Plan B: Dean Ambrose
Welcome to Fantasy Booking — where the results are made up and the ratings don't matter.
The Authority had a chokehold over the WWE during 2013 - 2014. Just as the audience began to grow sick of them, Seth Rollins turning on his brothers in The Shield and completely revitalized The Authority faction. But what if went down differently? Today we are asking a simple question: what if Dean Ambrose was Triple H's Plan B?
Payback
We begin at Payback 2014, where The Shield defeats Evolution in a clean sweep. The next night on RAW, it is revealed that Orton is out of action due to injury from the match the previous night and Batista quits the WWE. Triple H is seemingly out of options to stop The Shield. But still, in the main event of that night's RAW, we get the iconic line: "There is always a plan B". And with that, Dean Ambrose attacks Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.
Dean spins Reigns around to nail him in the stomach with a chair and then across the back to lay him out. He drops the chair on the mat right before Rollins grabs him by the shoulder to confront him. Dean grabs Rollins by the head and delivers a Dirty Deeds onto the chair. Ambrose is joined by Kane in beating down Reigns and Rollins until Triple H calls them off.
Over the next few weeks, Ambrose reveals his perspective: The Shield had reached their ceiling, and while they climbed, he fell from leader to third fiddle in the eyes of the fans. The "we are all one" nonsense is over — he is the focus now. Ambrose makes one thing clear: he didn't sell his soul to The Authority. Triple H sold The Authority to him for the death of The Shield. And Ambrose accepted.
We also see a style change for Ambrose. Gone is the white tank and blue jeans combo. He now sports the look he debuted with in AEW — black combat boots, camo pants, black jean sleeveless vest. A hint of militant, to symbolize he is leading The Authority. He IS The Authority.
Money In The Bank Qualifiers
Money In The Bank qualifier matches begin. As a reminder, this Money In The Bank had two ladder matches — one for the MITB Briefcase and the other for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship. What actually happened at the event was Ambrose and Rollins were in the briefcase match while Reigns was in the championship match, which I always thought was such a mistake. WWE immediately showed they wanted Roman Reigns to be the star, despite the hottest angle going being focused on the other two Shield members. So here is how I would book it instead.
Ambrose costs Reigns his qualifying match. Rollins immediately runs out to help but it is too late — Ambrose was in and out like an assassin and nobody saw it coming. The following week, Ambrose attempts the same trick during Rollins' qualifier, but Reigns was prepared. Disguised as a luchador-masked fan sitting at ringside, Reigns jumps over the barricade and spears Ambrose into next week. Chaos erupts as Kane runs down and a brawl breaks out — but the point is Rollins DOES qualify, thanks to Reigns.
Reigns also interferes in Kane's qualifier to stop him from getting into the match, cutting off Ambrose's muscle before they even get to the event. I mean, come on. Reigns didn't win the ladder match in real life anyway, so this is a far better use of him to get over as a babyface with a purpose.
Money In The Bank
So we reach Money In The Bank. The two ladder matches feature mostly the same competitors from the actual event, with some changes:
MITB Briefcase: Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, Fandango, and Adrian Neville.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship: John Cena, Alberto Del Rio, Rob Van Dam, Cesaro, Dean Ambrose, and Sheamus.
A little fantasy booking logic on the participants: I never liked how brand new main roster call-ups were just thrown into the championship ladder match. Like why? "Because it's fake, Chico!" Shut up. For the championship match, I wanted past world champions only. Ambrose was given his spot directly by Triple H — no qualifier needed. And Ziggler, who was originally in the championship match? Paul Heyman negotiated a spot swap, moving Cesaro into the big boy match and Ziggler into the briefcase match. This is the kind of thing Heyman should have been doing at the time rather than whispering finisher advice into Cesaro's ear like a wise professor. Remember that? BOOOO. So no — Heyman actually does something helpful. This also adds another layer to Ziggler's underdog character.
I also put Adrian Neville in the briefcase match because he was the NXT Champion at the time and this would be a cool way to showcase that brand. Fandango gets thrown in too — since he was already on the card for a love story storyline as a special referee, now he has a massive distraction pulling him away from defending his romance. High stakes all around.
