The slow and steady rise of Baron Corbin over the past year has not gone unnoticed by WWE fans, leading to speculation as to how long it will be before he enters the Universal Championship hunt.

The Lone Wolf is no stranger to fighting for a top title. He received multiple shots at the WWE Championship early in his career before feuding with Seth Rollins over the Universal Championship last summer.

While he has yet to win a world title, he's closer now than he's ever been before to becoming a top heel on WWE SmackDown. In other words, a run with the universal title may not be out of the question in 2020.

Currently, King Corbin finds himself embroiled in a never-ending rivalry with Roman Reigns, who he's already defeated on two separate occasions. One of those wins came at last month's TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view, albeit with help from Dolph Ziggler and The Revival.

With Reigns already announced for the men's Royal Rumble match on January 26, it's safe to assume Corbin will join him. Of course, the chances of The Lone Wolf winning are slim to none, but that isn't to say he can't have a strong showing and further his feud with The Big Dog by eliminating him.

It's likely WWE drags out their storyline until Elimination Chamber or even WrestleMania 36 itself, but beyond that, Corbin could well be headed for the Universal Championship picture if his recent push has been any indication.

"The Fiend" Bray Wyatt has had a stranglehold on SmackDown's most coveted prize since Crown Jewel on October 31. Although he has a defense coming up against Daniel Bryan at the Royal Rumble, it's all but a guarantee his reign will last at least until WrestleMania on April 5.

Reigns' name has been floated among fans as a popular choice to contend for the championship on The Grandest Stage of Them All, especially with it making perfect sense from a storyline standpoint. The Big Dog was forced to vacate the strap in October 2018 and has not gone back for it since.

If Reigns walks out of WrestleMania with the gold in his grasp, it's entirely possible he rekindles his rivalry with Corbin afterward, this time with the Universal Championship up for grabs.

It would be premature to pull the trigger on a Corbin title run then, but nothing is stopping him from winning it later in the year.

Despite being one of WWE's best pure heels today, Corbin's character needs some tweaking before he can be considered a serious threat to a top title.

First and foremost, the former United States champion needs to drop the king shtick and go back to being the dominant force he was in NXT as well as early on in his main roster run. His performance in last year's King of the Ring tournament was tremendous, but WWE squandered any momentum he had by saddling him with all of the tired tropes every past WWE king has had.

A major reason why he receives as much television time as he does at the moment is because SmackDown lacks credible heels. He'll never escape the midcard with the way he's been booked lately, but a significant character overhaul can change that.

Despite all that, the heat Corbin generates from fans can't be understated. He's perfectly capable of holding his own in the ring, but promos are where he really shines. He does an exceptional job of riling up the audience with his mic work and making everyone in the arena want to see him get beat.

That said, WWE shouldn't put the Universal Championship on him for that alone as it may not necessarily translate well to TV ratings and live attendance. Jinder Mahal was also at one point as hated as Corbin is and was a fresh face in the title picture, but because his promos and matches grew repetitive, his reign eventually did more harm than good.

If there are enough exciting stories worth telling with him as universal champion, then WWE shouldn't be blamed for its decision to have him win it. Otherwise, there is no reason to rush him into that position without making the proper changes to his character first.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is an Endicott College alumnus and aspiring journalist. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.