WWE Pulling Ryder From Main Event Status

[closet_fan]

Several days ago we reported that CM Punk might be in danger of losing the WWE Title soon due to poor ratings of his weekly Raw segments.

F4WOnline.com is now reporting, also as a result of poor ratings, that WWE has placed Zack Ryder in a romance story line with Eve Torres in order to distance him from the main event picture.

The report is noting that these managerial moves are stemming from the very poor 2.67 cable rating drawn by the main event of last week's Raw Supershow. It's being said that the current Ryder/Torres story line is expected to continue for the next several weeks.

First off, I didn't think Ryder was MAIN EVENT status to start with. Yeah he has the US title and has had a program with PUNK/CENA, but I don't know why they feel the need to pull him down even more.

That one 3 on 3 match is going to destroy everyone who got a push. Watch Bryan be next.

 

[Kenneth]

Why are they blaming Punk and Ryder? Look at Del Rio he's a terrible heel and gets no reaction at all. They should pull him from the main event instead. Don't understand how WWE are putting the blame on Punk and Ryder.

 

[Max Headroom]

Well first off, we don't even know if it's true. Last weeks RAW seemed like the most on-the-spot, re-written fuck-heap of a show we've seen in years. I'm willing to bet half of the matches that took place were thought of like five minutes before they happened.

Next, if this IS true, Vince & friends are stupid. Ryder easily gets one of the best reactions, period. To blame them for a low rating close to fucking Christmas is just, rash thinking. It's like they WANT them to fail and are grasping at everything to have an excuse to say hey guys you were wrong about these guys being good draws and whatnot.

If they really are considering this with Punk & Ryder, they should at LEAST give them a few more weeks, so you can see how they do when it's not the holiday season.

 

[closet_fan]

Well first off, we don't even know if it's true. Last weeks RAW seemed like the most on-the-spot, re-written fuck-heap of a show we've seen in years. I'm willing to bet half of the matches that took place were thought of like five minutes before they happened.

Next, if this IS true, Vince & friends are stupid. Ryder easily gets one of the best reactions, period. To blame them for a low rating close to fucking Christmas is just, rash thinking. It's like they WANT them to fail and are grasping at everything to have an excuse to say hey guys you were wrong about these guys being good draws and whatnot.

If they really are considering this with Punk & Ryder, they should at LEAST give them a few more weeks, so you can see how they do when it's not the holiday season.

Well if Ryder does the program with Torres next week or the week after, we'll know it's true.

I don't understand what they expected from a match that meant absolutely nothing.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Well if Ryder does the program with Torres next week or the week after, we'll know it's true.

Possibly, but it should also be considered that Creative's goal of having Zack win a mid-card championship has been achieved.....and they now have to find something else for him to do. His act is one of novelty and there's only so much room for him to function within it.

Really, how many options does he have now that he won the title? Might as well pair the clown with the beauty queen and see if they can make an interesting storyline out of it.

But yes, if they take the belt from him immediately, I would guess the reports are true.

 

[closet_fan]

Possibly, but it should also be considered that Creative's goal of having Zack win a mid-card championship has been achieved.....and they now have to find something else for him to do. His act is one of novelty and there's only so much room for him to function within it.

Really, how many options does he have now that he won the title? Might as well pair the clown with the beauty queen and see if they can make an interesting storyline out of it.

But yes, if they take the belt from him immediately, I would guess the reports are true.

who would he even defend it against? it seems you have the low cards and the main eventers. who would be considered a mid card?

 

[Zeven_Zion]

Please, this is classic Vince McMahon. He won't pull DelRio but pull Ryder and Punk because that would mean that the fans and the IWC were wrong about them, and he was right. McMahon hates people who get themselves over in some fashion, he's a control freak. Ryder got himself over, he didn't need the writers. He did his Internet show, then the fans started chanting his name and the rest is history.

Punk also got himself over in a more intricate way. The point is - they're not Vince's creations. He doesn't "get" Punk or Ryder. He wants them to flippidy flop, and flippidy flop they have. And you know what, a lot of it is their fault. They were so focused on getting over and getting theirs that they forgot what the hell they're going to do once it happens. I mean, Ryder is stuck right now. The whole point of the Ryder praise was to get him over, push him and give him a belt. It happened. Why should the fans care about Ryder now? It's not like he's good or anything. He's just a feel good story that came true. Woo woo hoo! He's on the same caliber as The Hurricane. Actually worse, because Hurricane was funny, entertaining and he could go in the ring.

