As one champion falls, will a new world champion be crowned in WWE?

WWE's landscape may have just changed with reports that current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan underwent neck surgery this week that will keep him out of action for at least two months.

With the company's next PPV, Payback, only a little more than two weeks away from the writing of this article, that puts WWE in a major bind as they try to bridge the gap between now and their second-biggest PPV of the year, SummerSlam 2014. Bryan, who has been riding an incredible wave of momentum since last spring, has catapulted into the main event scene as the company's world champion and is a major fan favorite in arenas around the country. The sight of fans pointing their fingers to the sky in unison while chants of "Yes!" echo through WWE shows whenever Bryan is around have become a staple for the company as of late. And his rise to the main event of Wrestlemania 30 has become the stuff of legend and the feel-good story of the year in wrestling. All this makes his injury and surgery all the more complicated in terms of the bigger picture.

While WWE has, in the past, made exceptions in terms of keeping championships around top-ranking superstars who were injured (e.g. Trish Stratus' retention of the Women's Championship in 2005 and Dolph Ziggler's world title injury hiatus in 2013), the WWE world title is the biggest, most important title in the company, and it's too important to leave off-camera for such a long time. A few weeks is one thing. But months? That's quite a while to last without the crest of the organization.

That leaves the WWE with an unpopular but necessary decision to make: Do they strip Daniel Bryan of the title as he recovers from surgery? And if so, who would they make the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion?

There's no doubt that such a question would spike a lot of debate amongst wrestling die-hards. After all, there are so many stars with such strong supporting fan bases. Regardless, there are not just one but several stars whether they're established brand names or up-and-comers with a world of potential, who may be worthy of evolving into the next champion.

Let's take a look at some of those key players:

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Bray Wyatt

"Enigmatic." "Sinister." "Charismatic." "Creepy." "Larger than Life."

Those words sum up the leader of the Wyatt Family to a tee. Bray has gained a massive amount of momentum since his debut at last year's Summerslam, culminating thus far with a big win over the company's biggest star, John Cena, at Extreme Rules weeks ago. He's been the most fascinating new villain to have come around in years with a mesmerizing delivery to his promos and a hard-hitting style on the mat to balance it out. With respect to Brock Lesnar, Bray Wyatt may be the "Next Big Thing."

Roman Reigns

Big, strong and with the look that WWE likes and the influential family connections (Reigns' cousin is none other than mega-star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), Reigns has been tapped to be one of WWE's stars of the future, some even tabbing him as the next Batista. Reigns looks poised to be The Shield's breakout star, and that may mean there's gold in his immediate future. With Bryan out for an extended period of time, look for Reigns to start standing out from the pack. Reigns has been called by many as the future, but if Reigns capitalizes on opportunity and momentum in the coming months, the future may be now.

Antonio Cesaro

This Swiss star has a lot in his favor. One, he's a very entertaining wrestler in the ring. Two, he's been getting hotter by the week, even before Wrestlemania. And three ... he's a Paul Heyman Guy. Heyman's charismatic presence gives Cesaro an edge that he's previously lacked, allowing one of the most talented talkers in wrestling history to be his mouthpiece. And athletic prowess plus a savvy hype man can equal big things. Just ask Brock Lesnar how well that formula worked out for him in the beginning. With Cesaro having more momentum at this point of his career more than at any other time, maybe that formula can unlock Cesaro's first-ever world title reign.

CM Punk

Just kidding! Okay, so, not very likely considering Punk's murky future in wrestling, but you can't fault wishful thinking, right?

Batista

Yeah, this writer cringes at the thought, but with six world titles and a budding movie career under his belt (he's due to star as Drax the Destroyer in Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy" this summer), Batista is one of those "safe" bets to put the biggest strap in the company around. He's gotten plenty of heat from the crowds ever since his rather unpopular return and booking in January, and if nothing else, he would definitely get a reaction from the crowd, the same of which can be said of this next guy...

John Cena

If you're punching your computer screen at the thought of a 15th world title reign for the highly decorated, and highly-polarizing, longtime "Face of the WWE," then take solace in the fact that you're not alone. There's no middle ground with Cena; you either love him or hate him. You either worship the ground he walks on, or you salt it. But there's no denying his success. For the last nine years, Cena has been the torchbearer for the WWE. He's a proven good, and he can pick up the ball and run with it at any given time. Plus, if Cena does win, it sets up a potential rematch between Bryan and Cena from last year's Summerslam classic WWE title bout between them once Bryan returns. Will we hear Cena hold the most prestigious title above his head for the 15th time in his illustrious career?

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