One thing I thought off

[Dave Youell]

How strong does the IC title look!

Whoever gets that thing next is going to be on another level just by holding it, Hardy's been pushed so strong now, that whoever gets it off him will be in a strong posistion.

Who do you think will take it? Kennedy for me seems like the front runner.

And ideal scenario for me would be a Hardy/Orton Mania main event, have Orton cost him a match with Kennedy on Raw to beef up the feud.

What are your thoughts?

[Volare]

I agree. Showing that the IC champ got a shot at the title and almost won, brought back the meaning of the title in a heartbeat. The thing is, not who but also *HOW* they're gonna take it off Hardy.

IMO, to keep it strong you gotta have a strong feud to go with it, and the way Hardy puts whoever gets it next over, might possibly drop what the WWE has built.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

I'd agree IF Hardy defended it more. But he isn't. And if he drops it too quick once he starts defending it, it'll look bad too.

And if he doesn't drop it before Mania, chances are, we'll go another year without it being defended.

It wouldn't be a bad idea for them to make the IC belt a belt for uppercarders who aren't in the main event scene at the time. People like HBK, Hardy, Jericho, JBL, etc, who are established main eventers, but aren't fighting for the world title. Then add in the upper mid-card, like Carlito, Kennedy, Finlay, etc.

[TerranRich]

Don't care... I'm just glad the IC title MEANS something now.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I'd agree IF Hardy defended it more. But he isn't. And if he drops it too quick once he starts defending it, it'll look bad too.

I agree 100% with this statement. How strong can the title look if it isn't being defended? What you essentially have by getting Jeff Hardy to compete exclusively in non-title matches, is an Intercontinental Champion who is too good for the belt.

His match against Shawn Michaels this week really should have been for the IC Title. That would go a long way to lending the IC Title credibility. Jeff Hardy's last successful defence was against Randy Orton, who was the WWE Champion, so a win over HBK would have done wonders for his reign.

Either way, the IC Champion was heading into the Elimination Chamber, so what harm would it have been to have the match for the title? Oh, that's right, because HBK doesn't want to job in an IC Title match, and look beneath the title.

As for who the next IC Champion will be, I'm thinking Paul Burchill is the best bet at this stage. And he won't really get a rub from it. A few people will take him more seriously when he does beat Hardy, and he looks like a real threat, but then he'll be still in the mid-card, squashing jobbers in non-title contests, and people will begin to not care.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

I know this won't be a popular idea, BUT, I wouldn't be opposed to them moving Mark Henry to Raw, having him take the IC title, and having a decent run with it. He can build it up more, and in the meantime, the WWE can build up a credible challenger, who once they take it off of him, it'll be big.

Mark Henry may not be the best, but he CAN play his role well. As a big man challenger, he looks legit. He can crush people smaller than him, and it's totally believeable.

[Londoner]

Yeah it looks really strong now ive been thinking this for months, he's defended it often enough to give it credibility, i can see kennedy winning it next.

[Heros Welcome]

As for who the next IC Champion will be, I'm thinking Paul Burchill is the best bet at this stage. And he won't really get a rub from it. A few people will take him more seriously when he does beat Hardy, and he looks like a real threat, but then he'll be still in the mid-card, squashing jobbers in non-title contests, and people will begin to not care.

I was thinking the same thing

[Lord-Of-Darkness]

I know this won't be a popular idea, BUT, I wouldn't be opposed to them moving Mark Henry to Raw, having him take the IC title, and having a decent run with it. He can build it up more, and in the meantime, the WWE can build up a credible challenger, who once they take it off of him, it'll be big.

Mark Henry may not be the best, but he CAN play his role well. As a big man challenger, he looks legit. He can crush people smaller than him, and it's totally believeable.

I like this idea, reminds me of Big Show as U.S champ while Brock was WWE champ. They turned Cena face, and built him up as such for a few months and had him beat Show at Mania.

[IC Champion]

The I-C title has been a joke since the likes of Val Venis and Godfather and numerous other nobodies would trade the title back and fourth.