So what's next? McMahon takes the belts off both guys, proving that he knows better than the fans. At least in his own head that's true, the Champions he nurtured and placed at the top are not doing any better, but all of that is irrelevant to Vinnie Mac.

I hope Ryder gets flushed down the drain along with Danielson. Keep Punk, he's talented and entertaining. The other two are mind numbingly boring.

 

[MaverickAZ]

Do you know who could have benefited more from a long program with a returning Kane?...................

Zack freaking Ryder

talk about the amazing rub Ryder could have got facing Kane. Could have the whole pretty boy storyline with Ryder, his popularity, blah blah and have Kane is the perfect contrast to that. Could have had Kane come out and go after Ryders US title. would have added much needed depth to RAW storylines too

have Kane beat him a few times, then even have Kane take the title off of him. This would have done two things. Cement Kane's legacy with another championship, even if it is US title. Further place the validity of a secondary title like the US. and then you could have had Zack finally really break through and beat Kane again for the U.S Title at Wrestlemania

that match could have easily gone 3rd from last on the show and could steal the show type of match



damn, what i just typed made too much sense, thats why you would NEVER see it on WWE programming L OL

 

[Workrate]

Please, this is classic Vince McMahon. He won't pull DelRio but pull Ryder and Punk because that would mean that the fans and the IWC were wrong about them, and he was right. McMahon hates people who get themselves over in some fashion, he's a control freak. Ryder got himself over, he didn't need the writers. He did his Internet show, then the fans started chanting his name and the rest is history.

Punk also got himself over in a more intricate way. The point is - they're not Vince's creations. He doesn't "get" Punk or Ryder. He wants them to flippidy flop, and flippidy flop they have. And you know what, a lot of it is their fault. They were so focused on getting over and getting theirs that they forgot what the hell they're going to do once it happens. I mean, Ryder is stuck right now. The whole point of the Ryder praise was to get him over, push him and give him a belt. It happened. Why should the fans care about Ryder now? It's not like he's good or anything. He's just a feel good story that came true. Woo woo hoo! He's on the same caliber as The Hurricane. Actually worse, because Hurricane was funny, entertaining and he could go in the ring.

So what's next? McMahon takes the belts off both guys, proving that he knows better than the fans. At least in his own head that's true, the Champions he nurtured and placed at the top are not doing any better, but all of that is irrelevant to Vinnie Mac.

I hope Ryder gets flushed down the drain along with Danielson. Keep Punk, he's talented and entertaining. The other two are mind numbingly boring.

The bolded part above is, in my opinion, the big issue with WWE as a whole -- not a specific wrestler, writer, or chairman. They have no long-term planning for anything that they do. Everything is a knee-jerk reaction to some small event. They were quick to take the belt off Del Rio after more than a year of building him up, they let Bryan rot with the briefcase and then cash it in with three weeks of build, and they rushed CM Punk back after his contract expired because they wanted to capitalize on the spiked interest. Each and every one of those actions are short-sighted and the result of poor planning.

Instead of backtracking every time a segment flops, they need to see their visions through to the end. When they wrote whatever it is they wrote, they believed in it, right? So don't cave as soon as a poor rating over a holiday comes in. Let it play out and if it doesn't work, move on. But give things a chance and, more importantly, plan well in advance. The constant re-writes and on-the-fly booking aren't surprising anyone, but instead making the product seemed rush, disorganized, and ill-advised.

 

[Dalinkwent]

I will admit that i'm not exactly a mark for Ryder, but the man got himself over despite WWE's nonsense and he's actually improving in the ring every match. WWE clearly dropped the ball with Ryder and now they wany instant results, just like they wanted with Punk after MITB. IMO WWE doesn't want Punk,Ryder or Bryan to be mainstays in the main event. WWE's treatment of Ryder in the first part of the year boggles the mind, the man was getting random chants, selling headbands and garning more attention on Youtube, yet WWE responded by taking away fans signs featuring his name, further destroyed him in T.V by either not featuring him or putting him squash matches. An even worse offense was when they dicked Ryder out of his hometown spot out of spite. This clearly made no sense, the man was OVER, yet WWE screwed him out of what could have been a major response in his hometwon for little reason.
Then take SS for another example, why was Morrison featured considering he was leaving and Zack Ryder wasn't? Ryder was actually in a angle involving the U.S title, his pops were at a fever pitch yet WWE used Morrion instead....THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY FUCKING SENSE!!!!

