Retro Fantasy Booking: Wrestlemania 27 - The Rise of The Nexus

Wrestlemania 27 is often forgotten, but my god is it an awful show. A ridiculous opening promo from The Rock which lasted forever. Jerry Lawler vs Michael Cole might be the worst Wrestlemania match of all time, made even worse that Cole won then stayed on commentary to be insufferable. Snooki from the Jersey Shore wrestled for some reason. Did that attract anyone to buy a ticket to Wrestlemania?

Of course the cherry on this pile of shit was the incredulous main event between The Miz and John Cena ending in count out but restarted after The Rock beat up a laptop. There is barely anything good enough to rewatch, Undertaker vs Triple H was great but man was it a slow burner. Here is a look at the full card:

Edge (c) vs Alberto Del Rio, Heavyweight Championship

Cody Rhodes vs Rey Mysterio

Big Show, Kane, Kofi Kingston & Santino Marella vs The Corre

Randy Orton vs CM Punk

Michael Cole vs Jerry Lawler

The Undertaker vs Triple H, No Holds Barred

John Morrison, Snooki & Trish Stratus vs Dolph Ziggler & LayCool

The Miz (c) vs John Cena, WWE Championship

After 27 years, it is embarrassing that this is the quality they thought would be acceptable. So many shortcomings, so many missed opportunities and so many needless decisions. There are infinite ways this show could have been done better. Here is one of them. WWE, this is how its done.

The Next Generation

I cannot rebook Wrestlemania without rebooking the Nexus. The Nexus were one of the hottest angles WWE ran in years. They almost immediately fumbled it when the faction lost to John Cena’s team at Summerslam. Cena he has since agreed it was the wrong decision to make. No one from the Nexus truly recovered. A future world champion Wade Barrett never made it to that level. The rest of the faction achieved little success. Today, we’re changing history.

At Wrestlemania 26, Edge walked out as the Heavyweight champion, Cena as the WWE champion and Sheamus as the MITB holder. Sheamus is also the European champion, winning the US title and reintroducing the classic belt. Edge defeats Chris Jericho at Extreme Rules in a rematch. On June 7th, the Nexus invade to destroy Raw and anyone in their path.

They tear up the ring, attack announcers, Daniel Bryan IS NOT suspended for choking Justin Roberts. They declare war on WWE as future stars; Daniel Bryan, Darren Young, Skip Sheffield, Michael Tarver, Justin Gabriel, David Otunga, Heath Slater and the leader, Wade Barrett. At Fatal Four Way, Edge defends his Heavyweight title against CM Punk, Jack Swagger and Rey Mysterio when the Nexus attacks. Sheamus runs in with his briefcase and cashes in, he scores a quick 1-2-3 count and becomes the new champion. He escapes before a beatdown.

Later in the show, John Cena defends against Chris Jericho, Randy Orton and Big Show. The Nexus try to invade again, but the locker room fight them off. Cena retains but the Nexus return at the end of the show to decimate him. The Nexus also lay waste to General Manager Bret Hart, who is forced to vacate his role and he is replaced by the Anonymous GM. We’ll talk about that later.

Nexus is Money

We don’t see the Nexus every week but occasionally we will be interrupted by a promo package. “Don’t forget about us. We could strike at any moment.” Following the events of Fatal Four Way, the anonymous GM books a special match for the inaugural Money in the Bank PPV. To limit interference, we’ll have one match with both titles on the line. He forces WWE champion John Cena to team with Heavyweight champion Sheamus to face the number 1 contenders. Former Heavyweight champion Edge and the winner of a number 1 contender match, Chris Jericho.

Rated Y2J are forced to reunite even though they hate each other, a little extra flavour to the match. On top of that, the GM makes it a steel cage match AND will have members of the roster surrounding the ring preventing invasion. At the event, there is only going to be 1 MITB match because 3 in one year is excessive. 8 men compete for the briefcase and the winner is…none of them. Towards the end of the match Christian is moments away from victory when the Nexus strike. They wipe out all of the competitors. Barrett collects the briefcase. He acknowledges himself as the winner, though WWE and commentary do not. “Hopefully this is the last of Nexus we see tonight”.

In the main event, whoever is pinned or submitted loses their title, if both Edge and Jericho escape the cage first then they both win championships. This makes all competitors act selfishly throughout the match, wanting to secure their own win over. The Nexus begin to make their way towards the cage. There is a mass brawl, the chaos provides Cena & Sheamus enough time to escape the cage and the Nexus. Sheamus is celebrating in the crowd but Cena is not.

