned for months now for Daniel Bryan to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The only question was who he'd best. And once a Randy a Orton best John Cens in their match, we knew Daniel Bryan wouldn't win the Royal Rumble because Orton and Bryan have already had too many one on one matches. It was always either going to be a one on one match between Cena and Bryan(which would've my choice, no question) or a Orton-Batista-Bryan triple threat.

For as much as people like to rip the WWE, it's easy to forget that they get things right 99.9% of the time. They'll get this one right too. Batista needed the RR win to establish himself as a real threat, Bryan will find another way to get into the title match, and he'll end the show at WrestleMania with the title. Just as he should.


...of course, if he doesn't, I'm done with WWE.

I'll second this post. If Bryan isn't hoisting the strap at Mania i'm done for a while. Ill be holding off on getting the Network until i see the reults of Mania

 

[BillAlfonsos_Whistle]

They are clearly building a "Good ole' boys club" versus the "new era" angle.


HHH/Bautista/New Age Outlaws
vs.
Punk/Bryan/whoever

 

[Macho Mans Beard]

The fact that WWE took a huge dump in the WWE Universes front yard is the worst thing they have ever done. The crowd is practically handing the WWE what they want on a silver platter and are getting nothing in return.

The Royal Rumble is one of the best PPV's of the year. And to say you didnt see Batista winning it, then you are as blind as Helen Keller. There was absolutely 0 surprise entrants. And to have Batista come in so late, it was pretty much said and done. Oh and he was on his back for 85% of the time he was in that match. So who really carried him??? The rest of the entrants.

When #30 hit, I was shocked it wasnt Daniel. The crowd should of just left or turned their back on the match from then on. I did like that they did POP for Reigns. (REIGNS IS THE FUTURE) But to have WWE sit there and say Batista is our guy is pure dog sh!t.

If it is Orton v Batista at WM30 that is about as exciting as WM9. Which is to this day the WORST WM in history. There is no buy power in that.

WWE needs Bryan to be champion going into WM30 to face a Heel Batista. Thats what the people want. And if they dont get that match, you can bet WM30 will go down as the least watched WM in history.

 

[AhSpicyDrop]

I'm trying to look at the positives coming out of Rumble as opposed to the predictable outcome. Anybody who actually believed somebody besides Batista was going to win was setting themselves up to get pissed off. They heavily promoted Batista for weeks leading up to it.

The positives:

1. Roman Reigns once again had a stand-out performance, and broke one of the most solid records in the WWE. The fans were also strongly behind him by the end of it, and it's clear that his future ahead is bright. He's likely going to be the next huge star on WWE's payroll.

2. Bryan lost cleanly to Bray in one of the best matches I've seen in a long time, and still came out just as over as he was going in. The fact that he wasn't in the Rumble only adds to his "being held down" storyline that he's been pushing.

3. Cena didn't win the belt again, and now feuds with Wyatt which is fresh(something Cena has badly needed for a while now). Wyatt is going to be strong and believable heading into the feud, and could steal the show with Cena at Mania.

4. Despite Batista winning the Rumble, it was still a very good finish. All of the people at my house were actually buying into the idea that Reigns could pull it out, which is exactly what the Rumble is designed for; the suspense.

Bottom line is the Rumble was always designed to beat the drum for the march to Wrestlemania, and it did a damn good job of setting up the showcase matches, and leaving a lot of suspense heading into the Chamber.

My biggest complaint about the entire show was how dreadful the Cena/Orton match was. That was by far the worst match I've seen the two have. It seemed like they were just putting in minimal work, punching the time clock, and going home. Absolutely nothing special about the match at all, aside from setting up the Wyatt vs. Cena feud.

 

[boywithbluehanger]

It was the writers' fault Punk didn't become a top guy. When you're main eventing shows with John Cena vs. John Laurinitis instead of CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan, you can't blame the fans for not mustering up enough interest.

Ahh but I can and I do. You say that the writing is solely to blame but I saw a huge difference in CM Punk's character and I have heard many superstars (including Punk) claim that the writing behind their characters is a collaborative effort. This is why I blame Punk for not having interesting input for the direction his character took. It's fine to lose matches here and there as long as your character is interesting enough to not falter because of it. People don't lose interest in wrestlers simply because they lose a handful of matches. They lose interest in characters because they don't find them very appealing or engaging. Writing definitely is part to blame but it's not like these guys don't have a lot of input as to what their characters do or get to say on the mic.

