Every Roman Reigns WWE Universal Title Defence Ranked In Order Of Greatness

3. Vs Cody Rhodes (WrestleMania 39)

Roman Reigns ranked
WWE.com

Number One in this list if Cody Rhodes goes over, this falls just short thanks to WWE replacing one brave booking decision with another.

It would have been bold to belt 'The American Nightmare' at WrestleMania 39, but it was even braver not to. The company had told the story Rhodes was desperate to finish, and by not striking while the iron was white hot, WWE gambled more than ever before on the value of Roman Reigns as the top guy. Result notwithstanding, this match provided excellent evidence as to why.

The peak of the Roman Reigns minimalist match layout, WrestleMania 39 was a Cody victory away from being the best 'Show Of Shows' of all time, capped off as it was by the exceptional pacing and drama Reigns and Rhodes' 34-minute epic. An expert seller akin to Brock Lesnar at this point in his run, 'The Tribal Chief's ability to raise himself above everybody with the expressed purpose of putting over his opponent when he shows weakness is almost unmatched. There wasn't a babyface in the world better placed to match up against it than Rhodes.

Almost perfect.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett