This is ww Superstar Drew McIntire and you're listening to the WWE podcast show,
the one that everybody wants me to step three sixth day and says, God,
just rust your last this is my you're gonna like manage men? Hey,
what's going on? Guys? And welcome back to WWE Retro on the
WWE Podcast on this Friday, April twenty ninth. There were actually twenty eight
go ahead of myself there as we are creeping towards Backlash, but more importantly,
it feels like we are now looking past Backlash and towards Night of Champions
in Saudi Arabia, which will be the one thousand day celebration of Roman Reigns
as the World Champion. And you know, I've never been a fan of
this. I'm sure if you've listened to me and Matt long enough, you
know that we're not really fans of how a lot of times WWE will do
things to bypass the one pay per view to just look on to the next.
It feels that's what's happening here, and Backlash truly is a B level
pay per view. The best match of the night, the presumable, the
presumed the main event will be a non title match between Brock Lesner and Cody
Rhodes, and then you have the two women's championships being defended, you have
the US title being defended, the six man tag match between the Bloodline,
Kevin Ow and Sammy Saint Matt Riddle. So I guess it will be a
good pay per view. It's just is a bit unfortunate that we are looking
past this pay per view, or at least I am. And one of
the reasons why we are looking past this pay per view is simple. The
new World Heavyweight Championship now presumably and leave. I'm a bit behind on the
current product. I'll be honest with you, guys have about one or two
shows behind. So my next show that I have to watch is SmackDown from
a week ago. But from everything I understand is that the World Heavyweight title
will be handed out at the Night of champions pay per view, which is
really cool in a lot of ways. I think that it's pretty awesome because
as someone who grew up in the world in the ruthless Aggression era of the
World Heavyweight title was a prominent figure and a prominent championship for much of those
years, and you can make the case that there was a period where the
World Heavyweight Title felt more significant than the WWE Championship, specifically when it was
over on Monday Night Raw, when it main evented wrestling at twenty when it
main evented wrestling yet twenty one, with Triple H walking in as champion both
times and walking out not as champion both times. You know, once Benwah
wins it, the other time Batista wins it. They're bringing this back,
and I hope that they will continue the lineage of the former World Heavyweight Title,
it's predecessor that was retired almost ten years ago. How crazy is that
that they unified the World title and the WWE Championship almost ten years ago in
a ladder match between Randy Jordan and John Cena, And now presumably they're going
to unify the WWE and Universal Championships into one belt, and just like that,
we are going to have another world title evaporating into Finnair and the Universal.
And I think that's something that is very interesting about all this, because
you know, Matt and I spoke about it, I've seen people speak about
it online. Is that the presumed favorite to win the first ever World Heavyweight
Championship or bring back as brought back as the new world title is Cody Rhodes,
and in a lot of ways he deserves that. You know, everyone
knows I'm not a Cody Rhodes fan, but I could be objective and I
think that he would be a perfect guy to carry that World championship. But
the problem you get into here when you keep introducing new world titles is that
it dilutes the meaning of them. And is this the world Is this the
title that his dad never won? Or are we being more specific about is
it Dusty Rhodes, or I mean, is it the WWE title? The
title that Dusty Rhodes never won? And now the fact that the Universal title
is going to be merged with the WWE, and I know they always start
by saying the undisputed WWE Universal's Champion, but after a while, it will
always become just the WWE Champion again. It always has it, always will.
We saw it when it merged with the WCW title, and when we
saw it merge with the World Heavyweight Championship ten years ago. They'll carry the
dual name for a bit of time, and then it will always go back
to just being known as the WWE Championship. So now, when the Universal
Title is inevitably and presumably imminently retired, are the people who won the Universal
Championship going to be considered as former world champions? You know? Is Kevin
Owens still going to be considered as a onetime world champion? Is Finn Balor
to be considered as a one time world champion? You know? Brock Lessner,
I believe his longest title reign was as a Universal champion. Is he
going to be able to hold on to that? You know? Roman reign
started this thousand day run as the Universal Champion. Bron Stroman is another guy
who has only one world title run under his belt, and it was as
the Universal Champion. Both times Goldberg won it, he was the Universal Champion.