Since they (the creative team and the wrestlers) discuss the guidelines of stories, the wrestlers are able to come up with speeches that fit the direction of the stories being told. Punk's biggest sell to the crowd was the fact that he was outspoken in his very first "pipebomp" speech. Not being able to live up to that moment should not be blamed on losing to a multiple time "world champion" or a fluke win by The Miz. Especially since he was over even when he was an uninteresting face after the fact. The problem was that he hit the ceiling. That was as far as he could (or chose) to go as a face. People became less interested in him because his promos began to sound like he was just "phoning it in" he'd make a lame joke about someone, yell "PYPEBAHHHMB!!" as if he just told a scathing zing, and the crowd's reaction was a little less than thrilled.

He never lived up to that initial pipebomb and the support that was thrown his way due to many of our fellow "internet smarks", was unwarranted. The WWE gave into us and were let down. But now, both sides seemed to have learned a lesson. The company isn't going to just give into the smarks easily. And the fans are not going to stop giving their support this time (no matter how unimpressive DB is on the mic). So now that both of our sides are unwilling to budge soon, it's all about who blinks first. Will they give DB the WWE title before we stop caring? Or will we stop caring before they decide to go further with DB? Personally I think they'll give in first and at Wrestlemania. It's too huge of a payoff not to be used. But I certainly think our web buddies (who messed up along with CM Punk) are partly to blame.

 

[Rocky84]

The best way to do damage control is to put Bryan in something so good that people will overlook the fact he's not in the title picture. The only thing that makes sense to me is taking on the Undertaker. He's been offering wrestlers to defeat him but they all pass...imagine if Daniel Bryan and management were to accept it? How big would that Mania moment be? Sure fire way to not have the fans boo the main event after being satisfied already by what is probably even a bigger win than a championship for DB.

With Sting looking more likely to come in for Mania, that idea may be unlikely as The only real opponent for Sting is Taker. If he doesn't come then you have to put Bryan against Undertaker and I'd argue that you should have him win. People were split last year on Punk and Taker...I'm all but certain the crowd would be 100% in favor of Bryan...to give us an unexpected win would shock the world. I don't think it'd be that big of a deal for Taker to lose once to someone like Bryan anyway.

Then they can go about making their main event something that would be extremely marketable and capture the attention of the casual fan...Batista vs Brock.

 

[CrucifiedRaven]

You guys are naive if you think any of this is a work. The dirt sheets are right. Everything has played out exactly as leaked. Bryan will probably face Sheamus as rumored and Orton will face Batista and get booed again.

Unless tonight caused them to change their plans... There will be no big payoff for Bryan. There isn't any master plan.

Oh and by the way, it's not "smarks" or "internet fans" that are routing for Bryan. Like whoever said "WWE won't cave in to the smarks like they did with CM Punk"... The entire building was hot for Bryan all night and they have been since before Summerslam. It's not smarks. It's everybody.

 

[lil steroid meat]

Assume you're Triple H. You just signed your old buddy Batista to a contract and unofficially promised him the Royal Rumble win and WrestleMania main event in negotiations.

You just turned Daniel back into a face and the crowd is red hot and needs him in the Rumble. Without going back on your word, you let Batista win the Rumble, but the crowd just shat all over him.

What do you do now????

Have the Mr. McMahon character come back tomorrow (1/27/2014 RAW) and address the crowd reaction and the '#YESMovement' (the WWE loves hashtags almost as much as they hate skinny fat guys with huge fan followings) and have him basically say that Bryan does not look like a star, and that he looks like he should be making burritos at Chipotle's or something, tie in Punk somehow, thus leading up to Punk/Bryan vs. HHH/McMahon at Wrestlemania. With Punk/Bryan obviously going over.

- Ties up the Authority angle nicely.

- Nice way to tie in legit and kayfabe stories. It's rooted in truth.

- You get a huge Yes moment when Bryan goes over HHH, symbolically that will have people going crazy.

- Possibility for Punk to turn on Bryan down the line, leading to Summer of Punk and Punk vs. Bryan feuding for the belt this summer.

Best possible scenario now that Bryan is out of the title picture.

Sure as hell better than boring ass Sheamus (the WWE has too many muscular guys with no real gimmick, a lot of which are coincidentally are buddies with HHH) vs. D Bryan. They have to do something better than that. Bryan is the hottest guy since Austin/Rock.

