4 ways Nick Aldis can retaliate against Roman Reigns following Smackdown
Tonight's episode of SmackDown was set up by unaired footage following last week's show. After finding out he was booked in a Fatal Four-Way Match for Royal Rumble 2024, Roman Reigns demanded Paul Heyman to 'fix this' multi-person match situation.
Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso of The Bloodline attacked Cameron Grimes even before he could make it to the ring for his match with Grayson Waller. WWE officials, including SmackDown GM Nick Aldis, stopped The Bloodline from any further mayhem.
Aldis wasn't done with the group, however, as he had words with Paul Heyman. He then booked Uso and Sikoa in a six-person main-event match against AJ Styles, Randy Orton, and LA Knight. Reigns wasn't booked to appear in Nebraska, so they needed a third teammate.
Things didn't go as planned for The Bloodline as the powerful trio of faces not only defeated Jimmy and Solo, but also executed a post-match beatdown of their own. Could Aldis flex his GM power to retaliate against Roman Reigns? Here are four ways SmackDown GM Nick Aldis could do so.
#4 He could ban The Bloodline from ringside at Royal Rumble
The Bloodline has been involved in the entire foundation of the match, so the easiest way to punish Reigns would be to ban them from ringside at Royal Rumble.
All three members of the group ruined the triple threat main event and Solo and Jimmy crashed the opening bout of tonight's show. The tactic can be seen as a type of takeover, and Aldis can target each member of the group.
While a Fatal Four-Way Match has no rules, one way to potentially ensure a clean winner would be to ban the group's members from ringside. It could set the stage for another member to potentially join or for the contest to go off without the usual Bloodline interference.
#3 Aldis could suspend The Tribal Chief
While it would keep Reigns off television even further, Aldis could opt to suspend the leader of The Bloodline for continually disrupting SmackDown.
Slapping The Head of the Table with a suspension would explain why he may not appear on future episodes of SmackDown. It could also provide a storyline excuse why he may not appear at the Elimination Chamber event.
WWE often suspends stars to write them out of storylines for a brief spell. It happened with Ronda Rousey during her final stint with WWE. Aldis could show that he means business by doing the same to The Tribal Chief.
#2 Attendance on SmackDown is mandatory for Reigns as long as he's champion
One thing that Roman Reigns has enjoyed as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion is a light schedule. He doesn't appear weekly like Seth Rollins does for WWE RAW. Reigns also does not defend the title regularly, which divides some of the fans.
A slight at his attendance record could force Aldis to require that The Tribal Chief appear on WWE SmackDown as long as he is champion. It would keep the feud between the two going and also get WWE's top star on television every week.
The Road to WrestleMania is the most important time of the year for WWE, so its biggest star should be there weekly to build matches. Doing so would also acknowledge the special treatment Reigns has received before Aldis' arrival.
#1 Could Roman be stripped of his titles?
The most severe way that Nick Aldis could retaliate against Roman Reigns would be to strip him of his titles. It would be the ultimate show of power and something that would turn the landscape of SmackDown on its head.
That could be for the best, however, as it would open up a few avenues. One would be that it could set the stage between Reigns and The Rock without the titles. That would allow the crowning of a new top champion on WWE SmackDown for the first time in three years.
Yet another reason would be that it could provide an out for bookers since they do not want Reigns to be pinned. He still looks unbeatable and never lost his titles via a pinfall. His historic run would end without suffering a defeat in the ring.