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At times, WWE is known for their illogical bookings. Such bookings not only look nonsensical but also prove to be a huge mistake in the long run. It makes us wonder if even the company knows what it is doing.
2018 was no different by any means for WWE. They made plenty of mistakes this year so far. However, some of them had a bigger impact than the others. In this list, we are going to focus on such huge mistakes.
Please note that this list only includes booking decisions.
#5. Having Lesnar retain the Universal Championship at Wrestlemania
Vince McMahon always wanted Roman Reigns to dethrone Brock Lesnar. He wanted it in 2015 - but the fans' reaction towards Reigns forced him to have Seth Rollins cash in during the main event of Wrestlemania 31.
Wrestlemania 34 was no different. Roman was portrayed as the workforce good guy, whereas Brock was the part-timing bad guy. However, the fans did not buy into it and booed both Lesnar and Reigns heading into Wrestlemania. Even though Lesnar's contract was set to expire on the day of Wrestlemania, McMahon convinced Lesnar to hold on to the title for a while longer.
This made absolutely no sense because it was ultimately Roman Reigns who dethroned the beast at Summerslam. All it did was take the biggest title in RAW off the TV for a good 3 more months.
#4. Destroying Asuka
At the start of 2018, Asuka had an undefeated streak in WWE. She was one of the top women in the industry and had really good matches. She won the inaugural Women's Royal Rumble and challenged Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown women's championship at Wrestlemania.
The match was arguably the match of the night, with both women putting on a great show. The match ended when Charlotte speared Asuka, applied the figure 8 leg lock and Asuka tapped out quickly. This came as a shock for the fans in attendance but at least it was a Wrestlemania moment to remember.
However, after that Asuka started going down a spiral. She was pinned twice by Carmella. Then she was taken off the TV for a few weeks. Now she is just existing in the roster as the bodyguard of Naomi. One can't help but wonder if she would have been in a way better position had she stayed in NXT.
#3. Burying RAW tag team division
RAW's tag team scene was always in shambles. However, it hit rock bottom when Braun Strowman teamed up with a 10-year-old at Wrestlemania to beat one of the best tag teams in WWE - The Bar. They relinquished the title the very next day.
This reign was followed by the reign of a strange pairing of Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt. They had a lackluster title reign and were defeated by the B-team. Sure, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel deserved a small title run for all the bad booking they went through in the previous year.
But they were given the title without any build whatsoever. Compared with their smackdown counterpart, RAW's tag team scene is in a mess. We truly hope Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler can bring it back to its glory.
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#2. Braun Strowman winning money in the bank contract
Braun Strowman is a monster. He is the sort of guy who can get a title shot any time he wants.
One of the things that make Money in the Bank one of the coolest things in WWE is that it can happen anytime and anywhere. Events like Edge cashing in on Cena and Rollins cashing in on Lesnar and Reigns will be forever etched in history as some of the coolest and most surprising moments. But here, that is gone as Strowman already announced his cash in.
This decision is even more asinine when we look at the other participants in the match - Rusev, The Miz, Samoa Joe, Kevin Owens, Finn Balor, Bobby Roode, and Kofi Kingston - all of them who needed the briefcase even more than the monster. Ultimately, the briefcase "got those hands". Looking back, the only reason he won the briefcase was to stop people from booing the Summerslam main event.
Honorary mention: Booking of Finn Balor and Kevin Owens
The way these two are treated is absolutely horrendous, to say the least. The former NXT champions deserve way better than what they are getting now. Finn Balor is yet to do anything noticeable after relinquishing his Universal title whereas Kevin Owens was bullied by Braun Strowman in the majority of 2018.
#1. Braun Strowman turning heel
Braunn Strowman was the biggest babyface on RAW. He was getting cheered wherever he went. Fans wanted him to dethrone Lesnar at Wrestlemania. The entire WWE universe was behind Strowman throughout 2018.
Heading into Hell in a Cell 2018, rather than having a feud where the fans decide whom to cheer for, WWE decided to force Strowman as the bad guy and Reigns as the good guy. They had him team up with Reigns to take on Ziggler and McIntyre and turn on Reigns midway into the match. Any results other than the monster coming on top will most definitely destroy his character and make it tough for WWE to build him back again.
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