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Welcome to our weekly roundup of WWE news stories and rumors regarding Brock Lesnar. The past few days have been eventful for The Beast Incarnate, after he left Day 1 with the WWE Championship.
The Beast's inclusion in the main event came after Roman Reigns tested positive for COVID-19 just hours before last Saturday's event. Lesnar defeated Big E, Bobby Lashley, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins in a Fatal-5-Way match to be crowned WWE Champion. A new WWE Champion was scheduled for Day 1, even before plans changed and Lesnar was included.
The development has certainly shaken things up within the main event scene as we head towards WrestleMania season. WWE's plans for Brock Lesnar at the event have surfaced, following his reunion with Paul Heyman on RAW.
We will take a look at The Beast Incarnate's immediate future with his first challenger confirmed for the Royal Rumble Premium Live Event. Additionally, a story of Lesnar allegedly refusing to work with a former WWE Champion has emerged.
So, without further ado, let's dive right in and take a look at this week's most important stories regarding Brock Lesnar.
#5 WWE confirms Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley for Royal Rumble
Brock Lesnar discovered on RAW that his first opponent as WWE Champion will be Bobby Lashley. Lashley defeated Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins and Big E in a number one contender's match for a title shot at Royal Rumble.
Fans have been waiting for this match for years, with The All-Mighty even stating it was the reason he returned to WWE. It is finally happening at a time when both Lashley and Lesnar are in tremendous physical shape.
Their interactions at Day 1 were a great tease, as we saw Bobby Lashley get the better of Brock Lesnar multiple times. He even had the WWE Champion in the Hurt Lock. Could he repeat the feat at Royal Rumble?
Expect a hard-hitting match between the two, with Paul Heyman and MVP engaging in a couple of promo battles during its build-up.
#4 Brock Lesnar will be on both SmackDown and RAW
Brock Lesnar will be a busy WWE Champion in January. When asked to comment on Lashley's win on RAW, he ignored the question and stated he would be on SmackDown this week. Roman Reigns has been medically cleared, so expect a confrontation between the two of them tonight.
That isn't it for Lesnar's streak of appearances on WWE television. The Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the venue of next week's RAW, announced on Twitter that The Beast Incarnate will be part of the show.
It looks like Brock Lesnar has taken up somewhat of a full-time schedule in WWE recently, having appeared nearly every week since his return from suspension.
#3 Seth Rollins was supposed to win the WWE Championship at Day 1
Brock Lesnar's inclusion in the WWE Championship match at Day 1 forced plans to change. However, Big E was supposed to lose the title regardless, even before The Beast Incarnate was added. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer reported on Sports Illustrated that Seth Rollins was supposed to become WWE Champion last week.
"The original scripted plan for the show was for Big E to lose the championship, but to Seth Rollins, who had tested positive for COVID-19 last week, and the champion instead lost his title to Lesnar as the result of another positive test," Meltzer said.
It would have been interesting to see what Rollins' potential title reign would have looked like, especially with WrestleMania season approaching.
#2 Brock Lesnar refused to face Jinder Mahal at Survivor Series 2017
Brock Lesnar nearly faced former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal at Survivor Series 2017. The two men held the world titles on RAW and SmackDown at the time. The match was announced, but Mahal lost the WWE Title to AJ Styles less than two weeks before the event.
The Phenomenal One went on to face Lesnar at Survivor Series, with the match being a major success. Dave Meltzer discussed the situation on Wrestling Observer Radio, stating that Jinder Mahal lost the title because Brock Lesnar did not want to work with him.
It was a shame for The Modern Day Maharaja, who headlined a WWE Live Event in India one month later without the title. Mahal lost to Triple H in New Delhi on December 9th, 2017.
#1 WWE and Universal Championship plans for WrestleMania 38
The cancelation of Brock Lesnar's match against Roman Reigns at Day 1 seemed to impact plans for WrestleMania 38. However, it looks like the original plan of the two facing off at The Show of Shows is still on.
Dave Meltzer reported that WWE is going ahead with its original plans for both world titles, despite Lesnar winning the WWE Championship at Day 1.
"I know that they’ve got everything worked out between now and WrestleMania. Everything is worked out. All the original plans, there were some changes obviously because the Lesnar and Roman Reigns match from Saturday didn’t happen, but they’ve got their new twists and turns, and the final destination, which is presumably Lesnar and Roman Reigns, is still on," Meltzer said.
We will find out how WWE manages to get things back on track on the Road to WrestleMania. Could Brock Lesnar lose his title to Bobby Lashley at Royal Rumble? It is a possibility.