 

[Kidpolean]

It can't believe people still think DB is main evening Mania...he just lost clean to a newbie midcarder. That match was amazing but DB still lost clean. Taker is facing Lesnar and I think that is pretty clear after tonite. DB will be in some random match at Mania. Bray took out Cena and Db in the same night which means that he is next to get a huge push. Orton vs Batista is obviously happening and so is Punk vs HHH. So the only option for DB is Sheamus. The dirtsheets had the card right. I m looking forward to Mania because all there matches have a chance to steal the show imo.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

I have heard many superstars (including Punk) claim that the writing behind their characters is a collaborative effort. This is why I blame Punk for not having interesting input for the direction his character took.

He clearly does not have the input he would want. He said that Fatal 4 Way for the match against Taker was bullshit. He hated how the feud was set up and thought it should be done another way. And yet it still happened.

You think he chose to go after John Laurinitis on a weekly basis and single-handedly create any heat Big Johnny had just to get brushed to the side and replaced in the feud with John Cena??? He obviously would've preferred to settle that feud himself.

Punk also thought his feud with Jericho was badly handled. He never gave specifics, but I'm guessing it had to do with how Jericho was supposed to win the Rumble instead of Sheamus. The feud would've been the focal point of Raw. Instead, they had Jericho not follow through on his "end of the world" promo and lose a bunch of matches on his way to facing Punk at Mania.

Punk doesn't have the control you think he has. He's much more "goody-goody" than he would like to be. That's not his doing. He basically cut a John Cena promo on SD last week. It has nothing to do with what Punk wants, that's just what WWE's idea of a face is and they want to shove it down our throats.

 

[mlp420]

I'm more and more convinced that there is a divide between the millions watching the program and some of the people showing up at these arenas. Batista got crapped on tonight but on the last Raw he popped the rating big time, over a million viewers tuned RAW out after his debut. We've seen the ratings & buyrates dip for Bryan & Punks main event runs. It's one thing for a few thousand die hard fans to come to an arena and assert themselves, but the numbers are what they are.

 

[Raiden46]

Folks who are taking a massive diarrhea dump on the Rumble, I have some bad news for you all. You are getting WORKED by the machine. WWE has done some stupid shit in recent times, but they are playing this out to the letter. This has been a story since SummerSlam and it will come full circle now. Somehow, some way, WWE will write Bryan into the WWE Title match at WM30, and have him complete the biggest adversity story in Wrestlemania history.

 

[adam i]

I just feel like Batista didn't need that win. No matter who he wrestles ( I mean entertains) at mania he would get over as a heel or a face. If Roman reigns wins the rumble you automatically have a new top guy. I was more disappointed in the fact that I paid like $55 to watch a Ppv that I knew wouldn't make any sense. This is my first post!

 

[boywithbluehanger]

Punk doesn't have the control you think he has. He's much more "goody-goody" than he would like to be. That's not his doing. He basically cut a John Cena promo on SD last week. It has nothing to do with what Punk wants, that's just what WWE's idea of a face is and they want to shove it down our throats.

Neither of us can say we know for sure and clearly we believe differently. I choose to believe that he did not offer anything appealing to make his character interesting after the pipebomb speech. I saw instances where he tried to recreate that moment in promos and it never really lived up to it. Also his character after his S.E.S. days, has lacked depth for the most part. It would be far too easy for me to look at all of his shortcomings and point to the company. At some point, the talent is to blame for their failures.

The damage control I see, will be what many are expecting. The expendable Batista will go back to being a monster heel. But this time he'll actually be used to put someone over for a change. Frankly, I'm not so upset that he got booed at RR because like I said, he's expendable. He's been gone a while and didn't deserve the win since it's not like he's immensely loved still. But I was far more upset at Sheamus and Rey getting booed. I thought that was unnecessary. Hardly no one suspected they'd win and Sheamus just came back from recovering from an injury/surgery. But that's just me bitching as 1 person.

The simple fact that they've already put the WWE title on Bryan (no matter how short of a reign) and put him in the main event scene, is proof that they are listening to fans. The smarks who choose to ruin shows by chanting irrelevant things during championship matches and misguidedly booing the talent not responsible for their disappointment, are undeserving of what they want in my opinion. Plus they've proven to still be loyal fans when they're unhappy anyway, so it makes their whining seem that much more stupid.

 

[Messiah]

WWE doesn't need Daniel Bryan in the main-event, do you really think WWE gives a damn what the fans want? They ignore them constantly. At the end of the day, they're going to do what THEY want to do.. If the fans keep this up, WWE might de-push Bryan to jobber status possibly. They seem stubborn that way.