WWE Raw: 10 Things You May Have Missed (19th Sept)

8. Soft Babyface Turn For Seth Rollins

James Ellsworth
WWE.com

There's an argument to be made that Seth Rollins has always been popular because he's a wonderful in-ring performer, but he's never been an outright babyface on the main roster. That looks set to change, as WWE are quite clearly interested in building Rollins against Triple H as a marquee match for WrestleMania 33.

In order for that to really work, one man needs to be babyface. It makes sense that Seth would fill such a role as he stands a much better chance of being cheered than Roman Reigns ever did. Crucially, the writing team have taken a soft approach to a Rollins turn; they haven't changed much at all about his persona.

Instead, Raw had - for the first time - Rollins going up against Rusev in a singles encounter. Even though his promo style and general mannerisms remain the same, Seth tweaked his in-ring work to reflect the fact he's turning. Working more of a classic babyface style, he let the heel dominate during the heat of the match.

In addition, those dives that Rollins keeps performing are crowd-pleasing. There's a reason for that, but WWE were mindful not to paint Seth as a grinning, happy-go-lucky good guy.

Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.