WWE rumors are running rampant ahead of next week’s Superstar Shakeup on Monday Night Raw. One of the biggest rumblings is the possible transfer of former WWE champion Roman Reigns to SmackDown Live.
Reigns, who probably sent the Undertaker to his retirement after defeating the legendary wrestler at Wrestlemania 33, is the latest superstar being rumored to switch brands next week. WWE reportedly wants the ‘Big Dog’ to fill the void left by John Cena, who will spend the next few months in Hollywood.
New Reign on SmackDown
Reigns has been getting a lot of backlash from wrestling fans due to his status quo as Vince McMahon’s lapdog.
WWE attempted a number of times already to make the former Shield member the next franchise of WWE post-John Cena era. But despite ‘main-eventing’ three consecutive Wrestlemanias, Reigns has remained the least favorite baby-face superstar on the roster.
WWE looks to change that perception by assigning Reigns to SmackDown, where he can have terrific matches with Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt and two-time NXT Champion Shinsuke Nakamura. The move will also give Reigns plenty of time to improve other facets in his repertoire, most especially his interaction with the fans.
Unpredictable Superstar Shake-up
Sportskeeda reported the upcoming Superstar Shake-up will be a lot harder to predict than picking the winners of Wrestlemania 33 largely because Mr.
McMahon hasn’t made up his mind as to which set of superstars will be switching brands.
“The heart of the matter still is that WWE is as much in the dark as we are about the Shake-up. Vince McMahon has constantly been going back and forth backstage with regard to the nature of the draft and the actual names that will be transferred between brands,” according to Sportskeeda.
Former WWE RAW women’s champ Charlotte Flair, SmackDown women’s champ Alexa Bliss, AJ Styles, Sami Zayn, Rusev and the New Day are some of the names in the rumor mill ahead of the big night. Former WWE superstars like ex-Intercontinental champion Shelton Benjamin and NXT women’s champ Asuka could make their appearance on the show as well.
According to ComicBook.com, the WWE Superstar Shake-up will not be as massive as the WWE Draft that happened in July last year. However, general managers on both RAW and SmackDown brands are given the opportunity to retool their roster by trading a superstar in exchange of another. Mr. McMahon has already notified the general managers and commissioners in advance of the shake-up so they can have enough time to make major decisions.
