Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns first met one-on-one in 2015. Now, the feud that has spanned continents – and two WrestleMania main events – will headline WWE Day 1, a new January pay-per-view held New Year’s Day (local time) at the 10,000-seat State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Lesnar-Reigns rivalry was renewed at SummerSlam 2021. What should have been Reigns’ defining moment, besting 16-time world champion John Cena in front of a crowd of more than 50,000 people, was overshadowed post-match by Lesnar’s return to WWE.
Reigns scored a measure of revenge when he eventually faced Lesnar at Crown Jewel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia where The Usos ran interference in order to keep the Universal Championship with The Bloodline.
Unlike their previous encounters, where Reigns and Lesnar are tied 2-2 in one-on-one matches, the Day 1 main event will seemingly be fought without the influence of Paul Heyman.
Reigns’ paranoia about Heyman’s relationship with Lesnar peaked on the December 18 edition of SmackDown. The Tribal Chief confronted his Special Counsel: “Did you know Brock Lesnar was going to return at SummerSlam?”
Heyman produced an unsatisfactory answer, “I’m protecting you from Brock Lesnar,” and was removed from The Bloodline with a Superman Punch.
Lesnar arrived on the scene before Reigns and The Usos could further attack Heyman. The Beast then F5’d his way through The Bloodline to establish his dominance in a fair fight—and perhaps provide a glimpse into Reigns’ future at Day 1?
WWE Day 1 airs live this Sunday, January 2, from 2pm (NZDT) on Sky Arena and WWE Network. Day 1 Kickoff airs from 1pm.
WWE Day 1 Card:
- Universal Championship:
Roman Reigns (c) vs. Brock Lesnar - WWE Championship:
Big E (c) vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins - Raw Women’s Championship:
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Liv Morgan - SmackDown Tag Team Championship:
The Usos (c) vs. The New Day - Edge vs. The Miz
- Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
- Raw Tag Team Championship:
RK-Bro (c) vs. The Street Profits - Cesaro & Ricochet vs. Ridge Holland & Sheamus [WWE Day 1 Kickoff]
The Beast is once again coming for Universal Champion Roman Reigns!
Don't miss #WWEDay1 streaming live this Sunday from 2pm (NZDT) on @WWENetwork!https://t.co/Jazto32h9K pic.twitter.com/dZNHQYlT33
— WWE New Zealand (@WWENZ) December 30, 2021
