WWE Fast Lane: Roman Reigns vs Daniel Bryan (Mania main event spot)

[CyberPunk]

Last night, we saw Daniel Bryan beating Seth Rollins in a fantastic match to set up a date with Reigns at Fast Lane for Reigns' Mania main event spot. While I expect a very good match here, it also gives a nice hook for the Fast Lane PPV. Also, a lot of Bryan fans might just believe that Bryan has another shot at Main Eventing yet another Mania.

How do you see this match going? As a Bryan fan, I'd love for Bryan to win and main event second Mania in a row. On other hand though, I really don't think that's the route WWE should take. I mean, if you eventually had to put Bryan in that spot, why not let Bryan win the Rumble itself? Why go through all these shenanigans? I mean, if Bryan wins, it'd be second time in a row that Bryan goes on to main event Mania without winning the Rumble. And while Batista at least retained his spot last year, Reigns may not retain his.

I have a feeling that Reigns will win a hard fought match and might just receive an endorsement from Bryan. I also believe this match would be better than your usual Reigns match.

Anyway, this match is something I look forward to. What do you guys think?

 

[rge2010]

WWE know fans are pissed at Reigns and want Bryan to Main Event Mania against Lesnar. This is WWE's way of giving those fans hope - only to snatch it right away from them again

Looks to me like WWE and Reigns are going to embrace the hate because this is going to add salt to the wounds and the boo's will be even louder.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Simple booking. Give Reigns his biggest singles victory to date, have him have his best singles match, make him become even more hated going into Mania when he snatches Bryan fans dreams away.

The plan is for heel Reigns vs. Face Lesnar at this point. Of that I'm sure.

 

[laodaron]

This move cemented the Reigns heel turn, as far as I'm concerned. In this matchup, the vocal minority will ensure that Reigns gets the heel treatment, and the casual fans will chant along. There is no way that Reigns walks out of Fast Lane looking like a face.

When this match was booked at Raw, I thought, well, if Rollins beats Bryan, then I can see them having Rollins go extra slimey heel between now and Fast Lane, trying to preserve the Reigns face push. But, since Bryan won (which I did not see happening, honestly), I see a full blown Reigns heel turn as Wrestlemania.

This will Main Event the show, and I think that Reigns wins, but he has to utilize some heel tactics in order to get the win.

 

[Mustang Sally]

I mean, if you eventually had to put Bryan in that spot, why not let Bryan win the Rumble itself? Why go through all these shenanigans?

One guess is that if they're bothering to go through the shenanigans, it could mean the company is reversing direction; listening and acceding to the wishes of the fans.

After all, we keep reading on this forum how "everybody" wants Daniel Bryan to win the world championship while "everybody" knows Roman Reigns isn't ready for it yet. While I've been maintaining you can't legitimately identify what "everybody" wants, the factors named above seem to be emerging: the cheering for Daniel and booing for Roman (at the Rumble) suggest a change in which guy gets the shot at Brock Lesnar's title at WM31.

Plainly, WWE management's original plan was to give the shot to Reigns and deny it to Bryan. Now, the distinct possibility has been set that the company is going to reverse itself and go......by direct results......to what the fans want.

We don't even have to wait for WM31 to find out; the answer will be provided at Fast Lane.

Of course, if they are changing direction and switching from Roman to Daniel, it might not be a result of what WWE is reading on Internet forums about what the fans want, but if the reactions of the crowd at live shows are what's causing the change, the fans' voices are actually being heard. Who would've thought?

Personally, I'd rather see Roman Reigns get the title shot, as Royal Rumble policy dictates he should......but if Vince McMahon is actually willing to change his mind because he wants to give the fans what they're clamoring for, that's a good thing.......as surprising as a nuclear explosion, maybe.....but a good thing.

 

[laodaron]

One guess is that if they're bothering to go through the shenanigans, it could mean the company is reversing direction; listening and acceding to the wishes of the fans.

After all, we keep reading on this forum how "everybody" wants Daniel Bryan to win the world championship while "everybody" knows Roman Reigns isn't ready for it yet. While I've been maintaining you can't legitimately identify what "everybody" wants, the factors named above seem to be emerging: the cheering for Daniel and booing for Roman (at the Rumble) suggest a change in which guy gets the shot at Brock Lesnar's title at WM31.

Plainly, WWE management's original plan was to give the shot to Reigns and deny it to Bryan. Now, the distinct possibility has been set that the company is going to reverse itself and go......by direct results......to what the fans want.

We don't even have to wait for WM31 to find out; the answer will be provided at Fast Lane.

Of course, if they are changing direction and switching from Roman to Daniel, it might not be a result of what WWE is reading on Internet forums about what the fans want, but if the reactions of the crowd at live shows are what's causing the change, the fans' voices are actually being heard. Who would've thought?

