WWE SummerSlam: WWE Universal Championship - Finn Balor VS Seth Rollins

Jack-Hammer

YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
It was announced on Raw tonight that WWE is creating a new World Championship exclusively for Raw: the WWE Universal Championship. The first champion will be crowned at SummerSlam with Seth Rollins being added automatically to the match; after winning a fatal fourway match earlier in the night and by defeating Roman Reigns in the main event, who also won a fatal fourway of his own, NXT call up Finn Balor squares off against Rollins at SummerSlam for a potential show stealer.

Instinctively, my gut tells me that Rollins scores the win but, then again, I didn't really expect Finn Balor to be in this spot. I honestly expected WWE to go the route of having Reigns be the second participant only to lose to Rollins at SummerSlam. Balor winning the title would definitely feel like a moment happening in a "new era" as Rollins has been a major player in WWE for the better part of 3 years. At any rate, this is a definite marquee match that could wind up stealing the show at SummerSlam.
 
As I said in the LD, RAW has Reigns, Rollins and a part-timer in Brock Lesnar as their legit Main Event talents. Thus, they absolutely have to establish at least 3 other guys in quick time and make them seem like legit threats to the aforementioned trio, and tonight, with a huge debut push for Finn Balor, they definitely signalled their intentions to do just that.


Also, tonight was mainly wrestling based, so there isn't a very clear indications as to how the Authority figures will treat Balor going forward, thus, I'll wait and see how things play out come next week before making a prediction of who wins.


It will also be interesting to see which direction Roman Reigns goes after tonight. His post-match interview putting over Balor and signalling his intention to get back in the title hunt was on the babyface side, however, I do hope it was a smokescreen, and we get a new Roman Reigns soon enough, preferably as a Top Heel.
 
As I said in the LD, RAW has Reigns, Rollins and a part-timer in Brock Lesnar as their legit Main Event talents. Thus, they absolutely have to establish at least 3 other guys in quick time and make them seem like legit threats to the aforementioned trio, and tonight, with a huge debut push for Finn Balor, they definitely signalled their intentions to do just that.

Chris Jericho, The Big Show, and Sheamus are main event talents. Just because WWE has an intense hatred of veteran talents the last few years, doesn't change that. Two weeks of good booking and any of those guys are instantly at the top of the card again. Rusev and Cesaro could also conceivably be moved into the main event scene very easily.

RAW is in much better shape than SmackDown, who have Dean Ambrose, John Cena, Randy Orton (who's injured so much he's barely worth more than Lesnar), and then IF they pushed them, they could potentially remake main event Superstars out of The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, and Kane.
 
Chris Jericho, The Big Show, and Sheamus are main event talents. Just because WWE has an intense hatred of veteran talents the last few years, doesn't change that. Two weeks of good booking and any of those guys are instantly at the top of the card again. Rusev and Cesaro could also conceivably be moved into the main event scene very easily.

RAW is in much better shape than SmackDown, who have Dean Ambrose, John Cena, Randy Orton (who's injured so much he's barely worth more than Lesnar), and then IF they pushed them, they could potentially remake main event Superstars out of The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, and Kane.

All 3 of those are past their sell-by date and the majority of fans have no interest in seeing them fighting for the top titles any longer. Their job is to put over and "shine up" guys like Finn Balor who are the ones that will be tasked with fighting for the top belt in the near future.
Rusev and Cesaro are definitely two options who might well be elevated, alongwith KO and Sami Zayn. However, we will all have to wait and see how WWE views them going forward.


As for SmackDown, Ambrose is current WWE Champion, and the other 3 Top Guys, namely, John Cena, AJ Styles and Randy Orton are all established and fresh feuds for Dean Ambrose. Thus, SmackDown seems pretty much covered in the Main Event scene post-SummerSlam at this point. Ntm, there is also Bray Wyatt waiting in the wings for a possible push as well.
Ziggler and the Miz could also be two guys who might get chances again to make the jump as well.




I know you have a liking for the experienced guys, but you have to understand that the majority of fans are jaded with those guys, and would rather not see them in the Main Event spots at this time, whatwith WWE branding it a "New Era" for the company.
 
