Having Brock Lesnar as a part-time champion is what’s best for WWE right now. It’s time to accept it, and his Royal Rumble storyline is proof.
The WWE champion entering himself into the Royal Rumble match at No. 1 — while not unprecedented — delivers the type of moment and intrigue Lesnar can deliver when he comes and goes as he pleases.
When Lesnar and Paul Heyman walk through the curtain you know something special or impactful is going to occur. He almost never wrestles on cable, so his pay-per-view matches and the belt become even more of an attraction with few opportunities for someone to take it from him.
WWE can overexpose its talent by booking it on TV with similar opponents far too often. The company has also struggled building babyface champions with the exception of Kofi Kingston because of his organic rise to favor with the audience and WWE taking his legs out with Lesnar beating him to become WWE champion in less than 10 seconds.
The last two wrestlers who were supposed to save us from Lesnar didn’t exactly have memorable runs with the championship. Roman Reigns was getting polarizing reactions from the audience before stepping away for leukemia treatment, and WWE has turned Seth Rollins heel after a lackluster run as Universal champion.
The audience is united in its dislike for Lesnar — he and Heyman were heavily booed by the Kentucky crowd on the most recent “Monday Night Raw.” There is still a slaying-Goliath feel to him.
We are starting to see the same thing with Bray Wyatt and The Fiend over on “SmackDown.” While the Universal champion appears on “SmackDown” weekly, he hasn’t wrestled a non-pay-per-view match since his return to WWE in August. It’s giving WWE’s top two titles a chance to feel important.
It’s why Lesnar’s Royal Rumble angle, if continued to be done right, allows WWE to build multiple angles for talent and set up a number of stories for The Beast in the match and beyond. Fans are already clamoring for NXT star Matt Riddle, who has spoken of wanting to retire Lesnar, to get his crack at him (please put Riddle at No. 2). A confrontation with NXT UK champion Walter or breakout star Keith Lee would also be something to see.
Elias called out Lesnar on the most recent “SmackDown.” And it’s likely the rumors of Edge’s potential WWE return will float Lesnar’s way in the build up to the Royal Rumble. Bobby Lashley has been asking for a match with Lesnar since he returned to WWE.
We haven’t heard from Cain Velasquez since Lesnar beat him at Crown Jewel on Halloween. Drew McIntyre’s push appears to finally have begun after winning a triple-threat match against AJ Styles and Randy Orton on this week’s “Raw.” Heck, a laughing Lesnar even got to do a funny and entertaining segment with 24/7 champions on the show, too.
Given all of that, WWE just might also be crazy enough to have Lesnar win the Royal Rumble. What then? A match with The Fiend? Does Lesnar get to pick his WrestleMania opponent as people try to get his attention?
It is this air of unpredictability around Lesnar that makes this whole angle so much fun. Putting him in the Royal Rumble match at No. 1 as champion opens the door for so many possibilities for both the match itself and beyond.
Lesnar is perfectly positioned. Now make the most of it.