With Michael Cole “injured,” Byron Saxton handled the sit-down video interview for WWE.com this week. The full interview, which features Roman Reigns, is scheduled to air during this week’s edition of WWE SmackDown.
“It was terrible. It was right there, I was right there. I climbed the mountain, I felt the top, I was looking down and I got pulled right off of it in a matter of moments” said Reigns during the interview about coming up short at WrestleMania 31 this past Sunday.
“That Seth Rollins, that was his job and that’s what he did,” Reigns added. “He had the Money In the Bank briefcase with a contract he could cash in at any time and what a perfect time – let the animals take each other out and pick the bones. That’s what he did. But I did something too…”
WWE issued a statement on Tuesday afternoon denying online rumors that a permitted blade job took place during the WrestleMania 31 main event on Sunday.
A “GIF” image circulated around the internet shortly after the Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns main event on Sunday that appeared to show a razor blade being passed from the referee to Reigns, with the speculation being that it was done — with Vince McMahon’s permission — as a way to draw blood from Lesnar during the match on Sunday.
WWE has since issued an official statement denying the rumors, which you can read below:
“WWE programming is TV-PG and we don’t permit intentional bleeding. The communication or contact between our performers and referees is part of our safety protocol. That said, unintentional blood sometimes occurs, and we do our best to minimize.”
There has been speculation that Brock Lesnar did a “blade job” at WrestleMania 31, purposely cutting himself open to bleed during his main event match with Roman Reigns.
Below is a GIF that shows the referee of the match handing off the blade to Reigns, likely so Reigns could pass it off to Lesnar.
If true, this would likely mean Vince McMahon gave the green light, something he hasn’t allowed in years, as the referee wouldn’t be involved in helping faciliate a blade if it wasn’t part of the plan.
– The original plan for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship main event between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 31 on Sunday night was for the match to go about 35 minutes long, including entrance. Because the pay-per-view ran long, WWE ended up cutting some time off of the match. They also cut out a Bray Wyatt vs. Undertaker video out of the broadcast.
– It was rumored that Kevin Nash suffered an injury during the nWo and D-X run-in spot in the Triple H vs. Sting match at WrestleMania 31 on Sunday night. Nash addressed the rumor on social media, joking that the only injury he suffered was to his feelings because Billy Gunn can still “go.” Below is a tweet Nash posted after the show that deals with the subject.
Injury update it appears my feelings were hurt that Billy can still move like a freight train. Great main event -show pic.twitter.com/Y4h6dqmh3C
Jim Ross updated the blog section of his official website on Monday to share his thoughts on Sunday’s WrestleMania 31 pay-per-view. Below are some highlights.
On the Sting vs. Triple H match and the D-X and nWo involvement: “Sting vs. HHH was a grand production with a ‘cast of thousands’ specifically the nWo and DX. So happy that Sting got his WrestleMania Moment which was well deserved. Those that think that the Moment was ruined because Sting lost might not understand the business as well as they think. I don’t know if Sting is done with WWE or not but I do hope that he gets a nice retirement sendoff and that he’s in the 2016 WWE Hall of Fame class. If the plan is to have a Summer Slam or sooner rematch between the two then HHH winning makes even more sense.”
On Ronda Rousey possibly wrestling in WWE: “I’ve been pushing a Ronda Rousey-Stephanie McMahon storyline for weeks on the Ross Report Podcast and I was elated with what went down Sunday between Rousey, Steph, the Rock and HHH. I thought the ladies stole the segment from the men and sill feel that a Rousey vs. Steph match with a stacked deck in Steph’s favor will be a giant hit in Texas at WM32 if the trigger can be pulled.”
On Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt: “Thought Taker returned to WM in great shape and looking physically better than he has in the past several years. Bray Wyatt being competitive, kicking out of a Tombstone Piledriver was great for the young, 3rd generation talent. Anyone who thinks that Wyatt took a step back because he did not win needs to re-evaluate their opinion. Just saying…Nonetheless Taker appears to still have some gas in the tank and I hope that the is a major part of the Texas WrestleMania which would be a great place for him to hand it up if that’s what the Phenom wants to do.”
