5 signs that Drew McIntyre will turn babyface and win the Royal Rumble 2020 match

Is it finally his time? Drew McIntyre rejoined the "main roster" after WrestleMania 35 and has been a regularly-featured part of Monday Night RAW. It hasn't all gone his way, of course. Many expected the renewed McIntyre to be pushed to the top right off the bat, not realizing that it doesn't always work that way.

However, the interest was clear from the start. It's not a secret that Drew McIntyre was handpicked to be a future World Champion 11 years ago. However, due to a multitude of circumstances from his end and the company's end, it didn't work out and he was released.

He returned 3 years later - new and improved in every possible way. His success in NXT was instant and he was the last in the line of the type of superstar that NXT would push - i.e, the "hottest free agent" who would get shot to the top right away.

His time in NXT lasted merely over half a year and he was fast-tracked to RAW - where he is now possibly set to turn babyface and win the Royal Rumble match.

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#5. He's been a heel for too long now

This is a fairly simple sign. While some superstars are "lifelong" babyfaces and "lifelong" heels, the Scottish superstar Drew McIntyre doesn't fit into that category. He's a more versatile performer and his run in NXT was as a babyface.

However, in the one and a half years since he's arrived, he's been a heel and had a character that hasn't made much progression as a whole. There are times where you simply know that a turn is needed and AJ Styles had that moment last summer in 2019.

For McIntyre, he's only been a singular, one-dimensional heel since arriving and a change in character is a big necessity.

#4. He's acted like a babyface since the turn of the new year

This is perhaps the biggest sign of them all. Since the turn of the year, Drew McIntyre has acted like a complete babyface. Sure, maybe his tendencies are slightly heel-ish, but you can notice there's been a slight alteration in his character.

For one, during and after his match against No Way Jose, he had an interaction with the crowd and gave them exactly what they wanted - another Claymore Kick. His promo wasn't overtly heelish either and that's when the tease began.

He had a match against two top stars and defeated them as well, much to the positive reception of the audience. WWE is testing the waters for a potential Drew McIntyre turn and for those who believe that he's a better heel, we request you to be patient and give this a shot.

After all, Elias, whose gimmick is centered around being a heel - has had two babyface runs now. In the world of wrestling, anything can happen.

#3. He's been picking up major momentum in the last couple of months

What many people don't give WWE credit for is how they tend to subtly push superstars. Sure, there are names like Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns who have gotten obvious pushes, but the best ones are done without people noticing.

Take 2016 for instance. Dean Ambrose didn't get the WrestleMania 32 push that people wanted, but WWE was still very careful with him throughout the year. Between January and the summer, he had only been pinned two times - by Roman Reigns at Fastlane and by Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 32.

WWE was careful in pushing and protecting him and it led to an incredible second half of the year for him. With Drew McIntyre, he's getting a similar push to Sheamus before his Royal Rumble 2012 win. He's been getting a string of victories, subtly protected and his wins over AJ Styles and Randy Orton - who have 16 WWE World titles between them, is a big indication that he is on a hot streak of his own.

These aren't done without a purpose and McIntyre may have something big coming for him.

#2. There's no other viable contender for Brock Lesnar on RAW

Brock Lesnar finds himself in a bit of a dilemma. For the first time in a few years, he has no challengers for the WWE Championship, which is why he's entering the Royal Rumble match - at #1 on top of that.

The expectation is that he won't win and the superstar to eliminate him will be the one to face him at WrestleMania 36. The reality is that WWE doesn't have many opponents that can legitimately challenge him for the title. They can't go with Seth Rollins again since it would be a repetition of 2019. They certainly can't do Roman Reigns because he's on SmackDown and again, that would be repetition.

When looking at the fresh stars that are being pushed on RAW (such as Buddy Murphy, Andrade, and Aleister Black), none of them seem ready. The other outside names are Cain Velasquez and Tyson Fury - both of whom are too green at this point.

Moreover, Fury's appearance all depends on whether he beats Deontay Wilder on February 22nd. This leaves Drew McIntyre as the only viable challenger for Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. He doesn't even need to win the Rumble for that.

#1. The timing is perfect

The simple sign that should be the biggest indicator is the timing of the entire situation. As you probably know by now, timing in wrestling is everything and if superstars get injured in such times, they risk the possibility of losing their push to someone else.

Sometimes it works out better, but that's the reason why many wrestlers push through and compete regularly despite carrying injuries with them. Thankfully, that doesn't appear to be the case with Drew McIntyre right now and it seems that the stars have aligned for him.

Apart from just gaining momentum and Lesnar not having a challenger, the track seems to be cleared for him and barring a hiccup, injury or a returning superstar, there isn't anybody better for that big spot at WrestleMania.

The timing has never been better for Drew McIntyre and had you asked us last year, we would have told you that the timing was right for Seth Rollins. WWE listened and hopefully, the same will be the case this time as well at the Royal Rumble 2020.

Edited by Shruti Sadbhav