WrestleMania 32: 12 Booking Steps For John Cena vs. Roman Reigns

 

 

John Cena is the face of WWE. Roman Reigns is a rising star with a lot of promise. If these two were to clash on the biggest stage of them all, it would lead to a huge payoff for WWE, and could even usher in a whole new era for WWE.

For this to work out well, WWE need to book this rivalry very carefully and with considerably more detail than anything else they’ve done recently. This feud needs very specific creative decisions, a long-term outlook and booking strategy, and most importantly, a lot of changes on how both John Cena and Roman Reigns are presented on WWE programming.

For this rivalry to be truly successful, it has to last longer than one year. Instead of starting this feud now and having it culminate at next year’s WrestleMania, that PPV should be one of three major stops on a long, deep and complex rivalry that would span a very long time.  Cena and Reigns have a lot to bring to the table, and considering their booking, they’re just begging to be put together in a long-term program.

If done properly, this could become the most entertaining, deep, and emotionally-satisfying storyline WWE has done in a very long time. All they have to do is follow these twelve booking steps as closely as possible, and they’ll be able to rake in the money from increased fan interest from around the world.

12. Roman Reigns Spends The Rest Of 2015 In The Upper Mid-Card

Instead of having Reigns win the title somewhere else during this calendar year, Reigns should spend the rest of 2015 getting screwed by other wrestlers and never getting another title shot. This would create more sympathy for him and get more people behind him, which cannot be done now because his character is so stale and seems to win so often that any storylines and rivalries are bereft of drama.

Over the remainder of 2015, Reigns gets demolished by the Authority, Seth Rollins and their hired guns. This would amplify the heat towards the Authority, and more people would invest in Reigns. While Reigns is indeed growing as a star, the current direction they’re taking him in won’t yield positive results. Reigns should not try and become another Superman who always overcomes the odds in an ‘unnatural’ sort of way.
Instead, he should become more of a natural fighter, whose matches tell complex stories and his victories are earned through hard work, dramatic selling, and treating his opponents like an equal, instead of overcoming every single thing thrown at him. 

If made into a less ‘Superhuman’ kind of character, more people would get behind him, and he would become a much bigger star that way. Fans want to cheer for him, but because he’s simply too ‘overpowered’ and unstoppable, he’s not an exciting babyface. 

Meanwhile…

11. John Cena Wins His 16th WWE World Heavyweight Championship

At some point soon, John Cena loses the US Championship to Kevin Owens and, after losing his rematch against the new US Champ, turns his pursuit back towards the WWEWHC. Cena claims that the WWE Universe deserves a real hero to represent the company instead of a coward who hides behind the Authority’s skirt like Seth Rollins, and formally challenges for the WWEWHC.

Over the course of the second half of 2015, Cena attempts to wrestle the title away from Rollins, but Rollins is both a technically-superior wrestler and a more cunning individual than Cena initially suspected. 

The two of them headline numerous PPVs throughout the year, beginning at SummerSlam 2015. In that match, Cena wins via DQ due to interference from the Authority. At Night of Champions, Rollins wins following a roll-up while grabbing Cena’s pants. At HIAC, Rollins uses numerous weapons and pins Cena clean in the middle of the ring. At Survivor Series, in a Last Man Standing Match, the two of them hurt each other so badly that the match is ruled a draw, and Seth retains. 

Finally, at TLC, in a standard Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match, after a brutal contest, Cena musters whatever’s left of his strength, climbs the ladder and claims the WWE World Heavyweight Championship for a 16th time.

While all of this was happening, Reigns was very busy…

10. Roman Reigns Improves Significantly & Debuts A New Finisher

While he was getting manhandled by the Authority alongside Cena, Reigns kept improving his in-ring work. Realizing that there’s more to putting on a match than his usual power moves, Reigns realizes he needs to learn to do a lot of different things, and do more than just throw Superman punches and hit a Spear.

 

Over the second half of 2015, Reigns begins having better and better matches, which leads to fans getting behind him more. He begins to use a wide variety of different maneuvers and starts using more ring psychology, which leads to his matches becoming more dramatic and less one-sided. He even begins to speak more naturally, which really amplifies his ability to connect with the crowd. 

When he gets defeated, he sells the offense more realistically, and instead of this cocky babyface who’s always ahead of the Authority, Reigns becomes more of a sympathetic character who just keeps fighting and tries to overcome the odds.

