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“The reigning, defending, undisputed WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar will take on “The Big Dog” Roman Reigns on August 19, 2018 at WWE Summerslam 2018.”
This is a headline which the Internet Wrestling Community would have prayed not to hear, see or listen before WWE Wrestlemania 34 or even after it. The title match between the two was the main event of this year's Wrestlemania against the will of millions of fans and as a result, the match between the two was not well-received. However, with a return to the octagon well in sight for the 'Beast Incarnate', it was almost being taken for granted that Wrestlemania 34 would mark the anointment of Roman Reigns as the ‘top guy’ of the company. In a swift turn of events, Lesnar went on to beat Reigns clean and retain the Universal Championship against all expectations.
The fans then hoped that this would be the end to the gigantic push given to Roman Reigns for years and someone else would challenge Lesnar for the championship.
However, at the ‘Greatest Royal Rumble’ in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in April, we saw the third part of Brock Lesnar v/s Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship in a steel cage match. In a desperate attempt to keep the title on Brock Lesnar, WWE declared him the winner of the match even though Roman Reigns' feet had touched the ground first and thereby, he had technically won the match. Thus, we were given a clear indication that the Reigns' pursuit for the Universal Championship would not end any time soon. Roman Reigns was provided with the sympathetic story that he should have been the WWE Universal Champion and that the 'upper management' does not want him to the Champion.
To the disappointment of the creative team, the WWE Universe did not respond positively to this feud. The idea of Roman Reigns as the company's top wrestler had already been rejected with each and every huge victory being bestowed with a flurry of negative responses. The idea of a rematch between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar was preposterous and a huge step backward. But, the creative team of the WWE had made up their mind of writing a fourth chapter in this rivalry. Hence, the headline mentioned in the beginning of this article became inevitable.
However, the creative team was also aware that creating a positive buzz for the rivalry would not be possible in its current state. They had to do something which would compel the WWE Universe to care about the WWE Universal Championship and the rivalry that surrounds it. The biggest problem lied with the protagonist of this story who had severely failed to garner the needed support from the fans.
The only way to ensure that Roman Reigns is the least favorite wrestler of the two was to depict Brock Lesnar as a bigger heel. Brock Lesnar did this simply by being a dormant champion and not showing up. The biggest prize holder of the company did not even defend his title in the Pay-Per-Views. We are now given a portrayal that our WWE Universal Champion does not care about the WWE, its fans, and its most prestigious title. He does not show up on WWE TV. But he shows up at UFC 226, challenging the UFC Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier, thus cementing his ambitions of returning to the octagon.
The consequence of such a move has been that WWE Universe now desperately wants Brock Lesnar to be dethroned as their Champion. The anointment of Roman Reigns is not the goal but only a source of achieving a bigger goal. On July 30th episode of Monday Night Raw, WWE furthered the narrative in many ways. On one hand, WWE tried to capitalize on the image of Brock Lesnar as a dormant champion by terming him "the worst Universal Champion of all time".
On this night, the creative also created another layer to this storyline. Brock Lesnar attacked his advocate, Paul Heyman. Suddenly a possibility of an alliance between Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman opened up. This also created a sense of certainty that Brock Lesnar would drop the title at Summerslam and finally Roman Reigns would become the champion.
6 days away from the eventual match at Summerslam, there came another twist in the tale. On August 13th episode of Monday Night Raw, Paul Heyman sprays Roman Reigns in the eye and paved the way for Brock Lesnar to ambush his opponent. Thus, as it stands, Paul Heyman has reunited with Brock Lesnar.
With the match only a few days away, we suddenly have a storyline in our hands which consists of multiple layers and where anything can happen. Roman Reigns winning the WWE Universal Championship victory would finally allow other superstars to challenge for the title that has been held hostage by Lesnar. Alternatively, against all expectations, WWE can once again swerve its fans and allow Lesnar to retain the title. This might be termed as ‘best for business’ for the WWE as Lesnar then might challenge Daniel Cormier for the UFC Heavyweight Championship as the WWE Universal Champion. Adding to the drama are the questions: will Paul Heyman betray his client at Summerslam? Will we see an alliance between Paul Heyman and Roman Reigns.
A desperate attempt to create an intrigue for the main event of their biggest Pay-Per-View of the summer seems to be a success. WWE has managed to create a storyline that involves kayfabe as well as real-life events. The creative team has to be lauded for their efforts. It is now time for wrestling and it is the responsibility of the wrestlers involved to give a fitting conclusion to a three and a half years old rivalry. Although the legacy of the WWE Universal Championship has been adversely impacted, this can be salvaged with a good enough that builds back its credibility.
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