The match gets underway and by golly, it is a good one! (Because of course it is — this is a fantasy booking. Could you imagine if I fantasy booked it to just suck? No. It is simply amazing. Meltzer would poop his pants). After a hard-hitting battle, Rollins sets up a ladder and climbs toward the briefcase. Suddenly, Kane appears and shoves the ladder over, sending Rollins crashing through a ladder bridged to the commentary desk and snapping it in half.
Kane walks up the ramp laughing to himself when BAM — he is speared clean out of his office shoes by Roman Reigns. Reigns heads to check on Rollins, when a ravaged Ambrose comes flying over the crowd barricade. Rollins and Kane are both back on their feet and all four men brawl through the crowd. Meanwhile, Fandango sees his opportunity and sets up a ladder. As he is climbing, Ziggler springboards himself off the top rope and hits a Zig Zag. He frantically climbs the ladder and pulls down the briefcase — Dolph Ziggler is Mr. Money In The Bank!
The next match comes up and it is Goldust and Stardust vs. RybAxel — Curtis Axel and Ryback. Axel is getting beaten down and jumps to make the first tag of the night for his team. Ryback moves his hand out of the way and hops off the apron. A confused Axel watches as Ryback makes his way back up the entrance ramp — eating the pin by Stardust in the process. (You are probably thinking: okay, why did he bring this up? I don't know, who knows really…)
Before the main event, we see Ambrose in Triple H's office. It is revealed that Reigns and Rollins have been removed from the arena by security. This isn't enough for Ambrose, who demands more must be done. Triple H tells him not to worry — he has a plan. "If you thought I was good at making plans before, wait until you hear this one." (Interesting, huh…)
The main event begins and wouldn't you know it, Reigns and Rollins have found their way back into the arena. Ambrose runs backstage, his former brothers in hot pursuit. The remaining participants have a banger of a match. (I'm talking when Meltzer sees this one, he might poop AND pee — same time). In the closing stretch, Ambrose, Reigns, and Rollins — joined now by Kane — are brawling at ringside. John Cena seemingly joins the aid of Reigns and Rollins, when Ryback comes leveling all three men. (Did you see that coming? Did ya?!) Not long behind him, Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury also join the brawl for Ambrose. (Yeah, that's right — I'm bringing in J&J Security early). Through all the chaos, Ambrose sets up a ladder, climbs, and grabs the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Stabbing his brothers in the back has paid off — and his victims were unable to stop his rise.
Battleground
Dean Ambrose is the NEW WWE World Heavyweight Champion. And his first title defense? Ryback. Bear with me here, folks...
To piece this all together: Paul Heyman negotiated the services of Ryback to Ambrose as part of the same deal that saw the Cesaro and Ziggler spot swap at Money In The Bank. Part of that agreement gave Ryback the first championship opportunity. On the road to the match, Ambrose is oddly complimentary of Ryback — almost suspiciously so. Ryback is wary, but doesn't act on it. Ambrose also convinces Ryback to agree to a No DQ stipulation to make it a "true war." Ryback suspects this is the real reason for all the flattery, but agrees anyway, believing he can beat Ambrose under any stipulation.
Fast forward to the match. The bell rings — and Ryback is RKO'd out of nowhere by a returning Randy Orton. Just like that. Kane and J&J Security swarm the ring and they collectively mug Ryback. It is a complete beatdown. Ambrose pins an unconscious Ryback and The Authority stands tall. Ryback is written off television.
On the road to Battleground, Reigns and Rollins have made an ally in John Cena. The three men have been a constant thorn in Ambrose's side, and Triple H decides that if they want their hands on the champion, they must earn it — by fighting each other. Reigns vs. Rollins vs. Cena is set for Battleground. Ambrose vs. Ryback opens the show, and with Ambrose retaining, the triple threat is officially elevated to a number one contenders match. Everyone could safely assume that would've been the case anyway, but now it is acknowledged on commentary and adds real stakes to the main event.
Which is, of course, a BANGER match — and Seth Rollins wins. He will face Ambrose at SummerSlam for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Summerslam
We are on our way to the biggest party of the summer. During the triple threat at Battleground, John Cena and Roman Reigns had a moment in the closing stretch — Reigns almost wins, but Cena stops him, only for both men to lose to Rollins. This leads to a confrontation between Reigns and Cena on the following RAW, which in turn sets up a match between the two for SummerSlam.
