Wade Barrett: Could he have main evented his first WrestleMania?

[Hard Hit Prince]

Hey guys! Here again for a not so old-school thread, but relevant enough to be put in here. I've been thinking how great The Nexus were in their first months in, really a fresh concept with a great stable, a really great stable when we look to each and every individual combined. In the center of the team was Wade Barrett, a brute British that has been recently giving interviews about his thoughts on the whole Nexus horrible end and what not... and that made me think about his statue in the WWE back then.

In his first six months he was on a lot of PPV main events, he was ready to be a star. I'm pretty sure that 99% of us thought that by now we would be tired to see him getting the belt, but it hasn't happened. However in 2010, him getting the belt was a soon to be reality and he was easily the hottest heel in the company, before The Miz started to run with the ball. But lets say The Miz never cashed in and Wade Barrett found a way to beat Randy Orton for the WWE Championship at Royal Rumble. Could he have main evented WrestleMania in his first year against John Cena by defending the Championship? He always mentioned the bigger picture, which we've never seen and that could also mean a VKM step down or what not.

• What are your thoughts on this?
• Would it be possible to put Wade Barrett in the main event of WM27?
• Would it be a good decision given it was his first year?
• Are you surprised with what happened to him?

 

[Aquaman6686]

Barrett main eventing WM27 would have been a horrible idea. Barrett was pushed WAY too hard, WAY too fast, and fans were legitimately sick of seeing this nobody main event PPV after PPV, month after month. If Barrett had main evented WM27, the buyrate would have been absolutely abysmal.

 

[BigDaddyKewl]

I definitely think he could've been in a high profile match at WM 27. Barret vs Cena could have feuded a few more months heading into Mania. He also could have faced off against the Undertaker because Nexus helped bury him alive at Bragging right 2010 which never culminated. They should have had Barret win the WWE title at Survivor Series and carry the belt into Mania and kept the original Nexus together.

 

[Irishock]

Barrett main eventing WM27 would have been a horrible idea. Barrett was pushed WAY too hard, WAY too fast, and fans were legitimately sick of seeing this nobody main event PPV after PPV, month after month. If Barrett had main evented WM27, the buyrate would have been absolutely abysmal.

Nope. Miz isn't a great draw as well but as long as you had Rock, Cena and Taker in there, the draw would've been the same. Barrett/Cena would have worked IMO if they pushed the angle the right way.

 

[GameOver]

i was gonna say no but thinking about it, The Miz was lucky to get to that spot and only cause he was working hard nothing to do with fan suport IMO so why not, Wade Barrett would certainly have been a far greater opponent for Cena in terms of tail of the tape, the only caviat is how do they get Rock involved with Barrett like he was with both Miz and Cena. The Barrett train has left the station now so its a moot point, for whatever reason he's getting relegated to going from being unbeatable to tapping out and being pinned easily atm

 

[R.K.O]

I think CM Punk should have been in the main event against Cena. As for Wade, the Nexus storyline definitely should have been booked better and Wrestlemania should have been the culmination of the storyline where the stable was finally defeated instead of Summerslam. I would move the tag match at Summerslam to Wrestlemania instead.

 

[LSN80]

Wade Barrett would certainly have been a far greater opponent for Cena in terms of tail of the tape, the only caviat is how do they get Rock involved with Barrett like he was with both Miz and Cena.

Let me flip this on it's head: What connection did Miz have with Rock, exactly, that it warranted Rock's involvement? As Miz stated all along, Rock's beef was with Cena. Miz or the WWE Championship weren't the focal points of the feud; the beef between Cena and Rock was. And that grew out of comments Cena made in a shoot interview regarding the Rock.

So why would Barrett have been different than the Miz?

I don't think long-term planning was ever for Barrett to remain with the Nexus. Rookie heel stables are incredibly risky, and hardly ever work. With a group like the Nexus, after Sheffield(Ryback) was injured, you had Barrett and a bunch of jobbers. Even when Harris and McGuilicutty were brought in, well, you still had Barrett and a bunch of jobbers.

Is that the type of stable you want involved in the Main Event of Wrestlemania? The only way that could have worked would have been if Barrett had won the WWE Title, then broken away from Nexus. And there would still have been one important difference.

