Obviously I had other plans for the OT this month, but last week we were all floored by Roman Reigns when he announced his leukemia has returned and he must take time off to address it. So I decided to change direction and make this OT a celebration of his work to this point. The veracity of his push aside, Roman has delivered great matches on numerous occasions and I'm going to highlight what I think are some of his best. Feel free to add your own! Let's start with my favorite.
Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles for the WWE Championship at Extreme Rules
After a great match the month prior at Payback, Roman and AJ put on another great showing at Extreme Rules. Both went all out and Roman's power really showed well against a smaller guy in AJ. I've always thought Roman was at his best working with guys he could throw around well. It also helped that he was able to show more of a meaner edge against another babyface that the crowd was behind. These two beat the hell out of each other and it still stands out to me as the best match of Roman's career so far.
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 31
These two guys just beat the absolute shit out of each other until Seth showed up and cashed-in. It was a fight. Brock being the madman he is busted himself hardway on that ring post spot. I feel this match in general goes under-appreciated because of the horrendous booking decisions surrounding it, but it's clear these two were determined to go out and put on a brutal match and I think they accomplished that and then some. I don't feel that any of their matches together since this one have been able to get back to this level.
Roman Reigns vs. Daniel Bryan at Fastlane
Going back to what I said about Roman working best with smaller guys, Roman and Bryan had a very different kind of match than Roman and AJ did, but it worked similarly well. Roman's power meshed well with Bryan trying to technically tear him apart. Like the Brock match, I think this match isn't remembered well given the booking and the fact that Roman won, but these two had a type of chemistry that I don't think Roman has found with anyone else. I wouldn't say it's Roman's best match, but it's definitely unique in his catalog. And I think ultimately that's one of the best things I can say about Roman in the ring is that he's managed to have good to great matches with a wide variety of guys. He's done power stuff with Brock, he's matched up well with a technical guy in Bryan, and he looked great against a flyer in AJ.
So what are your favorite Roman matches? Do you think I made any bad choices? Let's collect some of the best ones so we can show our love to the Big Dog. And of course we all wish him the absolute best in his fight with leukemia and I have zero doubt that he's going to win that fight and return to our screens to keep punching and spearing our faves. Soon we'll be sick of him all over again, and I can't wait. :)
