The Usos kicked off the show introducing Roman Reigns as the longest -ever reigning WWE Universal Champion.
Follow Us
WWE SmackDown returned on Friday, in the build up to Royal Rumble 2022, with the sparring on mic between Universal Champion and Seth Rollins one of the major attractions at the event. The SmackDown tag team champions The Usos got the show underway by introducing Roman Reigns on his 508th night as the WWE Universal Champion which is the longest-ever in the history of the company. Following the introduction, The Tribal Chief walked into the ring amid large fanfare and took away the microphone from his cousins and said, “Nashville…acknowledge me.”
It followed with a video package which highlighted the achievements of the former Shield brothers since August 2020. However, as soon as Reigns prepared to speak, he was interrupted by Seth Rollins’ entry. The Visionary criticised Reigns for sending The Usos to do the talking for him on the RAW.
“Did John Cena write that promo for you? Are you gonna say the same stuff?” Reigns asked.
It was then Rollins who brought forward an idea of a match up against The Usos. He said that he will choose a partner to fight against the SmackDown tag team champions. Following that Kevin Owens made an entry to the arena and announced himself as the partner for Rollins. Reigns, then, said, “If The Usos win, Rollins loses his title shot. You’re on!”
Grade: A
A look at the stats
Reigns has set a new record as WWE Universal Champion by maintaining his position for 504 days. Reigns has, thus, become the longest reigning Universal Champion surpassing Brock Lesnar’s previous record of 503 days from 2017-2018 which came to an end at the hands of none other than The Head of The Table himself. Reigns made a comeback at the SummerSlam last year with Paul Heyman to claim the Universal title for the second time after overcoming WWE legends Edge, John Cena and The Beast in a No Holds Barred Triple Threat Match.
READ MORE: Results: WWE 205 Live on January 21, 2022
“WWE Universe, acknowledge your longest-reigning Universal Champion of all time, Roman Reigns,” the company said in a statement.
Following the fallout, Reigns continued to team-up with Ambrose. But, he started embarking as a singles contender and challenged for the world title. Reigns and Rollins were earlier supposed to clash in 2014. But the former developed a hernia which had to be addressed and he was unable to compete at the event. He was also awarded the Slammy Award for the Superstar of the Year in 2014.
Reigns has seen significant growth at the company since then. He also completed 500 days as WWE Universal Champion after defeating Braun Strowman and The Fiend at WWE Payback in 2020.
