This list keeps track of the babyface turns and heel turns that happened in WWE throughout 2017.
KEEP IN MIND: When a babyface attacks another babyface, that is usually a heel turn. When a heel attacks another heel, it does not automatically make the victim a babyface. Follow-up booking determines whether an actual turn happened.
Also, sometimes, I update the heel and face index, but not as often as the updates you see below.
WWE HEEL AND FACE TURNS IN 2017:
- January 3 - Dolph Ziggler turned heel on SmackDown by superkicking Kalisto after Kalisto saved him from Baron Corbin, then confirming the turn the following week by attacking both Kalisto and Apollo Crews with a steel chair.
- January 5 - Alicia Fox turned heel on 205 Live by costing Cedric Alexander a match and aligning herself with Noam Dar.
- January 17 - Mickie James turned heel on SmackDown by revealing herself as La Luchadora and helping Alexa Bliss retain the SmackDown Women's Championship against Becky Lynch.
- January 31 - Luke Harper turned babyface on SmackDown by breaking away from Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton, leading to Harper fighting against his former Wyatt Family allies.
- February 13 - Chris Jericho transitioned into a babyface on Raw after Kevin Owens betrayed him during the Festival of Friendship, ending their partnership before WrestleMania 33.
- February 28 - Randy Orton turned babyface on SmackDown by turning against Bray Wyatt, burning down the Wyatt Family compound and revealing he had been working against Wyatt from within.
- March 6 - Austin Aries solidified his babyface turn on Raw by attacking Neville and moving into the Cruiserweight Championship feud against him.
- March 7 - Mickie James turned babyface on SmackDown by attacking Alexa Bliss and ending their alliance.
- March 13 - Dana Brooke turned babyface on Raw by standing up to Charlotte Flair and attacking her, ending Brooke's role as Charlotte's sidekick.
- April 4 - AJ Styles turned babyface on SmackDown by showing respect to Shane McMahon after their WrestleMania 33 match and shaking his hand.
- April 10 - TJP turned heel on Raw by attacking Austin Aries and aligning with Neville in the Cruiserweight Championship picture.
- April 12 - Drew McIntyre returned to NXT as a babyface, reintroducing himself as a more focused competitor after his previous WWE run had ended with him as a heel.
- April 18 - The Bollywood Boyz turned heel on SmackDown by helping Jinder Mahal win a six-pack challenge to become No. 1 contender to the WWE Championship. This applies to Gurv Sihra and Harv Sihra, later known as Sunil Singh and Samir Singh.
- April 25 - Breezango turned babyface on SmackDown by moving into the No. 1 contender spot for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship and becoming more fan-friendly through the Fashion Files direction. This applies to Fandango and Tyler Breeze.
- April 30 - Cesaro and Sheamus turned heel at Payback by attacking The Hardy Boyz after failing to win the Raw Tag Team Championship from them.
- May 2 - Charlotte Flair turned babyface on SmackDown by aligning with Becky Lynch and Naomi against The Welcoming Committee of Natalya, Carmella and Tamina.
- May 15 - Goldust turned heel on Raw by attacking R-Truth before their tag team match against Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, ending Golden Truth.
- May 20 - Tommaso Ciampa turned heel at NXT TakeOver: Chicago by attacking Johnny Gargano after #DIY failed to regain the NXT Tag Team Championship.
- May 25 - Hideo Itami turned heel on NXT by attacking Kassius Ohno and continuing the aggressive frustration that followed his loss to Bobby Roode at NXT TakeOver: Chicago.
- June 19 - Big Cass turned heel on Raw by admitting he had attacked Enzo Amore and then laying him out, breaking up Enzo and Cass.
- July 3 - Titus O'Neil started to solidify a babyface turn on Raw through the Titus Worldwide direction, recruiting Apollo Crews and later Akira Tozawa in a more comedic, supportive manager role.
- July 23 - The Great Khali returned as a heel at Battleground by helping Jinder Mahal defeat Randy Orton in the Punjabi Prison match to retain the WWE Championship.
- August 19 - SAnitY started to transition into a more babyface-leaning role around NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III by feuding with The Authors of Pain. This applies to Eric Young, Alexander Wolfe, Killian Dain and Nikki Cross.
- August 22 - Bobby Roode made his SmackDown roster debut as a babyface after leaving NXT as a heel, entering the main roster with the "Glorious" presentation positioned for fan support.