On the main event: “The booking of the ending of the impromptu Triple Threat Match for the WWE world title was brilliant. Lesnar was protected, Reigns showed his toughness and passion to survive the early, Lesnar onslaught, and Rollins cashing in the MITB contract, which was no real surprise but how it was executed was, is a WWE Champion that on any given night can lose the title ala Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels back in their days. Loved the Japanese strong style aspects of the match and enjoyed the finish even more. ”
Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Amy “Lita” Dumas mentioned during her “#AskLita” segment on the WrestleMania 31 Kickoff Show that she and fellow WWE Hall Of Famer Trish Stratus have been in discussions with WWE about a possible show of their own on the WWE Network.
– WrestleMania 31 featured several title changes on Sunday night. Seth Rollins cashed in his Money In The Bank briefcase to become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion after pinning Roman Reigns following a Curb Stomp. Daniel Bryan won the ladder match to become the new WWE Intercontinental Champion, and John Cena handed Rusev his first loss via pinfall to become the new WWE United States Champion.
You can read our detailed WrestleMania 31 results by clicking here.
Another reason people think Lesnar is retaining is the belief that Roman Reigns becoming the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion would be a bigger issue among fans than Reigns losing his first WrestleMania main event. There’s a feeling within WWE that if they put the title on Reigns this early, it could be a situation that he can’t recover from in the long-term.
Speaking of tonight’s main event, there has been talk this week that WWE has made some creative changes to the match, although what those are remain to be seen.
Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com for live WrestleMania 31 play-by-play results coverage tonight.
WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar’s “advocate” spoke with IGN this week to promote Sunday’s WrestleMania 31 event. Below are highlights from the interview.
On Brock Lesnar going into WrestleMania as WWE World Heavyweight Champion: “Well, this is really Bock Lesnar’s rightful place. He is a once in a lifetime athlete and a once in a lifetime performer and a once in a lifetime attraction in this industry. This is clearly his time. There is no one like Brock Lesnar, not in WWE or UFC or Mixed Martial Arts, so you like to walk into a situation saying “I’m so blessed. I’m so fortunate. What an honor it is to be…” To be blunt with you, I don’t think there’s any other place for Brock Lesnar to be but on top.”
On talk about Roman Reigns not being ready: “I think anyone who questions whether or not Roman Reigns is ready for where he is in his career is blind to how talented this young man is. I don’t see the criticism. I don’t agree with any of the critiques. Clearly he is a total bad ass that can bring it in the ring, and walked away from a promising football career to get into the business that has fed his family for many, many years. He has adapted to this business as fast as anyone I’ve ever seen. The biggest criticism that can be valid on Roman Reigns is he didn’t spend a lot of time in NXT. He didn’t have to. He was ready for the main roster faster than anyone else was ready for the main roster that came out of the NXT system. It’s like one of these prodigy kids that graduated high school at 14 and graduated college at 16, because they can. And he did and he graduated the developmental system faster than anybody else in history because he could. Anybody that’s sitting there saying “Roman Reigns isn’t ready,” by what criteria are they making that judgment?”
On Brock Lesnar re-signing with WWE: “I was ready for Brock to make any decision that Brock deemed appropriate. So if Brock’s desire was to go back and fight in the UFC then I would be riding his coattails that way. If Brock decided he wanted to slam dunk a basketball and get into the NBA and mow down the competition, then I was going to pick up that game real fast. He decided to stay here and set records both on subscriptions to the network or pay per view buys or ticket sales for major events in WWE, I’m happy to ride his coat tails here as well.”
On Reigns vs. Lesnar on Sunday: “My personal desire in this match is for Brock Lesnar to make this match the defining moment of his championship run. His first WrestleMania title defense ever and the declarative statement that he is the Beast, he is the conqueror and he has conquered the WWE universe like no one else has ever even dared to dream of doing in the past.”
WrestleMania is right around the corner. Although the build has been a little subpar, it’s still WrestleMania so it should be entertaining. Here’s how yours truly expects it all to play out.
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro (Tag Team Champions) vs. The New Day vs. Los Matadores vs. The Usos
Kidd and Cesaro really deserve better than the pre-show treatment, but hey, what can you do? This is clearly between the Usos and the champs, as the other two teams are simply jobbers eating up space. Expect a few entertaining spots between the two, with Naomi and Natalya ultimately playing a role in the outcome. In the end, the champs will retain after Cesaro pins one of the Usos.