All 3 of those are past their sell-by date and the majority of fans have no interest in seeing them fighting for the top titles any longer. Their job is to put over and "shine up" guys like Finn Balor who are the ones that will be tasked with fighting for the top belt in the near future.
Rusev and Cesaro are definitely two options who might well be elevated, alongwith KO and Sami Zayn. However, we will all have to wait and see how WWE views them going forward.


As for SmackDown, Ambrose is current WWE Champion, and the other 3 Top Guys, namely, John Cena, AJ Styles and Randy Orton are all established and fresh feuds for Dean Ambrose. Thus, SmackDown seems pretty much covered in the Main Event scene post-SummerSlam at this point. Ntm, there is also Bray Wyatt waiting in the wings for a possible push as well.
Ziggler and the Miz could also be two guys who might get chances again to make the jump as well.




I know you have a liking for the experienced guys, but you have to understand that the majority of fans are jaded with those guys, and would rather not see them in the Main Event spots at this time, whatwith WWE branding it a "New Era" for the company.

Jericho is still outwrestling 99% of the roster on a nightly basis. If casuals aren't willing to accept him as a main event talent, I really pity them. I'd rather watch him than just about anyone else. I'd happily have Jericho on SmackDown and give up some of these no-name guys like Mojo Rawley and Baron Corbin.
 
This is so awesome. Legitimately awesome. I mean, first of all, just this match. Forget all the context (other than that it's for a world title, I suppose) and just think about Finn Balor vs Seth Rollins. Two NXT legends, two of the best wrestlers in the world right now, two guys who are white hot, two guys who will work perfectly in their face/heel roles for this match, the stage of SummerSlam - I mean, seriously, how perfect is it? This is the kind of stuff from which five star matches are born.

But the context surrounding it makes it somehow even sweet. In the era of Roman Reigns we've been subjected to the weight of his sheer inevitability - from the moment he won the Royal Rumble in 2015, it felt like we were only a few minutes away from suffocating under the weight of the Roman Empire. And indeed, probably the best moments in that time have come from the WWE actually listening and doing the opposite of that. Crowning Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 31 instead of Roman was amazing. I mean, honestly, even Sheamus stealing the title from Roman after his first win was amazing. But the inevitable was inevitable and Roman won and it was almost as bad as I thought it would be. His crowning at Wrestlemania 32 was awful; his title reign was only propped up by feuding with the best wrestler in the world - and then he blew it and got suspended. And each loss by Roman has felt more and more like we're finally out from underneath the inevitable Roman Reigns. Rollins winning was one thing - he was the only guy in the company who came close to Roman's stature at that point. Then Ambrose won and it felt like we at least had had a small reversal in course. But putting Finn over Roman is a screaming signal that maybe, just maybe, this is over. Instead of Roman challenging for the title, he put over a brand new NXT guy with all the hype in the world, 100% clean.

This match is amazing not just because it's a matchup between two of the best, hottest guys in the world right now - it's also amazing because it represents the first time since before Survivor Series 2015 that we're not telling the story of Roman Reigns that nobody wanted to hear. We're telling a different story now, and that's exciting and risky and the shot in the arm the WWE has needed creatively all year.
 
If you were ever going to do a double turn, this is probably the time to do it. Fans have been dying to cheer Rollins for months now. He's right on that line of tweener.

Meanwhile, you have Finn who is red hot coming up from NXT, but is a MUCH better heel than he is a face. I think he even showed glimpses of it tonight in his pre-match segment with Roman.

The Club run in, steals a victory for Finn. Seth becomes plucky underdog, Finn becomes top shit heel. This transitions nicely into a Roman Reigns redemption storyline where he has to beat heel Finn to get the title back and CONTINUE THE ROMAN EMPIRE - BELIEVE THAT
 
Yesterday I posted that I was unsure as to who would be facing Dean Ambrose for the WHC as I had been expecting Rollins and Reigns to continue their feud for a #1 contendership. Now well, this has obviously been thrown out the window by introducing the "Universal" championship... Yeah ok, I guess it had been coming, though I'm still not a fan of having 2 top tier champions, despite the brand split. But I digress...

