James Ellsworth Challenging AJ Styles Devalues WWE World Championship
By Dean Siemon
While having James Ellsworth challenge AJ Styles for the WWE World Championship might have been funny at first, it has hurt the prestige of SmackDown’s top title.
Enough is enough. We all had our fun with James Ellsworth challenging AJ Styles for the WWE World Championship. The jobber getting a pinfall victory over Styles a few weeks ago was cute – albeit due to interference from Dean Ambrose.
But no one honestly expected a title change earlier this week, right? Ellsworth had his 15 minutes of fame when we all loved his promo before getting destroyed by Braun Strowman on Raw. I admit that I wrote a column about a star being born in Ellsworth. But that was done as a parody.
The reality is that Ellsworth isn’t championship material. Having him challenge for the WWE World Championship may have devalued the championship in terms of the overall importance in the WWE.
Granted, Raw is being considered the A-program on WWE television. It’s already tough for SmackDown Live to be considered an equal to Raw during the current WWE brand split. The red brand already has the exclusive rights to the Cruiserweight Division and an extra hour of programming.
But this is the WWE World Championship. This is supposed to carry on a legacy built on some of the greatest rivalries in the company’s history. This is meant to represent the matches between “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and the Rock. Carrying on the prestige from great champions like Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, Undertaker and Triple H.
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This is a new era for the WWE that has seen AJ Styles hold the WWE World Championship and Kevin Owens to hold the WWE Universal Championship. Opportunities are given to newer superstars to help create a new generation of main event stars. And then there’s James Ellsworth.
It would be one thing if we were booking a miracle win similar to Santino Marella’s win over Umaga for the WWE Intercontinental Championship in early 2007. That was a mid-card championship. That’s the type of booking you steer clear from a world heavyweight championship. Have we learned nothing from WCW and David Arquette?
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Keep in mind that having James Ellsworth getting the win the first time was beneficial to the WWE. It did the job to help continue the storyline between the Lunatic Fringe and the Phenomenal One. It sort of made sense for Ellsworth to get the sentimental title match because of the power Daniel Bryan has as the general manager for SmackDown. He knows the journey Ellsworth had competing on the independent circuit.
The fairytale story could have ended with the T-shirt now available on Shop.WWE.com. But Bryan decided to book the rematch for the championship. According to what we have seen, there are not a lot of legitimate championship contenders beyond John Cena and Dean Ambrose for SmackDown. Our apologies to talents like Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt, Miz, Dolph Ziggler and everyone else with an actual WWE contract.
But Ellsworth getting another victory – this time through disqualification – against Styles just seems like a glorification overkill. Technically, Ellsworth is entitled to another shot at the WWE World Championship.
It was cute at first, but having Ellsworth in the championship picture has made the WWE World Championship feel more like a secondary title. As a result, it feels almost like déjà vu from the original brand split and the SmackDown heavyweight champion feeling like the B champion.