6 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE Raw (Aug 31)

2. An Effective ‘Out’ Using Storyline Advancement

Pitting Kevin Owens against Randy Orton in a singles match to determine who would move on to a triple threat for a WWE Championship title shot was problematic.

Orton clearly needed the victory to set himself up for a rematch against Drew McIntyre at Clash of Champions. But Owens losing to Orton again would pretty much signal that he was in freefall and not doing anything of consequence anytime soon.

But WWE managed to utilize the burgeoning feud between KO and Aleister Black as an “out,” with Black jumping Owens before the match and laying him out with a Black Mass. This left KO easy prey for Orton, who nailed an RKO seconds into the match for the win. Thus, Orton easily moved on in the mini-tourney, and Owens can turn his attention to Black, who’s laid him out twice now.

It was somewhat predictable, but it also was effective. And that’s all you can ask for these days from WWE.