Keeping the Universal Championship Away From Braun Strowman Does Not Seem So Bad After All

Word on the street is Braun Strowman has some HEAT! Rumors circulated around stating that the reason the WWE officials decided to go with Brock Lesnar over Strowman was because Strowman has rubbed some people the wrong way because he leaves shows early and - insert other reason-   Whether or not there is heat, keeping the title off Strowman may not be a bad idea. How long can he really sustain a run as the Universal Champion?

In wrestling, many times you have to strike the iron while it’s hot. For Strowman, that time may have been during the Spring or Summer. He won the Greatest Royal Rumble followed by the Money in the Bank. But for the Raw brand, the focus was getting the title to Roman Reigns who had been chasing since February. After Reigns won the title from Lesnar, it may have not been a bad idea to have Strowman cash in but then again, that would have defeated the purpose of having Reigns chase. Unfortunately Reigns title run was watered down due to Baron Corbin restricting his title defense to only WWE Crown Jewel. Unfortunately for Reigns, he would have to relinquish the title due to sickness. Instead of going with Strowman now, WWE decided to go with Lesnar. Again, it does not seem like a bad idea now. 

I’ve been one who have been very vocal about the WWE Universal Championship not being on Raw every week. Nothing has changed I still feel that way, however I do think there is an opportunity for someone else to win the title and that would be a bigger impact. 

Strowman could win the title, but how good would his title reign really be? The Big Show is a 4-time world champion and he has been vocal saying that big guys like him and Strowman do not make great champions because everyone can’t work with them. The more I think about it, he’s got a point. With Reigns out, who else would give you a match with Strowman that would be box office? And is he really the guy that children look up to? Or is he just a larger than life figure that they are amazed by? Think about this, children loved NWO Wolfpac Kevin Nash but they had the Sting toys and dolls. They liked face Big Show and Undertaker but they wanted the Stone Cold Steve Austin and Rock merchandise. And if you make him a heel champion, which baby face can dethrone him? Did WWE drop the ball on Strowman, maybe or perhaps like always they are smarter than us and know exactly why they didn’t go with him. 

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Seth Rollins or Drew McIntyre, who deserves the ball next?

I recently discussed why I believe Braun Strowman being kept away from the WWE Universal Championship is not so bad after all. However, if you don’t go with them, then who do you pick? Well I have the perfect heel and the perfect face. Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins are next in-line. 

Let’s start with McIntyre. Once deemed the chosen one, McIntyre entered the WWE in the late 2000s with all of the potential and hype behind him. Unfortunately he was not ready for it and never succeeded past the mid-card. After being pushed to the back and ultimately to the back door, McIntyre hit the independents and rebranded himself. When he returned to WWE, he started in NXT where he would become champion. But he was still too good for the developmental brand. However, this was a perfect way to reintroduce him to the WWE audience. Since he arrived to Raw he has been bigger, meaner, and better than ever. He would win the Raw tag team titles with Dolph Ziggler, but after losing those titles, McIntyre looks primed and ready for a WWE Universal title run. While I’m not mad that Lesnar is once again a part time champion, McIntyre is the guy I would much rather see hold the title. 

Then there is Seth Rollins. You will find many fans call him the best in the world. Rollins is currently the Intercontinental champion and while he has not defended the title as much as he would like, he has done the title great justice by being one of the best workers in the company. Rollins had one of the best first-time WWE title reigns in the history of the business. Unfortunately his reign ended due to injury. When he returned, he did not seem to get his mojo back right away. However after WrestleMania 34, Rollins has looked better than he did in 2015. Can you imagine him dropping the Intercontinental title and dethroning Lesnar at WrestleMania 34?  After all? He has been taking jabs at him since he first won the Intercontinental title. He was also the one take the WWE Championship from Lesnar when he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract during the main event of WrestleMania 31 to make it a triple threat match and pinning Reigns. Will we see Rollins regain the championship in 2019? It’s hard not to With the roll he’s been on. 

The Raw brand is in need of something fresh. They also need for Corbin NOT to restrict title defense. There are too many stars on there who are more than capable of putting on good matches. Hit the reset button by putting the title on McIntyre or Rollins and let’s get the red brand back to where it used to be. 

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