WWE Superstar to officially turn babyface for the first time and confront Austin Theory on SmackDown? Speculating huge twist

Austin Theory's reign as United States Champion on SmackDown has drawn criticism from fans online. Theory is set to defend his title against Sheamus this week on the blue brand. If the champion gets past the member of The Brawling Brutes, WWE could set up a scintillating rivalry with another star for Theory.

The star in question is none other than LA Knight. Since losing the Money in the Bank ladder match, many have wondered about Knight's future. WWE could put it to rest by engineering a feud between Knight and Theory. The duo could fight at SummerSlam for the US title.

While this rivalry will do Theory a ton of good, it will also be beneficial to LA Knight. Despite getting huge pops from the crowd in recent times, it is unclear whether Knight is a face. If anything, one could argue he is a tweener. However, if WWE books a rivalry between Theory and Knight, it will help the latter transition into an official babyface.

This would also serve Knight well, considering the reactions he has been drawing from fans of late. If WWE chooses to go ahead with this segment, it will be interesting to observe the promos and segments leading up to SummerSlam.

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Austin Theory recently achieved a major milestone as US Champion

If one notices the push Austin Theory has received, it is not hard to figure out that WWE has him in their good books. From giving him a shot at the US title to booking him for a win against John Cena at WrestleMania, WWE certainly looks at Theory as the next big star in the company.

WWE's vision was further solidified by a recent milestone Theory achieved. At Survivor Series WarGames in November last year, Theory beat Seth Rollins and Bobby Lashley to become a two-time US Champion.

Theory's championship reign as of today has lasted for 223 days. This makes the 25-year-old the fourth longest-reigning US Champion in WWE history. Theory is only behind Dean Ambrose(351 days), Rick Rude(378 days), and Lex Luger(522 days) in terms of being the longest-reigning US Champions.

This new milestone Austin Theory achieved at the age of 25 proves that he is set to become the next big thing in the WWE. When he first won the US title, he became the second youngest superstar to hold the belt and the youngest under the WWE banner.

With Austin Theory now being the fourth longest reigning US Champion, it will be interesting to see if WWE chooses to book Theory to break Lex Luger's record. Considering the title reigns of Roman Reigns and Gunther, it won't be a surprise to see Theory becoming the longest-reigning champion in the near future.