5 Times WWE Paired Roman Reigns With The Wrong Opponent At WrestleMania

Roman Reigns is undoubtedly one of the biggest WWE Superstars of the current generation. Despite a meteoric rise in the Stamford-based promotion early on, the highlight of his career was his heel run, during which he had an iconic 1,316-day reign as world champion.

Although Reigns is now a beloved figure, his first appearance as a babyface failed to connect with audiences. Despite his talent, his booking did him no favors and fans felt his push was forced.

WWE has made several questionable booking decisions with Reigns, one of the main ones being repeatedly putting him in disappointing storylines and matches. OTC had a spectacular record at WrestleMania, but many of his matches failed to live up to expectations due to poor opponent selection.

In this list, we’ll see five times that Roman Reigns was paired with the wrong opponent at WrestleMania.

#5. vs. Kane and the New Age Outlaws (WrestleMania XXX)

After a heel run and an alliance with The Authority, The Shield faced off for the first time and began a feud with Kane and The New Age Outlaws. This led to a six-man tag team match at WrestleMania XXX.

The Hounds of Justice were coming off an excellent brief feud with the Wyatt Family, and while a showdown made sense, given their popularity, the first feud was not. Kane, Road Dogg and Billy Gunn didn’t have enough credibility to make the rivalry interesting.

The Shield won in less than three minutes and it became one of the most unforgettable matches of the trio’s career.

#4. vs. Triple H (WrestleMania 32)

Although fans continually rejected Roman Reigns as a main event talent, WWE continued to push him. Reigns’ feud with The Authority was a desperate attempt by the creative team to make him the hero, but it backfired.

The storyline led to another WrestleMania main event for Reigns, as he challenged Triple H for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The lack of fan interest destroyed all the potential of this fight, and it is widely considered one of the worst “Mania” main events in history.

#3. vs. The Undertaker (WrestleMania 33)

Even though he was no longer in the title picture, Roman Reigns still found himself in another high-profile WrestleMania main event, this time against The Undertaker in a No Holds Barred Match.

The Deadman’s legendary streak had already been cut short by that point, and he was far from his peak. Taker could barely follow the match, making it dull. Even though Reigns won, it didn’t do him any favors.

#2. vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 34)

After failing to defeat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31, in what was an excellent match, Reigns was given another opportunity to redeem himself three years later. At WrestleMania 34, OTC once again challenged The Beast Incarnate for the Universal Championship after winning the Elimination Chamber match.

Lesnar’s part-time schedule was frustrating everyone and fans were ready to see him lose the title. However, not for Roman Reigns, as he still wasn’t a fan favorite despite his role as an on-screen hero. Many expected Reigns to walk away victorious this time, but surprisingly, Lesnar managed to walk away victorious. Additionally, the fight was nowhere near their encounter at ‘Mania 31.

#1. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania 38)

Reigns and Lesnar found themselves in another WrestleMania main event, and this time the stakes were higher than they had ever been. The bitter rivals faced off in a Winner Takes All Match with the Universal and WWE Championships on the line.

Although the roles were reversed this time, with Reigns as the villain and Lesnar as the babyface, that couldn’t stop their clash from being disappointing. The storyline ended up hurting the momentum of several superstars, and although WWE tried hard to promote the match, they fell short.

Roman Reigns finally defeated Lesnar on the grandest stage of them all, but few people cared.