Rey Mysterio could lose his newly-won US title to an unexpected star, WWE legend says (Exclusive)
WWE offered fans a surprising title change on SmackDown as Rey Mysterio ended Austin Theory's 258-day reign. The outcome has infused some excitement in the championship picture, and Dutch Mantell believed WWE would have Theory regain the belt he lost soon.
Despite having a long run as US Champion, Austin Theory has arguably lost steam in recent times and was in need of a new direction.
Dutch Mantell supported the decision to take the title off Theory as it gave the 26-year-old star a much-needed change on WWE TV. Mantell felt that the SmackDown star was "dying" as a performer and an extended program with Rey Mysterio could change his fortunes.
Working with one of the greatest WWE stars of all time and potentially winning back the United States Championship could help Theory become relevant again. Mantell also said that putting the belt back around Austin's waist would be a call that most fans wouldn't foresee WWE making.
The legendary manager explained on Smack Talk:
"Hey, I liked it! I'm looking at Theory, and Theory is kind of dying right now. So beat him and then start something new with him. So, now he and Rey will go back and forth, and he can retake it. Then you've got to work Santos back into it. See, what WWE is doing now, we look at it like it's full. But they are going against the grain. They are doing the stuff you don't expect. And not all of it will work. This is not an exact science." [56:45 - 57:10]
Dutch Mantell reminded fans that WWE has to produce original content every week and do that consistently without any breaks throughout the year. They can't always be expected to churn out hits as some storylines won't catch on with the audience, resulting in talents failing to get the desired reactions.
WWE should just give up on angles that have no long-term scope of succeeding, as Dutch added below:
"They haven't sat down and written the whole book because they are booking 300 hundred hours of original TV every year just for RAW and SmackDown. So, they are not going to hit on everything. What I'm asking them to do, and I'm sure you are too, Rick, is acknowledge or kick out where you missed and try to fix it. If you can't fix it, move away from it and come back to it or move away from it and leave it alone." [57:11 - 58:00]
Dutch Mantell points out a mistake with an upcoming Rey Mysterio segment
Fresh off his third US Championship triumph, WWE announced that Rey Mysterio will appear as the guest on the Grayson Waller Effect for next week's SmackDown.
Dutch Mantell felt that WWE should have had Austin Theory for the segment instead of Rey Mysterio, as it would have been a better way to build upon the rivalry. Mantell also briefly spoke about Theory not getting enough chances to get over properly and why LA Knight, on the contrary, had made the most of his opportunities.
"With Theory, they haven't really given him a chance to really get over. LA Knight is kind of taking out the dime right now," the WWE veteran continued. "So, we will see what they do. They made a mistake there too. They should have said Grayson Waller was going to host Austin Theory because all of a sudden, they come back now and change it all up." [58:45 - 59:05]
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