 

[justinsayne]

Pretty sure Eve & Ryder had a backstage segment on RAW before that 6 man tag ever happened, they were probably headed in this direction anyway. Punk just sold out teh Rosmont again, & his Limited Edition shirt sold out in like a day, I'm pretty sure he has nothing to worry about at the moment. Also we're heading into WM, & Cena is acing Rock, so they kinda need Punk as champ for the WWE title match at WM seeing as how he's probably the second biggest draw in WWE, or at least the Raw brand right now.

 

[VinnieSunshine]

First off I dont believe this story until I see it. Even then, why would WWE screw over people that the fans clamor to see? I know Vince does things that are illogical, but is he REALLY that stupid?

Merchandise sales for these 2 guys are high, so obviously THEY are not the problem. I bet if you put the WWE title on Ziggler it wouldn't get better...hell it'd probably get worse. The problem is the story-telling, or lack-there-of. WWE doesn't really have a solid story lines right now. Wow a feud with JL for Punk, a love story with Eve for Ryder. GIVE THESE GUYS ACTUAL FEUDS AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS!!!!

WWE is so quick to pull the plug after a few weeks. They rely too much on older talent to keep people interested. Watch, I bet when Jericho comes back and feuds with Punk the ratings will go up. How about we wait until the holidays are over and see what happens?

I know one way of making ratings go up...have Cena turn on Ryder. Fans boo Cena and cheer for Ryder even more.

who would he even defend it against? it seems you have the low cards and the main eventers. who would be considered a mid card?

There are PLENTY of guys he could defend the title against. Lets look just at a few guys...

Alex Riley
Curt Hawkins
Tyson Kidd
Epico
Primo
Michael McGillicutty
Tyler Reks

Now...aside from Primo and Epico, all of these guys could stand to challenge for a the US title.

About them, back in the day it wasn't unusual for a tag team to have one member with another title. Therefore Lets also throw Bourne and Kofi in there, Epico and Primo, and the Uso's. Right there thats 11 guys that could provide valuable feuds for Ryder.

 

[Martin Gabriel]

He does need time to grow. I do think that it's not all his or Punk's fault. The holidays are always a bad time for wrestling. But also take in the fact that wwe has been forceably terrible at pushing guys the right way. They have good ideas but either rush them or trip at the finish line. Bryan, Punk's face turn, Ryder in the main. I get why they probably did it. To give the internet darlings the nod for the fans who have wanted them to be put over for a while. But they have this nack for making people kind of a flavor of the week by rushing it instead of building them. I like Danielson as champion but it was too fast. It was just getting good and they rushed it. Now he's probably going to get low ratings because wwe didn't give the people who don't know him real well a good reason to really care about him. Now with Ryder, it's pretty stupid that they would pair him with Eve (that chick who will forever be known as that girl who took the top rope glam slam and nothing else) when we don't give a crap about her. Not because we don't want to, on the contrary, I think she's pretty good especially coming from being one of those dancing chicks on wwe/ecw, but because wwe hasn't given us a legitimate reason to care about her. That's the problem with everyone right now. We don't care enough because they are too lazy to make us care for someone who isn't Cena.

 

[BASSER911414]

Would it be so bad to say maybe the reason for pulling ryder off the 'main event' status is not because of ratings but maybe for someone else to capitalize on his thunder. Maybe the ratings thing is crap. Maybe the reason theyre putting ryder into this eve/ryder thing is simply so that eve can capitalize on his current popularity because lord knows ryders popularity isnt going down because wwe pulled him from the main event. If anything if wwe pulls him his following will grow stronger.

A short break for ryder and a shining moment for eve. Then maybe later on ryder can go back to feuding with bigger guys.

Although in my opinion frankly speaking, Ziggler and Ryder shouldnt have ended on such short notice. Two weeks ago ryder beat ziggler, one week ago ryder again beats ziggler (indirectly) and now zigglers a contender for the wwe title. :SSS wth.

Have ryder interfere with zigglers match costing ziggler the match when vickie tries to interfere and ryder comes out to counter interfere. Those two have good chemistry and the officials should capitalize on that at least for the time being..

PS: Im no more of a Ryder/Eve enthusiast than any of u. Iv posted my ideal story line above but I still think Eve deserves a rub...

