A few weeks ago, Sammy Guevara did the unthinkable in toppling the dominant, undefeated TNT Champion, Miro, to become the new champion on an episode of AEW Dynamite. With this win being unexpected, many are wondering if Guevara is already on borrowed time, with some belief that he may just be acting as a transitional champion.

Guevara Could Be In The Role To Put Over A Strong Heel

When the referee made the three-count, fans were shocked at Guevara beating Miro. This was a good thing, and it needs to happen every so often to maintain a feeling of unpredictability with title matches, especially those that take place on TV. Guevara has proven to be great in the babyface role and is a strong choice for champion. The issue with faces, is that the chase and victory is the easy part. Having a longer reign with a championship as a face sometimes doesn’t work, making it more likely that he will lose the belt sooner rather than later.

Sammy Guevara TNT Champion

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With a plethora of strong heels on the AEW roster, there are plenty of names who would benefit from defeating the beloved face and getting a strong rub in winning the title. It could be argued that Guevara is someone who doesn’t necessarily need the title, due to getting over massively without a belt, and being a clear star of the future. However, regardless of how much he’s over, its hard to argue that he won’t be elevated by holding the title, which has been treated with huge importance since its birth.

It’s Unclear Who The Next Champion Could Be

Something which is common in AEW — which is both a negative and positive at times — is an element of predictability when it comes to champions. Often, the favorite for a match is the winner, with fans able to predict who the next champion will be even months in advance. This is due to the logical storytelling done by AEW, but it can sometimes be at the detriment of title feuds and matches where it's obvious who will be victorious, with fans having to focus on the high in-ring quality, instead of the pre-emptive knowledge of who will win.

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Miro AEW TNT Championship

When Miro stepped up to face Darby Allin for the TNT Championship, it was clear to many that Miro would win. A story had been told over months that Allin was putting his body through so much punishment in multiple defences, that it would finally catch up on him. Miro had been making his title intentions clear for many weeks prior to his match with Allin, building up wins in the process. Right now, however, there doesn’t seem to be anyone being built up in the same vein as Miro, and its unclear who the next champion could be. This perhaps implies that Guevara could be in line for a lengthier run, especially with him getting another redesign of the belt. With him being entangled with The Inner Circle’s feuds, and only just trying to establish himself as a singles competitor, it makes it unclear at how ready he is for this role.

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He Is Unlikely To Be A Transitional Champ Given AEW’s History

Sammy Guevara stares off

Looking back over the short history of AEW, there haven’t been many, if any, transitional champions. Some competitors have had shorter reigns than others, but their losses have all played roles in larger stories, so using the term ‘transitional’ feels like a flat term in referring to short title reigns, especially with the great lineage of TNT Champions thus far. Whenever the time comes for Guevara to lose the strap, it will likely play a role in his character development and help to establish a new champion. With AEW’s track record of making defenses and changes mean something, it is definitely wrong to assume that any champion on the roster is destined to just be a ‘transitional champion’.