Winners: Kidd & Cesaro by pinfall
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Remember a few weeks back when Stephanie McMahon was on Raw promoting this battle royal as the most important thing since Hogan/Andre at WrestleMania III? So much for that, as it’s now on the pre-show. Hideo Itami has been added to the match after winning a tournament at Axxess over the weekend. I think they will use this as an attempt to put over NXT and increase viewership by having Itami pick up the win after hitting the GTS. Expect Mizdow to eliminate Miz during this one as well to set up a match between the two next month at Extreme Rules.
Winner: Hideo Itami
Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins
This could easily be one of the most entertaining matches of the night, as Orton and Rollins are two of the best workers in the business. It will be filled with multiple near-falls, and J&J will undoubtedly try to help Rollins pick up the win. It’s hard to say what the hell they’re doing with this one, especially considering they blew the payoff for Orton weeks ago. I still think Orton wins and it will be a rough night for Mr. Money in the Bank (more on that later).
WWE Superstar John Cena recently spoke with Digital Spy to promote this Sunday’s WrestleMania 31 event at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Below are highlights from the interview.
On retirement: “The long and short of it is I really like my job. Everyone always asks the question, ‘How do you do it?’. I love working. You’ll hear everybody say that, but I prove it. I’m not saying that to condescend anybody else’s opinion, I’m saying it because I love it, truly. I want to be in this industry as long as I can, and I’m going to. When I’m a step slower than I should be and I shouldn’t be out there, I’m not gonna be out there. That’ll be very, very relevant to the entire audience – as you know they’re very vocal. When it’s time to go it’ll be time to go.”
On what else he can achieve in the business: “If the chairman was sitting here you could say, ‘Hey man, you took it from territory to nationwide and then you took it global. You started pay-per-views, you developed the WWE Network, you pretty much put everybody else out of business, what’s next for you?’ He doesn’t have a stopping goal. We can always go some place else. I really, really want the WWE to be able to perform on a regular basis in China. I think we should be able go to India on a regular basis. I’m not the person who’s booking Live Events, but whatever I can do to push that message forwards and help those things happen. WrestleMania is at Levi’s Stadium. We should do every show in a stadium! And then we should build a bigger stadium. That’s what’s great about WWE. We’re always extending families, there’s always another story to tell, it’s never essentially over. You can tell I still have passion for this. I really love it and we’ll see what’s next when we see what’s next.”
On advice for Roman Reigns as he prepares for Brock Lesnar: “I told him to just be himself out there and as long as they make a noise I think he’s doing just fine.”
On a potential rematch with Daniel Bryan: “I think right now especially if you look at Sunday he probably has the same goal that I have. [He wants] to win the Intercontinental Championship and make it as important as he can. I’m trying to win the US Championship and make it as important as I can. We do have a lot of events in recent memory, so I’m not saying it’s never gonna happen, but it probably won’t happen on Sunday. We’ll have to wait and see, but I’m glad there’s a want and anticipation for that. Daniel’s a hell of a competitor for that and it’s a pleasure to be in the ring with him.”
Despite their original plans, WWE will not be running two shows in the United Kingdom on April 13th, the date of the RAW show overseas.
RAW will be taped at the O2 Arena in London, England on the 4/13 date, but will no longer run a live event in Leeds as scheduled.
Advertised for the Leeds house show were Roman Reigns, Daniel Bryan, Bray Wyatt and Dolph Ziggler, which meant they wouldn’t have been available for RAW that night.
The decision was made to move the Leeds live event to Sunday at 1pm, so that everyone can be at RAW on Monday.
Jeff Jarrett recently spoke with Steven Godfrey of SB Nation to share his thoughts on WrestleMania 31. Jarrett predicted that Big Show is going to win the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal and The Usos are going to win the WWE Tag-Team titles in the Kickoff Show four-way tag-team match.
Below are some comments from Jarrett regarding other matches on the card:
On Intercontinental Title Ladder Match: “This is one I’m really looking forward to. I think this event has the best chance to become the show-stealer. I like Dolph Ziggler here, he’ll have the opportunity to shine through with those seven guys. There’s plenty of ammunition and plenty of targets. I think Dolph is ready to rise to the occasion; he’s got a chance here to take that next step. Bryan has to be the obvious favorite, if not the fan favorite. But I like this event because each of these seven guys are distinct enough in ability and persona. That diversity in ingredients is what could make this match really special.”