Rewriting Summerslam

Cena has had enough, as has the rest of the WWE roster and they lay out the ultimate challenge for Survivor Series. It’ll be an 8v8 elimination tag. Team WWE is made up of Cena, Sheamus, R-Truth, Edge, Jericho, The Miz, Christian and William Regal. 5 of those men were actually Pros to the rookies in season 1 of NXT. A natural story there of them feeling hard done by. The match begins similarly to what we got. Young and Tarver eliminated quickly and early by the veteran William Regal. After the Nexus regroup, Daniel Bryan squares off with William Regal. After a 5+ minute encounter, Bryan outwrestles Regal and catches him in a pinfall.

The Miz is in there to lay the kicks in to his former rookie. Sheffield is in and he eliminates both Miz and R-Truth following big clotheslines. Skip is eliminated after taking finishers by both Edge and Jericho, the former getting the pinfall. Edge & Jericho bicker over who was responsible for that elimination, allowing Slater to roll up Edge for the pin. Jericho laughs, so Edge spears him and Jericho is pinned by Slater too. 5-3 in favour of the Nexus. Christian eliminates his former protégé Heath Slater but he is eliminated by Wade Barrett. 4-2.

John Cena powers up and fights for his team. Cena eliminates Gabriel and then Otunga, we’re all even again! Cena and Sheamus reluctantly stand side by side, ready to put an end to the Nexus once and far all, until Sheamus turns around and nails Cena with a Brogue Kick. He grabs a chair and nails Cena with it, getting himself disqualified. Cena eats a Wasteland by Barrett for the 1-2-3. The Nexus win.

Lobster Head

The following night, Sheamus explains that he was approached by the Nexus before Summerslam. He hasn’t been in the WWE all that long himself, they saw him as a member of the next generation of stars trying to make a name for himself amongst the giants of WWE. They respected what Sheamus had done, so they gave him an offer. Either join us, or suffer the consequences of being against us. Sheamus also vacates his European Championship and offers it to his Nexus members to fight over.

Also on this show, Darren Young loses to Michael Tarver, a battle between the two quickly eliminated members of Nexus. Young is forced out of the faction after his loss. Skip Sheffield is also pushed out too, seen as a weak link for getting injured (he got injured legit so they wrote him out). The Anonymous GM is impressed by Nexus’ victory at Summerslam that he offers the rookies a permanent position on the main roster.

At the next PPV Night of Champions; Daniel Bryan defeats Justin Gabriel to win the vacant European Championship, Sheamus retains his Heavyweight Championship against Edge, Wade Barrett defeats Randy Orton for the legitimate right to be called Mr Money in the Bank after Cody Rhodes turns heel on his mentor. John Cena defeats Chris Jericho in the WWE Championship main event, Jericho wagered he would leave WWE if he lost so he can tour with Fozzy. After the match, of course, the Nexus lay waste to John Cena. Wade Barrett walks down, briefcase in hand and successfully cashes in his title opportunity. Barrett walks out of Night of Champions the new WWE champion.

New Members

Michael Tarver is next to be attacked and removed from the Nexus, seen as another weak link in their armour. He is replaced by ‘Dashing’ Cody Rhodes. Cody claims to have tried to usher in a new era in WWE for some time, but he has been silenced and undermined by Randy Orton and other senior members of the roster. After his title win, Daniel Bryan reverts the European Championship back to the US title saying “They used to call me the American Dragon. With all due respect, I want to compete for this title, not a European one.” This draws the ire of Sheamus and tensions between these two will slowly build over the next few months.

In order to get himself a championship rematch at Hell in a Cell, John Cena has wagered his career against Wade Barrett’s WWE championship. At the event, Sheamus retains his Heavyweight Championship against Rey Mysterio. In the main event, Wade Barrett does manage to retain inside Hell in a Cell thanks to surprise attacks from Nexus’ newest two members. Husky Harris and Michael McGuillicutty. Barrett is jubilant in his monumental victory, then we hear “bong”. Lights go out, as they come up, the Undertaker stands in front of them all. He hits all 3 men with chokeslams, but nails Barrett with a tombstone. He stares at a dejected Cena on the outside as the show goes off the air.

