WrestleMania has experienced plenty of ups and downs over the years, with some matches not living up to expectations, and some cards having poor matches. Occasionally, a world title match, whether that be for the WWE, World Heavyweight, or Universal Championship, can underwhelm, and a big part of that can be due to the build or even just because of those involved in that match. The World Heavyweight Title match between Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger is the most evident example of that.
On Paper, Del Rio Vs Jack Swagger Was A Poor Line-Up
Towards the end of 2012, the largely unlikeable Alberto Del Rio began a face turn, which never really hit well with the audience. Ever since his debut two years prior, Del Rio had been presented as a rich aristocrat, who looked down on everyone else, driving his array of expensive cars to the ring. Del Rio would win the WWE Title on two occasions, but those reigns were largely underwhelming and didn’t last too long. When Del Rio dethroned The Big Show at the start of 2012, beginning a reign as a babyface, fans weren’t entirely enthralled.
When it became clear that Del Rio would continue holding the belt on the Road to WrestleMania, likely defending it at the event, it further cemented just how far the World Heavyweight Title had fallen, especially since the end of the brand split, in which the WWE Championship was put on a much higher pedestal, with the Big Gold feeling like a glorified midcard belt. The Elimination Chamber PPV was set to determine the man who would step up to face Del Rio, and the field featured six former world champions.
In a completely shocking turn of events, Jack Swagger would emerge victorious, despite being arguably the least credible competitor in the match. This came after months of absence on the part of Swagger, so his return as a heel was something that felt fresh at least, and this victory looked to potentially pick up from where WWE failed with him several years prior, in his disastrous first World Title run in 2010. However, things didn’t turn out well for him or the Mania match.
Jack Swagger’s Controversial Gimmick Put A Dampener On The Build
Swagger aligned himself with Zeb Colter, who made his first appearance in WWE since 1996, during his stint as Uncle Zebekiah, where he managed both the Blu Brothers and JBL. The gimmick they had was very controversial, and it played massively into the build for the WrestleMania title match. Swagger and Colter were portrayed as two men who were anti-immigrant, and extremely patriotic, and they targeted Del Rio and his Mexican heritage. It was done in extremely bad taste, although it was a variation from the typical foreign heel trope.
One downside to this gimmick, was the “We The People” catchphrase, due to it being very catchy, with the audience chanting along with it. For a gimmick that was presented to be a racist one, having the fans join in defeated the purpose completely. It didn’t help that Del Rio wasn’t the most likable face either, so the dynamic was simply all wrong in the build to the match. WWE opted for the same tired and repetitive tropes to build the match, with post-match brawls and attacks. Fans were not excited, and no one could blame them for that response.
This Title Match Could Have Been Easily Avoided
WrestleMania 29 was a huge letdown of a show, with several poor matches, a lack of creativity and variety, with just one standout match in Undertaker vs CM Punk. The match between Swagger and Del Rio was marred going into the show, due to Swagger’s arrest and subsequent DUI charge. The belief beforehand, was that Swagger would likely have won the match, but this event changed plans and sucked the life out of the feud before it properly began. Swagger was given a jobber entrance at the show, which is an unprecedented occurrence when it comes to WrestleMania.
The match itself was fine, but that was it. There was nothing special about it, and it was just there in the middle of the card. It seriously lacked star power, which further damaged the title’s prestige. To make matters worse, this could have been easily avoided. Other names on the card, such as Randy Orton, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, or even the red-hot Ryback, could have been involved in this World Title match, and it would have been infinitely better than it was. Even if the match was strong, this would still have been received poorly due to a lack of star power, and an awful storyline in the build.