 

[remyx]

Its like this... the WWE have done nothing apart from have DB look weak against Henry & Show... and Wade and a two days before he won the title, Cody. The WWE for the duration of his reign of holding the briefcase gave him nothing, week in/out and constantly had him job on smack down or get random victories against nobodies like heath slater on NXT & Superstars. No videos or vignettes letting the casual fan know who he is or what he does... he's just a regular guy with a beard who happens to wrestle. Make him the champ and why should anybody care.

With Ryder its even worse, because he's got character and catchphrases galore and he's getting better in the ring every week... but the WWE doesn't put any of that on TV, half the feud if not more with Ziggler was on his youtube show for christ sakes, why not shave off a few stupid segments with the useless bellas on RAW and showcase some of what their deserving talents can do. Seriously!

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

CM Punk being pulled from the main event, and stripped of the WWE title? Stupid. Zack Ryder being pulled from the main event? Best decision of the year... The man is your United States champion, and he just recently won the belt. They sent his push into overdrive, used the popularity of John Cena to get him over, but does that give him the right to hang in the main event with your World CHampions? It's a smart idea to keep him out of top timeslots... He may get a decent reaction from a live crowd, but that doesn't always translate into ratings.

On the other side of the coin is CM Punk rumored to be cut from main event status because of the same ratings scare. I'll say it again, correlation does not prove causation. Have the ratings decreased in his time slots since he became champion? Yes, they have. THat looks really bad, and I understand the giant cause for concern. But consider who else has been in the ring with him during all his segments. Number one: Alberto del Rio. Apparent from him? Daniel Bryan, the brand new World Champ who the fans aren't incredibly behind at this point. Dolph Ziggler, a fantastic talent and the future of the product, but to a lot of mainstream fans he's a faceless midcarder. Hopefully that changes with his subsequent main event matches and next week's title match.

All I'm saying is, if you really want to test his ratings, shuffle him around with various opponents, give him really solid feuds with different guys, and see if the ratings continue to drop. Sometimes you just have bad weeks, and if you have a generically bad week, coupled with the ADR in the main event, and a bunch of mid-card talents...recipe for disaster. I'm just asking for more time and proof before the WWE makes a decision that spits in the face of the last 6 months of booking. Especially since if Jericho returns, and the Road begins, ratings will be fine... Let Punk come out on the other side as WWE Champ after Mania, and I think the Road to Mania boost will give him the edge to mainstream fans that management is looking for.

 

[JaylisJayP]

Would it be so bad to say maybe the reason for pulling ryder off the 'main event' status is not because of ratings but maybe for someone else to capitalize on his thunder. Maybe the ratings thing is crap. Maybe the reason theyre putting ryder into this eve/ryder thing is simply so that eve can capitalize on his current popularity because lord knows ryders popularity isnt going down because wwe pulled him from the main event. If anything if wwe pulls him his following will grow stronger.

A short break for ryder and a shining moment for eve. Then maybe later on ryder can go back to feuding with bigger guys.

Although in my opinion frankly speaking, Ziggler and Ryder shouldnt have ended on such short notice. Two weeks ago ryder beat ziggler, one week ago ryder again beats ziggler (indirectly) and now zigglers a contender for the wwe title. :SSS wth.

Have ryder interfere with zigglers match costing ziggler the match when vickie tries to interfere and ryder comes out to counter interfere. Those two have good chemistry and the officials should capitalize on that at least for the time being..

PS: Im no more of a Ryder/Eve enthusiast than any of u. Iv posted my ideal story line above but I still think Eve deserves a rub...

Do you really think they care that much about putting a Diva over? When was the last time a Diva sold anything with her clothes on? That's a ridiculous theory. Eve was popular as far as Diva's go before anyway.

 

[nick3593]

Please, this is classic Vince McMahon. He won't pull DelRio but pull Ryder and Punk because that would mean that the fans and the IWC were wrong about them, and he was right. McMahon hates people who get themselves over in some fashion, he's a control freak. Ryder got himself over, he didn't need the writers. He did his Internet show, then the fans started chanting his name and the rest is history.

Punk also got himself over in a more intricate way. The point is - they're not Vince's creations. He doesn't "get" Punk or Ryder. He wants them to flippidy flop, and flippidy flop they have. And you know what, a lot of it is their fault. They were so focused on getting over and getting theirs that they forgot what the hell they're going to do once it happens. I mean, Ryder is stuck right now. The whole point of the raw live stream Ryder praise was to get him over, push him and give him a belt. It happened. Why should the fans care about Ryder now? It's not like he's good or anything. He's just a feel good story that came true. Woo woo hoo! He's on the same caliber as The Hurricane. Actually worse, because Hurricane was funny, entertaining and he could go in the ring.

