What if Dean Ambrose wins the Universal Championship at Survivor Series?

Dean Ambrose turned heads on Raw when he turned heel. In and of itself, this turn was newsworthy as Ambrose has been a consistent face and arguably the most universally well liked member of The Shield since early 2014. Moreover, the fact that he turned on Seth Rollins immediately after the pair had defeated Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler for the Raw Tag Team Championships, the timing came off as particularly surprising.

That WWE would pull the trigger on this turn the same night as Roman Reigns announced that he needed to step away from the ring due to his battle with leukemia made it all the more monumental. There were rumors and teases about an Ambrose turn for some time, and it’s unclear if WWE planned to go ahead with it now. More so, it comes across as WWE skipping ahead to this angle to in many ways hit the reset button on the upper card, and maybe even the main event scene.

Barring any drastic changes between now and November 2, either Braun Strowman or Brock Lesnar will leave Crown Jewel as the new Universal Champion. But what if Dean Ambrose wins the title at Survivor Series? This article takes a look at five potential outcomes.

#5 Dean Ambrose carries the title into WrestleMania

Dean Ambrose may be in for a lengthy title reign.

In recent years, WWE has erred toward long title reigns for its top champions, including Brock Lesnar holding the Universal Championship for nearly a year and a half, AJ Styles currently closing in on a year with the WWE Championship, and Jinder Mahal holding that same title for over half of the year before that.

In Roman Reigns having to vacate the Universal Championship, WWE has been forced to scramble to revamp plans. It is not clear that the company intended for Braun Strowman to win a world title this soon, or for the title to land back around Brock Lesnar’s waist. In either case, if Dean Ambrose manages to ride the momentum of his heel turn to a title reign starting at Survivor Series, it will probably signal WWE hitting reset and having him carry the title at least into WrestleMania season.

#4 Seth Rollins chases the title

Seth Rollins is one of the most natural challengers Dean Ambrose could face.

If Dean Ambrose is to capture the Universal Championship at Survivor Series (or any other time in the imminent future) there is no more natural challenger to line up against him than Seth Rollins. Ambrose and Rollins’ WWE careers have been totally intertwined, often as partners in The Shield, and also more than once as arch-rivals. Ambrose spent most of Rollins’ original heel solo run haunting him, first in a feud as they each climbed the ranks, then chasing his WWE Championship.

Not only do these guys have history, but Ambrose betraying Rollins with a brutal attack naturally sets them up for a feud. The only reason why this feud may not happen straight away in an Ambrose Universal title reign would be if WWE decides not to give away the money feud right away, and instead give it the most featured spot of all at WrestleMania—potentially, even, as the main event.

#3 Renee Young gets involved

Renee Young is darling of WWE fans; as Dean Ambrose's wife, she may find herself involved in his big angle.

Renee Young has risen up as one of WWE’s most recognizable broadcast personalities. Her work on WWE Network specials, panels, and as an interviewer made her a crowd favorite. She also got over based on a bit of unconventional cred—the fact that she was known to be involved in a real-life relationship with and to have ultimately married popular star, Dean Ambrose.

There’s a long history of WWE having its broadcasters involved in angles. Sure, that includes wrestling veterans like Jerry Lawler and Tazz getting into issues with current stars. It also includes people ranging from Jim Ross to Michael Cole without real wrestling backgrounds getting into angles to build sympathy or heat around them.

To get the most heat out of Ambrose’s turn possible, one approach would be for him to heel on Young, too. For as well liked as she is, she could readily play something like a modern day Miss Elizabeth to Ambrose's Macho Man Randy Savage at his worst. He’s already over, but a special kind of heat comes from picking on a female non-wrestling talent who is over with the fans.

#2 Dean Ambrose vs Braun Strowman

Braun Strowman's title hunt will continue.

While a feud with Seth Rollins is one of the most obvious places for Dean Ambrose’s heel turn to lead, if he is to garner the Universal Championship another opponent he has to expect would be The Monster Among Men, Braun Strowman.

Strowman has orbited the Universal Championship picture for most of the last year, positioned as the Money in the Bank briefcase holder, the number one contender, or working his way back toward that position. Especially in the absence of Roman Reigns, Strowman is uniquely positioned to be the top face on Raw and, indeed, running the risk of coming across as a guy who can’t get the job done if he still doesn’t capture the title in the months ahead.

Strowman vs. Ambrose might look like a kayfabe mismatch, but with Ambrose as a heel with a screw loose, and presumably a willingness to cheat, he could hold his own against his bigger challenger. This is a feud that could easily be featured at the Royal Rumble, or potentially even go into WrestleMania for Strowman to finally capture the title there.

#1 Roman Reigns comes knocking when he returns

The timing of Dean Ambrose's turn invites Roman Reigns to come looking for him when he gets back.

The fact that Dean Ambrose turned heel on the same night Roman Reigns relinquished the Universal Championship felt intentional from a booking perspective, to maximize the shock value and make sure Ambrose came across as a very big deal in this turn. Moreover, from a more kayfabe perspective, one could argue that turn came across as a slap in the face, for Ambrose to turn on The Shield name and on mutual friend Seth Rollins on the same night Reigns had to back down.

Hopefully, Reigns will make a full recovery and be able to return to the ring before too long. Whether Ambrose is still champion or not, that the Lunatic Fringe would have benefited from his old ally’s downfall would naturally set up an issue between them when The Big Dog does come back. Reigns and Ambrose have had matches in the past, but could easily escalate things to a new emotional high based on Reigns’ real life issues and Ambrose’s turn and potential title reign.