Last night’s WWE RAW featured Jinder Mahal delivering what appeared to be a babyface promo.
Jinder returned back on April 27 after being out of action for a year with an injury. He easily defeated Akira Tozawa that night. He has not been used since then, but he appeared in a backstage segment with Charly Caruso on last night’s RAW and left most people thinking he is preparing for a babyface turn. Jinder noted that he’s truly honored to be back, and said one positive is his “old pal Drew McIntyre is WWE Champion” now. Jinder continued and said he was elated to see Drew prosper, but as a former WWE Champion himself, he deserves to be loved by the fans and he’s learned from his past mistakes, so now he’s on the way back to the top. He ended the promo by saying this time his rise to the top will be a hero’s welcome.
It was speculated on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE may be turning Jinder because they’ve been looking for a top babyface from India for a long time. Now could be the time for Jinder to fill that role. WWE and Sony Pictures Networks India signed a new five-year contract extension back in March, which includes an expanded broadcast agreement. The deal includes WWE NXT, RAW, SmackDown, pay-per-view specials, and the WWE Network streaming rights.
While it appeared as if Jinder might be gearing up for a babyface run, there’s also a lot of speculation on last night’s promo leading to even more of a heel turn, with Jinder attacking and turning on his old friend, McIntyre. The tone of the promo and the McIntyre mention has some on social media predicting an aggressive turn by Jinder.
It remains to be seen where WWE is headed with The Modern Day Maharaja, but stay tuned as we will keep you updated. You can see the Jinder segment from RAW below:
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