Roman Reigns' Top 5 WWE/Universal Title Defenses

#4. Roman Reigns vs AJ Styles (PAYBACK 2016)

Some of the spots in this match were phenomenal

AJ Styles and Roman Reigns are the flag bearers of their respective brands today, but none would have expected WWE to even let AJ get a title opportunity mere months after his debut. The fact that his first chance at gold would come against Reigns was very surprising.

Heel AJ Styles was as entertaining as is his current face run. On one hand we had Styles and The Good Brothers, and on the other Roman and The Usos. Their series of promos and tag team match ups eventually led to a title match at Payback.

While the match was a bit underwhelming by AJ Styles' standards, the chemistry between him and Reigns was solid and the match produced some great action. Stephanie McMahon was yet again involved, making the match a no disqualification bout, which led to the involvement of The Good Brothers and The Usos.

Maybe this match, and the subsequent rematch (we'll get to that) laid the foundation on which AJ Styles garnered faith with WWE officials.

The match was very well paced and some spots in this match were breathtaking. In the end, after some incredible sequences, Reigns stood tall.