On John Cena vs. Rusev: “John not having to carry the company on his back through WrestleMania season means he can focus only on this. He gets to leave nothing on the table and exceed expectations. Rusev should bring a couple oxygen tanks to ringside because he’ll be absolutely gassed at the end of this. He’s not on Cena’s level in big money matches, at least not yet.”
On Bray Wyatt vs. The Undertaker: “For years you could never bet against ‘Taker at ‘Mania, and that went for not only wins and losses, but also match quality. I think this year’s no different. I would’ve bet you and lost last year [vs. Brock Lesnar] but I’d put the farm on Undertaker this year. He’s always exceeded what’s expected of him and Sunday will be no different.”
On Sting vs. Triple H: “From an emotional standpoint I’m invested in this match more than any other, having such a long history with Sting. I’ve watched his career from the Clash of Champions to the Starrcades to big matches in TNA, but at this stage of his career … For Sting to arrive at the biggest match of his career north of 50 years old is a testament to the man they call ‘Sting.’ I’m excited he’s got this opportunity and I wish him nothing but the best. But: If you’ve ever watched one of Triple H’s WrestleMania matches, Sting has to realize he’s not walking into a traditional wrestling match. He’ll feel the effects of this weeks, if not months to come.”
On Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar: “With the ESPN announcement and Dana White’s comments I believe the proverbial gas has been poured on the fire. There’s a lot of moving parts here: Roman Reigns is very fresh to this dance as a singles wrestler. I would say that he’s got the deck stacked against him in numerous ways. We’ll talk more about that on Sunday, but I’ve also got a funny feeling that Roman comes out of this match as the winner in more ways than a ‘1, 2, 3.'”
Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard blog has a new feature up with several WWE Superstars and legends talking about WrestleMania. Below are some highlights.
Sting:
“There is a large wrestling audience that doesn’t want to say goodbye to my generation. Guys like myself, Ric Flair, and Hogan, and the fans still appreciate us. And it goes both ways, absolutely, because it’s the same for me. It’s hard to walk away. I thought, in the beginning, my career would two, three, four, five years and then out and done. I never imagined, all these years later, I would still be in the ring and still wrestling. In March of 2001, I thought it was over with. It’s unbelievable how time flies, and it’s still a thrill for me. I want to give my fans something to remember.”
Bruno Sammartino on Hulk Hogan:
“I would never compare Hogan to any of the greats. He don’t belong, or deserve to be mentioned, in the same breath. No way.”
Daniel Bryan:
“I know the WWE is not looking for people like me to main event WrestleMania. It’s interesting, there have been a lot of people the company believed in right away that didn’t pan out to be anything. Guys with every superstar quality and can be on the cover of a magazine right away. I was never that guy. I’ve always enjoyed the process of earning people’s respect and earning my place. I’ve never asked to be handed anything.”
Roman Reigns:
“My whole life I’ve been fed by the WWE. My father was fortunate enough to provide for his family through wrestling. I’ve always been fortunate to have a seat at the table, but there’s a great deal of pride in being a provider. Now it’s my chance to sit at the head of the table. I respect what people before me have done, but my time is now.”
WrestleMania 31 main event challenger Roman Reigns addressed the negativity he’s received on social media in recent weeks during an appearance on FOX Sports’ “At The Buzzer” on Friday.
Andy Nesbitt acknowledged that a lot of people don’t think he’s ready to fight for the title. People cheer Daniel Bryan’s name during his matches and say awful things about him on Twitter. He asked Reigns to respond to the cyber bullies.
Reigns issued this somewhat sarcastic response to his haters:
“You’re hurting my feelings. Stop hurting my feelings (ends pretend hurt). It’s funny, I’ve been bullied and picked on by the Internet more than I think anyone right now. I’m like Enemy #1 on the Twitter machine. (looks to the camera) Twitter people, quit bullying me. Quit talking all that smack to me on the Internet. If you’re going to do it, do it to my face. I know you won’t, though.”
– WWE has published the latest “WrestleMania workout” video featuring Roman Reigns.
How do you prepare for a match against Brock Lesnar? Find out as WWE.com’s cameras grant you exclusive access into Roman Reigns’ workout as he gets ready for the fight of his life.
