That didn't last long....

[Trill Co$by]

Last night on Thursday Night Smackdown (Now on USA Network) the JBL entitled "Mexico's Greatest Export" in Alberto Del Rio defeated Kalisto to reclaim and become a 2x WWE United States Champion. Kalisto, by technicality has now become one of the two shortest reigning United States Champions... the other was Raven during his time in WCW. However, because his title loss aired last night, WWE will probably consider it a 4 day reign, which is still the shortest reign while under the WWE banner. I haven't seen the match, but I plan to while I eat dinner later tonight. From what my friends have told me, it was a complete opposite of their match on Raw. Kalisto apparently had some much needed offense but ultimately lost.

Could this be the set up to putting Kalisto further up the ladder within both the WWE creative and WWE fans idea of a future star? Or could this be the definite end of the potential 15 Minutes of fame for the IWC titled "Rey Mysterio Lite" (because he's Mexican and short).

 

[L@RISANO]

Hopefully, Kalisto is being placed in a role of being the Ultimate Underdog, and as such, will be winning back the title come Royal Rumble. At least that would be the ideal way to go.


However, I wouldn't be surprised if this Kalisto push is just been done as a placeholder till Sin Cara is back in shape so the Lucha Dragons can go straight back into the Tag division like nothing ever happened.

 

[Aquaman6686]

No way in hell should Kalisto EVER be beating Alberto Del Rio. Kalisto is a low level tag team competitor, ADR is a main event Superstar and one of the only worthwhile talents WWE has. But of course, since he's a heel, Del Rio is booked to look like an incompetent buffoon who can't possibly defeat any opponent without interference. More piss-poor booking from WWE.

 

[BuriedByCena]

WWE 50/50 booking at it's finest. So what did this accomplish exactly? Kalisto gets his 15 minutes of fame...and goes back to jobbing tag team matches? Wow. Good job WWE.

 

[Saeros]

No way in hell should Kalisto EVER be beating Alberto Del Rio. Kalisto is a low level tag team competitor, ADR is a main event Superstar and one of the only worthwhile talents WWE has. But of course, since he's a heel, Del Rio is booked to look like an incompetent buffoon who can't possibly defeat any opponent without interference. More piss-poor booking from WWE.

I bet loads said the same when Rey Mysterio beat Kevin Nash. It only benefits Kalisto. You need to get wins over big talent to be taken seriously. Kalisto deserved it. His performances have been stellar as of late. Given more time in the ring he will show he can do much more.

 

[Navi]

No way in hell should Kalisto EVER be beating Alberto Del Rio. Kalisto is a low level tag team competitor, ADR is a main event Superstar and one of the only worthwhile talents WWE has. But of course, since he's a heel, Del Rio is booked to look like an incompetent buffoon who can't possibly defeat any opponent without interference. More piss-poor booking from WWE.

With all due respect if you had it your way, Ziggler would be world champion, Jack Swagger would be US Champion, and Del Rio would be IC champion. Kane and Big Show would hold the tag titles and everyone else could go jump in a lake.

Everything would stay the same all the time, no progression at all. Are you sure you aren't Vince McMahon trolling the hell out of all of us. I ask this seriously.

 

[Aquaman6686]

With all due respect if you had it your way, Ziggler would be world champion, Jack Swagger would be US Champion, and Del Rio would be IC champion. Kane and Big Show would hold the tag titles and everyone else could go jump in a lake.

Everything would stay the same all the time, no progression at all. Are you sure you aren't Vince McMahon trolling the hell out of all of us. I ask this seriously.

Actually the tag champions would be The Usos. Other than that, I'd have no problem with all of that. Ziggler, Swagger, and Del Rio are among the guys who SHOULD be headlining WWE right now.

And no, it's not a matter of no progression. It's a matter of progression at the correct pace - slow and steady. WWE only understands how to push guys by skyrocketing them to the top, instead of smartly and carefully building them over a period of years. Roman Reigns had potential to be a true main event talent, but it was ruined by hot-shotting him to the top YEARS before he was ready. Roman shouldn't have been anywhere near main event status until 2017.

