Seth Rollins

Lopez made his debut in 2005, wrestling in the Iowa independent scene under the ring name Gixx.[5][12] He then joined Ian Rotten's Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South (IWA) under the name Tyler Black, and entered the Ted Petty Invitational Tournament, defeating Sal Thomaselli before being eliminated by Matt Sydal in the quarterfinals in Hammond, Indiana on September 23, 2005.[13]

He soon joined NWA Midwest and won the promotion's tag team championship with Marek Brave. The two successfully defended the NWA Midwest Tag Team Championship against Ryan Boz and Danny Daniels, Brett Wayne and Hype Gotti and Jayson Reign and Marco Cordova several times in early 2006.[14] He briefly appeared in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and teamed with Jeff Luxon in a loss to The Latin American Xchange (Homicide and Hernandez) on Impact! in October 2006.[15]

On May 25, 2007, while in a match with then Full Impact Pro (FIP) Tag Team Champions The Briscoe Brothers (Jay and Mark Briscoe) in Melbourne, Florida, Black's tag team partner Marek Brave suffered a legitimate back injury,[16] leading Black to pursue a singles career by competing in Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), where he defeated Joey Ryan in his debut on June 10.[17]

At PWG's Life During Wartime on July 6, 2008, Black teamed with Jimmy Jacobs to win the PWG World Tag Team Championship by defeating Roderick Strong and El Generico, who was a replacement for Jack Evans.[18][19] At FIP's event on December 20, Black defeated Go Shiozaki to win the FIP World Heavyweight Championship.[20] At FIP's event on May 2, 2009, Davey Richards was awarded the FIP World Heavyweight Championship by forfeit when Black was unable to compete.[20]

Black (left) in the ring alongside The Age of the Fall leader Jimmy Jacobs at a Pro Wrestling Guerrilla event

At the Ring of Honor (ROH) pay-per-view taping of Man Up in September 2007, Black made his debut, alongside Jimmy Jacobs and Necro Butcher, with the three attacking The Briscoe Brothers, and hanging Jay Briscoe from light rigging fashioned as a noose. The three formed a stable called The Age of the Fall.[21] The angle was so controversial that ROH decided to remove the footage from the pay-per-view that was being taped at the event.[12] Black later made his ROH in-ring debut later that night in a dark match, wrestling Jack Evans to a no contest.[12]

At Glory by Honor VI in November, Black defeated Alex "Sugarfoot" Payne, but was attacked by The Briscoe Brothers following the match.[22] He appeared with The Age of the Fall in their match against The Briscoe Brothers during the main event.[23] At Final Battle in December, Black and Jacobs defeated The Briscoe Brothers to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship.[24]

Black in December 2008

They lost the championship one month later on January 26, 2008 to the No Remorse Corps (Davey Richards and Rocky Romero) when competing in an Ultimate Endurance match also involving The Hangmen 3 (Brent Albright and BJ Whitmer), and the team of Austin Aries and Bryan Danielson.[24]

At Take No Prisoners, ROH's sixth pay-per-view, Black challenged Nigel McGuinness for the ROH World Championship in a losing effort.[25] At Up For Grabs, Black and Jacobs won an eight-team tournament to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship for a second time.[24] The two lost the championship at Driven to the team of Kevin Steen and El Generico.[24] Black had a second chance at the ROH World Championship at Death Before Dishonor VI in New York City, when he faced McGuinness, Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli in a four-way elimination match, but McGuinness retained the title.[25]

At Final Battle in December 2008, after Black lost a number one contender match to Austin Aries, Jacobs turned on him, and Black was then attacked by Aries.[25] At Full Circle, Black was given a non-title match against then-ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness on January 16, 2009 where Black was victorious.[26] The following night, Black faced McGuinness in a title match, which ended in a time limit draw.[26] On June 26 at Violent Tendencies, Black defeated Jimmy Jacobs in a steel cage match to end their feud.[26]

