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In what can be viewed as a surprising result, Bobby Lashley successfully retained the WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre in the WrestleMania 37 opener.
Many fans believed that WWE would want to give McIntyre the WrestleMania moment he was denied last year by winning the title in front of fans.
However, Lashley made the Scotsman pass out with the help of the Hurt Lock. Having The All Mighty retain his WWE Championship was the right call and will help both superstars in the long run.
Lashley has been on the best run of his WWE career ever since his loss to McIntyre last year at the Backlash PPV.
Once he won the United States Championship, he dominated every opponent that was put in front of him. He also lost the title to Riddle in a Triple Threat Match at the Elimination Chamber PPV. However, The All Mighty wasn't pinned in that matchup.
Having him drop the title only a month after winning would have taken a lot of momentum away from him.
Lashley dropping the belt at WrestleMania would have also diminished the WWE Championship a bit as well.
Since winning it at last year's WrestleMania, McIntyre has held on to the title almost uninterrupted until the Elimination Chamber 2021 PPV. The only speed bump for the Scotsman was when he lost the Championship to Randy Orton. However, he was quick to regain the title.
The Miz won the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber after he cashed in his Money In The Bank briefcase. The A-Lister's run with the title was short, as he lost it to Lashley a week later.
The All Mighty is just a month into his title reign. Now, if he had lost to McIntyre on Night One Of WrestleMania 37, it would have made the coveted title look like a hot potato. This could be one of the main reasons why WWE chose not to have a title change during the opener.
Another would have been the dearth of challengers for The Scottish Warrior if he had won the title.
During his impressive Championship reign, McIntyre ran through nearly the entire RAW roster. With the WWE Draft possibly a few months away, the chances of seeing repeated feuds would have been high. This is the last thing the struggling RAW brand needs right now.
McIntyre's WWE Title run made him the top babyface of the company and he is guaranteed to win back the gold somewhere down the line. The fact that the Scotsman was booked so strongly even in defeat proves this.
For now, it is Lashley's time to shine and have a dominant run with the title.
Lashley retaining the title opens the door for fresh feuds on the RAW roster. The dream match would obviously be seeing The All Mighty lock horns with Brock Lesnar.
With Lashley poised for a lengthy title reign, SummerSlam would be the perfect time for the match to take place. Especially since that will most likely be the next time we may see fans in attendance at a WWE PPV.
WWE could have run the risk of fans turning on McIntyre had the Scotsman won the title at WrestleMania 37.
While the company may be planning a slow heel turn for the former WWE Champion, Drew winning the title could have forced creative to rush with the decision. In that case, the change in persona would fall flat and will not get the desired result.
If McIntyre won the gold this weekend, it would have been his third WWE Title reign in the span of a year. The fans have seen similar booking with Roman Reigns in the past and many felt that he was being forced down their throats.
Considering these factors, it is safe to say that WWE made the right decision to have scored a monumental win at Night One Of WrestleMania 37. It would be interesting to see who will step up next to challenge the All Mighty for the Championship next.
What are your thoughts on Lashley retaining the WWE Championship the right decision? Sound off in the comments below.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article belong to the writer and doesn't necessarily represent Sportskeeda's stand.
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