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King Corbin has had an eventful year in WWE, to say the least. From being victorious at WrestleMania 35 against the retiring Hall Of Famer, Kurt Angle, to competing for the Universal Championship on multiple occasions and more recently, winning the 2019 King of the Ring tournament. King Corbin has achieved quite a lot in 2019. However, it is safe to say that his reign as King has left much to be desired.
The tournament not only produced a number of excellent matches, but it shone a light on talented superstars such as Cedric Alexander and Chad Gable AKA Shorty G. King Corbin's reign could be used to put over other underutilized Superstars such as Ali and Apollo Crews, or his reign could be one of terror, where The Lone Wolf destroys every Superstar in his path. We discuss five ways in which WWE could make King Corbin's reign much more meaningful below:
#5 Form a Stable
We have seen the destruction that Corbin is capable of when he is part of a villainous group and WWE should draw inspiration from his time alongside Drew McIntyre and Bobby Lashley. Implementing that same formula in his reign as King will stand him in good stead.
The Lone Wolf delivered on his promise and defeated Reigns in the main event of SmackDown last Friday, after an interference from the former RAW Tag Team Champions, Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Their interjection into this match was not explained, but that can easily be done with a backstage segment this week on the Blue brand. This alliance between these three Superstars does make sense though.
With The New Day settling into their seventh reign as tag team champions, and teams like The Revival ahead of Roode and Ziggler in the pecking order, putting them alongside Corbin would most certainly not hurt them in any way.
The heel faction could terrorize the SmackDown roster for many months and halt the progress of other Superstars while King Corbin ascends. It's working on Monday nights with The O.C, so it can be as effective with Corbin, Roode and Ziggler.
#4 Less Talking, More Terror
King Corbin kicked off last week's episode of Friday Night SmackDown with an unspectacular promo segment, addressing the WWE Universe and his opponent later that night, Roman Reigns. He went on to mock The Big Dog and promised he would beat Reigns in the main event. He was able to accomplish that feat with some help from Roode and Ziggler.
He has displayed excellent work as a heel in the past, but this was... not good. It accomplished absolutely nothing. A significant section of the WWE Universe will, unfortunately, remember his promo last Friday and not the fact that he defeated The Big Dog. However, this can be rectified. Just let the King destroy everyone in his way. He doesn't have to announce it with a five-minute segment every week.
Limiting his work on the mic would not be an indication of his shortcomings, but it would be a fresh adjustment to his character that would now be all bite and no bark. With Roode and Ziggler by his side, they would carry most of the mic duties as King Corbin continues on his weekly reign of terror.
It would mean a lot more when he does decide to speak, as the WWE Universe would feel "honoured" to have their King addressing them. This will go a long way in ensuring that the King Corbin character commands respect from the WWE Universe.
#3 Put Over Underutilized Superstars
One of the positives that can be taken from the 2019 King of the Ring tournament was the spotlight it shone on talented superstars such as Ali, Apollo Crews and Cedric Alexander. With Corbin on SmackDown, he could get into storylines with Matt Hardy and the aforementioned Apollo Crews who currently aren't on TV, or even The Miz who has been used mainly for his role as the host of Miz TV. He has faced most of these Superstars at some point in the past, but the WWE creative team can find interesting ways to create fresh storylines between Corbin and these Superstars.
Corbin has shown to be very effective in this position as he has had great matches this year on his way to being crowned King of the Ring. This will motivate WWE to find innovative ways to utilize their locker room and shine the spotlight on the Superstars they have. It would also be beneficial for The Lone Wolf to pick up victories against most of these Superstars as having him lose consistently will cause a lot of fans to look down on him and his role as King of the Ring.
#2 Put the Intercontinental Championship on him
King Corbin has a long list of accolades. He is a former United States Champion, Money in the Bank contract holder, 2016 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner and now 2019 King of the Ring.
However, if it weren't for Corbin having Mike Rome read those accolades before his matches, you wouldn't be blamed if you didn't remember any of that. Most of those achievements are quite forgettable because they didn't lead to anything meaningful. Even retiring Kurt Angle did not have the desired effect on his career. His reign as King cannot suffer a similar fate.
Having him win his first Intercontinental Championship to further solidify his dominance over the SmackDown roster would be a logical move. He could even walk into WrestleMania 36 as the champion and drop the title in a fun match against an exciting Superstar like Ali, which could also coincide with the beginning of the end of his reign as King.
The worst that WWE could do is have him in a midcard spot heading into the Showcase of the Immortals, so why not strap the title onto him? Ensure that first reign as IC Champion means so much more memorable than his previous stint as United States Champion two years ago.
#1 Establish Corbin As A Main-Event Superstar
With all that Corbin has accomplished in 2019, it is fair to say that he is worthy of a main-event push. He has competed for the Universal Championship against Seth Rollins and has also put in a number of impressive performances in the King of the Ring tournament. Having him get the victory over Roman Reigns was a huge indication that Corbin is line for a massive push. This programme with Reigns can go a long way in establishing Corbin as one of the top heels in the company and as a main-event superstar.
Having a strong win record will keep him in the main-event scene so it is essential for King Corbin to be protected. We expect his storyline with The Big Dog to continue in the next few weeks so WWE can make a huge statement here by making Corbin pick up yet another victory over Reigns. This will prove that his victory on SmackDown wasn't a fluke and that it was well deserved.
With that being said, these would be more effective ways of using Corbin as King of the Ring, and will undoubtedly contribute to elevating him to a new level along with the entire SmackDown roster.
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