By the end of the year, Reigns is much more comfortable both in the ring and on the microphone, and he has much more fan support. Finally, to cement his transformation and improvement, at TLC, he debuts a new finisher which, brings him far more success and makes him a more legitimate Superstar: the Vertical Suplex Side Slam.

9. Roman Reigns Wins The 2016 Royal Rumble Match (Unexpectedly)

With John Cena as reigning WWE Champion by the show’s end, having successfully defended the belt against Seth Rollins, the Rumble match would feature the following Superstars, appearing in the following order:

1. Cesaro
2. Sami Zayn (surprise entrant, returning from injury)
3. Xavier Woods
4. Viktor
5. Jack Swagger
6. The Miz
7. Roman Reigns
8. R-Truth
9. Eric Rowan
10. Damien Sandow
11. Tyson Kidd
12. Kevin Owens
13. Big E
14. Konnor
15. Dean Ambrose
16. Bray Wyatt
17. Curtis Axel
18. Zack Ryder
19. Darren Young
20. Finn Balor (surprise entrant, in full ‘Demon Balor’ body paint)
21. Randy Orton
22. Ryback
23. Sheamus
24. Rusev
25. Luke Harper
26. Neville
27. Samoa Joe (surprise entrant, making his main roster debut)
28. Titus O’Neil
29. Dolph Ziggler
30. Brock Lesnar (surprise entrant, arriving unannounced and without any build-up)

Order of elimination, and who eliminated them:

1. Viktor (eliminated by Sami Zayn)
2. Jack Swagger (eliminated by Tyson Kidd & Cesaro)
3. The Miz (eliminated by Damien Sandow)
4. Sami Zayn (eliminated by Kevin Owens)
5. Tyson Kidd (eliminated by Big E)
6. Damien Sandow (eliminated by Cesaro)
7. Cesaro (eliminated by Bray Wyatt)
8. Xavier Woods (eliminated by Roman Reigns)
9. R-Truth (eliminated by Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns)
10. Eric Rowan (eliminated by Dean Ambrose)
11. Curtis Axel (eliminated by Finn Balor)
12. Zack Ryder (eliminated by Kevin Owens)
13. Konnor (eliminated by Roman Reigns)
14. Big E (eliminated by Randy Orton)
15. Darren Young (eliminated by Bray Wyatt)
16. Randy Orton (eliminated by Sheamus)
17. Luke Harper (eliminated by Samoa Joe)
18. Neville (eliminated by Sheamus)
19. Sheamus (eliminated by Dolph Ziggler)
20. Finn Balor (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
21. Titus O’Neil (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
22. Dolph Ziggler (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
23. Ryback (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
24. Rusev (eliminated by Samoa Joe)
25. Kevin Owens (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
26. Bray Wyatt (eliminated by Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose)
27. Dean Ambrose (eliminated by Brock Lesnar)
28. Brock Lesnar (eliminated by Samoa Joe)
29. Samoa Joe (eliminated by Roman Reigns, immediately after Joe eliminates Lesnar)

30. Winner: Roman Reigns

Reigns would sneak up behind Samoe Joe and dump him out of the ring just as Joe (and the fans) would be celebrating Joe’s monumental elimination of Brock Lesnar. This would set up Reigns’ confrontation with Cena, and would by consequence set up a feud between Joe and Lesnar, who’d brawl their way back to the backstage area.

8. Massive Build-Up For Their First Encounter

During this first phase of the feud, Reigns treats Cena with a lot of respect, and vice-versa. As such, between the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania, there are a ton of video packages hyping both wrestlers, which includes opinions from their peers. 

For Cena, he has many people, including Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley and Daniel Bryan, all proclaiming how much of a workhorse he is, and how he has everything Vince likes in a Superstar. Reigns, on the other hand, gets praise from, among others, the Rock, Hulk Hogan, Dean Ambrose, and, in a shocking twist, from Vince himself. 

In both Reigns’ video package and in a surprise live appearance, Vince appears one day and announces that he’s throwing his support behind Roman Reigns for WrestleMania 32. Vince’s support adds a new dimension to the storyline, as it would come off as a shock that he’d support anyone above Cena. 

Vince would claim that Reigns is who he sees as ‘his’ future. This would help build the match up, and would help to convince even the most jaded of fans the possibility of Cena wining might not be as guaranteed as they believe. 

Finally, on the final RAW before WrestleMania 32, the two shake hands and show respect, but end up staring each other down nose-to-nose, ready for a major encounter in Texas.

