Why did Vince McMahon punish WWE star Finn Balor in 2017?

A few years ago, Vince McMahon took a shot at Finn Balor and punished him for what he did after a match against AJ Styles at TLC on October 22, 2017. Balor and Styles had a great match in the Premium Live Event, which saw Finn (in The Demon gimmick) defeat The Phenomenal One.

After the match was over, the two superstars did the Too Sweet, a signature gesture of The Bullet Club, one of the best factions in the wrestling world, which also featured Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.

"Myself and AJ shared a Too Sweet after the match and that wasn't something we planned. As AJ was shaking my hand, he said you want to do it, brother? I said, are you sure? he said yes, so, yeah, let's do it...you know, myself and AJ delivered that day," Finn Balor said about the Too Sweet.

However, it appears that then-WWE boss Vince McMahon didn't like that moment from Finn Balor and AJ Styles and punished the former World Champion the following night on RAW (October 23, 2017).

Balor took on Kane and got a beatdown by the Big Red Monster, which was weird, given that he was victorious at TLC and had the momentum on his side. However, it seems that this was Vince's way of punishing Finn Balor for going off-script.

It is also worth noting here that Vince McMahon wasn't very excited about a Bullet Club reunion in WWE, since the faction had thrived in other wrestling companies. This could explain why Finn got beaten down by Kane on Monday Night RAW.

Vince McMahon once didn't consider Finn Balor a big-time player in WWE

Finn Balor moved to the main roster back in 2016. He was expected to get a push by WWE, but it appears that Vince McMaon had a different opinion.

According to reports from 2017, Vince McMahon did not consider the former World Champion a big-time player despite his ability to work great matches in the ring and his success in other wrestling companies.

Thus, the former WWE boss didn't consider him a big-time player, and this might explain why he didn't get many opportunities for a major title in WWE when Vince was in charge.

Fast-forward to today, Balor got a title match against Gunther and Damian Priest for the World Heavyweight Championship at Saturday Night's Main Event last Saturday, and it seems that he might return to the title picture again with Triple H in charge of WWE now.