Armchair Booking: Aleister Black vs Finn Balor

The Intercontinental Championship first debuted in 1979 and has been held by some of WWE’s greatest wrestlers. Hall of Famer Pat Patterson, The Rock, Chris Jericho, Triple H, The Miz, and most recently Seth Rollins have all added to the prestige of the Intercontinental Championship. “The Demon King” Finn Balor challenged Lashley for the title at WrestleMania 35; The Demon arrived, kicked ass, and left with the Intercontinental title.

Two months ago, Balor was drafted to SmackDown Live, the land of opportunity, and is in need of a legitimate contender for his title. He had some incredible contests with Andrade, where they’ve pushed the limits of gravity and shined under the spotlight. At WWE Super ShowDown, Balor bested Andrade and retained his Intercontinental championship in a hard-hitting contest. I have no doubt in my mind Andrade could be a great Intercontinental champion in his own right, but I think he should quickly be elevated into the WWE Championship scene.

Enter “The Dutch Destroyer” Aleister Black, who made a name for himself while performing for promotions across Europe under the moniker Tommy End, before his NXT debut in 2016. Black, a recent SmackDown Live draftee, has been ominously daring anyone who wants to pick a fight with him. I predict Black will announce Balor as his first victim that will “Fade to Black”.

The fantastic production team of WWE can create an ominous video recapping his path of destruction from his days in NXT. As smoke surrounds the ring, Black will be seated in his signature crossed-legged position. He only needs to utter two-words, “Finn Balor”, and leave. The following week after Balor celebrates another victory, Black can appear from out of nowhere and deliver a thunderous Black Mass leaving the Intercontinental champion unconscious.

At the beginning of SmackDown Live the next week, an angry Balor will open the show, finally calling out Black to meet him face-to-face. Instead of obliging, Black appears on the titantron mocking and laughing at the champion’s lack of composure. As Balor is in the middle of another contest, similar to The Undertaker’s mind games, the lights flicker and go dark; Balor is prepared for his adversary. His opponent in the ring takes advantage of the situation and gets a win over Balor. He will absolutely lose it, destroying anything in his path, tossing chairs and tearing apart the announce table.

Balor, hell-bent on retribution, runs backstage to WWE officials where we see Triple H, Shane McMahon and even the CEO of WWE himself Vince McMahon. An irritated Balor demands the match between him and Black at WWE Stomping Grounds in June. The following week, the match is made official and a contract signing will happen later on in the show.

As we reach the hour when the official signing will take place, Balor comes out first. Black again toying with the Intercontinental champion takes his time to make it to the ring. Black shows video footage of Balor’s days in NXT and calls his NXT-Championship reign pathetic, claiming he would annihilate his past opponents without even breaking a sweat.

Black then brings up Balor’s “Demon King” alter-ego. He tells Balor that he’s not afraid of demons; that they’ve allowed him to harness his supernatural powers and become the destructive force Black is today. Balor finally gets his opportunity to speak and says if Black wanted an opportunity at his Intercontinental championship all he had to do was ask. Balor gives his opponent a warning that he shouldn’t be concerned with ‘The Demon’ because he’s getting the man at the next pay-per-view

After a hard-hitting affair with both competitors using every move in their arsenals, Balor emerged victorious in a successful title defence against Black. The following night on SmackDown Live, Balor arrives with his Intercontinental championship draped over his shoulder, and a huge grin on his face. Acknowledging the WWE Universe’s support after defeating a dangerous and unpredictable opponent like Black.

Black appears and attacks the champion; delivering a brutal onslaught, throwing Balor headfirst into the steel steps repeatedly, followed by a vicious Black Mass. He will then tear apart the announce table and roll Balor’s lifeless body as he delivers an all-mighty double-stomp from the top rope through Balor and the announce table. The last image we see is Black holding the Intercontinental Championship, over Balor’s body as WWE medical personnel come to the ring with a stretcher.

Balor has not been seen in weeks, and with SummerSlam looming, Black has set his sights on a new victim – Ali. Ali was sickened by Black’s heinous acts to the Intercontinental champion and decided enough was enough. Ali vs. Black is announced later in the show. Black destroys Ali, trash-talking him in the corner while delivery hard knife edge chops. He locks in a dangerous triangle-choke and refuses to release the submission despite the referee’s attempts. Black then drags Ali outside to continue his ruthless assault, until the ringing of sirens blares through the arena.

The WWE Universe is going nuts as the ambulance backs up to the entrance ramp. Balor bursts open the doors as he stares a hole into Black from far away, he sprints towards the ring as Black attempts to escape. Balor chases him into the crowd and pulls him back into the ring. As the adversaries are beating the hell out of each other, the entire SmackDown Live rosters run from the back to break things up. The Intercontinental champion and challenger are shoving wrestlers aside to continue

The following week both competitors are announced for a face-to-face confrontation, however this time, security guards and WWE officials will be there to ensure there will be no physicality. Balor and Black make it to the ring, Black says this is all Balor’s fault and “I want what’s mine”. Balor tells his challenger that there is nothing that Black can do to take the Intercontinental championship from him, and he’s going to have to pry it out of his cold dead hands. Balor announces that “The Demon” will destroy Black and will be out for blood at SummerSlam.

My prediction would be that this would be a perfect opportunity to shock the WWE Universe and have Balor suffer his first loss under his alter-personality. This would be a huge moment for Black, in his first real feud as a singles competitor he topples the seemingly unbeatable “Demon” to capture the Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam.

This will also bring prestige back to the Intercontinental championship since Rollins’ incredible championship reign in 2018. Balor has been a great interim champion throughout both of his title reigns, but the time has come for him to make it back to the WWE championship main-event scene.

Ever since he became the inaugural Universal champion in 2016, his major shoulder surgery shortened his reign to a crippling 44 hours. Balor has been positioned in the mid-card class since 2017. Now that he’s on the Blue-brand he will finally be given the opportunity to chase the WWE Championship, and perhaps even win the title at WrestleMania next year.