If you watched the Pat McAfee Show this week, then you would’ve seen The Rock announce that he actually had a match against Roman Reigns locked in for Wrestlemania 39, while also massively hinting at taking on Roman at Wrestlemania 40 in Philadelphia instead.
Shortly after this, The Rock would then make a stunning return on Smackdown to hit a People’s Elbow on Austin Theory.
The idea of Roman Reigns vs The Rock has got overall, a very positive reaction on social media. But I have mixed feelings about this happening, especially if it’s for Roman’s WWE Undisputed Universal Championship.
So, in this article I’m going to express my concerns about this match potentially happening at the upcoming Wrestlemania, and how I would start building this match if they really want to do it.
Why do I have mixed feelings about Roman Reigns vs The Rock?
There is no doubt in my mind that WWE has to book this match if they get the opportunity, the idea of The Rock, perhaps the most well known wrestler of all time, taking on the biggest star in the industry, Roman Reigns is electrifying (pun intended), but it really shouldn’t be for the title.
There are so many reasons for this, but the main one is that it makes the anticipation for the match lower. If Roman puts his championship on the line, then it’s obvious he will probably win, but if it’s a normal one on one match, then who knows who will walk out of Philadelphia victorious.
There is also another reason that this match shouldn’t have the title involved, and that reason is Cody Rhodes.
Since returning to WWE, Cody has cemented himself as one of the biggest stars in the company. WWE have been searching for that person to replace John Cena at being the face of the company and The American Nightmare is absolutely that guy. His merchandise is doing Cena numbers in sales, the fans adore him and he’s a massive draw.
He is the person that should beat Roman for his title, there is no doubt in my mind that should be the case. I thought the moment would come at Wrestlemania 39 in LA, but I was very wrong. Will he get his moment at Wrestlemania 40? Well if Roman vs The Rock is for the championship, I wouldn’t be so sure.
So the company now has a dilemma, what should they do? Well I’ve got a vague idea of what I would do if was in WWE’s shoes.
How can you fix this issue?
As I’ve mentioned, this match doesn’t need the title so I would actually have Roman lose his title before Wrestlemania.
It’s a crazy idea, stopping a historic title reign like Roman’s anywhere outside of Wrestlemania, but if they wanna get the best outcome out of Roman vs The Rock, then that’s what should happen.
The person that needs to beat Roman is of course Cody, so the question is where would you do that match?
It can’t be Survivor Series because Roman should lose his title in a stadium show. That leaves the Royal Rumble. Give Cody the finish to his story at the Rumble and then give him a big title program for Wrestlemania, it has to be a big name so somebody like CM Punk potentially or maybe even a certain MJF if WWE can get him to sign, that is if he hasn’t already re signed with AEW. I might be reaching here with those names though, but never rule anything out in wrestling.
Then the Smackdown after the Royal Rumble, there could be a Tribal Court, but this time it’s Roman that is on trial. This should be the biggest Tribal Court yet, with as many family members as you can get there, including Jey from RAW and Rikishi as well. The subject of the segment should be, is Roman fit to lead the family now after his title loss. Jey, Rikishi and shockingly Solo should speak up and voice their concerns, but Roman insists he’s still the head of the family and nobody makes decisions over him, which is when The Rock’s music hits.
That is as far as I’m going to book this but I think that’s a great way of solving the situation, Cody finishes his story while getting a big title rivalry for Mania. But most importantly we get the biggest match of the century between Roman Reigns and The Rock to cement who is really the head of their family.
If you would like a more in depth booking article about Roman vs The Rock, then stay tuned as I believe Wrestling Republic’s Head of Opinion Writers, Anthony Ricciardi is working on that.
Overall, I really hope WWE go this route or at least find a way to have Cody finish his story whilst giving us Roman vs The Rock at the same time. It’s a tough ask, but I think they can do it.
If you enjoyed this article, make sure to check out Wrestling Republic Opinion Writer, Peter Ryan’s opinion article on Roman Reigns Vs The Rock.