You create the future by BUILDING on the present, not by demolishing it. And you create stars by building them like a, well, a building. You don't start at the top floor, you start with the foundation. This is what WWE no longer understands.

 

[L@RISANO]

Actually the tag champions would be The Usos. Other than that, I'd have no problem with all of that. Ziggler, Swagger, and Del Rio are among the guys who SHOULD be headlining WWE right now.

And no, it's not a matter of no progression. It's a matter of progression at the correct pace - slow and steady. WWE only understands how to push guys by skyrocketing them to the top, instead of smartly and carefully building them over a period of years. Roman Reigns had potential to be a true main event talent, but it was ruined by hot-shotting him to the top YEARS before he was ready. Roman shouldn't have been anywhere near main event status until 2017.

You create the future by BUILDING on the present, not by demolishing it. And you create stars by building them like a, well, a building. You don't start at the top floor, you start with the foundation. This is what WWE no longer understands.

Who are "the present" you speak of? Please, do tell...

 

[Navi]

Actually the tag champions would be The Usos. Other than that, I'd have no problem with all of that. Ziggler, Swagger, and Del Rio are among the guys who SHOULD be headlining WWE right now.

And no, it's not a matter of no progression. It's a matter of progression at the correct pace - slow and steady. WWE only understands how to push guys by skyrocketing them to the top, instead of smartly and carefully building them over a period of years. Roman Reigns had potential to be a true main event talent, but it was ruined by hot-shotting him to the top YEARS before he was ready. Roman shouldn't have been anywhere near main event status until 2017.

You create the future by BUILDING on the present, not by demolishing it. And you create stars by building them like a, well, a building. You don't start at the top floor, you start with the foundation. This is what WWE no longer understands.

I understand what your saying and believe me I agree with some of it, progression takes time, building a foundation takes time. But the foundation of the WWE is starting to crack right before our eyes.

Cena, Orton who have been around for years now, are starting to wear out, not wear down, wear out. Kane is almost 50, Mark Henry can't keep going forever and neither can Big show. Wrestler's like Ziggler, Swagger, Miz and others have had their shots, now it's time for a new generation to take the reigns (no pun intended) to keep this company going.

There is nothing wrong with using Ziggler and to an extent Swagger as talent enhancements. Put them in feuds where it doesn't matter if they win or lose, they've already held titles, they have nothing more to prove. This is a product that has to stay fresh and progressing, it can't stay stuck in one place for too long or you start to lose the fans.

The fans are the one who pay the money buying the tickets, merchandise and whatever else Vince puts out there, if you don't keep them happy to a degree the money dries up. Why do you think Cena has been the top dog all this time, he brings in the money. And that's why this title going back to Del Rio the other night was stupid.

As much as Del Rio is a solid in ring worker, there isn't much more too him. Kalisto sets the place on fire, and the fans love him. I wouldn't consider giving him the US title to be a rocket push, he's worked in NXT for the last couple of years, and on the main roster for the last year or so. He deserves to be pushed. Roman Reigns was hurt by the rocket they strapped on his back. He might have been ready, but the fans didn't want him, and he is just recovering now from it. Now I'm not saying push him because the fans want it, Kalisto has shown he can go with the best of them.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Who are "the present" you speak of? Please, do tell...

Right now, John Cena, Randy Orton, Triple H, and Undertaker should be used how The Rock and Stone Cold were used in 2002-2004. They're the mega stars who don't need to wrestle all the time, but when they do it's a huge deal, and they should ONLY lose when it really matters. Kane, Big Show, Chris Jericho, same thing - they should win 99% of their matches and only drop a loss when it means something.

The guys who should currently be at the top of WWE in the "regular" main event spots are Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, Sheamus, Jack Swagger, and The Miz (and, if they were still around and/or able to compete, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan). But their entire generation was ignored and passed over in favor of the generation that came after them. It's like WWE skipped from The Hulkamania Era to The Attitude Era, ignoring The New Generation Era. Guys like Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, etc., should still be another full year away from starting to get main event pushes.

