Lana On Roman Reigns Nixing Her Spot From WWE Survivor Series Match

On a recent episode of the Talk Is Jericho podcast, Chris Jericho sat down with CJ Perry, f.k.a. Lana. One of the most memorable storylines in 2020 for Perry was her feud with Nia Jax where Jax would put her through a table week after week. She revealed that there was meant to be a 10th table spot at Survivor Series, but she revealed who shot the spot down.

"We were supposed to do this whole table spot on the show, and then Roman did not want that because he had a table spot with [Drew McIntyre]," Perry revealed. "There was some major pushback between the Samoans, Nia and Roman. I'm caught in the middle. We had a huge spot.

"I was supposed to be laid out in the very beginning. I was supposed to get in the ring, and Nia snatched me because the whole point was that everyone on the team were heels. I was the only 'babyface', and they were going to be all against me and she was gonna lay me out.

"And then at the end, I had this whole sequence with Bianca [Belair], and Bayley was supposed to get involved and cheat. We were all so excited about it. I was excited I was gonna get to wrestle, then there's the whole Samoan rivalry that happens."

In their match, Roman Reigns countered Drew McIntyre into a Samoan Drop on a table. Instead of a table spot, Perry revealed why her plans were changed to her having little involvement in the match. She also revealed who pushed for her to at least be in the ring for a small amount of time.

"So the whole table spot got taken out, and then Vince thought it would be hilarious if I didn't get in the match at all," Perry recalled. "Nia would not let me get in at all, and then I win because everyone gets eliminated, and he thought that was the most hilarious thing. Shane McMahon thought it was hilarious. They're like, this has never been done before, and in many ways, I understand because Undertaker was retiring that day and I understand, let's give something different on the show.

"I get that business side of it all, but it was really dramatic. There was all this stuff happening. I'm crying in a corner because I'm like, I just want to wrestle. I'm calling Nattie. 'Nattie, I'm hiding in this corner and crying. I just want to wrestle. I want to prove myself,' and Nattie's like, 'You're still winning? Who cares?' And I'm like, 'No, I want to prove myself.' TJ [Wilson] really wanted me to get in and wrestle a little bit, and then Nia was gonna kick me out and say you have to stand there.

"He had to even fight for that with Vince because he was like, 'No, I think it's important for her to show that she's improving in the ring. That's the babyface side of it is that she does want to get in and wrestle, and they're telling her, go f**k off and stand out there.' And that would have gotten a huge reaction. In some ways, I understood Vince was trying to recreate what Miro did to me in 2015. They would be like, 'We want Lana.' He would send me to a different part. They kicked me out, and the whole place boos. Those things really resonate with crowds."

Fans questioned and bemoaned the routine of Jax putting Perry through a table each week on RAW. She recalled her mindset at the time and being asked if she knew where the storyline was heading.

"I'll never forget Mandy [Rose] and Dana [Brooke] were like, 'Do you know where this is going? Do you know what's happening?'" Perry recalled. "And I'm like, 'I have no idea. I have no idea.' They're like, 'You have such a great attitude for losing,' and it's like, well, someone has to lose, literally. Unless there's a DQ, someone has to lose, and I would rather be losing than sitting at catering."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Talk Is Jericho with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.