5 Reasons why Roman Reigns is facing Finn Balor instead of John Cena next
This week on SmackDown, Universal Champion Roman Reigns was once again thrown a challenge by John Cena for SummerSlam 2021. While Reigns didn't step out to meet the latter face-to-face, The Tribal Chief came out in the main event and declined Cena's challenge.
Right after that, it was SmackDown returnee Finn Balor who came out to challenge Roman Reigns. This time, he accepted. It was only a brief moment before the show ended, which is why there hasn't been an announcement yet as to when the match will happen.
We anticipate that Reigns vs. Balor will take place next week on the Blue brand. So why is Finn Balor right back in the Universal title mix a week after his return to SmackDown? Here are a few possible reasons:
#5. The history between Finn Balor and Roman Reigns
It was right before the summer of 2016. The company had re-introduced the brand split and the WWE Draft took place before the Battleground pay-per-view. The event was set to conclude the rivalries before the brand split came into effect the next night.
Finn Balor was still an NXT superstar until that week when RAW General Manager Mick Foley made him a surprising first-round Draft pick. It was a big sign because, at that point, Balor was the most highly-anticipated main-roster call-up in WWE history.
When he made a splash on Monday Night RAW, it didn't disappoint. On his first night, he won a Fatal-Four-Way match and defeated Roman Reigns clean in the main event to qualify for the match at SummerSlam to crown the inaugural Universal Champion.
That match with Reigns turned out to be an important one. It was a statement for Balor to defeat WWE's biggest full-time star clean, but it was also in the midst of the Roman Reigns "punishment" phase, where he was pinned clean by Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose before and after his Wellness Policy violation.
The two men would meet the following year and Reigns would get the better of him. This match on SmackDown may have a lot to do with their history together. Given the size difference, both superstars have an excellent dynamic in the ring.
This might be WWE's way of putting Roman Reigns over Finn Balor once more.