Cena vs. Reigns is a dream match — but it is too soon for Reigns. Instead of a definitive win or loss for either man, Brock Lesnar makes a surprise return and absolutely demolishes both of them. We haven't seen Lesnar since he ended the Streak, and he comes back looking like a monster. Sixteen suplexes. Small moments of offense from both men, but Lesnar gets his. It is an intense, unforgettable statement.
For the main event, Ambrose vs. Rollins is booked as a Lumberjack Match. The actual lumberjack match these two had at SummerSlam 2016 was an absolute blast — I highly recommend checking it out. In the chaos of this one, Dolph Ziggler takes the opportunity to cash in his Money In The Bank briefcase — SUCCESSFULLY — to become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion!
Night of Champions
Following the fallout of SummerSlam, Cena vs. Reigns vs. Lesnar is announced for Night of Champions to determine the number one contender. Fast forward to the event — while Reigns is getting ready to make his entrance, Ambrose attacks him backstage. Kane joins in; it ends with a chokeslam through a glass table. Reigns is taken out of the match.
The triple threat becomes Cena vs. Lesnar, which Lesnar dominates to win the number one contendership.
For the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Ziggler defends in a triple threat against Ambrose and Rollins. As expected, Kane and J&J Security get involved to give Ambrose the advantage. Ambrose is in the ring waiting for Kane to roll a laid-out Rollins inside for a Dirty Deeds — when he is SPEARED TO SMITHEREENS by a bandaged-up Roman Reigns, who somehow clawed his way back to the arena. Reigns rolls out to fight off Kane and J&J, and Ziggler takes full advantage of a flattened Ambrose to get the pin and retain his title.
Hell In A Cell
Ambrose is furious. Reigns has cost him at every turn. He demands a match, but Reigns will only accept on one condition — it must be inside Hell In A Cell. The match is made and it is absolutely wild. Reigns spears Ambrose through the cage wall. They brawl around the arena. Ambrose puts Reigns through both announce desks. They fight their way back into the ring and Reigns has Ambrose lined up for a spear — when he is grabbed by the leg.
He looks down. Demon Kane has ripped open the mat and is attempting to drag Reigns down to hell. As Reigns frantically tries to pull away, Ambrose grabs him by the neck and hits the Dirty Deeds for the pin. Kane then succeeds in dragging Reigns through the canvas and off to wherever Demon Kane takes people. Consider Reigns written off television.
John Cena doesn't have a match at the event, but he does appear backstage to give Ziggler a pep talk and his full support ahead of the championship defense against Lesnar. It plants the seed of a real friendship between the two — not that it matters much in the end, because Lesnar tears through Ziggler to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Survivor Series
The actual main event of Survivor Series 2014 is absolutely perfect — I could do without the Big Show eye roll heel turn, but honestly? I am not going to rewrite this one. It is one of my all-time favorite matches and there is simply no way I could book something better. What I will do is give it slightly different teams.
Team Cena: John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, and... a returning Ryback. Surprise Ryback return on your ass! He was on the original Team Cena, which is exactly why I had him get screwed over so hard earlier in the pitch. Triple H long-term booking type stuff right there. Mastermind stuff. Maybe a little too far... Anyway.
Team Authority: Dean Ambrose, Corporate Kane, Rusev, Mark Henry, and Big Show.
The match plays out with Ziggler being the hero solo survivor for his team, kicking out of absolutely everything. Triple H decides to get personally involved when suddenly — it happens. Sting makes his WWE debut. He fights off Triple H and pulls Ziggler onto a fallen Ambrose for the one, two, three. Ziggler has won. The Authority is vanquished.
Final Verdict
The real Shield breakup is one of the greatest stories WWE ever told. This is not a rewrite. This is the other road. The one where Ambrose is the architect instead of the victim. Where Ziggler gets his summer and Sting gets his moment and every piece falls exactly where it should. Two roads, both worth taking.
Agree? Disagree? Would you have booked it differently? Sound off and let me know. Until next time, we are Hanging Beachside.