Ever since Brock Lesnar brutally assaulted Randy Orton at SummerSlam – in an ending which still divides opinions – and then went on to F-5 SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon, rumour has been doing the rounds that it was all planned by WWE to set up a clash between The Beast Incarnate and Shane-O-Mac at Royal Rumble.
However, fresh reports suggest that that plan might have been reworked by the creative team of WWE and although the clash between Shane and Brock will still happen, the duo won’t be feuding immediately. According to Daily Wrestling News, the WWE have planned for Lesnar to take on one more superstar before his showdown with Shane-O-Mac.
Furthermore, it has also been planned that Shane will first choose a WWE Superstar to take on the Beast Incarnate and the match is expected to happen later this year, most probably at Royal Rumble as Lesnar will be away from the WWE for a while, and he is expected to return only when the build-up to the pay-per-view begins.
Hence, The Beast Incarnate is expected to feature at Royal Rumble against someone other than Shane McMahon, with the duo expected to face off at next year’s WrestleMania. This story also falls in line with WWE’s plans of promoting more angles which feature superstars from both the brands at some of the more important pay-per-views. In addition to this, at Rumble – which is also a pay-per-view featuring both the brands – Shane-O-Mac might select a SmackDown Live! superstar to take on Lesnar.
The report also adds that Vince McMahon wants Lesnar to be portrayed as WWE’s most dominant superstar on the biggest of stages and with that the number of stars with whom he can feud is also reduced. There are only so many superstars capable of taking on The Beast Incarnate, which includes Dean Ambrose, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt and John Cena – who is currently on a hiatus.
Orton could emerge as the prime candidate for this because of what happened at SummerSlam. Ambrose has already feuded with Lesnar in the past, while Wyatt and Lesnar crossed paths for a brief period of time. Talks of Lesnar being in contention for the World Championship have also been mentioned and it remains to be seen if WWE finds booking Lesnar with Shane-O-Mac more attractive, or a title-run.
The seeds of the feud with Shane has already been shown with the Smackdown Live Commissioner expressing his unhappiness over Stephanie McMahon only levying a $500 fine on Lesnar for his actions at SummerSlam.
