WrestleMania 32 was set to be one of the biggest wrestling events in history, and a huge crowd was going to attend in Dallas, Texas. WWE is still hoping that will end up happening, but it doesn’t even look like they know what kind of entertainment they will be putting on. A serious injury to yet another main event talent is changing everything once again, and with less than four months to go, the card for WrestleMania 32 is a huge question mark.
The big news on Wednesday evening is that John Cena is needing surgery on his shoulder, and he’s going to be out for quite some time.
Rather upside down start to 2016 as tomorrow I will head to Birmingham for shoulder surgery. Life’s full of set backs but #nevergiveup
— John Cena (@JohnCena) January 7, 2016
Talk about setback. This is huge setback for WWE in that Cena had reportedly been in talks for one of two big matches at WrestleMania 32 . There had been rumors that he would face off with The Undertaker, but another possibility was that Cena would take on Roman Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Title.
Less than two weeks ago, there was a huge angle teased after Monday Night Raw went off the air that saw Cena and Reigns go face to face. Now, that won’t be happening any time in the near future.
PW Insider is reporting that Cena has a torn rotator cuff and it isn’t known exactly how long he will be out. One thing that is certain is that he will be out long enough to miss WrestleMania 32 , and that’s just another big star on the shelf.
Here is the list of current superstars that won’t be at WrestleMania this year:
- John Cena
- Seth Rollins
- Cesaro
- Daniel Bryan
- Randy Orton
- Sting
Now, WWE doesn’t always reveal all information about injuries, so it is possible that one or two of those big stars could be back by early April. Cena, Rollins, and Orton are all definitely out. Bryan’s status is totally up in the air as is that of Sting. Cesaro is a 50/50 shot at being back in time.
This just turns things completely upside down for WWE though, and the answer may be a lot simpler than anyone thinks. Now, it’s time to turn to the free agents who are out there and really sign those New Japan Pro Wrestling guys who are rumored to be with the company already.
AJ Styles is without a contract from any promotion and can start right away. Shinsuke Nakamura has at least a few more dates for NJPW and then can be signed by WWE. Get those deals done and put them on the WWE main roster immediately.
Grab the other former Bullet Club members in Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows and maybe start them in NXT, but bring them up before WrestleMania 32 . Bring up Finn Balor and let him join forces with this team and Style and you have a monster stable at the ready.
Have Sami Zayn and Samoa Joe come up to the main roster as well, and throw them immediately into big time feuds with main event talent. Their time has come and their time is now, and it would instantly take away the issue of the missing main event talents who are injured.
Maybe take harder and longer (not too long as there isn’t much time) looks at signing guys like Bill Goldberg and Batista . Sure, they may not be the long-term answers, but they’re big names who will instantly bring credibility and fan appreciation.
Elevate Bray Wyatt to main event status and focus a lot on Brock Lesnar. Let Dean Ambrose do what he has been doing and let Kevin Owens bump up a few notches. Latinos Post thinks that a match between The Rock and Triple H could help some, but Dwayne Johnson may not even be allowed to wrestle due to the movie commitments he has.
The bad news for WWE is that John Cena’s injury takes another big name out of the storylines for months. The good news for WWE is that the Royal Rumble is right around the corner and is a great way to introduce new talent and start new storylines for the road to WrestleMania 32 .
[Image via WWE]