Still reeling from Finn Balor having to walk away from the very first Universal championship reign after just a night with the belt draped over his shoulder, the WWE needed to inject life into its latest title.
By the end of this week’s RAW, they had done exactly that. And then some.
Well thought, well-executed vignettes teased the main event, before the Fatal-4-Way delivered half an hour of supreme storytelling.
A long, bitter rivalry between two former friends, combined with two of the hottest properties in the locker room formed the buttery biscuit base.
The exemplary in-ring abilities of all four were the creamy centre.
But, stealing the show, was the dramatic return of Triple H – the icing on the cake.
Quite simply, this was beautiful wrestling storytelling that, for a number of reasons, has left the brand split swayed heavily in RAW’s favour and regained any of the lost momentum after Balor’s unfortunate setback.
His injury in winning the title would have hit WWE Creative hard but they responded superbly, delivering an outstanding, out of left field response that will have left the WWE Universe salivating at what’s left to come.
First of all, it was fitting that Kevin Owens was given the win when it would have been far easier to have not done so.
Owens is a huge hit with the crowd and has delivered time and again since rising up the ranks through that now well trodden path from NXT to RAW poster boy.
He was long overdue a push and now he has the chance to establish himself at the top of the pile. Not only that, any future challenge to his title is sure to be a cracking match, such is Owens’ consistency in the ring.
The biggest win of them all, however, is Triple H’s dramatic appearance, not least because it’s damn good to have him back handing out pedigrees.
Despatching Roman Reigns was atypical but the manner in which he turned on former protégé Seth Rollins to hand Owens the win came out of nowhere like a Randy Orton RKO.
It was incredibly refreshing and now serves up a potential blockbuster rivalry between Triple H and Rollins, either in the immediate aftermath heading to Survivor Series or a showdown of real magnitude at next year’s WrestleMania.
And whether it’s a slow burner or flambéed, Rollins will finally be able to turn face, a move that will be welcomed with open arms and roaring throats by the WWE Universe.
Ever since coming back from knee injury, every sight of Rollins has instigated wild cheers that contrast to his position as a heel.
But with Balor resigned to the recovery room the WWE need a legit face to head up its RAW brand and to the delight of everyone involved Rollins looks to be that man.
In among all of that you also have Reigns.
He was who the WWE wanted to be its face but the last person the Universe would accept.
A Wellness Policy violation later and he was sent to the back of the room, in dire need of fresh opportunity.
Now, he has it.
For one, he can remain on the periphery of Triple H vs Rollins and reshape his relationship with his former Shield team-mate.
That in itself will provide vital kudos with the fans.
Perhaps more significantly for future storylines, Reigns can resume his volatile feud with Rusev, which has not been spoken of since Reigns destroyed the US champion without the bell being rung at SummerSlam.
For everyone involved, RAW’s headline bout painted a new title picture that provided fresh impetus to the brand.
It also left us all in awe of the show’s ending and waiting impatiently for next week’s show, making the biggest winners of us all the RAW brand.
Smackdown Live has some catching up to do.
