WWE is in a constant debate about how to handle part-timers and legends getting more high-profile opportunities than those who wrestle on a near-nightly basis. People have openly griped about how, say, Brock Lesnar is the Universal Champion despite working a super truncated schedule, but big names from the past invariably lead to more eyeballs and, therefore, more money for the company.
You can count Seth Rollins among those who want to see WWE move away from giving big matches to people whose primes were a decade or two ago but are out of the business now. Rollins gave his take after being prompted about a Roman Reigns match at WrestleMania against The Rock by Jimmy Traina of Sports Illustrated, saying that while he appreciates everything that Dwayne Johnson has done for WWE, he’d rather opportunities go to people like himself.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Rollins said. “I love Rocky. I think he’s great. Love everything he’s done for this business. But my gut, my first instinct, says we don’t need him. We don’t need him. If we’re not the guys who can main event WrestleMania, then how are we ever gonna be The Rock? How are we gonna be Stone Cold Steve Austin? We can’t hold onto these guys forever. We just can’t. To me, let’s do Seth Rollins-Roman Reigns before we do Seth Rollins-The Rock. That’s me.”
Rollins did say he “100 percent” sees the perspective of a guy like The Rock bringing more eyeballs and, therefore, more money to WWE, but believes that “at some point, we gotta move on from that.”
A more skeptical person would say that Rollins doesn’t want The Rock to come back and headline a WrestleMania because he wants that spot, but the way he tells it, he’d be fine with anyone who is full-time getting that opportunity over someone coming in for a one-off match. And who knows? Perhaps once he wraps things up with Dolph Ziggler — whether it’s at SummerSlam this weekend or sometime after — Rollins will get put on a path that leads to him main eventing WrestleMania next year in New Jersey.
(Via Sports Illustrated)
