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We are a few hours away from WWE Fastlane, the last pay-per-view before WrestleMania. Four title matches, including the Universal Championship, the Women’s Tag Team Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the United States Championship, will be on the line.
Following the go-home episode of RAW before WWE Fastlane, Mustafa Ali demanded a match against Riddle for the United States Championship. The title bout was booked for the pay-per-view at the last minute and could be one of those matches that will be featured on the pre-show. However, we hope that these two superstars will have a match on the main card to have ample time to explore several exciting options.
In this article, we will take a look at five possible finishes to the United States Championship at WWE Fastlane.
#1 Riddle successfully retains his United States Championship at WWE Fastlane
Riddle has a lot of momentum on his side ahead of WWE Fastlane. He won his previous match against Mustafa Ali and has done well in finding his way around the other members of RETRIBUTION. Before that, he was involved in an entertaining feud with The Hurt Business. In fact, Riddle ended Bobby Lashley's United States title reign, and the latter was then free to pursue the WWE Championship on RAW.
Since winning his title, Riddle has worked hard to establish himself as a credible champion. His matches against superstars like Mustafa Ali have done more than enough to assure everyone that he can carry the title on RAW for a while. Thus, he will most likely retain his championship against Ali at WWE Fastlane.
We expect a hard-hitting match between Riddle and Ali at WWE Fastlane. Both superstars will look to capitalize on their respective strengths inside the ring. Riddle is a more hard-hitting competitor and is equally skilled on the mat. Ali likes to bring a few high-flying moves to his aid. Even he has a couple of devastating kicks in his arsenal.
The two superstars are similar in terms of their physical stature. Thus, this in-ring bout will be equally balanced at WWE Fastlane. In the end, Riddle has a higher chance of picking up a clean victory and putting this feud to bed. After all, he has already established his superiority in front of his opponent, and the United States Champion will like to explore other challenges on RAW.
#2 Mustafa Ali wins the United States Championship at WWE Fastlane
Mustafa Ali demanded a title rematch at WWE Fastlane after losing against Riddle on RAW’s go-home show before the pay-per-view. Despite failing in his previous attempt, Ali is confident that he can walk out of the pay-per-view with the title.
Ali’s title win at WWE Fastlane will be one of the most unexpected results of the night. The creative could use his recent run as a way to present him as an underdog. Both Ali and RETRIBUTION have not been that great on RAW as they rarely get a chance to add credibility to their faction. Winning the championship might change that for the entire group.
Becoming the United States Champion might make Ali more arrogant than he already is. He often attacks other RETRIBUTION members or humiliates them after a loss, and as champion, he will only worsen. The creative has already sown the seeds of a possible conflict between Ali and the rest of the RETRIBUTION members. They could use a shocking result at WWE Fastlane to further build-up on this storyline.
#3 Keith Lee returns and attacks Riddle at WWE Fastlane
The United States Championship could set up a significant return at WWE Fastlane. Riddle’s match against Bobby Lashley was initially supposed to be a triple-threat bout that would also have involved Keith Lee. Many believed that the latter would have won the title, but medical reasons forced him to miss the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view.
The RAW Superstar is now expected to return soon, and he could make his presence known at WWE Fastlane tonight. If he interferes in the match, it will end in disqualification, and Riddle will retain his United States Championship. He could then lay an attack on Riddle and turn heel.
Lee made a promising debut on the main roster as he was immediately involved in the WWE Championship picture. Once he is back, the creative should book him as a colossal threat again. As long as Lee is medically clear to return to the ring, WWE Fastlane would be the right time to bring him back. A heel turn will add all the more excitement to his return.
#4 Ali loses the title rematch at WWE Fastlane, and RETRIBUTION turn on him
In the weeks leading up to WWE Fastlane, Ali has crossed paths with several superstars on RAW. However, each time he lost a match, he would blame the other members of RETRIBUTION. When someone like T-Bar or Slapjack lost their match, Ali conveniently humiliated them for not being good enough.
He went as far as slapping the members of his stable on RAW. Ali’s behavior isn’t sitting well with the entire faction, and it appears that they are closer to a breaking point. In the past, they have tried to help Ali, but their plans invariably backfire. They might refrain from doing anything at all during Ali’s match at WWE Fastlane.
Even if Ali loses his title match because of his fault, he will again resort to blaming RETRIBUTION for everything. This would then prompt his allies to turn on him and stand up to their leader. RETRIBUTION were doing better without Mustafa Ali, and maybe they will cite this reason to break ties with Ali at WWE Fastlane.
#5 T-Bar helps Riddle in retaining the United States Championship on WWE Fastlane
WWE Fastlane could witness another promising superstar make a bold statement. T-Bar arrived on the main roster as a part of RETRIBUTION. Right at the beginning, he was great on social media and single-handedly managed to get the fans talking about the new stable on RAW. Unfortunately, the lack of good storylines kept reducing the group’s credibility on the Red brand.
Out of everyone in RETRIBUTION, T-Bar is likely the one who will refuse to let Mustafa Ali blame his failures on them. He has enough reason to break away from Ali and seek something for himself on RAW. If he wants to stay in RETRIBUTION, he will eventually engage in a leadership feud with Ali. However, it is essential to note that he has already unfollowed all the fellow members of RETRIBUTION on Twitter.
T-Bar even took a shot at Ali when he lost his match against Riddle a week before WWE Fastlane. He is more than capable of carrying himself as a singles superstar on RAW and deserves to be a part of better booking on the Red brand. It will be interesting to see what’s in store for RETRIBUTION at the upcoming pay-per-view.
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