Paul Heyman wants to raise the profile of everyone who becomes involved in a feud with Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns.
While Sami Zayn was unable to defeat The Tribal Chief at Elimination Chamber, there can be no doubt that everyone in Montreal and around the world was rooting for the underdog who less than a year ago was taking part in a comedy match at WrestleMania 38.
This was all thanks to the incredible storytelling which saw Zayn first join and then turn on The Bloodline in a tale that has also had a key role for his friend Kevin Owens.
In a recent interview with Jimmy Traina on the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast, Heyman explained that the timing of the story was perfect, and he is confident that Elimination Chamber wasn’t the end for Zayn.
“There’s always an inkling to change any plan. The old expression is you have a test audience every week. We’re very adaptable.
“We think we have a really good formula here and we think we have a really good path. I don’t think you’ve seen the last of Sami Zayn.
“In fact, I guarantee you haven’t seen the last of Sami Zayn nor Kevin Owens nor any of the other players in this act that we’ve put together. There was a very compelling reason to put Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn on Elimination Chamber.
“The timing was perfect, and oh my God, we just happened to be putting that show in Montreal, where the reception to Sami would be something that other audiences will aspire to top because they want to be the best audience ever.”
“We saw this Montreal opportunity, we also saw that the timing could not be better. We’re heading into the Royal Rumble with Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns, and all the different opportunities that interweave themselves with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. The timeline for the story just fit.”
The Wise Man went on to say that the entire objective of Roman Reigns‘ feuds has been to elevate every challenger, something he believes has been a success.
“I understand that people have wanted Sami, more and more and more for Sami. That’s the objective. We try to do that with every challenger.
“We did that with Drew McIntyre going to Cardiff, we did that with Brock Lesnar going into SummerSlam. We did that with the group in WarGames, Kevin Owens in the Rumble. We try to do that with everyone in the co-starring role with Roman Reigns in terms of who his opponent is going to be.
“Hopefully, on the flip side, in being defeated by Roman Reigns, you are worth far more, have a more passionate fanbase, sell more merchandise and tickets, more famous, more accepted, more valued by the audience than you were before we got our hands on you.
“That’s the object of what we do. I hope six months from now people are still clamouring more for Sami. That’s what we do. We try to make stars out of everyone within our orbit.”
Roman Reigns will face Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39
Reigns’ next challenger, Cody Rhodes, is already a huge favourite of the WWE audience, with his merchandise regularly selling out at arenas around the country.
Rhodes won the 2023 Royal Rumble to secure his place opposite The Head of the Table at WrestleMania 39.
The pair’s rivalry has already become deeply personal, with Dusty Rhodes’ relationship to both Cody and Reigns having come to the fore in recent weeks.
.@WWERomanReigns tells @CodyRhodes what his father used to say about him… 😮💨#SmackDownpic.twitter.com/Rlq2hotefv
— WWE (@WWE) March 4, 2023
H/T to Fightful for the above transcription.