10 Booking Steps Leading Finn Bálor To WWE Title
A man possessed.
Finn Bálor's path to the main event was, initially, among the clearest and quickest in WWE history.
In an interesting stat - one which brings into depressing focus the downfall of DemonMania - Hulk Hogan re-debuted in the WWF on December 27, 1983. He captured his first WWF Heavyweight Title, at the expense of the Iron Sheik, on January 23, 1984. Finn Bálor wrestled his first two main roster matches on the July 25, 2016 episode of Monday Night RAW, cementing his #1 contendership. He captured the Universal Title at SummerSlam on August 21.
It took the Demon, his stint in NXT notwithstanding, the exact same amount of time to reach the summit as Hulk Hogan did. Where Hogan went on to become the most famous wrestler on the planet, Finn Bálor, having suffered a major shoulder injury minutes before his coronation, underwent a depressingly familiar career arc: 50/50 feuds, stature-enhancing big wins, sudden, inexplicable and depressing demotions...
He is now just another sports entertainer on the RAW brand.
Finn Bálor's path to the main event was, initially, among the clearest and quickest in WWE history. His next World Title win, in reality or the fantasy realm, will come a d*mn sight harder...
10. A Major Win Before A Major Fall
Wins and losses do not matter, so sayeth Road Dogg. This is absolute b*llocks, of course, and so, in order to condition fans to accept Finn Bálor as a prospective champion, a major win on a major stage is required - the sort that lingers long enough in the memory to obscure a series of subsequent defeats.
WrestleMania is that stage - one so mythical that matches wrestled on it become better because they were wrestled at WrestleMania. CM Punk Vs. Randy Orton at WrestleMania XVII; Chris Jericho Vs. Edge at WrestleMania XXVI; the various Money In The Bank sequels; none of those matches, regarded as memorable midcard 'Mania offerings, were that memorable in themselves. Received by an adoring, spectacular vista of stadium fans, they live on as beneficiaries of the epic occasion.
Seth Rollins is the opponent, for reasons both pragmatic and in terms of positioning the Finn Bálor character effectively. Rollins and Bálor are well-versed in the art of assembling a gripping, state-of-the-art 15 minute bout. Both share evident chemistry - but both have also shared recently the mundane stage that is a throwaway episode of RAW. Conversely, both are skilled enough workers to devise/reserve something special for a special occasion.
A Big 4 PPV victory over Rollins reminds fans of the excitement and legitimacy surrounding the Demon.