#4 Closing holes requires work
More recently, the WWE has generally done a good job of either closing the leaks or getting inaccurate information out there to keep fans guessing. One such instance occurred in the build to Elimination Chamber in 2015, when Sheamus was advertised for events after the pay-per-view as the Intercontinental Champion, even before the participants in the Chamber match for the belt vacated by Daniel Bryan were known.
This led to a widespread belief that Sheamus would be winning the Chamber match and the white belt. Of course, Ryback actually won that match, signalling that fans could no longer feel confident that they already knew major outcomes ahead of the event.
The WWE brass also did a good job of preventing anyone, including other performers, from knowing that Shane McMahon was returning for the build to WrestleMania 32 in 2016. Vince described the effort that required for the Orlando Sentinel:
Shane was in a bus and he was not allowed to come out of the bus until Stephanie's music hit and Stephanie had walked down the ramp. Shane comes out of the bus with security and goes right up to what we call Gorilla position (an area just off stage) and the guys there go, ‘I can't believe it.’ And all of the guys backstage, the vast majority of them, they didn't see Shane when he walked through. They were all shocked and surprised. That's what I try to do: totally surprise our talent. They like to be surprised just like the audience.
With the WWE starting to find ways to keep fans guessing, even a few of these types of occurrences can go a long way. By giving us tangible times where we truly didn’t know what to expect, we can go into shows with that excitement and anticipation that gets lost when every rumour comes true exactly as it had been laid out ahead of time.
