The main event is supposed to keep people in their seats. But at last week’s Backlash, the final match between Roman Reigns and Samoa Joe saw fans leave in droves. A report surfaced saying that Vince McMahon saw this as an indisputable sign that Roman Reigns is doomed.
But, that’s not true.
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Cagesideseats, via Wrestlingnews.co, reports that McMahon didn’t give much credence to the early exit of hundreds of fans. In fact, McMahon was reportedly expected a cold reaction to Reigns considering in the New York/New Jersey market—one that has spearheaded the movement against Reigns.
Reports of Vince being disheartened by fan’s rejection of Reigns were always a little too sensational to believe. It’s possible McMahon has been frustrated by his customer’s fickleness, but at this point, his marriage to Reigns looks to be unflappable.
Reigns’ four-year climb up WWE‘s ladder has met fan resistance at every rung. However, McMahon and WWE show little signs of changing course, no matter how loud the boos get. But, they have shown tact in recent weeks, handing Reigns back-to-back pay-per-view losses to Brock Lesnar. At both WrestleMania 34 and the Greatest Royal Rumble, many fans were expected to see an ultimate coronation of Reigns. However, that didn’t happen.
Roman Reigns’ ascension to WWE’s throne has never been this threatened. And in order to rebuild The Big Dog, WWE may be employing one of their only true villains, Jinder Mahal.
According to Cagesideseats, Roman Reigns vs. Jinder Mahal is being advertised for RAW house shows through July. This is a strong indication that the pair will be working with each other on TV as WWE customarily has feuding Superstars work on and off televised shows. It’s still a little early to jump to any conclusions, but this could signal Reigns is out of the Universal Championship picture until SummerSlam, if not longer.
This marks another data point on a trend that has Reigns taking a break from WWE’s main event. By him losing the Money in the Bank qualifier, we know he won’t be carrying around a briefcase. But that was never likely.
What does impact Reigns’ hiatus from the WWE’s biggest stages is that RAW’s main event has also taken leave. Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar, looks like he’ll be missing MITB and probably Extreme Rules, too. So with no Beast to chase, Roman will have to find another dancing partner and all signs point to that being Mahal.
Mahal was the reason behind Reigns loss on Monday and his interference will be used to justify a summer-long rivalry between Mahal and Reigns. This will be the first time Roman Reigns has worked against a true heel since his tussles with Sheamus in 2015.
For the most part, Mahal is universally hated by the WWE Universe. This is great for Roman Reigns, who has his own battles with WWE’s fan base. However, with such a simple, and distinct juxtaposition in psychology, Reigns may actually get cheered in his time against Mahal.