– WWE.com has published an interview with Jason Robinson, the man who designs the sets for WrestleMania. Here’s what he said about this year’s design:
“Expect something different from us. The atmosphere being West Coast and daylight presented some very unique challenges for us to overcome. The structure itself isn’t really tied to a particular thing like the city or arena, but we have this really unique thing where we can’t hide anything. We have to be open, [because] everybody’s going to see everything. I can’t do the theater magic and hide the bad parts. So we’ve had to work really hard. Everything had to tie in and feel like it was part of the image and the structure. It’s a unique set, a unique way of lighting the ring because of the sun. You’ll see some different search lights around there, and from a lighting point of view and the set, we’ve had to deal with having full sun on the set because you can’t hide anything. You’ll see it’s a different set from us this year.”
– NXT superstar Finn Balor tweeted this photo on Friday, teasing that he could be a Paul Heyman guy one day. Oh, the possibilities.
– As reported earlier this week, WWE is looking at bringing some legends back for a match at next year’s WrestleMania 32 pay-per-view to help fill Cowboys Stadium and set the all-time attendance record. Today, WWE’s official website is running a poll asking fans which legend they would like to see have one more match at WrestleMania. The options are Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, Bill Goldberg, The Rock, Hulk Hogan, Batista, Kurt Angle, Jeff Hardy, Vince McMahon, Lita, Trish Stratus or The Dudley Boyz.
With over 2,000 votes cast as of this writing, Stone Cold is leading the pack with 30 percent of the vote. Trailing Austin are Goldberg (21%), Shawn Michaels (13%) and Kurt Angle and Jeff Hardy, both of whom have eight percent of the votes. You can vote on the poll at WWE.com.
– The latest WWE Superstar workout video released by WWE features WrestleMania 31 headliner Roman Reigns preparing for his WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Brock Lesnar this Sunday. You can check out Reigns’ WrestleMania workout video below.
Roman Reigns spoke with Brian Fritz of SportingNews.com to promote his WrestleMania 31 main event against the WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar on Sunday. Below are highlights from the interview.
On if he feels pressure being in the biggest match on the biggest event of the year: “I think it was a little bit of both. When you’re doing what I do every single day, even if you’re not at the highest level of our business of sports entertainment, there’s a lot of nerves. There’s a lot of pressure and there’s always that pressure to perform. And it’s only magnified more at the level I find myself at now. For me, I just to focus on the excited energy, the enthusiasm and hopefully with that enthusiasm I can create momentum.”
On what he thinks emotions will be like when he makes his entrance on Sunday: “I think it’s going to be awesome. I think it’s exciting. Everything for me is exciting about WrestleMania. You know, it’s not only the match but there’s so many opportunities that we get this week. For me, I’ve been able to do some awesome things. As you know, one of the great things I’m doing today is partnering up with Snickers. The huge question is who are you when you’re hungry? That’s the contest that we’re putting out there. We’ love to see everybody’s ultra egos. As soon as you feel like you’re a bit out of character, take a bite of that Snickers bar and everything’s going to feel better. All the fans can do me a favor and check out the Snickers homepage (www.Snickers.com) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/snickers) and you’ll get to see so many cool details about the contest. You can check out my commercial and my wacky alter ego when I’m hungry and hopefully you’re a little bit different than I am. You don’t want to catch yourself being insecure or a little anxious when you’re on TV.”
On whether or not he’s been surprised at the recent fan reactions: “No, not at all. Where we’re at now, with the internet and the whole Facebook thing, with Twitter, you’re able to connect and reach out to your fans more and see what they’re feeling. Fortunately for me, I do get that mixed reaction and that’s the thing. It’s a mixed reaction. Some days are stronger boos, some days are stronger cheers but for me, I like to focus on the support, focus on all the positivity. I have a lot of great fans out there who believe in me and that’s more momentum for myself. It’s always nice to get some positive reinforcement. I just want to thank all my fans and all my supporters out there. That’s my goal is to make my family proud, to represent my family, myself and my fans.”
Check out the complete interview at SportingNews.com.
Roman Reigns recently spoke with MStarz.com to promote this Sunday’s WrestleMania 31 pay-per-view. Below are highlights from the interview.
