Seth Rollins: Top 5 moments as a babyface
Seth Rollins has been one of the mainstays of the WWE for almost a decade now. He started off as a member of The Shield faction before going solo and becoming one of the biggest names in the industry.
In his quest to become the top star of the brand, he has had polarizing gimmick changes that he has pulled off with aplomb. Rollins even replaced John Cena as the face of the brand and he was backed by none other than Triple H and the authorities themselves.
But, nothing in WWE is ever permanent, and it all began with his mentor, Triple H, turning his back on Seth Rollins to hand the Universal Championship to Kevin Owens. And then, almost three years later, ironically, it is once again Kevin Owens who had been a catalyst for the change in character for Seth Rollins. In an episode of RAW, Rollins completely turned heel once again as he allied himself with Akam and Rezar of the AOP to assault Owens. Rollins would then cut one of his best promos in months, blurring the lines between reality and entertainment, blaming the fans for what he had just done.
Since turning babyface in late 2016, Rollins has accomplished a lot in his career. He has won singles and tag team titles during his time as a bad guy. 'The Architect' did some of his best in-ring work as the Intercontinental Champion in 2018, putting on great matches every single week. He was even reunited with Shield buddies Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose three times. Rollins won the 2019 Men's Royal Rumble Match and has main-events with more pay-per-views than anyone in the company in 2019.
Although there has been a lot of criticism thrown at 'The Architect,' Rollins did have a solid run as a good guy. As Rollins turns a new leaf in the evolution of his character, here are his top 5 babyface moments.
#5 Slaying 'The King of Kings' to become 'The Kingslayer'
As mentioned above, Seth Rollins' babyface turn started on the night Triple H turned on him. Following Finn Balor relinquishing the Universal Championship due to an injury, a Fatal 4-Way Elimination Match was set between Rollins, Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens and Big Cass to be crowned the next champion. The final minutes of the match saw 'The Game' storm out of the crowd and Pedigree Reigns, allowing Rollins to cover 'The Big Dog' and eliminate him from the match. With Rollins and Owens the last two stars remaining, it seemed like Triple H would Pedigree Owens to give Rollins the win, but in a shocking turn of events, 'The King of Kings' would turn on his protege. This allowed Owens to capitalize and pin Rollins to become the new Universal Champion.
This would start a story arc where Rollins would try to redeem himself and become a crowd favorite. Rollins would unsuccessfully challenge Owens for the Universal Championship on numerous occasions. Triple H cost Rollins a spot in Royal Rumble. Rollins would appear at NXT Takeover: San Antonio, challenging 'The Game' to face him like a man. Rollins was then attacked by Samoa Joe on the RAW after Royal Rumble 2017, and suffered an injury during the beatdown, putting his status for WrestleMania 33 in jeopardy.
Following weeks of torment, both verbal and physical, at the hands of 'The Game,' Rollins would get his hands on his former mentor at WrestleMania 33 in a non-sanctioned match. 'The Architect' would beat 'The Game' after hitting him with a Pedigree, thus completing his road to redemption. Inspired by Jamie Lannister of Game of Thrones, Rollins would re-christen himself as 'The Kingslayer.'