Finn Balor's WWE Raw debut was one of the most memorable, well handled pieces of booking in many years. In one night, Balor won two matches, most notably a clean victory over Roman Reigns to set up the first ever Universal Championship match at SummerSlam. Balor's opponent at that event: Seth Rollins.
As this feud has progressed, we've seen a face off between the two, Rollins delivering a promo dissing the "Demon King," Balor explaining the origins of his name, and finally the Demon emerging to bounce Rollins out of the ring on the go-home edition of Monday Night Raw. Before we dive into the finish of their SummerSlam match, let's briefly go over the unveiling of the Demon persona on free television.
A lot of people were shocked and disappointed that WWE gave away the Demon entrance for free this past Monday. I completely see that point and agree with it to an extent. I'll defend WWE's decision in this respect: Why not introduce this persona on Raw as opposed to throwing the two out there in separate singles matches or in a tag on opposite sides? I like the fact the both men haven't been in the ring wrestling much leading into this match. They've had a couple very brief exchanges and haven't over exposed either guy. The fact is that the main roster audience doesn't know Balor well. They've done a solid job of introducing his character to this fan base without relegating him to the pack of 50/50 mid-card Superstars. Instead of shooting the typical contract signing or promo battle, WWE opted for the Demon King to confront Rollins. The fans took to this persona and it got over easily with the go-home crowd. I would argue that this made the match more intriguing going into SummerSlam and the now the fans that may have been skeptical of Balor now see him in a completely different light.
Alright, time to discuss the Universal Title match finish.
WWE has no choice but to put Finn Balor over Seth Rollins at SummerSlam. There are no other options. It can be assumed that if this match is designed to crown the first Universal Champion, then there has to be a decisive finish. If there has to be a winner, then Balor must beat Rollins. Since the draft, WWE has pushed Balor to the moon and back. It would be completely nonsensical to invest this much time and energy into Balor to beat him in his first big match on the main roster. Also, the Demon persona cannot be beat this early. A major part of Balor's appeal and character comes from his transformation into his alter ego for big matches. If Rollins were to win this Sunday, all of the momentum and mystique Balor has right now will disappear. WWE would eliminate their investment and Balor would fall into the pack of wrestlers that are all positioned to stay in the mid-card. WWE's track record in these situations is not all positive, though.
Who can forget Kevin Owen's shocking win over John Cena in his first main roster match over John Cena? No one, really. But after the huge victory, Owens was defeated by Cena at two straight PPV's. Looking back on that, it's obvious that Owens should've won the best of three. Why not create a star with the first match and continue his momentum? Luckily for Owens, he's extremely talented and survived the mediocre booking. Another example is CM Punk's loss to Triple H just months after his famous "Pipe Bomb" promo. Why halt Punk's momentum? No one can really explain it.
The point of this is that Seth Rollins will not fall into obscurity by losing to Balor at SummerSlam. If the plan is for Rollins to eventually beat Triple H after a strong program, then losing to Balor is not a negative. Balor needs the win for his future, as well as WWE's. The Universal Championship will lend credibility to Finn while at the same time Finn will give credibility to the new title. It's pretty simple, really.
Considering everything that's in play here, it's obvious that Balor must beat Rollins for the Universal Championship at SummerSlam. If WWE wants to establish a new star that will help the company for years to come, the finish must be that. Balor has a win over Reigns already and has proven to be a force on the main roster. Sunday will be very interesting as we will find out if the company has its head on straight for the future. If Balor loses, the repercussions could be felt for years to come.
Brady Sauvageau
The Heater
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