10 Ways To Fix WWE's Universal Title
How to make the "top prize" feel like a top prize again.
It's hard to feel enthusiastic about Raw's main event scene at the moment. Kevin Owens, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Chris Jericho are four of WWE's best all-round performers, but they just aren't delivering. Their intertwining feuds have been rife with overbooking, the matches have disappointed, and they've been greatly outshined by most of WWE's other divisions.
The Universal Title is at the heart of this, and it is emblematic of Raw's post-Brand Split struggles as a whole. It has been a long, long time since WWE have had a "top prize" that has felt this worthless, and the belt's lack of prestige has only dragged Raw down since it debuted in August.
The belt's name was mocked from the moment it was announced, as was its garish red design. Rollins and Finn Balor's inaugural title match was plagued by chants of "this title sucks" at SummerSlam, and the title's disastrous start continued when Balor was forced to relinquish the belt through injury just 24 hours after winning it.
Kevin Owens took the Universal Title one week later, and things went from bad to worse. His run has been a disaster since the day it began, and while the belt has only existed since August, it's currebtly worth no more than the materials used to make it. It's not beyond salvation, however, and if WWE make the right choices, they can rebuild their broken championship in 2017.
Here are 10 ways to fix the WWE Universal Title.
10. Get It Off Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens deserved better than this. He took a long, hard road through the independent circuit before finally making it to WWE 14 years later, and he quickly became one of the company’s most popular wrestlers despite his devious ways. A charismatic, witty talker and a great all-round wrestler, Owens isn’t just one of WWE’s most complete performers, but one of the hardest working, and his first major title run should have been something special.
Unfortunately, KO’s Universal Title reign has been a complete disaster. He is WWE’s weakest top champion since Rey Mysterio, and after months of harmful booking and poor creative direction, it’s time to consign Owens’ run to the scrapheap. The run’s credibility is beyond saving at this point, and the belt’s reputation cannot grow while it’s around his waist.
The first step on the road to fixing the Universal Title is having Kevin Owens drop it as soon as possible. The former NXT Champion hasn’t won on his own accord in months, and has been presented as a weak champion who can’t get the job done without the influence of his best friend Chris Jericho. He got off to a poor start when Triple H effectively handed him the belt in August, and he has never recovered from it.
Owens requires a long recuperation period away from the belt before he can be considered a credible top option again. Unfortunately, the past four months have been horrendous for his career, and the WWE Universal Championship.