Was Carlito's US Title Win The Beginning Of The End For Him?

[Low_Ki]

Carlito's first match in the WWE was against John Cena for the US title.

Carlito came out on top and won the US title in his first televised match. He then dropped the US title back to Cena a few weeks later because of an injury to his shoulder that occurred during a match.

Then came the storyline with him and Jesus and it all got a bit messy as Super Cena was on the rise and squashed both men, damning Carlito in the process to life in the mid-card.

My question is, was this what caused his descent into the mid-card, and thus the abyss? Should he be further up the card than he is? If you don't agree, what is it that has caused his apple to go bad (pardon the pun)?

 

[Fuel The Fire]

Carlito's problem from what I have read from past posters if that he doesn't want to move up. I have read people say that he is just lazy and only works hard when he wants to work hard but when he does work hard he can put on on hell of a show.
But since it looks like his work ethic has been lacking that have turned him into a comedy guy. That last thing i remember from him is that he was dressed up as Napoleon Dynamite.
Carlito has potential to get out of the mid card status but is he willing to work for it.
That is the question..

 

[milfy21]

well when shawn went off in the back last night on raw carlito was back there watching he like keep walking in the picture and stuff like he was told to i think.. wonder why, plus he had a all blue shirt on mybe there going to send him to smackdown who knows just thought i would let everyone know

 

[theBIGdealAndyP]

carlito had a great debut, then they paired him up with jesus, which was a bad idea, then when raw moved back to USA, they made hima 1 of the focuses of the promos, i thought he would be the top heel, but then HHH went heel, so no dice, then they stuck him with a still very green chris masters, they got over as a heel team and even got a huge pop at WM22, but then rumors of pot (carlito? really?) and roids (masters? really?) broke that team up and carlito has made a living off of being able to make you laugh, put on a clinic, or take a big bump whenever they call for it, and phoning it in the rest of the time... if it doesnt get him fired, i say keep it up, the WWE needs guys like him that can feud with a ME but not be a true ME, yet still be a credible opponent, i.e. rowdy piper, million dollar man, mr. perfect, basically all my favorites growing up never won the big 1...

 

[Lithium66]

well when shawn went off in the back last night on raw carlito was back there watching he like keep walking in the picture and stuff like he was told to i think.. wonder why, plus he had a all blue shirt on mybe there going to send him to smackdown who knows just thought i would let everyone know

At first I thought wow he just standing there for no reason laughing but at the end if you look close you see him making a dive to catch teddy falling down as he's not very healthy so a fall like that could hurt him bad.

Yeah I agree with his attitude backstage I remember a time he did care when it was him and Ric Flair but they did not get a match for Wrestlemania after that i think he just gave up and happy to be mid card.

I still remember a match at the O2 Arena in London house show it was Carlito vs The Brain Kendrick opening match and that match was the best of the night for me

 

[Dysturbed]

Where his debut is concerned, not everyone immediately wins a title of course. However, the concept of a quick push for a debuting wrestler in a company or on a brand to get their name out there, the wrestler then being brought down to earth so to speak (possibly to humble them) then slowly working their way up the ladder if WWE still is fond of them, has been happening for years as we know. Carlito winning the US title right away may have been a sign of WWE truly thinking highly of him at the time from his pre debut work or it could be a matter of them just wanting to do the normal routine, only with a title. Either way I think that his descent has to do with various factors including his alleged work ethic.

More often than not it seems that when wrestler receive a title of any sort it’s either because they have “proven” the they deserve it or to see once they have it if they can prove that they deserve to keep it and continue on a similar level of a path. When someone gets a title right away though I think that it not only naturally raises the expectations of some fans but naturally the wrestler as well. A wrestler can show a lot of promise in development and do well in front of crowds in dark matches but once they are on the main roster it’s a different ballgame and if someone gets a title before getting a real chance to see what everything is like, it probably gives wrestlers, depending on their personalities, a sense of entitlement. With that in mind if the years of rumors about Carlito being lazy are true it could be because he instantly got a title and therefore wonders why others get bigger pushes than him when he feels that he deserves to still be where he started. Rather than do his best to show that he should be given a certain degree of a push maybe he just feels like it should be a given. I don’t know if any of that is accurate and don’t know if perceptions of anyone within WWE make it so that even if he does show something, they ignore it.

To sum it up, there are plenty of wrestlers that could potentially have bigger roles based on potential, past situations, politics, behavior, and so on, and that includes the person that this thread is about...Carlito. If Carlito isn’t doing his part (and I stress the if) then I agree that could be why has pretty much been in a rut for years. Also as people have stated maybe he's content with where he is at.

 

[classicviolence]

People forget that in 2009 he and Primo were WWE tag team champions. Put on a string of classic tag team matches with Miz/Morrison. Primo and Carltio also became the 1st ever Unified Tag Team Champions at WM25.

Carlito seems to be finding his niche in WWE as of late with his comedic roles, and seems to be getting more TV exposure. Carlito just came off a great match with Evan Bourne on Superstars as well. I think his time in the spotlight will come, it may not be soon but his time will come. Hopefully Carlito can with MITB or something to push him into the ME Title chase and get some steam behind him.

 

[Dysturbed]

People forget that in 2009 he and Primo were WWE tag team champions. Put on a string of classic tag team matches with Miz/Morrison. Primo and Carltio also became the 1st ever Unified Tag Team Champions at WM25.

I'm sure that they remember (at least I do) but I'm under the impression that it's a matter of people knowing that so many people that get certain pushes remain in a certain position or slowly move up from it whereas Carlito finds success then is back to square one. I personally don't think that's a bad thing because everyone has their own pace. I think that since we're conditioned to expect a lot quicker pushes than years ago, people don't realize that up and down is pretty common even for guys ilke Jericho who go from main event, to upper midcard, and back up. Kane did that for years too. It's different when it's strictly up and down in mid card like Carlito but still a similar deal.

