Mike Bennett & Maria Kanellis Bound For The Blue Brand?

[Jack-Hammer]

According to a report via PWInsider.com, Mike Bennett and his wife, and former WWE Diva, Maria Kanellis are coming to WWE soon and will be part of the SmackDown brand.

To be honest, I'm sort of surprised that WWE hasn't made an offer to Matt Taven as well seeing as how Bennett & Taven have been a notable tag team over the past couple of years by capturing the IWGP and ROH Tag Team Championships. Taven was also part of the inaugural ROH World Six Man Tag Team Champions and had a lengthy run as ROH World Television Champion several years back. Although, now that I think on it, Taven's probably still locked with ROH and I've no clue on when his deal is up.

As for Maria, I have to say that I don't know. I don't think I've seen her really do anything since she left WWE years ago. She never particularly impressed me as a wrestler though I've no doubt she'll make a great valet. Maria is one of these women who constantly reminds me of the bad old days of women's wrestling in WWE and it's difficult to separate her from that bleak time when women's wrestling in WWE was an industry wide joke.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I don't know, is Bennett really that big a name that he'll bypass a NXT that needs him for a Smackdown that doesn't.

 

[The Perfect Max]

I'm interested by this. I think they could be absolutely fantastic, don't get me wrong, but SmackDown is a little cluttered at the moment. When you think that someone like Jinder Mahal is getting a push into the main event scene (wow, I just wrote that), then SmackDown is definitely at no end for talent. Plus, you don't want to sacrifice the chances that everyone else on the SmackDown roster has just been given, like a Sami Zayn or Kevin Owens, to make it their show.

And, as the above post says, I'm not so sure that Bennett and Maria should skip NXT. I think NXT needs someone like these two to come in and fill a gap that NXT has right now. NXT are in another rebuilding phase and they always do a good job whenever they deploy talent to the main roster. They have plenty of mileage, so I don't think that delaying their debuts on SmackDown is a bad thing. It might help Maria more, because as you said, she is associated with an absolutely shit era of women's wrestling. Some fans may not be aware of what she has been getting up to since leaving WWE, so this could be a good re-introduction so to avoid any heckling from fans.

 

[noTORRIEus]

I'm pretty shocked by this. Definitely thought they would be NXT bound because although Mike has been on TNA and ROH, majority of the WWE audience will not know who he is. However, that same audience will know who his wife is and WWE will make a big deal of her returning to the company. So she is the only reason they would even consider them for the Main Roster / SD Live.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

Personally, I hope that if Bennett & Maria go to SmackDown, Bennett gets a big win in his debut match, but then when they return to the locker room Maria discovers a massive pile of shit in her bag with a note that reads "Welcome Back!"

This kicks off a huge mystery storyline: WHO SHAT IN THE BAG?

Mike Bennett accuses Randy Orton of shitting in Maria's bag, based on Orton's history of doing this to divas. "You're a repeat offender Randy!" This sets up a match between Orton and Bennett. Maria tries to get involved but Orton RKOs her, Bennett capitalizes off the distraction to steal the win!

It's then revealed that Orton wasn't responsible for the shit, and that it was the notorious evil bully JBL! Shane McMahon has no choice but to FIRE JBL for his actions!

There you go, that's a perfect angle right there. Brings in Bennett, gets rid of JBL.
Two birds, one shit.

 

[enviousdominous]

Ho-hum; Smackdown is already drowning in "hopefuls".

Maybe my expectations are a little too high given that WrestleMania was unexpectedly amazing.

I imagine that Mike Bennett will be in Maria's shadow up until the fans get tired of jeering her, if he's able to become interesting at that point is a longshot as far as I can see.

 

[Papa Pillman]

I believe that the desire to use Maria as a central figure on Total Divas is the motivation for both signing the pair, as well as hotshotting them directly to the main roster.

I actually think the NXT crowd would be death on arrival to the Bennett/Kanellis act with borderline go-away heat from day one that would sour his build to the main roster. In my opinion he actually has a better chance to get over organically on the main roster by skipping NXT.

