Eric Bischoff Discusses How WWE Has Booked Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns has been on a dominant streak in WWE for years now, having held the WWE Universal Championship for over 1,200 days and the WWE Championship for more than 600. During that time, Reigns has dominated some of the biggest stars and rising talent in the promotion, and some viewers have questioned the decision to stick with Reigns for this long. On a recent episode of "83 Weeks," former WCW executive Eric Bischoff offered his breakdown of Reigns' booking while looking back at 2023.
Discussing Reigns' victory over Sami Zayn at WWE Elimination Chamber 2023, Bischoff said he wasn't sure if the booking decision was the best option on the table. However, what cannot be denied is the level of success the company has seen this year, and the former CEO thinks that speaks for itself. At the same time, no one knows what the situation might look like now if Zayn had won the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. As for the decision to have Cody Rhodes lose at WWE WrestleMania 39, Bischoff has a stronger opinion.
"To be really honest, I wasn't happy with the call," Bischoff said. "But that has a lot more to do with my relationship with the Rhodes family, Cody included. ... Dustin and Dusty and I went deer hunting in the mountains of Wyoming together."
Bischoff clarified that he isn't close to Cody specifically but had strong feelings about his family's legacy. Because of that, Bischoff thinks he may have wanted Rhodes to win due to personal feelings rather than what's necessarily best for business.
The Future Of Reigns Vs. Rhodes
Many fans as well as industry insiders have predicted that Rhodes will go on to face Reigns once again at WWE WrestleMania 40, including former WCW star Kevin Sullivan. Sullivan said that having Rhodes lose earlier this year was the right call, as the WWE star needs to overcome more adversity leading up to his big win. This has been referenced many times in interviews and on WWE programming as well, with Rhodes pledging to "finish [his] story."
"If they start steaming up the Cody-Roman story relatively soon, then I think Kevin Sullivan was right," Bischoff said. "If not, then I think it was a mistake."
The conversation saw Bischoff's co-host Conrad Thompson point out that Hulk Hogan once held the WWF World Heavyweight Championship for 1474 days. From there, Bischoff brought up one of the things that distinguishes Reigns from Hogan: the fact that Reigns had to work for years to get to the position he's in now and earn respect from fans.
"[Vince] pushed hard, and the audience rejected it," Bischoff continued. "[Reigns'] personal challenges got in the middle of all that. He overcame leukemia, I believe it was. [He came] back, pushed hard, pushed more, and here we are. ... I love the story, and if he ends up eclipsing Hulk Hogan, if there's anybody that deserves it, ... damn, it's Roman Reigns."
Despite all that, a strong part of Bischoff still wants to see Rhodes win at WrestleMania. The former executive stated that he remains conflicted heading into 2024.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "83 Weeks" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.