"He had to dig himself out of the hole" – Kurt Angle praises top WWE star who fans hated

WWE legend Kurt Angle respects Roman Reigns for turning his career around from being hated by fans to being the best in the business.

For a long time, Reigns was disliked by WWE fans, who saw him as the heir to John Cena as 'The Guy' of the company. The Tribal Chief's fortunes changed two years ago after turning heel and debuting his current character. Fans seem to respect him now despite being a heel.

While speaking on the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling, Angle said Reigns earned respect for changing his career around and showing what he's truly capable of:

"I have a lot of respect for Roman because, you know, Vince McMahon pushed him from the beginning and he wasn't ready to be pushed and fans started hating him, and he had to dig himself out of the hole – and it was a really deep hole too, and he did it. I mean, to be able to come out of that and prove to everybody you're the best worker in the business, amazing."

He continued:

"When Vince McMahon wants to push someone and fans don't think he deserves it, fans are going to sh*t on them, and they were shit*ing on Roman for a while. But not anymore, he's earned everybody's respect." (from 26:30 to 27:19)

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Roman Reigns has been dominating WWE over the last two years

Roman Reigns has been the biggest star in WWE since his return at SummerSlam 2020. Reigns joined forces with Paul Heyman and won the WWE Universal Championship at Payback 2020, a title he still holds.

Reigns became the Undisputed World Champion at WrestleMania 38, defeating then WWE Champion Brock Lesnar. It's fair to say Reigns has gone from a hated figure to being a superstar widely respected and loved.

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If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling and H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription.