The finish of the Cena/Sheamus Tables match .... What really happened?

[Blade]

Ok, we all saw the tables match last night. There was the ending where Cena fell through the table and Sheamus fell off the top rope to the outside... But is that what was supposed to happen? Let's look at the evidence.

I present to you, the video of last night's events.

[YOUTUBE]tnzZ1cW27PE[/YOUTUBE]

Ok first thing's first. Look at Cena's fall. It's quite clear that he jumps back without Sheamus pushing him or punching him. We can all agree on that. That part wasn't a botch, Cena was intentionally going for the table, even if he did move off to the right a little. Look at it closely. Cena was obviously jumping into the table. Despite what many people are claiming, it's not what Cena did that was the botch. It's what Sheamus did.

People are focusing on what Cena did. Maybe you should think about what Sheamus didn't do. Look at the above video. First, notice how awkwardly Sheamus falls off the turnbuckle. We've seen plenty of wrestlers fall of the top turnbuckle, but it never looked as awkward as that. It's like Sheamus slipped, fell to the apron then rolled off.

Now, the biggest piece of evidence. Look at the part where they do the close up of Sheamus. Notice anything? There's a toppled over table right beside Sheamus, a table that was set up earlier in the match. Now, call me crazy, but I see a link between Sheamus' awkward fall, and that table.

So, could it be that Sheamus was meant to fall off the turnbuckle through that table, thus ending the match in a draw? Perhaps the reason Cena went to the right side of the table was because he saw how Sheamus fell and tried to steer himself in a different direction as to avoid giving Sheamus the win. And Sheamus's music took a good few seconds to start playing after his win.... Hmmm....

So if this was, in fact, a botch, and it was meant to end in a draw, then where does WWE go from here? Will they make Sheamus drop the title as a soon as possible? Or see what it does for ratings?

Before I realised how likely it was that it could've been a botch, I thought Cena would win the rumble since he was WWE-title-less... But now I think we could see the Cena vs Sheamus rematch at Royal Rumble. I dunno, if the end was a botch, the WWE writers must have had a long day today to try and come up with a good solution. Tonight's Raw is going to be absolutely crucial for fixing this possible mess.

What do you guys think? If it was a botch, what's going to happen on Raw tonight? Rematch? Or Sheamus' acceptance speech?

 

[Dave]

I also noticed that Jerry Lawler was taking about how the end of the match came as a shock. Of course it was because Sheamus went over but I don't think it was supposed to happen like that, if at all. When I look uon it, I can't help but feel that something has gone very wrong with that. Cena doesn't look too comfortable going through the table either and I think that he may have noticed that something had gone very wrong with the finale of the match. I think he then tried to dodge it but knew that he had to sell it as he was certainly on his way through it. I think you are completely correct in the assumption that Sheamus was supposed to go through the one on the outside too. I mean, why would that table be there if he wasn't. Look at his eyes when he gets up too, he looks physically shocked. I mean, of course he just won the title in a match that everyone expected him to lose but to look that shocked!? He was either selling it well or genuinely surprised.

Of course, this all links brilliantly into tonight's show at Raw. For me, I would not be surprised to see some action taken if it was indeed a botch. In fact, I don't think it is too far out of the question to suggest that they may have a rematch for tonight to get all of the angles back on track after the surprise last night. Whatever happened last nigth may have a huge baring on what happens tonight and far into the future.

 

[Ambiguous Turd]

This was touched base in the match thread last night, but I don't think there was necessarily a botch to the result of the match. I still feel Sheamus was supposed to go over, because his music played almost immediately and there was absolutely no hesitation or delay on Justin Robert's part either in announcing him the winner and new WWE Champion.

The only thing I think that may have supposed to happen was that Sheamus was in fact supposed to go through that table on the outside. But, I think it was supposed to be AFTER Cena went through his table first. That way, it would be construed as more of a "close victory" ... and would have perhaps "cheapened the win" slightly for Sheamus.

I don't believe they were supposed to go through the tables at the same time.

There really wasn't a sense of confusion or anything around ringside that something went wrong with the match. The only possibility I could forsee happening is, as I said, Sheamus was still supposed to go through that table on the outside ... but was STILL planned to do so AFTER Cena went through his.

He just missed the table. But it didn't change the intended finish of the match. That's just my perspective upon reviewing it several times.

 

[NSL]

Thanks for giving me credit for pointing it out

as I said in our MSN conversation, it definitely looked like Sheamus was meant to go through that table on the outside, but I don't think it was supposed to be a draw. I'm thinking that the ref would have restarted the match, and Sheamus would have won eventually anyway.

As far as what they'll do...I'm not sure. I'd guess a rematch, with the same stipulation, would be a good idea, but with the original ending happening, setting it all back on track. They both sold the ending well, so I'm not sure what was, and wasn't supposed to happen, but we'll find out tonight on RAW.

