Roman Reigns Once Again Named Biggest Draw In Pro Wrestling

Roman Reigns is the man WWE wants him to be: The top draw in all of pro wrestling.

In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion was named pro wrestling’s biggest draw for 2022. This marks the fifth time since 2016 that Reigns, who has held the Universal title for nearly 900 days in what has become the longest world title reign of WWE’s modern era, has won the award as the top attraction inside the squared circle.

The only other stars to win the award during that span are New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Kazuchika Okada and WWE’s Seth Rollins and Braun Strowman, who shared the honor with Reigns in 2017. While Reigns has undoubtedly established himself as the most must-see star in pro wrestling thanks in largely part to his enthralling storyline as the leader of The Bloodline, the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer says that Reigns isn’t quite on the same level as the man he’s often compared to his, his predecessor as the face of WWE, John Cena:

In 2017, wrestling statistician Brandon Thurston conducted a detailed analysis (h/t Fightful) of Reigns’ drawing power versus that of Cena, and it was clear then that “The Champ” was a bigger draw than Reigns despite the massive push of the latter as WWE’s desired heir apparent to the company throne. Since then, however, a lot has changed in regards to Reigns, Cena and the way WWE pushes its stars.

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Cena is a far bigger name outside of the world of pro wrestling, and as evidenced by his recent SmackDown return, he’s one of the few stars who truly draws during an era in which it is the WWE brand that draws more so than any particular star. Still, what Reigns has done over the past few years is impressive. He’s developed into the type of mega-star that pro wrestling has largely failed to create during that span, and the WON has ranked him as the 12th biggest draw in pro wrestling history.

In 2022, Reigns headlined some of WWE’s most successful shows, including the record-breaking WrestleMania 38 and the special UK pay-per-view Clash at the Castle, which appeared to have topped an $8 million live gate, making it a momumental success and another feather in the cap for Reigns.

Of course, it’s worth pointing out that the upcoming WrestleMania 39—which has exactly zero confirmed matches—has already broken WWE’s live gate record, a result both of the fact that it’s a two-night show and the reality that the show draws, well, because it’s WrestleMania.

In a way, Reigns, though he’s positioned as WWE’s unquestioned top star, is benefiting dramatically from the marked differences between this era and WWE’s previous ones.

When Cena—and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan before him—were the top stars in WWE, they were relied heavily upon to sell out arenas and drive TV viewership. That strategy, however, is a thing of the past. Top stars, ranging from Brock Lesnar to Ronda Rousey to Cena, come and go from time to time with little to no long-term effect on WWE business.

WWE continues to shatter revenue records each year thanks in large part to massive TV deals with FOX and NBCUniversal as well as WWE Network’s move to Peacock, which all give the company steady revenue streams regardless of which stars are featured or how good WWE’s TV product is.

That’s not a knock on Reigns by any means. His character development, in-ring work and improvements as a talker over the past few years have helped him develop a superstar aura that is unmatched by anyone in WWE. That’s a big reason why he’s held WWE’s top title for so long, why the two world titles have been unified and why virtually no one—not even Lesnar—has posed a viable threat to his title reign.

There isn’t a bigger name in pro wrestling right now, at least not in terms of stars who appear semi-regularly for their respective company. The buzz Reigns creates, the way crowds reacts to him and the storylines he’s been apart of since 2020 demonstrate that he’s in a league of his own.

As Reigns continues to make strides as a character and become a star who’s poised to be bigger than pro wrestling, there is little suggest that he won’t be pro wrestling’s No. 1 draw for years to come.