Personally, I'd rather see Roman Reigns get the title shot, as Royal Rumble policy dictates he should......but if Vince McMahon is actually willing to change his mind because he wants to give the fans what they're clamoring for, that's a good thing.......as surprising as a nuclear explosion, maybe.....but a good thing.

HHH said last night on the podcast with SCSA that Roman has been getting nothing but massive cheer pops at live shows, and it's only at the TV tapings when the fans want to be a part of the show that he gets the boos. Take it at face value, for sure, though.

 

[MWRedskins]

my guess is that this match will be really good (Bryan can wrestle a broomstick and make it look good) since Bryan's great in the ring and Reigns isn't bad. is Reigns a great wrestler, no, but he's not bad in the ring. i never had or have a problem with his in ring work, my only issue with Reigns is more on Vince McMahon's stupid booking than Reigns and this is more stupid booking. if Vince wants Reigns as a face (and no, i don't think he's turning heel) then he needs to keep him away from fan favorite Bryan and have him against a heel. what i would've done if i were Vince and i really wanted it to be Reigns, i would've done this....1) keep Bryan out of the rumble and have him return at fast lane to take on Kane.......2) have Reigns win that rumble (like he did, with a bit of controversy)......3) have John Cena vs. Rollins on RAW like they did, have Cena win....4) have Reigns beat Cena (who gets a mixed reaction ALL the time) and then go from there with Reigns. if they would've done that, it would've gotten Reigns over and the fans wouldn't be so mixed on him.

 

[wwe fan2009]

Ziggler is turning heel and costing Bryan the match. he will come out next night saying when is my turn, Bryan got to main event WM last year, if Im not main event at WM neither are you Bryan. I want you at WM and then Bryan accepts

 

[#1druid]

Ziggler is turning heel and costing Bryan the match. he will come out next night saying when is my turn, Bryan got to main event WM last year, if Im not main event at WM neither are you Bryan. I want you at WM and then Bryan accepts

If i had to guess they're going to play up the authority potentially interfering in the match and as a result Reigns asks ambrose to watch his back and Bryan asks ziggler, and then ziggler turns and screws bryan.

 

[Bosco7381]

I can see it finishing with a double count out after interference from the authority then on raw next night they announce that it will be a fatal four way at mania for title adding their pet project Rollins. Then orton comes out demanding his rematch he's owed from last year somehow cena gets added to the match and they have an elimination chamber match at mania for the title

 

[mont3818]

Two things: A) If Reigns doesn't get the clean victory over Bryan (that is, either Ziggler or Rollins interfering) then he looks weak going into Mania. B) If that happens then it guarantees Reigns is a heel heading into Mania. Which is bad business. If Lesnar is the face in the match (and he's leaving the company) , then there's ZERO payoff on their biggest event of the year. Bad business. They won't make the Mania main event a triple threat two years in a row, much less a fatal four way.

The only conceivable solution is Bryan v Lesnar and Rollins/Reigns/Bryan having an awesome feud over the belt for the first half of the year leading into Summerslam. At which point if Reigns is ready and more developed by then, then he should get it.

If the WWE truly doesn't like having the belt on Bryan just have Rollins cash in on him at Mania after his celebration winning it. Just start the feud that way. Long term planning. WWE should try it sometime. So a heel Reigns wins at Mania and then what?? At least this scenario gives them and interesting feud for the first half or so of the year.

 

[Hakushi]

I believe Reigns will win. The loss to Big Show last night paired with Bryans victory was to lead us to believe otherwise. I think this is simply to partially appease fans and give Reigns a little boost and a bit more legitimacy on his path.

 

[mkw1962]

Roman and Daniel should be a very good match, I see Roman winning. This match can help push Roman, Daniel is very good in the ring and he can help push Roman. Daniel will extend his hand out to Roman and they shake and than maybe Roman can turn some of the boos into cheers. The funny thing is we pretty much know the outcome of this match already, if I am not mistaken isn't Daniel suppose to fight Dolph or Sheamus at WM31. What we don't know is this match changing Roman into a heel. I see Seth cashing in at WM31 and winning the Title.

 

[L@RISANO]

As much as this match has potential, I assume that IF Dolph Ziggler vs Daniel Bryan is the plan for Mania, that we might well see a Ziggler interference to setup that programme for Mania.


Having either guy lose cleanly to the other just isn't worth it in the long term, when this Reigns vs Bryan match-up can be saved for a longer programme at some point down the line.



