Wade Barrett Is The *NEW* WWE Intercontinental Champion

[Elchicano15]

Miz doesn't have an "undefeated streak". If we're now counting Sunday's pre-show match a win then we should count, Wrestlemania 23, 24 & 25 pre-shows as losses. One thing I've learned with these preshows is always bet on the Face. I guess it's to get the crowd amped up. I don't remember any heels losing.

 

[Judah's Lion]

like most things in professional wrestling, i'm a believer in the "all things are allowed so long as they are done with logic and moderation" mantra. this does include, in this case, the hot potato of the IC Title. a few reasons why i think Miz won then lost the next night:

1. to make the Mania pre-show feel important. maybe more people are likely to tune in to the next pre-show knowing that titles have and can again in fact change hands.

2. to make the Mania ppv itself feel unpredictable.

3. to make the feud between Miz/Barrett seem both unpredictable and evenly matched. both men look strong here i think.

4. to make an extra stat for each man in the feud. now, both Miz and Barrett are multiple time IC Champions.

5. to make a special moment for Ric Flair. after the tragic hand he was dealt (i've buried two kids... my heart aches for Ric), it might have been 100% done just so Miz could win a title with the Figure Four as a tribute to Flair.

if nothing else, i'm interested to see where/how this feud develops. so props to WWE for keeping me interested in the IC Title. it's been long overdue.

 

[rerun406]

"I don't get the whole titles changing frequently thing bugging people"

well it's not necessarily the frequent title changes as much as it's the one day title reigns

because on paper having a title switch frequently might make each of the Superstars appear on equal footing. But booking wise, moving the title off a guy after one day, just looks like they made a mistake, and want to right the ship

granted that was a pretty solid match between Wade and Miz last RAW, even with the botched neckbreaker, and I didn't really expect Wade to win (even with the great crowd support)

just kinda sucks for Miz to lose the title so quickly (not that I'm a fan or anything). And where does Barrett go from here? Does he keep feuding with The Miz?

 

[ultramattman]

Here's a question: Why does an underdog college basketball team rally to win their conference tournament, only to lose their first NCAA tournament game? What was the point? Should it have even happened?

That's what people are asking. What was the point of putting the title on the Miz, only to have him lose it? Well, maybe the point was to tell a story: The champ gets overconfident and loses his title, and has to learn from his mistakes in order to win his rematch.

I mean, isn't that why we have rematches? So the champ gets another chance to win? Some people seem to think the former champ should ALWAYS lose that rematch, lest 'hot potato' be played.

I liked this move. First off, it was unexpected. Second, it's a COMPLETELY plausible storyline, in fact a very common one in sports. Third, it elevates Barrett. Having come so close to losing his IC title, perhaps it will mean more to him now.

Of course, there's one other, very simple explanation. The crowd was heavily British, loved Barrett, and Vince has ALWAYS thrown the hometown crowd a bone like that.

 

[rerun406]

i don't think the basketball example is all that valid, because some teams from much smaller conferences can do well in their own conference Tourney .. yet lose early in the big dance because they're playing a higher caliber opponent.

I only dislike it because of the one day Title Reign, but I see what you mean regarding storyline purposes as it was very unexpected to give Barrett back the title

the bigger question I have is where does Barrett go from here? Does he keep feuding with Miz? And if so, for how long?

 

[ultramattman]

i don't think the basketball example is all that valid, because some teams from much smaller conferences can do well in their own conference Tourney .. yet lose early in the big dance because they're playing a higher caliber opponent.

I only dislike it because of the one day Title Reign, but I see what you mean regarding storyline purposes as it was very unexpected to give Barrett back the title

the bigger question I have is where does Barrett go from here? Does he keep feuding with Miz? And if so, for how long?

One-day title reigns are a problem if they happen all the time, but honestly, when was the last one-day reign? Not counting MITB cash-ins, I can't even remember. It's a fun little tool as long as it's used sparingly.

 

[Dysturbed]

I mean, isn't that why we have rematches? So the champ gets another chance to win? Some people seem to think the former champ should ALWAYS lose that rematch, lest 'hot potato' be played.

That rationality is why I usually don't mind the occasional one night reign. I would prefer longer ones, but since so many things in the reality of sports entertainment defy what would happen in actual reality (which is part of what makes it worth watching), it is nice to occasionally see something that makes perfect sense in both.

Usually it is assumed that once someone loses their title they will lose their rematch or something will happen to prevent the rematch from having a proper conclusion. To me it is nice to occasionally see that not be the case. The surprise factor to that only usually matters for a short amount of time though.

 

[flawd101]

miz is going to film another movie, so a long title reign was not very likely. should have pieced it together barrett might win it back. they are going to the uk. what happened to bo dallas? now mania is over, he might be coming back.