“Thank You Cena”

On the Raw after Hell in a Cell, we get a very touching farewell speech from John Cena. He leaves his hat, armband and t-shirt in the centre of the ring before leaving through the crowd. Later that same night, Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel defeat the Hart Dynasty for the Unified Tag Championships. Those lovely brass pennies. In the lead up towards Survivor Series 2010, which is 20 years of the Undertaker by the way. I cannot believe WWE brought him back for a shit programme with Kane which didn’t even take place at this event! What are you doing?! Anyways, Undertaker is back and he cannot thing of a better way to celebrate 20 years other than purging the Nexus out of the WWE. He challenges Wade Barrett at Survivor Series and he promises he will rest in peace.

It is around this time when the Nexus members start to realise their cause is becoming less about them as a group changing the landscape and more about Barrett reigning as world champion. At Survivor Series; Edge finally defeats Sheamus in a Last Chance match reclaiming his Heavyweight Championship, also 5 members of the Nexus lose a 5v5 elimination tag match. 2 major losses for the faction, but Barrett doesn’t care. In the closing moments of the show, Undertaker has Barrett rattled and weary, he is going for a last ride but a masked man wearing a Nexus hoodie jumps the barricade and attacks the Undertaker, the referee is distracted by other Nexus members trying to access the ring. The mystery man then lifts Undertaker up on his shoulders, hitting an Attitude Adjustment. He reveals himself to be John Cena. Barrett pins Undertaker and retains his title.

Growing Tensions

Wade Barrett gave Cena one condition where he can return to the WWE, as a member of the Nexus. John Cena apologises to the fans. “This is not what I want to do, but WWE is everything to me, I need to be here. If this is the only way I can be here, then I will play my part until I can figure out another solution.” Barrett denies unhappiness in the Nexus, they are stronger than ever now they have Cena in their ranks. The faction does grow uneasy, mostly Sheamus and Daniel Bryan who not only disagree with the leadership, but their rivalry is now getting physical between one another.

At TLC; Cody Rhodes wins the IC Championship from Kofi Kingston, Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov defeat Slater & Gabriel for the Unified Tag Championships, Edge defeats Alberto Del Rio, Sheamus & Rey Mysterio to retain the Heavyweight Championship. The main event is a No DQ match for the WWE title between Wade Barrett and Randy Orton. Before the match begins, the nexus members are lined up on the ramp as we hear “bong”. Lights out, come back on and Undertaker is stood ringside. He nods to Orton and stands guard. Barrett and Orton tear each other apart, whilst Undertaker neutralises the Nexus.

Cody Rhodes and John Cena manage to get in the ring to help Barrett. Undertaker has chokeslams lined up for everyone in his path, but he gets sprayed with mace. He’s fighting blind when someone bumps into him and he instinctively hits a chokeslam. It wasn’t a member of the Nexus. It was Randy Orton. Once again, Wade Barrett escapes with his world title and Orton is PISSED. He has RKOs for everyone in sight, including Undertaker who he takes his aggression out on.

Changing Membership

We enter 2011 and Sheamus becomes the first member to willingly leave the Nexus, calling it a regime disguised as a brotherhood. This can begin a slow face turn for the Celtic Warrior he immediately begins targeting Daniel Bryan in his quest to bring down the Nexus. Husky Harris also leaves the Nexus as he is forced out as a “weak link”, so he can go back to NXT and become Bray Wyatt. Nexus bring in Mason Ryan and also Ezekiel Jackson to their ranks, bringing the membership back up to 10. Barrett wants Cena to win the Royal Rumble so he can win the Heavyweight championship.

There seems to be a clear divide now between original Nexus members who question Barrett’s leadership and the newer members who are happy with how things are being ran. At the Royal Rumble event; Sheamus defeats Daniel Bryan for the US Championship, Wade Barrett retains his WWE championship against Rey Mysterio who simply challenges him to outwrestle him. Barrett wins CLEAN, no interference, no Nexus, he is convinced by Rey to go out there and win on his own and he manages to do so successfully. Cena fails to win the Rumble, we will talk about who actually wins later on.

Nexus Fall Apart

After his clean victory, Wade Barrett realises he doesn’t need the Nexus anymore, he is strong enough on his own. He is still very much a heel, but going forward he doesn’t have the Nexus accompany him to the ring for his matches. Barrett goes out and wins on his own. He takes a shortcut here and there, but he handles business alone and hopefully that gains the respect of the audience. Ahead of Elimination Chamber, it is revealed that a member of the Nexus will compete in the chamber for a title opportunity, it ends up being John Cena of course and he wins the match.

