8 Ups and 7 Downs From WWE Raw (June 27)
6. Inconsistent 30-Day Title Defense Rule
On the one hand, give WWE credit for using the 30-day title defense rule as a plot device to force Miz to defend his Intercontinental Championship.
However, that “rule” only gets brought up when it’s convenient, making instances where a title isn’t defended even more glaring. Of course, Brock Lesnar’s entire 2014-15 title reign is the best example of not enforcing the 30-day rule.
But more recently, Triple H went from Royal Rumble to Roadblock this year without defending his world title, clearly passing 45 days. Kevin Owens went five weeks from Fastlane to WrestleMania without defending his IC title this year. And New Day has violated the 30-day “rule” twice this year with the Tag Team Championships.
It’s tough to call this a “down” in some ways, but it does feel odd when you see how inconsistent the 30-day rule is applied. If you’re going to have this rule on the books, then at least try to make sure it’s somewhat followed. With seven hours of television to fill each week, you’d think it wouldn’t be that hard.