5 ways to make Bobby Lashley's return to WWE better

Bobby Lashley made his return to WWE programming on the Raw after WrestleMania 34 on April 9th. His return was met with a thunderous ovation and tons of excitement as he sent Elias packing. It was a short and sweet segment and played to Lashley's strengths perfectly while building excitement for what he will do next.

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That excitement has all but vanished as he has been thrown into a number of random tag-team matches, before being saddled with a Sami Zayn feud that has shown the ugly side of WWE's juvenile humor. The two are set to face off against one another at Money in the Bank and as things stand, it is one of the least exciting matches on the card. Let's check out the 5 ways WWE can get things back on track for Lashley.

#1 Give him a better finisher

Unlike most other moves a wrestler has in his/her arsenal, the finisher forms a part of who they are as a character. If you take away their finisher, you take away a part of their personality. This was made painfully obvious with Seth Rollins when WWE banned the use of the Curb Stomp (now known as the stomp). There was just something missing until he got to use the move again.

Lashley has improved by leaps and bounds since his last tenure in WWE, however, his finisher still leaves a lot to be desired, as it is essentially a delayed vertical suplex. It is an effective move but should not be used to end matches. It is not a high note to end a match on and this will only become more apparent in a feud higher up the card.

Lashley does have two powerful moves he has used in the past, namely the spear and the Dominator, however, they don't seem to have made their return alongside Lashley. If WWE wants fans to invest in Lashley, then let him use the Dominator, or assign him a new finisher to use, one that pops the crowd and really looks like it hurts.

#2 Put him in more singles matches

Too many tag team matches to count

When Lashley made his return, the WWE Universe expected him to be placed front and center in WWE programming. However, he has barely had any singles matches and has been booked in numerous, meaningless tag team matches that do very little to build him any proper momentum.

We are yet to see what Lashley is truly made of and tag team matches are not the way to go to have him form a connection with the WWE Universe. Putting him in singles matches and having him work his way up the ranks will allow him to exhibit his skills and inhuman strength. There is no need to place him in a 30-minute match, but one-on-one bouts place Lashley in the spotlight and allow him to establish himself as a big player on Monday nights.

#3 Give him a proper character

A two-dimensional character

Seth Rollins is the Kingslayer and the top guy on Monday Night Raw. Braun Strowman is The Monster Among Men and promises each of his opponents is going to 'Get These Hands'. The Miz is the A-lister and a manipulative, smarmy heel hell-bent on doing whatever it takes to win. Now ask yourself, 'Who is Bobby Lashley?'

Since his return, Lashley has just become another generic face capable of incredible feats of strength, but there isn't much else of note. The powerhouse can get pops from crowds by manhandling his opponents, but there is no way he will connect with audiences unless he has a proper character for viewers to identify with. It will only be a matter of time before he fades into obscurity if something doesn't change soon.

The WWE Universe needs to be given a reason to invest in Lashley. There are a number of ways WWE Creative can go, but leaving his character as it is, is unacceptable.

#4 Send him to Smackdown Live

Give him a chance in the Land of Opportunity

Raw is three hours long, but a large bulk of the roster still struggles to get the spotlight. The fact that a wrestler as talented as Bobby Lashley is involved in multi-man segments is a testament to the depth of the roster.

If SmackDown Live does air a three-hour show after its move to Fox, the show will require more bodies. Lashley could benefit from the added ring time, and the option to step into the ring with masters of the craft like AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan and so on, could be exactly what the doctor ordered.

A guy like Lashley should be featured prominently in the main event, not lost in the shuffle.

#5 Put him in a proper feud

This is shaping up to be the worst feud of 2018

The Lashley-Zayn feud had so much potential, it really did. But the creative team's juvenile humor has soured audiences on the prospect of any altercation between the two. The segment involving Zayn and Lashley's 'sisters' was painful to watch and showcased two immensely talented wrestlers thrown into a segment that no one could salvage.

Hopefully, this feud comes to a swift end and both can move onto better things. Lashley doesn't need to be the smiling, happy-go-lucky guy, establishing him as a character determined to make up for lost time, he should be going after the biggest and the baddest on Raw.

Seeing Lashley and Strowman team-up was decently entertaining but imagine them going head-to-head. That match has the potential to be a show-stealer. Lashley being a threat to Lesnar's Universal Championship is also a possibility, due to his massive build and MMA background. Each of these scenarios is infinitely more interesting than the poor segments he has been subjected to so far and could be the key to making his return a success.