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At WWE Clash of Champions, Seth Rollins defeated Braun Strowman in the main event. It was a solid match that offered a satisfyingly clean finish as Rollins put away a formidable challenger to solidify his new Universal Championship reign. However, in the moments to follow the bout, The Fiend struck.
Bray Wyatt attacked Seth Rollins, and though WWE had already somewhat quietly announced he would challenge for the Universal title at Hell in a Cell, this ambush solidified the issue between these two. Their rivalry would lead to a Hell in a Cell bout, and the inconclusive nature of that match’s finish set up a rematch for Crown Jewel.
But what if things had played out differently? Specifically, what if, rather than going after The Beast Slayer, The Fiend had instead set his sights on Strowman at the end of Clash of Champions? This article takes a look at what might have followed.
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#5 Seth Rollins faces A different challenger
Though WWE had already alluded to The Fiend challenging for the Universal Championship at Hell in a Cell, it wouldn’t have been unheard of for the company to change directions and shuffle the deck coming out of Clash Champions. As such, WWE might have put Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt on hold, in favour of The Fiend further establishing himself opposite Braun Strowman for the program to follow.
Rollins, then, might have taken a different course in his championship defenses. He may not have had a lot of obvious challengers waiting in the wings—which is arguably why The Fiend advanced to number one contender status so quickly.
Nonetheless, a perennial contender like AJ Styles or Dolph Ziggler could have readily renewed their issue with Rollins for a one-off bout at Hell in a Cell, or else WWE might have heated up someone like Bobby Lashley for that purpose.
A retuning Rusev, who put on a great match with Rollins for title a few weeks ago, could have also been one who could have benefitted with a feud with The Architect.
While none of these options are necessarily ideal, they may have nonetheless served WWE well in putting off The Fiend’s first title match.
#4 A Triple Threat Match
Rather than Seth Rollins facing a different challenger while The Fiend battled Braun Strowman, WWE also could have gone the route of using The Fiend’s attack (after, or perhaps even during the Clash of Champions main event) as justification to have all three in the same program. Rollins, Strowman, and The Fiend could have been booked for a Triple Threat, and a match may have even still been staged inside Hell in a Cell.
A Triple Threat Match may have been quite good between these three, particularly given what each brings to the table. Rollins’s cardio and explosiveness could serve him well as the smallest performer in such a match, playing a role something like he did against John Cena and Brock Lesnar at Royal Rumble 2015.
Meanwhile, having two bodies to work with in the ring could offer a showcase for Strowman’s sheer power, as he has demonstrated a number of times in handicap match situations. Finally, given The Fiend’s supernatural bent, having two people to riff off—absorbing and delivering punishment—could have served the character well.
#3 Braun Strowman Takes A Step Down The Ladder
Whether Braun Strowman faced The Fiend, or both The Fiend and Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell and moving forward from that point, the outcome likely would have been the same. Strowman would have taken the fall.
Indeed, one of the challenges WWE seemed to face going into Hell in a Cell is that the powers that be neither wanted to take the title off of Rollins, nor have Bray Wyatt defeated so early in his run with his new persona.
Strowman would have offered an out. Even though the company has generally treated him as a top tier star, continually on the edge of or actively involved in the Universal Championship picture, Strowman’s loss to Rollins at Clash of Champions demonstrated that he’s a notch below world champion status in WWE’s eyes.
Having him take the loss here could save both Rollins and The Fiend for the month, and give them another month or more to build to a blow off between just the two of them.
#2 A Play On Wyatt Family History
When WWE main roster fans first got a acquainted with Braun Strowman, it was in the context of him being the biggest addition to Bray Wyatt’s faction, The Wyatt Family. He played a heater role, not wrestling all that much, but getting acclimated to life on the road and working around more experienced talents to prepare him for bigger things. Meanwhile, he offered the complementary benefit of his sheer size and look adding some extra credibility to the heel group.
When Strowman was ready, he broke out on his own, and WWE dropped any references to his past ties to the faction. Strowman has mostly steered clear of Wyatt, Erick Rowan, and Luke Harper since, though. If he actually were to have a proper program with The Fiend, might WWE call on their shared history?
The answer would largely come down to preferences of the creative powers that be, and there’s certainly a case to be made that the two have been separate on screen long enough that WWE wouldn’t need to acknowledge a link. Strowman could play an offbeat voice of reason, though, trying to talk sense into Wyatt in referencing his relatively sane days before he transformed into The Fiend.
#1 A More Decisive Finish To The First Seth Rollins Vs. The Fiend Match
WWE found itself in a corner at Hell in a Cell for wanting to protect both Seth Rollins and Bray Wyatt. Had their first one on one match been delayed with Wyatt first warring against Braun Strowman, however, it might have offered the necessary buffer for WWE to have Rollins vs. The Fiend end more decisively.
As it stands, the referee stoppage to their first match both prevented a clearer conclusion and seemed to undermine the more brutal underpinnings of the Hell in a Cell concept.
What would have happened if the first iteration of Rollins vs. The Fiend had had a decisive ending, perhaps at Crown Jewel, Survivor Series, or TLC? We can’t know for sure, but if The Fiend’s match or matches with Braun Strowman were as well received as his first outing opposite Finn Balor, he may well have been in line for a title reign? Alternatively, if the bloom came off the rose for The Fiend before he got to a Universal Championship match, it may have been an easier call for Rollins to have pinned him cleanly.
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