It still does surprise me that they would push Finn Balor into that spot this quickly. Rollins sure, he has been a main roster mainstay & main event player for a while now, and is very over... Balor, while beloved in NXT, might not evoke that same reception yet for the more casual fans; so Rollins vs Balor might not have that marquee power yet. It will, however, be a phenomenal match and probably the show stealer in any case. I don't see any chance for Ambrose vs anyone (be it Cena/Styles/Orton/Wyatt/whoever) matching that.

It's a bold choice by WWE for their second biggest show of the year, and arguably their (new) main title... I'm definitely excited to see the match, but would expect Rollins to win it. Unless they go for a double turn, in which case Balor should win (perhaps by intervention from the Club), aligning Balor with Gallows/Anderson... and perhaps setting up an eventual showdown between Club-Balor and AJ Styles (who might return to Raw as the "slighted" former leader who now got replaced by the "usurper" Balor).

In any case, intriguing match.
 
Chris Jericho, The Big Show, and Sheamus are main event talents. Just because WWE has an intense hatred of veteran talents the last few years, doesn't change that. Two weeks of good booking and any of those guys are instantly at the top of the card again.

Jericho can be a main eventer for a PPV or 2, sure. Of the three you've mentioned, he's the only one with any sort of heat. Sheamus has been a dead duck since WM28, failing to come even close to his previous popularity levels. Look at his title run last year. Nobody cared.

Big Show is just done. I don't even mean that in an insulting way, I just think that he's been overexposed to the point that the only way for him to drum any real interest in the product is to book him in attraction type matches. Big Show vs. Shaq at Wrestlemania? Lots of press, lots of buzz. Big Show vs. Rollins at Summerslam? Nobody cares. Just look at the last few times he's had big PPV matches. The match with Reigns was awesome but other than that, it's all snoozers.

Rusev and Cesaro could also conceivably be moved into the main event scene very easily.

I agree but I gotta say, I'm shocked to see you say this. Here's a direct quote from you:

Rusev is still awful in the ring and will be jobbing on Superstars within a year

Link for source. That was almost 2 years ago. Do you not see the irony here? He ran through all of the veterans that you love so dearly (and who most people don't care about any more) and you raged all over the boards about it. Now, you think that he can be moved to the main event scene easily. You starting to understand how booking works now? All of those wins gave him credibility.

RAW is in much better shape than SmackDown, who have Dean Ambrose, John Cena, Randy Orton (who's injured so much he's barely worth more than Lesnar), and then IF they pushed them, they could potentially remake main event Superstars out of The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, and Kane.

They also have Wyatt and Styles who, despite your personal feelings, are more popular than any of those guys. Styles is widely considered the best wrestler in the world right now. Wyatt has suffered multiple setbacks but still remains popular.

The Miz is perfect where he's at. He doesn't have enough heat to justify moving him up the card and they've booked him extremely well since WM.

We've gone back and forth on Ziggler forever but since I'm trying to keep this civil for once, I'll just say he stinks and leave it at that.

Del Rio, when motivated, is excellent. I think that if they turned him face and built him up to be the guy to take the title off of Miz, he could improve his stock immensely and move back up the card. I don't see it happening though.

Kane: see Big Show.

-------------------------------------------

As for the topic at hand, I was very happy with the show tonight and Balor getting the clean win over Reigns was definitely the icing on the cake. I definitely think that whatever Smackdown comes up with as their main event at Summerslam, likely Ambrose/Cena or Ambrose/Styles, will definitely end up being the more marquee matchup. Hell, Orton/Lesnar may even end up closing the show. But this match is probably going to steal the show.
 
While looks can be deceiving and it has been widely reported that Vince wants to make Rollins the greatest heel of his generation, I suspect we're about to embark on Balor's rocket push. He's got the look, the skills, he's got the crowd reaction and the all round 'it' factor. Some will say his promos leave a lot to be desired as a babyface, but at the end of the day when you look like that and can pull "The Demon" out for the big matches, I don't think a whole lot of talking is needed.

