The match card for TLC features a very exciting Intercontinental Championship match between Booker T and Cody Rhodes. This will be the match that helps catapult the IC title back to relevancy in the WWE.
I may bash WWE Creative every week, but I commend them for trying to make the mid-card titles more exciting recently. I have been begging them to start pushing their championships so the WWE can have younger stars battling for the IC and United States titles as they gain more popularity before entering the main event stage.
Cody Rhodes is a superstar in the making. A lot of fans, including myself, believe he is one of the future stars in this business. A feud with a veteran such as Booker T can only help make Rhodes into a more legitimate rising star.
The match between Booker and Rhodes has all the potential to steal the show. I admit that the feud has not been as creative as it could have been, but I give props to the writers for trying to make the Intercontinental Championship interesting again.
There will be a lot of fans interested in seeing the return of Booker T just for nostalgic reasons alone. By putting him in a match for the IC title, it helps to get fans interested again in that specific championship. Booker T was an entertaining superstar in the ring, and his skills should make for a fascinating matchup with someone like Cody Rhodes.
This match also helps Rhodes because he has not had many exciting contenders for his Intercontinental belt since he won the title. If Rhodes is ever going to move into the main event scene, he really needs to have a few memorable matches while he is the Intercontinental Champion.
Who Wins the match at TLC?
I fully expect Rhodes to win this match considering Booker T is a commentator now and I do not believe he will go back to being a full-time wrestler. I can appreciate Booker for trying to help put over a young star in the making.
This match will only be the beginning of the WWE making their mid-card titles relevant again. I truly believe that when Rhodes loses the title to whomever that the belt will continue to stay popular with the audience. It will be the writers’ job to continue to push young stars into the IC picture. It is certainly working for the United States Championship currently.
I know many of Booker T’s fans will be disappointed with the outcome of this feud, but it would be unrealistic for Booker to come out on top. I was ecstatic when I saw him return in the Royal Rumble, but in my heart, I knew he was not coming back permanently. The same can be said for this feud. I am content with just being able to see Booker come out to his music one more time in his ring gear and give us the spin-a-rooni.
It may feel like I never give the WWE credit when I do my weekly articles after Monday Night Raw, but today, I am. Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, Wade Barrett, Dolph Ziggler and others are the future of the WWE, and they seem to be getting pushed in the right direction. It is hard to believe that we may see a PPV without John Cena, and I say that not as a “Cena Hater,” but as an advocate of younger stars being pushed.
Let me know down below if you think the IC title is becoming relevant again or if this is just a onetime deal at TLC. Also, remember to follow me on Twitter @WWeConTroL. I always enjoy the feedback, article ideas and questions that you all have for me.
Keep it classic, everyone!
In an update to the tweet that John Cena sent last week noting that the WWE Championship template should be changed, along with a WWE.com story being published, the Wrestling Globe reports that there is talk backstage of indeed changing the look of the championship. One hesitation, however, is that the current belt remains a hot-seller within the company, but not as popular as when it was first introduced under John Cena in 2007.