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Just when the fans were starting to miss Money in the Bank matches at WrestleMania, WWE decided to solve that problem by adding a ladder match for the Intercontinental championship.WWE confirmed that Bad News Barrett will be defending his championship against multiple superstars in the match and the obvious question that comes up next will be about the superstars involved. The prestige of the Intercontinental championship will be hanging in the balance at Mania so the WWE booking team has practically no room for error.Picking a talent lot of superstars from the roster will be crucial to make the match a success story and here is a look at some of the names that WWE could bank in on.
#6 Honorable Mention: Chris Jericho
Seeing Chris Jericho back in the WWE squared circle would be a great moment. He has plenty of experience in Ladder matches and same applies for the Intercontinental title as well.
#5 Curtis Axel
This might sound like an idiotic idea but it at least it wouldn’t look random like other choices. From the looks of it R-Truth is a potential contender to be in the ladder match but Axel would be a better choice by miles. After what happened at Royal Rumble, Axel is having a proper gimmick.
He goes on ranting about how he was not eliminated from the Rumble and even has a clock that shows how long he’s been in the match. It might not be a main event level gimmick but it is entertaining to say the least.
Truth on the other hand has no momentum whatsoever at this point of time. If WWE decides to go with it, the Axel would benefit big time in the post – WrestleMania period.
#4 Luke Harper
The WWE Universe had high hopes for Luke Harper when the creative team broke up the Wyatt Family. With a wealth of experience in the Indy circuit and solid wrestling skills, Harper was destined to go places and winning the Intercontinental championship proved to be the first step.
However, afterwards, his stock in the company started to fall and Harper was relegated into random bookings. He deserves something better at WrestleMania and giving him a place in the ladder match would be apt.
The brawling skills of Harper will add some depth into the usually high spot dependent match. And at the same time, since he was a recent IC champion, it would help the story telling of the match as well.
#3 Dolph Ziggler
The last time Dolph Ziggler, Intercontinental championship and Ladder were used in the same sentence was for the TLC pay-per-view. It turned out to be a memorable outing for the fans and having Ziggler in the mix again will make things exciting.
Barrett won the IC championship from Ziggler a couple of months back and the Showoff is yet to get a proper rematch. The multi-superstar ladder match is not going to get the job done but having something is better than having nothing isn’t it?
Ziggler, if given a chance has the potential to steal the limelight and on the bigger picture, he deserves to get a win at WrestleMania as well.
#2 Dean Ambrose
If WWE hadn’t come up with the idea of a ladder match, we were destined to see a one on one bout between Ambrose and Barrett for the Intercontinental title. And this makes Ambrose an automatic choice to be in the ladder match.
Ambrose has a lot of experience in the ladder matches and he would have no trouble fitting into the setting. At the same time, since he is already in an angle with Barrett, there is no narrative block for Ambrose’s inclusion as well.
The unpredictability of Ambrose will be welcomed with warm hands by the fans but WWE should avoid letting Ambrose overshadowed by others.
#1 Daniel Bryan
From having a no.1 contendership match for the WWE Championship to challenging for the Intercontinental championship, it will be a big step down for Bryan. But since the chances of him being pushed into the WrestleMania main event are next to none, Bryan might have to settle for this match.
On the positive note, it is sure to raise the bar of the Intercontinental championship. Bryan is still a big draw and if he is one of the challengers, then the fans will treat the ladder match as a big deal even without WWE hyping it.
Bryan winning the gold with be a crowd pleasing moment and will set them up for the Reigns vs. Lesnar match. The concern however would be about Bryan’s health. Ladder matches involves a lot of risk and since Bryan is in a precarious situation, it would be an awkward outing for him.
