"That is booking perfection" - WWE veteran lavishes praise at The Bloodline's angle from Royal Rumble 2023 (Exclusive)

Former WWE manager Dutch Mantell was a big fan of the highly acclaimed Bloodline's show-closing angle at Royal Rumble 2023.

The wrestling world hasn't stopped talking about the stunning developments at last Saturday's show, where things came crashing down for The Bloodline. After Roman Reigns retained his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Kevin Owens, The Tribal Chief, Solo Sikoa, and The Usos began brutalizing KO.

The former Honorary Uce looked on in disbelief and was handed a steel chair by Reigns to attack Owens. However, Zayn left the fans shocked by attacking The Tribal Chief himself. Jimmy Uso, Solo Sikoa, and Reigns were quick to take Sami Zayn down with a barrage of chair shots. There was another twist in the tale as Jey Uso didn't join in and walked away.

Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Smack Talk, Dutch Mantell stated that the segment was "booking perfection." The former WWE manager also praised the promotion for pulling the trigger on Sami Zayn's babyface at the right time.

"That is booking perfection. I preach this and preach this and preach this. Take patience. They have shot this at any time, but they knew they had it right, and at Royal Rumble, now it is the time to pull the trigger on it, and they pulled the trigger, and they saw the reaction," said Dutch Mantell. (4:51 - 5:15)

Mantell mentioned though the plot twist was predictable, it was executed well, which is why the crowd erupted. Dutch Mantell was also impressed with the Jey Uso twist, saying there's a curiosity among fans as to what lies ahead for him.

"We all knew this was coming. We just didn't know when. So when the crowd saw that, they knew this is the moment. The baby is here. They have been working on this angle for nine months. Now we have a new baby. The new baby is Sami and Kevin. Of course, they gotta join even though they didn't join on-screen; they have to join, so it makes sense. But now you still have Jey sitting out there as the lone wolf. Where's he gonna go?" added Dutch Mantell. (5:42 - 6:26)

Check out the full video below:

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Dutch Mantell praised WWE for taking it slow

Furthermore, Dutch Mantell stated that such long-term storytelling was prevalent during the territory days. He commended WWE for applying the old-school approach by progressing the story slowly without rushing it to its conclusion.

"This is what you used to see in the territory days. They [angles] would go and go and go and still have gas in the tank. I commend WWE for doing this in the way they did it because this is old-school, and I appreciate it because we did it 30 years ago. Don't mean they don't work today, they do work today! Stories always work when you tell them in the right way," said Dutch Mantell. (6:30 - 7:01)

Sami Zayn is rumored to challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed Universal Championship later this month at WWE Elimination Chamber 2023.

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