Roman Reigns Win over Cesaro Will Result in Familiar Backlash Against Star

It is not often that a win could be the absolutely worst thing to happen to a Superstar, but when Roman Reigns takes to the squared circle on Monday night for his WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament match against Cesaro, he will be very much in danger of facing a familiar fate of venomous reactions from the WWE Universe.

The 2015 Royal Rumble should have been the greatest night of Reigns' career to that point. His victory in the 30-man main event was a formal announcement from WWE management to fans that he was the guy and the young face of the company going forward.

But things did not quite go according to plan.

The fans in Philadelphia mercilessly rained down on the second-generation star with a chorus of boos, defiant in the face of the company's obvious WrestleMania plans.

Unwilling to sit back and be told whom to accept as the top star in the industry, they would not even be swayed by an appearance from The Rock, who celebrated with Reigns and gave him the sign of approval.

Thankfully, Reigns was able to earn the respect of fans over the course of 2015 thanks in large part to show-stealing matches and performances that proved he could deliver against a variety of opponents and styles.

So why, after consistently delivering under the brightest lights and on the biggest stages, is he at risk of suffering the same intensely negative response that plagued him earlier this year?

The answer lies in WWE's never-ending quest to shove its hand-picked stars down the throats of its audience rather than allowing fans to accept them on their own and over time.

Reigns is the clear favorite to win the major title tournament, and therein lies the problem. The company's writing staff has done nothing to present anyone else as a legitimate threat to Reigns' triumph, mostly because it has focused all its attention on pushing the son of Wild Samoan Sika to the forefront.

Meanwhile, Cesaro has long been the crowd favorite thanks in large part to the consistently phenomenal performances he delivers and the passion with which he approaches his in-ring work.

Those fans have watched The Swiss Superman be passed over by management countless times over the years in favor of "next big things" like Reigns.

When the two square off on Raw as part of the quarterfinal round of the tournament to declare a new WWE champion, fans will erupt for the arrival of The King of Swing while simultaneously greeting Reigns with a furious eruption of jeers.

Fans on social media, including Twitter, already expect it.

It will not get easier for Reigns—especially if he advances, as expected.

Awaiting him elsewhere in the field are Dolph Ziggler, Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose, all of whom are more interesting characters and more popular workers than him. The reactions will be similar, proving that he may have been done a great disservice by WWE Creative, again, as he prepares to ascend to the top of the company for the second time in 2015.

After a European tour in which he was the undisputed top babyface on the shows he headlined, it will be a culture shock for Reigns to step back into the United States and be greeted with intense scrutiny as he tears through Cesaro and moves on to the semifinals and a monumental night at Survivor Series.