WWE makes sudden change to Roman Reigns' status following SmackDown return
Roman Reigns returned with a vengeance on SmackDown last night. Shortly after his appearance, WWE made changes to his roster status.
During the season premiere of Friday Night SmackDown on USA Network, Cody Rhodes retained his Undisputed WWE Championship against Solo Sikoa in a Steel Cage Match. The aftermath saw The Bloodline (Jacob Fatu, Tama Tonga, and Tonga Loa) scale the cage and unleash an attack on The American Nightmare.
The beatdown continued until Roman Reigns came out to help Cody Rhodes fend off The Bloodline. Later in the show, General Manager Nick Aldis revealed that Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu laid down a challenge to Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes to a tag-team match at Bad Blood on October 5.
After swearing that he's done with The Bloodline business, Rhodes eventually agreed to side with Reigns and signed the contract before the camera stopped rolling.
Earlier this year, Paul Heyman withdrew the Original Tribal Chief's name from the 2024 Draft, citing Roman's orders. However, the WWE Hall of Famer later revealed to Aldis that he pulled Roman from the Draft on his own to save the 39-year-old from Solo's men. Hence, Roman was listed as a "free agent" on the website all these months. However, WWE has now officially moved him back to the SmackDown roster.
What did Roman Reigns say during WWE SmackDown?
During the main event of SmackDown, Reigns cut a promo for the first time since WrestleMania XL.
The 39-year-old stalwart made it clear that he's the only Tribal Chief, whether or not he had the Ula Fala.
"Let's just get one thing, straight: whether I have my family's Ula Fala or not, I am The Tribal Chief. And I am not only the Original Tribal Chief, I am the only Tribal Chief. And don't ever get it confused. This is my ring, this is my show, this is my WWE," he said.
The former Universal Champion asserted that the company and the brand belonged to him. However, Cody Rhodes interrupted Roman and said that WWE belonged to Roman Reigns until WrestleMania XL, reminding The Head of The Table of his title loss.
The two men may have joined forces to go up against The Bloodline, but will they be able to keep their differences aside and be on the same page? Only time will tell.