Rumor: Wade Barrett To Be Repackaged

[Jack-Hammer]

I'd nearly forgotten about this little snippet I read in the past few days. Allegedly, according to wrestlinginc.com, there's talk among WWE officials of repackaging Wade Barrett and giving him a big push. Barrett has been MIA from WWE television since jobbing to Daniel Bryan sometime almost 2 months ago on SD!.

I think WWE has dropped the ball, so far, with Barrett. He's loaded with ability but, for the most part, I think they've squandered a number of opportunities over the past 3 years to make Barrett a long term star. I have to say that, even if he is repackaged, I don't have that much faith in WWE giving him a sustained push. Barrett finally returned to action after suffering a dislocated elbow on February 4th, an injury that put him on the shelf for 7 months. Barrett made his return around this time last year and things were going well for Barrett, including winning the IC title for the 2nd time on December 29th. Things were looking as though they were getting back on track for Barrett, maybe even eventually getting in the World Heavyweight Championship picture. Reportedly, WWE was gonna have an MITB ladder match at WM 28 with Barrett penciled to win before the injury put him out of action. After the Royal Rumble, however, his push was not only derailed, it was fucking obliterated as he was jobbed, especially to the bigger names on the roster during Wrestle Mania season, out left & right while still being IC champ.

I'd love to see Barrett get a strong push but I'm just not all that confident in WWE's booking of him over the course of 2013. The start of WrestleMania season isn't all that far off, so it's entirely possible for him to be brought back in the very near future only for Vince to decide that the bigger names need someone to job for them.

 

[HBsam31]

They make it look like they are trying with Barrett, but ever since Nexus all he gets is a two week push and then he fades away again. I agree Jack Hammer that it seems like they dropped the ball with him. He is talented, and I really enjoy him on the mic, but it seems like they get attention disorder when pushing him. I hope they repackage him and he comes back to a real push, but I am not holding my breath on this one.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

The way I see it is they are at least admitting they haven't got it right yet, but he's worth trying again with... I've noticed littel changes in his work - he seems to have been watching a lot of Harley Race and I think channeling a bit of "Handsome" Harley is exactly the right thing for him.

First off I think King Of The Ring would be perfect for him, but if they're not gonna go that way then they have to decide if it's time to try something new... or old...

You have Adrian Neville on the cusp of coming up, Drew McIntryre sitting doing nothing in 3MB and Paige waiting to debut. We know Barrett can lead so the long mooted UK stable makes sense for him but the best idea for him is the one they probably won't go with.

If there is one guy in the WWE born to be a Horseman it's Barrett. Flair has been in the doghouse but the Horsemen could be a good way to get him back into the good graces - especially with all this Rhodes stuff... It's all going horribly wrong for The Rhodes' when Flair comes back with his new group to run off the Shield/Big Show etc... Of course Cody would end up in the Horsemen, probably with Bryan but Barrett in that "enforcer" role is the nearest you'd get to Arn... Flair could do a great deal with Barrett, ultimately being turned on but you get the sense sometimes that Barrett has had to chart his own course to an extent... he hasn't had the Evolution style indoctrination Orton/Cody/Batista had from hanging with legends like Flair... If you're gonna do it this seems the way to go for me...

 

[LSN80]

I had been wondering where Barrett had been, but honestly, I figured he was simply done in the major storyline within WWE after getting destroyed by Bryan several times before Summerslam. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Wade hasn't been on television since he lost inside in the Cage to Bryan, has he?

Either way, things can't get much worse for Barrett, can they? They could always replace Drew with him in 3MB, and that would be worse, but I'm not sure how else. Wade came into the company as hot a "rookie" can, but him failing to win the title as leader of the Nexus was indicative of failures to come. He had several good matches in that first year against both Cena and Orton, and his mic work was arguably stronger then any heel in the company in 2010. But when Punk returned from injury in late 2010, Barrett was quickly dropped from Nexus to the far inferior Corre. Despite winning a few IC Titles since, none of his reigns have been memorable, nor has he had any stand-out matches since. I had hope of Barrett getting a push when he beat Orton clean during his last IC Title reign, but there was never any follow-up to that.

Barrett is a valuable asset, in that he's skillful in something half the roster never quite gets: He's one hell of a talker. He's got a great look as well, so it was only his ring skills that needed polished, and I truly felt he was coming along well before his last disappearance. What's more, Barrett is exceptionably valuable as leader of a stable, as he's both imposing and a strong talker. However they repackage him, I hope it's as a leader of a heel stable.