With Reigns now apparently out of the 'top of the pile' position and Raw in need of some strong, fresh babyface singles stars, I think we're looking at Finn's ascent to the top of the card. He's got a strong heel to play off of in Rollins and if nothing else, their matches are going to be stellar. Them going back and forth through the autumn and into the winter could be a lot of fun and with the two being considered the future of the company, I expect to see this pairing a whole lot more in the coming months and years ahead.
 
Definitely gives buzz to Summerslam as a Rollins vs. Reigns match has been done a bit much to headline the big Summer PPV. Now with Rollins vs. Balor, Lesnar vs. Orton, and most likely Charlotte vs. Banks. You have a nice developing card. I would like to see these matches as well...

Dean Ambrose vs. John Cena (WWE Title)
Rusev vs. Cesaro (US Title)
Reigns vs. Owens
New Day vs. The Club (Tag Titles)
Miz vs. AJ Styles vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Apollo Crews (I-C Title)
Natalyia vs. Becky Lynch (New Diva's Title)

Pre-Show
American Alpha vs. Breezango vs. Vaudevillians vs. Uso's (Vacant Smackdown Tag Titles)
 
Smart for WWE to establish Finn this quickly, and the best way for them to do that is to have him in your main event at Summerslam. Reigns/Rollins, while perhaps a bit more unpredictable, doesn't really do shit for anybody. Despite losing to Finn, Reigns is still going to be a cornerstone of Raw and Seth is always going to be in the title picture. Putting a new face in Balor in the spotlight gives Raw a much needed boost right off the bat.

There's a lot of ways they can go here. I tiny part of me thinks that if Gallows/Anderson take the straps from New Day (which 99% chance they will), then there's a small chance they help Balor win the Universal title. I wouldn't complain. Having The Club as the focal point of Raw, with Seth, Roman, New Day, and Enzo/Cass chasing them would be a fun way to kick this new era off. What I think happens is that Seth wins and Finn keeps establishing himself as a main event babyface.
 
this is just a way for WWE to make raw look unpredictable. Everybody last night that watch the main event thought that Roman reigns would beat Finn balor and go on to summerslam, so they pull the swerve and give balor the win. Great way to establish the guy but the problem now is that he's in the main event of summerslam and i'm not really excited about this. The reason being that while it will be a really good match on paper, it's still a really predictable match because their no way that they won't book seth rollins as the first universal champion. The only way i could see them giving the belt to finn is if they do the double turn and have the club interfere on behalf of finn and even then, it would make finn look weak and that'S the last thing that you want when you are trying to make a new star.
 
A fresh Summerslam main event to kick off the "for realz" New Era. I'm looking forward to this match more than Lesnar/Orton.

Rollins winning is the safe bet, but who knows? Maybe they actually pull the trigger on Finn, though I have a tough time seeing that happen without involvement from Anderson and Gallows to establish the Balor Club. I'm also wondering if the Demon shows up. Summerslam is a great show to debut it on the main roster, but only if he wins under the paint to establish it as a cool power-up.

If nothing else, this is one of Seth's few opportunities to work as a true heel against a legitimately beloved babyface.
 
Last night's RAW really let me in shock. The moments of Balor and Sasha winning were PPV worthy moments.

I really expected Reigns to snap out and kill Balor after the match, but it looks like the WWE will keep Reigns as a face for a little while longer, only to "punish" him more.

On to the match, this is history in the making really. The frist (?) I think NXT Champion vs the longest reiging NXT Champion battling for a World title in the flagship programm of WWE at the 2nd biggest PPV of the year. Really huge boost for NXT and huge boost for Balor.

Really, Owens and Balor's debuts on the main roster must be two of the most strong and interesting debuts of all time.

Balor and Rollins will provide some interesting TV going forward. Will The Club be involved? Will we see a double turn? How will The Authority treat Balor? Will Reigns get involved? I'm intrigued to watch next week's show after last night.
 
Jericho is still outwrestling 99% of the roster on a nightly basis. If casuals aren't willing to accept him as a main event talent, I really pity them. I'd rather watch him than just about anyone else. I'd happily have Jericho on SmackDown and give up some of these no-name guys like Mojo Rawley and Baron Corbin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spwqEnOdSRM

Please stop. We get it by now. No one wants Jericho in the main event scene. He is the past. This is the new era and the future.
 
