This should've been done as far back as Summerslam, but WWE, or, more specifically, Vince McMahon, refused to pull the trigger. With ratings trending downward, as they usually do this time of year, McMahon was left with no choice, 12 days before Survivor Series, but to take the WWE title off Jinder Mahal, and put it back in the more capable hands of AJ Styles.
Suddenly, the co-feature at Survivor Series just got an upgrade. It will be Styles, not Mahal, representing Smackdown vs. Universal champion Brock Lesnar. Styles-Lesnar won't be the total squash A Mahal-Lesnar matchup would've presented, at least as I see it. Styles has an experience advantage over Lesnar that Mahal doesn't. Plus, this would be a straight 1-on-1 match, allowing Lesnar to focus solely on his opponent, and not any excess baggage lurking on the outside (i.e. the Singhs).
There is still the fear, however, that the WWE title could flip back to Mahal in time for the trip to India on December 8-9, but from where I sit, they could flip Mahal instead, just for this trip, and posit him as an underdog seeking to regain the title in his "home country" (Mahal & the Singhs are actually Canadians with Indian heritage). Mahal has never been presented as a babyface in WWE in either of his tours of duty, so this would be a test run for a future face run in the US.
By putting potential revenue ahead of common sense, Vince McMahon made another gigantic blunder, and continued to perpetuate the mistake for six months. Need I tell you that this could've ended differently if McMahon wasn't in charge anymore? Of course not.
As for Mahal, he was quick to silence his critics on social media, claiming that he isn't injured, nor has he had any Wellness policy violations. I'm not so sure about the latter, considering how he'd bulked up since returning last year. If he's the maharajah he claims to be, I'm Top Cat.
In the next Reaction Zone, we'll look at the rest of the 2017 Survivor Series card.
