Nobody in professional wrestling wants to take a risk anymore. And that is a real shame.
Penta’s loss to Roman Reigns on Monday night represented yet another case of a promotion failing to capitalize on a golden opportunity simply because it did not fit their predetermined blueprint. Long-term planning is important — no one wants booking to feel arbitrary. But every so often, circumstances present themselves in a way that demands an immediate, instinctive decision. Plans can always be revised, storylines can always be rewritten. Moments like Monday come along exceedingly rare, and choosing to let them pass inevitably leaves behind more questions than answers.
Heading into WWE’s show in Mexico City, few expected Penta to walk away victorious. The tournament to determine Reigns’ challenger had essentially functioned as a “the winner loses to Roman Reigns” stipulation. Yet the moment Penta stepped into the arena, the atmosphere shifted. By the time the main event began, it was clear that Penta had to win. This was the night — no other would come close. The crowd was wholly, overwhelmingly behind him, electrified in a way that distinguishes a truly special live event from a merely hot one. They booed Reigns relentlessly. A victory would have elevated Penta to a tier of popularity in Mexico that very few wrestlers have ever reached.
Naturally, Reigns won clean, and the show ended on a deflating note.
Of course, a crowd reaction alone should not dictate a last-minute change to the card every time the audience erupts. But there are moments that feel unmistakable, and Monday was one of them. Penta could challenge for the title the next time WWE visits Mexico City, but the magic would be impossible to recapture.
None of this needs to be permanent. Storylines are not carved in stone. If Reigns must face LA Knight for the championship at Money in the Bank, he can simply defeat Penta and reclaim the title a few weeks later. The pay-per-view does not take place until October 10; Penta does not require an extended reign, and Reigns could win the belt back on Monday Night Raw. A deviation from the original plan does not mean it cannot happen.
Not the First Time
This is far from the first time a prime opportunity has gone untouched. The most prominent recent example came at Elimination Chamber in Montreal in 2023, when Sami Zayn challenged Roman Reigns for the WWE championship. The situation was strikingly similar to Monday’s match: the Montreal crowd was fiercely determined to see Zayn prevail, and him emerging triumphant would have created an unforgettable moment in WWE history. However, the plan for WrestleMania 39 was Reigns versus Cody Rhodes, and because of that commitment, Zayn was denied the victory.
He lost that night in Montreal and continued falling short in WWE title matches until fans largely abandoned hope altogether. Naturally, WWE eventually placed the championship on him at Night of Champions earlier this year. The victory would have carried infinitely greater weight years earlier, when Zayn was a white-hot babyface; by then, he had become an awkward tweener heel. By the time the title finally came his way, the momentum had entirely dissipated.
AEW faced a comparable situation with Maya World earlier this year. She was never meant to be in the tournament — an injury to Sareee inserted her at the last minute, shortly after her brother died in a car accident. Despite the tragedy, World delivered an exceptional performance, advancing all the way to the finals against Mercedes Mone. A victory would have launched an entirely new star in the division, someone who had previously been relegated almost exclusively to Ring of Honor tapings. It would have been an ideal way to push someone into the spotlight from the very start. But it was not the plan — Mone was always booked to face Willow Nightingale at All In, and because of that, World could not win.
Professional wrestling does not need to operate with such rigidity. Taking chances and embracing spontaneity is perfectly acceptable when all the elements align. Making a different choice in each of these three situations would have made sense in the moment, and regardless of what Triple H or Tony Khan may have thought, it could have transformed careers for the better. Giant Baba’s decision to put Mitsuharu Misawa over Jumbo Tsuruta on June 8, 1990, altered the trajectory of not only Misawa’s career but also set the stage for All Japan Pro Wrestling’s sustained hot streak throughout the following decade. Baba could have ignored the energy in the arena and stuck with his planned finish. He chose not to, and the result was extraordinary.
There was so much to gain on all three nights, but because it was not in the cards, it never happened. And now we are left with a series of “what if” scenarios that will never receive an answer.
