WWE Clash of Champions 2017: Shane McMahon and Most Likely Heel and Face Turns

The Road to WrestleMania approaching means stories that will define the most important season in professional wrestling are beginning to emerge. In order to get people excited, WWE will have to take some risks in the near future.

Whether it is a long-standing heel deciding to embrace the fans or a plucky hero choosing to take shortcuts to find success, turns are an ever-present and exciting part of wrestling storytelling.

WWE Clash of Champions on Sunday will be the last pay-per-view of 2017 and could shake up SmackDown. With so many titles on the line and major heat building between the performers, anything could happen.

Numerous potential heel and face turns in every division on SmackDown could come out of this show. In recent months, Sami Zayn and Mojo Rawley have proved just how much attention a heel turn can give a performer.

Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin could embrace a more devious side. Tamina might take a stance against The Riott Squad, or perhaps Randy Orton's or Shane McMahon's emotions finally boil over.

That is not to say all of these or even any of them will happen, but these are the most likely turns at Clash of Champions in Boston.

Tamina

This may not sound too enticing to some fans, but a face turn by Tamina would make sense and set up a potentially important feud, particularly in the war for power in the division. Recent hints have been made that Tamina has a beef with The Riott Squad's Sarah Logan, but the rivalry would require Tamina to turn to make it work.

If Tamina stands up for Charlotte on Sunday against the NXT trio, more than the other heel lumberjacks, it would help facilitate that turn. Even if it does not wholly come at Clash of Champions, this PPV could be the first step in changing Tamina's character and giving her a fresh shot in the division.

Tamina is the right starter feud for Logan and could potentially help both stay relevant in an often muddled division. SmackDown's women need multiple feuds to break up the weekly overload of every woman being used in the same segment.

Where would a Tamina face turn leave her manager, Lana? WWE could have Lana play face as well. She is well-liked by the fans and has shown before she knows how to play that role. It would also freshen up the two women's generic dynamic.

Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin

Does this count as cheating if they may already be heels? Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin are in a weird spot as a team right now. They seemed to be ready to begin a title feud with The Usos, but that feud has been diluted by the inclusion of The New Day's feud with Rusev and Aiden English.

Because of this, Benjamin and Gable have felt aimless just as they were seemingly turning heel in a major story. This match hopefully will not leave them wholly out of the loop. Even if they do not win, a major moment during or after the match where they viciously assault Jimmy and Jey Uso would solidify their spot in the tag division.

The Usos have gradually turned face since Hell in a Cell 2017, leaving a spot open for a new top heel team to emerge. The Bludgeon Brothers may be in line to take that spot, but it is just as possible for Gable and Benjamin to become SmackDown's major heel team with a clear turn on Sunday.

The duo still need to improve its mic skills to sell the transition long term, but actions can speak loud enough here to make clear The Usos vs. Benjamin and Gable is SmackDown's top tag team rivalry going into 2018.

Jinder Mahal

Credit: WWE.com

This is the most far-fetched turn of all the options, but it is not that difficult to believe Jinder Mahal could gradually be turned face. Mahal's world championship reign was originally sold as a positive message to fans in India, but he has not been given a great spotlight since, with multiple cheap victories and uninspired promos.

Instead of continuing to push terrible scripts that make Mahal seem racist, a face turn would allow him to naturally speak with pride for his home country. Perhaps some fans would take a while to get behind him, but Mahal has likely been a heel so long just because he is a foreign talent.

He is being slowly alienated from The Singh Brothers, and he could easily make a clean break from the duo on Sunday after a loss. If he chooses to walk out on the pair, he could begin to prove himself on his own merits.

A good match with AJ Styles where he ends up not needing the help of The Singh Brothers or is cost the match by them would help start him on a path toward a new character. It would likely be better than whatever would be next for him as a heel after losing to Styles.

Randy Orton

Credit: WWE.com

What is Randy Orton doing right now? His team with Shinsuke Nakamura has gone from random TV pairing to ill-fitting duo in an important story against Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. While it could be that WWE just wants to keep both in the mix until their WrestleMania stories begin, it is just as possible this is the beginning of a WrestleMania feud.

Orton has a long-standing history of anger issues and not trusting anyone. Last year, around this same time, The Viper was a tag team champion with Bray Wyatt before their animosity boiled over. Why is this new team any different? Perhaps Clash of Champions is where Orton decides this team is no longer working, especially after a loss.

Orton could end up RKOing Nakamura after their match, and fans will likely always root for The Artist in that rivalry. This is not even mentioning how much Orton needs the change in direction. It would be an easy story to tell and be a big enough match for 'Mania.

This would be an unexplored feud that could headline SmackDown shows and even end up including the WWE Championship. All it will take is Orton turning heel this Sunday to start the story moving.

Shane McMahon (or Daniel Bryan)

Something is brewing on SmackDown. Shane McMahon continues to grow more cold and vindictive each day in his treatment of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Daniel Bryan has pointed this out almost every week, as the punishments grow more dire.

Now it looks like Shane could try to intentionally cost The Dangerous Alliance their match against Orton and Nakamura and get them fired. Only Bryan as the second guest referee can stop Shane, which makes the dynamic just volatile enough that something has to give. Will we see Shane turn heel when all is said and done?

It is unlikely KO and Zayn will be out of jobs at the end of Clash of Champions, and there is no greater punishment available. If a frustrated Shane turns heel and begins treating the rest of the roster as poorly, it would end the story with Zayn and Owens naturally and change SmackDown for a long time to come.

It is also possible that Bryan turns heel instead, siding with KO and Zayn. This would be harder to sell to fans given Bryan currently cannot compete and is universally loved. Still, one of them is going to have to turn on the other to settle this conflict, and it may end up with one or both fired from their positions at the head of SmackDown.