The Awesome One cannot be trusted

The Awesome One cannot be trusted

Playwright Arthur Miller once wrote, “Betrayal is the only truth that sticks.” As The Miz removes yet another name from his Rolodex – this time, Ricardo Rodriguez’s – he may be wise to consider Mr. Miller’s aphorism.

Since joining the WWE ranks, The Awesome One has burned bridges almost as quickly as he’s built them. Such a predicament would spell trouble for most Superstars; these days, though, it’s especially problematic for The Miz, whose career has flourished most when he has affiliated with others.

The Miz’s actions against Rodriguez during Monday’s Raw SuperShow did little, however, to alter the perception that he can’t be trusted. Is it only a matter of time before The Awesome One alienates the entire locker room and ultimately becomes “The Only One”?

Uncharacteristically skittish ever since R-Truth’s water- bottle-smashing return weeks ago, The Miz has been eager to avoid the ire of the ex-teammate he wronged. In the case of this most recent Raw SuperShow, he went even so far as to solicit (unsuccessfully) other Superstars to act as his personal security.

Given the contentious manner in which all of The Miz’s alliances seem to dissolve, it may have come as little surprise that his short-lived but impactful pairing with R-Truth ended on a sour note.

Yet, when taking full inventory of the many Superstars who have been slighted by The Miz in the past, including Alberto Del Rio’s personal ring announcer Monday, one can’t help but wonder if the insular former WWE Champion isn’t on pace to become the most toxic teammate in WWE history.

The Miz has made a habit of hitching his wagons to others, often with impressive results.

He has held tag team championship gold with three different partners (John Morrison and Big Show, who were both regular teammates, as well as John Cena for one night). With Alex Riley by his side, The Miz enjoyed the greatest singles run of his young career, winning the WWE Championship in November 2010. And before ego got in the way, The Miz/R-Truth tandem was on the cusp of becoming one of WWE’s most formidable entities.

embedcolon25052084Despite all the success that he has achieved with running mates, The Miz has been unable to sustain any of these partnerships over the long term. To hear him tell it, each former ally – be it Morrison, Big Show, Riley, one-time NXT protégé Daniel Bryan or the most recent example, R-Truth – was nothing more than an ingrate, a hanger-on interested in riding The Miz’s coattails. (WATCH)

The Miz’s long history of failed partnerships, however, would beg to differ. In hindsight, each alliance looks less like a mutually beneficial endeavor and more like a thinly veiled attempt by The Miz to raise his own stock.

And despite his claims to the contrary, The Miz has not always been the most clutch performer in tag team contests.

Take, for example, Show-Miz, the aptly named union of Big Show and The Miz. The duo sat atop the WWE’s tag team scene for more than two months before losing the championship gold in a bout in which The Awesome One tapped out. Frustrated not only by The Miz’s loss but also fed up with his nonstop chatter, Big Show attempted to shut up The Awesome One once and for all with a well-placed WMD. (WATCH | PHOTOS)

The abrasive Miz took his jawing elsewhere, teaming up briefly with Chris Jericho in another instance of The Awesome One partnering with a more senior talent in order to elevate himself. The tandem challenged for the Tag Team Championships at WWE’s Over the Limit 2010, but once again it was The Miz who dropped the fall.

History also shows that once The Miz determines he has gotten all he can out of a teammate, he has no problem completely washing his hands of his other half.

Here, it’s helpful to revisit The Awesome One’s “Dirt Sheet” team with Morrison. Shortly after the duo’s memorable championship reign came to an end in early 2009, Morrison inadvertently cost The Miz a bout against Kofi Kingston.

The team was subsequently split up by way of that year’s WWE Draft, and in typical fashion, The Miz could think of no better way to repay Morrison for his partnership than with a vicious surprise attack.

WWE.com could go on and on, and detail The Miz’s bizarre logic in blaming A-Ry for his WWE Championship title loss. Or we could point out that The Miz repeatedly tried undermining Bryan during the first season of WWE NXT.

Needless to say, there is no shortage of Superstars who have less-than-fond memories of partnering with The Awesome One.

Perhaps most detrimental to The Miz’s cause is his refusal to accept blame when things go awry.

Even though the WWE Universe well remembers the team-decimating Skull-Crushing Finale that The Awesome One delivered to R-Truth in November, the naturally incredulous Miz continues to decry R-Truth’s recent actions as without grounds.

If The Miz insists on revising history so, it might not be long before The Awesome One finds himself with no one to turn to.

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