 

[Hyorinmaru]

I'm unhappy to say the least. Not because I like Kalisto and think he deserved a decent US title run, not because Del Rio is horrible as a champion.

The main reason I'm unhappy is because once again the WWE is treating the US champion like a piece of crap. Everything Cena has done as champion has been flushed down the toilet. I thought they were going in the right direction by having Kalisto win but of course the fucked it up. I'm close to saying fuck WWE all together.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Wrestler's like Ziggler, Swagger, Miz and others have had their shots, now it's time for a new generation to take the reigns (no pun intended) to keep this company going.

There is nothing wrong with using Ziggler and to an extent Swagger as talent enhancements. Put them in feuds where it doesn't matter if they win or lose, they've already held titles, they have nothing more to prove. This is a product that has to stay fresh and progressing, it can't stay stuck in one place for too long or you start to lose the fans.

As much as Del Rio is a solid in ring worker, there isn't much more too him. Kalisto sets the place on fire, and the fans love him. I wouldn't consider giving him the US title to be a rocket push, he's worked in NXT for the last couple of years, and on the main roster for the last year or so. He deserves to be pushed. Roman Reigns was hurt by the rocket they strapped on his back. He might have been ready, but the fans didn't want him, and he is just recovering now from it. Now I'm not saying push him because the fans want it, Kalisto has shown he can go with the best of them.

Ziggler, Swagger, and Miz never had a chance to be the top stars. Ziggler was given the title, got hurt ONCE, and was labelled "injury prone" by Vince McMahon. How many surgeries have John Cena, Randy Orton, and Batista had? And yet they're given infinite chances. Even Roman Reigns has already missed more ring time due to injury in not even four years in WWE, than Dolph Ziggler has in a decade. And yet he's the top guy. Jack Swagger is partly to blame for his own failure. His first main event run was ended prematurely because WWE didn't feel he was ready yet - and he wasn't. Then in 2013 it looked like he was getting a second chance, and he sabotaged himself by doing drugs. The Miz worked harder than ANYBODY in WWE history to make it to the top, and he EARNED his way there, but WWE used him as a promotional tactic for Rock/Cena. After that he was thrown away and rarely allowed to even sniff the main event picture again. The Miz should be a top star.

What Kalisto did in NXT should not matter. NXT is developmental and should NEVER be mentioned or in any relevant to WWE. This is one of the things that enrages me about the product today. Kalisto has a few nice moves, but I've seen nothing from him that says he's ready to be United States Champion, let alone be considered anywhere CLOSE to Alberto Del Rio's level.

 

[Navi]

Ziggler, Swagger, and Miz never had a chance to be the top stars. Ziggler was given the title, got hurt ONCE, and was labelled "injury prone" by Vince McMahon. How many surgeries have John Cena, Randy Orton, and Batista had? And yet they're given infinite chances. Even Roman Reigns has already missed more ring time due to injury in not even four years in WWE, than Dolph Ziggler has in a decade. And yet he's the top guy. Jack Swagger is partly to blame for his own failure. His first main event run was ended prematurely because WWE didn't feel he was ready yet - and he wasn't. Then in 2013 it looked like he was getting a second chance, and he sabotaged himself by doing drugs. The Miz worked harder than ANYBODY in WWE history to make it to the top, and he EARNED his way there, but WWE used him as a promotional tactic for Rock/Cena. After that he was thrown away and rarely allowed to even sniff the main event picture again. The Miz should be a top star.

What Kalisto did in NXT should not matter. NXT is developmental and should NEVER be mentioned or in any relevant to WWE. This is one of the things that enrages me about the product today. Kalisto has a few nice moves, but I've seen nothing from him that says he's ready to be United States Champion, let alone be considered anywhere CLOSE to Alberto Del Rio's level.

