By Jon Cudo, PWTorch specialist

TRUE - THE OPENING MATCH CAN BE REDEFINED

Much has been made this week about match order for WrestleMania 28. With four featured “Main Event” level matches, the discussion has become which will be on last (as the true “Main Event”) and which one will be snubbed or defined down by a less marquee spot on the card.

Last year, the World Heavyweight Title match (Edge vs. Alberto Del Rio) was the opening match. It was thought by many to disrespect the two performers and a placement that harms the prestige of the World Championship.

It is very true that for most of the twentieth century, boxing and wrestling cards were organized from the bottom up. The first match was the least important and the last was the main event. Some notable exceptions were Hulk Hogan matches being used before intermission on WWF house shows, primarily so Hogan could escape the building early and avoid traffic and late nights at the arena. In recent years, the worst spot on the card became the match following the intermission, often called the “Popcorn match” since many fans were still on the concourse getting popcorn and would trickle in as they heard the matches had restarted. Promoters used lesser names to fill that time, knowing the crowd would be slowing returning to their seats during those contests.

This hierarchy of matches can be seen on the old-style playbills, which present the top matches at the top (in the largest fonts) down to the least important. That same structure is used today in WWE production, as they will go through match order for the night starting at the bottom of the list (since that match goes on first).

Despite all of that history, WWE is the modern day writer of wrestling doctrine. They have the power to ultimately redefine what the first match on the card means. With an eye towards popping eager crowds, they already use popular acts to get a huge reactions from their first introduction of the first match. Just look over recent cards and you will see names like Rey Mysterio, Edge, and Sheamus in a non-traditional spot opening match spot (relative to their star power) since WWE knows it’s the best way to set the tone for the night. Building ebbs and flows in the overall card now trumps old-school tenets. I think everyone can agree that Snooki’s match at WrestleMania 27 wasn’t the second most important match, nor was the Edge's defense against Alberto Del Rio the least important.

With the power to make radical changes in perceptions, WWE has already made old match orders obsolete. New fans already think of the fist match as more important, since that’s been established by WWE for years. I trust the biggest match on the card will nearly always be last, but WWE has already redefined what it means to go on first...and there is already no shame in it.

FALSE: DAYTONA 500 RATING WAS A ONE-WEEK FACTOR

When ratings come in below expectations, industry insiders look for logical reasons. The February 27 rating was easy to explain, as the rare delay of NASCAR’s number one event led to it being raced on a Monday night against Raw. The delay put a huge damper on one week of the Raw rating, bringing a WrestleMania Season episode under a 3.0 rating for the first time in recent memory.

However, the Daytona 500-caused ratings plunge has had a natural drag on subsequent weeks. WWE’s episodic television is best watched each week and missing a week, per se, means that part of the story is missing for a viewer. Also, a one-week break in viewing habits can lead to a long-term disruption. Finally, any energy that WWE spent promoting Smackdown and the following week’s Raw was only 90 percent as effective as it would have been.

The Daytona 500 took about 10 percent of the expected Raw viewership, broke viewing patterns, took a chapter out of their WrestleMania story, and made the promotion of future TV only 90 percent as effective as it would have been.

It’s easy to say everyone would come back since it’s WrestleMania season, but no program wants to lose 10 percent of its audience any week. The damage is done for that week and, for an episodic program like Raw, that damage has a lingering effect for weeks to come.

TBD - CENA VS. ROCK ISN’T ABOUT ANYTHING

In the last part of 2011, many of us tried to read the storyline tea leaves surrounding John Cena to determine the broader story of WrestleMania’s main event. Would Kane turn Cena heel? Would Kane play a role in the finish of Rock and Cena? Would the pairing of Eve and Zack Ryder figure into the story? Just what would the Rock and Cena match be about?

So far, it’s about nothing more than petty jealously, insults about their manhood, and a healthy discussion about body parts. To me, its really a feud about nothing; not a title, not legacy, not a battle over two era’s star, not rising above hate. Nothing.

Which is exactly why I believe it’s failing to spark big ratings and in jeopardy of not triggering a large PPV buyrate.

WWE has two weeks left to tell a story, which can be plenty of time. C.M. Punk and Chris Jericho made their title match about something more than the WWE Title this week, so they may still choose to add something to the Rock and Cena story. However, for a feud that has been brewing for 50+ weeks, a two-week crash storyline may seem only desperate.

Whether or not WWE makes Rock vs. Cena about anything more than a petty fight between mega-stars remains to be determined.

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