Because Barrett has shown he can't sustain a push, for one reason or another, as a single's wrestler. We know he can lead a stable, so why not use him in a way that he's unquestionably good at?

 

[OwenHart]

UK Stable sound COOL!

Barett, Paige, Neville and Oliver... hell even Steven Regal!!! There is Sheamus also but that would overshadow Barett. Oh Yeah and please McIntire also in the stable because i hate it seeing him in 3 Monkey Brothers...

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I'd just write Barrett off. He's decent at everything, great at absolutely nothing.

Are his reactions strong enough to justify giving him another push? I don't think they are. What it comes down to is people thinking he should be in a higher position on the card that he is because he was a headliner once. But that was an accident and it produced some pretty lame main events if I remember correctly.

Barrett, in truth, is actually just a bit shit, isn't he!

Also, the British stable idea has almost become a cliche now amongst forum posters. But yeah, I'd be so down for that. But no Sheamus though because, y'know, geography.

 

[blue_dragon]

Barret to me is like Miz. The guy who seems to almost made it into big leagues to just go down back the ladder and never become huge.

Dunno if it the charisma he lacks but I can't see him becoming a main event caliber any time soon. WWE can prove me wrong any day of course but I don't believe he will make it.

They can repackage him all they want. Won't change a thing. They have enough main event players as it is right now.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

I'd nearly forgotten about this little snippet I read in the past few days. Allegedly, according to wrestlinginc.com, there's talk among WWE officials of repackaging Wade Barrett and giving him a big push. Barrett has been MIA from WWE television since jobbing to Daniel Bryan sometime almost 2 months ago on SD!.

I think WWE has dropped the ball, so far, with Barrett. He's loaded with ability but, for the most part, I think they've squandered a number of opportunities over the past 3 years to make Barrett a long term star. I have to say that, even if he is repackaged, I don't have that much faith in WWE giving him a sustained push. Barrett finally returned to action after suffering a dislocated elbow on February 4th, an injury that put him on the shelf for 7 months. Barrett made his return around this time last year and things were going well for Barrett, including winning the IC title for the 2nd time on December 29th. Things were looking as though they were getting back on track for Barrett, maybe even eventually getting in the World Heavyweight Championship picture. Reportedly, WWE was gonna have an MITB ladder match at WM 28 with Barrett penciled to win before the injury put him out of action. After the Royal Rumble, however, his push was not only derailed, it was fucking obliterated as he was jobbed, especially to the bigger names on the roster during Wrestle Mania season, out left & right while still being IC champ.

I'd love to see Barrett get a strong push but I'm just not all that confident in WWE's booking of him over the course of 2013. The start of WrestleMania season isn't all that far off, so it's entirely possible for him to be brought back in the very near future only for Vince to decide that the bigger names need someone to job for them.

Gotta disagree with you on this one, Jack. While I wouldn't put all of the blame on Barrett for sure, he definitely has some. At least half. Jake said it pretty well. Barrett is decent at many things and great at none. His presence is severely lacking. His mic skills are just average and his in ring ability is the same. Both his finishers leave you wanting as well. Frankly, I'm thinking a repackage most likely isn't going to save his mid card/lower card career because he just isn't as good as people want him to be.

I definitely see a lot of issues with how he was handled by WWE though. I've said for at least a year now it's both sides' fault. First, pick a damn entrance theme for him. People have no idea who he is when he comes out because his theme changes every other week. I never even got to hear his latest one during a full entrance. Also, his storylines have died unexpectedly or bombed. Once was due to injury, so that's no one's fault. But I was legitimately intrigued in his "open for business" storyline, but it ended after a week. It seemed like they were going for a hired gun type thing, which would've fit his street fighter gimmick.

Let's not get started on Corre. I think that's where he lost all his momentum officially.

 

[MINISTRYrising]

To be fair, I really don't think Barrett needsthat much in the way of repackaging, Sure the guy is in real need of a half decent finisher as he has not had one since he Debuted in the WWE, But other then that he does not need much else other then a push. I know there are others out there that will disagree with me, but Alberto Del Rio is the World Champion at the end of the day and Barrett beats him hands down in many ways.

 

[Alex]

It's kind of interesting that Barrett (and even McIntyre) started off being pushed strongly and are now doing bugger all. Barrett keeps getting taken off tv and McIntyre is jobbing in 3MB.

What I find interesting is that TNA have actually taken their British talent in Magnus and actually pushed him to the point that people give a shit about him and he seems to be moving up to main event status. Heck when he had visa problems people were actually wondering where he was. Can't say the same for Barrett.

