Roman Reigns Out To Conquer WWE, Not Follow Cousin 'The Rock'
WWE Superstar Roman Reigns is this week's guest on Turnbuckle Weekly with Chuck Carroll.
When you're cousin is The Rock and you're already one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWE, it's natural to wonder whether Hollywood will soon come calling.
But in the case of Roman Reigns, it's not. At least not for now.
"I'm willing to try anything and gain a little experience in anything," he said. "Is it something that is a big goal of mine? I can't say that it is right now because I'm so caught up in WWE. (I'm) trying to be the face of this company and the top guy and have the WWE World Championship."
His determination to become the franchise player of the largest pro wrestling company in the world hasn't wavered since he burst onto the scene in 2012 with the renegade group known as The Shield. Paired with Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins, the faction quickly gained popularity among fans with Reigns serving as the front man.
After a successful two-year run, WWE decided to pull the trigger and give each an opportunity to succeed on their own. It was a gamble to break them up, but the decision set the stage for the former college football star to begin his pursuit of John Cena as top dog.
Check out 8 Things You Didn't Know About WWE Superstar Roman Reigns.
"When you were as hot as we were — we were running on all cylinders at that point — I felt like we were still getting better," he said. "You're going to have some reservations and think 'man, is this right?' I honestly think we could have gotten another year or two out of The Shield. But the thing is, I wouldn't trade the places all three of us are in now."
Reigns' climb continues Sunday at the company's second-biggest event of the year, SummerSlam, where he'll square off against Randy Orton.
On Saturday, Reigns will be part of a SummerSlam Confidential panel hosted by Stone Cold Steve Austin that will unveil the highly anticipated WWE 2K15 video game roster. The immortal Hulk Hogan and his longtime WCW foe Sting will also be on hand, along with the current champion John Cena.
Reigns was my guest this week on The Turnbuckle Weekly with Chuck Carroll ahead of the big event.
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Here's everything we talked about:
- Whether he's surprised he's come so far so fast
- Whether you need to be a veteran to be a champion
- Best match of his career
- Extra pressure of coming from a wrestling dynasty
- Breaking free of the family spotlight and make a name for himself
- Following The Rock into acting
- Sting in WWE
- What celebrity he'd like to hit with a chair
- Keeping up with a crazy schedule
And because a few of you will prefer to read and not listen, here are a few highlights:
Concern when The Shield disbanded
I'd like to think I'm a smart guy with a game plan. I've always worked toward this spot. I've never wanted to be opening shows or in the middle of the card. My goal has always been to close shows and main event. And fortunately for us, as The Shield we were able to do that. I didn't want any drop off going solo. So, it was all a game plan of how to continue to be better and grab that spot again and keep it.
Whether you need to be a veteran to be a champion
Everybody has an opinion of what a champion should be or what he should do to get there. I believe in my path and I believe I am a champion and I'm the one that's going to do it. I try not to think about it or listen to what everyone else is saying. Everybody has an opinion these days. For me, it's just to do my thing, be myself, stay within myself, because I know who I am, where I'm from and where I want to go.
Will Sting wrestle in WWE?
I'd like to say I have the answer. But that's what makes the WWE so appealing is that you just never know. There's always such a mysterious element behind everything we do. For his sake, if he steps in the ring, I hope he stays aways from me. I'm not the guy to run into these days. I think it's pretty cool just to be on the panel with him. Just to chat and BS a little bit with all those guys. It's going to be a good time and anything can happen. But if he steps in the ring, he's a seasoned veteran, he knows what he's doing. But there's a whole bunch of youngins on this roster that are hungry and we're not trying to give any space for anybody else.
The full interview can be heard at the top of the page.
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Chuck Carroll is former pro wrestling announcer and referee turned sports media personality. He once appeared on Monday Night RAW when he presented Robert Griffin III with a WWE title belt in the Redskins locker room.
Follow him on Twitter @TheChuckCarroll.