 

[Kliq]

A guy I was watching the PPV with actually made that comment as well. When Sheamus fell off the turnbuckle he landed where the toppled table was, and it almost looked as if he was trying to pull it apart or somehow make it seem as though it had broken a bit as well because of his fall. This would of course had made the match a draw and the champ. retain. That could very well be what was meant to happen, but there's no going back now.

 

[gwumusic10]

Yea I really felt as if the ending of the match was a botch. Of course we could never really be sure because everyone sold it perfectly. As someone stated above we don't really know what was or wasn't supposed to happen.

If it wasn't a botch then all is good. If it was a botch then I really feel bad for Sheamus and his push and I say that because if he botched the ending then creative will feel like he cannot handle the main even scene and his push will be halted.

After all we have to remember something...Anything can happen in the WWE. Was Sheamus supposed to go through the table? Yes I believe he was. I don't really know what the ending should have been but it is what it is and now i'm hoping creative can think of something good to do despite what happened or what was supposed to happen.

IMO what I think should happen is a fatal 4 way match with Cena, Orton, Sheamus and Kingston. That would be a match of epic proportions

 

[Arkham Noir]

If they really did intend for them both to go through the tables at the same time then that was an extremely ballsy ending to try and pull off.I think there's definantly more to this but let me take the chance to say that this could be the start of a revelution in the wwe. Having a new guy on top? That is a concept. I'm just afraid that Shemus is gonna lose this title at the rumble.Or sooner.let's just hope it doesn't happen bause Sheamus is the first new 1st wwe champion in awhile

 

[HATECHOIR]

I think there was something meant to happen that didnt whether it was both going through tables in a draw or Cena first then Sheamus. I mean you can clearly see at 21 seconds Sheamus taps Cena on the left hip to signal him to go, but it does look like he was supposed to hit the table not the apron first.

If anything as stated before by many it surely makes for a much anticipated RAW, and it has been a minute since we have had one of those! looking foward to all 3 hours tonight, and hat's off to Vince, the Writers, or who ever's idea it was to have a PPV where damn near ALL the titles changed hands looking forward to how lots of different angles play out off this PPV!

 

[thetylertank]

After watching this time after time I believe it was not a botch. Look closely and you can see that Sheamus grabs the ropes with one hand when he falls so (imo) that he doesnt go through the table. Because of this I think the match ended as planned.

 

[Phoenix]

This was touched base in the match thread last night, but I don't think there was necessarily a botch to the result of the match. I still feel Sheamus was supposed to go over, because his music played almost immediately and there was absolutely no hesitation or delay on Justin Robert's part either in announcing him the winner and new WWE Champion.

The only thing I think that may have supposed to happen was that Sheamus was in fact supposed to go through that table on the outside. But, I think it was supposed to be AFTER Cena went through his table first. That way, it would be construed as more of a "close victory" ... and would have perhaps "cheapened the win" slightly for Sheamus.

I don't believe they were supposed to go through the tables at the same time.

There really wasn't a sense of confusion or anything around ringside that something went wrong with the match. The only possibility I could forsee happening is, as I said, Sheamus was still supposed to go through that table on the outside ... but was STILL planned to do so AFTER Cena went through his.

He just missed the table. But it didn't change the intended finish of the match. That's just my perspective upon reviewing it several times.

I watched the video a couple of times and I think Sidious has it correct here.

If you do look carefully, by the time Cena lands in the table, Sheamus has only just hit the apron, he would have never hit the other table at the same time, gravity would say so on this occasion. But I think he was meant to go in after, but given that not just the music and the announcement, but the graphics came up announcing Sheamus as the new champ very promptly after. Now given WWE prepares everything on that front in advanced, I think Sheamus was set to win the title, they wouldn't have had the graphics because they could not come up with in within 20 seconds of the match finishing had Sheamus' win not been planned. I think Sheamus was set to go through the table, but only close, just he misjudged his landing.

As for the title situation, either they give a couple of weeks off to Cena so he can film, or he wins the title back tonight ala Austin/Kane.

 

[thetruemike]

Ok one think I notice was the fact that Stryker stated 1 split second could be all the difference in this match. No matter what Cena was going through the table first after that in the way he pushed himself. Now even if it took sometime for WWE to cue Sheamus music , the announcers were selling it pretty well even mentioning the Irish Newspaper. I mean Sheamus character reaches out to those Irish born folks like how Kofi old character was suppose to reach to Jamaicans and it did its job.

I mean triple H is the guidling light for Sheamus' character and the meet up with Vince McMahon, and Drew McIntrye before the match says it even more. Vince wants to put new stars on the rise and fast...wait theres a problem, the way the match still ended is a problem. I mean even if he was suppose to win according to all the evidence. So it brings us to RAW tonight. It perfectly sets up the ratings for tonight to be high for the next two weeks with DX as champs and Sheamus as champs.

