Many fans were surprised to see Roman Reigns retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship over Drew McIntyre in the main event of the Clash at the Castle event, the first major PPV event in the UK since 1992.
The show has been widely praised but it did end on a somewhat sour note because McIntyre didn’t get his big moment of becoming the champion. The show had been building to this expected moment.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that WWE stayed with its long-term plan with Reigns as a top guy and champion instead of going for the big pop that McIntyre would’ve received from the fans in attendance.
Meltzer wrote, “They want to make him the legend for this generation and ending the planned long reign for a major pop here was a decision they decided against.”
Reigns has been at the top of WWE since he returned in the summer of 2020 when beating Bray Wyatt for the Universal Title. In early November, Reigns will make his next championship defense at the upcoming Saudi Arabia show.