Personally I feel all the repackaging is hurting Barrett more than anything. You get used to him doing one thing, he disappears for a bit and comes back with a new gimmick that people have to warm to again.

He's a competent talker and worker and personally I feel should be a main stay in the midcard. He's simply not good enough for a main event shot. Can he get there in time, I don't know but right now no matter what gimmick you throw on him he's still only going to be ok.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Wade's "Fight Club" persona didn't work, despite the huge build-up it received in the weeks before he actually made his in-ring debut.

Why didn't it succeed.....and more importantly, why did WWE management think it didn't succeed? The writers seemed to move away from it pretty quickly, even as Wade was still winning his matches. I felt more vignettes were needed, with Wade selling himself as a hardcore street fighter. Instead, they had him doing it exclusively in the ring.....and when it didn't catch on, it was surprising how fast he fell to the level of jobber.

I don't think Wade is far from becoming a true superstar. Creative needs to channel his strengths: his nasty personality and proven ability to lead...... and give him some people to boss around. Not to re-create Nexus; that's not the way.

One on one, Wade is just another competent wrestler. As the head of a faction, he could wind up a world champion.

 

[MCMG]

I'm a big fan of Barrett and I really hope he is a success. The WWE have screwed him around; right from Nexus to the Core and his reigns as Intercontinental Champion. He lost the biggest match with Nexus against Cena; Core was an absolute mess and as IC champ he lost almost every TV match and was never able to shine.

Hopefully he is done with mid-card titles because that won't help his career. Barrett is good in the ring and on the mic. Plus I think he is very easy to hate. They need a good gimmick with him and should stick with it. If he is a brawler/fighter then he should be hurting people. After a match on Raw; Wade Barrett could actually win and his opponent is carried of on a stretcher. That is something they could do to build that particular gimmick.

If they are going to completely change Barrett's gimmick or give him a new look (and theme song) then he deserves a proper push to go with it. Barrett is capable of being World Heavyweight Champion and is far superior to the likes of Alberto Del Rio and, in my opinion, Damien Sandow.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I've said it before, and I will say it again...Wade Barrett is very average.

Ok look, ok in the ring, probably above average on the mic (which is his strongest skill), and just pretty much unremarkable in every way with an unmemorable entrance theme, poor finishing moves and completely lacking in anything to get excited about.

WWE don't help Barrett by constantly changing his entrance theme (which stops people from popping when he comes out as they don't recognise the music), and by constantly cancelling his pushes and stop-starting with him regularly. But Barrett has to take some of the blame too, apart from his run in the Nexus he has never really grasped any opportunity given to him, and has not progressed and improved as everyone (me included) thought he would.

Repackaging him could work, but hasn't this been done before. Unless he comes back with a totally new gimmick (i.e NOT Wade Barrett), I don't have high hopes that this restart will lead to much.

 

[teddygreen17]

I personally believe Barrett is a natural born leader. He needs to be a leader of a group. Like a British group, i like that idea.

 

[jacdnwarrior]

Triple Naitch

I've said it before, and I will say it again...Wade Barrett is very average.

Ok look, ok in the ring, probably above average on the mic (which is his strongest skill), and just pretty much unremarkable in every way with an unmemorable entrance theme, poor finishing moves and completely lacking in anything to get excited about.


Totally agree. I'm hardly a fan of the guy. He has size, he's ok on the mike, but I haven't found him interesting enough to care one way or another about him. His work is ok but not overwhelming. I find his finishers to be so ...dry, boring, sloppy, uninventive. And the finisher doesn't have to be new or more creative, but at least do with some kind of flair, for shits sake. I haven't seen too many British wrestlers interesting enough where I care about them being pushed. Davey Boy, Dynamite Kid was ok, Regal was great in the ring, can't think of too many others.

For his sake, I hope he gets what he needs to keep him around for his sake, but I think it'll be tough to make room for him with all the things going on. DO you put him in the World Heavyweight division, do you put him on Raw, I just don't see him getting above a midcard level, and quite honestly there are better performers in that area.

 

[akathelaw]

How drastic of a re-gimmick is he going to get? Imagine if they put him under a mask. His tattoos are recognizable, but over time I think people would forget about the Wade Barrett persona. His large size and power would be cool for a supernatural "Undertaker" style gimmick, and I've always wondered if Vince would pass the gimmick on to a new wrestler. Barrett as a new, English accent Undertaker would be interesting. Think of how Doctor Who has had different actors over the years... The Undertaker could be a character who lives on in wrestling that way, with BarrettTaker maybe defeating Undertaker and harnessing the power of the urn.

Stupider things have happened in Vince's circus.