If Sheamus gets the Kane treatment and just take Sheamus off RAW. You cant build someone to be like a monster and then stop his push like that. This could be like Chris Benoit vs Randy Orton where someone interferes in the match like a Carlito. Who knows whats gonna happen, Like the E says, anything can Happen in the WWE. A new formation of a stable can happen for all we know, WHY exactly are the winners from the Survivor Series Battle royal on the Miz's team all champions now. Whats next?

 

[KKarvox]

Of course it was supposed to happen. Had it been an accident, the match would have been either restarted or nulled. right away. They would have said that Cena fell, not that Sheamus pushed him, and would have restarted, and Cena would have won. Plus, did you see Cena selling the injury and everything, of course it was planned. Sheamus may have been supposed to go through the table, but maybe just for effect, to keep Cena over as a dominant force.

 

[Rated_R_Superstar2010]

the end could have been a botch, it could have not. sheamus may have been booked to win and maybe it was supposed to be a draw. i dont think we will ever know. personally i think it was meant to be a draw. it looks like sheamus was supposed to go through the table instead of hit the apron. like some1 said a very ballsy booking move. this would have most likely led to another match which i think cena would have won. i have nothing wrong with giving sheamus this push but its too close to mania and the rumble. cena should have kept his title and kept it till mania, and maybe past it. but this is not a good time or situation to give sheamus the title. this could very well lead to sheamus losing the title either at the rumble or before then on raw. either way sheamus will not be champ for very long and this could hurt him alot. facing cena and holding your own and losing the match is one thing. but winning like that, cena falling through the table not even sheamus putting him through it, and now hes most likely gonig to lose it short after. makes him look really weak and really really messes with his push.

i believe it was supposed to be a draw and its going to be very interesting where wwe is going to go with this one.

out of all of this it makes one thing very clear. you gotta love live wrestling and absolutely anything can happen in the wwe



i recall about a month ago team 3D was in a table match with some team on impact. the leg of the table broke but the table itself didnt snap. it was a very awkward situation and the ref said it didnt count. tna got lucky and wwe didnt. i guess thats the way it goes sometimes.

 

[mral82]

I think Sheamus was supposed to go thru the table on the outside but the table "NO SOLD" Sheamus' body and it was supposed to break so Sheamus is the new champ. Plus it was prob supposed tp be a draw so a re-match happened @ the Rumble. Now lets us all eat Lucky Charms, Cabbage, Hash and drink it with Guinness And watch where the Sheamus era leads us. Hopefully Orton doesnt try to screw this up.

 

[beeflange]

I think the finish happened the way it was supposed to. The ref immediately calls for the bell and awards Sheamus the match and the ref dosen't even look outside the ring to Sheamus and the ring announcer immediately announces Sheamus the new champ. They had to get the belt off Cena anyway by Wrestlemania when he faces the Undertaker

 

[2rowdy4u]

i dident get to see the ppv so thanx for posting that ending cause iv heard so much about it. i would say it does look like a botch and thats the first thing i notice was the way he feel akwardly and the other table on the outside. if the finish was suppose to be a draw i think wwe officails would have done something last nite to keep shemus from leavin wwe champion. so imo as wierd as the finish looked i believe that was the plan and shemus was booked to win the tittle last nite

 

[Bob Dole]

What you all seem to be forgetting is that that table was outside the ring because Sheamus threw it out there while it was in the corner to prevent Cena from putting him through it. There is no way that they could have expected the table to land in a position for somebody to go through it, and even if thats what they did expect to happen, then an official would have gone over and set the table up off camera, but it looks like its just been thrown from the ring as it was a few minutes earlier.

 

[Baller]

Originally Posted by Phoenix
I watched the video a couple of times and I think Sidious has it correct here.

If you do look carefully, by the time Cena lands in the table, Sheamus has only just hit the apron, he would have never hit the other table at the same time, gravity would say so on this occasion. But I think he was meant to go in after, but given that not just the music and the announcement, but the graphics came up announcing Sheamus as the new champ very promptly after. Now given WWE prepares everything on that front in advanced, I think Sheamus was set to win the title, they wouldn't have had the graphics because they could not come up with in within 20 seconds of the match finishing had Sheamus' win not been planned. I think Sheamus was set to go through the table, but only close, just he misjudged his landing.

As for the title situation, either they give a couple of weeks off to Cena so he can film, or he wins the title back tonight ala Austin/Kane.

