What Santino's title reign really means

[tehblogger]

(NOTE: this thread is not intended to bash Santino)

What Santino's run with the IC belt really points out is the shocking weakness of RAW's midcard. Look at the roster. The reason why Santino has, and I suspect will keep, the belt for a good while is because there's no better to give it to. Paul Burchill? Demoted to jobber status these days. Punk? Giving him the belt would be a major admission that they should never have given him the WHC. D-Lo? D-No. Kofi's already had the belt and doesn't need it again so soon - although it would have been nice if he'd kept it for a bit longer. Mysterio and Kane are, we're supposed to believe, sort of main eventers. Noble? Another jobber. And while it would be nice to see Regal with the IC title, he's KOTR and doesn't particularly need it urgently.

Everyone else currently active on the roster is either a jobber, in a tag-team, or in the main event. Eventually, I suspect, Santino will get destroyed by Manu, once the 2nd generation stable develops a bit more. But it's a sad indictment of RAW's midcard that Manu and maybe Regal are Santino's only likely serious rivals.

 

[Dead Kennedy]

Hmm...maybe you're right. It's fairly well known that Raw's mid-card is at a crisis point right now. But I believe there's more to Santino's title reign than just him being one of the only likely candidates for holding the championship. He has a very rare quality - not only is he entertaining like hell, but he doesn't seem to lose momentum at all if he's jobbed out. That's a rare trait indeed. But would he be Intercontinental Champion right now if Raw's mid-card wasn't so poor? I don't really know.

But seeing as how Santino's only likely opponents right now are Priceless Manu and Regal, I don't see him dropping it any time soon. I don't expect him to break the Honky Donky Man's record, especially since a lengthy reign from a guy who is regularly assessed to be a "bad wrestler" seems to piss people off but it might go on for a while longer. But if Regal and Manu are the only likely ones right now, they need to start changing the card positions of certain people and maybe bring some workers up if they're gonna have a competitive Intercontinental Championship division.

 

[Milkyway!]

i like the way steve anderson put it when he was remininsing on the Honkey tonk man days, saying as it went on, and on, he gained more credibility, right now, santino is boosting his credibility weekly imo, and his mic skills are getting better, and better by the week, but the entire point to his reign, is to put someone over in the end, when they finnally end "cinderella's story" they should/would be hugely over and make them very credible.

so expect the honk a meter to be here, and stay here, for almost another year, and as it goes on, the mid card will be hugely built up slowly..why? for someone to try and finnally beat him. guys like kofi, (if things keep going the way their going for him) punk, bourne, manu (they need more gold), and i think it wouldnt hurt if they put a main eventer in here too, rey/jericho/kane or someone..to re build the title.

 

[My$terio_Fan]

I disagree. Santino is basically the only thing half entertaining on Raw now. The IC belt hasn't meant anything in a while so you might as well have it on someone who entertains and is over with the fans than guys like DLo, Haas, Burchill, ect. Raw is just incredibly boring and stale to me and I think the midcard has capable wrestlers(Punk, Kofi, Regal, Noble)but for the time being I don't think Santino is burrying an already pointless belt.

 

[salomon1080s]

i think santinos reign is meant to bring back the value to the ic title. no one has cared about the belt in a long time. Now the belt is defended every week on raw and on ppv. Who ever finally beats santino would be huge. Like when ultimate warrior did with honky tonk man. hopefully after santino's dropped the belt wwe will actually care about the ic title. If it doesn't happen this was all just a waste of time

 

[Slowdude]

I agree with salomon. Santino's reign is ment to bring value back. From what i remember Santino is the first person in many years who actually gives a dam about it. He wants the belt, he doesn't want the world titles he wants the ic title. So, unless wwe screwsitup (which is a likely chance) Santino will keep retaining. As the months go on the list of people wanting the title increases. I actually think, if played well this reign could bring the IC back to its former glory (the glory of where when someone won it was a big thing).

 

[Marquis]

I agree with salomon. Santino's reign is ment to bring value back. From what i remember Santino is the first person in many years who actually gives a dam about it. He wants the belt, he doesn't want the world titles he wants the ic title. So, unless wwe screwsitup (which is a likely chance) Santino will keep retaining. As the months go on the list of people wanting the title increases. I actually think, if played well this reign could bring the IC back to its former glory (the glory of where when someone won it was a big thing).

Couldn't agree more. The more he holds it the more other talent will arise who want it and it will build up to the point multiple people worthy of the tittle will want the shot. These days when it comes to the IC tittle its just the champion and only one wrestler after the belt. Hopefully it will build up like the Main event tittles where there's always multiple challengers for the tittle. Besides as it has been pointed out there is really no one else currently qualified to hold the tittle.

 

[Derf]

I didn't think about it till I read what some of yo had to say about it, but maybe your all right. If Santino keeps beating no names, he'll eventualy start wrestling guys that somewhat matter, like Kofi, Punk, and maybe even Evan Bourne at some point, beating them all. Then, while still fighting jobbers, he'll have the occasional tag match betwen him and a ME against two bigger faces, he'll win, and in almost a year, if he actually does still have the belt, the guy to finally beat him will be huge. And THATS when we can start talking about the title having meaning. Just cause one guy is happy about having it, don't mean the next guy will.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

No need for this thread.