[SammyG]

First off, it's something you thought OF, not OFF.

Secondly, KENNEDY

[IC Champion]

Kennedy is highly over rated, HIGHLY.

[FourFifty]

Kennedy is highly over rated, HIGHLY.

For the record I was a Kennedy fan before he was over rated, and I still like Kennedy. No, he's not a main eventer right now and I think losing the money in the bank and his suspension when he came back was a good thing for him. He's not at the main event level, but he'll get there one day, and one day soon.













....SOON!

[Inadequacy]

That doesn't mean he isn't good

[FourFifty]

Secondly, KENNEDY

Gotta spead some rep before giving it to SammyG again.
















...AGAIN!

[FourFifty]

That doesn't mean he isn't good

So which argument do you want to hear? The Chewbacca argument, or the Hulk Hogan argument?

[Inadequacy]

I'd rather Chewbacca, but since this is the wrestling forum I'll take Hogan if I have to

[FourFifty]

I'd rather Chewbacca, but since this is the wrestling forum I'll take Hogan if I have to

:lol: wrestling forum.... Have the Chewbacca one first, with Spanish subtitles. Why Spanish subtitles? It does not make sense!

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Okay, gonna pull a Lance Storm here, and be serious for a minute....

What don't you like about Kennedy? Is it his move set?
Look at Hogan and Cena. Five moves of doom and that's it. They're not the greatest wrestlers, but for some reason (I think the selling of souls has something to do with it) they're seriously over.

Do his promos feel like you're hearing the same thing over and over again?
Let me say it like this. I can't tell you how many times I've been told to say my prayers, call somebody, get ready to suck it, and that's the bottom line if you smell what Mister Kennedy is cookin', WOOOOOOOOO!
Yea, his mic skills are a little more complex than a sing along disney video but that's what wrestling fans llike. Look at the last two boom periods. Everyone who was a somebody had at least had catch phrase.

Are you upset that the Swog became Vince's son instead of Kennedy?
Kennedy shouldn't be in the main event right now. He's not at that level, and as a Kennedy fan I can admit that. If Kennedy was Vince's son we would have Triple H vs Kennedy at Wrestlemania. Maybe next year, but not this year. Hogan was a case were he was shoved down wrestling's pike. He had the Super Cena push and went over everybody. This burnt him out to the point where when he went to WCW as a face the fans still boo'ed him. Kennedy's setbacks were his saving grace. Set backs Hogan should have had.

Kennedy has more in common with Hulk Hogan than I'd like to admit. I don't like Hogan, but I can't deny that he can light up an entire arena with his name. I'm not saying Kennedy is at that level, or if he'll ever get to that level. You think Kennedy is not the best wrestler, and I'm cool with that. You have the right to think what you want, but I'd like to believe that everyone can point out why Kennedy is signed on with a bigger, more mainstream company than Soma Joe.

[Pardeep 619]

If they don't push Hardy to win the WWE Title this year then it would be an absolute waste of time doing what they have done.

I reckon Cena vs Hardy for the WWE Title would be a great money match. I would hope thye would do that for Mania or Summerslam... but they won't!!

[FourFifty]

I reckon
:|Do not ever use that phrase again, ever.:|

[IC Champion]

I dont get what makes Kennedy special, that he accounces himself? He catches a mic as it descends form the cieling? I don't see it, is it his sloppy finish that takes him half a minute to to set it up?

[Mr. Nerfect]

The I-C title has been a joke since the likes of Val Venis and Godfather and numerous other nobodies would trade the title back and fourth.

Those nobodies at the time were very over, and people cared much more about the belt than they do now. After those men, you had the era of Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, in which the belt was treated pretty fantastically.

The IC Title pretty much lost its credibility with the brand split, really.

[Inadequacy]

Actually FourFifty, I do like Kennedy. When I said "That doesn't mean he isn't good" I was addressing Instant Classic

[Pardeep 619]

:|Do not ever use that phrase again, ever.:|

???

[Pardeep 619]

After those men, you had the era of Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, in which the belt was treated pretty fantastically.