Carlito just came off a great match with Evan Bourne on Superstars as well. I think his time in the spotlight will come,

Keep in mind that with Superstars airing in only some markets and not even airing in the Chicagoland anymore despite WGN being chicago based, it's hard for some people to visually see what certain guys are up to.

it may not be soon but his time will come.

The "it may not be soon" part is important to note and I'm glad that it was mentioned because there is no set standard for how quickly someone will achieve a consistent and sustained amount of success. Some do it on and off like Carlito so far, some progressively move up, some move up quickly, etc. Just because people who have debuted after Carlito for example are even further established doesn't mean that Carlito won't at some point potentially have "his time."

 

[Showtime]

This thread title seems pretty stupid. I think it's impossible to argue that a man's first match was the begginning of the end for him, especially a title win. Looking at Carlito's brief title reign it was as successful as it could've gotten. He beat Cena, who was still quite undefeatable back then. He had an assistant. He was part of Kurt Angle's Survivor Series team, all this in Carlitos first month! The injury is what slowed him down and rocked him off this track. The next few months, Carlito worked on developing his character, something more wrestlers need to do. Few are given the chance to speak and develop their characters and that's why fans couldn't give 2 shits whether to boo or cheer them. Following his injury he was again given an assistant and he defeated the fricking Big Show. How many people as small as Carlito do you see beating the Big Show. Then a move to RAW and surprise surprise his first match there he won the IC title. From there he hung around Jericho and Bishoff while they were feuding with champion Cena, so again around the main event scene. What followed was a solid year where he continued to be just under the main event scene, finishing second in the EC match at NR, facing the Big Show and Kane for the tag titles at WM, turning face, beating Masters and feuding with Orton. you see the guys he was feuding with, Cena, Orton, Big Show. Carltio was huge for his first two years and looked to at least fit comfortably in the middle-upper card. What was the beginning of the end for him was the attitude. Despite being over as a face, he didn't want to be a face. WWE was pushing him hard as a face and him being upset about it really made the WWE look at him differently. They were giving him opportunity and he shat on it. SO they turned him back heel, the crowd pissed on it and Flair kicked his ass. End of story. From there he sank even deeper in the middlecard and his matches became... repetitive. Carlito I find to be one of the least exciting wrestlers to watch. His moves are predictable and he doesn't seem to have any fire in him. He's uninspiring to watch and I don't know if thats cause WWE killed his desire to wrestle or if he's simply a lazy slacker.

So in conclusion, so I disagree his US title win was the beginning of the end. Impossible. What was the beginning of the end for him was when he told management that he was unhappy with his push as a face.

 

[jstroud14]

Don't fret yet...he HAS been on camera lately...can't say the same about some others. And with Miz winning the tag titles with Show, MAYBE they are setting Carlito up for another US Title reign? I STILL think he has IT, just has to work harder and put more energy into his matches. And he is still quite young, too.

 

[Yodude "The Rock" Barber]

Now, ive always liked Carlito,
But he basically we always be in the midcard, and be lucky to get a U.S tittle shot anytime soon.
Now only if he WANTED to be in the tittle and ME picture he could possibly, but that boat probably has sailed.
I dont really think that his first match was the beginning of the end, It is his own fault if he doesnt want to be in the ME

 

[emerald phoenix]

i think i seen one person touch on the real issue... carlitos problem is he became complaceent(sp?) and wwe viewed him as lazy sooo they didnt really do anything with him. they then turned him face which he didnt like bc it wasnt him. turned him back and it looked like he was going somewhere and it died after the flair program... then carlito asked for his release bc he didnt like the way he was used and wwe just threw more money at him bc they KNOW he has the talent and after resigning they gave him the title push with primo as they thought primo could light the fire under carlito which it did for awhile after the fued carlito became lazy again......carlito calling out cena could of went ALOT further than what it did, that could of been carlitos time to shine but wwe dropped the ball....

basically...carlito is very talented and if hes happy he'll work and work good(why the threw money at him and not let him go to tna)......if hes not happy hes gonna be lazy, hence the lack of push

 

[Dan E. Inferno]

It wasn't Carlito winning the title that was the beginning of the end for him, it was the way he lost the title back to Cena. I understand that he was injured so there was a reason for him getting squashed in the match where Cena won the title back, but it still left him looking very weak. It seemed to start at Survivor Series when Carlito and Jesus took off rather than fight the returning Cena. It was a fairly entertaining moment but did nothing for Carlito's character. It made Carlito's title win look like a complete fluke and his reign look weak. I get that this may be what WWE was going for but I think that was a wrong move.

What's more when he was injured, he failed in removing Teddy Long as GM and was forced to do things like work at burger stands. Carlito was reduced to these skits when a few months before he had beaten arguably Smackdown's biggest star in his debut match. The title win was a great way to start his WWE career but it was everything after that moment which took away his credibility.

From what I hear though he has an awful attitude problem and a terrible work ethic, so it's quite possibly his own fault that his very first match five and a half years ago was probably the highest point of his career. I realise he has had IC and tag team title reigns since, but they were not particularly memorable. Not as memorable as his debut match anyway.

 

[Dagger Dias]

No. Carlito's US title win was not the beginning of the end. I never liked the guy, but he was still going to be pushed further. The beginning of the end for Carlito was when he stopped caring because he got lazy and was doing all sorts of things that would get most people future endeavored. Carlito should NOT be higher up on the card than he is, he earned his lack of a push because he wasn't putting forth the effort. He's lucky he is even on the roster now.