Also the Bennet/Maria pairing is somewhat redundant in character to Bobby Roode and Roode's presence would limit Bennett's ability to move up the card there. Conversely, on SmackDown they can step right in and gobble up the midcard spot vacated by Miz/Maryse leaving for Raw. Providing the SDLive writers with an act that can treat similarly to take the place of the departed A-listers.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I believe that the desire to use Maria as a central figure on Total Divas is the motivation for both signing the pair, as well as hotshotting them directly to the main roster.

Dang, I wish I thought of that. Total Divas makes total sense. My original thought was Vince just wanted to break them up. Put her in a program with Fandango and let nature take its course.

But the Total Divas thing makes perfect sense. She is ripe with history where catty behavior could pounce to make for E Television "reality" drama. Her time in WWE, her boyfriends, her backstage conflicts, and then her attempt at mainstream acceptance could lead to a lot of stupid insults and arguments.

I'm surprised that Magnus hasn't gotten a job as well. Maybe Mickie doesn't want to go the reality route.

 

[Vanilla Midget]

Maria has been in WWE before, that's most likely the reason for skipping NXT, should they ultimately sign with the company. They're a package deal, and sending her to the main roster immediately allows them to the couple on things like Total Divas, as others have pointed out.

Most WWE fans are going to be like, who? Some might remember Maria, most will not know Bennett. Is that really such a bad thing? Most casuals couldn't tell you who Bobby Roode or Samoa Joe were pre-NXT.

I remember AJ Styles saying in an interview that he wished he had gone through NXT, or thought his transition might have been smother had he done so.

Maybe Maria returning then introducing her husband as the greatest thing ever might build some legit heat. Introducing him on the main roster would be a unique way of pushing Bennett. The last straight to main debut we saw was AJ, and that turned out well.

Mike Bennett isn't AJ Styles, literally and figuratively. There's nothing that says debuting straight on WWE's main roster is a bad thing. They could blow right up. Bennett is only
31, so he has many wrestling years ahead of him.

I wasn't horribly impressed with Bennett in Impact, but a lot of that was inconsistent booking. He hovered near the top, then was mostly used as a vehicle to push Moose. I wonder if there would be more hype for Bennett had Impact pushed him as a top guy.

 

[MWRedskins]

i like this move (if they return to WWE and on the show)....but one thing that better change is seeing Maria beaten up by a bunch of men. one thing that always annoyed me during Maria's first run was seeing guys beat her up all the time.

but to the point at hand, i liked Maria and Mike Bennett in their TNA run and felt that their gimmick had potential, but it's hard to win a world title in a company where Lashley is (correctly) a dominating heel. Bennett can wrestle and he can talk and Maria is an added mouthpeice for an already fine mic worker. it'll be great to see him chasing or winning a midcard title.

 

[stingray11214]

Mike Bennett is best in a tag team. The Kingdom was his finest hour. Maria Kanellis was around during the worst years of WWE Women's wrestling. They are going to the Blue brand because of Total Divas? No....Hell, no. Sign Matt Taven, put them in NXT, and restart The Kingdom. Problem solved.

 

[Navi]

Since I stopped watching TNA a long time ago I don't really know Mike Bennett but do remember Maria. I'm sure when they do debut long time fans will remember her, but the casual crowd will go "Who?"

Is it bad that the only memorable thing I remember about Maria though is when she was spoofing it up with Santino. Oh well will withhold judgement until they come back and I see what they are up too.

 

[d_henderson1810]

Personally, I hope that if Bennett & Maria go to SmackDown, Bennett gets a big win in his debut match, but then when they return to the locker room Maria discovers a massive pile of shit in her bag with a note that reads "Welcome Back!"

This kicks off a huge mystery storyline: WHO SHAT IN THE BAG?