So I mean, I know WWE, I know they're going to keep
the Universal title even when it is officially retired under the umbrella of a world
champion. I just find it interesting that now this title was you know,
creative thin air in twenty sixteen, and seven years later it's going to be
pretty much retired and just will ride off into the sunset. But I mean,
all in all, I'm happy that Triple H has bringing back the World
heavyweight title. Still undecided if I'd like to look, but I do think
that it's going to be a better change of pays. And we just spoke
about briefly about who could be the next or the first ever world champion or
I don't know it's it the next or the first, because is this the
a new world title or are they just bringing it back? So the next,
the first, whatever you want to call it, could be Cody Rhodes.
But another candidate, and arguably the best candidate beyond Cody Rhodes, it's
seth Rawlins, a guy who has not held the world title coincidentally the Universal
in almost four years. It's been since October of twenty fourteen since seth Rawlins
has held a world championship when he lost the Universal title to Bray Wyatt coincidentally
in Saudi Arabia. So could he be the next guy? Which brings us
back to his first ever run as a world champion, back when he won
the title at WrestleMania thirty one, when he interjected himself in the World Heavyweight
Championship match between Roman Reigns and brock Lester or this will never be a rumple
torn? What thats? Why the way? Sup then turning to touching the
unstairs and calls on Kurts on the way from me the coming of the world.
Have you one champions? Cost the future is now Superlas taking a race.
Sand's gonna finish him taking no chances here at all costown the air,
crashpare concepts, sep you kiddy. So if you guys haven't figured it out,
today we were talking about seth rawlins first run as a w WWE World
Champion, and in my mind, Wrestling at thirty one was the best WrestleMania
of the last two decades, probably maybe fifteen years. I think fifteen years
is a safer like blanket term, but I mean that's not to say that
there hasn't been good ones. This year was really good. Wrestling at thirty
eight was really good. But Wrestling at thirty one's main event by seth Rollns
cashing in and in a lot of ways saving the main event a main event
that was heavily rejected, although I do think it over delivered in a lot
of ways, was something that was very memorable. And seth Rawlins was a
guy who had clearly been on the ascent for almost a full calendar year,
breaks away from the Shield, becomes the money in the Bank briefcase holder,
and he goes into WrestleMania in a very heated program with Randy Orton, and
they're the second match on the card, and Randy Orton scores that victory.
And I remember when seth Rawlins was entering the ring and entering the stadium.
When he got to the ring, he got up on the second turnbuckle and
he lifted up his briefcase and I was just like, Yeah, he's Cashian
tonight. And it evidently it seemed like I didn't really know what was up
because he only found out, I think, a bit before this match even
went underway. I think it really was a last minute decision by WWE,
and I do think it was probably the best decision that they could have made.
This was an absolutely fantastic booking decision on the part of WWE. So
what happens here is that he continues his program with Randy Orton, they face
off against each other at extreme Rules the following pay per view, and he
ultimately retains its title. Beyond that, he goes to Payback and he has
a fatal four way match against Randy Orton, Roman Reins, and Dean Ambrose
for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. He once again retains that and one of
the underlying storylines here is that he was having tensions with Kane, that Kane
was showing him tough love. If he had lost the fatal four way match
at Payback, he would have been Kane would have lost his title as Director
of Operations. It ultimately ended up along the way of Kine coming back with
the mask and when set it all and tried to break his ankle with a
stomp to the ankle when it was in between the chair, and that was
another cool wrinkle to kind of see Kane's transformation back into Demon Kane after he
had been the corporate stewed for what felt like at this point like a year
and a half. It really felt like a year and a half that Kane
had been the director of Operations and kind of a lackey in a lot of
ways for the authority, a very good version of Kane. It really showed
Kane's depth in capabilities as a wrestler and as a performer. So even though
it probably wasn't mine or most pupil's favorite version of Kane. It really showed
how good of a good of an asset Kane was and he kind of was
mister everything for WWE for in a lot of ways. So a few months
go by and the authority obviously very proud of their chosen one. But it
gets to a point where the authority felt that seth Rawlins had to be ready
for the fine, you know and next task. If you want to know
what you have with a lump of coal, you stick it under immense pressure.
