5 signs that WWE wants Bray Wyatt to lose at TLC

WWE has announced that The Miz will be taking on Bray Wyatt at the upcoming TLC pay-per-view, but the decision has raised a lot of questions from the fans. The two biggest questions, out of the lot, have to be why the company isn't advertising The Fiend for this match and why they didn't put the Universal Championship on the line.

While both of these do seem like very weird decisions on the company's part, especially with Brock Lesnar not defending his title at the upcoming pay-per-view, it starts to make a little more sense if you consider what WWE is trying to do here. In fact, the picture becomes a lot clearer when you realize that the company is going out of its way to make The Fiend and Bray Wyatt two very different people.

Unfortunately for Wyatt, all that could very well mean he would be the one taking the loss at TLC. Furthermore, WWE going out of their way to distinguish him and The Fiend as two different people seems to be their way of working past his undefeated streak and title reign, while simultaneously keeping both intact.

With that being said and TLC only a week away, here are five signs that Bray Wyatt could lose at the upcoming pay-per-view:

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#5 Turning the Bray Wyatt character heel

WWE might be trying to turn The Fiend heel

Does anyone else feel like WWE has begun Bray Wyatt heel?

That has become extremely evident not only by the fact that The Fiend is now targeting The Miz's family but also by how WWE is slowly getting fans behind The A-lister in the process. It's almost like this is the company's way to take Wyatt's character out of the gray area and turn him into a full-fledged heel.

Why else would they have Bray Wyatt prey on The Miz's family? That's not something a babyface character would ever do and seems to be a very intentional choice by the company. Why the company decided to do this and what their endgame is, remains to be seen and will depend on fan reaction over the next couple of months, but right now, it surely seems like Wyatt is turning heel.

#4 WWE wanting to show the contrast between both of Wyatt's characters

WWE might be trying to tell us something here.

Maybe WWE is trying to show us something here.

What if the company is using the upcoming match between The Miz and Bray Wyatt as a medium to expose a key part of The Fiend's character to the fans? In fact, what if Wyatt versus The Awesome One is WWE's way to showcase the differences between the two alter egos and subtly hint to the fans that the red zombie light is indeed the source of the former's power.

Not only would this be a huge milestone in The Fiend's character development, but it will also open the door to allow WWE more breathing space when it comes to booking his further matches in a way that the appear less one-sided.

Think about it! WWE can't continue this narrative of The Fiend being unbeatable and need to give themselves an out in future matchups. Sure, they can try to keep The Fiend's streak going on unabashed, but eventually, fans are going to get tired of it and this will sour the character.

That's why WWE is going out of its way next Sunday to show the contrasts between both of Wyatt's alter egos and has already started planting the seeds in the fans' minds about how The Fiend can be defeated.

#3 Increasing the likelihood of a Daniel Bryan interference

Daniel Bryan could very well play spoiler next Sunday at TLC

Daniel Bryan has gone missing after his confrontation with The Fiend last week on SmackDown and it has lead to widespread speculation about his whereabouts. The big questions that remain to be answered in this regard are: What exactly did The Fiend do to the former WWE Champion? and What kind of state will the fans find him in when he finally does appear?

Then again, what if WWE were to flip on the script entirely and have Bryan come to The Miz's aid during the match at TLC? If nothing else, the bearded underdog is essentially the wildcard in this situation and could really use this opportunity to help The A-lister finally take The Eater of Worlds down.

This is the best way for the company to protect Wyatt in defeat, give The Miz a clean win, protect The Fiend's undefeated record, and even keep the storyline going into the WrestleMania season. Sure, it might anger The WWE Universe if the Bray Wyatt character loses a match so early, but some of that might be mitigated if the company does it the right way.

In the end, bringing Bryan back to help The Miz defeat Wyatt would create a very interesting dynamic between the two and put The Fiend character in a previously uncharted territory.

#2 Not using The Fiend character this time around

Why is WWE not advertising The Fiend for this match?

Another interesting question in this storyline is: Why would WWE choose to make it Bray Wyatt, and not The Fiend, versus The Miz? The most likely answer to this question is that the company is probably trying its hands at something new.

With that being said and The Fiend and Bray Wyatt now being firmly presented as two completely different people, why, at all, does the latter need to win next Sunday? Why not give Miz the victory and the push that The Awesome One deserves?

It's not like a win for The Miz takes away The Fiend's undefeated streak, destroys the lore of the character, or does anything even remotely like that. It just gives a hardworking Superstar a key win when he needs it the most and furthers storylines in the process. It could even go a long way in making clear the differences between The Fiend and Bray Wyatt and would make for an interesting watch.

All in all, it's a great move that benefits a lot of people and helps with the future of The Fiend character. That's a lot that can be accomplished in a single match!

#1 The fact that it is a non-title match

There has to be a reason why WWE made this a non-title match

Why did WWE make this a non-title match?

The move is particularly interesting if you consider the fact that there will not be any other WWE Title match (yet) at the upcoming TLC pay-per-view. If nothing else, it seems like the company has decided on The Miz versus Bray Wyatt as a way to keep a storyline going without toying with its main mechanics.

Wyatt has absolutely nothing to lose in this situation and could easily take a loss without it meaning much. It's not as if the title or The Fiend's undefeated streak is on the line, which should ultimately work to give WWE a lot of breathing space when booking this match.

It's also a great chance to build up The Miz as a babyface, which is something he desperately needs right now. Yeah, it does come at the expense of a loss for Wyatt, but that's not the persona of The Eater of Worlds WWE is focusing on. In fact, they could probably even use Bray Wyatt's loss as a proof of The Fiend's superiority over the other alter ego.

Look, a loss for Wyatt might sting a bit at the surface level, but it could be an intriguing vehicle to discover more about The Fiend and move that character forward. Apart from that, the title not being on the line and the latter's undefeated run staying intact are all still accomplished. Just in a different way.