Every Paul Heyman Guy Ranked From Worst To Best
The Pushed, The Protected & The Punished.
Roman Reigns became Universal Champion for the first time in nearly two years at 2020's Payback, just two days after he joined up with Paul Heyman in what proved to be one of the company's biggest creative surprises in some time.
'The Big Dog' returning at SummerSlam was billed - before we knew it - as something we'd "never see coming", but it could be argued that this alliance was an even bigger shock.
Heyman's had incredible success with a variety of different talents, but his character is that of a rat that tries to lure in bigger rats so the two of them can rule wrestling as the sewer it often is. The turn means more than the return, and as shocking as it as that Roman's made the switch, there are plenty of cases where this exact move was for the best. It's the quite a few that didn't that he has to worry about.
Ranking here is based entirely on how the wrestler did with Heyman by their side, not some sort of sideswipe at their career at large. For a label that comes with a certain gravitas, it's not always been as straightforward a star-making vehicle as it may seem...
27. Curtis Axel
A stark decline for the "Paul Heyman Guy" brand before it'd be finished off completely a year later, Curtis Axel's half-baked push alongside a Heyman without both Brock Lesnar and CM Punk at the time made the second generation feel like second.
Within months, he was a goon. Protected Heyman against the returning babyface Punk got Axel TV time, but not wins.