3 Reasons CM Punk cost LA Knight the World Heavyweight Championship vs Seth Rollins on WWE RAW

At SummerSlam, Seth Rollins shocked the world and became the new World Heavyweight Champion, cashing in on CM Punk following an all-time great main event and delivering another all-time great moment. On RAW, Rollins explained how he concocted the ruse of the century, and he was then confronted by LA Knight, against whom he had basically thrown the match at Saturday Night's Main Event in order to initiate Plan B.

Since The Visonary and his Oracle architected the manifestation of the bigger picture and the seizing of absolute power and control with a ploy to which Knight himself was a victim in a certain sense, The Megastar then challenged Seth Rollins to a match for the World Heavyeweight Championship "right here, right now." While Rollins swiftly declined, RAW GM Adam Pearce came out to make it official after, of course, taking the Brooklyn audience on a ride.

The finish to the match saw CM Punk attack Rollins just as he was about to Stomp Knight's head into exposed concrete, and while he may have done Knight a favor of sorts, he also gave the champion a DQ win. What followed was an all-out brawl that saw Knight confront Punk, too, because obviously, from Knight's perspective, and he isn't exactly a trusting fellow, Punk's actions could certainly be construed as being selfish because he wants the title.

After Rollins, alongside Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed, had decimated Punk and Knight, and The Vision was seen celebrating the success of, well, their vision, Roman Reigns emerged like a Greek God to single-handedly take down the faction. Rollins, though, once again probed to be the Achilles' Heel and Stomped The Tribal Chief into the ground. Reigns was then the recipient of a hellacious Bron Breakker Spear, followed by three monstrous Tsunamis by Big Bronson Reed for the OTC's attempted heroics.

In this article, we shall make some sense of last night's shocking conclusion to Monday Night RAW from a nuanced persepctive, analysing RAW's main event scene: characters and stories, and explore the various reasons why CM Punk cost LA Knight the World Heavyweight Championship vs Seth Rollins on WWE RAW last night beyond the obvious "Punk attacked Rollins out of revenge and hatred" or "well, Rollins is a heel so he couldn't win clean."

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#3. LA Knight may finally be set for a mega-push in WWE

LA Knight wasn't on the SummerSlam card, and whatever the reasons or justifications may have been, it was still a mistake. Fans have been clamoring for Knight to be elevated to the top tier, and when he started finally mixing it up with the top talent in the company after his quiet move to RAW following Seth Rollins and his goons' attacks and recipts ahead of Money in the bank and through King of the Ring season, it seemed as thought that was finally going to happen.

Knight was likely left off the SummerSlam card because the Seth Rollins "Plan B" angle was concocted too late to put him in a prominent and deserving spot at SummerSlam. Fans have been chanting "LA Knight" at WWE shows whenever he has been absent, and especially at Triple H during fan events, and whether Levesque has finally realised that Knight is undeniable or whether he has been "long-gaming" all along because as you may well know, "it's all part of the show," the era of LA Knight, to the delight of fans, may be upon us soon.

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#2. If LA Knight is to be elevated, he obviously can't take many pinfalls, especially clean ones, even against the biggest stars

LA Knight finally seems set to be treated as one of the top stars in the business. Triple H has been talking about the "right time" as it pertains to Knight for the longest time, but if he is to be established as a bona fide upper-echelon name in the business, his momentum following tonight is the perfect time.

In an era where WWE has Cody Rhodes, John Cena, CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton and Seth Rollins somehow all still at their peaks and then the likes of veterans like Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn and Jey Uso who are chomping at the bit and waiting for the right opportunity, Knight can't be someone who is relegated to being frequently fed to them.

He especially can't be taking CLEAN losses, so how last night's DQ loss panned out made sense considering that Rollins was never going to lose the title two nights after becoming champion on one of the greatest angles of the decade. Knight didn't take a pin; clean or not, and furthermore, the angle only opened up more avenues for Knight to continue interacting with the absolute best in the world.

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#1. Tonight may have been a setup for CM Punk vs LA Knight with a shot at Seth Rollins and the WHC soon

Yup, that pun was most certainly intended. A potential conflict between LA Knight and CM Punk has been brewing for weeks. Despite both men being babyfaces and part of the resistance against Rollins and his goons, neither is exactly the trusting or teaming-up type, and they are certainly not selfless altruists.

Their goals may have been somewhat aligned before Rollins faked his injury, but now, everyone targeting Rollins for revenge is also targeting the World Heavyweight Championship, and they don't have aligned, but competing interests. And, in hindsight, this is why Rollins' Plan B was absolute genius.

So, LA Knight and CM Punk now not only have a conflict that was initially solely the result of their somewhat narcissistic anti-hero personalities and the quest to get their hands on Seth Rollins, but also the World Heavyweight Championship to contend for.

It is likely that Knight's loss last night may have teased what is now more than sufficiently set up: a massive match between CM Punk and LA Knight, likely with No.1 Contendership for the World Heavyweight Championship and a shot at Seth Rollins on the line. It's babyface vs babyface, but with massive interest, larger-than-life personalities, two massive egos, and a hell of a lot on the line, and that's how you do it!

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The best part is that all of this further layers up WWE's main event scene and increases the potential for Knight's upcoming feuds as he continues to get involved in more and more conflicts and becomes an integral part of WWE's bona fide main event universe alongside the names mentioned above.

Edited by Tathya Sachdev