This was a problem during last weeks quarterfinal match, and it resurfaced during the semifinal match against Albert Del Rio: Roman Reigns cant seem to figure out how to appropriately sell an arm injury. During his match against Cesaro last week, Romans right arm was bounced off the ringpost and targeted. At Survivor Series, Del Rio did the same thing, going after the right arm. However, Reigns seemed to shrug it off at times, ignoring the pain to deliver 10 clotheslines in the corner and executing two deadlifts of Alberto. At one point, he switched which arm he was grabbing in pain. Even after delivering a spear with his right shoulder Reigns didnt so much as flinch before making the pin. None of this is a cardinal sin, and it was still a good match. But its frustrating to see wrestlers try to incorporate actual psychology into the match and then it gets ignored and brushed aside because of the prescribed finish.
Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.