Cena and Miz never really felt personal, did it? If you want to push it, Miz snuck in and eliminated Cena from the Rumble, and Cena retailiated by costing Miz a champion vs. champion match against Edge. But that was the extent of it. Cena won the Elimination Chamber, he got a shot at Miz. It was Rock and Cena that was personal, not Miz and Cena. If you recall, Barrett and Cena was extremely personal. Even with Rock's charisma and such, how does he fit into what was a personal feud?

The only way Barrett works is without Rock's involvement, and seeing how the WM 27 Main Event was used to set up Wrestlemania 28's main event, Barrett wouldn't have been the right fit They made the feud between he and Cena far too persona to involve a third party like the Rock. And when it comes down to it, room was going to be made for the Rock rather then Wade Barrett, so The Miz was a far better fit. He took a backseat and simply won the match.

I think CM Punk should have been in the main event against Cena. As for Wade, the Nexus storyline definitely should have been booked better and Wrestlemania should have been the culmination of the storyline where the stable was finally defeated instead of Summerslam. I would move the tag match at Summerslam to Wrestlemania instead.

1. Punk wasn't ready to main-event Wrestlemania yet. He had yet to win his first WWE Title, how was he going to main event the biggest show of the year?

2. If he did, against who? Orton? That's what was left of a thin crop if you put the Summerslam tag match at Wrestlemania. Cena, Edge, and Jericho, three of your top stars at the time, all out of the picture. Heck, Jericho wasn't even involved in Wrestlemania 27.

Summerslam was built around one feud, as a one match show. You can't do the same with Wrestlemania.

 

[Mustang Sally]

There's a huge difference between functioning as a singles wrestler and leading a group. Once a match started, Wade didn't have to work any better than other members of his team; he was just a cog in the wheel since he rarely dictated his team's moves during a contest.

Of course, the initial thrust of Nexus didn't have to do with wrestling matches; it chiefly concerned creating distractions before, during and after the bell. The wrestling ability of the guys on the team wasn't as important as the havoc they could wreak with sneak attacks and outnumbering opponents.

In this context, Wade directed his troops and may have seemed more of a charismatic figure than he actually was. As long as the other members of the group were willing to accept Wade as the leader, he was a dangerous adversary to everyone he was going up against.

When Nexus broke up, I'm sure WWE management was very interested in how Wade would feature as a singles wrestler. They knew a superior, unique program was needed to cast him as a single and remove perception of him as a group leader.....so they initiated that "Fight Club" scenario and let him run with it.

Personally, I wanted to be knocked out by Wade in his new role (not literally!) and watched with interest as the whole thing fizzled.

I still don't know what it is that brings out the natural charisma possessed by a performer. Despite what many fans think, you can't "give" him charisma; he's either got it or he doesn't.....and apparently, it was decided that Wade Barrett doesn't. Unfortunately, I agree.

Yes, this post goes beyond the scope of the original question, but Wade's inability to catch on with a gimmick of his own accents why he wouldn't have been able to work the main event of his first Wrestlemania. True, there was more interest in seeing him in the ring when he still led Nexus, yet WWE was smart enough to realize that without his buddies, he wouldn't have been able to generate enough oomph as a single to headline the biggest event of the year.

 

[Trill Co$by]

Barrett main eventing WM27 would have been a horrible idea. Barrett was pushed WAY too hard, WAY too fast, and fans were legitimately sick of seeing this nobody main event PPV after PPV, month after month. If Barrett had main evented WM27, the buyrate would have been absolutely abysmal.

Are you kidding me? Barrett's been one of the hottest topics since he was paired with Jericho on NXT. The guy had every IWC fan grasped in his hand with the whole Nexus angle. And if WWE had continued with him as the leader, and had him truly dominate, then he could've easily beat Orton at Survivor Series to become WWE champion. That could've lead to Cena vs. Barrett where if Cena loses he's fired, having Cena win the WWE title. He could've lost later, and still built up for the feud with Dwayne.

 

[MCMG]

It might have been too much to soon for Barrett. Main-eventing WM in your début year would have resulted in incredible pressure. Barrett is fantastic but at the time it may have been a step to far.

Moreover, The Miz fully deserved his spot at WM27. He was the top heel at the time and his US and then WWE title reign were great. The Miz was the obvious choice for Cena and the Cena/Barrett feud could have had a better ending prior to Mania.