Image after image of an inept, fizzling Dolph Ziggler has to be painted over before his WWE World Championship match against Dean Ambrose at SummerSlam.
For the past few years, WWE has been telling its fans that Ziggler is a low-rung Superstar, a stepping stone and a role player. After suddenly thrusting him into one of SummerSlam's biggest bouts, the company must now rewire the audience's perception of him. And it won't be easy.
On the first edition of SmackDown after the draft, Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan, the blue brand's head honchos, set up a Six-Pack Challenge match to decide the No. 1 contender to Ambrose's title.
Ziggler clashed with John Cena, AJ Styles, Bray Wyatt, Apollo Crews and Baron Corbin in Tuesday's main event. Few fans would have bet on The Showoff here. Cena and Styles are main eventers; Wyatt is on the verge of joining them.
But a surprise was on its way.
In a chaotic finish, Cena bounced Corbin from the ring, Styles blasted Cena to the outside with a Phenomenal Forearm and Ziggler clocked Styles with a superkick. The Showoff pinned his fallen foe and earned his place opposite Ambrose at SummerSlam.
In a backstage interview after the win, Ziggler said, "I don't believe it. My parents don't believe it. The fans, the WWE Universe, they didn't see it coming."
That disbelief is understandable.
At last year's SummerSlam, he was way down on the card, battling Rusev as part of a soap opera-inspired rivalry. His last world title opportunity happened three years ago. And as Jake Barnett of ProWrestling.net pointed out, Ziggler has "been languishing with very little direction and a serious perception problem as a babyface."
It's not surprising that the guys at Busted Open Radio openly doubted Ziggler's credibility as a challenger:
His recent resume doesn't read like a world title contender's. His pay-per-view record (not counting matches on kickoff shows) has been terrible:
Memories of Kevin Owens besting him at Fastlane and Corbin overcoming him at Money in the Bank are still fresh. We have watched Ziggler come up short while Zack Ryder, Ryback and Bryan all won the Intercontinental Championship in multi-man matches he was a part of in the past two years.
Even Tyler Breeze toppled Ziggler on PPV, beating him at last year's Survivor Series.
Ziggler's record against the world champion isn't stellar, either. Per CageMatch.net, The Showoff has failed to beat Ambrose in four straight one-on-one matches going all the way back to 2013.
That all has fans viewing Ziggler as a guy with no shot at SummerSlam, a midcarder disguised as a title contender.
WWE has until Aug. 21 to change that mindset. That leaves just three editions of SmackDown to showcase Ziggler as a formidable opponent.
The Showoff is going to need some major wins in that span. The company must book a winning streak for him, one where he takes down the likes of Alberto Del Rio and Wyatt.
Victories like those will allow Ziggler's No. 1 contender spot to look less like a fluke.
And rather than tell the usual story of Ziggler taking loads of punishment before stealing a win in the end, WWE should show him in full control of a former world champ like Del Rio. Make it feel like Ziggler has discovered something in himself, something that has him at his peak.
Another smart strategy would be to compile clips of Ziggler's biggest moments and air them to remind fans of what Ziggler looks like at his best.
Rather than fans thinking of The Showoff who just couldn't cut it in big spots, they will see him beating Cena in a 2012 ladder match, cashing in the Money in the Bank contract on Del Rio in 2013 and ousting The Authority by scoring the win for Team Cena at Survivor Series 2014. WWE can skip all the losses and disappointments in between.
WWE will, in a sense, be Ziggler's campaign manager, looking to spin his past in such a way that we view him as a threat to Ambrose, not a chump who lucked into a golden opportunity.
The better the company can pull that off, the more excitement there will be surrounding his title shot. Ziggler can play the underdog against Ambrose, but not one nobody believes has a chance.