WWE: Braun Strowman vs. Seth Rollins shouldn’t end clean

Seth Rollins versus Braun Strowman might be the one time where WWE should avoid giving us a simple one-two-three without some form of interference or deception

Generally speaking, the clean finish is the gold standard in WWE. There’s just too many benefits from having a superstar win without interference or tomfoolery to root for a different direction.

It feels like the winner is getting a strong push afterwards, and that WWE has a clean path forward to a new rivalry. Sure, the loser loses a little luster, but that can be recovered rather easily if the booking is strong or the match was a classic.

Perhaps most importantly, a clean finish feels impactful. It makes the audience, both at home and in the arena, feel like they saw something important. You just can’t guarantee that with any other kind of match ending.

Actually though, that doesn’t apply for Braun Strowman versus Seth Rollins at Clash of Champions.

Although a clean win would certainly make for a big moment for either superstar, it’s just not the best route for WWE to go here given all the options at their disposal.

For starters, just think of the possibilities for outside interference right now.

If AJ Styles were to insert himself in the match, it blows the doors wide open for a barnburner of a Hell in a Cell match to be booked for next month. A triple threat between those three inside of that iconic steel structure would be absolutely must-see.

It would also mean Styles would be able to recoup some of his lost momentum too. Styles and The O.C. have been on the receiving end of quite a few high profile losses, or near losses, lately.

The inability for Styles’ to get a clean win, or even one with shenanigans involved, is starting to make him look a bit like a paper champion. A strong showing at Clash of Champions where he not only retained his title, but laid out both Strowman and Rollins in a brutal assault, could change that and give the entire O.C. a real statement making moment.

On the other hand, a potential run-in from The Fiend would almost certainly be the most buzzed about moment in WWE since WrestleMania. Rumors about Bray Wyatt’s role at Hell in a Cell seem to indicate that such an interference could become a reality, and you would be hard pressed to find someone who would be mad about that.

By either costing Rollins or Strowman the match, or simply inserting himself into the Universal Championship picture, the stage will be set for Bray Wyatt to get to show his extremely hot gimmick off under the brightest lights possible in the main event match of a pay-per-view.

Really, either one of those outcomes provides a potentially standout ending for Clash of Champions. An ending that would likely feel even more impactful and exciting than a clean win in a back-and-forth match, simply because it would provide such intriguing opportunities to elevate everyone involved.

Now, wonky finishes don’t begin and end with simple interference. There’s another option on the table that provides almost as much potential.

A heel turn for Braun Strowman or Seth Rollins would be about as big of a storyline development as you could get. If either superstar resorted to underhanded tactics, not only would the audience be stunned, but the buzz created after would be immense.

For Strowman, it would provide a path for him to go back to his more ruthless side where he destroys anyone and everyone in his path without regard. You could easily make the case for that being the best version of “The Monster Among Men”, one that would give Rollins another seemingly unstoppable beast to try to slay.

For Rollins, a turn in any sense would add an edge to his character that arguably might still be missing. We all know there’s more than enough examples in Rollins’ past of him doing anything in takes to get what he wants, so it wouldn’t be a stretch at all for him to resort to some level of chicanery to pick up the win.

Both outcomes would do wonders for said superstar, and would also provide WWE a compelling story to tell going forward. Heck, WWE could combine either of those turns with one of the aforementioned interferences to create an even more intriguing angle if they really wanted to.

No matter which of those endings WWE picks though, it’s fairly clear to me that this is the rare instance where WWE needs to avoid a clean finish at all costs. The other options are just too exciting to ignore.