Predicting Roman Reigns' 2018 feuds and title reigns

With 2018 fast approaching, we will be taking a look at some of WWE’s most popular Superstars and predicting what may or may not happen in their careers over the next 12 months.

In this article, we focus on Roman Reigns – a man who had yet another career-defining year in 2017, defeating The Undertaker at WrestleMania and John Cena at No Mercy before reforming The Shield with Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose.

But what does the future hold? Will he win his first WWE Universal Championship in 2018? How long will his Intercontinental title reign last? When will “The Hounds of Justice” reunite again? Will he main-event WrestleMania for the fourth straight year?

From the obvious to the not-so-obvious, we predict who “The Big Dog” will battle against in 2018 and take a look at what championships he could realistically win by the time the year is out.

#5 Samoa Joe feud

Samoa Joe is one of Raw's most popular heels

Ever since Samoa Joe became number one contender for Brock Lesnar’s Universal Championship in June 2017, he has been involved in a back-and-forth rivalry with current Intercontinental champion Roman Reigns.

The two have met several times over the last six months, including in multi-man main events at Extreme Rules and SummerSlam, and their feud resumed in November when Reigns was attacked by Joe following his victory over Elias.

Since then, “The Samoan Submission Machine” has continued to target “The Guy” and defeated him via disqualification in a match for the Intercontinental Championship on the Christmas Day episode of Raw.

Expect their rivalry to carry on in the weeks and months to follow, possibly culminating with Joe winning the IC title from the three-time WrestleMania main-eventer.

#4 Brock Lesnar feud

The worst-kept secret in WWE right now is that Roman Reigns will defeat Brock Lesnar clean for the Universal Championship in the main event of WrestleMania 34 in April.

That was the finish that many fans expected when the two men fought over the World Heavyweight title in the headline match at WrestleMania 31, but the night ended with Seth Rollins as champion instead after he cashed in his Money In The Bank contract.

Fast forward three years and, if reports are to be believed, WWE is planning on another blockbuster battle between the two Raw heavyweights, this time with Reigns being victorious to pick up yet another torch-passing win over a legendary Superstar.

The Shield member has become synonymous with the Royal Rumble but it’d be a surprise if WWE risked the wrath of fans by having him win the match again in 2018, so expect the build to his WrestleMania match with Lesnar to begin at the Raw-exclusive Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in February.

#3 Universal Championship reign

As much as Roman Reigns has aimed to distance himself from similarities with John Cena over the years, it’s fair to compare the two when you take into account the manner that both men were catapulted into the main-event spotlight as babyfaces.

The major difference, however, is that while Cena racked up hundreds of days as WWE champion early on in his career, Reigns has only held a major title for a combined 118 days and he still hasn’t been the main champion on Raw since the brand split took place in July 2016.

Had he not been suspended for violating the company’s wellness policy during his most recent reign as WWE champion, things could have gone very differently and maybe “The Big Dog” would already have a lengthy title run under his belt by now.

No matter what the circumstances, it’s still surprising that Reigns hasn’t had a lengthier run with a major title during his five years in WWE, so it’s safe to assume that he’ll hold the Universal Championship for a long time if he wins it from Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 34.

#2 Finn Balor feud

There’s a general rule in WWE that if a Superstar loses their championship, they can invoke their rematch clause to face the new champion whenever they like.

Those rules seemingly don’t apply to the Universal Championship, however, as the three men who have won and lost the title – Finn Balor, Kevin Owens and Goldberg – were never granted rematches.

The circumstances of Balor’s ‘loss’ are often brought up by fans because, while Owens and Goldberg were pinned 1-2-3 and both lost matches with their title on the line, the Irishman was forced to relinquish his championship due to injury in August 2016.

Sixteen months on from the injury and eight months on from his return to action, Balor is yet to challenge for the Universal Championship and, according to reports, Vince McMahon doesn’t feel he is ‘over’ enough to face Brock Lesnar for the title.

The Irishman is bound to get a one-on-one match for the title that he never lost at some point in 2018, and it wouldn’t at all be surprising to see him challenge Roman Reigns – a man he has defeated before – shortly after WrestleMania.

#1 The Shield storyline

The Shield's comeback has been halted due to Dean Ambrose's injury

We’ve only just had a Shield reunion, of course, but fans of the three-man faction can look forward to seeing them get back together for the second time when Dean Ambrose returns from injury in 2018.

It’s unclear exactly when “The Lunatic Fringe” will be fit enough to return to our screens. He has undergone surgery on a triceps tendon injury and WWE claims that he could be out for up to nine months, though some reports suggest he could be back within three months.

Either way, assuming all three Shield members are still on the same brand when Ambrose is healthy enough to return, WWE will almost certainly revive the storyline with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.

Will “The Hounds of Justice” pick up where they left off and wreak havoc on Raw? Or will one of them, possibly Ambrose, turn against the others and will they feud with each other?

Whatever happens, expect a significant amount of Reigns’ 2018 to be taken up with a Shield-related storyline.

Edited by Nishant Jayaram