WWE is currently facing a new reign of terror under Roman Reigns as both the WWE and universal champion. WWE has done everything to put Roman strong above any other wrestler the company has, and WWE are starting to see the consequences of this decisions.
Booking a strong world champion is generally the right choice, but on this case, we are on the extreme of it. The problem with Reigns’ current run as champion is that WWE didn’t have a long-term plan on who would be the person that would eventually defeat him, and not having a roadmap is creating headaches regarding what to do with Roman Reigns before and possibly after WrestleMania.
WWE’s programming has suffered because of the sacrifices needed to keep Reigns strong ahead of WrestleMania. Every program with Roman Reigns feels repetitive and redundant, especially when we know that the plan is for Roman to stay champion, at least until Mania and his eventual opponent on the biggest PPV of the year.
The current reign of Roman has several problems, but the idea of sacrificing all the roster for his sake is the biggest. WWE has booked Reign’s current run as strong as possible; at first it was refreshing to see a strong world champion but WWE’s lack of long-term planning doomed his run. Not having a plan for Roman on who is going to be the eventual wrestler to dethrone him is becoming a bigger issue as the months go by. No one is currently booked to feel an equal to Reigns except legends like The Rock in the eyes of WWE’s creative.
The only plan regarding Roman Reigns’ title run is the idea of him facing The Rock at WrestleMania. On paper, the idea makes sense for different reasons but the fact the match against The Rock at Mania is still on the air makes all this time feel pointless if the match doesn’t take place. It doesn’t help that The Rock’s schedule is very busy and with all the things he has to do even outside of Hollywood like the XFL. It also doesn’t feel like WWE has a plan B if the match doesn’t happen.
Because of the constrictions of Roman Reigns’ title run, this also affects the winner of the Royal Rumble. All indicates that The Rock will most likely win the Royal Rumble and makes one of the most enjoyable PPVs of the year a bit more predictable. If The Rock doesn’t win the Rumble, it will be the ultimate confirmation that the match won’t take place and all the years of planning will be thrown to the garbage.
With the idea of Roman Reigns being champion, the most likely idea is that Roman will be champion at least after Mania, and the issue of who takes the title from him returns. The most likely wrestler is Cody Rhodes, with him most likely being back by the time we move on after Mania. This could’ve been the opportunity to establish a new main eventer, especially because WWE needs more main eventers.
Another candidate is whomever has the MITB briefcase, and it feels like WWE are going to change the holder of the briefcase to someone else. Austin Theory doesn’t feel like the right person to take the title from Roman Reigns. This could be the plan B WWE has in case the match against The Rock can’t take place.
