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While many WWE superstars have benefited from Vince McMahon's exit from the company and Triple H's new regime, Austin Theory hasn't had the best of times. In fact, it's been a pretty dire few months for the former NXT star since the Cerebral Assassin took over, and it officially hit rock bottom for him after he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase last week for the United States Championship... and lost.
A failed cash in has spelled trouble in the past for a number of superstars. It's been a sign that the company no longer has faith in their ability to lead the brand as a world champion. Damien Sandow and Baron Corbin were both perfect examples of that. With that being said, Theory's failed cash in may not be all doom and gloom. In fact, it could be the very catalyst that saves his entire WWE career going forward.
Sure, there's no sugar coating the fact that losing the briefcase, and for a midcard title no less, isn't great right now, but in the long run, the loss will actually benefit Theory's career far more than winning a title would have done right now.
Austin Theory's Loss Helps Erase The Notion That He's Still Vince McMahon's Golden Boy
Wrestling fans have always had a hard time accepting the hand-picked superstars that Vince McMahon would personally choose as his next big talents. The likes of Lex Luger, Roman Reigns, and John Cena all faced serious backlash from audiences who felt they were being forced too heavily on them, while not being entirely deserving. Theory was no different.
Initially, he was brought up to the main roster and immediately dubbed Vince's new golden boy. He appeared in weekly segments with the former chairman, and it was clear that he was being prepared for a major push down the line. He even won the Money in the Bank ladder match, despite not actually being a participant until the closing moments, as a result of his alliance with Vince. Yes, he's a heel, and fans are supposed to dislike him, but the star treatment he received right out of the gate was almost eye rolling.
Now that Vince is gone, Triple H has all but taken away Theory's chance at becoming a World Champion soon by having him lose his briefcase. Instead, he'll now have to earn his stripes and work his way up towards a title victory instead. The briefcase was the final hint of his time as McMahon's new favorite wrestler and now that it's gone, fans are much more likely to get on board with him as a major star for the future.
Austin Theory's Loss Could Lead To A Much-Needed Character Shift
One major positive to come out of Theory's failed cash in that we have already seen the beginnings of a major character shift. One week after losing the briefcase, the 25-year-old showed up on Raw demonstrating a much more vicious edge to his persona. There was absolutely no sign of the goofy, cowardly heel that was more interested in taking selfies than inflicting damage on his opponents.
In his place was a crazed villain who laid waste to Dolph Ziggler and Seth Rollins in emphatic fashion, immediately establishing himself as a dangerous threat to the entire Raw roster. This new character already feels like it has a much higher ceiling than the pretty boy that came before it. There's just more potential, and as a result, any eventual world championship reigns will feel more acceptable and justified.
As previously seen with Tyler Breeze, the supermodel, selfie obsessed goof has a pretty short shelf life, and to stand any chance of succeeding, Theory needed to shed it pretty quickly, and fortunately it looks like that may be the case.
Now, that's not to say he won't return next week with his phone in hand, and revert to his original persona, but hopefully Triple H is well aware of the limitations it would impose on him.
Austin Theory is one of the most talented young wrestlers in the world, and while his time on the WWE main roster got off to a pretty lackluster start, with fans struggling to accept him, hopefully his biggest failure to date - losing his briefcase - leads him to more success than he previously stood any chance of reaching.