5 things WWE did to get fans behind Drew McIntyre 

Drew McIntyre's WWE career has been a two-sided coin. One side is filled with dominating performances and arguably the best run of his entire pro wrestling career. On the other side however, is a shell of a man that couldn't make it in the WWE years ago and had to go somewhere else in order to live out his pro wrestling dreams.

With that being said and McIntyre winning the 2020 Royal Rumble, it is a good idea to look at how the company has taken this once rejected talent and turned him into the massive Superstar he is rapidly becoming today. Furthermore, specifically how WWE made it happen while slowly and subtly turning him into a top babyface, seamlessly getting tthe WWE Universe completely on his side.

If nothing else, it probably wasn't an easy process on WWE's part, but here are 5 ways WWE got the fans behind Drew McIntyre.

As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments below and be sure to tell us if you think Drew McIntyre will win The WWE Title at WrestleMania 36.

---

#5 Holding him back for so long

Drew McIntyre was kept on the backburner for a long time

WWE may not do everything for a reason, but one thing they definitely did intentionally was to keep Drew McIntyre out of the title picture. While that might not have been done with the original intent of biding their time until it was proper to pull the trigger, that started to change with McIntyre's second stint with the company. After a solid run in NXT, he moved to RAW and appeared ready to dominate, but was instead kept as a secondary player in bigger feuds, teaming with Dolph Ziggler initially and later being a backup for Shane McMahon during the boss' son's feud with Roman Reigns.

After having some great in-ring showings and strong promo work along with a bit of time away, the result is the fans feeling cheated by McIntyre being left out of the title picture, and the generally standing in the shadows. Upon his return, McIntyre became overwhelmingly popular in a very brief period of time, even receiving significant crowd support while sharing the ring with the likes of Randy Orton and AJ Styles, two legends and future first-ballot Hall of Famers.

In the end, resentment is a very powerful feeling and fans seemed to really resent the company for not giving Drew a chance before he initially left WWE a number of years back, as well as their hesitation when he returned to RAW after a short stint in NXT. Fortunately for McIntyre and the WWE Universe, The Scottish Psychopath's Royal Rumble victory virtually ensures that he will finally have the chance to prove that he is indeed worthy of a main-event push.

#4 His anti-hero personality

Drew McIntyre's new anti-hero persona is beyond brilliant on WWE's part

WWE has made a lot of subtle changes to different superstars over the years, but one of the most unbelievable ones had to be Drew McIntyre's move towards the babyface territory. Not only did it take who McIntyre was a Superstar and flip it on its head, it also achieved the goal of helping him resonate with the WWE Universe.

Alll of sudden, McIntyre starting trash talking like a boss, backing up his words with deliberate actions and interacting with fans in a way he never did before. Instead of speaking on behalf of someone like Shane McMahon, he went into business for himself, and the fans responded very well. He even created a signature countdown for audience participation before delivering his devastating Claymore Kick, which is starting to really grow on the company's fanbase, and received a gigantic reaction when he did it in the Royal Rumble match.

The best part, however, is that WWE seems to have found a perfect balance for McIntyre turning him into an anti-hero babyface who knows that it's important to have the crowd in his corner (hence the countdown before the kick), but also sticks to a gameplan that keeps him focused on his opponents. WWE hasn't quite put the finishing touches on the character, but now that he has a definite direction heading into WrestleMania 36, Drew's persona will be fleshed out and we will find out exactly who he is.

#3 Dominant and decisive victories

Drew McIntyre made a name for himself with superior performances throughout the latter half of 2019

Drew McIntyre's Road to WrestleMania started much differently than other Superstars. In fact, while Roman Reigns was engaged in an ongoing war with King Corbin and Randy Orton was fighting tooth and nail with AJ Styles, McIntyre was busy absolutely flattening his competition in squash matches. It didn't seem like Drew had any direction at all, but it turns out that WWE was just biding time until the moment was right.

These weren't just ordinary 2-minute affairs. McIntyre was showcasing his strong repertoire of moves, extensive brutality, and started to create the new personality that is beginning to shine more and more.

In his match with Akira Tozawa, Drew he literally flipped the international Superstar like a pancake. He took Ricochet, placed him on his shoulders and planted him face-first on the arena floor in a sickening moment. If nothing else, these, and other short, dominant performances were building blocks for McIntyre and absolutely a large piece of the puzzle that has helped make him such a powerful force.

#2 Made the fans hungrier for a changing of the guard

The WWE Universe is sick of the status quo and that's a powerful weapon!

WWE has been excellent at creating substantive change throughout its programming over the last couple of months, but the one thing they have never given up on is having Brock Lesnar as WWE Champion. Outside of a few stints without the belt, Lesnar has been either WWE or Universal Champion for the better part of the last 3 years.

Brock, although he has had some stellar matches recently along with a captivating feud with Rey Mysterio and his son, is still only a part time performer and thus isn't really the fighting champion that the fans are looking for. Interestingly enough, it seems like WWE knows that and are using it to get the crowd ready to cheer for the right person. The WWE Universe enjoys watching Brock take people to Suplex City, but as was evidenced by the gigantic reaction to Drew McIntyre eliminating the WWE Champion from the Royal Rumble, they are ready for something new.

In all honesty, the WWE Universe is sick of the status quo and many are tired of Lesnar holding the title picture hostage. That's why the company appears to be building up McIntyre to finally take Lesnar off of his perch. We'll have to wait and see what happens at WrestleMania 36, but good money is on Drew McIntyre becoming the next WWE Champion.

#1 Winning the Royal Rumble match

Drew McIntyre winning the Royal Rumble was just icing on the cake.

Winning the Royal Rumble match is usually a crowning moment for any WWE Superstar, and it appears that will indeed be the case for Drew McIntyre as well. As long as WWE follows up on the win and keeps the momentum behind him going, the win will go very far toward cementing him as WWE's next big thing. The company has been hinting at that for some time now with the way he has been booked to dominate in all of his matches, but it all became crystal clear on Sunday.

Between being the man to eliminate Brock Lesnar from the Royal Rumble and eventually winning the match, The Scottish Psychopath has been through hell. Now that he has officially made his challenge to Lesnar, he is about to jump right back into the fire it in his quest to win the WWE Championship.

WWE is telling a very fascinating story with Drew McIntyre right now and it's going to involve a lot of different layers. McIntyre finally began, in earnest, the path to fulfilling his destiny by winning the Royal Rumble match. That was only step one in a long journey that hopefully ends with him finally winning the big one and walking out of WrestleMania as the top dog in WWE.