John Cena and AJ Lee kiss after Cena's victory over Dolph Ziggler: Raw, Nov. 26, 2012
Important Information:
The Roman Reigns reclamation project is officially a success.
Monday night on Raw, Reigns bested three other WWE Superstars in a Fatal 4-Way main event to become the No. 1 Contender for Seth Rollins' WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The former Shield brethren will face off at Survivor Series next month.
While Reigns has long been considered fast-tracked for the title, Monday night's result was the culmination of a long and arduous road for the would-be champion.
Reigns has had a love-hate relationship with the WWE Universe. He wasn't an indie circuit favorite like Cesaro. He didn't pay his dues like Daniel Bryan. He was always viewed as Vince McMahon's chosen one, making Reigns a dead man walking among the Internet Wrestling Community.
Not only was he booed out of Philadelphia following his win at Royal Rumble to gain his first chance at the world title, but he got The Rock booed out of Philly, too (warning: NSFW language)
He was never accepted after beating Bryan a month later at Fastlane, even after getting the Bryan seal of approval. The world was in Brock Lesnar's corner at WrestleMania 31 when the two faced off for the title and summarily cheered when Rollins stole the title that everyone believed would be Reigns' that night in Santa Clara.
Nothing seemed to work. That is, until he started getting pushed out of the main event spotlight.
Reigns was never too far out of the limelight, but just on the periphery. Dean Ambrose—another IWC favorite—took his shots at Rollins while Reigns cheered him on from ringside. In the meantime, Reigns continued to rack up great matches against lesser opponents.
WWE started building a Superstar the way the IWC wanted, even if the smarks in the crowd didn't notice. He has gradually built a strong, organic following within the WWE Universe, while winning over doubters with solid matches.
Monday night was a litmus test for Reigns' character, facing three fan favorites—Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler and a returning Alberto Del Rio—in the main event. Reigns more than held his own, delivering quality spots against some of the best ring tacticians on the roster. Not only did the crowd accept the result, they openly cheered it.
Source: http://goo.gl/BdmKeV
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