This past Monday night on RAW, WWE had Big E cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase on then WWE Champion Bobby Lashley to become the new flagship champion for the brand. Reports state that this was originally supposed to occur in early October, during night two of the WWE Draft. It was reportedly moved up to try and match All Elite Wrestling’s (AEW) recent surprise debuts and ratings increases. But what does this move really mean for the future of WWE?

This move almost guarantees that Bobby Lashley will be moving to Friday night Smackdown in early October, which will potentially set up a monumental feud. For years, the WWE Universe has been pleading to see Bobby Lashley face off against Brock Lesnar in the squared circle. Now WWE may give them what they have asked for and maybe a little bit more as well, as they have teased Brock Lesnar versus Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship in the near future. So what could they possibly do, they could have Lashley, Lesnar, and Roman all face off potentially for the title. 

This would be a massive draw for the company when they seem to be on their back foot in the war against AEW. But with great potential comes massive drawbacks, WWE has squandered numerous high level feuds over the years, and they very well could do it again here. There are some very important strategies that can be taken that will ensure that this blockbuster match up does not flop. 

The first strategy is to take a page out of AEW’s playbook and focus on long term storytelling. WWE should by no means waste this match up for a pay-per-view like Crown Jewel or TLC, they should either book it for the Royal Rumble or Wrestlemania. By doing this, it prevents the story from being rushed, while also giving it the platform that the match deserves. Second off, although having Roman still have the title would elevate the feud, it is not necessary.

This feud would be one of the most impactful feuds on the brand without the title, so maybe WWE will have Roman lose the belt to either Finn Balor or Seth Rollins, so that the two can feud for the belt and make a call back to 2016. The final strategy that may be the most important, is to still value all of your roster while this is going on, if this feud is the only one being advertised week in and week out, the fans will turn on it as they will be wasting an extremely talented roster. Big E’s win very clearly shows the plans that WWE has in store, and if executed properly, it could place WWE in a power position.