Magnum T.A. Says It's Possible To Get More Over Now Than Ever, Mentions Roman Reigns

According to former NWA United States Heavyweight Champion Magnum T.A., today's wrestlers have an opportunity for more widespread popularity than ever before — they just need to capitalize on it. Appearing on "Busted Open Radio," Magnum highlighted the importance of making a wrestling character feel real even if the audience knows the results are pre-determined.

"I think today, if someone had that belief in the system and was dedicated enough to it, and was given an opportunity, you could get over today bigger than anybody's ever been over in the last 20 years," Magnum said. "Everybody knows it's a work, but you could, hands down, walk into a program and convince them that it's a shoot." The Pro Wrestling Hall of Famer said that, while Roman Reigns is undeniably popular at the moment, the company could have an opportunity to make the "Tribal Chief" an even bigger star.

"They could work a program that made it look like he went off-script and flipped, and just said, 'You know what? I am the world champion, and I'll hold it as long as I want to, and somebody is going to have to come take it from me, because I'm not giving it up,'" Magnum continued. The retired wrestler claimed that such a storyline would make wrestling mainstream again, grabbing headlines and "blowing up the internet."

The type of storyline Magnum is describing has been attempted in various ways before. WWE ran a controversial storyline that saw CM Punk's contract expire while he held the WWE Championship, and AEW is currently building out a modernized version of the story with Maxwell Jacob Friedman threatening to leave the company while still holding the championship in 2024. However, neither story has managed to catapult wrestling back to the heights of popularity achieved in the 20th century.