Why Seth Rollins should win the 2018 Royal Rumble match
There are a few things in this world that can evoke an explosive reaction from WWE’s sceptical fanbase, maybe it’s the unexpected return of a legend that sends shockwaves of nostalgia throughout the WWE Universe. Or perhaps it’s a dream match that fans assumed they would never witness, and as the wrestling world observed last Monday night on Raw, it was the anticipated return of the curb stomp.
Those two words might have pulled “The Architect’s” career out of mid-card obscurity and launched him back into the main event scene where he belongs.
Ever since Seth Rollins had unpredictably betrayed his Shield brethren in one of the greatest heel turns of the last decade, he went on to have an excellent feud with Dean Ambrose and finally cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase at Wrestlemania 31. He ‘stole’ the WWE title from Roman Reigns, and had all the heat in the world to be a monster heel in the company.
However, through odd bookings, his WWE Title run was a mixed bag of brilliant feuds and disappointing moments. Real heartbreak struck when Rollins, unfortunately, injured his knee. Thus, Rollins had to vacate his WWE Title and wait a gruelling six months to make his long-awaited return.
Although many had expected WWE to slowly build him back into the main event scene, the company had constantly launched Rollins into the stratosphere by having him beat Roman Reigns clean for the WWE Title on his return, feud with Kevin Owens for the Universal Title, and finally get his revenge against Triple H. However, even though Rollins was at the centre of those narratives, his babyface persona became stale.
WWE has tried to rectify that mistake with the Shield reunion, but it hasn't worked out as they've faced one obstacle after another. From Reigns' illness which prevented an in-ring Shield return, to Ambrose’s untimely injury postponing future plans and a lack of strong factions to face them, Rollins is now left in the mid-card as an underdeveloped babyface who has to babysit Jason Jordon.
WWE is missing an enormous opportunity by wasting a Superstar they had dubbed the “future of the company”, as Rollins is one of the very few stars on their bloated roster that has a rare chance to narrowly fit into the main event of Wrestlemania 34 and challenge Brock Lesnar for the converted Universal Title.
As his rumoured feud with Dean Ambrose has fallen through due to “The Lunatic Fringe’s” unfortunate injury, Rollins should not be struggling to stay relevant in the mid-card come “The Show of Shows”. Therefore, instead of Rollins being shoehorned in a meaningless tag team match at Wrestlemania 34, WWE can smartly utilize Rollins and book him in one of the greatest redemption stories in years which can start at the 2018 Royal Rumble.
As the 2018 edition of the Royal Rumble approaches, many wrestling aficionados and critics have made their predictions for the marquee pay-per-view. A majority have predicted John Cena, Shinsuke Nakamura, or Roman Reigns to win the Rumble.
However, these ‘logical winners’ are not necessarily the best options to take home the win as Cena is at a point in his career where winning another Royal Rumble match is pointless. Shinsuke Nakamura, on the other hand, may have a high chance of winning, but his booking on the main roster has been criticised, while Roman Reigns winning his second Royal Rumble match in front of an unforgiving Philadelphia crowd is a booker's worst nightmare.
With all that being said, the biggest prediction of the entire show is actually a popular opinion, the belief that WWE will have Brock Lesnar leave the 2018 Royal Rumble PPV as the Universal Champion, which will eventually set up a heavily rumoured clash between “The Beast” and “The Big Dog” at WrestleMania 34.
With the company resisting a rematch between Lesnar and Reigns in 2017, that rumour could actually turn out to be a disappointing spoiler for some. But it has not stopped the wrestling world from debating for almost a year if Lesnar vs Reigns is the right decision for Wrestlemania 34, and if it will have a negative or positive effect on Reigns' polarising popularity.
While WWE may feel that sending Reigns to his fourth straight WrestleMania main event is justifiable, they have not realised that they have unknowingly created a redemption story in their ranks.
While most wrestling fans would brush away a Seth Rollins Royal Rumble victory as wishful thinking, he might be the only Superstar on the roster that has a perfect narrative which ties in with the main event of Wrestlemania. WWE’s booking of “The Architect” over the last three years has made him somewhat synonymous with the main event of Wrestlemania.
Rollins was the man that had betrayed his own ‘brothers’ to climb the ranks in WWE, his partnership with the Authority brought out another side of him, and he became an opportunist who found every which way to utilize his new-found power with the higher-ups in WWE to win the Money in the Bank contract and become WWE Champion at the expense of his former comrade. But his over-reliance on the Authority made him a weak champion and soon after he injured his knee they abandoned him.
Rollins made a miraculous return in 6 months and claimed to have rebuilt himself, redesigned his motives and was out to reclaim his lost glory. Rollins' new plan proved successful as he rectified the mistakes of his past and finally beat Reigns clean for the WWE Title. He put his toxic relations with the Authority behind him and he was on the same page with Dean Ambrose in almost three years.
Rollins has fixed, amended, and atoned for his faults and the last thing left for him to resolve is the one thing he was running away from ever since 2014, Brock Lesnar.
When WWE sent “The Architect” storming down the ramp at Wrestlemania 31, Rollins had flipped the main event on its head, which was an excellent catalyst for a well-layered feud between Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins down the road. As WWE aptly portrayed Rollins as a weasel for much of his run as WWE Champion, when his feud with Lesnar had finally come to fruition, WWE should’ve used it to grow Rollins' character beyond the cheap heel.
Instead, WWE took this epic turn of events and portrayed Seth as more of a cheap champion that couldn’t survive without the support of his cronies. Fast forward three years, and WWE has unknowingly evolved Rollins' character to the point where he is now ready for the biggest challenge of his career: a 1 on 1 war with Lesnar.
While WWE is building up Roman Reigns' Wrestlemania 34 narrative as an underdog comeback story, a story where the WWE Universe witnessed Reigns fail to slay “The Beast” the first time around due to his inexperience. Now, three years past, Reigns is going to make his way back to the main event a 'different' man.
But the facts speak for themselves: Reigns isn’t stepping in the ring with Lesnar as a new man with a new profound aggression; he still hasn’t gained the full support as a babyface, but still went on win countless World Titles after his excellent match with Lesnar and returned to the main event of Wrestlemania numerous times.
Reigns' redemption arc is predictable and has little substance because he has clashed with Lesnar several times after their match at Wrestlemania 31, making this ‘must-see’ match an overdone story.
On the contrary, if WWE is looking for redemption arc with a Superstar that had crossed his brothers to achieve his goals, fell from grace with those who once harboured him, had to work his way up the card, amending previously broken relationships along the way, and has not seen a Wrestlemania main event since he was last in the ring with Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins is their man.
While the Wrestlemania 34 main event is looking disappointedly predictable at this moment, WWE can give "The Show of Shows" a narratively correct conclusion and Seth Rollins could be the man that can do just that, pull off the “heist of the century” once again.