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As mentioned in the RAW Preview yesterday, Seth Rollins is, in fact, the next challenger for the WWE Championship. The WWE Champion Drew McIntyre opened RAW and was instantly challenged by the United States Champion Andrade, setting up their main event match on RAW.
It was a good story since Andrade was the man who beat McIntyre to win the NXT Championship in November 2017, during which McIntyre suffered an injury that ended his run on the yellow and gold brand.
McIntyre was able to overcome the obstacles, i.e, Zelina Vega, Angel Garza, and Austin Theory to beat Andrade in their Champion vs Champion match. Immediately after the match, The Monday Night Messiah Seth Rollins attacked McIntyre and it's clear that despite losing to Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 36, he's still next in line for a WWE title shot.
Here are a few reasons why it happened.
#5 An interesting top program for the next few months
Without Brock Lesnar, WWE needs a central feud for the next few months. Post-WrestleMania is when we see the part-timers disappear, while the full-time Superstars continue to carry the show.
Given the circumstances, it's clear that WWE will be holding empty Performance Center shows for the next few months until the COVID-19 pandemic dies down. It's going to be hard to maintain an audience without having a live crowd, but WWE knows that they need to go forward anyway and to help keep interest, they needed to book a top program between two top stars.
Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre both fit that bill and we can't wait to see how it all plays out. We expect McIntyre to be victorious, but it'll be interesting to see how they manage to extend it.
#4 Most major Superstars are out of action anyway
One of the big problems for WWE this time around post-WrestleMania season is that there is a lack of top superstars. To begin with, the number of staff they have during the show is limited in itself, added to the fact that plenty of top names are now on a hiatus.
AJ Styles is one such Superstar who would have been perfect for McIntyre's first opponent, but he's rumored to be on a hiatus, which he has undoubtedly earned. Simply put, Seth Rollins bein Drew McIntyre's challenger could be a mix of needing a big feud along with Rollins being the only big name to challenge for the title.
WWE needs to have as big a name as possible to face McIntyre and despite Kevin Owens winning against Rollins, The Architect is big enough of a star to instantly recover and challenge for a World Championship.
It's been a few months now since Rollins has been in any major title picture.
#3 He's the best heel challenger right now
This upcoming feud between Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins is happening because Rollins is the right person in the right place and the right time. Since McIntyre is supposed to be a babyface, he needs a heel challenger.
While a babyface vs babyface feud wouldn't have been a bad idea at all (see: Roman Reigns vs AJ Styles in 2016), the reality is that a face vs heel feud is always one that will draw more interest. As easy as it sounds, the line between the good guy and the bad guy is what gives fans a reason to invest in a program.
Seth Rollins was RAW's top babyface at this time last year - which is exactly where McIntyre is right now. However, his popularity started to dwindle around September - just 5 months or so after his coronation, leading to a heel turn after over three years in December 2019.
He's a great heel and the best one to challenge McIntyre for the WWE title.
#2 To fill time until SummerSlam
There's a big hope among WWE fans that by August, the pandemic will die out and we can see the return of crowds. If that is the case, then you can expect SummerSlam to be more stacked than ever before.
If that is the case, then McIntyre will likely have a new challenger by then, given that he doesn't drop the WWE title to Rollins or potentially the Money in the Bank ladder match winner.
As we know, feuds that happen right after WrestleMania tend to go on for a bit longer and that was seen in Becky Lynch's feud against Lacey Evans last year, which lasted from post-WrestleMania 35 until Extreme Rules 2019.
This is likely a feud that will drag on for as long, if not longer. It's also perfect to go 3 full PPVs, after which McIntyre can go on to a big challenge - potentially even a rematch against Brock Lesnar in the main event of SummerSlam this year.
#1 A passing of the torch on RAW
Seth Rollins has become "Mr. Monday Nights" over the last few years. Between his debut in late 2012 and his brutal injury in late 2016, he had a streak of nearly four years where he was a part of every single RAW without fail.
Naturally, his injury ended that streak, but he's come to define the brand and become the face of it - particularly once Roman Reigns stopped being a RAW star. Whether he's a heel or face, he still feels like the face of Monday Night RAW and it's going to be hard to change that.
However, WWE may have wanted to book this match to have McIntyre beat Seth Rollins so the proverbial torch can be passed and he will be the new face of Monday nights. However, there's always going to be the fear that McIntyre will get the same kind of treatment that Rollins did as a babyface.
While Rollins had made a few comments to upset fans, it ended up being the seeds for a future heel turn.