I think Phoenix and Sidious have this right. Now we obviously will never know whether he was suppose to go through the table at the same time or whether he goes through it at all. But the WWE isn't capable of making a graphic in 30 seconds, as well as Justin Roberts announced it immediately instead of waiting for the referee to go to him and give him the ruling. Sheamus obviously mistimed the jump or he slipped, but there is no doubt that Sheamus wasn't suppose to go over whether it was "a cheap victory" or not.

Now Phoenix, as soon as Sheamus won this match I immediately thought Austin/Kane all over again. This is a way for the WWE to get ratings. Have a WWE Title Rematch on a 3 hour episode. I think that Sheamus is the next Kane as I don't think he has what it takes to be a mega superstar in this company, but it is too early to tell. He doesn't have that much heat IMO, yes Cena helped him get over huge but Sheamus still doesn't have a developed character, but for Sheamus' sake I hope the WWE doesn't do the Austin/Kane version 2.

 

[Mr_Ab_Fab]

theres no way this was a botch. that table was thrown out of the ring by sheamus earlier on in the match and was never set up or used again. there was plenty of oppourtunity to set up a more convinient table alot closer to where sheamus would of fell. sheamus was announced really quickly and theyre more than likely to go for the john cena didnt actually loose he fell was not pushed, the king and michael cole made a point of sayin this a few times.

 

[NSL]

So what if he was announced quickly, and the music was ready? Vince ordered everyone to call the matches as they happen, so they don't look like shit for messing up a three count, or in this situation, a table match.

Cena went through the table, so Roberts had to be ready to announce Sheamus as the winner, and I'd bet that both wrestler's music was ready to go when a table snapped. They did their job, so it has nothing to do with whether or not the ending here was a fuck up.

 

[INDYjon22]

Honestly, I think the ending was the ending that was meant to happen. I can understand your arguments about how both men were supposed to go through tables and have the match end in a draw but you have to remember a very important moment in the match. There was a table in the corner and Cena was building momentum. Sheamus realized this and threw the table over the top rope thus making the table tople over in such a way. Ipso facto, we get to the finish, Cena goes through a table and Sheamus lands next to the table that he had thrown over the top rope earlier.

 

[nikvoodoo]

Here's what Bob Dole was talking about. I don't think this was a botch and Sheamus was supposed to win. Anyone saying Sheamus was supposed to go through that table on the outside didn't look far enough back into the match.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_eNAwAxZmk

At 7:30 into the video clip, Sheamus throws the "offending" table out of the ring after the five knuckle shuffle. the table crashed to the outside but more importantly on its side. It wasn't set up to accept anyone to go through it. It stayed on its side for the rest of the match.

If Sheamus was meant to go through that table, someone screwed the set up of that table hardcore. I've never seen someone break a table when it's on edge like that...pretty much because table won't break like that.

Sheamus was meant to win because a table match allows for someone to win without needing to really beat someone. It can be a total fluke. And that's the finish we saw last night. A some what fluke finish that handed the title to Sheamus without him really having beat John Cena.

If there's any botch with the finish, it's on Sheamus' head for not getting a good visible push on Cena off the top rope.

 

[Okay Fabian]

theres no way this was a botch. that table was thrown out of the ring by sheamus earlier on in the match and was never set up or used again.

Yes sir. The table was propped in the corner earlier in the match with only one of its set of legs opened up. When Sheamus tossed the table out of the ring it landed on its side. If anything Sheamus's awkward fall off the turnbuckle was to avoid hitting the table that had fallen on its side and injuring himself. So, when you see Sheamus on the floor next to the table, that was how the table was sitting prior to his fall. He didn't knock it over, or botch going through it.

If Sheamus was supposed to go through the table, they would have taken the time to open the 2nd set of legs and prop it up completely, not rest on Sheamus tossing it accurately outside the ring. Not a botch.

 

[Ubiquitous]

I definately think SOMETHING happened here, but I still believe Sheamus was the planned victor in said match. Honestly, the way Cena sold the loss after Sheamus walked up the ramp looked quite planned. The way he grabbed a piece of his broken table and said he'd "never forget" or whatever he said, it seemed quite rehearsed, much like most of his promos/interviews. I know everyone is capable of improvising but I don't think Cena would do something like that had it not been planned. I mean, I obviously don't know the guy, but that's just my opinion about the whole thing.

 

[Da Solo]

Personally, I think that it was botched, but Sheamus was still going to win regardless. The only problem is that even if it was supposed to be a draw match, everybody saw that and everyone knew something was wrong with the way that ended, so they can't just improvise like they did with the Angle/Lesnar botch at Wrestlemania. Once you go through the table, then it's over, and WWE can't just come on TV and tell the crowd that the scripted ending didn't go as planned and that that wasn't supposed to happen. I bet that the WWE is going to do the only thing they can do at this point: work that into some sort of storyline. Who knows, maybe it'll be some kind of Cena and McMahon conspiracy...