In September 2009, Black took a hiatus after receiving surgery on his neck.[27] On October 10, Black defeated Kenny King in a first-round match and then Claudio Castagnoli, Colt Cabana, Delirious, Chris Hero and Roderick Strong in the finals to win the 2009 Survival of the Fittest tournament, which earned him a match for the ROH World Championship.[28] On December 19 at Final Battle 2009, ROH's first live pay-per-view, Black wrestled then ROH World Champion Austin Aries to a 60-minute time limit draw.[29] Because of this draw, then ROH commissioner Jim Cornette booked the two in a rematch between February 13, 2010 for the company's Eighth Anniversary Show. The booking saw Cornette set up a judging panel with himself on and one person picked by each competitor, in order for there to be a decisive winner in case of another draw. Aries picked Kenny King while Black picked Roderick Strong,[30] whom he guaranteed an ROH World Championship title shot should he win. At the event, Black pinned Aries to win the ROH World Championship.[31][32]

On April 3, Black retained the title in a three-way elimination match against Austin Aries and Roderick Strong at The Big Bang! pay-per-view.[33] He also retained the title on June 19 at the following pay-per-view, Death Before Dishonor VIII, in a match against Davey Richards.[34] Black turned into a villain at the August 20 tapings of Ring of Honor Wrestling after news broke that he had signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).[35] He threatened to take the ROH World Championship with him to WWE and refused to put the championship at stake in a match with Davey Richards on August 28 which he then lost by submission.[35][36] On September 11 at Glory By Honor IX, in his final ROH appearance, Black lost the ROH World Championship to Roderick Strong in a no disqualification match with Terry Funk as a guest enforcer, ending his reign at 210 days after seven successful title defenses.[37]

On August 8, 2010, Lopez signed a developmental contract with WWE and was assigned to their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) in September.[38][39][40] On September 14, Black made his WWE debut in a dark match prior to the SmackDown taping by defeating Trent Barreta.[41]

Lopez debuted for FCW on September 30 under the name Seth Rollins, in a loss to Michael McGillicutty.[2][42] Rollins then faced Hunico on November 4 in the first ever FCW 15 match under 15-minute Iron Man rules[43] where they fought to a 1–1 draw.[44] Following this, Rollins, along with Hunico, Richie Steamboat and Jinder Mahal, participated in the FCW 15 Jack Brisco Classic tournament.[43] On January 13, 2011, Rollins defeated Hunico in the finals to win the tournament and became the inaugural FCW Jack Brisco 15 Champion.[43][45]

On March 25 at a house show, Rollins and Richie Steamboat defeated Damien Sandow and Titus O'Neil win the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship.[46] Rollins and Steamboat eventually lost the championship to Big E Langston and Calvin Raines.[47]

In July 2011, Rollins began a feud with Dean Ambrose.[48] Ambrose and Rollins had their first match for the FCW 15 Championship in a 15-minute Iron Man match on the August 14 episode of FCW, which ended in a draw with neither men scoring a fall and, as a result, Rollins retained his title.[49] A subsequent 20-minute rematch for the title two weeks later resulted in a similar 0–0 draw.[49] A second 30-minute rematch for the title on the September 18 episode of FCW went to a time limit 2–2 draw and the match was sent into sudden death overtime, where Rollins scored a pinfall to win the match 3–2.[49] On September 22, Rollins lost the FCW 15 Championship to Damien Sandow by disqualification after Ambrose attacked Sandow late in the match.[50][51]

On February 23, 2012, Rollins defeated Leo Kruger to become the new FCW Florida Heavyweight Champion.[52] Rollins lost the championship to Rick Victor at a house show on May 31.[53]

When WWE rebranded FCW into NXT in August 2012,[54] Rollins' NXT TV debut took place on the second episode of the rebooted NXT at Full Sail University on June 27, when he defeated Jiro.[55][56] Rollins entered the Gold Rush Tournament to crown the inaugural NXT Champion where he defeated Jinder Mahal in the tournament finals on the August 29 episode of NXT.[57][58] On the October 10 episode of NXT, Rollins had his first successful defense of his title after he beat Michael McGillicutty.[59]

