Untested. Unproven. Inexperienced.
All adjectives used to describe Roman Reigns, the man in line for a main event match against the WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31.
Even before his victory in the 2015 Royal Rumble match, I heard fans and people inside the professional wrestling industry openly question WWE's commitment to Reigns. They don't doubt his talent and potential, but they do doubt the timing of his rise to the top of company.
Many seem to think it's too much, too soon.
I wondered how Reigns compares to similar young/inexperienced champions from WWE's history. What I discovered surprised me. Like many of you, I believed WWE is taking an unprecedented risk. It appears bold. Perhaps, a little bit reckless. But the truth is that WWE does this kind of thing all the time. And it almost always works out for the best.
One obvious comparison that almost immediately comes to mind is Batista. Like Reigns, he was inexperienced before being added to one of the dominant factions in recent history. Batista was also on the the main roster for more than two years before he won his first major championship.
WWE Debut: May 9, 2002
World Heavyweight Championship win: April 3, 2005
(d. Triple H at WrestleMania 21)
Debut to Title: 1,060 Days
PPV Matches Before Title Win: 10
One-on-One PPV Matches Before Title Win: 3
Armageddon 2002 - d. Kane
Armageddon 2003 - lost to Shawn Michaels
Vengeance 2004 - d. Chris Jericho
Many may forget the rapid rise of Sheamus. He was a bullying bad guy on ECW before he was moved over to Raw and almost immediately into the main event.
WWE Debut: June 30, 2009
WWE Championship win: December 13, 2009
(d. John Cena in Tables Match at TLC 2009)
Debut To Title: 167 Days
PPV Matches Before Title Win: 1
One-on-One PPV Matches Before Title Win: 0
That's right. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Sheamus beat John Cena for the WWE Championship in his first one-on-one match on pay per view. It was certainly an outcome that shocked a lot of fans at the time.
The man Roman Reigns is scheduled to face at WrestleMania 31 enjoyed an unforgettable and rapid ride to the main event. Brock Lesnar made a big impact in his debut and didn't look back until he was the WWE Undisputed Champion.
WWE Debut: March 18, 2002
WWE Undisputed Championship win: August 25, 2002
(d. The Rock at SummerSlam 2002)
Debut To Title: 160 Days
PPV Matches Before Title Win: 5
One-on-One PPV Matches Before Title Win: 4
Backlash 2002 - d. Jeff Hardy
King Of The Ring 2002 - d. Test, d. Rob Van Dam
Vengeance 2002 - lost to Rob Van Dam via DQ
It may seem unthinkable for someone to go from his debut to winning his first major championship in WWE in less time than Brock Lesnar, but at least one person did.
WWE Debut: October 31, 1992
WWF Championship win: April 4, 1993
(d. Bret Hart at WrestleMania IX)
Debut to Title: 155 Days.
PPV Matches Before Title Win: 2
One-on-One PPV Matches Before Title Win: 1
Survivor Series 1992 - d. Virgil
Yokozuna rose to prominance in a different era, so the comparison involving pay per view matches isn't totally fair, but it is telling that he beat Virgil and proceeded directly to winning the Royal Rumble and then winning the WWF Championship at WrestleMania IX. Seriously, 155 days!
I don't think many would argue that Yokozuna's rapid rise was a successful move for WWE. It set the stage for a new fan favorite in Lex Luger and for Bret Hart's championship win in the main event at WrestleMania X.
In fact, you can argue that giving the championship to these men when WWE did worked out in almost every instance. Brock Lesnar and Batista matured into top level main event talents, and though Sheamus has slipped slightly over the past year or so, he remains a key performer when healthy.
Now, let's take a look at how the next man in line measures up.
WWE Debut: November 18, 2012
WWE World Heavyweight Championship win: March 29, 2015?
Debut to Title: 862 Days?
PPV Matches Before Title Win: 20
One-on-One PPV Matches Before Title Win: 2
SummerSlam 2014 - d. Randy Orton
Fast Lane 2015 - vs. Daniel Bryan
A couple things stand out. Reigns has been on the main roster far longer than Lesnar, Sheamus and Yokozuna were when they won their first major championship in WWE. Also, take a look at Reigns' total number of pay per view matches. 20 is an incredibly high number compared to the trio I just mentioned. The only real drawback for Reigns is that almost all of them are tag team matches. Reigns' upcoming one-on-one match against Daniel Bryan at Fast Lane will be only his second on pay per view since his debut.
That's not to say that Reigns is lacking in main event experience. He appeared in three main event matches between WrestleMania XXX and the injury that took him out of action until almost the end of 2014. If Reigns had remained healthy over the duration of 2014, one must assume he would've accumulated at least a couple more one-on-one pay per view matches.
Conclusion - Maybe the problem for Roman Reigns isn't that he's being "pushed" too soon. Maybe the problem is that he wasn't "pushed" soon enough. Think about it. Fans were behind him when he was the last man left against Batista in the 2014 Royal Rumble match. One year later, it's almost as if the thrill is gone.
Looking at WWE's track record with performers put on a similar trajectory, I can't help but wonder - Is it really too much too soon for Roman Reigns? Or, is it not soon enough?
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