It appears WWE is once again flipping the switch on one of its superstars for the hot summer months.
According to iwnerd.com, the company originally had plans for Lana to work as a top heel on SmackDown Live, but that may have changed.
Given the crowd’s reaction to her entrance last Tuesday night, WWE officials may change her role to a babyface as she moves forward. It was reported that Lana is filling the role that was being groomed for Eva Marie. Since Eva Marie is no longer performing for WWE, the company had to find a female to step into that slot.
Eva Marie and WWE are awaiting the expiration of her contract. She has not been part of WWE programming the past few months.
The move makes sense from a fan’s perspective, but may not make sense from a booking standpoint. Lana, who is green in terms of experience and ability, talked her way into a SmackDown Women’s Title match with Naomi at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view for her interference in the six-woman tag match last week. She then politicked for a match with Naomi with Commissioner Shane McMahon.
If it seems a bit unfair, it is. As I wrote earlier this week, Lana has little experience in the ring on the main roster and has been a mouthpiece for her husband Rusev. The move to bring her to SmackDown Live to become part of the “package” disrupts the flow of an uneven women’s division.
Her only other previous match came at WrestleMania 32.
The best thing for WWE to do is either have her lose the match to Naomi at Money in the Bank, then have her come back as a babyface, or have her win the match and drop it immediately on Tuesday night to Charlotte or Naomi or Becky Lynch.
WWE can work on rebranding her as a fan favorite once the pay-per-view is over.