WWE Raw vs. SmackDown: Comparing and Contrasting Both Announced Title Matches

If there's one word that springs to mind following the first week of WWE's life after the brand split, it's "surprise."

Exceeding the drama that came with Finn Balor's explosive main-roster debut on Raw seemed impossible heading into SmackDown on Tuesday—and although some would argue that didn't happen, Dolph Ziggler's victory to become the No. 1 contender for Dean Ambrose's WWE Championship has to rank as a major surprise, too.

The company has not disappointed when it comes to setting up an intriguing few weeks ahead of SummerSlam—but what lies in store for both announced title matches?

There are some similarities, but there are also some striking differences.

All Four Competitors Are Incredible Workers

One obvious and instant comparison that can be made between the WWE Championship and WWE Universal Championship is the level of wrestling ability between all four men involved.

Finn Balor arrived on the main roster having wrestled a varying degree of different stars in NXT. There's a fair argument to suggest that the guys most like Seth Rollins in terms of wrestling look—guys like Neville and Shinsuke Nakamura—contributed to his best matches on the developmental brand.

Balor's and Rollins' paths never managed to cross in NXT, and the Interent Wrestling Database shows that they have never met, making this a dream match to get excited about.

As both are technical masters inside the squared circle, this will be a match that could easily steal the show at SummerSlam.

But Ziggler vs. Ambrose won't disappoint, either.

Ambrose thrives in the ring with great workers, and in Ziggler, he has one of WWE's most reliable and trustworthy performers to compete against.

Balor vs. Rollins probably just has the edge, as it features two indy heroes colliding for the first time, but this is a pair of fantastic championship matches when it comes to the level of wrestling we can expect.

The Possibility for Surprise

Where are we more likely to see a twist than at SummerSlam, a show that rarely disappoints?

When looking at Raw and the Universal Championship match and the fact that the title is currently vacant, it's wise to expect there to be a conclusive and straightforward result.

However, with Balor's character direction not yet completely defined, there's no reason to discount some interference somewhere along the line, and it's fairly obvious who will provide it.

With AJ Styles on SmackDown and Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson on Raw, there's the possible need for someone to head up a new incarnation of The Club.

Having Balor reprise his role as leader of The Balor Club from Japan would set him up as a huge heel and would also do a decent job of elevating Gallows and Anderson in the process. The other side to that would mean Rollins likely turning babyface, something fans have called for in the past.

And on SmackDown? With both guys currently working as babyfaces, there's the possibility for one of them to turn heel, likely Ziggler. But that would no doubt be after the match, with Ziggler perhaps attacking Ambrose post-match to set up another meeting and allow Ziggler to flourish with a new character direction.

As it stands, the chance of a swerve looks more likely to come from the Raw match.

Is SmackDown's Title Match More Predictable? 

Raw's title match looks tough to predict. There's a fair argument to go with Rollins, as he has been a champion in the past and was WWE's top pick in the draft. 

However, going with Balor would herald in the New Era, with arguably NXT's most famous talent going right to the top end of the card on the main roster.

But SmackDown? It seems highly unlikely that Dean Ambrose will drop the WWE Championship to Dolph Ziggler. If he did, it would be the latest in a strange series of bookings from WWE when it comes to Ziggler.

He has essentially been booked as a jobber for so long that giving him another run with the world title without any storyline development, character direction or the opportunity to build any momentum would set up his reign to fail.

This could easily be a captivating and intriguing championship rivalry, but in the interim, it looks fairly inevitable that Ambrose will retain.

To that end, Raw's match has the advantage when it comes to getting fans on the edges of their seats.