When Finn Balor burst onto the main roster in the summer of 2016, he had the proverbial “rocket strapped to his back” and vaulted all the way to the top of the RAW ladder in short order, becoming the first ever Universal Champion at SummerSlam 2016. However, a shoulder injury sustained at that same event derailed what looked to be a huge planned push. Since returning from the injury in early 2017, it would be safe to say that Balor has yet to fully get back on track to a path that would lead you to believe he might ever become “The Man” again.

While his feud with Seth Rollins has been hot, and now it appears he may even be pivoting away a bit from the Intercontinental Championship picture to focus on his inclusion in the upcoming Money in the Bank match, it has taken over a year for Balor to reach this point and participate in a real role of substance. Will Balor ever reach the same heights he achieved when he first debuted on the main roster? Will he ever be Universal Champion again? In my opinion, no he will not. There are two big reasons why.

HE’S A FACE ON A SHOW WITH TOO MANY FACES

RAW’s current roster is heavy on the baby face side, and AT BEST, I would rank Balor as fourth on the pecking order. Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman, and Seth Rollins are all perceived as bigger stars and draws. In Vince McMahon’s eyes, you might have to throw Bobby Lashley into that mix above Finn as well. I find it hard to fathom that the fourth or even fifth-best face on the show would make it into real Universal title contention, barring injuries, even within the next year or more.       We are already in the month of May. You have to believe, despite what the internet might tell you, that the plan would still be for Reigns to eventually dethrone Brock Lesnar for the title, perhaps at SummerSlam. Braun would probably be the next best choice. After the duration of the new champ’s reign is up, you would assume a heel would be in line to take the title from Reigns or Strowman, that heel gets a few months’ run before dropping it back to the former champ or some new face contender, and so on and so on. I don’t see Balor getting one of those potential title reigns over the likes of Reigns, Strowman, or even Rollins.

THE DEMON APPEARS TO BE DEAD

Balor’s “Demon” alter ego was all the rage when he debuted. It was over huge with the NXT crowd and made him seem like a big deal when he made the main roster. It made him someone that mattered and grabbed your attention as soon as he hit the screen. For people that might slight Finn for his size, the “Demon” presentation truly made him feel like a larger than life character. However, since TLC in October, we have neither seen nor really heard about the Demon King in regards to Balor. For whatever reason, creative seems to have drifted away from that persona in favor of gimmicks and storylines that have been much less successful.

They tried him as a generic underdog baby face–didn’t work well.

They tried to form a true Balor Club with Anderson and Gallows- didn’t work (or wasn’t given enough time TO work, but that’s another article.)

And now he has been reduced to a smiling ambassador with the slogan of “Balor Club is for Everyone,” which comes off to some as more of a political statement than a character or gimmick. Nothing has come close to the “Demon King,” and by bafflingly not utilizing the persona,  everything that made Balor special in the first place has been stripped away. Putting the Demon on the shelf might seem like a case of WWE cutting off their nose to spite their face, but it’s where we find ourselves at the moment with Balor.

NOW, the caveat to this would be if the creative team has some long-term plans in place for Balor that could reverse both of these problems. If Balor were to turn heel (which I could have possibly seen happening during this Rollins feud, but after RAW this past Monday I’m not sure if they plan to continue that rivalry) and resurrect the Demon, I think he could find himself in a much better position. I’d actually love to see a heel Demon King myself, and I think it would make for refreshing matchups for Balor with the likes of Reigns or even a returning Ambrose. However, if he continues on his current path, I don’t think the big red leather belt is in his future.

If some reports at the time are to be believed, Vince wasn’t really sold on Finn and the Demon gimmick in the first place, and his first title reign in 2016 was mostly due to Triple H pushing for him backstage. And without a heel persona and the Demon reemerging, I don’t see Balor having a presence and presentation that screams “Champion.”  He doesn’t play the underdog as well as, say, Daniel Bryan, he’s not the stereotypical superhero like Reigns and he’s not a physical marvel like Strowman.

He’s just another really good wrestler.

Future Intercontinental Champion? Sure. Universal Champion? I don’t see it.