January 10, 2022 Observer Newsletter: Lesnar vs. Reigns program, Wrestle Kingdom 16 review

The WWE’s road to WrestleMania took a detour on 1/1 due to COVID-19, but the original plans on the final destination are said to be still in play.

Roman Reigns tested positive for COVID-19, with the WWE reporting it hours before the show started. The decision was made to move Brock Lesnar into the WWE title match and make it a five-way. Lesnar won the match, pinning champion Big E after an F-5, none of which was part of the original plans.

The belief is that Reigns vs. Lesnar, the match that was to headline the WWE’s first Day 1 show at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, is still on top as the main match for the 2022 WrestleMania.

The original plan was for Reigns vs. Lesnar to headline for the Universal title. One would think it would be Lesnar defending since what would have made the most sense was Paul Heyman in some form costing Reigns the title. Instead, on Raw on 1/3 in Greenville, Heyman was back as being the advocate for Lesnar without any kind of dramatic angle. From there they could go a number of different ways, although long-term it makes more sense for Reigns to be a long-term champion simply because he’s full-time and Lesnar isn’t.

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