None of those wrestlers truly had the chance to have a great run as champion. Sure there were some great matches, but the IC Title belt lost a lot of sparkle during the Attitude era

[Mr. Nerfect]

I dont get what makes Kennedy special, that he accounces himself? He catches a mic as it descends form the cieling? I don't see it, is it his sloppy finish that takes him half a minute to to set it up?

So because you don't see it there's nothing there?

Paul Heyman saw it, a lot of fans saw it, and you really have to believe Vince McMahon and the WWE have seen it.

In the ring, the man is not the best ever, but people act like he is only average. The man is above average. I'd give him a B+ grading on average. He has carried Batista to good matches, which makes him fine enough in my book.

His promo skills are highly underrated by people around here. No, I'm not talking about his confidence on the mic or his ability to shout his last name; I'm talking about his ability to actually cut promos which put himself over, put his opponent over, and build heat towards his feud.

Mr. Kennedy also has some of the best ring psychology of anyone in the WWE currently. Note: I didn't say the best, he's just one of them. He's one of those guys that "get it" in the ring, at least theoretically. He knows what a wrestling match is supposed to be, and he knows what he's meant to do, regardless of whether or not he actually does it. He's not exactly a young competitor, but he hasn't been around for ages, either. He's still polishing himself off, and when he gets there, I guarantee he will be greatness in the ring. The man has a few classics in him.

He's also got one of the most flexible natural personalities in the WWE, too. Kennedy is meant to be a dick, and he does that really well, but he's also got some credibility to him. You very rarely see the character back down, and he always manages to take men he shouldn't down to the mat and controls the match. That ruthlessness could translate over to a "Stone Cold" type babyface character very easily.

I have no clue what finishing move you are referring to, but The Mic Check can pretty much be hit out of nowhere. The Kenton Bomb is a nice move, and in my opinion he does it better than Jeff Hardy. The Green Bay Plunge is fantastic when he can hit it on his opponent.

Mr. Kennedy is also just one of the better "actors" the WWE has, too. In a WWE where "entertainment" is of the highest priority, most of the acting is wooden, artificial and doesn't really carry any emotion. Kennedy is a trained actor, and while he's no Christian Bale or anything, he gets the importance of reacting better than almost anyone else on the roster. A Randy Orton will just stand there and look angry until he has to say his line, continue to look angry while someone else talks, and will then deliver his next line. Mr. Kennedy will actually listen, react, and change his tone to match these reactions.

A lot of people are off the bandwagon, but I fully believe that they will be back soon enough. I was a fan of Mr. Kennedy when I first saw him as Ken Anderson on Velocity, and not many guys instantly make me take a liking to them like that, especially when I was prepared to not be interested. I don't care if you don't think he's special, it's pretty stupid to deny the guy is at least good, and at least has the potential to be a star in the WWE.

[FourFifty]

Actually FourFifty, I do like Kennedy. When I said "That doesn't mean he isn't good" I was addressing Instant Classic

Oh, my bad.





.....bad.

[Inadequacy]

Yeah, I guess you posted like one second before me

[Mr. Nerfect]

While I originally went with Burchill, I can see it being Mr. Kennedy who wins the IC Title. I personally believe that Kennedy beating Hardy will actually do nothing for the belt, nothing for Kennedy and actually just give us another champion who is on the verge of moving up and again leading discussions on who will be the next champion, rather than focusing on the current one; but I can see it happening.

My reasoning for this is that Kennedy's feud with Ric Flair is probably going to be dropped after No Way Out, because the WWE wants to go with Flair vs. HBK (which will be a great match, but is not where they should be ending this storyline, in my opinion), and Kennedy will be without anything planned for WrestleMania. This will probably mean he'll be in Money in the Bank, which Jeff Hardy will also probably be in. While the WWE will most likely leave the IC Title on Jeff Hardy through WrestleMania without mention of it except during his introduction, I can see Kennedy winning the belt from Hardy to add "heat" between them for Mania.