On preparing for WrestleMania Week: “It’s been pretty cool actually. There’s no way to prepare for something like this. You have to be thrown in the fire and fortunately for me I’ve always responded well when I was thrown in the deep end.”
On facing WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar and him re-signing: “Regarding Brock, as a competitor, it doesn’t change my mindset at all. As long as he’s there Sunday, it doesn’t matter to me. But as a part of WWE and a part of the family, it’s good to have Brock locked down. It’s good for the WWE, it’s good for Brock and it’s good for his family. It’s just where he’s supposed to be. Hopefully when I beat him this Sunday, he’ll have a few chances to get [the WWE World Heavyweight Championship] back.”
On other WrestleMania matches is he looking forward to watching: “That’s the tough part. I’m probably not gonna be able to [watch on Sunday]. Being in the main event, there’s gonna be a lot of time I’ll need to be focusing and preparing both mentally and physically. But we have the WWE Network, so I’ll easily be able to go on my iPhone and check out everything that happens. We have Sting vs. Triple H, Bray Wyatt vs. the Undertaker, the Intercontinental title ladder match with some of the hungriest, youngest guys in the game. And that’s something I’m proud of and something I brag about, the makeup of this locker room. And then on top of that, you have my old partner Seth Rollins taking on the Viper, Randy Orton, so I think that’s gonna be a good one as well.”
Even more details are coming out about Brock Lesnar’s new contract with WWE. After making his big announcement earlier this week on Sports Center that he has decided to remain with WWE, Lesnar told the Associated Press that he re-signed for 3 years. According to WWE insider MetsFan4Ever, Lesnar’s deal is for $3 million a year and he’ll continue to work a limited schedule.
WWE writers have been working nonstop with Vince McMahon, Triple H and their inner circle to come up with multiple scenarios for the main event of WrestleMania. According to MetsFan, Vince McMahon is said to be on board with the idea of Lesnar retaining the title, although Lesnar winning is not a sure thing by any means. What’s interesting is that there is finally an understanding amongst WWE’s top brass that Reigns did not get over as they hoped he would.
Internally, there have been some comparisons to Lex Luger, who was pushed to the moon back in 1993 with the Lex Express before WWE ultimately went with Bret Hart. While WWE could still have Reigns win the title on Sunday, WWE is not oblivious to the fact that he’s not getting over like somebody in his position should be. While Luger was relegated to mid-card status after WrestleMania X before jumping ship to WCW, WWE has a lot invested in Reigns and we could see a big shakeup in his character in the coming months. He’s still got a very bright future ahead of him, but management is now more open to Lesnar going over.
MetsFan also says that Dean Ambrose is slated to get a strong push leading into SummerSlam.
Former WWE announcer and ESPN personality Jonathan Coachman recently appeared as a guest on the Busted Open Radio show. Below are highlights from the interview.
On if he was surprised by Brock Lesnar retire from MMA and re-sign with WWE? “I wasn’t because I know how difficult it was for him the way it ended in UFC and the toll the illness put on his body. I spoke to him about a year and a half ago and it was very evident that he was really happy to be back in the WWE. I’ve spoken to both UFC and WWE guys and they each say that they wouldn’t be able to do the other. To only do UFC twice a year, and possibly have the disappointment if his body failed again, it would be too much for Brock to handle psychologically and probably physically as well.”
On Brock Lesnar’s decision to use ESPN for his announcement: “I thought it was cool that he chose SportsCenter to make his decision and I also thought it was cool that ESPN decided to do that. We’re definitely heading in the right direction. ESPN is my home but my love for WWE hasn’t gone away. To be able to do both for at least one day and hopefully more in the future, it was fantastic. ESPN contacted me to be an analyst and ask Brock a couple of questions based off his decision. I didn’t know what he was going to do until he actually announced it. We were coming up with those questions on the spot so it was a surprise to everybody.”
On Brock’s attitude change and having fun in the WWE ring: “When you first start out in the business, you’re worried about how to make the most money. You’re working 28-30 days a month and you realize while you’re making all this money, you’re killing your body, you can’t get to the gym, can’t eat right. All these factors stop it from becoming fun. During my last few years it stopped being fun for me. So when you step away for a while and then come back, you gain a different perspective and it becomes fun again. Brock’s in his mid to late 30’s now so his perspective is different from when he first came out as an NCAA champion and needed to show the rest of the world how tough he was. He doesn’t need to do that anymore so he’s going to have more fun than he ever had before.”
