Samoa Joe: Becoming the Beast Heading to Money in the Bank
By Tom Clark
Samoa Joe is on his way to the Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match on Sunday, June 17. If he pulls down the briefcase and wins the match, Joe will have a guaranteed title shot at the WWE Championship. There are seven other men booked in this one and nothing is certain but Joe does have a great chance of going over.
The reason for that is because the victor coming out of this match is likely going to be a SmackDown Live Superstar. Monday Night Raw is the home of Universal champion Brock Lesnar and the likelihood of anyone beating him any time soon is not good. But is Samoa Joe the next Mister Money in the Bank?
Joe’s qualifying moment came on the May 29 edition of SmackDown Live when he choked out Daniel Bryan in a triple threat match that also featured Big Cass. While Bryan’s fans were probably not very happy at the outcome, no one can argue that Joe’s win was well deserved.
After all, Bryan did just recently return to active competition. His comeback story is still being told and his heat with Big Cass is likely going to take him in a different direction. There will be time for Daniel Bryan to resume his main event run but that time doesn’t seem to be now.
Then there’s the fact that Samoa Joe has worked hard to earn his spot. Of all the guys that WWE has brought up from NXT in recent years, Joe may be the most qualified to do business at the top of the card. The only exception is Shinsuke Nakamura and he is currently the No.1 Contender to AJ Styles’ WWE Championship.
Joe has traveled the world and built his reputation one match at a time. Fans saw something in him when he ruled in TNA and surely imagined a world in which he could also rule in WWE. Now that moment may indeed become a reality.
Samoa Joe does have a great opportunity here if for no other reason than the aforementioned wall that is Brock Lesnar. It’s hard to get over that wall and there definitely doesn’t seem to be any getting over it. As long as The Beast Incarnate is holding the Universal Championship, then it’s highly possible that no one else has a chance of winning it.
So while Joe is arguably the toughest man in WWE, he may not be the one that finally takes Lesnar down. Joe’s placement on SmackDown Live is perfect because he can become the top titleholder and carve out his own reign of terror with no fear of Lesnar looming over the horizon.
SmackDown is supposedly the land of opportunity so it’s apropos that Joe is in this spot. If he wins on June 17 and then eventually becomes the man on Tuesday nights, then he will have conquered two of the company’s top brands. He will also wear the industry’s top championship. What more could a man ask for?
But as Joe continues to shine and work his way up the ladder, there are many fans that can’t wait until he turns babyface. Samoa Joe is an excellent heel of course. He’s so good he’s a natural. But he also happens to be extremely popular, which means the day will come when he will probably make the turn.
However for now, Joe is right where he needs to be. WWE thrives on strong antagonists and no one is stronger right now than Samoa Joe. He is everything a pro wrestling heel should be and much more. When fans look at him, they see a guy that is easy to hate. He has popularity but he also breeds contempt.
Joe is so good at what he does that most crowds can’t help themselves. They have to boo him. But that reaction is born out of respect more than hate. Just when it seems that Joe deserves praise and adulation, he does something wicked that turns the whole world against him. He is indeed the master of his domain.
The best part about a possible Samoa Joe win at Money in the Bank is that he’s ready. This is not an instance in which a younger guy is getting a shocking win and using it to make a name for himself. This is about a veteran that made his career outside of WWE’s four walls. Samoa Joe was not created in the WWE machine. He is his own man. He’s also one of the most skilled pro wrestlers in Vince McMahon’s locker room.
SmackDown Live would be Samoa Joe’s playground. If he can imagine it, he can do it. He defies authority at every turn and he is always in firm control of the situation. No one could rein him in and no one could keep him chained. Joe would become the beast of the blue brand. What better way to finally give Joe his due in WWE?
But do all roads lead back to The Beast Incarnate? What are the chances that Samoa Joe wins at MITB and chooses to cash-in against Brock Lesnar? It may not seem like a logical move on WWE’s part but when it comes to Joe’s character, anything is possible.
Joe may be ready to erase the Brock blemish from his record. He was unable to take Lesnar out before and that may be a fact that haunts Joe to this day. Giving him the win and later the WWE Championship does indeed seem like easy booking. But the company does not always take the easy way.
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Despite who he faces, the truth is that Samoa Joe has done everything required to etch his name on WWE’s all-time list of champions. He doesn’t need the title to get over and he certainly doesn’t need it to be relevant. But for the fans that love him, there is no more desired outcome than a Samoa Joe run at the top. Even the fans that boo him would likely agree with that as well.