7 Ups And 7 Downs From WWE Payback 2015

By Scott Carlson /

4. A Little Color

Ever since WWE went PG, the instances of bloodshed in matches have been extremely limited, typically to accidents. Lately, however, we€™ve seen more and more situations where wrestlers have gotten a little color in their matches. Whether this is a slight reversal of policy, if done correctly, a little blood can add something to a match. Case in point, Dolph Ziggler was making a comeback against Sheamus. He threw a headbutt, only to be busted wide open. Almost immediately, he went from being on offense to too dazed to function and ate a Brogue Kick seconds later to lose. The sight of blood magnified how injured Ziggler was, tempering his loss a little. At the same time, it made Sheamus look like a killer, standing over a bloodied and beaten opponent. It will be interesting to see if this was something that was authorized, or if it truly was accidental. Even if the higher-ups okayed it, chances are we€™ll get the same denial we did about Brock Lesnar bleeding at WrestleMania €“ which was another effective use of bloodshed to drive a bigger narrative.