Who will be the next person to beat Roman Reigns? We take a stab at the top 6 for 2023 (2024)

It feels kind of unfair to call McIntyre the fallback option, but on this list, that’s what he sort of is. There’s nothing currently happening on WWE TV that points to him being the one to knock off Reigns, as he already had his big shot at Clash at the Castle.

We’re keeping him on here anyway, simply because WWE continues to keep him strong. From the outside looking in, McIntyre appears to have done everything asked of him by the company and more, and he definitely deserves a championship run with full crowds of fans. He’s there and certainly viable if injuries or other unforeseen circ*mstances eliminate a few of the people above him.

When we made our last list, Wyatt hadn’t even returned to WWE. Now that he’s back, the company definitely is treating him like a major player, and there’s no reason to think that won’t continue. It’s also telling that he’s reportedly listed as a top face internally, which almost automatically makes him a possibility to beat Reigns.

But considering he’s yet to have even one match at the time of this post, it might be too early to see him in a program with the Head of the Table. WWE has been content to let Wyatt’s latest story unfold at its own pace, which suggests that WrestleMania, the most likely place for someone to defeat Reigns, would be too soon. Bray and Roman may cross paths, but later in 2023 is the safer bet, by which time someone could have already defeated Reigns.

When we did our summer list, KO was a bit of a longshot possibility. He’s much more than that now, having been inserted into the Bloodline saga in a big way at Survivor Series. His interactions with Sami Zayn have been wildly entertaining and even a bit touching, as when Owens declared the end of their friendship two nights after WarGames.

Throughout, Owens has maintained that he has unfinished business with Reigns, and is unafraid of going through the entire Bloodline to settle it. Reports suggest he may get a championship opportunity at Royal Rumble, and while that’s a huge event where title shots are very much in play, it feels like WWE would wait just a bit longer than that to pull the trigger on a Reigns loss.

Not too much has changed since the summer for Rhodes. He remains out of action recovering from the torn pec he suffered earlier this year, with his return date still a mystery. There’s a definite chance we might not know when he’s coming back until he does, with many circling the Royal Rumble match as an obvious option.

Everything that WWE has done with Rhodes since he matriculated back from AEW has held him up as a major star, and his promos have repeatedly reinforced the idea that he wants a world title. Until and unless Reigns loses them, that would mean defeating Roman himself, so he’s got to be in the running unless he has a setback in his recovery or someone beats him to it.

Here’s a name we didn’t have on our July list, simply because Zayn’s rise as part of the Bloodline drama has been so rapid. While he started out as a comedic addition to the overall story and still provides some of the more lighthearted moments from week to week, his determination to prove himself as a member of the group, including turning his back on longtime friend Kevin Owens, has led to some fulfilling drama.

Yet there’s still a chance that in the long run, Owens will be correct and the Bloodline will turn on Zayn. When that happens, he’s going to come looking for revenge and the fans will absolutely be backing him to the hilt. Recent reports suggest he could face Reigns at Elimination Chamber in February in his hometown of Montreal, and if that is indeed the case, it’s simply a matter of whether WWE feels the time is right to pull the trigger on him as champion.

The Rock vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 39 is fantasy booking, sure. But it’s also been teased a bunch of times and makes sense from a business perspective, which is why it’s the rare dream match that’s hard to discount until something else is clearly booked for Reigns in its place.

There’s also something else about this matchup that we can’t let go: It doesn’t have to be, and perhaps shouldn’t be, for Reigns’ titles. It’s not like Mr. Johnson is going to stick around to defend any championships anyway, so he could come in, teach Reigns whatever lesson he wants to in a non-title match and return to being the king of entertainment. Reigns could take an ‘L’ and be humbled but unbroken … and still champ. It just fits, which is why we’re sticking with The Rock to top this list. But if we need to do it again in six months, all bets are off.