'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
What's the story?
With Braun Strowman's status for the Royal Rumble still up in the air, WWE decided to shake thing up on Raw.
They went with Finn Balor winning a Fatal Four Way in order to challenge Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship on January 27th.
Ringsidenews.com is reporting via Mike Johnson of the PWInsider Elite radio show that Balor had been the choice to potentially replace Strowman for a while.
In case you missed it . . .
WWE ran an angle on Raw when Braun Strowman was goaded into a chase by Baron Corbin. During the chase, Corbin hid in Mr. McMahon's limo. Strowman destroyed the limo and Mr. McMahon stripped Strowman of his title match at the Rumble.
Later in the night, Finn Balor was forced to win two matches, including a main-event Fatal Four Way match in order to challenge Lesnar at the Royal Rumble.
It was a push for someone the WWE Universe and Triple H both truly love. It also provided Lesnar with an opponent he could throw around.
The heart of the matter
Mike Johnson elaborated further on the PWInsider Elite radio show, stating that WWE had chosen Balor a while ago as a back-up plan should Strowman have not been cleared in time.
“I got a little bit more background on this. The Balor plan was actually in place quietly within a small circle in WWE from the moment that they knew Braun Strowman was gonna need elbow surgery. This was always the plan to build up to Braun and then remove Braun out if he was not cleared, but more so to build to Balor vs Lesnar because they felt the story would be stronger. It would be a better match for a big show which if you saw Braun vs Brock at No Mercy I would tend to agree with that vision.”
He also mentioned that the reason why Strowman has been involved in storylines with the likes of Corbin and Lesnar was to get more heat on those superstars.
“This was about building up babyfaces and using Braun to get some more heat on the heels and they felt like at that point that they needed some more heat on the heels. This was not a last-second decision, but you know previously in my reporting I had said it was a couple of weeks. It was actually prior to that. It was back to where Braun first injured his elbow that that determination was made that they were gonna slide Finn Balor in the backdoor.”
Balor pinning Cena in the Fatal Four Way rather than someone like Corbin getting pinned was probably a move that helped solidify their faith in choosing Balor as Strowman's replacement.
What's next?
WWE did promise some different things in the New Era, so perhaps ceding to the fans that Balor deserved another shot at the Universal Title was one of those promises.
It is even more interesting that WWE had Balor in mind as a replacement since Strowman's surgery and not someone like Seth Rollins.
That probably means that Lesnar will likely retain the title at the Royal Rumble and face the Kingslayer at Wrestlemania 35.