I'm delighted for Finn, first and foremost. To have defeated Roman Reigns clean in 2016 is incredible. And he's gonna tear the house down with Rollins.

Who'll win? Well, that depends on Balor. There's no doubt that Vince sees money in the Demon. Think of all the merch they could put him on! So they'll wanna keep the demon as strong as possible for as long as possible, like they did in NXT. If Finn shows up to Summerslam as the Demon, then I think he's won. If he's regular Finn Balor, then it'll probably be Rollins' match.
 
They've given Balor a strong start but I don't see them taking a chance and having him win this match. I just can't see anything but a safe option, and while i'd be intrigued to see it I don't think it would make any long term sense to put the belt on him immediately.
 
They need Finn to get beat down week after week until Summerslam. Make Rollins look unstoppable. Then at Summerslam, Finn brings out The Demon, and win or lose, makes Rollins work for it. I'd like to see them put Balor over on RAW. Really show they are invested in the future and not just guys like Cena, Orton etc.

I think a Balor/Rollins feud over a couple of months could be HUGE. Awesome matches would come of it.
 
Definitely a suprising ending to a great ep of new era Raw. I hope Demon Balor comes out at Summerslam and surprises us yet again by becoming the first ever Universal Champion.

This almost trumps Lesnar v Orton for me too, but not quite - it could well do depending on the booking until then however.
 
I think Finn Balor winning a shot for the WWE Universal Title at "Summerslam", I believe, was a mistake.

Hear me out. Firstly, it isn't anything personal against Finn Balor. I just am not a believer of anyone getting a shot at a World or WWE Title until they are on the roster and in regular programs for at least 12-18 months. I think it takes this time for the new superstar to establish himself, win over the audience, and show, through his matches etc, that they are ready for the main title.

This is where the Intercontinental Title was really good. It was a way of making a guy champion, without main eventing them too early, and we could see if they have the makings of a champion. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, HHH, HBK, Bret Hart and many others won the IC belt, were great in the role, and then became great World or WWE Champions, and HoFers.

This is where winning the MITB briefcase is good too, because it screams "This guy will be a future champion, but there is no hurry for him to do it just yet". It gives champion cred, without having to put the belt on him too soon.

Remember Wade Barrett? Here was a guy with all the tools to be a main eventer and champion. But he was thrown into feuds with the two biggest names in the company, John Cena and Randy Orton, for the title, and then there was nowhere to go except down. Also, Alberto Del Rio got his title too soon, and was never accepted and is now a mid-carder.

It is the same thing with A.J. Styles. He was thrown into back to back feuds with Roman Reigns and John Cena, less than six months on the main roster. It will be interesting to see if A.J. stays as a main guy, or drops to the mid-card.

Secondly, Seth Rollins v Roman Reigns at "Summerslam" makes more sense, given their history, the fact that they are feuding, and Seth has been running down Roman, and calling him a "bad role model" and "undeserving of being champion". It has more built-in "saleability" (like it or not), then Finn v Rollins, who have no history.

It is Finn's first night on the main roster. Throw him in a few feuds first, have him establish himself on the big stage, and then have him go for the Universal Title. He has not even performed at a PPV yet. Now, I know he probably won't win, but once he is no longer chasing the Universal Title, then what? He will fall down the roster, and it might take a while to climb back up again.

It seems that Finn was picked because it was a popular decision,(kowtowing to popularity is not always "best for business"),Roman's indiscretion, and shock value. Whether it will sell like Seth v Roman II will, time will tell, but I don't think it has the same "drawing power".

A.J. Styles and Finn Balor are young guys. They have plenty of time to main-event (and they think they will, in time). Why burn them out and have them float around the mid-card for the next ten-twelve years? Build them up over a year or two, then pull the trigger, when they are ready).

Someone like Kevin Owens is the perfect guy to put into the main event, since he has been on the main roster for at least a year, and has all the tools.

Finn will get there, but it shouldn't be yet.
 