So what's next? McMahon takes the belts off both guys, proving that he knows better than the fans. At least in his own head that's true, the Champions he nurtured and placed at the top are not doing any better, but all of that is irrelevant to Vinnie Mac.

I hope Ryder gets flushed down the drain along with Danielson. Keep Punk, he's talented and entertaining. The other two are mind numbingly boring.

 

[Captain Morgan Freeman]

To be fair he wasen't even main event status to begin with. Sure he worked with some main event guys but he has been considered a mid carder for the last 2 months and i think we can all agree that's a big step up from where he was 6 months ago. I wouldn't call it demoting Ryder unless they have him jobbing again but i don't think that's going to happen in the near future. As long as he is still in the mid card and has a good title run then im more then happy.

 

[LSN80]

I must have fallen asleep and missed the part where Zach Ryder was "main event status." Does him teaming with John Cena on a taped episode of Raw in a losing effort and teaming two weeks ago with Punk and Bryan in a match where he wasn't involved in the finish truly qualify him for main event status? If so, WWE has truly watered down their criteria.

Here's the thing that people need to understand: Zach Ryder is holding a mid-card championship. So for those who are upset of him "losing" his coveted main event spot, understand where he truly is. Holding a belt that most wrestlers that held it before him are in. He's not going to be spotlighted in major ways, he's not going to be main eventing PPV's, and the idea of him consistently main eventing Raw would be a silly one. Did Dolph Ziggler do this? How about Kofi Kingston? Cody Rhodes? No, at best, they have nice long matches spotlighting them at the top of the second hour. And there's nothing wrong with that in any way. Ryder is a mid-card champion, so he should be receiving mid-card time.

One more thing to keep in mind. WWE officials themselves expected TLC to do the lowest buyrates of the year. So having Ryder main event Raw the night after was likely to introduce him as champion to a large part of the viewing audience, ones that didn't watch the PPV or read the results online. And it was a good call. Now he goes back to the mid-card, where every other mid-card champion spends most of his time. And that's not a bad thing, it's simply the reality of the situation.

 

[XXJJ]

I dont think its a big deal. Ryder shouldn't be wrestling in tv main events right now. He is a midcarder.

Ryder actually got booed a little in Chicago when they first showed him during his segment with Cena. That was shocking to me because Chicago is a smarky crowd. I thought he would of got a huge ovation. I think now they are pushing him... Ryder loses some of his appeal with some fans.

I wonder how Eve feels right now? WWE considers working wit her a demotion for wrestlers.

Punk is going to remain in the main event scene. But if ratings during his tv matches stay low they might take the title off him quicker, and give it to Jericho (if he is returning).

 

[Ryberg]

Why would they pull the belt of either? This just shows how out of touch VKM and the writers are.

First they screwed up the Punk angle. NOW they are going to flush Ryder down the toilet. Ryder maybe a gimmick BUT he's got the fans going.

The low ratings are due to the poor and rehashed story lines. ADR never went over and VMK never pulled him off main event. Last time I check ratings weren't exactly through the roof when Cena was champ and ADR had the belts.

The issue is football and now the NBA along with very stale story lines. How can Ryder be judged. No one wanted to see that six man tag team two weeks ago. Seriously ADR gets NO REACTION, and no one really cares about Dolph Ziggler. He gets his heat from Vicki. So when you make crappy main events of COURSE no one will watch. They are just using Ryder and Bryan totally WRONG!!!!! Both are HUGE and over with the crowds.

They're doing to Ryder what they did to Santino Marella and Beth Phoenix. Never been a Santino Marella fan but he did get reactions and still does from the fans. I will quit watching WWE if they strip Punk and Ryder and put the belt on Cena.

 

[UC PUNK]

really is is not fair to pull ryder from the main event and take the title from punk just because of rating then last time i checked when cena was the champ the ratings was no better then why was he not pulled from the main event
it is clearly the bookers and VKM problem

 

[ITALIAN NYC]

If this is the case, all its going to do is bring down the meaning of the US TITLE. Zig made that title relevant again and now there going to make it like its nothing. A romance story line? # AREYOUSERIOUSBRO

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

To be honest i can't say i'm surprised. I don't hate the guy or anything but i always thought he was just a fad.