That pressure does one of two things. The pressure either causes it to
crumble and turn to dust and render it useless, or that pressure turns it
into the diamond that you always hoped it could be. Set. The question
now is do you crumble or do you become the diamond that we have infested
in? Because Set, the pressure is on. M h oh, that's
a pressure. That's a pacy card. That is upsiding machine. I cannot
believe. I sh what is your down and leads a bed but hold dust
end his chairmanship. He's to stare at a folds pressure. That was a
conversa Blache Lastner is, as he said, tell me world Anyway Championship Byway
Barking five first season. So Brock returns for the first time since being suspended
post WrestleMania thirty one when he went absolutely nuts, destroyed the announced booth h
F five Michael cole F five to cameraman, and sefty Man suspended him.
Now he's back a few short months later to try and regain the championship that
he had lost but was never pinned for a wrestling at thirty one. He
loses brock Lessner that is, at the hands of the of seth Rawlins,
but with the help of the Undertaker, the Undertaker returns and him and brock
Lesner kick up an old rivalry fifteen months after Brock had broken the streak and
it allows seth Rawlins to keep the title. This leads to SummerSlam in a
championship versus championship match seth Rawlins versus John Cena. John Cena, the then
United States Champion against seth Rawlins, the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, and this
seemed like a pretty big deal. They do not do title versus title matches
often, especially when it's mid card versus like a World championship, and you
know obviously the most important or the most prominent one in history is probably the
Ultimate Warrior versus the versus Hogan. At WrestleMania six, we're both the IC
and the w w E Championship were on the line. But it really is
a cool concept. It's something that you would figure that they would go back
to the well with more, although I do understand that they like to probably
keep those two tiers of competitors apart. But when you have an a young
up and comer like seth Rawlins as the world champion, and you have a
legacy star and one of the greatest of all times as the US champion,
you know, really holding down that mid card scene, it made sense why
they ultimately decided to go this route. It was just more the outcome that
was shocking above all else. The stakes and see kicked down. Ros can't
believe it be he can't, but he's gonna be thinking about got to do
a more candidate Si, she don't see him. Here's what more any dore?
This is it with the stakes? Roll freaking guys call this tidy gus
so hard ships out and complete myself. He said he had seen who with
the Trump ship. He's got un on speed form said there's an imposing energy.
Came it out, don't he stuck down the emposing here she seeing the
delay to believe me at time one and if you're right, thing said,
Ron realizes no wrong and then can't see is realizes it's called the title aside
of time to try to get another way. He isn't get this one up.
I never see it's just gotta chip. So I'm not saying control.
It's wild nose just the way les book see. It starts back in the
same room. Can he get had desperation, Oh my god, she had
that nose prepaired down searching me. Just a few weeks ago he fractured in
number of places well stood doing kind of stige and we took shing the prettire
you need help U there and remember still it to interdictions and wise I was
on Parely show and don't do this. You cannot get this because he sizes
you got business being in there knowing she won't trimmings you much. Get it
up? Y? Yeah, so you heard that right? Uh? John
One Stewart is the guy who costed John Cena the match and the ability to
say that he was the for the only WWE and US champion simultaneously. And
look, I mean, I get it, John Stewart host popular, but
my god, really they couldn't think of a better way to cap off one
of the more historic matches in WWE. And I'm not saying that in retrospect
that it was a historic match, but I mean, like, in theory,
it should have been build and thought of as a historic match, right
am? I off with that, Like, you're crowning the first ever US
and WWE world champion, And you know what, like I thought maybe John
Cena would get it, given where he was at in his career. You
know, you were about you You basically had another year and a half left
of John Cena as a full time competitor in mid two thousand and fifteen.
So I thought, hey, maybe they'll give him like this really cool title
or the ability to say this and this and that. But they give it
to Rawlins, who was an up and comer, and I think that was
the right decision. I won't argue with that decision, but the fact that
they made John Cena get cost of this opportunity by John Stewart. And then
the reasoning was is that he didn't want John Cena to tie Rick Flair's record
as world champion. It was just it was stupid. The reasoning was stupid.
