Over the past few months, wrestling podcaster Conrad Thompson hasn’t been shy about expressing his opinion that WWE World Heavyweight Champion and Main Star Roman Reigns is overrated. causing a strong reaction in the process. That theme came up again this week when Thompson visited “Lost Open Radio” on Wednesday. Thompson explained that he was motivated to voice his opinion when he saw people saying that Reigns was better than the likes of Hulk Hogan because he was headlining more WrestleMania events. He admitted that Reigns may have had more financial success than Hogan, Ric Flair, Steve Austin and others, but he doesn’t think that makes Reigns better than them.
“I’m excited about his success,” Thompson said. “But I don’t think he belongs in the conversation. I’ve never talked to a single wrestling fan that we have. Our scary Mount Rushmore conversationwhere they start with Roman Reigns.
“I’ve never seen a Roman Reigns shirt in public. I’m not saying they don’t exist, I’m just saying I remember going to Walmart and it was wall-to-wall Goldberg and Stone Cold Steve Austin stuff. I just don’t see it with Roman.”
Thompson also noted that Reigns struggled to make it through the years despite his push, only doing so after he teamed up with Paul Heyman, The Usos and Sami Zayn, whom Thompson credited for helping Roman succeed. In the end, he feels like he’s working in Reigns’ favor against being ranked among the best.
“It’s not because the fans came with him and then put the missile on him,” Thompson said. “No, they did it in the opposite order. We will make a boy.” And they did, and it worked. And they have been phenomenally successful. But I don’t think he has the moments and memories that we mention about Hogan, Austin and Flair. I just don’t think he’s going to be in the conversation when it’s all said and done.”
If you use any of the quotes from this article, please credit Busted Open Radio and credit ah/t Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Opinion: Roman Reigns is overrated, but it has little to do with Roman Reigns
Let’s get that out of the way first. yes Roman Reigns is essentially overrated. I think this will probably upset a few on the internet, but I have to say that Conrad Thompson is right about this, and that some of his reasoning is spot on as well. However, that’s not all. Yes, Thompson is correct in saying that Reigns has been given much more opportunities to succeed than others and has benefited from being in contact with top talent that has helped him rise to the top (Paul Heyman, Sami Zayn). But this can be said for almost everyone in the industry as well. It’s not like Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin just became the guys they were any more than Reigns did, even if they organically overcame in a way that Reigns didn’t. No, that’s not the real reason Roman Reigns is overrated. it’s because the world of wrestling is really, REALLY big, and the idea that Roman Reigns is one of the best ever is just silly when you think about it. And here’s the thing. that doesn’t mean Reigns is a bad performer. In fact, he is a very good performer.
Now, yeah, I don’t think he holds the attention of the fans in his prime the way his peers do, and some of his monologues during the match are downright stupid, but Reigns’ overall work as a wrestler is pretty good, and he’s definitely been a draw over the past few years, especially during WWE’s recent heyday. He is a star and a very good talent. There are only a handful of stars in the world who, in my opinion, are better wrestlers or have drawn at the same level that Reigns has, whether you want to talk about CM Punk, Austin, Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair in America, Kenta Kobashi, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Mitsuharu Misawa and Keiji Mutoh, Elato Elgroo, MLA Casas, Atlantis and Ultimo Guerrero in Mexico and countless others. in the world like Bret Hart. And that’s just people off the top of my head. That’s one area where I think Thompson’s thinking is limited; he’s right that Reigns is overrated, but he’s only comparing it to the United States when there are other examples around the world that better prove his point. And again; two things can be true here. Is Roman Reigns Overrated? Yes! Is he a big star who had a great career? Absolutely. Ultimately, Reigns being overrated has less to do with him and more to do with the fact that sometimes there are simply better talents out there.
