What Does Suspension Mean for Roman Reigns Going Forward?

The former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns will need to step up his game in the coming months.

As if the WWE Universe wasn’t turning on Roman Reigns fast enough, the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion was busted for violating the company’s wellness policy on Monday afternoon.

The shocking and surprising announcement came less than 24 hours after the former champion was granted a rematch in a triple threat for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Battleground on July 24.

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But with the WWE working to build Reigns up as the next face of its company over the past two years, what does a wellness policy suspension mean for “the guy”? In the short term, a whole lot of saving face and apologizing – which Reigns did swiftly after the WWE announced his suspension Monday afternoon. In the long term, probably not much. But that will depend on a few different factors.

Reigns’ Performance Going Forward

Coming off a 30-day suspension, Reigns is going to need to be at the top of his game. Not only will he have to save face with the WWE Universe, but he’s going to need to show the WWE that they made the right choice pushing him as their top guy. The former champion is going to need fantastic promos – something he’s often struggled with over the past two years – whether that’s owning up to his mistakes and asking for forgiveness or buying into the “cheater” persona. Judging by his initial response to the suspension, Reigns is likely going to be pegged as the guy asking for your forgiveness.

Who Can Fill His Shoes?

With the announcement of Reigns’ suspension, there were likely a lot of ears perking up in the WWE locker room. While the company is giving other guys runs with the titles, it was still clear Reigns was their guy. Now, though, there’s an opportunity for other superstars to prove they can take Reigns’ place as the face of the company. Ambrose and Rollins are the two frontrunners in this category and have the best chance to show the company what they can do at the top. Rollins’ resume is pretty set after his last title reign that saw him hang with the likes of Sting, Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Ambrose has the most on the line here. In the waking hours of his first title run, Ambrose needs to prove that he can be the one to take over if the WWE ever decided to replace Reigns at the top.

What the WWE Wants

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Ultimately, Reigns’ future as the top dog in the WWE is going to come down to whatever the company wants. Sure, a 30-day suspension is going to hurt anyone’s case, but it isn’t necessarily going to keep Reigns off WWE television for longer than the 30-day protocol. This suspension is essentially a company move, not a creative one. The WWE is showing a firm stance on its wellness policy and making a statement that this applies to everyone, especially the guy doing the talk shows. Take Randy Orton for example, who was suspended 60 days in 2006 and is still at the top of the WWE roster a decade later. Reigns’ suspension doesn’t mean his time is up by any means, but it’s definitely a strike against him in the eyes of the WWE.

Barring any further damning details on Reigns’ suspension being released, the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion will likely be back fighting for the belt sooner than later.

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