Mike Bennett accuses Randy Orton of shitting in Maria's bag, based on Orton's history of doing this to divas. "You're a repeat offender Randy!" This sets up a match between Orton and Bennett. Maria tries to get involved but Orton RKOs her, Bennett capitalizes off the distraction to steal the win!

It's then revealed that Orton wasn't responsible for the shit, and that it was the notorious evil bully JBL! Shane McMahon has no choice but to FIRE JBL for his actions!

There you go, that's a perfect angle right there. Brings in Bennett, gets rid of JBL.
Two birds, one shit.

The only part missing from your scenario is how the Bennett-Orton match will end.

Despite Bennett's best efforts, and him needing the win to establish him, Randy Orton will easily beat him after one RKO out of nowhere.

This is after a few weeks of build, where Orton looks a million bucks all the way through, and Bennett's credibility is tarnished after the feud, much like Bray Wyatt and other's push were halted after meeting Randy Orton in the ring.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Not really looking forward to this. I haven't watched TNA since the end of 2014 so I'm not familiar with Bennett at all. I'll wait until after I have seen some matches and promos before I make any major opinions on him. Maria, unless she miraculously learned how to wrestle while in TNA, is awful in the ring. She was part of the women's division's worst era when Trish and Lita left and the focus was more on appearance than promos or actual in-ring skill. I could see them taking the place of the heel couple on Smackdown like Miz and Maryse were, but I don't expect them to be as good in the role. Again, I don't watch TNA from 2014 onward so I am unfamiliar with anything Maria did over there. All I can go by on her was her 2004-2010 run where not a single good match or promo comes to mind. I'll give her another chance on Smackdown. Odds are she is only coming back so she can be on Total Divas which I don't even watch anyway.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

I'm confused, what makes people think they would sign them with the thought of having Maria wrestle? They brought back Maryse over a year ago and she's had one match since that time and did what? One move in it? Maria would 100% be used as a manager for her husband which is a role she's great at and would be able to get Bennett some good heat right away most likely. Maria still can't wrestle well but she has gotten much better on the mic.

As far as Bennett goes, I like the guy. I think he has good potential that was wasted in Impact Wrestling. He can have some pretty good matches and I think he's okay on the mic, he'd benefit from some seasoning in NXT though all around. I'm hoping these reports are true, send them to NXT, send them to Smackdown, either way I'm on board as long as Maria isn't forced to play a ditzy girl again.

 

[ShinChan]

I would've been almost indifferent towards Bennett if his feud with Ethan Carter III hadn't impressed me. That was the only time I cared for Bennett in his lackluster year in TNA. Maria easily overshadowed him and that's not a good thing.

Also, I don't think that he should go straight to main roster. Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode, Hideo Itami, Shinsuke Nakamura etc had to go to NXT first and Bennett is nowhere near these guys. Only AJ Styles went straight to the main roster.

Bennett should first get some exposure on NXT and then he can join the main roster. Not very excited for him though. Mild.

 

[OYDK]

I'm most familiar with Bennett from his time in ROH as I haven't really watched TNA in the last few years, but from what I saw, he was ok. He has a great look, a ton of potential, and the dynamic between him and Maria works very well. That being said, he needs a lot of polish. He would definitely benefit from a stint in NXT before debuting right out of the gate, but if this report is true, they might be hotshotting him because there's a strong need for a heel couple on Smackdown to replace Miz and Maryse. One of the first things I did remember thinking about Bennett was that he had a very "WWE look." It was only a matter of time before they came knocking at his door.

As for Maria, I was pretty stunned by how good she had become after her time in WWE. Watching her in ROH was like night and day. As long as they allow her to do her thing and don't stick her with a stupid gimmick, she'll be a great heat magnet for Bennett and should be able to cover up some of his deficiencies on the mic. And yeah, highly doubt she'll be wrestling. There's no need for it as, like Maryse, she's probably being brought back for Total Divas and all they really need to do is get her on-screen. She's a good manager, hopefully she stays a manager.

I'm fairly optimistic about this. Bennett/Maria would be a good acquisition for Smackdown.