It’s rare that there is a heel versus heel championship match in WWE, which opens up opportunities to explore different crowd dynamics, but that is what is happening tomorrow at WWE Clash at the Castle: Scotland as Damian Priest defends the World Heavyweight Championship against Drew McIntyre.
While there have been baby steps in turning Priest face since WrestleMania XL, they’ve been few and far between. Considering McIntyre is The Scottish Warrior and this event will be held in Glasgow, Scotland, it was obvious he would be playing babyface here, despite how much of a villain he’s been in recent months.
But if you had any doubt whatsoever that that was the case, the WWE Clash at the Castle: Scotland Kickoff event sealed the deal based on the reactions given to the two.
Priest was booed incessantly from the very start, while McIntyre was given a hero’s welcome.
Michael Cole stated, “There’s no doubt about it, as you can hear, that you’re in enemy territory tomorrow night. Drew McIntyre definitely has the home field advantage. How do you combat that in the title match tomorrow night?”
Priest started to respond, only for McIntyre to interrupt and claim that he was saying “I suck and I’m gonna lose” in Spanish. Cole continued, “Seriously, as the champion, how do you put this all out of your head and focus on what you have to do in the ring?”
Damian Priest responded, “This? This is what I’m walking into? It’s a bunch of children. Do I look like I’m getting thrown off my game from a bunch of children? This is not hostile territory. I was raised in hostile territory. This is a bunch of kids booing. This is not gonna throw me off my game. You guys are not gonna help Drew McIntyre.”
Cole followed this up by asking for Priest’s response to McIntyre calling him a transitional champion for cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania XL. He said, “You and I have had a lot of conversations over the months leading up to you winning the title. You had a chip on your shoulder. You were pissed off because many people on social media never believed you were gonna cash in. Never believed that you could win the championship, and then, could carry the title for any length of time. You’ve had it for a number of months now. How does that statement drive you as we head into the match tomorrow night?”
Priest responded, “Drew talks a lot. That’s all he does. That’s all he’s good at anymore. That’s the only thing keeping Drew McIntyre a WWE Superstar. So as far as him calling me a paper champion, look, I’m honored to be the world champion.” In response to the crowd chanting for him to “shut the f*ck up”, he retorted “I won’t. I won’t. I won’t. I won’t. I’m honored to be the world champion. And you know what? If there’s one thing that I’m embarrassed about, it’s the fact that this clown held this title for five minutes.”
McIntyre fired back with “That was a fine speech. I just couldn’t hear half of it because they were telling you to…please be quiet.”
Who are you rooting for at WWE Clash at the Castle? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and be sure to stay tuned tomorrow for live coverage of the event’s results!