Spectacular choice from the WWE. I bet people were already shitting themselves at the thought of Roman Reigns waltzing back into the WWE and taking up his position at the top of the card? People were already grabbing their laptops and getting ready to hurl abuse at the WWE for propelling "their guy" to the main event of SummerSlam...Then BOOM! Balor takes the surprise win and everyone can't heap enough praise on the WWE and the courage to do something a little bit different from the norm.

And I am no exception to that. I think the decision to have Balor as the guy to face off against Rollins is a courageous and inspired choice that is going to pay dividends to the WWE. Like I said, the fans wanted, so badly, to see something big shake loose form the Brand Extension and Finn Balor is going to be that big thing. People have outlined it in this thread before but Finn has everything that the WWE are looking for. And with The Club on Monday nights, we might actually see the Balor Club amalgamate into The Club. I'd like to see that but I wouldn't be totally disappointed if I don't.

Still, great decision from the WWE and something that, genuinely, gets me excited for SummerSlam this year. It could be the biggest moment in Balor's career but I still tend to think that Seth Rollins is going to be the inaugural WWE Universal Champion; it's something else to put on his resume, if nothing else.
 
Remember Wade Barrett? Here was a guy with all the tools to be a main eventer and champion. But he was thrown into feuds with the two biggest names in the company, John Cena and Randy Orton, for the title, and then there was nowhere to go except down. Also, Alberto Del Rio got his title too soon, and was never accepted and is now a mid-carder.

Both Barrett and Del Rio were put in a circumstance of bad booking and timing. Barrett's heat came from his Nexus stable but when Cena went over the Stable at Summer Slam all that heat built around Nexus and Barrett just died. Del Rio was caught at the worst timing possible Edge's sudden retirement changed plans from Del Rio winning at WM27 to Edge winning and retiring as Champion, then Del Rio was scheduled to win the MITB once Punk got super hot due to his Pipe Bomb.

Also the difference with Balor and Barrett and Del Rio is that Balor has been in the WWE and has been in the Company for 2 years. Sure it was in NXT but seeing as the WWE Network gives you access to NXT there's a lot more people that know Finn Balor now than Barrett and Del Rio when they first arrived in the main roster and Balor also built up a reputation already.

Secondly, Seth Rollins v Roman Reigns at "Summerslam" makes more sense, given their history, the fact that they are feuding, and Seth has been running down Roman, and calling him a "bad role model" and "undeserving of being champion". It has more built-in "saleability" (like it or not), then Finn v Rollins, who have no history.

The smart money is save this for Wrestlemania. Turn Reigns heels, keep Rollins a tweener then turn face by the end of the year to build up the Rumble and Mania.

Then again it could still happen. Maybe he will be inserted at Summer Slam in a triple threat and turn heel there and win the title. Who knows.
 
Hear me out. Firstly, it isn't anything personal against Finn Balor. I just am not a believer of anyone getting a shot at a World or WWE Title until they are on the roster and in regular programs for at least 12-18 months. I think it takes this time for the new superstar to establish himself, win over the audience, and show, through his matches etc, that they are ready for the main title.

Technically he's already been on WWE tv for 2 years or so, where he was the longest reigning NXT Champion ever. For the majority of the audience, it's not like he's coming out of nowhere.
 
i know that finn winning the no.1 contenders match was just because vince wanted to punished roman reigns for what he did, but in my opinion, it'S a mistake to push him to the moon like that so suddenly. Yes, Finn have been on wwe tv for 2 years like somebody wrote earlier, but nxt is nxt and while more people are starting to watch nxt on the network and the brand is becoming more popular it's still doesn't really count as WWE tv experience in my opinion and if you look at wwe history, mostly everybody that was called up and was push to the moon early, had problem staying on top and staying relavent. Best exemple i can give is kevin owens and paige. 2 nxt performers that we're push to the main level right from the start and are now pretty much stuck on the mid card or even worst barely use anymore and i'm scared that finn will get stuck in the middle after this initial push because while he is a really good wrestler, the guy doesn'T have the charisma to hang with guys on a main level and while the fan will cheer him because of his wrestling, at some point he'S going to get a crowd that really doesn'T care to much about wrestling and that'S when he'S going to be in trouble.

This match was made mostly because vince was mad at roman for getting suspended and finn is the sacrificial lamb that going to put over rollins at summerslam.
 

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