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That fateful night in Indianapolis
Even though there were rumours running wild that someone from the Shield was going to turn heel and end the faction for good, they were dismissed by many because of how over The Shield was at the time. The rumours also mostly pointed to Dean Ambrose being the culprit, and some towards Roman Reigns.
What happened was something very few people foresaw, and almost everyone couldn’t believe.
After Batista was written off television to allow him to attend public promotions for Guardians Of The Galaxy, Triple H said there was a ‘Plan B’. At the end of the night, when The SHIELD was in the ring, with Seth Rollins holding a chair, that Plan B unfolded. While Orton and Triple H watched on from the entrance ramp, Seth Rollins would proceed to attack Reigns with the chair, and then Ambrose.
At the end of the night, Seth Rollins, the man who claims to have created The SHIELD, the one who was the cohesion, the one who tried to keep the stable together through a rough phase, was the one who well and truly destroyed it.
Money In The Bank and ascent to the top
Seth Rollins would go on to feud with Dean Ambrose immediately following the collapse of The Shield, and both men would be inserted into the Money In The Bank ladder match, with the focus of the match being around both men. After an entertaining sequence, Ambrose seemed poised to win the contract, but Kane would come out (being a part of The Authority) and assist Rollins to the victory. It seemed more fit for Rollins, being a heel, and a sneaky heel at that.
Ambrose and Rollins would go on the feud for numerous months, putting on the most entertaining Lumberjack match of all time at SummerSlam and producing a masterpiece in the main event of Hell In A Cell, in which Rollins emerged victorious (with help) in every match. Following, Rollins would captain Team Authority in the Survivor Series main event, in a losing effort, and would lose to John Cena at TLC.
According to the stipulation of the match, Cena would go on to face Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the Royal Rumble. However, Triple H inserted Rollins into this match, being the boss. How was Seth Rollins vs Brock Lesnar vs John Cena at the Royal Rumble? It was a match that changed Rollins forever.
Not only was Rollins the most active in the match, he pulled off the biggest spots. First, delivered an elbow drop on Brock Lesnar, through the announcer table, and then delivered his first Phoenix Splash in WWE to John Cena. Even though Brock Lesnar pinned him, it put Seth Rollins on the map and is considered by many as the greatest Triple Threat ever.
Then came WrestleMania 31. Rollins had a match with Orton, which was the second of the night, and even though he lost, it was one of the biggest nights of his career.
Winning the big gold, and then the bigger gold
Roman Reigns won the Royal Rumble this year, and many people were extremely unhappy with it. WWE had to pull off something incredible to have its fans happy, and it did.
The main event was good in itself, with Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar putting on a hard-hitting slugfest, and eventually, both men were down, covered in blood and apparently unbeatable. Then, Seth Rollins’ music hit and he ran down the ramp like he had never run before, and cashed in his Money In The Bank contract, and oddly turned the match into a Triple Threat.
After delivering a Curb-Stomp to Brock Lesnar, he tried to hit another one but was caught by Brock in mid-air. Before Lesnar could deliver an F5, Reigns speared Lesnar, taking him out, and Rollins delivered a Curb Stomp to Reigns, pinning him and winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Within two and a half years, Seth Rollins had captured the biggest prize, and he was the first of his SHIELD brethren to do so. He had stolen that claim from Roman Reigns in the process.
This began a classic heel run with the championship, which many people hate, which is exactly why it is such a great heel run. His first defense was against Randy Orton, in which he debuted the Pedigree as his new finished and beat Orton using an RKO. He pinned Orton again in a Fatal Four Way involving Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose at Payback (which also had a Triple Powerbomb with which everyone lost their minds), and would continue to feud with Dean Ambrose until Brock Lesnar returned.
Even though Lesnar destroyed Rollins, he still disappeared (quite literally) with the gold, and would meet John Cena in a title-for-title match at SummerSlam, in which he also emerged victorious, making him the Champion Of Champions at the moment.
Now, Seth Rollins is set to face Sting at Night Of Champions, and that is an honour in itself. WWE has believed in Seth Rollins and it has paid off. There is no better way WWE could have used Rollins, even if they tried to.