Rollins (right) debuted on WWE's main roster as a member of The Shield in November 2012

On November 18, 2012, at the Survivor Series pay-per-view event, Rollins made his main roster debut as a heel alongside Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns, attacking Ryback during the triple threat main event for the WWE Championship, allowing CM Punk to pin John Cena and retain the title.[60] The trio declared themselves The Shield, vowed to rally against "injustice" and denied working for Punk,[61][62] but they routinely emerged from the crowd to attack Punk's adversaries.[63][64] This led to a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match being set up for the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view event, where Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns defeated Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan and Kane) and Ryback in their WWE debut match.[65] While in The Shield, Rollins continued to appear on NXT and defend the NXT Championship, until he eventually lost the championship to Big E Langston on the January 9, 2013 episode of NXT.[66]

The Shield continued to aid Punk after TLC, attacking both Ryback and The Rock in January 2013.[67][68] It was revealed on the January 28 episode of Raw that Punk and his manager Paul Heyman had been paying The Shield and Brad Maddox to work for them all along.[69]

The Shield then quietly ended their association with Punk while beginning a feud with John Cena, Ryback and Sheamus that led to a six-man tag match on February 17 at Elimination Chamber, which The Shield won.[70][71][72] The Shield then faced Sheamus, Big Show and Randy Orton at WrestleMania 29, where The Shield emerged victorious in their first WrestleMania match.[73][74] The following night on Raw, The Shield attempted to attack The Undertaker, but were stopped by Team Hell No.[75] This set up a six-man tag team match on the April 22 episode of Raw, which The Shield won.[76] On the May 13 episode of Raw, The Shield's undefeated streak in televised six-man tag team matches ended in a disqualification loss in a six-man elimination tag team match against John Cena, Kane and Daniel Bryan.[77]

Rollins at a WWE live event in November 2013

On May 19 at Extreme Rules, Rollins and Reigns defeated Team Hell No in a tornado tag team match to win the WWE Tag Team Championship.[78] On the June 14 episode of SmackDown, The Shield suffered their first decisive loss in televised six-man tag team matches against Team Hell No and Randy Orton when Bryan made Rollins submit.[79][80] Rollins and Reigns then successfully retained the WWE Tag Team Championship against Bryan and Orton at Payback on June 13.[81] In August, The Shield began working for Chief operating officer Triple H and The Authority.[82][83] Rollins and Reigns also successfully defended their titles against The Usos during the Money in the Bank pre-show and against The Prime Time Players (Darren Young and Titus O'Neil) at Night of Champions.[84][85]

At Battleground in October, the recently (kayfabe) fired Cody Rhodes and Goldust reclaimed their jobs back by beating Rollins and Reigns in a non-title match.[86] On the October 14 episode of Raw, Rollins and Reigns lost the WWE Tag Team Championship to Cody Rhodes and Goldust in a No Disqualification match following interference from Big Show.[87] At Hell in a Cell on October 27, Rollins and Reigns failed to regain the titles in a triple threat match also involving The Usos.[88] The following month at Survivor Series, The Shield teamed with Antonio Cesaro and Jack Swagger to take on Rey Mysterio, The Usos, Cody Rhodes and Goldust in a traditional Survivor Series match. Although Rollins was eliminated by Mysterio, Reigns would later win the match for the team.[89] At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 15, The Shield lost to CM Punk in 3-on-1 handicap match after Regins accidentally speared Ambrose.[90] At the Royal Rumble on January 26, 2014, Rollins entered his first Royal Rumble match at number 2, gaining three eliminations before being eliminated himself by teammate Reigns.[91] The next night on Raw, The Shield competed against Daniel Bryan, Sheamus and John Cena in a six-man tag team qualifying match to enter the Elimination Chamber match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, but lost the match via disqualification after The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Erick Rowan and Luke Harper) interfered and attacked Cena, Bryan, and Sheamus.[92] The Shield wanted revenge and a six-man tag team match against The Wyatt Family at Elimination Chamber on February 23 was arranged,[93] in which The Shield lost.[94]

