411 Fact or Fiction Wrestling: Has Jinder Mahal Been a Complete Disappointment as WWE Champion?

Welcome back to the latest edition of 411 Fact or Fiction, Wrestling Edition! Stuff happened, people loved/hated it and let everyone else know. I pick through the interesting/not so interesting tidbits and then make 411 staff members discuss them for your pleasure. Battling this week are 411’s Jeremy Thomas & Mitch Nickenson debate!

Questions were sent out Monday.

Participants were told to expect wrestling-related content, as well as possible statements on quantum physics, homemade pharmaceuticals, the Turtle Total Trip Theorem, pizza and hydroponics.

1. Sami Zayn turning heel at WWE Hell in a Cell will be good for Zayn.

Jeremy Thomas: FACT – Sami Zayn wasn’t really in a “bad” position in WWE, but he wasn’t in the thick of things either. I’m all for when talent can be put into major feuds and it makes sense, and that’s exactly the case here. Zayn’s actions have a certain kind of logic to them and it was a great way to end the Hell in the Cell match. In the meantime, it absolutely freshens up Zayn’s character and sets him on a path he hasn’t been down in WWE before. As always with these kinds of things, execution is key. But based on what’s happened thus far, I think this will be good for Zayn on the whole.

Mitch Nickelson: FACT – Sami Zayn is far too good for me to be upset about whether or not he’s a heel or a face. It’s a shame that WWE doesn’t see Sami Zayn for the massive babyface star that he easily could be but any Zayn on TV is better than no Zayn on TV. This alignment with Kevin Owens is super intriguing and it all made sense after he explained his actions on Tuesday night. He’s bitter because of the false hope he was given by Shane McMahon to come to Smackdown. I fully expect Zayn to be way more cemented higher up the card by this time next year and he could be on the verge of his first WWE Championship run. Yeah, I’m optimistic with how he’s being handled right now.

2. Jinder Mahal is a complete disappointment as WWE Champion.

Jeremy Thomas: FICTION – First off, this implies that I had any level of success expectation regarding Jinder. I didn’t. That’s not even a statement on Mahal; rather, that’s because it was such an “out of nowhere” elevation that I fully expected WWE to not be able to capitalize on it, and fans to be too busy going “what the hell?” to get behind it in the best of situations. In fact, I actually think it’s gone a little bit better than the disaster I expected. I don’t think many outside of WWE would argue that it’s set the world on fire, but Mahal’s done what he can given his skill set and the way the feud has been booked. It’s been better than the relative disaster that was Bray Wyatt or Roman Reigns’ first title runs (I’m not counting Reigns’ momentary run when Sheamus cashed in). And ultimately, I think that when he loses Mahal will remain a midcard to upper-midcard heel for a good long while. If nothing else, it elevated him and that’s more than I expected.

Mitch Nickelson: FACT – Fact: How can anyone deny that the Jinder as top champion on Smackdown experiment is anything other than a failure? Other than his jacked up physique, what does he offer? His matches are slow and plodding and he routinely relies on the same boring Singh brothers’ interference finish. As for his promos, he makes it a point to lose his voice every single time BEFORE ever grabbing the microphone. Someone put some honey in that man’s tea. To be fair to him, his two big feuds as champ have done him no favors. Perhaps if he’d been given a few months working with AJ Styles in the front end of his feud I’d have a different outlook right now? With better booking, maybe his run could’ve been far more palatable. But then again, why did it ever happen to begin with?

3. It would be better off for both sides if Dolph Ziggler & WWE parted ways.

Jeremy Thomas: FICTION – It may be better for Ziggler, to be sure. Ziggler could do fantastic things either on the indie scene, overseas or even if he went to standup comedy and then Hollywood. But I don’t think it would be better off for WWE. Ziggler’s storylines haven’t been great, but he’ll always be able to deliver in the ring and WWE can plug him into feuds with guys to get good matches if nothing else. I would actually like to see Dolph go at this point so he can rebuild himself or find something new to do altogether, but I don’t think it’s in the company’s best interests.

Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – Well yes, if Dolph Ziggler left WWE the potential to add to his wrestling legacy improves greatly. Imagine him having competitive matches in New Japan or even in the British indies. He could have a legendary run, but that’s where the ‘better’ ends for both he and WWE. If he did leave, WWE would suffer a little because he’ll be having these great matches outside of their umbrella. They get annoyed at stuff like that and it’ll suck for us as fans to see WWE finding any way they can to be petty toward the former Showoff. As for Dolph, having great matches outside of WWE also means he’ll take a hit to his bank account in terms of locking in guaranteed money. Dolph will also miss out on big TV exposure to the mainstream American audience, which can’t be good for his comedy ventures. If Dolph really wanted to wrestle high-quality matches and potentially carry a brand’s top title again while still holding onto a guaranteed check with at least some nationwide exposure, he should go to NXT. THAT would be the best thing for both he and WWE.

