:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/7172231/20130122_light_rr_preshow_c.0.jpg)
United States Championship Match:
Antonio Cesaro (c) vs The Miz
The Miz seeks to win his third United States Championship against the current champion Antonio Cesaro on the WWE Youtube pre-show.
The road to the Royal Rumble
As the United States Champion, Antonio Cesaro has been on a campaign to improve the United States of America. The next stop on this campaign is the dismantling of The Miz, a representation of the fall from greatness that America has taken.
Troubles between these two began on WWE's Main Event, when The Miz didn't take too kindly to Cesaro's comments about the United States. The Miz's impassioned speech set the two on a collision course.
On the Raw 20th Anniversary episode, Cesaro would interrupt MizTV with Ric Flair and become the unceremonious victim of Flair's passing off the figure four leglock to The Miz.
Just a couple of days later on Main Event again, Cesaro would get his revenge, attacking The Miz after The Shield had interrupted his match with Randy Orton.
What's at stake?
Relevancy. That, and the United States Championship. Antonio Cesaro has been shooting up the ranks of WWE and a win here would continue that rise. A loss here would cause a stall in Cesaro's rise to the top.
The Miz is seeking his third reign as the United States Champion and a win against Cesaro would go a long way in showing that he is worthy of the legacy Ric Flair has passed on to him.