The Shield performing their signature pose in May 2014

Later in March, The Shield began a feud with Kane, turning face in the process.[95][96] At WrestleMania XXX on April 6, The Shield defeated Kane and The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg), thus winning their second WrestleMania match as a group.[97] The Shield then feuded with Triple H, the COO of WWE and leader of The Authority,[98] who then reformed Evolution with Batista and Randy Orton to take on The Shield.[99] The Shield defeated Evolution at Extreme Rules and again at Payback in a No Holds Barred elimination match, in which no members of The Shield were eliminated.[100][101]

Rollins, accompanied by Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, carrying his Money in the Bank contract in September 2014

On the June 2 episode of Raw, Rollins turned on Ambrose and Reigns to rejoin The Authority, turning heel once again.[101][102] He then entered himself into the Money in the Bank ladder match at the titular event,[103] which he won after Kane interfered.[104] Rollins defeated Ambrose twice, the first being at Battleground in July via forfeit after their match was called off by Triple H after a pre-match attack by Ambrose on Rollins backstage[105] and the second in August at SummerSlam in a lumberjack match after hitting him with his Money in the Bank briefcase following interference from Kane.[106] The following night on Raw, Rollins defeated Ambrose once again in a Falls Count Anywhere match by referee stoppage after Kane interfered again and helped Rollins execute a Curb Stomp on Ambrose through cinder blocks, giving him a kayfabe injury.[107] In September, Rollins began feuding with Roman Reigns and a match between the two was set up for Night of Champions, but Reigns developed a legitimate incarcerated hernia which required surgery prior to the event,[108] resulting in Rollins being declared the winner via forfeit, before being attacked by a returning Ambrose.[109] Shortly after, Rollins adopted Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury as bodyguards, later being named "J&J Security".[110][111] The feud between Rollins and Ambrose culminated at Hell in a Cell where Rollins defeated Ambrose in a Hell in a Cell match after Bray Wyatt interfered and attacked Ambrose.[111] Following Hell in a Cell, tension began growing between Rollins and Randy Orton due to The Authority's preferential treatment of Rollins, leading to a singles match between the two on the November 3 episode of Raw, which Rollins won. After the match, Orton attacked The Authority but was overpowered, resulting in Rollins performing a Curb Stomp on Orton onto the steel ring steps, kayfabe injuring him.[112] At Survivor Series on November 23, Rollins captained Team Authority in a five-on-five elimination tag team match against Team Cena, in which Rollins was the sole survivor for his team and the last man eliminated by Dolph Ziggler, resulting in The Authority being ousted from control of WWE.[113] Rollins continued his feud with Cena in December at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in a tables match, which was won by Cena.[114][115]

Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank contact at WrestleMania 31 to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

On the January 5, 2015 episode of Raw, The Authority regained control over WWE.[116] Rollins competed in a triple-threat match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Cena and champion Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble later that month, which Lesnar won after pinning Rollins.[117] At Fastlane, Rollins, Big Show and Kane defeated the team of Dolph Ziggler, Erick Rowan and Ryback; however after the match Randy Orton returned and attacked Noble, Mercury and Kane, while Rollins fled the arena.[118] After weeks of teasing a reunion with The Authority, Orton eventually attacked Rollins, which led to a match between the two at WrestleMania 31 on March 29, which Rollins lost.[119] Later that night, Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank contract during Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns' WWE World Heavyweight Championship match, turning it into a triple threat match and pinned Reigns to win the title for the first time in his career.[120] This made Rollins the first man to cash in his Money in the Bank contract at WrestleMania and during a title match.[121] Rollins continued his feud with Orton after WrestleMania, which led to a steel cage match for the championship with Kane residing as special guest "gatekeeper" at Extreme Rules on April 26,[122] where Rollins retained after interference from the latter.[123] In May, tension rose between Rollins and Kane after the latter scheduled a title defense against Orton and Reigns for Payback.[124] When Ambrose defeated Rollins in a non-title match on the May 4 episode of Raw, he was added to the match, therefore making it a fatal-four-way match[125] which Rollins won after pinning Orton.[126] Rollins then retained the championship against Ambrose on May 31 at Elimination Chamber after getting himself disqualified.[127] Rollins again retained over Ambrose at Money in the Bank in a ladder match.[128]

