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| photo courtesy: fansided.com |
Christian was last seen in action on the March 24 edition of Raw when he won a Fatal 4-Way match also involving Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio to earn a shot at the Intercontinental Championship the next night on WWE Main Event. However, due to Christian suffering a mild concussion during the contest, Christian never received his title opportunity.
In the last seven months, Christian has appeared sporadically on WWE TV, having served as an analyst on the NXT Takeover and Money in the Bank pay-per-view events. He also brought back his in-ring segment, "The Peep Show," with Chris Jericho as his guest at Night of Champions.
It was reported in September by F4WOnline (h/t Wrestling Inc) that although Christian was medically cleared to compete, WWE's creative team simply didn't have any ideas on how to use him. It was later revealed by Wrestling Observer Radio host Dave Meltzer (h/t Wrestle Zone) that officials view him as being "fragile" and feel his days as an active competitor are over.
At 40 years old, it's logical to assume that it's high time Christian hang up his boots. The risk of bringing him back into the fold only for him to get injured again is too high, and he hasn't been utilized well in years, anyway.
This is all in addition to the fact it's been rumored that Christian's current deal is set to expire later this year and been speculated he won't re-sign, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestle Zone). At the same time, it's likely that he'd re-sign as an agent or a trainer for the young, up-and-coming NXT talents.
Christian has spent the better part of his 20-year career with WWE, staying loyal to the company through thick and thin and doing everything it's asked of him. As one of the most underappreciated stars in recent memory, Christian deserves one last run before retiring for good.
As stated, it'd be pointless to have him return only to not use him, but it'd be great to see him be given a final meaningful storyline before calling it a career. Christian isn't of main event caliber and shouldn't be contending for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at this stage in his career, though he did earlier this year at Elimination Chamber. But why not have him contend for a midcard title one last time?
Christian earned himself an Intercontinental Championship match in March, but as noted, the title match never came to fruition due to Christian's concussion. Very rarely does WWE acknowledge its own history, especially if it's from long ago, but it'd make sense from a storyline standpoint for him to return and demand a shot at the gold against Dolph Ziggler.
Captain Charisma and Ziggler have seldom crossed paths over the last few years, so it'd be a fresh
feud with a solid story behind it. Not only that, but the midcard can use all the help it can get at the moment with so many stars out of commission for the time being.
I'm not suggesting that Christian getting one last run would bring in a slew of new WWE Network subscribers or even increase the quality of the current stale product, but the company owes it to him after everything he's contributed over the last two decades.
Even at the age of 40, Christian can still flat-out go in the ring. He had a handful of awesome matches earlier this year against the likes of Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and others.
I realize the risk of injury is there, but if the company isn't willing to bring him back full time, one more match would suffice. At the very least, it'd allow fans to celebrate his career and give him the recognition he deserves.
Would you like to see Christian be given one more run in WWE, or do you believe his in-ring days are in the past? Sound off in the comments below, and thanks for reading.
source: bleacherreport.com
