As per the announcement by SmackDown GM Nick Aldis on the New Year’s Revolution special show last week, Roman Reigns will face LA Knight, AJ Styles, and Randy Orton at Royal Rumble. Along with his 1100+ day winning streak, his undisputed title will also be on the line in the Fatal 4-way match at the Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
The announcement happened after Reigns interfered, along with Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso, in the triple threat match for the #1 contender. However, a recent update suggests that it was not the original plan for WWE to include Reigns in a tough situation.
The original plan for Roman Reigns and Randy Orton revealed
Renowned Wrestling Observer Dave Meltzer stated in a recent episode of his Radio about a previous plan for the Reigns vs. Orton match. He revealed, “The original idea was Roman and Randy Orton for the Rumble.”
However, we all know that the plan is changed now and Meltzer explained the reason behind it. He said, “Essentially there were parties involved who did not want to beat Randy Orton this early and just felt that there’s money to be made with Randy Orton and Roman in a programme at some point but it’s too soon to do it.”
As per the statement of Meltzer, there was backstage complication involved in the feud between the two superstars. WWE Creative thought there is money to be made considering the hype for Randy Orton, hence putting him so early against Reigns would be futile. Another fact, to be considered is that WWE Universe is now gearing up for the WrestleMania season.
Roman Reigns’ Current Contract Explained in Detail
Meltzer also stated that perhaps in the future, there will be a feud between them. But what about AJ Styles and LA Knight? Well, Meltzer did not leave them behind and tried to explain the reason behind including them in the title scene.
Why did WWE involve AJ Styles and LA Knight in the title picture?
Meltzer added, “But LA Knight just got beat and AJ isn’t strong enough. I think AJ was the guy that they probably would have wanted because Roman can beat him.” LA Knight lost his title match against Reigns at Fastlane, while AJ Styles wasn’t billed strong enough to dethrone Reigns.
As per Meltzer, AJ was probably included as someone who could have been pinned, or maybe it was LA Knight. Regardless, LA Knight was over with fans now, but not above Randy Orton. Meltzer too felt that Randy Orton is over with fans since returning from his 18-month-long injury. Thus, it justified the decision taken by the WWE creative team.
Who should have won the triple threat match for the #1 contender?
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