At Battleground on July 19, Rollins retained the championship by disqualification against Brock Lesnar after The Undertaker interfered and attacked Lesnar.[129] In August, Rollins continued his feud with United States Champion John Cena. He defeated Cena in a Winner Takes All match at SummerSlam on August 23 for both the WWE World Heavyweight and the United States Championships after interference from Jon Stewart.[130] With the win, Rollins became the first and only wrestler to hold both championships simultaneously until he went on to lose the United States Championship back to Cena at Night of Champions on September 20,[131] but was able to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Sting later that night.[132] On October 25 at Hell in a Cell, Rollins successfully defended the championship against Kane and per the match stipulation, Kane was fired as Director of Operations.[133]

On November 4 during a match against Kane at a WWE live event in Dublin, Ireland, Rollins tore the ACL, MCL and medial meniscus in his knee while attempting to execute a sunset flip powerbomb.[134] The injury required surgery and it was estimated it would take Rollins out of action for approximately six to nine months, therefore he was forced to vacate the WWE World Heavyweight Championship the next day, ending his reign at 220 days.[135][136] On the December 21 episode of Raw, Rollins made a special appearance to accept his Slammy Award for 2015 Superstar of the Year.[137]

At Extreme Rules on May 22, 2016, Rollins returned from injury to attack Roman Reigns with a Pedigree after his WWE World Heavyweight Championship defense against AJ Styles.[138] The following night on Raw, Shane McMahon scheduled a match between Reigns and Rollins for the title at Money in the Bank.[139] Meanwhile, multiple wrestling critics and analysts wondered if WWE was "leaving money on the table" by not slotting Rollins as a fan favorite and the negatively received Reigns as a villain.[140][141] At Money in the Bank on June 19, Rollins defeated Reigns to win his second WWE World Heavyweight Championship, thus also becoming the first wrestler to legitimately defeat Reigns in singles competition on the main roster, only to lose the championship minutes later to Dean Ambrose, who cashed in the Money in the Bank contract he won earlier that night.[142] In July, Rollins failed to regain the renamed WWE Championship[143] from Ambrose multiple times on both Raw and SmackDown.[144][145][146] In the 2016 WWE draft on July 19, Rollins was drafted to Raw as the brand's first draft pick.[147] At Battleground on July 24, Rollins unsuccessfully competed in a triple threat match against Ambrose and Reigns for the newly renamed WWE World Championship,[148] which became exclusive to the SmackDown brand.[149][150] Because of this, the WWE Universal Championship was introduced the following night on Raw.[151] Rollins competed in the inaugural title match against Finn Bálor at SummerSlam on August 21,[152] in which he was defeated by Bálor.[153]

Rollins in May 2017 at a house show. The name Kingslayer on his shirt is in reference to his win over Triple H at WrestleMania 33

After Bálor relinquished the title the following night on Raw due to a legit shoulder injury sustained at SummerSlam,[154] Rollins faced Big Cass, Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns in a four-way elimination match for the title, but Triple H interfered and attacked Rollins, allowing Owens to win the championship.[155] On the September 5 episode of Raw, Rollins attacked Owens during his celebration ceremony, turning face for the first time since 2014.[156] Rollins failed to win the title from Owens at Clash of Champions[157] and Hell in a Cell, due to several interferences from Chris Jericho.[158] At Survivor Series in November, Rollins formed part of Team Raw with Owens, Jericho, Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns in a losing effort to Team SmackDown.[159] The next month at Roadblock: End of the Line, Rollins defeated Jericho.[160]

