The U.S. Title

[Dr. Wrestling]

What do you think of the U.S. title?

[Dr. Wrestling]

Anyone remember that there's a U.S. belt? What happened? How did a belt that pushed the careers of wrestlers become a second rate title?

It seems that once the title was brought back over time the less important it became. In 2004 The Big Show won the title it was the beginning of the down fall of the title. Big Show just kind of carried around the belt and didn't really defend it. The title was used to push Cena but again it wasn't defended that much and there wasn't many feuds for it. Cena lost the title to Carlito because he was fliming a movie so Carlito takes the belt but there still really wasn't a week to week feud for it. The Carlito/Cena feud was only on a t.v. a few weeks because Cena was filming a movie so it wasn't really a feud to establish the title.

Carlito gets hurt and loses the title back to Cena so when Cena returned he got the belt back but when he got the belt back he wasn't involved in a feud for the title. During his second run as U.S. champion Cena made the belt alot cooler by making it spin but it didn't establish the title because there wasn't feuds for the title. Cena showed up with the belt made it spin and started to get a push to the WWE title.

When Cena defeated Kurt Angle at No Way Out to become the number one condendor it was obvious that he wasn't going to be the U.S. champion at Wrestlemania so instead of having Cena lose to a wrestler that could use a push the WWE had Cena lose to Orlando Jordan. It was obvious that the WWE was just trying to further the Cena/JBL feud by having Cena lose to a wrestler in the "cabinet" but it didn't help the title because Orlando Jordan isn't an established wrestler.

Jordan hasn't even been given a push while being champion and hasn't defended the title that much. Jordan hasn't been involved in any major feuds for the title and it proves how the WWE hasn't done anything with the title. Jordan defended the title against Beniot at the Great American Bash but there wasn't a feud for the title. Beniot defeated Booker T to become the number one condendor for the title and two weeks later Jordan defeated Beniot to retain the title. There wasn't a build up for the match and it was one of the few times Jordan defended the title. Now I know some of you reading this may say that Orlando defended the title on Velocity but we all know that a title defense against Hardcore Holly isn't a serious title defense. Smackdown is the top show for the Smackdown brand and the ratings for Velocity prove that not everyone tunes in to Velocity so if the title is going to become important it needs to be defended on Smackdown.

I think if the WWE wants to make the U.S. title more important it needs to be defended more and there need to be feuds for the title. The Intercontintal title is a good example of how the U.S. title should be used. Shelton Benjamin who has a great future ahead of him got a push by winning the IC title and Carlito another young wrestler who has alot of potental is getting a push as IC champion. The IC belt is helping Carlito and Benjamin become established stars because there is a feud for the title and that makes the title more important. When the title is important the wrestler winning the title can become an established star. That is how the U.S. title should be used and establish stars but it's obvious that the U.S. title has become a second rate title. The U.S. title is a second rate title because Smackdown is a second rate show.

[Iceman]

Ya, if your saying it's not defended enough then that's a problem. I see Orlando Jordan has the belt now, well that is only hurting the belt and making it worth less. Kinda like John Ruiz having one of the Heavyweight Belts. I think if Bradshaw never had the Heavyweight Belt which he never should of then the U.S. Belt would of been perfect for him. Now I don't think he would take a step backwards.

I think if Chris Benoit or William Regal had the belt they could help save it and they always have good matches. Maybe even a feud between them for it? My third choice would be Christian, but I like his role better as "Head Jobber" in the WWE.

[Dr. Wrestling]

A Benoit/Regal feud for the U.S. title would be cool.

[tysontomko]

A Benoit/Booker T. feud is even better for the U.S. Title!!

[Wrestling Chick]

I don't look at the U.S. title as a second-rate title. It didn't help to push Big Show, because he was already an established Superstar. Cena used it to prove he could win when it was important (at Wrestlemania XX), and was a future major player in the WWE. I think O.J. is just a transitional champion, making way for someone else to use the title the way Cena did. If Benoit wins at Summerslam, I think he'll bring back some very important credibility to the title, but I don't think that if O.J. keeps the title, it'll diminish the title. It'll show (or at least attempt to) that O.J. might become a solid, mid- to upper-midcard wrestler himself.

[Dr. Wrestling]

I think the U.S. title is a second rate title because it hasn't been defended that much and there haven't been that many feuds for the title. Jordan was given the title to further the Cena/JBL feud and if he was a tranisition champion he wouldn't be champion for four months.

[Wrestling Chick]

If they extend this OJ/Benoit fued past Summerslam, I think OJ will come into his own as a strong midcard wrestler. The title itself isn't second rate, in my opinion, it's the way the WWE is portraying it.

[grumpyoldman]

Back in the day, it meant something. Look at the list of people who held it before- Paul Jones, Ric Flair, Magnum T.A., Dusty, Nikita Koloff, Wahoo McDaniel, Greg Valentine, Roddy Piper, Barry Windham, etc. Now it seems someone has taken a dump on it. I can't stand when they take a title & try to "jazz it up". Try to find a picture of the U.S. belt when Ricky Steamboat or Blackjack Mulligan held it. It was the coolest looking belt of its time!