But at some point in time they were considered top stars, and Ziggler and Miz are still considered superstars today. Swagger he's another story completely, as you said he did himself in.

Miz and Ziggler were world champions, but someone in management decided for whatever reason they weren't good enough to reach that plateau again. I'm sorry but all Ziggler matches are basically him flopping around like a dead fish, and it's not at all entertaining, the guy oversells everything. I like the Miz however and would like to see him heel it up, but the WWE keeps him back. Although he and Ziggler are on TV most weeks, just not in the position you want them.

Reigns was out last year, but it was his hernia that had to be operated on. Totally different from sustaining an injury in the ring.

Getting back to Kalisto and Del Rio for a moment. Are you really going to say Del Rio didn't lose the prestige that Cena built up on the US title? All Cena's work over the course of almost a year with his open challenges, Del Rio didn't flush all that down the toilet? I mean shit what did Del Rio do that kept the title in the forefront, other than holding it in front of him? He did nothing. He won it and he didn't do anything with it. That's the kind of champion you want, someone who does nothing?

If that the kind of champions that should be holding the titles then I want nothing to do with whatever wrestling company they belong too. I want to be entertained, not bored silly, and quite honestly Del Rio bores me to tears.

Maybe just maybe that's why the Shield and people like Kevin Owens are now in the top spots, because they aren't boring, they are entertaining. They are the future of the WWE, and I would rather look to the future than lament on things that might have been, but will never happen.

 

[Aquaman6686]

But at some point in time they were considered top stars, and Ziggler and Miz are still considered superstars today. Swagger he's another story completely, as you said he did himself in.

Miz and Ziggler were world champions, but someone in management decided for whatever reason they weren't good enough to reach that plateau again. I'm sorry but all Ziggler matches are basically him flopping around like a dead fish, and it's not at all entertaining, the guy oversells everything. I like the Miz however and would like to see him heel it up, but the WWE keeps him back. Although he and Ziggler are on TV most weeks, just not in the position you want them.

Reigns was out last year, but it was his hernia that had to be operated on. Totally different from sustaining an injury in the ring.

Getting back to Kalisto and Del Rio for a moment. Are you really going to say Del Rio didn't lose the prestige that Cena built up on the US title? All Cena's work over the course of almost a year with his open challenges, Del Rio didn't flush all that down the toilet? I mean shit what did Del Rio do that kept the title in the forefront, other than holding it in front of him? He did nothing. He won it and he didn't do anything with it. That's the kind of champion you want, someone who does nothing?

If that the kind of champions that should be holding the titles then I want nothing to do with whatever wrestling company they belong too. I want to be entertained, not bored silly, and quite honestly Del Rio bores me to tears.

Maybe just maybe that's why the Shield and people like Kevin Owens are now in the top spots, because they aren't boring, they are entertaining. They are the future of the WWE, and I would rather look to the future than lament on things that might have been, but will never happen.

So it's Del Rio's fault that WWE didn't book him as a dominant champion? He has to work with what he's given. But I'd still rather watch him in the ring than almost anybody else WWE has.

 

[Hyorinmaru]

So it's Del Rio's fault that WWE didn't book him as a dominant champion? He has to work with what he's given. But I'd still rather watch him in the ring than almost anybody else WWE has.

Dude he's not a dominant champion. In sports entertainment Charisma is part of what get's you over and moves you up the card. Del Rio has the Charisma of a potato. Creative gave him countless times to get over through feuds with fan favorites and main event as well as mid card title runs. They have all failed in getting Del Rio over because he is incapable of getting over. Fans don't hate him because he's a heel they hate him because he sucks. Not in the ring because I'll admit he's a technical masterpiece. That's only half of what makes a main event talent in WWE though. It all goes down to the fact he's a Charisma black hole.

 

[ShinChan]

Last night on Thursday Night Smackdown (Now on USA Network) the JBL entitled "Mexico's Greatest Export" in Alberto Del Rio defeated Kalisto to reclaim and become a 2x WWE United States Champion. Kalisto, by technicality has now become one of the two shortest reigning United States Champions... the other was Raven during his time in WCW. However, because his title loss aired last night, WWE will probably consider it a 4 day reign, which is still the shortest reign while under the WWE banner. I haven't seen the match, but I plan to while I eat dinner later tonight. From what my friends have told me, it was a complete opposite of their match on Raw. Kalisto apparently had some much needed offense but ultimately lost.

Could this be the set up to putting Kalisto further up the ladder within both the WWE creative and WWE fans idea of a future star? Or could this be the definite end of the potential 15 Minutes of fame for the IWC titled "Rey Mysterio Lite" (because he's Mexican and short).

I was very disappointed on Kalisto losing the US Title so soon. It completes destroys the credibilty of the title and Kalisto as if saying that Kalisto's win at RAW was a fluke win. It would have been Out of Box thinking to make him champion and have a respectable reign with it. Del Rio is too much busy in LoN matters regarding WWE WHC and the title was just there as a showpiece he possessed.

I hope its not the end of singles push for Kalisto as i have said before that he is a talented entertaining in-ring worker even more than Rey Mysterio. Also i hope Kalisto regains the title again at Royal Rumble!

 

[sMark]

You don't get it, do you?
their first match was a random thing
their second match was an upset where Kalisto won the title
Del Rio beat Kalisto for the title back quickly, but now these 2 have some WWE story behind them and can feud properly, with Kalisto's title chase and win at Mania.

 

[Navi]

You don't get it, do you?
their first match was a random thing
their second match was an upset where Kalisto won the title
Del Rio beat Kalisto for the title back quickly, but now these 2 have some WWE story behind them and can feud properly, with Kalisto's title chase and win at Mania.

No we get it believe me. The issue is that if that was the way it is going down the title shouldn't have changed hands on RAW. Cena and I hate to keep bringing it up, won it at Mania last year. He defended it weekly on RAW, and the matches were a highlight of the show. Most if not all of them were awesome. Del Rio comes back, wins the title off Cena in his first at bat so to speak, and then does what I feared he would do, nothing.

Now it's being hot potato ed around between two guys. They don't have to build this up to were we want to see Del Rio get beat, that feeling is already in place. Like Frank said, Del Rio is fine in the ring, but it's the only place he's okay. His gimmick as the entitled rich whatever sucks, his personality sucks, and he sucked as champion. Take the title off him and give it to someone who can at least keep the crowd awake.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Wow, amazes me how everyone has missed the point of this...

Smackdown has a new TV deal right? So they did this (and leaked the change) so that people would tune into Smackdown to see it. They are trying to make Smackdown must see TV, so title changes there will be part of that process.

Short title reigns have their place and can help build someone... Kalisto is one of those types who CAN benefit from it. He scored a shock win over a former World Champion... that is huge for him, keeping the belt for a long time doesn't matter.

Don't believe me? Did that one night run ever hurt Kane? Hell no... it cemented him as a main event level player for years to come, even if he didn't actually have the title. Sometimes that one off win over someone way higher on the totem shoots you up further than carrying the belt for 4 months.

I can see them building his gimmick as he knocks off some more former World Champs over the coming weeks - perhaps Jericho leading to his heel turn or Dolph Ziggler.

 

[king4day]

Del Rio is boring. Swagger is dull.
Kane, Henry, and Big Show have been played out.

BTW, Del Rio is FARRRRRRRRRRR from a 'superstar' or elite talent. I change the channel when he's on, or fast forward. I don't think there's anything more that can be done for him to make him relevant again.

Ziggler I still think has a chance to be elite but something significant has to happen to put him, in the minds of fans, as a legit main eventer.
I don't think he'll get there again but he's not done yet.

NXT talent is where the next star will come from, and IMO, Zayn could be the next face of the company.

 

[king4day]

Wow, amazes me how everyone has missed the point of this...

