It’s safe to say that the WWE well and truly swerved the fans with the main event of WrestleMania 34 on Sunday night, as Brock Lesnar retained the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns in the main event.
It was widely expected that The Big Dog would leave the Mercedes-Benz Superdome with Monday Night RAW’s top championship, as this is something WWE had been planning for years. In fact, you could say it was in the works since their previous WrestleMania encounter three years ago - where Seth Rollins performed the heist of the century.
WRESTLEMANIA 34
Not only that, but it was also thought that The Beast would drop the championship in New Orleans and then return to the UFC. So much was made of his contract situation and his desire to return to the Octagon, that it came as an even bigger surprise on Monday when the company announced that he had signed a new deal.
The duration of that contract, though, remains to be seen.
Something fans aren’t too happy with is that Reigns is getting an immediate rematch for the championship on April 27 at the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. WWE did try and deliver a shoot promo via Reigns on RAW this week where he claimed he didn’t know what was going on, but fans clearly saw right through this plot as Reigns is now expected to capture the gold in front of a more receptive crowd.
However, that’s not the only reason why WWE is having the match at the King Abdullah International Stadium.
Considering the plan is the exact same as it originally was for WrestleMania, fans have been asking why the company is giving Saudi Arabia a match of this stature, especially since it only just happened at the Grandest Stage of Them All and could have more of an impact at a US-based event, such as one of the big pay-per-views.
GREATEST ROYAL RUMBLE
While Reigns’ reception obviously plays a part, Bryan Alvarez of the Wrestling Observer has claimed that it all comes down to the amount of money WWE can make through deals in the Middle East.
Plus, he added that fans already paid for their tickets to WrestleMania, so the company could book it how they wanted to.
According to Still Real To Us, Alvarez said on Wrestling Observer Live: “Everybody had already paid their money for [WrestleMania]. Why did the title have to change at ‘Mania? It didn’t have to!
“So now they’ve got this giant show in Saudi Arabia. Do you guys know how much money WWE could potentially make through deals with Saudi Arabia?
“So, that’s the priority right now. Not WrestleMania that you already bought your ticket for.”
Although not everyone is going to be happy with a massive - potential - title change taking place overseas, it makes complete sense for WWE from a business perspective.
There’s so much money to be made there, and by giving Saudi Arabia and WWE’s partners there a match and result of this stature, it shows how much they value them by giving them this perk that didn’t take place on American soil and was saved for them.
So, perhaps this is why we’re seeing a 50-man Royal Rumble jam-packed with elite stars, The Undertaker competing, seven title matches and even Triple H vs. John Cena in Jeddah.
What do you make of WWE’s reasons for having Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns in Saudi Arabia? Have YOUR say in the comments section below.
WWE 2K18: WrestleMania Edition is out now on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.