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It's been a great episode of RAW this week. There's an air of freshness to all the proceedings, with the new names from NXT being called up. And yet, there's one thing that all of the WWE Universe has been buzzing about lately. And that's the brief altercation that Braun Strowman had with Paul Heyman.
Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman do not have any reason to cross paths right now. Lesnar's next opponent is Seth Rollins, the winner of the Royal Rumble match. So why did this brief altercation happen between Monster and advocate?
I will list 5 reasons for the same in this article. Let me know if you agree or disagree with my assessment in the comments.
Could we see a big swerve on the road to WrestleMania?
#5 The history between Strowman and Lesnar
It is but natural that when you have two humongous individuals in the roster, where one dubs himself 'the Monster' and another calls himself 'The Beast', that they are bound to clash in the ring. Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman are no strangers to one another for sure. In fact, they've clashed on more than one occasion.
Remember the three-way between Lesnar, Strowman and Kane from Royal Rumble 2018 where Lesnar was legitimately hurt by Strowman and then Lesnar fired back with a stiff punch of his own? Or the fact that it was Strowman who accidentally helped Roman Reigns become the Universal Champion at SummerSlam 2018. At that point, Braun Strowman was the Money In the Bank holder.
So the whole altercation between Heyman and Strowman was a callback to the fact that Lesnar and The Monster Among Men have clashed previously. But will this lead to a big angle between the two men down the line?
#4 Braun Strowman was supposed to face Lesnar at The Royal Rumble
Braun Strowman was the original opponent for Lesnar at the Royal Rumble. But because he chased Baron Corbin all the way to the parking lot on the January 14th Episode of RAW, and ended up destroying Vince McMahon's limo, he was stripped of the opportunity. And one must imagine that he isn't very happy with the decision.
And therefore, much of his ire must be directed towards Lesnar by proxy of Paul Heyman. Maybe this is his way of reminding Heyman that Braun Strowman is still a threat to his client. Maybe this is his way to entering the Universal Championship scenario once again.
Strowman's physical attributes will always ensure that he remains a top guy for the period that he remains in WWE, despite the ups and downs. I suppose he's on his way back to the top of the mountain once more.
#3 Future Paul Heyman guy?
We all know that Brock Lesnar is on his way back to the UFC when his contractual obligations with WWE permit him. We all saw the brief altercation between Lesnar and Daniel Cormier at UFC 226, setting the stage for a big match down the line.
Paul Heyman will need a new client when Brock Lesnar disappears from TV, and maybe Braun Strowman could have an advocate by his side very soon indeed. It may be just the X-factor that Strowman needs to be a top guy in due time.
In fact, I daresay that Braun Strowman needs to be a Paul Heyman guy right now over anyone else in the roster. This may be the only way that the WWE Universe learns to take Braun Strowman more seriously and not as a freak show who performs feats of strength.
Was the assault the Heyman an audition of sorts?
#2 As a backup for Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins is currently on the shelf, nursing an injury. While he is expected to be back in time for WrestleMania, you can never tell with WWE's luck. So many top tier talents are on the shelf right now owing to injuries and WWE probably does not want to take chances.
By doing this angle, WWE has a backup plan in place in case Seth Rollins does not make it to WrestleMania. Although the match may not necessarily be as exciting, it's better than having no Universal Championship match at all on your biggest show. Braun Strowman and Brock Lesnar could have a pretty good match and one that could end with Strowman as Universal Champion.
WWE has been reluctant to put the Universal Championship on Braun Strowman in the past. But if Rollins doesn't make it back in time, there may be no other way to do this.
#1 To make Braun Strowman a serious character again
Braun Strowman used to have a lot of momentum once upon a time. And then, all of a sudden, he showed the WWE Universe that he's adept at comedy as well. Then, he teamed up with a ten-year-old boy at WrestleMania 34 and just hasn't been the same since. He was in a comedy feud with Kevin Owens, dragging toilets and knocking porta loos off the ramp.
By choking out Paul Heyman, WWE may be making Braun Strowman a serious character again. He could bring back the mean streak that he had back when he first started in the roster. Back when he used to have serious feuds with the likes of Roman Reigns and others.
Braun Strowman could be a top babyface for the company in due course of time. To be so, one has to erase the fact that he has a goofy side to him because as WWE has proved in the past, the ceiling for a comedy character is usually the mid-card.
Why do you think Strowman assaulted Heyman on RAW?
