"He knew he was f*cked" - Video of John Cena burying Roman Reigns unites WWE fans six years later
Roman Reigns has made The Tribal Chief the most dominant WWE gimmick since taking on the role. But that was not always the case, especially when he was "The Big Dog."
Reigns has always been a top superstar in the company, but he hasn't always enjoyed support from fans. Fans didn't enjoy how he was pushed as a babyface previously, and his segments used to go differently a few years ago.
In 2017, Roman Reigns feuded with John Cena to set up their match at No Mercy. The two superstars engaged in a war of words, resulting in one of the most embarrassing moments on WWE television.
Reigns was in the middle of dishing out insults to John Cena when he, unfortunately, forgot his lines. The latter saw his opportunity and destroyed his opponent by saying he needed to learn to cut a promo if he wished to be a top superstar.
"It's called a promo kid, if you want to be a "Big Dog" you are going to have to learn how to do it. So, go ahead," said John Cena.
This is Roman Reigns’ real supervillain origin story 😭https://t.co/3BRxejG8lV
Although the feud ended with Roman Reigns' win over John Cena, fans will never forget the moment when the 16-time world champion casually destroyed the biggest superstar on the mic.
Years later, the video went viral on Twitter recently when the Public Enemy Podcast's account shared the clip. They described the moment as Roman Reigns' villain origin story, and the WWE Universe agreed. Many noted how uncomfortable it was to watch John Cena bury Roman Reigns on TV.
Others praised Reigns for recovering from the moment and reinventing himself as one of the best heels in pro wrestling history. Here's how fans reacted to the six-year-old video of the unforgettable promo war between the two iconic superstars:
@TheEnemiesPE3 The disrespect
@TheEnemiesPE3 @tribalmorgan why you bringing this up https://t.co/NU327jQOFY
@TheEnemiesPE3 Roman after Vince told him to cut a promo against Cena off the dome within character https://t.co/ckrGpw87wh
@TheEnemiesPE3 Kurt Angle during this whole promo..... https://t.co/QLfqgq4TAH
@TheEnemiesPE3 I swear the Big dog and the Tribal Chief feel like two completely different people. https://t.co/Xc5jt6n8yq
@TheEnemiesPE3 @BlkNrdProblems Roman now: https://t.co/1Q1sKSecyI
@TheEnemiesPE3 Seeing it live had me like this https://t.co/9ue1wE16YS
@TheEnemiesPE3 I truly think Cena blasting him on the mic like this made him better at promos. Up to this point I don't think anyone on the main roster really got to Roman this way.
@AndrewD4133 @TheEnemiesPE3 Omg. Absolute gold. I forgot just how bad Cena did him 🤣🤣🤣 man https://t.co/0RgxdNIwZt
@TheEnemiesPE3 Roman to everyone who said he couldn’t cut a promo: https://t.co/F1azy69hU1
@TheEnemiesPE3 Roman remembering that this was him once💀 https://t.co/rdK7uFLwbu
@TheEnemiesPE3 And fast forward to 2023
Reigns owns Cena
Karma came back around https://t.co/IHHzcQ3hZb
@TheEnemiesPE3 I refuse to believe this is the same guy as the tribal chief 😭 this dude is an IMPOSTER
@TheEnemiesPE3 I love Roman, but goddamnit this was embarrassing to watch
No I’m so sorry I love Roman but the second hand embarrassment I get from this every time I see it- 😭
That man really experienced this and was hellbent on never having something like this happen to him again. And rightfully so. 💀 twitter.com/theenemiespe3/…
This changed EVERYTHING twitter.com/theenemiespe3/…
Roman Reigns returns on WWE SmackDown this week
Roman Reigns recently defended his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Sami Zayn at Elimination Chamber. He is now set to return on SmackDown for the first time since the last premium live event. Reigns is expected to address Jey Uso's apparent disobedience and the conflict between The Bloodline.
Jey has maintained his distance from his family since they attacked Sami Zayn at Royal Rumble. He also tried to stop Reigns from hitting Zayn with a steel chair during the title match at Elimination Chamber. Last week, Jey Uso didn't interfere in the brawl between Jimmy Uso and Zayn, letting the latter escape.
Cody Rhodes is also scheduled to appear on SmackDown this week, where he might cross paths with Reigns for the first time in WWE. Additionally, Roman Reigns and The Bloodline will also have to look out for Sami Zayn and potentially Kevin Owens, who are plotting the fall of the heel faction on SmackDown.