Bray Wyatt and WrestleMania 32
On the July 8th episode of Monday Night Raw, Kane had just pinned Christian when a video flashed across the titantron and the lights went out. Suddenly a strange man in a rocking chair appeared on screen and began speaking. He spoke about how people were only sheep and they needed to be led, and how he had no followers, only brothers. He warned the WWE Universe that this was not the beginning, but the end. That same man slowly sauntered down to the ramp with two men, one of whom was wearing a sheep mask. When the lights came back on, the two men were attacking Kane in the ring. They assaulted him and dragged him out of the ring, even throwing him against the steel steps. The man from the screen came over and knelt above the man, spreading his arms and laughing manically.
This man was Husky Har- Bray Wyatt, and with him were Erick Rowan and Luke Harper, the Wyatt Family. And the WWE have completely dropped the ball with him. Despite being extremely popular with the WWE Universe and being part of many high profile feuds, Bray Wyatt has yet to achieve any real success in the WWE.
Wyatt has yet to win the Money in the Bank briefcase, the Royal Rumble match, or any belt in the WWE. Not only has Wyatt never won a title, he’s never even been in the conversation for one. All of his feuds follow the same sad, predictable formula. A match is taking place between two or more parties that have nothing to do with Wyatt or his family, and suddenly their entrance video flashes across the screen and the lights go out. A moment later, the lights come back on, and one or more Wyatts are in the ring. They destroy everyone and Sister Abigail’s kiss puts a wrestler to sleep. The next week on Raw, whoever the Wyatts targeted comes out and cuts a promo, only to be destroyed again. That wrestler will wrestle the other members of the Wyatt family before finally getting a shot at Bray, usually at a pay perview, where they defeat the Eater of Worlds.
Despite having one of the eeriest gimmicks since the Undertaker himself, the WWE aren’t sold on Bray Wyatt, and it makes no sense. Despite being a heel, the fans love him, and they play along with his entrance every single time he comes to the ring, using their phones to create “fireflies” in the crowd. He’s one of the very best talkers in the company, and is capable of putting together a perfectly decent match. Last year, he carried a WrestleMania feud with the Undertaker for almost three months without the dead man appearing on screen once. The year before that, he managed to take the worst feud from 2012, the “embrace the hate” fiasco between John Cena and Kane, and make it feel fresh. The feuds were almost identical, except the fans were completely behind Wyatt going into Mania against the face that runs the place.
This year, it seemed obvious that Wyatt was headed towards another high profile mania match in a bout with the beast incarnate, Brock Lesnar, but inexplicably, the WWE dropped it. Instead Brock Lesnar will take on Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt… doesn’t have a match. The rumor is that the Wyatt family will appear in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royale in the pre-show, but that’s about it. In a year where the card is suffering mightily from a lack of superstars, this is a terrible waste of a fan favorite.
Not only do Vince McMahon and company need to feature Wyatt in some capacity in Dallas, but moving forward, and here’s how they can. Since the WWE have decided the only way Wyatt can start a feud is by having him interfere, here’s how he fits into the card.
The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royale
Sadly, this is the most likely outcome on this match. Despite logic, having a large group of men in a battle royale rarely leads to anyone winning. The 3MB, Nexus, Wyatts, and Shield have all failed to produce a battle royal winner in recent memory. The last time a stable helped their leader was in 2009 when the Legacy carried Randy Orton to the final four against Triple H. However, since the WWE have yet to make winning the annual battle royale mean anything, there’s no reason not to give it to Bray Wyatt and company.
The Intercontinental Championship
The biggest rule in the WWE is that there are no rules. At the drop of a hat, they can completely re-write the rulebook and let whatever they want to happen, happen. Look back at Extreme Rules last year. Randy Orton and Seth Rollins were locked in a cell with the rule being that the RKO was banned. However, at the end of the match, Seth Rollins used the RKO to defeat Randy Orton, and the match continued. Since the show is kayfabe, the WWE can do whatever they want and the fans just have to deal.
So why not have Bray Wyatt steal the Intercontinental Championship? He’s never held a belt before, and it would be fascinating to see how Wyatt would treat something that shouldn’t matter to a paranormal being like himself. It’s a ladder match, so what is stopping Wyatt from climbing the ladder and emerging victorious? This is unlikely as the WWE will likely either allow Kevin Owens to retain or they’ll give the belt to Sami Zayn to start a feud moving forward.
Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar
It would be a shame for interference to ruin one of the few exciting matches on the card, but it makes too much sense. Even when Wyatt and Lesnar faced off at RoadBlock, it was Luke Harper that did all of the wrestling and eventually lost while Wyatt watched from ringside.
Wyatt even addressed that he wanted to wrestle Lesnar at WrestleMania and had a plan saying, “Of course I’d rather do it at WrestleMania. Then again, you don’t know what I’m gonna do at WrestleMania. It’s still an open-ended game for me. Like I said, to beat Brock Lesnar right before WrestleMania, you should be owed some kind of spot, some kind of high place – you know, I view myself as a high place player – I’m a serious player in this game and I intend to keep that. “
Of course, with Wyatt, it could all be talk. Despite being one of the best talkers in the business, Wyatt’s promos tend to be nonsensical and ultimately meaningless.
The biggest problem with Wyatt interfering in this match is that he would be targeting Lesnar, and while the match is no-DQ, and an attack wouldn’t have the match thrown out, it would be meaningless if Ambrose didn’t pin Lesnar afterwards. While the WWE Universe would love to see the Lunatic Fringe pin the Beast Incarnate, the popular belief is that Roman Reigns will be the first person to pin Lesnar since breaking the streak at WrestleMania 30.
The Undertaker vs. Shane McMahon
On paper, it’s absolutely inconceivable that 46 year old businessman and father of three, Shane McMahon, who hasn’t wrestled in almost a decade, can defeat The Undertaker. But this is no ordinary dad. In 2006, Shawn Michaels superplexed McMahon off of a ladder through two tables. Six years before that, he climbed the titantron at SummerSlam, desperately trying to escape Steve Blackman, only to get whacked by a kendo stick and fall forty feet to what everyone was sure was certain death. Though the coupe de gras was the fall he took the next year at Backlash, when he jumped fifty feet off of the titantron onto the Big Show. The way he crossed himself before leaping, and remained motionless as Test carried him backstage had everyone pretty sure that yet again, Shane O’Mac was dead.
There’s no doubt that Vince McMahon’s son has his father’s balls and a death wish, which anyone not named Brock Lesnar needs before they lock themselves in a cell with the dead man. But this is WrestleMania. This is the show of shows. And it’s hard to believe that the two old men are capable of carrying a main event.
The biggest issue is that fans are expecting McMahon to win. By having Shane return and say the company needs to change, the WWE have accepted that Raw needs to be shaken up, and a new authority lets them do just that. So why not include Bray Wyatt? Wyatt has shown before that he has no problem getting into Hell in a Cell, has a history with the Undertaker, and could make it a more believable finish.
The biggest problem with this is that the Undertaker will retire if he loses, and if there’s interference and Taker never gets his revenge, it doesn’t feel very neat. Not to mention, the Undertaker has already beaten Bray Wyatt several times, and it just isn’t fresh anymore.
The Main Event
Leading back to the Royal Rumble, the WWE have been teasing Triple H vs Bray Wyatt. They faced off during the Royal Rumble match, Triple H offering Wyatt his hand, only to be attacked by the new face of fear. A few weeks ago, as the Wyatt Family beat down Dean Ambrose, Triple H came out to let the Lunatic Fringe know if he was going to get a title shot at RoadBlock, and came face to face with Bray Wyatt again. They were face to face for a moment before the Wyatt Family exited the ring.
With fans rejecting both the main event and Roman Reigns as champion, there’s reason the believe the WWE could have the Wyatt family interfere, either throwing the match out or costing Triple H the title.
Reigns vs. Wyatt or even Triple H vs. Wyatt moving forward would be a great feud to start the WWE’s new year.
Regardless, Bray Wyatt is far too talented to be left off of the WrestleMania card, or to keep being booked so poorly. Not long ago, Wyatt was being billed as the “New Undertaker” and now, he’s nothing more than a jobber that the fans can get behind. During a time where the WWE roster is hurting, it’s heinous to keep such an incredible talent down.
