WWE: Who Got Snubbed From the World Heavyweight Championship Tournament?
Solo Sikoa & Jey Uso
For as much as folks have joked about it, not immediately handing Roman Reigns a shot at the new title was the right call. Regardless of however long WWE wants Reigns' Undisputed run to go, the other brand needs a top prize to fight for or else the entire roster is left to spin their wheels whenever Reigns isn't on TV (for example, see every episode of Raw from mid-April 2022 through February). But not having any involvement from The Bloodline seems like an odd choice.
If Reigns is hellbent on controlling every aspect of the WWE shouldn't he want the faction to hold the title even if he specifically can't challenge for it? Isn't Solo Sikoa — a guy WWE has gone out of its way to protect by rarely losing on TV — the perfect soldier for Reigns to send in and try to take the gold? Failing that, why not have Jey force his way into the tournament to try and "prove himself" to Reigns? And since the opening round is full of triple threat matches, either could have failed to advance without getting pinned yet still advance the "Rift in the Bloodline" story.
The faction's saga has effectively stalled out since WrestleMania 39. And while they'll undoubtedly have something planned for Friday to move toward Reigns' next defense at Night of Champions, involving this tournament felt like a lay-up after Paul Heyman cut a promo about it last week.
prevnextBrock Lesnar
This one is a double-edged sword. Obviously, the WWE does not need another Brock Lesnar world championship reign. The company is trying to establish this new title as one that will be defended regularly, which is the exact opposite of what a typical Lesnar reign entails. Also, if his infamous bout with Kofi Kingston or what happened at this year's Raw after WrestleMania are any indication, Lesnar is seemingly allergic to TV matches. But the company is also trying to give the impression that the World Heavyweight Championship is a new top prize and it's hard to buy that idea if one of the company's biggest stars isn't interested.
prevnextDrew McIntyre
There are a lot of questions and rumors surrounding McIntyre lately, and if he's still dealing with injuries it makes sense to not include him in the tournament. But they obviously thought he was healthy enough to be mentioned early on in the WWE Draft, so what gives?
prevnextGunther
On the one hand, it makes sense to not put midcard champions in a tournament for a world title. But that didn't stop them from doing the same with Austin Theory, so why no love for "The Ring General?"
prevnextAny of the NXT Call-Ups
Obviously, none of the wrestlers who were just called up would be expected to win this tournament. But the simple virtue of being named as one of the participants would give someone like Grayson Waller an instant layer of credibility. It would also inject a bit of youth in the bracket that, outside of Theory, it noticeably lacks.
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