Bully Ray On Whether WWE Should Have Followed Up On John Cena's Heel Turn On Raw

Following John Cena's turning heel and siding with The Rock against Cody Rhodes at WWE Elimination Chamber last Saturday, neither Cena, Rock, or Rhodes appeared on last night's edition of "WWE Raw." For some, like "Busted Open Radio's" Dave LaGreca, this was a missed opportunity, with LaGreca pondering if WWE cost themselves non-wrestling viewers by failing to follow up on the mainstream buzz Cena's turn gave them.

LaGreca's opinion wasn't shared by his co-host, Bully Ray. On Tuesday's "Busted Open," the two time Hall of Famer argued that WWE not immediately following up would have no effect on fans tuning in or out.

"I do not think that they lost the non-wrestling fan, especially with the way this angle at the end of Elimination Chamber spilled out over into mainstream media, especially ESPN...," Bully said. "I was not expecting any type of explanation, or any type of follow up. What I expected was exactly what I got; about three or four packages reminding us of what happened at Elimination Chamber. So if you didn't see what happened at Elimination Chamber and you did watch 'Monday Night Raw,' you could watch the production pieces that the WWE puts together, and then maybe go back and watch Elimination Chamber if you missed [it]. 

"They put a pin in the story last night. There's no reason to follow up last night. It would've completely overshadowed 'Monday Night Raw.' They had an incredible beginning with Punk and Seth, and a great ending with IYO. There would be absolutely no memory...We would've begun this morning having to talk about Rock, Cody, or Cena if they showed up, which would've completely overshadowed Punk and Seth, and IYO and Rhea and Bianca, which is not what they want to happen. Now they are in 'remind you' mode."

Though LaGreca conceded that the lack of follow up on Cena's heel turn did allow the spotlight to shine on other moments, and that WWE effectively reminded fans of the turn via video packages, he remained steadfast in his thought that WWE should've done more to capitalize on their new momentum. Bully, who has been a huge fan of the turn, remained convinced that WWE did the right thing, and believes that fans like himself will remain intrigued, even if it takes till Rhodes' appearance on "SmackDown" Friday to get any sort of follow up.

"What they did at Elimination Chamber was so big, so memorable, that I think that people are going to remember that for a long, long time," Bully said. "And people will be intrigued. I don't think...I think a very, very small minority of people, who like you said, were tuning in last night strictly for the follow up on Rock, Cena, and Cody, are walking away from this product. I'm now tuning in to 'SmackDown,' where Cody lives. Cody lives on 'SmackDown.' I expect to hear from Cody on 'SmackDown.' I expect to get maybe something from Cena or Rock. But if I don't? They still have me intrigued enough."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription