Latest Update on WWE's Plan for the Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar Rivalry
WWE confirmed on last week's SmackDown that Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar will once again clash over the WWE Universal Championship at the Day 1 pay-per-view on New Year's Day. The show will mark the sixth time the two have clashed over the Universal title, with the latest being at Crown Jewel where Reigns needed an assist from The Usos to retain. Reports popped up around that match indicating WWE wanted the two to meet again at WrestleMania 38 in April, and according to the Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer that is still on the table despite this match being announced.
"Regarding Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar as the main event for Day One, this is scheduled to be a multi-match series and this being one of the matches in the series," Meltzer wrote on Sunday.
Their latest encounter centered around which wrestler Paul Heyman was loyal to, and by the end that question was still somewhat up in the air. Heyman recently gave an interview with Ariel Helwani where he argued another match with Lesnar would be a bigger WrestleMania draw than one with The Rock, something that has been rumored for a while.
"...I think Dwayne's schedule for next year is in place and he's not available. Even if he was, I don't think it would be bigger box office at the moment, if you look at the trajectory right now, isn't it Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns?" Heyman said. "Did it end the storyline or did it make it more compelling and more intriguing? Or Big E? Or Drew McIntyre? I can certainly make the case for Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre as well. Is there a time and a place for Roman Reigns vs. The Rock? Absolutely. Is Hollywood the place to do it? Seems like a natural place for The Rock to main event his final main event at WrestleMania. I don't think this coming April is the place for Roman Reigns vs. Dwayne Johnson."
Reigns is still a couple of months shy of breaking Lesnar's record for the longest reign as Universal Champion and is still far off from beating Lesnar's record of most combined days with the title. Are you interested in seeing more Reigns vs. Lesnar matches? Let us know in the comments below!