In January 2017, Rollins started a feud with Triple H leading into WrestleMania. On January 28, Rollins appeared at NXT TakeOver: San Antonio, interrupting the show and demanding to confront Triple H, who came out only to order security to remove Rollins from the ring.[161] On the January 30 episode of Raw, Rollins confronted Stephanie McMahon and once again called out Triple H, demanding answers for his betrayal.[162] Later that night, Rollins was ambushed from behind by the debuting Samoa Joe, who choked him out in the Coquina Clutch.[163] Rollins later signed a contract to compete against Triple H in a non-sanctioned match at WrestleMania 33.[164] Rollins emerged victorious at the event.[165] After WrestleMania, Rollins defeated Samoa Joe at Payback on April 30 to give Joe his first singles loss on the main roster.[166]

At Extreme Rules on June 4, Rollins competed in a fatal five-way Extreme Rules match to determine the number one contender to the WWE Universal Championship also involving Bálor, Joe, Reigns and Wyatt, which was won by Joe.[167]

In August 2017, Rollins reunited with Dean Ambrose to reform part of The Shield

On the July 10 episode of Raw, Rollins saved former stablemate and long-time rival Dean Ambrose from an attack by The Miz and the Miztourage (Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas).[168] After failing to gain Ambrose's trust for several weeks,[169][170][171] the two argued in the ring on the August 14 episode of Raw and eventually brawled with each other before fighting off Cesaro and Sheamus, reuniting the team in the process.[172] At SummerSlam on August 20, Ambrose and Rollins defeated Cesaro and Sheamus to win the Raw Tag Team Championship.[173][174]

Rollins and Ambrose successfully defended the titles against Cesaro and Sheamus at No Mercy in September.[175] On the October 9 of Raw, the whole Shield officially reunited to battle The Miz and Miztourage, Cesaro and Sheamus and Braun Strowman, all of whom were common enemies amongst the members.[176] The Shield was then scheduled to compete in their first match as a unit since June 2014, against the team of Strowman, Cesaro, Kane, The Miz and Sheamus on October 22 at TLC in a 5-on-3 handicap Tables, Ladders and Chairs match,[177] but health issues kept Reigns out of action. He was replaced by Kurt Angle.[178] Ambrose, Rollins and Angle went on to win the match.[179] Ambrose and Rollins were scheduled to face SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos in a non-title match at Survivor Series,[180] but they lost the title back to Cesaro and Sheamus on the November 6 episode of Raw due to SmackDown's The New Day distracting the champions,[181] ending their reign at 78 days.[182] This led to a match between The Shield and The New Day at Survivor Series on November 19,[183] which The Shield won.[184] In December, Ambrose suffered a torn biceps, sidelining him for approximately nine months, putting The Shield on hiatus.[185]

On the December 25 episode of Raw, Rollins teamed with Jason Jordan and defeated Cesaro and Sheamus to become the new Raw Tag Team Champions.[186] At the Royal Rumble on January 28, Rollins entered at No. 18 in the Royal Rumble match, but he was eliminated by Reigns.[187] Right after the Royal Rumble match, Rollins and Jordan lost the tag team titles to Cesaro and Sheamus, ending their reign at 34 days.[188][189][190] Rollins and Jordan's tag team dissolved on February 6 after Jordan had neck surgery.[191]

On the February 19 episode of Raw, Rollins competed in a seven-men gauntlet match, where he eliminated Roman Reigns in the first and then John Cena in the second fall, before he was eliminated by Elias. Rollins wrestled for one hour and five minutes, which is the longest performance in a match by any wrestler in the show's history.[192][193] Six days later, at the Elimination Chamber, Rollins was the fifth man eliminated by Braun Strowman in the Elimination Chamber match.[194][195]