Smackdown has a new TV deal right? So they did this (and leaked the change) so that people would tune into Smackdown to see it. They are trying to make Smackdown must see TV, so title changes there will be part of that process.

Short title reigns have their place and can help build someone... Kalisto is one of those types who CAN benefit from it. He scored a shock win over a former World Champion... that is huge for him, keeping the belt for a long time doesn't matter.

Don't believe me? Did that one night run ever hurt Kane? Hell no... it cemented him as a main event level player for years to come, even if he didn't actually have the title. Sometimes that one off win over someone way higher on the totem shoots you up further than carrying the belt for 4 months.

I can see them building his gimmick as he knocks off some more former World Champs over the coming weeks - perhaps Jericho leading to his heel turn or Dolph Ziggler.

If they did the title change and leaked it so fans would tune in, I think they should have done the reverse and let Kalysto win his first title then instead. I would have watched for that. Once I heard Del Rio won it back, I just groaned and still haven't watched smackdown.

 

[sMark]

No we get it believe me. The issue is that if that was the way it is going down the title shouldn't have changed hands on RAW. Cena and I hate to keep bringing it up, won it at Mania last year. He defended it weekly on RAW, and the matches were a highlight of the show. Most if not all of them were awesome. Del Rio comes back, wins the title off Cena in his first at bat so to speak, and then does what I feared he would do, nothing.

Now it's being hot potato ed around between two guys. They don't have to build this up to were we want to see Del Rio get beat, that feeling is already in place. Like Frank said, Del Rio is fine in the ring, but it's the only place he's okay. His gimmick as the entitled rich whatever sucks, his personality sucks, and he sucked as champion. Take the title off him and give it to someone who can at least keep the crowd awake.

In legit sport (MMA, boxing etc) title change can happen in any given match, so why this is a problem for some people? There possibly plans for the guy to become a star in the Mania period, so they can have their new Rey Mysterio for future 5-10 years. Right now WWE put Kalisto on the map by giving him a title. Coulld his first title run be longer? Sure, but Kalisto defeating every contender in open challenges (Cena like) will look odd, because he has no built as a single star, him having troubles with keeping the title right now make sense. Kalisto will chase Del Rio until Mania, where he can finally grab and run with the strap (while the whole world watching). This is a case of belt making a star. Lesnar got similar push in 2002, look at him now.

 

[Azane]

Hot Potato Hot Potato, Why don't our titles mean anything? Hot Potato!

Either way, this didn't get me to watch Smackdown, the US and IC Titles have dropped so much, that they're now curses, rather than prestigious, having the US Title just means you have almost no chance of winning the big prize before dropping it. John Cena's open challenge was good because it built up the title, but it also meant that 1 person held it for a while, Dean Ambrose's year run helped the title too, but we're back to the title changing hands multiple times on free tv within 1 ppv cycle.

 

[TDFG]

These short, blink and you miss it title reigns aren't something new, but they could have at least let him hold the belt until the Royal Rumble.

 

[J.J.]

Everyone must've missed how the titles were constantly passed around in the beloved Attitude Era. Did The Rock ever hold the belt beyond 4 months at a time? I don't understand - people complained that the US title wasn't being used. The argument was Cena is involved in the world title scene too much and buries others. Then the U.S. title isn't appreciated. Cena wins the title, defends it regularly on Raw and drops it to ADR half a year later.

Then it becomes Cena brought prestige to the belt and ADR is just carrying it and it's not in any feuds. Now he's in a program with Kalisto with the title involved and now the complaint is the title reign was too short and ADR doesn't deserve it. It's inevitable to appeal to so many. I enjoy that there has been emphasis placed on the belt unlike when Dean Ambrose simply carried it for a year with little to no leverage.

I just enjoy the program they're building and it's entertaining to see how well they work in the ring. ADR is a great worker and Kalisto is being given a great opponent - regardless if he held the belt a few days; the fact that Kalisto went over on a guy that is a former multiple time world champ and he won clean over him is worth noting.