No thanks to a Logan Paul vs. Roman Reigns match

Over the last couple of months, Triple H has worked to restore the fans’ faith in the WWE product, and aside from a few odd choices, this strategy has worked. In a couple of months, that faith will be put to quite the test.

Even though Vince McMahon is gone, the company’s 10-year deal with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues, and in November, the promotion will produce another sportswashing spectacular in exchange for a robust stipend: Crown Jewel 2022. Fitting with the problematic implications of running these shows, WWE has apparently found an opponent for Undisputed Universal Champion Roman Reigns: Logan Paul.

Yes, you read that correctly; Roman Reigns will defend his title against LOGAN PAUL on Nov. 5. This all started when Reigns appeared on Paul’s Impaulsive podcast and said that he wanted to face Reigns and that he could beat “The Tribal Chief”. Paul then appeared on the Sept. 16 episode of SmackDown where he invited Reigns to show up to the press conference for the propaganda show. At the press conference, the two made the match official.

No thanks to Roman Reigns vs. Logan Paul

The decision to insert a guy who has wrestled a grand total of two matches (only one of them being a singles match) in his wrestling career into a high-profile main event on the strength of his mainstream notoriety shows how much this company still yearns for the return of the hallowed Casual Fan(TM).

If you put on the strongest bifocals you could find, you can kind of see what WWE wants to accomplish. With WWE’s business becoming virtually independent of house shows and PPV buys — rights fees for TV, the WWE Network, and these insidious Soudi shows now power the company financially — the promotion feels that it can take a chance on a less-than-marquee match to “generate buzz”.

And look, the match would probably be pretty good. Paul’s detestable personality and antics aside, he has taken his wrestling training seriously and that has shown in his two matches at WrestleMania 38 and SummerSlam 2022. His high-flying style would pair well with the athletic and explosive Reigns, whose best matches have come opposite sleeker, quicker opponents.

Plus, if WWE wants to waste a rare Reigns match on a novelty act, doing it on a show that WWE is getting an obscene amount of upfront money makes more sense than using it to sell tickets for, say, Survivor Series.

More sense, however, still doesn’t amount to much in the grand scheme of things.

After all, WWE still insists on presenting Paul as a babyface despite the audience’s obvious animous toward him. Matching Paul up with The Miz — a heel who almost never draws cheers over anyone — didn’t change this and neither will even the best heel promos Paul Heyman can whip up.

Simply put, fans don’t like Paul, and it’s because of how offputting people find him to be, and not in a ” I would pay to see him get beat up” sort of way (and that doesn’t matter anyway since, again, THEY’RE BOOKING HIM AS A BABYFACE FOR SOME REASON). But to WWE, all that matters is his fame (or imfamy).

Given that this company continues to push several wrestlers who were implicated during Speaking Out and gives a platform to someone like Tyson Fury — a grotesque bigot who happens to excel at punching people in the face for money — that shouldn’t surprise anyone. And a company that has exploited so many wrestler deaths over the years probably empathizes with a man who made light of suicides in the name of content.

That he’s getting this title shot on this show shoves how WWE will forego everything in the name of profits right in front of your face. For some people, that may be fine, but for everyone else who gave this promotion another chance, it shows how, in many ways, this is still the same old WWE.