There's a really good Roman Reigns interview and feature in The Washington Post today. The piece briefly highlights his journey to WWE, but then gets into some current storyline talk and, of course, WrestleMania 30 next week.
Here are some of the highlights from the piece:
On why he didn't "dive into pro westling" at an earlier age
"My mom and dad wanted me to just do something different, try new things. Especially down where I grew up in the South [Florida], football is such a big thing. And last time we checked, pro wrestling didn’t get you a scholarship to college.
Once I got a bit older and we could see there could be a future in football, it was everyone’s blessing to chase that dream. And it did me a lot of good: It put me through college, it gave me an education, it got me a little taste of pro ball and a lot of good memories. I don’t regret any of it."
On him noticing positive crowd reaction and how it affects his peformance:
"I try to live in the moment. When you’re in a singles match, you’re in there, and the guy’s on top of you, and you’re in a hold and you’re being smothered: You’re in the fight at all times. But when we’re doing these team fights, you have a little time to take in the moment and just absorb the energy of the crowd.
Especially with the crowds nowadays. They’re very opinionated; you can almost sense that the crowd has taken a leadership role within their own product. This is what they take joy in and take pride in. And if they’re not into something, they’re going to let you know. If they’re into something, same thing: They’re going to let you know."
On being mentioned as a main eventer and future champion:
"I’ve always pictured myself being in the main event. It’s always been my expectation to be the top guy, the face of the company, the one with all of that responsibility. But that should be everybody’s goal. I didn’t get into this to just be in the middle of the pack. If you want to do that, go work in a different line of work. This isn’t the place to camouflage yourself. I’m trying to be the most exotic animal on this safari."
On WrestleMania 30 and what's next for him after the event:
"It’s Mania first. We want to get there the right way, and we want to just tear the house down. We wanna burn it down, put cracks in the wall, just demolish that place and have an awesome match.
As far as the next day? There’s going to be some gaps. There are going to be a bunch of big names that are gonna compete [at Wrestlemania] and then not be there on Monday. That’s when guys like myself, the rest of the Shield, Cesaro, the Usos . . . there’s a bunch of guys who want this and are willing to work every single day. If I’m a fan of the WWE, I would feel safe to know that your entertainment is in the right hands."
