WWE Rumors: Roman Reigns Heel Turn At ‘WrestleMania 33’, Shinsuke Nakamura News
The latest WWE rumors cover a perennially hot topic in the company in Roman Reigns, a number of aspects of WrestleMania 33, and the future of Shinsuke Nakamura.
For a long time now, fans have been clamoring for Roman Reigns to officially turn to the dark side and become a full-blown heel. For over two years, WWE has pushed Roman as a top star, allowing him to beat almost everyone in his path while grooming him to take over as the new face of the company from John Cena.
It hasn’t worked, with a large number of fans rejecting Reigns’ booking and placement on the card, despite him continually churning out critically acclaimed matches. Many fans think he’s not ready for the spot, and some suggest that some time spent as a heel would prove critical to his development. Reigns has been a heel before, during his initial run with The Shield, but he hasn’t as yet become a bad guy as a solo act — at least regarding how he’s booked, if not fan perception.
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WWE Is Discussing Adding A Stipulation To The Undertaker vs Roman Reigns WrestleMania Match pic.twitter.com/FRp4XAQrBX
— SW (@SliceWrestling) March 8, 2017
WWE rumors had initially suggested that his WrestleMania 33 match with The Undertaker would be the impetus for a Roman Reigns heel turn. It’s difficult, after all, to imagine that any significant portion of the WrestleMania crowd in Orlando will cheer Reigns over the legendary Deadman.
However, the latest WWE rumors indicate a Roman Reigns heel turn is not on the cards anytime soon. Many expect Reigns to become only the second man to defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania after Brock Lesnar pulled off the trick three years ago. It seems Vince McMahon wants to use the cachet he thinks Reigns will gain from winning the huge match to continue building him as WWE’s top star.
Meanwhile, don’t expect WWE to keep that match short to curb the WrestleMania running time. The company faced wide criticism last year for holding a show that ultimately ran around seven hours, but according to Cageside Seats, WrestleMania 33 is expected to last around the same length of time.
Throwback Thursday to the day @JasonJordanJJ & @WWEGable became the new #SDLive tag team champions! #AmericanAlpha pic.twitter.com/xCseUVk5Ge
— ??The Bullet Boy Southern BiLFBoi Jones? (@TheBeastAnimal_) March 9, 2017
Despite that lengthy run time, it seems there’s no space on the card for a WWE SmackDown Tag Team championship match. WWE rumors suggest American Alpha will not put their titles on the line at WrestleMania, potentially leading to a storyline that deals will the fallout of that company decision. The story may involve not only American Alpha, but every team in the entire division.
Meanwhile, Jerry “The King” Lawler is apparently stepping back behind the announce table to call at least one match at this WrestleMania. He told listeners of his new podcast, Dinner With The King, that he’s also hosting this year’s WWE Hall of Fame and perhaps hosting the WrestleMania pre-show.
There's a clear target on the knee of @ShinsukeN… and @MegaTJP is launching a full-scale attack! #WWENXT pic.twitter.com/fQJOhl4BkJ
— WWE (@WWE) March 9, 2017
Last in the latest WWE rumors digest, there’s an update on the future of Shinsuke Nakamura. The NXT standout and legendary Japanese wrestler has been rumored for some time to be making the step up to the WWE main roster, and it appears as though that will actually happen this year.
Having won the NXT Championship twice in less than a year after making his debut on the brand, he’s scheduled to challenge Bobby Roode at NXT TakeOver: Dallas and many expect him to move to Raw or SmackDown Live immediately afterward. WWE is said to be concerned that losing Nakamura would damage NXT, as he is an important draw for the brand, but with little else for Nakamura to do there, it’s difficult to see him staying in NXT much longer.
Stay tuned to the Inquisitr for all the latest WWE rumors.
[Featured Image by WWE]