Also on that show, Rey Mysterio defeats Cody Rhodes for the IC championship. The Nexus have now won and lost every single title except for one, Barrett’s WWE title. Following Elimination Chamber the tensions within the Nexus reach an all time high. Bryan is fed up with Barrett’s leadership and unites with Otunga, Slater and Gabriel to overthrow. McGuillicutty, Ryan and Jackson stay loyal to Barrett. Cody Rhodes distances himself and quietly leaves the faction, not wanting to be embroiled in a civil war.

In the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania, Barrett belittles Cena and demands that he lays down at Wrestlemania. Cena snaps and stands up to Barrett. He finally has his opportunity to take down Barrett as his ruthless leader. Barrett says “Well John, I guess I will be retiring you after all. Once I defeat you at Wrestlemania, you will be out of the Nexus and out of my company.”

That is the Nexus rebooked in a nutshell, time to actually talk about Wrestlemania 27. It can still open with a Rock promo, just more concise please.

The Openers

The opening match is a ladder match for the IC title. Rey Mysterio vs Alberto Del Rio, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Kofi Kingston and Alex Riley. Sounds alright doesn’t it? An excuse to get all 6 men on the card for an exciting spot fest. I’d let Rey retain, a hot babyface win to open up the show.

Next is mentor vs protégé, The Miz vs Daniel Bryan. After their altercation in the Summerslam match, I wouldn’t have these two cross paths at all. Daniel Bryan has a big year as a major part of the Nexus and as the US champion, which The Miz takes credit for as his mentor. When Miz is asked about the collapse of the Nexus he mentions that some of them will be fine and they have him to thank for it. With the Nexus at civil war, we have two clear sides. The OG’s led by Daniel Bryan and the New Nexus led by the true leader, Wade Barrett.

The Miz tells Bryan that he is proud of what he has become. He wants a public thank you and gesture of appreciation by Bryan for the mentoring he received in NXT. The Miz gets put in a LeBell lock. This sets up the Wrestlemania match, a traditional singles but if Bryan loses he has to publicly thank and praise The Miz for his contributions to wrestling.

Because I’m a bastard, I’d give Miz a cheap victory so that Bryan has to write a big thank you speech. Bryan can take the loss, plus you can get some good segments between these two and continue the feud after Wrestlemania. Maybe Bryan does give Miz a gesture of appreciation and it is another minute trapped in the LeBell lock or something.

The Undercard

As Cody Rhodes distances himself from the Nexus, he enters a feud with Rey Mysterio which happened in real life after Rey broke Cody’s nose. Cody starts wearing a nose protector around this time and starts putting paper bags on peoples heads. Rhodes looks for revenge and defends his title against Rey at Elimination Chamber however an appearance from former Nexus ally Sheamus costs Cody the match and his title. Sheamus explains his actions as collecting debts for his time in the Nexus and sets up a singles match between these two with Sheamus US title on the line. This is only a couple of months into Sheamus’ run as a face so I think he needs the win, plus his reign as US champion has only just begun.

Next is a 6-man Atlanta street fight. It’s civil war!!! David Otunga, Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel represent the OG Nexus when they face Mason Ryan, Ezekiel Jackson and Michael McGuillicutty of the New Nexus. I know this match probably won’t interest many people, so we’ll keep it brief. This should be like the 6-man street fight at Wrestlemania 13, where the Nation of Domination and the LOD went ham on each other with weapons.

Give these guys a load of toys and 5-10 minutes and it’ll be a little bit of fun. I don’t really mind who wins here, let’s say the Original Nexus win. You can go various ways with this. You could continue the Nexus civil war on TV, or separate the faction into 2 smaller factions, one led by Bryan and the other led by Barrett. Or, you could have them all go their separate ways and split into solos and tag teams. Hopefully with how I presented them, they will not be viewed as glorified jobbers.

Polar Opposites

In February, Triple H returns to WWE. He comes out and talks about his extensive time off and what he has been up to. He is excited to be back and talks about his aspirations when he is interrupted by CM Punk. What has Punk been up to? Well the Straight Edge Society falls in September of 2010 and then Punk does commentary whilst he is injured for the rest of the year. Instead of becoming the next leader of the Nexus, I’d have Punk slowly begin his ascent to the main event scene permanently by being outspoken. He is still a heel, but some of the things he says have truth to them.

