Who was supposed to be the new Brock Lesnar? Details on WWE's scrapped plans

WWE declared the signing of Gable Steveson in September 2021. The two-time NCAA champion and Olympic gold medalist was actively courted to sign a deal. The next month, he was drafted into the RAW brand, showing that management – at the time run by Vince McMahon – saw a bright future for him.

Even before officially signing the amateur wrestler from Minnesota, WWE was grooming Gable Steveson for greatness. Management hoped that Steveson would be the next Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar and Kurt Angle are great examples of the company's lengthy history of transforming elite freestyle wrestlers into main event stars. Angle went on to become a world champion and a top performer while Lesnar, like Steveson, won the national championship in Minnesota and is one of the company's biggest stars.

Steveson hasn't made his official debut despite attending significant events for the company and even getting a WrestleMania moment.

Steveson and the company appear to be committed to working together, but there is one stumbling block: Steveson aspires to compete in the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Since the pandemic delayed the previous games by a year, he now has a unique opportunity to battle for gold twice.

---

WWE's scrapped plans for Gable Steveson

Gable Steveson was supposed to make his debut with a huge push on RAW beginning at WrestleMania 38. He was supposed to wrestle Triple H on the grandest stage of them all, which would have been a career-defining moment for the budding wrestler. Unfortunately, Triple H's health difficulties forced him to retire from wrestling and instead focus on the show.

Triple H will likely still strive to make the experiment work since he values the Olympic gold medalist even though he wasn't the one who signed Gable.

As of this writing, Steveson is still under contract with WWE, and it's unknown whether he'll be able to stay with the company if he attempts to compete in the Olympics. Gable is only 22 years old and has a bright future, whether in WWE or in other sports.