WWE Universal Champion was on Peter Rosenberg’s podcast last week to talk about his current storyline as the head of the table, among other subjects. Here are some highlights from the interview:
Reigns talking about being paired with Paul Heyman:
“I think the rare moments, finding new layers, and elevating the performance every single week is always going to be a staple of what we’re trying to do. I think what’s made us so special is the preparation. That goes individually throughout our careers. Paul and I, everything that’s had to happen, the journey that we’ve both been on to get to this point in our careers to collide and make this thing happen, I think it goes with the similarities, and the parallel mindset of trying to be the very best every single week.
This is some stuff I’ve said to Jey and Jimmy on screen, but it’s a shoot, it’s for real, that this is the only way I want to be remembered is being hands down, head and shoulders, better than everybody else on the show, everybody else in the world. They’re all trying to catch me. At this point, within a marathon, we’re lapping people because we put so much preparation, so much thought into the detail, the nuance, and try to deliver the most sophisticated, not confusing, but very respectful stories as we can. It was something when me and Paul knew we were going to get together, it was immediate that we started to spitball, and we knew it had to be fresh in real time, week to week, and be put into the situation, know our barriers, know which walls we were going to have to go over, avoid, or just bust right through. We were game planning everything. I think that the common denominator is that we wanted to be special. He had been on an awesome run with Brock for 10 or 12 years, doing everything they did. For myself, I already had four main events at WrestleMania, multiple championship reigns, and stuff like that. There wasn’t much that I hadn’t already done in this industry. I think for both of us, it was about developing that cherry on top, solidifying the legacy, and cementing this Hall of Fame portion of our careers.”
Roman was asked if this was the most fun he’s had in WWE, being the head of the table:
“Without question, yes. Every week, when you’re in this position, it’s a weekly battle. There is a little bit of stress involved in the creative scenario, fighting for what you believe in, and really jockeying for your position of telling your story the way you want to tell it because it’s a collaborative situation. You have to be a team player, but man, it’s fun. There’s no doubt about it. When I go through the curtain, there’s goosebumps just all over me, all through my back and arms when I’m going out there for a performance. There’s nothing better than that.”
Does the idea of another Shield run ever interest you?
“No. I have a lot of respect for everything that we did now, but a lot of that time was really pivotal for me to learn, gain experience, be around other performers, see how they’re process is, how they attack things, and how they think about things. But, where I’m at now, it’s a one man show. I have the family dynamic with my cousins, but at the same time, I call the shots.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit Cheap Heat with Peter Rosenberg with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription
