Ranking the Best Opponents for Roman Reigns' Next WWE Title Match

Although all signs pointed to Drew McIntyre finally dethroning Roman Reigns as Undisputed WWE Universal champion at Clash at the Castle, The Tribal Chief found a way to win once again and walk out with his historic reign still intact.

Reigns hasn't appeared on WWE TV since the super-show in Cardiff and there has been no indication when his next title defense would be. What is known is that he isn't currently scheduled to compete at Extreme Rules on October 8, per Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

That would make WWE's return to Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel on November 5 the next likeliest event we will see the prestigious prize defended at, and there's a long list of contenders who could conceivably challenge for it.

Reigns could realistically resume his rivalry with McIntyre based on the tainted finish to their last bout, but it would be best for him to move on to other opponents. Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton could also take on Reigns eventually, but neither are expected to be back before the year is through.

The Head of the Table's next Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match should come against one of the following eight athletes, ranked from least to most compelling.

Fun fact: Braun Strowman was the man Roman Reigns pinned to kick off his lengthy run as Universal champion back two years ago. He was also one of the first people he defended the title against on an October 2020 edition of SmackDown, where he debuted his patented guillotine choke finisher.

The two of them are, of course, no strangers to one another. One of Strowman's first feuds as a singles star on the Raw roster in 2017 was with Reigns and all of their encounters played a pivotal part in putting Strowman on the map.

Now that The Monster Among Men has returned to WWE after over a year away, he could easily set his sights on Reigns in an attempt to reclaim the gold he once held.

While it work as a one-off, it's way too soon in Strowman's return for him be losing to Reigns, regardless of how it would happen. It would be in WWE's best interest to protect him for the foreseeable future and have him slowly work his way back up the card instead of rushing him into the top title picture.

The idea of Karrion Kross returning to WWE and challenging Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship would be have been incredibly far-fetched even three months ago.

However, Triple H taking creative control of the company was all it took for Kross to get a real chance at super stardom.

The two-time NXT champion was re-signed soon after SummerSlam and was immediately thrust into the main-event scene on SmackDown by attacking Drew McIntyre. He teased targeting McIntyre and Reigns for weeks before finally laying out The Scottish Warrior last Friday night.

Thus, that will be the blue brand's new top program in Reigns' absence. Kross scoring a decisive victory would surely set him up for an opportunity at the Undisputed title come Crown Jewel and a fresh match against Reigns.

Similar to Strowman, Kross shouldn't be built up so quickly only to lose to Reigns within a matter of months. He could be established a bit more before they inevitably clash, not to mention that a one-on-one meeting between them at this point would be hurt by the heel vs. heel dynamic.

Most fans will forget that the first Superstar to confront Reigns following his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship victory at WrestleMania 38 was none other than Shinsuke Nakamura.

The King of Strong Style nearly faced off with Reigns at Royal Rumble 2021 before having the opportunity taken from him a few weeks prior to the pay-per-view. Oddly enough, aside from a one-off at last year's Tribute to the Troops special, these two haven't collided at all to blow off their bad blood.

Nakamura would have been the perfect opponent for Reigns at WrestleMania Backlash, but WWE went in a different direction with the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship instead. He's been left to spin his wheels ever since but can be built back up with ease.

The only issue with this potential match is that even if he were to rack up some wins in the coming weeks, Nakamura would not be viewed as a threat to the title whatsoever. If anything, this would have to happen on SmackDown simply so they can wrap up their rivalry once and for all.

It certainly isn't the biggest attraction, but Reigns vs. Nakamura would be a blast from an in-ring standpoint.

Success was never guaranteed for Gunther upon his arrival on the main roster following WrestleMania 38. Despite that, he's exceeded all expectations thus far and has had an outstanding run on Friday nights.

His undefeated streak has so far seen him decimate Ricochet for the Intercontinental Championship, headline an episode of SmackDown with Shinsuke Nakamura, and deliver an instant classic with Sheamus at Clash at the Castle.

He's undoubtedly restored prestige to the title, but it may not be long before he announces his intentions to acquire more gold, specifically the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

Gunther is one of the few people on the active roster Reigns has never conquered. This highly-anticipated clash would be a bit higher on the list if The Ring General hadn't debuted less than six months ago.

Reigns will win whatever title defense he has next, and Gunther shouldn't be treated like every other opponent he's had up to this point. It would be wise to hold off on Gunther challenging Reigns until later down the line, as excellent as this encounter is bound to be.

Kevin Owens among Reigns' first rivals as Universal champion in late 2020 and has emphasized quite a bit lately that the only reason he fell short in each of their three battles was because of interference from Jey Uso and Paul Heyman.

It took quite a while for Owens to find his footing again after that string of losses to Reigns, but little did he know that returning to his roots from his NXT days as The Prizefighter would wind up being the key to his resurgence.

Owens has been riding a wave of momentum on Raw recently and has made it known on multiple occasions that he has unfinished business with The Head of the Table, meaning a collision must be coming if there are continued teases for it.

The ultimate endgame with Owens should be him and Sami Zayn winning the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship from The Usos. While it makes sense for him to unsuccessfully challenge the Undisputed WWE Universal title before then, a fourth loss to Reigns would unnecessarily hinder his hot streak.

This is a fine example of a match that would be appealing as a pay-per-view main event but isn't as imperative as other matches listed due to already having been done three times already. Not much would be different about the story this time around, even if Reigns were to win clean.

As silly as it may sound, Logan Paul vs. Reigns for the Undisputed Championship could be a legitimate possibility sooner rather than later.

The social media star hosted The Tribal Chief on his acclaimed Impaulsive podcast earlier this week. While they were largely out of character for the interview, the beef between the two that was teased led to Reigns, Paul and Paul Heyman exchanging shots on Twitter.

Paul has since been announced to appear on Friday's SmackDown, presumably with a message to send to Reigns although he won't be present.

To the surprise of many, Paul was able to win over a majority of the audience with his singles debut at SummerSlam and cement his status as a fan favorite. That makes him an ideal adversary for Reigns and a fantastic foil in many ways.

Of course, Paul handing Reigns his first defeat in three years would be preposterous, but they're bound to have quality chemistry together and have the crowd engaged in the action from start to finish.

Paul wants the money fights in WWE and this about as big as it gets. If nothing else, it's an attraction for Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia and another name for Reigns to lay waste to.

With Reigns having been on a part-time schedule since WrestleMania 38, Bobby Lashley has been deemed the most dominant champion in all of WWE by default (though Intercontinental champ Gunther comes close).

Reigns and Lashley simultaneously reigned as world champions in WWE for the better part of 2021 before Lashley dropped the WWE Championship to Big E. Reigns' run has gone uninterrupted, but Lashley has managed to get back on track with a second stint as WWE champion and then a third as United States champion.

In 2018, the two traded wins in singles competition, but a rubber match was never held. The only notable interaction they've had since then came in a Triple Threat on Raw last September, which was won by Reigns.

This wouldn't have to be a title for title scenario (Reigns has enough hardware as it is), but Lashley looking to become a double champ as well would make for an exciting story.

Let the record show that Lashley never received a rematch for the WWE Championship he wasn't technically beaten for at Elimination Chamber. This can be how he gets his shot at long last.

It may feel like a match that's been done to death, but Seth Rollins should not be fully written off as an opponent for Reigns until he's beaten by his former Shield stablemate decisively on pay-per-view.

The former friends have had many matches against each other dating back to 2014, but for one reason or another, Reigns has never been able to best Rollins whenever it has mattered most. That includes their last singles match at Royal Rumble 2022 where the Universal Championship was on the line.

Rollins pushed Reigns to his limit and came close to capturing the title on multiple occasions before Reigns intentionally got himself disqualified. Inexplicably, the rivalry was dropped and Rollins didn't pursue a rematch.

It isn't necessary for Rollins to be the one who unseats Reigns as champ, but it would be booking malpractice for this match not to be revisited before the year is through. Plus, the timing couldn't be better with November marking 10 years since The Shield's WWE debut.

Reigns vs. Rollins is the strongest story that can be told with the title at the moment and should be the program WWE pivots to next.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.