On if he feels the rest of the WWE roster will resent Brock Lesnar for having a special long-term deal “There has always been that factor in the locker room when it comes to that type of situation. One of my roles in WWE when I was there was making the young guys understand how the world of WWE works. What I would say to those guys is until you’re a main event guy and people are spending money just to see you, you won’t be treated like a star. Star Power is a real thing and while it doesn’t seem fair, the star does deserve more money and benefits. This is show business. The faster they learn that they need to be able to talk and climb that ladder, the faster they will reach the top and get that treatment as well.”
On how tough the WrestleMania crowd will be on Roman Reigns: “It’s going to be really tough on him. Stars have to learn how to connect with the fans and stay connected. It starts with what comes out of your mouth and if you can’t make people believe in you with what you are saying, it doesn’t matter how good you can wrestle. He needs to focus on how to get the fans to get emotional about him and buy into what he is selling them and not worry so much about his match with Lesnar. Lesnar succeeded in that with his interview yesterday and did what Reigns hasn’t been able to do yet. The Rock proved that if you can be a great heel, you can become the biggest babyface in the business.”
WrestleMania 31 headliner Roman Reigns recently spoke with Yahoo! Sports to promote this Sunday’s pay-per-view event in Santa Clara, California.
Regarding his haters, Reigns said, “I have a good bit of doubters and haters. Go ahead and irritate me and piss me off. Because when I’m in that mindset, I’m unstoppable.”
Reigns also revealed during the interview that WWE Hall Of Famer Bret Hart was his idol growing up.
“Every time he’d come out with that leather jacket and give his sunglasses away to a kid in the crowd, I used to dream about being that kid,” said Reigns. “That hair, all that gear. To this day I still think he has kickass gear. He seemed like a standup guy. A really nice dude. He is a very cool dude.”
The following matches were taped on Monday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California for tonight’s WrestleMania 31 “go-home” edition of WWE SmackDown.
– Cesaro vs. Jimmy Uso vs. Big E vs. Fernando in a four-way match
– AJ Lee promo
– Roman Reigns, John Cena, Daniel Bryan, and Mark Henry vs. Bray Wyatt, Big Show, Kane, and Seth Rollins in an eight-man tag match
WWE has decided on some of their plans for post-WrestleMania 31 programs for their secondary championships.
As things stand right now, which could always change before Sunday, WWE is looking at John Cena and Rusev to continue their feud over the WWE United States Championship for a third pay-per-view match after Sunday’s show.
For the WWE Intercontinental Championship, WWE is looking at a three-way program between Bad News Barrett, Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler coming out of WrestleMania.
For the big picture, things aren’t as clear just yet, although the working plan right now is for Roman Reigns to work a program with Seth Rollins for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship if he beats Brock Lesnar for the title on Sunday.
WWE has talked about the idea of doing a prominent triple-threat match between all three former members of The Shield on a big pay-per-view event, an idea that Roman Reigns feels would make for the perfect main event of next year’s WrestleMania.
When speaking with The Sun out of the U.K. recently, Reigns was asked what he feels should be the main event at next year’s WrestleMania in Dallas, Texas.
“It should be a Triple Threat match,” said Reigns. “The Shield reunites to fight each other for one more night.”
Reigns was also asked about possibly facing The Rock in the headline match at WrestleMania, however he didn’t seem to think that is the way to go.
“Where I’m at right now, with our family ties, I don’t really see that happening,” said Reigns. “But if it did happen, it would be in WWE. Going out on a limb right now, I’d say most likely not, but this is WWE, anything can change.”
– Actor and comedian Cheech Marin is the guest on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast. The show, which you can download right now at PodcastOne.com, also features Jericho talking about the Perro Aguayo Jr. tragedy from this past weekend.
– Tickets for the May 16th “Evening with Jim Ross” one-man show in Baltimore, Maryland go on sale this Friday. For more, visit RamsHeadLive.com.
– WWE had security confiscate anti-Roman Reigns signs at this past Monday’s WrestleMania 31 “go-home” edition of WWE RAW at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. While it’s not the most crystal clear picture you will ever see, below is a photo of one fan getting his anti-Reigns sign taken by security during the show.
