It was announced on Raw that despite losing the WWE Championship match at Battleground, screw it, Raw needs a world champion, too. However, this wouldn’t just be a world championship…no…it would be a Universal Championship.
Ugh. I’ve been against this whole brand split from the start and I hate the idea of duplicating the titles again, but this is going to take a long while to grow on me (if ever) before I stop thinking of it as something that sounds more like another attempt from TNA to rebrand the Legends/Global/TV/KOTM Championship.
Despite my feelings on the subject, it’s happening, so let’s put that argument aside and look at the match which will decide who will be the first ever man to hold that title: Seth Rollins or Finn Balor?
The Case for Seth Rollins
Typically, it’s good to have a heel champion and a babyface champion on the two different shows, as WWE needs to approximate that the fans are doing exactly what they want them to do by watching both. If you truly want to give the audience a sense of something different, that can go a long way, as the storylines written around heel champions are fundamentally different from the ones with a babyface champion. The longer you have the same type of affiliation with the title, the more these similar storylines blend together and come off repetitive.
Assuming Dean Ambrose holds onto the WWE Championship on SmackDown, Rollins would provide the opposite type of top dog, separating the red and blue brands and giving them a distinguishing factor with their figureheads not being carbon copies of each other.
Also, Seth Rollins is without a doubt one of the most popular stars in the company today, and with his former championship reign, he has the credibility to win the title another time with no questions being asked. For months, he had the company on his shoulders and did a good job with the responsibility, so it’s easy to trust him to do this again.
Isn’t it a bit too early for Balor to be immediately thrust into the top spot on the flagship show, too? He just made his debut this week, so he’ll have a few more episodes of Raw to get accustomed, but would it really be a good idea to trust him with something so important without properly gauging the ratings that occur when he’s on screen?
In an argument of safety versus risk, Rollins is definitely the safe option. However, that might not necessarily be a good thing…
The Case for Finn Balor
The Authority + Seth Rollins act is beyond stale, isn’t it? For even longer than the entirety of his title reign, Rollins was doing that shtick at the forefront of WWE programming, so we’ve all had our fill. With all of the references to Rollins and Stephanie still wanting to work together in some capacity, that’s probably where another title reign would go, meaning it’s just retreading familiar ground. Boring.
If you’re looking for something drastically different, look no further than Finn Balor. He definitely wouldn’t be the corporate stooge character and for big events, he won’t even be his normal self, since he dons the demon persona/gear when necessary just to freshen things up.
Speaking of freshening things up, if the argument is that he’s too new, that could actually be a benefit more than a drawback. One of the most common complaints from wrestling fans is that it’s always the same old stuff on repeat, so it might be fun to see someone skip the step of dipping his toes on the water and instead, jump right into the deep end.
While he would be at a disadvantage when it comes to recognition from the crowd, NXT is such a big entity at this point that it’s unlikely fans aren’t already familiar with that brand’s top star of the year. Even if you are, just sit back and take the ride with some new guy that you can get to learn about, right?
If this is truly a new era in WWE, having a new championship with a fresh face would definitely signify that the changes are real and not just a smokescreen to get more viewers for SmackDown. Plus, in the argument of safety versus risk, sometimes taking those risks is what results in the best outcomes in the long run.
Verdict
My original thought was that Roman Reigns would turn heel while Seth Rollins turned babyface, and in classic double-turn fashion, Reigns would come out with the title and the ability to gloat about it. Now, with these two competitors facing off instead, I’m good for either outcome. I would have to give a slight edge to Balor just for the unpredictability of where WWE goes from there, but if Rollins wins, I won’t be shedding any tears, that’s for sure.
Who would you prefer to see win the championship at SummerSlam? Should it not even be either of these two, and should someone else have been given the belt instead? Tell us your thoughts and predictions in the comments below!