Honestly, whilst I'm not as high for a Bryan vs Lesnar match after the way Brock was booked at the Rumble in terms of the amount of no-selling he did... I am truly intrigued by the possible direction of this match, to the point, that whilst I don't see Reigns not going to the Main Event of Mania, I wouldn't mind seeing the possible direction IF he were to lose to Daniel Bryan.

The only thing I hope is that Reigns is back to being a BadAss and permanently drops the Fairy tale schtick that Vince had him doing. That was truly 'Bad for Business'!

 

[Charismatic Enigma]

The entire concept of a February PPV just seems like such filler horseshit. Anyone who thinks Bryan is winning (unless Reigns is secretly injured or something) is kidding themselves at this point. I'm really not sure what they were thinking here, because while it was clear last night the reactions for Reigns and Bryan were more mixed than they were at Rumble, WM tends to have the smarkiest crowd of the year, so there's no reason to think Reigns isn't getting boo'd no matter what, and that will only be compounded if people catch wind of Brock leaving (ala WM 20 with Goldberg), it could just turn in to a giant mess.

I think WWE is only making matters worse for themselves by dangling the carrot to Bryan's fans. There is no happy ending here, Reigns wins, goes to WM, wins belt. That's been the plan all along, and they're sticking with it. And honestly, while I don't love the idea, WWE has not been good with long term booking for sometime now, so it's nice to see them sticking to their guns at least.

 

[rge2010]

A brilliant move by WWE to piss off the cry babies even more! Looks like the E are going to embrace the hate and send the smarks and net nerds into overdrive by having their dreams crushed again and sending Reigns to Main Event Mania.

They wont stop watching and they wont cnacel their network subscriptions.

Great move WWE!!!

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't think it's likely that Daniel Bryan walks out of Fastlane as the winner. More than likely, this match is being done as a hope of bringing up Roman Reigns' credibility. It's not impossible that Bryan doesn't win, but all signs point to Vince McMahon having his heart set on Reigns vs. Lesnar.

At any rate, this will easily be Roman Reigns' best singles match since facing CM Punk back in 2013. I think it'll be a competitive outing with both men ultimately coming off looking strong, a good number of near falls, both hitting their finishers at least once, but I'm thinking it ends with Reigns winning after nailing Bryan with his 3rd spear of the night. Bryan loses clean, shakes Roman Reigns' hand, maybe even giving him a bit of a hug, ending the show on a classy note.

If Reigns wins after Bryan putting him over in a helluva match, I don't see this as being enough to bring around enough doubters for Roman Reigns in time for WrestleMania. I think it might turn some around, but some won't be convinced and some won't allow themselves to be convinced as they'll continue to rain heat down on Reigns just on principle. As has been pointed out, WrestleMania has one of the smarkiest crowds of the year and I see little hope that they won't crap all over Reigns vs. Lesnar.

 

[That N Word]

Roman got booed at RR because Bryan didn't win. But Roman is slowly earning his fans back. On Smackdown he came out to a mixed reaction, but after his match with show left with just cheers. He came out on Raw to a mixed reaction but it turned into all cheers by night's end. But as I noticed Daniel Bryan was the one starting to recieve the boo's. I feel that if Bryan wins at Fast Lane people will feel bad for Reigns and boo him. The reason would be Roman already won the RR so why should they change it now. I've seen comments on here,the main site,Wrestling Inc,Facebook,and WWE.com and it seems the majority doesn't want Bryan to win at Fast Lane or main event WrestleMania this year anymore. Also it adds to the fact that over the last few weeks Roman hasn't stunk up the mic and has been putting on decent to solid matches on TV. But I want to know am I the only one who thinks that at Fast Lane IF Bryan somehow wins he will leave with boo's.

 

[Reflection]

If Roman wins, Bryan fans will boo him.
If Bryan wins, Roman fans will boo him.
That much is guaranteed.
The tables won't turn on either of them, unless the WWE does a piece-of-shit booking of the match like they did in the Rumble match, in which case, the winner shall suffer the people's wrath, because they are simply tired of the bullshit.
Fast Lane presents an unique chance for both guys to end the night with dignity and respect.

 

[Zycho32]

Consider me worried.

Not about the match- I fully expect Bryan to properly carry Reigns to heights he's yet to achieve(not a BIG feat, but take what you get) and deliver on the Main Event stage.

I just do not know if there's a safe way to book this if the plan is still to go with Reigns. I mean, the handshake and sign of respect sounds good and all, but does anyone remember 'Twice in a Lifetime' at WM 29? It's only partially comparable in context, but it serves as a good example where the honorable finish did not work as anticipated.

It's going to be real interesting.