On April 8 at WrestleMania 34, Rollins defeated Finn Bálor and The Miz in a triple threat match to win the Intercontinental Championship for the first time in his career.[196][197] With his win, Rollins became the twenty-ninth Triple Crown Champion and the eighteenth Grand Slam Champion in WWE history, respectively.[198] After he defeated The Miz in a rematch at Backlash on May 6,[199][200] Rollins went on to defend the title on numerous occasions, including several open challenges.[201][202][203] At the end of May, Rollins started a feud with Elias, who attacked him with his guitar after Rollins interrupted his performance.[204] The two eventually faced off for the Intercontinental Championship at the Money in the Bank on June 17, where Rollins prevailed.[205] The following night on Raw, Rollins dropped the championship to Dolph Ziggler after a distraction by Ziggler's ally Drew McIntyre, ending his reign at 71 days.[206]

Rollins won his first Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 34

Ziggler retained against Rollins on several occasions, including in a 30-minute Iron Man match at Extreme Rules after interference from McIntyre,[207][208][209][210] but at SummerSlam, Rollins defeated Ziggler to regain the championship, after enlisting the help of a returning Dean Ambrose.[211] The next on Raw, Rollins reformed The Shield with Ambrose and Roman Reigns, preventing Braun Strowman from cashing in his Money in the Bank contract for the Universal Championship against Reigns.[212] At Hell in a Cell in September, Rollins and Ambrose failed to win the Raw Tag Team Championship from McIntyre and Ziggler.[213] At Super Show-Down on October 6, The Shield defeated McIntyre, Ziggler and Strowman in a six-man tag team match.[214] However, two nights later on Raw, The Shield was defeated by the same trio in a rematch, with Ambrose walking away from his teammates after their defeat.[215]

On the October 22 episode of Raw, Reigns took a hiatus due to his returning leukemia. Later that night, Rollins and Ambrose defeated Ziggler and McIntyre to win the Raw Tag Team Championship (making Rollins a double champion), only for Ambrose to turn on Rollins as he attacked him, igniting a feud between the two and disbanding The Shield once again.[216] Rollins and Ambrose's reign as Raw Tag Team Champions was ended on the November 5 episode of Raw, when Rollins lost a handicap match to AOP (Akam and Rezar).[217] Two weeks later, on November 18, at Survivor Series, Rollins defeated United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura in an interbrand champion vs. champion match.[218] Towards the end of the year, Rollins continued feuding with Ambrose,[219][220][221][222] which led to a title match on December 16 at the TLC pay-per-view, where Ambrose defeated Rollins and ended his reign at 119 days.[223][224] Going into 2019, Rollins failed to regain the championship from Ambrose on several occasions, including in a Falls Count Anywhere match when Bobby Lashley interfered,[225] and in a triple threat match in which Lashley won the championship after pinning Ambrose.[226]

Rollins as Universal Champion in May 2019

On January 27 at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, Rollins won his first Royal Rumble match by lastly eliminating Braun Strowman.[227] The following night on Raw, Rollins challenged Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 35.[228] Soon after, Rollins reconciled with Ambrose and the recently returned Reigns to reform The Shield for the third time.[229][230] The trio defeated the team of Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley and Baron Corbin at Fastlane.[231] At WrestleMania 35 in April, Rollins defeated Lesnar to win the Universal Championship for the first time.[232]

Rollins then entered a feud with AJ Styles,[233][234] facing him in a match for the Universal Championship at Money in the Bank in May, in which Rollins retained.[235] Rollins successfully defended the title against Corbin at Super ShowDown and Stomping Grounds in June; the latter title defense featured Lacey Evans as special guest referee. He won with assistance of his real life girlfriend and Raw Women's Champion Becky Lynch to overcome Evans' biased refereeing.[236][237] Rollins teamed up with Lynch and defeated Corbin and Evans at Extreme Rules in a Winner Takes All Extreme Rules match mixed tag team match.[238] Afterwards, Rollins lost the title to Lesnar, who cashed in his Money in the Bank contract, ending his reign at 98 days.[239] The following night on Raw, Rollins won a ten-man battle royal for the right to face Lesnar for the championship at SummerSlam by last eliminating Randy Orton.[240] At the event, Rollins defeated Lesnar to regain the championship, making him the second wrestler to hold the Universal Championship more than once. He also became the only superstar to defeat Lesnar at both WrestleMania and SummerSlam.[241]

