Seth Rollins Beats Drew McIntyre In Instant Classic

WWE Crown Jewel 2023 marked an interesting turning point for Drew McIntyre, who lost his World Heavyweight Championship match against Seth Rollins as his WWE future remains unclear.

In an epic back-and-forth encounter, Rollins retained his title with a Pedigree followed by a Stomp in front on a jam-packed crowd in Saudi Arabia, and the long-time champion remains atop the pedestal on Monday Night Raw. For McIntyre, however, there are lots of questions about what lies ahead.

According to the Wrestling Observer (h/t Wrestling Headlines), McIntyre—whose contract expires early next year—still hasn’t signed an extension or new deal, and the two-time WWE Champion is looking for a lucrative deal to stay. That, however, may conflict with what McIntyre recently told The Hindustan Times (h/t F4WOnline.com): “The internet keeps talking about my future… I’ll continue to give the best performance I can give at every show and I can see I don’t plan to be anywhere else.”

McIntyre, of course, continues to be one of WWE’s best overall performers, but his loss to Rollins at Crown Jewel indicates that—though a heel turn is clearly coming despite the Saudi Arabia crowd being firmly in his corner—a WWE return is no sure thing.

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After all, at last check, WWE wasn’t offering the type of money McIntyre is looking for, and after its merger with UFC, the company is reportedly taking a new approach when it comes to contract renewals, one that may not necessarily play out in McIntyre’s favor.

Look, for example, at the recent departure of Adam “Edge” Copeland, who was reportedly making $3 million per year for a very limited workload in WWE, was unable to come to terms on a new contract with the company and then bolted for AEW. There is reason to believe that AEW could follow suit, what with its lengthy history of signing marquee ex-WWE stars and with WWE seemingly unwilling to break the bank for top acts.

The bottom line is, McIntyre is looking for a major deal at what is a transitional period for WWE. Even when it comes to a wildly popular star like LA Knight, WWE hasn’t shown any desire to break the bank to retain its talents. That’s not surprising because nowadays the main appeal of WWE is the brand as a whole rather than any single star in particular.

Both Raw and SmackDown are loaded with so much top-level talent that McIntyre, despite being a tremendous all-around performer, doesn’t have a lot of leverage. Raw, McIntyre’s current brand, already has Gunther, Jey Uso, Cody Rhodes and Rollins, among others to build around, so the red brand wouldn’t miss a beat without McIntyre—as was the case when he disappeared for several months earlier this year amid reported unhappiness with his creative direction.

While McIntyre’s slow-build booking has been very good since his return, his loss at Crown Jewel was telling, and not in a good way for a top star looking to cash in. McIntyre appears to be on the cusp of turning to the dark side, but exactly what that means for long-term future isn’t clear.

Though McIntyre demonstrated his importance to WWE with an instant classic-level performance against Rollins, his clean loss and gradual turn still leaves him with an uncertain path to a new contract or another world title win.