If you thought John Cena might've been selling a shoulder injury on Raw Monday vs. Ken Kennedy, you wouldn't really have been wrong. The truth is, Cena tore a right pectoral muscle in executing a simple hip toss. Yes, a rudimentary move, one that Cena has used time and again, is what ultimately has cost him the WWE title after little more than a year. No one can say for sure if Cena would've lost the title to Randy Orton at No Mercy on Sunday in a Last Man Standing match, but the momentum was on Orton's side after Raw.

It's not the first time that someone was injured trying to execute the simplest of moves. Think back to when Triple H tore his left quad in May 2001. He tried to execute a clothesline, IIRC, and his left (pivot) foot gave out on him at the worst possible time.

Back to the present. It sucks to be Orton, too. This was to be the 3rd straight PPV match between him & Cena, with the series tied 1-1. Rubber game of the match, if you will. However, tonight on ECW, Vince McMahon made no indication that Orton would even be in the title match on Sunday, leaving the possibility that suddenly, the "Legend Killer" is on the outside looking in, unless he gets added at the last minute to the Umaga-HHH match. Carlito has a better chance of being in that match than Orton, given the storyline, but there's always the chance it could end up a fatal 4-way. As of now, Carlito has an empty dance card for No Mercy, too, so the answer is right in front of McMahon. Question is, does he realize it? The final answer should be made known by Friday.

McMahon announced tonight that Cena would be out of action anywhere from 6-12 months, although internet reports placed it at 6-8 months. Either way, Cena will be gone until April at the earliest, meaning when he returns, the landscape will have changed. Will he change with it? We'll have to wait & see.

Meanwhile, Two icons of the 80's are about to get together. What I mean by that is that Hulk Hogan has been tapped as host of NBC's revival of "American Gladiators", due to launch at mid-season. I don't profess to know what the ratings have been for VH1's "Hogan Knows Best", which the channel has cross-promoted with sister network CMT for some reason, but I don't really see Hogan fitting into this gig. The original series was syndicated and hired ex-NFLers like Mike Adamle & Todd Christensen as commentators. The challenge for Hogan in this case is to check his ego at the door and put the emphasis on the characters created for the new "Gladiators". However, if recent history is any barometer, given the quick elimination of Ashley Massaro on "Survivor" last week and the cancellation of Trish Stratus' reality series "Armed & Famous" over the winter, expect the new Gladiators to have a short shelf life.

Last thought before I go. It was revealed tonight on ECW that Mike Mizanin is Extreme Expose's manager, which would explain the Svengaliesque control he has, but now he's holding that contract like a sword of Damocles over the head of 20 year old Kelly Kelly to keep her from dating Balls Mahoney. If it sounds familiar, it should, especially if you're a TNA fan. It wasn't that long ago that Robert Roode was trying to run and ruin Eric Young's career, and now he's doing the same thing to Traci Brooks, making him a pariah to even his fellow heels. I realize most of the angle is Dusty Rhodes' doing, but the Svengali part smacks of Dave Lagana copying the TNA storyline(s). As an old teacher of mine said frequently, stupidity runs rampant!