On the August 19 episode of Raw, Rollins won his record-tying fifth Raw Tag Team Championship along with Braun Strowman when they defeated Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows.[242] At Clash of Champions, Rollins and Strowman lost the titles to the team of Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode. Later that night, Rollins successfully defended the Universal Championship against Strowman in the main event, but was attacked by "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt after the match.[243] At Hell in a Cell, Rollins defended his title against The Fiend in a Hell in a Cell match that ended in referee stoppage after The Fiend was buried under several weapons and hit with a sledgehammer by Rollins.[244] After that, Rollins was then made captain for Team Hogan at Crown Jewel. However, he was removed when he was then scheduled in a rematch against Wyatt for the Universal Championship in a Falls count anywhere match.[245] At the event, Rollins lost the title to The Fiend ending his second reign at 80 days.[246]

In November, Rollins was selected as the captain for Team Raw at Survivor Series, against Team SmackDown and Team NXT.[247] At the event, Team SmackDown was victorious in the main event match.[248] After this, Rollins turned heel for the first time since 2016, and began dubbing himself as the "Monday Night Messiah" while stating that he was "sacrificing" his opponents for "the greater good".[249][250] He would also create a faction with AOP (Akam and Rezar) and Buddy Murphy,[251][252][253] and the group would attack and brutalize the likes of Rey Mysterio, Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens over the following weeks.[249][254] Rollins won the Raw Tag Team Championship with Murphy on the January 20, 2020 episode of Raw after defeating The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar), becoming a record six-time champion.[255] Rollins competed in the 2020 Royal Rumble match as the final entrant, but was eliminated by the eventual winner Drew McIntyre.[256] Rollins and Murphy successfully defended the tag team championship against The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) at Super ShowDown on February 27,[257] but lost the titles to them on the March 2 episode of Raw.[258] Rollins and Murphy failed to reclaim the championship from the Street Profits at Elimination Chamber six days later.[259] At WrestleMania 36 on April 5, Rollins faced Kevin Owens in No Disqualification match, which Rollins lost.[260]

Following this, Rollins began a rivalry with Drew McIntyre over the WWE Championship,[261] leading to a match between the two at Money in the Bank in May, which Rollins lost.[262] The next night on Raw, Rollins attacked Rey Mysterio and injured his eye with the steel ring steps.[263] On the May 18 episode of Raw, Rollins recruited Austin Theory as a new member of his faction.[264] Mysterio eventually returned and challenged Rollins to an "Eye for an Eye Match"[265] where the only way to win was to extract the opponent's eyeball.[266] The match would take place at The Horror Show at Extreme Rules on July 19, where Rollins was victorious after using the ring steps to remove Mysterio's eye.[267] Over the next coming weeks, Rey Mysterio's son Dominik would confront Rollins about the attacks on both him and his father. At SummerSlam, Rollins defeated Dominik in a Street Fight.[268] The following night on Raw, a tag team match was set up between Rollins and Murphy against Rey and Dominik Mysterio at Payback. At the event, Rollins and Murphy were defeated by Rey and Dominik.[269]

On the October 5 episode of Raw, Murphy attacked Rollins after he refused to apologize to him thus ending their alliance. As part of the 2020 WWE draft in October, Rollins was drafted to the SmackDown brand.[270] On the November 20 episode of SmackDown, Rollins was defeated by Murphy to end the feud.[271] At Survivor Series, Rollins competed in the Survivor Series match as part of Team SmackDown, but he was the first person eliminated by Sheamus after "sacrificing" himself. His team would also go on to lose the match.[272] Following this, Rollins would go on paternity leave for the birth of his first child.[273] After a two month hiatus, Rollins returned at the Royal Rumble entering at the number 29 spot where he lasted until the final three before getting eliminated by the eventual winner, Edge.[274]