Roman Reigns has established himself as the most dominant force in the WWE ever since he returned at last year’s SummerSlam, aligned himself with Paul Heyman and promptly won the WWE Universal Championship by beating both The Fiend and Braun Strowman at Payback. Since then he’s only wrestled 16 times, but nearly half of those matches have wound up being Match of the Year contenders and have firmly established Reigns as one of the best pro wrestler on the planet. His Universal title reign officially eclipsed 300 days late last week, and now that we know his next opponent for Money in the Bank (and reportedly for SummerSlam), it’s time to take a look at Reigns’ best matches since becoming The Tribal Chief so far.
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Are there any we missed? Who do you want to see Reigns take on next? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments!
Reigns vs. Jey Uso (Clash of Champions)
Picking Uso as Reigns’ first real opponent after turning heel seemed like a shock at first, but it wound up getting the ball rolling on what’s been WWE’s most compelling storyline of the past year.
Reigns vs. Jey Uso (Hell in a Cell I Quit Match, Hell in a Cell)
A lot of people will argue their Clash of Champions match was the better of the two, but this was the match where Reigns fully evolved into a despicable villain while pretending to have remorse for what he’s doing to Jey. Seeing Reigns suddenly snap on Jimmy was just icing on the cake.ย
Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre (Survivor Series)
People tend to forget this since The Undertaker’s final farewell came immediately after, but Reigns vs. McIntyre was the first WWE match in a long time that felt like a legitimate “clash of the titans.” Reigns came out looking like an absolute monster in his victory, while McIntyre still managed to look strong by nearly overcoming interference from Jey Uso and a low blow from Reigns. Don’t be shocked if WWE goes back to this rivalry later.
Reigns vs. Kevin Owens (Last Man Standing, Royal Rumble)
Owens’ three title matches with Reigns were all solid, but since they all end in a similar fashion they tend to blend together. While the ending had its issues, their Royal Rumble match had the most creativity thanks in large part to the wild spots they performed around the ThunderDome.ย
Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan (Fastlane)
By the end of January WWE had Reigns vs. Edge seemingly locked in for WrestleMania 37. But the company then decided to toss Daniel Bryan into the mix, first by winning the Elimination Chamber (and getting promptly screwed in a one-minute match with Reigns) and then forcing Reigns to tap at Fastlane only for Edge to go ballistic on both men.
Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Edge (WrestleMania 37)
On paper, pairing these three up for the main event of WrestleMania seems like an odd matchup. But they wound up delivering a classic anyway, capitalized by the incredible visual of Reigns stacking his two challengers before pinning them both.
Reigns vs. Cesaro (WrestleMania Backlash)
Cesaro’s first real taste of the main event was everything fans hoped it would be. Hopefully, WWE will run this rivalry back later in the year.ย