It really like put a dark cloud over an otherwise very good match and
an otherwise very well thought out main event. I think, you know,
this was a cool concept to really kind of put seth Rawlins it, or
separate seth Rawlins away from the rest. And I think that was something that
we really have to consider here, is that seth Rawlins is run as champion,
as world champion, really is separated from the rest because he was also
the US Champion for a point in time. And this led to a celebration
the next night by the authority for seth Rawlins historic accomplishment, and it was
all to be culminated with the unveiling of a seth Rollins statue with both belts.
But when it was time to unveal the statue, it ended up being
just all but the opposite of what Rallins was expecting. True, let's be
the man. You know where this is going. You've got to beat the
man, and that is exactly what I did last night. Baby. So
when we un statue, as at that moment, just like you said,
Trip, I am no longer the future of WWE. I am the man.
And after I go on to manavate WrestleMania after WrestleMania, after WrestleMania,
this statue will stand when I am long retired, help when I am dead
and gone, this statue will live forever in the recognition of my Lacey Bruno,
San Martino, the Ultimate Warrior, Andre the Giant, and now set
Rollin. It's fine, baby, I can't wait anymore. I can't wait
anymore, Brooklyn. Are you ready? No? No, no, no,
no, this one's for you, I said, Brooklyn. Ah you
read well, Let's do this, baby, because that sham is here.
Hell, oh my god, it's staging for broke by God. He's say,
oh my god, can't stay get your staying thing, my friend Chis
and go see that my true staying around. He sat roll stay, stick
Is Wash goes Rose sticking sticking to the starting again. I can't go us
in my yes, So Sting returns and with his sight set on the WWE
World Championship and the following pay per view was Night of Champions which would result
in Rawlins defending his ww Pardon me his WWE Championship against Sting and his US
title against John Cena and a rematch, he would retain the w w E
Championship against Sting in the process severely injurig Sting and thought to have maybe ended
his career with a Botch buckle bomb and losing the US title to John Cena.
He would then at the very next pay per view successfully defend the WWE
World Title against Kane in a Helen Cell match. King would lose his job
as director of Operations, and then just less than a short month later,
I believe at a house show seth Rawlins would injure himself. I believe it
was his knee at the time and have to relinquish the World Heavyweight Championship or
WWE Championship it held both names at that time, which in turn would result
in Roman Reigns winning it at the Survivors Series twenty fifteen. All in all,
seth rons run as WWE Champion in twenty fifteen was historic. I think
that, you know, in an era where there was no brand split,
he really carried both shows well. And I think that it's all the more
interesting because there's two things that really stand out about that run to me one,
he never lost that built he had to relinquish it due to injury,
so we really never knew know where that title reign was going, where it
was going to culminate, how it was going to end. And he was
a double champion, which not a lot of current wrestlers can say. Obviously,
Roman Reigns could say that as he's a double world champion, but and
now a unified champion. But in terms of holding a mid card title,
that's very rare. That's a rarefied air that seth Rawlens was in, and
I don't think it's talked about enough just how much they invested into his twenty
fifteen run as WWE champion. And I think that we all are owed another
run of Seth Rowlens as World heavyweight champion, because yes, we got his
run as Universal Champion for sure, and it was a decent run, although
his babyface character wore very stale after a couple of months in my opinion,
but it was nowhere close to how successful and how good his WWE championship run
was. And I think that this is maybe a golden opportunity to finally get
a world title back on Seth Rons and maybe have him carry his own brand,
But at the same time, do you want him on the same brand
as Roman Rains to potentially be one of the guys to end Roman Rains is
run as WWE Universal Champion. Amy, Guys, that's all I got for
you today. I hope you enjoyed seth Rons Run as WWE Champion. As
always, you can get me on Twitter at A to Marco twenty five.
You can get Matt on Twitter at Wrestling Underscore Audio, or you can email
him each and every week for the WWE podcast mail Bag. Amy, guys,
have a great weekend. I will be talking to you next week.
Thanks for listening to the WWE podcast. Don't forget to subscribe on your favorite
podcast app so you don't miss a show, or head to WWE podcast dot
com and for all of these shows add free head over to Patreon dot com
slash WWE podcast. Until then, we'll see you next time.