Why Roman Reigns Was Suspended By WWE, Explained
When it comes to full-time WWE superstars, there is no one bigger in the company right now than Roman Reigns. He is the reigning Undisputed Universal WWE Champion currently amid a record-breaking reign that is nearing two years in length, and he feels completely untouchable. However, some fans may have forgotten that at one point, Reigns was suspended from the company. Even though he has been WWE’s golden child for the longest time, he couldn’t escape punishment, and it cost him a spot at the top for a short while.
Roman Reigns Was In The Midst Of A WWE Championship Reign
By the time 2016 rolled around, WWE was well underway in pushing Reigns as the successor to John Cena, with him primed to become the number one babyface and poster child of the promotion. Despite a lot of fan backlash, WWE persisted in pushing Reigns to the moon. This included consecutive WrestleMania main events and multiple WWE World Heavyweight Championship reigns, with the highest profile of those coming at WrestleMania 32.
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Reigns’ victory over Triple H was poorly received, with their match going down terribly. However, from there, Reigns’ time as champion looked to be gaining some steam. At back-to-back PPVs, Payback, and Extreme Rules, Reigns stole the show in championship defenses against AJ Styles. Whilst the boos showered him when he entered arenas, there was a slight turn in the tide in terms of respecting his in-ring work, particularly within these defenses. It seemed as though momentum may have started to pick up, and if he continued performing at this level, his time as champion could have been great. Then, disaster struck.
Roman Reigns Violated WWE’s Wellness Policy
Following the Extreme Rules main event, Reigns was ambushed by a returning Seth Rollins, setting up a blockbuster championship feud between the pair, with them set to face off at Money in the Bank. With Reigns’ run as champion seemingly in just its early stages, fans expected him to overcome the challenge of Rollins. After a great big-time main event, which felt like a clash between top stars, Reigns shockingly lost the match clean.
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This was a truly surprising result, but one which was explained just two days later, as it was announced that Reigns had been suspended by WWE for 30 days. This was due to a Wellness Policy Violation, one which WWE was aware of, leading to Reigns dropping the WWE World Heavyweight Title. It was eventually revealed that the Wellness Policy Violation came in the way of Adderall, rather than anything more sinister and serve. Either way, controversy followed.
The major controversy with this suspension came with the fact that Reigns was scheduled for a WWE Championship match at the Battleground PPV, with him advertised without any changes to the eventual Shield triple threat match. Perhaps it came with the dislike that fans had for Reigns’ babyface run, but there was a big belief that WWE was treating Reigns favorably, even with his suspension taking place. Unfortunately for Reigns, regardless of the circumstances behind the suspension, it gave crowds yet another reason to boo him.
Roman Reigns Returned To Main Event A PPV After His 30-Day Suspension
Battleground was set to host a hugely anticipated dream match between Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns. However, the build wasn’t what it should’ve been due to the absence of Reigns. Instead of a historic clash between three men with a rich history with one another, it was a lackluster build that was made all about the recent draft and brand split, rather than the monumental showdown this was supposed to be. Unfortunately for those involved, Reigns’ suspension stole a lot of the hype and attention, overshadowing everything which happened on WWE’s weekly TV in the build-up to the event.
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Reigns made his return from suspension on the day of the match, with there being little mention or focus on his absence. Reigns didn’t win the WWE Championship back, which was certainly for the best, and he went on a run for the next six months where he was outside the title scene, with others such as Finn Balor and Kevin Owens getting a shot at the top. Eventually, Reigns’ suspension didn’t halt him from reaching the main event scene again, as he went on to defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania 33, main evented several shows over the next couple of years before eventually winning the Universal Championship. Reigns isn’t the only major name to have been suspended, only to come back and be pushed, as stars such as Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Edge, and Kurt Angle all violated the Wellness Policy too. Since then, Reigns has had no trouble in terms of suspensions or anything of the sort.