7. Roman Reigns Completely Out-Wrestles John Cena At WrestleMania 32

Leading up to this match, Reigns would be seen watching videos of Cena’s matches, and preparing himself accordingly to Cena’s signature moves. Meanwhile, Cena would still do his same old routine about how he respects Reigns as a competitor, but he simply would not give up, no matter how much Reigns has improved. Reigns’ careful studying will have paid off in this match, as Roman would have a counter for every single one of Cena’s moves.

If Cena tried a shoulder tackle, Reigns would throw a punch in Cena’s face. If he did his ‘you can’t see me’ gesture, Reigns would grab Cena’s arm and lock it in an armbar. If Cena locked in the STF, Reigns would roll onto his shoulders, bridge, and try and get a 3-count. 

All in all, Reigns would have Cena’s number throughout the match. Meanwhile, Cena would still keep fighting, and would even start to show a bit more aggression than normal. 

In the closing moments of the match, John Cena would hit an AA, but it would only get a 2 ½ count. Then, Reigns would deliver a Spear to Cena, but it would get a 2 ¾ count. Finally, Reigns would hoist Cena up with his new finisher, and pin Cena cleanly in the middle of the ring. 

1…2…3. New WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Roman Reigns.

6. Roman’s First World Title Reign

After the initial shock of John Cena losing clean to Roman Reigns, the two of them begin the next stage of their rivalry: Cena testing Reigns to see if he’s truly the new company ace. 

Cena would first invoke his rematch clause for Extreme Rules 2016, which Reigns would gladly accept. In an Extreme Rules Match, Reigns would come out victorious once again, this time after Spearing Cena through a table. 

Reigns’ next defense sees him successfully defend the WWEWHC against both Cena and Rollins ay Payback 2016. Then, Reigns defends the belt against Cena, Rollins and Ambrose at Money in the Bank 2016 in a Fatal-4-Way Elimination match. Despite losing clean in all of these contests, however, Cena still maintains his upbeat, respectful mantra about him throughout these contests.

At Battleground 2016, Reigns faces Ambrose one-on-one for the belt, and in yet another close contest, Reigns still comes out on top. Finally, at SummerSlam 2016, Reigns takes on Seth Rollins in one of the most heavily-desired match-ups in recent memory, with Reigns barely winning in this contest. 

By the time SummerSlam comes to an end, Reigns will have put on a series of outstanding PPV matches filled with drama and excitement, leading to a completely different fan perception from the one that haunted him following the 2015 Royal Rumble match.

5. Building Up New Contenders

After SummerSlam, eight man face off in a short tournament to determine the next #1 contender for Reigns’ belt: Cena, Ambrose, Rollins, Orton, Ziggler, Ryback, Sheamus and Samoa Joe. They are put together into the following match combinations.

Round 1: Cena vs. Ryback, Ambrose vs. Sheamus, Rollins vs. Orton, and Ziggler vs. Samoa Joe. From these eight wrestlers, Cena, Ambrose, Rollins and Joe advance. The next round pits Cena vs. Ambrose and Rollins vs. Joe, with Cena and Joe winning 

These two men put on a huge match on the RAW before Night of Champions 2016, and despite numerous momentum shifts, the match is ruled a no-contest after both men are unable to get up. The sheer quality of this match alone helps not only build up the wrestlers themselves as worthy contenders, but also puts over the belt itself as something that’s truly worth fighting for.

The Authority announces that Reigns would defend the belt against both of them in a Triple Threat Match, and at NoC 2016, Reigns once again comes out on top, after delivering his finisher on both Joe and Cena, but pins Joe. The next night on RAW, it is announced that Cena is named #1 contender because he didn’t take part in the fall, which leads us to the next PPV…

4. Reigns Loses The WWEWHC To The 2016 Money In The Bank Winner

After failing to defeat Reigns on multiple occasions, Cena makes one final effort to defeat Roman Reigns: a Hell in a Cell match at the eponymous PPV in October 2016. During this match, both wrestlers make very liberal use of the cell structure as a weapon, with slingshots into the cell, throwing each other into the cell wall in different ways, and even a short battle on the roof of the cell that leads to both of them falling from one side and into the announcer’s tables.

After after an exhausting, violent and bloody battle, Reigns hits his finisher on Cena once again, defeating him once more. However, as the Cell is being raised, and Reigns is barely standing on his own two feet, another Superstar enters the ring, clutching the Money in the Bank Briefcase, ready to cash-in on the broken-down Champion.

That man is Kevin Owens.