Two other guys I can see as IC Champion, are JBL and Randy Orton. After WrestleMania, I fully expect Randy Orton to be sort of lost and without purpose. While a move to either SmackDown! or ECW would do both the brand and Orton good, I can just see the WWE getting lazy and putting the IC Title on him again to build up his resume, and as sort of a consolation prize for getting jobbed out to Cena.

JBL winning the IC Title is a possibility I can envision simply because JBL is one of those few heels I can image the WWE putting over Hardy. I would say that JBL is above the IC Title, but the last gold he held was the US Title, and he's one of Vince's favourites. It's not hard to envision him being handed the IC Title as something to gloat about, and to give a face the "rub" by dropping it to them.

This would also make JBL a true Grand Slam Champion in the same vein as HBK, HHH and Y2J. It's really a three character monogram club, so JBL would fit right in.

[IC Champion]

Those nobodies at the time were very over, and people cared much more about the belt than they do now. After those men, you had the era of Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, in which the belt was treated pretty fantastically.

The IC Title pretty much lost its credibility with the brand split, really.

It was the attitude era, everyone and their mother was over. And for me it lost credibility when it was passed around between every midcarder on the roster, not so much because those "nobodies" were champion.

[IC Champion]

So because you don't see it there's nothing there?

Paul Heyman saw it, a lot of fans saw it, and you really have to believe Vince McMahon and the WWE have seen it.

In the ring, the man is not the best ever, but people act like he is only average. The man is above average. I'd give him a B+ grading on average. He has carried Batista to good matches, which makes him fine enough in my book.

His promo skills are highly underrated by people around here. No, I'm not talking about his confidence on the mic or his ability to shout his last name; I'm talking about his ability to actually cut promos which put himself over, put his opponent over, and build heat towards his feud.

Mr. Kennedy also has some of the best ring psychology of anyone in the WWE currently. Note: I didn't say the best, he's just one of them. He's one of those guys that "get it" in the ring, at least theoretically. He knows what a wrestling match is supposed to be, and he knows what he's meant to do, regardless of whether or not he actually does it. He's not exactly a young competitor, but he hasn't been around for ages, either. He's still polishing himself off, and when he gets there, I guarantee he will be greatness in the ring. The man has a few classics in him.

He's also got one of the most flexible natural personalities in the WWE, too. Kennedy is meant to be a dick, and he does that really well, but he's also got some credibility to him. You very rarely see the character back down, and he always manages to take men he shouldn't down to the mat and controls the match. That ruthlessness could translate over to a "Stone Cold" type babyface character very easily.

I have no clue what finishing move you are referring to, but The Mic Check can pretty much be hit out of nowhere. The Kenton Bomb is a nice move, and in my opinion he does it better than Jeff Hardy. The Green Bay Plunge is fantastic when he can hit it on his opponent.

Mr. Kennedy is also just one of the better "actors" the WWE has, too. In a WWE where "entertainment" is of the highest priority, most of the acting is wooden, artificial and doesn't really carry any emotion. Kennedy is a trained actor, and while he's no Christian Bale or anything, he gets the importance of reacting better than almost anyone else on the roster. A Randy Orton will just stand there and look angry until he has to say his line, continue to look angry while someone else talks, and will then deliver his next line. Mr. Kennedy will actually listen, react, and change his tone to match these reactions.

A lot of people are off the bandwagon, but I fully believe that they will be back soon enough. I was a fan of Mr. Kennedy when I first saw him as Ken Anderson on Velocity, and not many guys instantly make me take a liking to them like that, especially when I was prepared to not be interested. I don't care if you don't think he's special, it's pretty stupid to deny the guy is at least good, and at least has the potential to be a star in the WWE.

If you didn't care, why did you bother writing 7 paragraph essay on why he's good?

The guy just doesnt entertain me, his efforts at humor are awful, his promo's bore me, and his matches are generally average at best.

And yes, the Mic check can be hit out of no where, but the few times I've seen him do it it takes him to much time to set it up, for a move thats supposed to come from "no where" anyways.