What’s the story?
When Triple H warned Seth Rollins (check the video out below), he had stated that he was the Creator at NXT, but “The Destroyer’s not far behind,” Triple H had made the statement in response to Rollins’ actions at NXT TakeOver: San Antonio.
Most wrestling fans had figured that the WWE COO was referring to himself as a wrestler, since the battle between The Game and The Architect at WrestleMania seems imminent.
What fans weren’t expecting was for Samoa Joe to be that destroyer.
The Samoan Submission Machine made an immediate impact on Raw, leaving The Aerialist laying motionless after a Coquina Clutch and aligning himself with WWE’s King of Kings. Joe’s debut washed away what was a lacklustre Royal Rumble to many fans.
In case you didn’t know...
Samoa Joe had been a dominant figure in the NXT ranks since debuting in mid-2015.
After his series of matches with Nakamura concluded late last year, fans were clamouring for his debut on the main roster and many thought that Joe was going to be a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble.
The Royal Rumble match had one true surprise entrant in the form of Tye Dillinger, and that surprise was seen from a mile away. Mark Henry’s entry is the only other entry that comes anywhere close to being a surprise and a wrestler making an appearance in his home state isn’t actually that much of a surprise.
The heart of the matter
Many fans were left angry and disappointed or at least curious why Joe wasn’t a part of the Rumble and if he wasn’t a part of the Rumble then why wasn’t he included in NXT TakeOver? Those feelings and questions stopped for the most part at the conclusion of Raw.
Truly hardcore wrestling fans might be quick to point out that the name of Samoa Joe’s theme in NXT and WWE is named “Destroyer,” and the ever so subtle hint by Triple H flew under everybody else’s radar.
What’s next?
Samoa Joe and Seth Rollins are more than likely on a collision course for Fastlane in February as it is now plainly obvious that Rollins is going to have to get through the Samoan before he can get a match with Triple H.
There will also be several dustups, scrapes and scuffles between the two over the remainder of the nine-week Road to WrestleMania. How Joe figures into everything beyond that is anyone’s guess.
Sportskeeda’s take
This was far and away the best possible way to bring Samoa Joe onto the main roster, as anything done in the Rumble would’ve been inauspicious and done more harm than good. A Rumble debut, while a perfect showcase for AJ Styles last year, was not the right way to introduce Joe to the masses.
While the match with Rollins at FastLane is all but set in stone, this could also lead to Rollins potentially having two matches at WrestleMania, having to defeat Joe earlier on in the show in order to finally wrestle Hunter and exact his revenge.
The revenge storyline between Rollins and Triple H has been one of the most compelling stories currently on WWE television and the addition of a talent the likes of Samoa Joe opens up more possibilities for the story and lends itself to a series of matches between Rollins and Joe that very few, if any, saw coming.
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