 

[ans1928]

I like the idea of having Reigns win at Fast Lane, only going on to lose to Brock at WM. If it is in fact Brock's last match with the WWE, why end his dominance on a sour note by letting someone beat him that the majority of fans aren't behind. Brock retains at Wrestlemania, cutting a promo the next night on Raw saying that he's got nothing left to conquer in the WWE and that he's headed back to UFC. The Authority comes out and says if he's leaving he'll have to vacate the title, setting up a King of the Ring type scenario for a match at Extreme Rules for the vacant WWE title match. If not that route, then perhaps a Fatal Four Way featuring Reigns, Bryan, Rollins, and whoever else they feel is ready for a title run after Mania. However, I think Rollins cashing in at the end of the match is what's really gonna go down.

 

[Vader]

It's one thing for fans to be unhappy with a decision the WWE makes. No one is happy with virtually anything they do. It's entirely different thing for fans to spread the hate over social media, and attempt to cancel their WWE network memberships in droves.

WWE will put Bryan back in the main event at Wrestlemania. I think Bryan is average in every aspect, but he's more over than any wrestler since someone like Austin. He was hugely over last year as well, and he didn't get a proper title run.

WWE adjusted fire when Batista won, and this year's reaction seems worse than last years.

Royal Rumble is quickly turning into big event match like WW3 for WCW, where winning the match doesn't really lead to anything that matters as the WWE will once again scrap their plans.

 

[Papa Pillman]

Roman got booed at RR because Bryan didn't win. But Roman is slowly earning his fans back. On Smackdown he came out to a mixed reaction, but after his match with show left with just cheers. He came out on Raw to a mixed reaction but it turned into all cheers by night's end. But as I noticed Daniel Bryan was the one starting to recieve the boo's. I feel that if Bryan wins at Fast Lane people will feel bad for Reigns and boo him. The reason would be Roman already won the RR so why should they change it now. I've seen comments on here,the main site,Wrestling Inc,Facebook,and WWE.com and it seems the majority doesn't want Bryan to win at Fast Lane or main event WrestleMania this year anymore. Also it adds to the fact that over the last few weeks Roman hasn't stunk up the mic and has been putting on decent to solid matches on TV. But I want to know am I the only one who thinks that at Fast Lane IF Bryan somehow wins he will leave with boo's.

Again I think you're being too persuaded by that bizarro Denver crowd. Their reactions for everyone were in no way representative of how 98% of TV crowds react.

The hate for Roman was over exaggerated by the Philly crowd, and the emotional Twitter response to the Rumble. He's gonna be okay, and if he goes over at Fastlane, as long as Bryan can carry him to a solid showing, the backlash won't be too damaging heading into Rumble. But the crowds will still be mostly behind Brock.

As for Bryan, while still incredibly loud and supportive, that Denver crowd will be the most lukewarm reaction he'll receive between now and Mania. It seemed that there was actually one very small but very vocal group of guys in Denver who showed up to try and troll Bryan fans(Hell, I even swear that they tried to start the most ironic "You can't wrestle" chant in the history of pro wrestling during the Raw main event). That's not gonna happen anywhere else. Bryan is still the most over and best choice to main event Mania. And Bryan/Brock is still the best match quality and spectacle wise that the WWE could book(it will look and feel as much like a Tokyo Dome main event as a WM main event, and that is a VERY good thing).

And even if Reigns got a little bit of a sympathetic boost if he lost at Fastlane, that could only be a good thing for him and would help him build to the next big stage. And even if Bryan somehow pulled in a little Backlash from being the man to steal Roman's spot, that wouldn't bleed over into Mania itself. The type of crowd that attends a WrestleMania will be more than heavily on Bryan's side, so the night itself will still come off without any potential Rock/Hogan-style necessitated hitch in storytelling.

 

[GeminiGarlord]

I REALLY want to see how WWE will write itself out of this corner. This is basically a match in which any outcome seem to be potentially terrible and enraging for the fan

Reign beating the most over babyface on the roster would be a disaster
Bryan going over and fighting lesnar at wrestlemania will both destroy the push they so much want for Reigns and also make little sense in storyline
Ziggler interferring is just stupid

The only way I see this ending without being utterly stupid is if Reigns wins by turning heel. Lesnar is basically a face anyway at this point.

 

[Prince Vee]

There is Gonna be a terrible twist in the tale. The creative team are left with an intricate work for Wrestlemania due to the poor booking at the Royal Rumble.

If Daniel Bryan wins at fast lane and get a title shot at WM 31 he'll get the heat because fans would treat him like he stole Roman's spot.

But at the same time, if Roman Reigns win, he'll get heat because he's beating a top baby face of the company and we should notice that prior to Royal Rumble Roman in an interview quoted that Daniel Bryan isn't a threat to him and they should compare their size difference.

They need to put up a great match to earn the crowd's spot and should give mutual respect in the end no matter whoever wins!

Cheers!!