Jim Ross doesn’t think Roman Reigns will go down as the greatest wrestler of all time — but he’s adamant Reigns has had a WWE Hall of Fame career.
Ross discussed Reigns’ legacy on a recent episode of Grilling JR with Conrad Thompson. The conversation came up after Thompson talked about how WWE built Reigns into a top star and Paul Heyman’s role in that rise. Ross pushed back on the idea that the Tribal Chief’s success was solely a product of the WWE machine.
“Now, as far as Roman is concerned, I love the kid. I think he’s great for the business. I think he’s great for WWE. He looks like a champion. He represents well, but I don’t know what you mean by the greatest of all time or whatever. I don’t know he’ll ever be considered greatest of all time, but he’s always going to be considered as someone that had a great run, and has had a Hall of Fame career without question.”
Ross also praised Heyman’s influence, saying Heyman does important work behind the scenes that fans never see — particularly when it comes to helping talent with promos, psychology, and presentation. Ross went so far as to compare Heyman to this generation’s Bobby Heenan.
Ross’ take comes during one of the best stretches of Reigns’ career. He won the 2026 men’s Royal Rumble and defeated CM Punk in the main event of WrestleMania 42 on 4/19 to capture the World Heavyweight Championship for the first time.
Reigns’ most recent match was his SummerSlam defense on 8/2, where he retained over Seth Rollins.
Reigns’ next defense is already lined up. WWE has announced a tournament, with the winner set to face Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship on the 9/14 Raw in Mexico City.