11 WWE Fastlane 2019 Impulse Reactions
3. Daniel Bryan Vs. Kevin Owens Vs. Mustafa Ali
What to make of this.
Optimism? Emptiness? Empathy? Anything?
Vince McMahon promised a triple threat WWE Championship match in the bait-and-switch segment earlier in the night, and deliver he did upon the clash with the late insertion of Mustafa Ali into Daniel Bryan's match with Kevin Owens. But KofiMania continues to run wild, and WWE may have been a little too forthright in their man-management here.
Ali - a fiery babyface foe for Bryan in January before an injury halted his mini-push - shouldn't have been shunted into a spot fans viewed as somebody else's. Not only was the biggest babyface forced to absorb boos in the match, but the sleight of hand also resulted in Kevin Owen's delicate reactions disappearing. He was neither hero nor villain to the Cleveland crowd, even when he threw his body at Rowan and Daniel Bryan to kick off a chain of crowd-pleasing spots at the finish.
The New Daniel Bryan berated Ali before eventually claiming the fall - it was a failed final effort to get his Challenger cheered, and like much of this match, the intentions were broadly sound. Again, like much of this match, it served to deprive rather than deliver.