5 reasons why Seth Rollins is the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion
AJ Styles battled Seth Rollins for the right to become the new World Heavyweight Championship at Night Of Champions 2023. The Phenomenal One and The Visionary took each other to the limit with a Match of the Year contender, leaving everything in the ring for the new title. Rollins came out on top, defeating Styles with a Stomp.
The Jeddah crowd went wild for The Architect, singing his song as he celebrated his fifth world championship win. The five-time WWE World Champion is now set to return to RAW triumphant, leading the brand from the front. Why did he emerge victorious over The Phenomenal One, though?
Here are five reasons why Seth Rollins is the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion after Night Of Champions
#5. AJ Styles has recently been drafted to WWE SmackDown
#SmackDown gets the next pick in the #WWEDraft:
The O.C. @AJStylesOrg @MiaYim @MachineGunKA @The_BigLG 👏🔥 https://t.co/hwhAl9veAh
After four years on WWE RAW, AJ Styles was drafted to SmackDown in the 2023 Draft together with the rest of the O.C. In the same draft, the World Heavyweight Championship was essentially drafted to RAW since the blue brand picked Roman Reigns. If Styles had won, either he or the title would have had to switch brands, undoing one of those draft picks.
It made more sense for Rollins to win the championship, being that he's on the same brand as it is.
#4. AJ Styles is in his veteran stage, while Seth Rollins is in his prime
At 45 years of age and having won championships all over the world, AJ Styles has settled into the veteran stage of his career. He has become a gatekeeper of sorts, paying forward his long-earned star power by putting over young talent. Over the past few years, he has put over the likes of Omos, Tommaso Ciampa, and Dominik Mysterio.
Seth Rollins, meanwhile, is in the prime of his career, still beating the very best and competing at the top of the card. Since he's almost a decade younger than Styles, it was a better long-term investment for WWE to put the title on him. The Visionary is better equipped to be the fighting World Heavyweight Champion the fans were promised.
#3. Seth Rollins had more momentum than AJ Styles going into WWE Night Of Champions 2023
Will @WWERollins be singing the song of victory at #WWENOC? https://t.co/bC0XW6GU9K
Going into Night of Champions, AJ Styles was coming off a five-month injury layoff and just starting to rebuild his momentum. Conversely, Seth "Freakin" Rollins was on a roll, coming off a United States Championship reign, WrestleMania feud with Logan Paul, and programs with Bobby Lashley and Austin Theory.
While both are bonafide top stars that are always worthy of a world title run due to their storied careers, The Visionary had more steam in his engine at this moment in time. Therefore, it was the right decision to pull the trigger on Rollins, who is currently doing some of the best work of his career in the ring and character-wise.
#2. AJ Styles could be challenging Roman Reigns soon
“It’s definitely gotten to a point where he & I have to get back in the ring.
It’s a long way from 2016. Things have changed. It would be nice to see that match come back around.”
- AJ Styles on Roman Reigns [NY Post] https://t.co/W8VwfDN2FR
In the aftermath of the 2023 WWE Draft, AJ Styles is one of the few true main event stars on SmackDown that can believably challenge Roman Reigns. The Phenomenal One is a member of a diminishing field of top-level challengers left for The Tribal Chief in the company, let alone the blue brand.
It wouldn't have made sense for him to win the title and move away from Reigns' brand when he's one of the few fresh challengers left for the thousand-day ruler. This, among other reasons, is why Seth Rollins is the new World Heavyweight champion!
#1. Seth Rollins defeated Roman Reigns
The Visionary is on a mission heading into #WWENOC
@WWERollins @WWERomanReigns twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/iKWBuukw77
Seth Rollins is the only man to face Roman Reigns in his current historic rule and come away with a win. The duo clashed at WWE Royal Rumble 2022, with The Visionary emerging victorious by disqualification after The Tribal Chief unleashed a vicious assault.
This makes Rollins the only man in the company who has faced his former brother and come out equal or better.
The new championship needed a holder who could give it legitimacy at the Undisputed WWE Universal Title level. Who better than the only blemish on The Head Of The Table's record? This is the number one reason why Seth Rollins is the new World Heavyweight Champion.