From the WWE rumour mill: Backstage news on whether Roman Reigns is still "The Guy"
What's the story?
Brad Shephard was recently on his podcast, "Backstage in WWE" (H/T Ringside News), where he talked about the backstage conditions of WWE.
During the podcast, Shephard talked about backstage politics that goes on in WWE. He mentioned Vince McMahon and who was the top guy in his eyes after Roman Reigns twice failed to defeat Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship.
In case you didn't know...
Brock Lesnar has held the Universal Championship for over a year now. He won the Championship after he defeated Goldberg for it at WrestleMania 33.
Since that moment, Lesnar has taken on comers for the title. On several multi-man matches, he has gone on to defeat the likes of Roman Reigns, Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman and Kane. There were rumours running rampant that Lesnar was being built up so that it would be a big deal when Roman Reigns defeated him for the Championship at WrestleMania.
That did not happen, as Lesnar was able to retain his title at WrestleMania 34, and yet again at the Greatest Royal Rumble where he defeated Reigns in a Steel Cage Match. The match ended in apparent controversy, where it seemed that Roman's feet were the first to touch the ground, but Lesnar was awarded the Championship nonetheless.
The heart of the matter
During his podcast, Brad Shephard addressed doubts that had appeared on the Internet about Roman's place in WWE, following two defeats. He said that Braun Strowman was a big deal in WWE, and his popularity had made Vince had decided to personally focus on his booking to help him get over further.
He pointed out, that despite the popularity of Strowman, and the fact that Braun has a solid future in the company, there was nothing to indicate that Roman was no longer the top guy in Vince's eyes.
“Of course, Vince is very high on Braun and I was told Vince has taken a personal interest in Braun’s success. But as for who ‘the guy’ is there’s been no indication internally that it’s no longer Roman Reigns.”
Roman has had problems getting over, with anyone who faces him being cheered in recent weeks. Despite this, WWE plan to continue booking him as their top guy, who is the face of the company.
What's next?
Roman Reigns is set to take on Samoa Joe this Sunday, at the Backlash pay-per-view, while Braun Strowman is set to team up with Bobby Lashley and take on the team of Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens.
Author's take
Roman Reigns is definitely one of the most popular stars in some sectors of the fan-base, but the hardcore wrestling fans have been driven away from him due to the way WWE has booked him. While there is no doubt about Roman's ability in the ring, it remains to be seen, whether Roman can get truly over as the top babyface in the company. The position, in the fans eyes at least, appears to be occupied by Braun Strowman.
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