- September 12 - Gentleman Jack Gallagher turned heel on 205 Live by helping The Brian Kendrick attack Cedric Alexander.
- September 24 - Enzo Amore turned heel at No Mercy by using a low blow to defeat Neville and win the Cruiserweight Championship.
- September 25 - Neville turned babyface on Raw by speaking on behalf of the cruiserweight division against Enzo Amore, although the turn was cut short when Neville soon left WWE programming.
- September 25 - Goldust briefly worked as a babyface opposite Bray Wyatt, but returned to a heel role by the end of the month.
- October 8 - Sami Zayn turned heel at Hell in a Cell by pulling Kevin Owens out of the way of Shane McMahon's dive and helping Owens defeat Shane in their Falls Count Anywhere Hell in a Cell match.
- October 10 - The Ascension transitioned into babyfaces on SmackDown through their comedy role as Breezango's allies in the Fashion Files. This applies to Konnor and Viktor.
- October 10 - The Usos seemingly turned babyface on SmackDown by showing respect to The New Day after their Hell in a Cell match and embracing them to end their rivalry. This applies to Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso.
- October 10 - Luke Harper returned to SmackDown as a heel by attacking Breezango alongside Erick Rowan, re-forming the team later known as The Bludgeon Brothers.
- October 16 - Kane returned as a heel on Raw by coming up through the ring and attacking Roman Reigns during the Steel Cage match between Reigns and Braun Strowman.
- October 22 - Braun Strowman turned babyface at TLC by being thrown into a garbage truck by The Miz, Cesaro, Sheamus and Kane after their team imploded during the handicap TLC match against The Shield and Kurt Angle.
- October 24 - Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin started transitioning into heels on SmackDown by becoming more antagonistic toward The Usos and cutting corners in their pursuit of the SmackDown Tag Team Championship.
- November 13 - Dana Brooke turned heel on Raw by joining Team Raw and working against the babyfaces in the Survivor Series women's division build.
- November 20 - Paige turned heel on Raw by returning with Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville to attack Sasha Banks, Bayley and Mickie James, forming Absolution.
- November 21 - Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan turned heel on SmackDown by attacking Naomi and Becky Lynch, establishing The Riott Squad on the main roster.
- November 28 - Mojo Rawley turned heel on SmackDown by attacking Zack Ryder after The Hype Bros lost to The Bludgeon Brothers, breaking up the team.
- December 11 - Dana Brooke turned babyface again on Raw by joining Titus Worldwide and leaving her short-lived heel positioning behind.
- December 18 - Hideo Itami turned babyface on Raw by debuting on the main roster to save Finn Balor from The Miztourage.
- December - Rusev and Aiden English started transitioning into babyfaces as the Rusev Day act became increasingly popular with the crowd, despite them still carrying some heel tendencies at first.
Before 2017 got underway, I put together a few guesses for which WWE Superstars would change alignment during the year. Those predictions are left intact below as part of the archive, with correct picks struck out after the fact.
PREDICTIONS FOR HEEL AND FACE TURNS IN 2017:
** ORIGINAL PREDICTIONS FROM JANUARY 1ST **
WILL TURN HEEL: Alicia Fox, Big Show, Dean Ambrose or Roman Reigns (not both), Heath Slater, Paige, Rhyno, Sasha Banks, Tajiri or TJ Perkins (not both)
WILL TURN BABYFACE: Chris Jericho, Titus O'Neil, Tony Nese, Randy Orton
** UPDATED PREDICTIONS AFTER WRESTLEMANIA **
WILL TURN HEEL: Akira Tozawa, Aleister Black, Austin Aries, Dean Ambrose, Drew McIntyre, Heath Slater, Paige, Sasha Banks, Sheamus, TJ Perkins
WILL TURN BABYFACE: James Ellsworth, Natalya, Summer Rae
** UPDATED PREDICTIONS AFTER SUMMERSLAM **
WILL TURN HEEL: Bobby Roode, Jason Jordan, Luke Harper, Paige, Shelton Benjamin, Zack Ryder/Mojo Rawley
WILL TURN BABYFACE: Braun Strowman
** UPDATED PREDICTIONS AFTER SURVIVOR SERIES **
WILL TURN HEEL: Bobby Roode OR Randy Orton, Jason Jordan, Paige, Zack Ryder/Mojo Rawley
WILL TURN BABYFACE: Goldust (???)
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