He interrupts Triple H because he doesn’t care what he has to say, and neither do the fans. “For 15 years Paul, we have had to listen-aaa, to your slow-aaa delivery of words-aaa. We’re sick and tired of hearing from you. We want something else. We want CM Punk.” For the following weeks HHH tries to go out there and talk with the fans and every time Punk is out there to “defend” his fans from him. This leads to Triple H challenging him to a match at Wrestlemania.

This should essentially be their Night of Champions match except without the weapons and ridiculous levels of interference. These two worked really well together, they had chemistry. I think you have to have CM Punk win here. Neither man has much heat or momentum going for them at this point so a loss or a win doesn’t hurt or hinder too much. However, Punk is about to have his biggest year ever soon so we need to be building him up in preparation for the title reign that reignited a spark within wrestling.

Women’s Match

It is the women’s wrestling piss break match. I’m sorry women, it isn’t fair but that is how WWE is at this time. The intergender 6-man tag was the pits so let’s scrap that. Now, what do we like? Well Trish Stratus of course, she is great. What else? Erm, well I had Natalya leave Wrestlemania 26 as the women’s champion so she has momentum. LayCool are good heat magnets I guess. Let’s wombo combo all the pieces. So, Natalya should hold the women’s title until Night of Champions where Michelle McCool beats her to unify the Women’s and Divas titles. They do NOT keep the Divas title. How dare they keep that Claire’s Accessorize looking shit.

McCool beats her via Layla shenanigans and they declare themselves co-champions once more. After a few months of cheating to retain, Natalya costs McCool her match with Gail Kim and causes her to lose the title. Natalya becomes the top target for LayCool who promise to never forget what Natalya did to them. Natalya challenges them to a special Wrestlemania match alongside a Canadian friend of hers. Trish returns, huge pop, big match set up. I was originally going for the singles match but I think a tag match is good just to make sure Trish ain’t showing signs of ring rust. LayCool are competent heels, Natalya is great, Trish is a legend. This has all the makings of a fun women’s match that might prevent a load of people queuing for the toilet. You can have either team win here, maybe Trish for a babyface pop.

19-0

In the lead up towards Elimination Chamber, there is a battle of words between rivals John Cena and Randy Orton. Orton calls out Cena for his lack of integrity whilst Cena pushes the narrative that this was the only way. The back and forth bickering is cut off by “bong”. The Undertaker makes his entrance. He stares down both men before grabbing the microphone. “It is once again, that time of year, when the Deadman rises to claim a soul. Both of you have crossed reaper and I will never forget. All that is to decide now, is who pays first. You will find out in due time.”

At Elimination Chamber we’re down to 3 men; Cena, Orton and I dunno, Big Show for argument sake. The lights go out, smoke fills the arena and as the lights return, the Undertaker stands there. He mouths ‘Judgement Day has come’. He stares down both men, he gets in Cena’s face first but he says “Not yet.” Taker turns towards Orton and straight into a RKO. Orton is proud of himself until Taker sits up and begins stalking Orton. He eventually nails Orton with a chokeslam and a last ride, Cena pins and eliminates him.

Orton is quite obviously annoyed about the whole thing, so he challenges the Undertaker at Wrestlemania. “Undertaker’s Streak is a legend now, 18-0 at Wrestlemania. The thing is, you may be a legend, but I’m a legend killer.” 7 years later than it happened in reality, I think Orton is a much better wrestler at this stage plus Undertaker is in his peak of wrestling the best match of the year once a year. Orton takes him to the limit, but Undertaker remains undefeated at Wrestlemania. One last tombstone gets him his 19-0 status.

Battle of the Commentators

If you think that I would just remove this match without a thought then you are dead wrong, because there is a way to do this right. Michael Cole is the anonymous GM. It makes sense. A coward sending himself emails, pretending to not be in charge. To me, that is the only way to anonymous GM angle works without being annoying. At first Cole runs things normally but gradually favours the heels, enjoying causing chaos. When Jerry Lawler receives an award for his lengthy service to the WWE, Cole is very jealous of this and begins to make his life significantly harder.

By the end of 2010, Jerry Lawler has proof of Michael Cole being the GM, running Raw from his little smartphone. Afraid of the public eye, Cole resigns as commentator and we temporarily have the reunion of JR and Lawler. Cole resumes as the GM, putting Lawler into matches against tough opponents.

Lawler has never competed at Wrestlemania and he challenges Cole. After a series of training montages with Cole and Jack Swagger, Cole accepts the match under one condition. If Lawler loses, he is fired as a WWE commentator. “You can have your Hall of Fame induction, but after that, you’re gone for good.” Lawler accepts. Steve Austin is the special referee.