With the Cell still being raised, Owens hits Cena with his briefcase a few times to render him unconscious, before cashing in his MITB briefcase. He then delivers two Pop-up Powerbombs (for good measure) to Reigns and pins him to become the new World Heavyweight Champion. The last thing we see at the end of HIAC 2016 is Reigns out cold in the ring, Cena still outside the ring, and Owens holding the WWEWHC high above his head.

3. Betrayal

Both Cena and Reigns try to reclaim the WWEWHC from Kevin Owens. When Reigns loses clean, he’s shocked at just how quickly he has lost his place: in less than a month, he has gone from the top of the company, to the end of the line for a title shot. 

Meanwhile, Cena face Owens in a spectacular match at TLC 2016. However, Cena loses in a dirty fashion because Reigns interferes in Cena’s match. 

The reason behind this is that Cena musters his followers and delves into his whole ‘Never Give Up’ mantra, and Reigns comes to believe that Cena can actually beat Owens. If that happens, then all of Reigns’ work over the past year will have been for nothing.

During the Cena-Owens match’s final moments, Reigns appears, and prepares to deliver a Spear. It’s assumed that he’s aiming for Owens, but Reigns hits Cena instead. Owens retains the belt via disqualification. Reigns then hits his finisher on an exhausted Owens, sending him a message for the future, and then hits Cena with a second Spear.

Fans would be shocked at these actions, but it wouldn’t lead to a major split in fan support. Reigns’ actions would garner him more support from fans who want him to succeed, as his fan base would have grown considerably over the past year. 

2. Things Become Really Personal

Reigns cuts a promo where he reveals that he’s constantly being compared to John Cena, and can’t escape Cena’s shadow. Reigns believes that he can only reach the top of the mountain if Cena isn’t there sitting in Reigns’ spot. Because of that Reigns justifies his actions by claiming that it’s his turn, and that Cena’s time is up.

From here, Cena shows his anger and frustration, explaining that he thought he was Reigns’ friend, and that the two of them could complete as wrestlers on equal footing. But Cena realizes that’s impossible, and the two of them start brawling, with security having to separate the two warring wrestlers. 

In comes the Authority, who moderate two contract signings: the first is for a one-on-one match between Cena and Reigns at WrestleMania 33, and the second is for a no-contact clause between the two of them for the entire lead-up to ‘Mania.

The remaining weeks are devoted to promos and video packages highlighting both men’s accomplishments, fan support, and training regiments. The purpose of this would be to promote Cena and Reigns as equals heading into WrestleMania. 

On the final RAW before WrestleMania, the two of them would be in the ring together, debating on who’s going to win. The segment would close with a WWE App poll asking fans who ‘will win at WrestleMania?’ and the poll shows Reigns at 52% and Cena at 48%, adding even more hype to their match.

1. The Final Confrontation: Reigns Makes Cena Tap Out At WrestleMania 33

Everything since the beginning of this program has led to this match. Both men have scouted each other, have trained for months, and are both ready to give this match their all. Most importantly for Cena, he knows all of Reigns’ moves and has a counter ready for it. However, Reigns reveals in a promo before the match that he has ‘something special’ reserved for Cena.
Throughout the match, Reigns  targets specific parts of Cena’s body. Reigns uses maneuvers and strikes that target Cena’s right pectoral area, his neck, and his right arm, and especially his right elbow, which are all places where Cena has suffered serious injuries. 

After enduring Cena’s offense, Reigns begins using his own signature and finishing moves. When those fail, he reveals what he had planned for Cena: a submission hold that takes advantage of Cena’s injury history and targets those body parts: The Nagata Lock III.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rni4QUfChK8 

Reigns drags an exhausted Cena into the middle of the ring and applies this hold, putting considerable pressure on Cena’s surgically-repaired body parts. Doing so would present Reigns as a smarter wrestler who understands wrestling psychology and his opponent’s history, and is willing to injure his opponent to achieve his dream. Moreover, by playing up Cena’s injury history, getting locked in such a submission hold would rally fans behind Cena, making the finish more exciting.

In the end, Cena’s whole ‘Never Give Up’ mantra would finally meet its match, as John Cena would tap out to Roman Reigns’ new finisher. 

Instantly, Reigns’ star power would skyrocket, as he would become the only person to make John Cena tap out since Cena’s main event ascent. The match would end with such decisive finality that Reigns would be established as a bona fide main-eventer, taking John Cena’s spot as the face of the WWE.