SWITCH!

4. The New Day vs. Usos has been the best WWE feud of 2017.

Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – Don’t get me wrong, this has been a great feud! The matches have been off the charts good. The Usos successfully re-branded themselves into battle rappers who can promo with three of the wittiest dudes in WWE. And that Hell in a Cell match, wow! There’s so much to praise that can be thrown toward what these two teams have done. However…. my vote for the absolute best WWE feud of 2017 goes to Braun Strowman vs. Roman Reigns. I’ll concede that New Day/Usos have at least two matches that surpassed the match quality of anything Braun and Roman have done in the ring but Strowman bare handed flipped an ambulance with Reigns inside. Also, “I’m not finished with you!” is the greatest line uttered by anyone on WWE TV this year, rap battles included. I won’t discredit anyone for saying that New Day vs. The Usos is WWE feud of the year, but as for me, it’s Braun vs. Roman.

Jeremy Thomas: FICTION – This is a tough call. It’s been a hell of a feud, but several others that I’ve really enjoyed come to mind. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens has been great, and I really dug Shane McMahon vs. AJ Styles as well. I would have to sit down and rewatch the highlights of those feuds to really say which was the best. New Day vs. Usos has been very entertaining on a variety of levels and it would absolutely be in the mix. I just don’t know if I can definitively say it would be the best.

5. When this Shield reunion ends, it should end with Roman Reigns turning on the group and finally turning heel.

Mitch Nickelson: FICTION – I’d rather a Reigns heel turn to not end up being the point of this Shield reunion. I understand this all is more or less just something to do until The Big Dog starts gearing toward the next WrestleMania main event, but why can’t they all three simply part ways on amicable terms around December or January? Maybe Rollins & Ambrose can offer Roman a hearty handshake for all of his help and he’s like, “Yeah, no problem guys. I kind of wanted to get back to pursuing the Universal Title again anyways.” Sure, there’s probably value somewhere in finally making Roman into a heel but I really just don’t care at this point if he turns or not. I’m at least digging the Shield nostalgia and that’s about all I can handle from this reunion. If this all ends up being about getting Roman more over then it potentially sours all of the fun for now.

Jeremy Thomas: FICTION – I actually went back and forth on this a little bit. On one hand, it would give us the Reigns heel turn that fans have been demanding for a long time, and one that would better fit Reigns’ character. On the other hand, I do feel like Reigns is just starting to get over a little bit as a babyface. Also, I don’t want Rollins and Ambrose taken out by Reigns, because that could hurt them a little bit. This is actually a reunion I don’t think needs to end with a heel turn or betrayal. When they’re done running over everyone that they run through as a group, I would honestly have no problem with them just agreeing to go their separate ways for a while. That leaves the possibility open for further reunions down the line without the drama of a betrayal to get over and they all walk away fine in the end. Reigns’ heel turn will have to come at some point, but I don’t see this as the time to do it.

6. The end of the new Owens/Zayn alliance (whenever that is) should end with Zayn turning on Owens.

Mitch Nickelson: FACT – Unlike the Roman turn on his allies potentially looming on the horizon, I’m way more open for Sami Zayn turning to the dark side. I stated some of this earlier but I’ll say it again, he oozes with whatever pumps through the veins of a lovable underdog, yes, but he’s way too good all-around to not believe that he could pull something like this off on this big of a stage. And even though they’ve done a bazillion matches together, I’m all for another Zayn vs. Owens contest down the line. They always deliver when against each other. It’s strange to picture Sami as the heel and KO in more of a face role, but it’ll still be good. Then, have a heel Zayn feud with a face AJ Styles or Shinsuke Nakamura. There are so many amazing matches to be had with him now as a bad guy.

Jeremy Thomas: FACT – I’m assuming this will be a long-term storyline, but yeah. When it ends, the other two options would be a mistake. Just having them aimlessly drift apart would be a waste of a wonderful storyline, and Owens turning on Zayn would make Zayn look really stupid. You couldn’t really turn him babyface at that point, and he’d be aimlessly wandering the roster as a heel. Having Zayn turn on Owens would help elevate the former and give the latter something interesting to do, no matter how they went with it. I know fantasy booking standards would be to see this happen around Royal Rumble and lead into a WrestleMania match, but I’d like to see this storyline go beyond that if they can logically make it last further.