As the match starts, Swagger immediately drags Cole away and steps up to Lawler. Austin drops him with a stunner. Lawler then beats the crap out of Michael Cole for 5 minutes. Jim Ross joins in. Lawler hits the fist drop from the second rope to win his first Wrestlemania match. It is a nice moment for the king, a nice way to break up longer matches and it is always nice to see Steve Austin. No more stupid laptop please.

Heavyweight Championship

After coming fingertips away from winning the MITB briefcase, Christian finally guarantees himself a world championship match after winning the 2011 Royal Rumble, last eliminating Alberto Del Rio. Current Heavyweight champion Edge successfully defends the gold at the Elimination Chamber. The following Smackdown, Edge reveals that his time is running out for him. Unfortunately all of the injuries he has racked up have taken their toll. Wrestlemania 27 will be his last, he will reluctantly retire and he wants to retire as champion.

However, he can only think of one man he would be willing to lose it to. He asks Christian to face him at Wrestlemania, Christian accepts but warns Edge that this match means more to him than Edge. Edge has proven himself as a world champion, but Christian has not won that accolade yet. Give these men 15-20 minutes to tell their story, incorporating elements of their past in The Brood and their feuds with the Hardy’s and the Dudley’s. You would assume that the best thing to do here is have Christian go over clean and be established as a new main eventer but actually I would have him lose here.

Edge gets to “retire” as a world champion, Christian can still win the Heavyweight championship the next month in that ladder match but there is a story element that gradually turns him heel. He was not able to defeat Edge for the title and he feels inferior. That can come into play with his feud with Orton which was GREAT, though I would definitely give Christian more time as a world champion in 2011. Edge wins his final match, he embraces Christian in the ring and says goodbye to the crowd. He vacates the title the next night and retires for 9 years.

The Main Event

Like I said in the build, Barrett is still a heel but finally taking matches on his own and trying to win through his skill alone and not with interference. Cena refuses to lay down for Barrett and looks for vengeance. The match plays out as a usual Cena vs heel match, Barrett controlling and Cena fighting from underneath. As the match progresses though, Cena becomes more aggressive, Barrett becomes more valiant. Cena hits an AA but Barrett kicks out. Barrett stays in the fight and manages a comeback.

They exchange finishers but neither man can get the win. Then the New Nexus come out. They get on the apron, Wade Barrett orders them to stand down. He doesn’t want or need their help, he wants to do it alone. They don’t listen. Barrett gets in Mason Ryan’s face and demands they leave. Ryan grabs at Barrett’s Nexus armband and pulls it off his arm. They step off the apron but stay ringside, Barrett turns around into a final AA by Cena for the 3. Cena wins the WWE championship.

After the match, Cena nods towards the New Nexus, they come in the ring and beat up Wade Barrett. They hold him up as Cena whacks Barrett with the WWE title in the head. Cena puts on the Nexus armband and takes his place as the new leader. John Cena has turned heel. As Cena poses with the title, that is when we hear “IF YOU SMELL….”

The Rock comes out. He stands face to face with John Cena. Mason Ryan steps towards Rock but Cena tells them all to leave. Cena lifts the title above his head and does his “you can’t see me” taunt, but Rock drops him with a rock bottom to close the show.

Final Wrestlemania 27 Card

Yes I have attempted a double turn, Barrett becoming a more favourable character and Cena finally turning heel like everyone wants him too. I think this was a good way to keep Wade Barrett as a top tier talent as well as finally make John Cena a bad guy. If we were to keep Daniel Bryan as a leader of the OG Nexus, they would just be known as the Nexus. This new Cena-led faction I would simply be named the Cenation, since that is already an advertised part of Cena’s character.

The goons are there as Cena’s lackey’s, his entourage as he reigns as the WWE champion. That means that come Money in the Bank 2011, we have heel champion Cena vs face ‘voice of the voiceless’ CM Punk. Actual chills. This way you can still set up Rock vs Cena a year from now, with clear face vs heel dynamics too. Here is a brief recap of the full card I booked:

IC Championship Ladder match

The Miz vs Daniel Bryan

Sheamus (c) vs Cody Rhodes, US Championship

Original Nexus vs New Nexus, Atlanta Street Fight

Triple H vs CM Punk

Trish Stratus & Natalya vs LayCool

The Undertaker vs Randy Orton