WWE Missing Golden Opporunity With Jey Uso Vs. CM Punk

Seth Rollins is no longer the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, and now, two of Monday Night Raw’s biggest stars have a chance to win the brand’s most prestigious title.

WWE Raw General Manager Adam Pearce revealed on the Oct. 20 edition of Raw that Rollins had undergone shoulder surgery and was therefore stripped of the World Heavyweight title. Pearce also announced a battle royal for the show’s main event, with the winner facing CM Punk to crown a new champion at Saturday Night’s Main Event on Nov. 1 in Salt Lake City.

Initially, The Vision’s Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed were set to participate in the battle royal, but later in the show, Pearce removed them both that from the bout. In the end, former champion Jey Uso ultimately won the battle royal after previously eliminating his brother Jimmy and then tossing out Dominik Mysterio, who had actually been eliminated earlier on but remained in the bout when the referees didn’t see it.

Of course, Jey’s big win confirmed the first big match for the next WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event: Jey vs. CM Punk to determine the new World Heavyweight Champion.

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Jey is one of the biggest beneficiaries of Rollins’ unfortunate and untimely injury, which Rollins suffered earlier this month at the Crown Jewel PLE in Australia. “The Visionary” could very well be out of action past next year’s WrestleMania 42, which caused a massive creative reshuffling. Originally, WWE had penciled in a blockbuster WarGames match for Survivor Series pitting The Vision against Punk, Jey, Roman Reigns and two other Raw babyfaces.

The domino effect of Rollins’ injury is being felt across both Raw and SmackDown, though. Breakker and Reed turned on Rollins much sooner than expected and expelled him from The Vision while Reigns hasn’t returned to TV and Jacob Fatu, reportedly set to be a part of the WarGames match, is off TV due to injury as well.

Sometimes a situation like this gives WWE a golden opportunity to elevate a new talent, but on this week’s Raw, WWE ultimately chose to go the safe and familiar route instead.

The issues between Jey and Jimmy have been slowly simmering in recent weeks, and they came to a head within Monday’s battle royal. After previously being saved from elimination by his brother Jimmy not once but twice, Jey “returned the favor” by eliminating Jimmy en route to his victory.

That was certainly done to further escalate the issues between Jey and Jimmy, but here’s the issue: haven’t WWE fans already seen this story before? The Usos infamously feuded and then faced off at WrestleMania 41 in a widely planned bout, and yet, less than two years later, they’re at odds once again. Sure, the specifics aren’t exactly the same, and they’re not in a full-blown feud. But once again, The Bloodline family drama is reigning supreme.

Numerous stars are feeling the effects of that booking move, not the least of which is a beloved fan favorite like LA Knight, who once again failed in his quest to get a shot at the world title. Other Raw acts, including Breakker and Reed, got the short end of the stick too.

WWE once again appears to be going all in on The Bloodline saga, this time with Jey morphing into Reigns-lite as an egotistical maniac who can’t keep his emotions in check. Over the past couple of months, the issues among Reigns and the Usos have continued to evolve, and Rollins’ injury is almost assuredly going to put an even bigger spotlight on the group moving forward.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

WWE could have utilized Rollins’ absence to go all in on Breakker, give Knight a shot at redemption or even elevate an unsung star like Penta. Instead, it’s more of the same, with Raw’s main event scene continuing to revolve around The Bloodline members and Punk. If you love The Bloodline, this is your cup of tea. If not, it’s a rehash of a storyline that dominated WWE from 2020 to 2024.

The one storyline that Triple H has had the most success with has become his biggest crutch. Whenever things go awry, here comes more of The Bloodline to save the day. Short-term, that may be fine and dandy. But continuing to prioritize the same faction for more than half a decade has its drawbacks.

While Punk vs. Jey does pit two of WWE’s biggest stars against one another, what it doesn’t do is prove that WWE is consistently capable of creating compelling rivalries outside of The Bloodline.