3 reasons why Brock Lesnar should have dethroned Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel & 2 he shouldn't have

Roman Reigns faced Brock Lesnar in one of the biggest matches of the year at Crown Jewel 2021. While the match itself was one of the finest they've had in their series of bouts since 2015, the ending left a lot more questions than answers.

Paul Heyman threw the Universal Championship into the ring, potentially signaling at helping Brock Lesnar. However, Roman Reigns used the title and The Usos were The Tribal Chief's insurance policy as he defeated Brock Lesnar for only the second time in his career.

Roman Reigns' Universal Championship reign now extends to 417 days, and he is less than three months away from breaking Brock Lesnar's record-breaking 504-day Universal Championship run from 2017 to 2018.

Should Brock Lesnar have dethroned Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel? It was one of the best pay-per-views of the year, and it would have been a good way to cap it off since there were no title changes, to begin with.

However, a good show isn't the only reason to end arguably the greatest world title reign of this era. We examine both sides of the coin - why Brock Lesnar should have dethroned Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship and why he shouldn't have:

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#3. Should have: Brock Lesnar might be the only one who can credibly dethrone Roman Reigns right now

The big problem with Roman Reigns' current Universal Championship reign is that there's nobody credible to dethrone him. Roman Reigns' current run has been so good that even Money in the Bank winner Big E was forced to go to RAW and opt for the WWE title.

Big E was never going to dethrone Roman Reigns, which is why it made sense that he made the jump and cashed in on Bobby Lashley instead. Roman Reigns has gotten past the likes of Kevin Owens, Edge, Daniel Bryan (now Bryan Danielson), Cesaro and Rey Mysterio. Brock Lesnar has now been added to that list.

One could argue that out of all of the names in WWE, Brock Lesnar might be the only one who could credibly dethrone Roman Reigns without fans kicking up too much of a fuss.

Even Drew McIntyre, who was WWE's most important star in 2020, doesn't look like he's in a position to dethrone Roman Reigns following his move to SmackDown. McIntyre will be expected to challenge Roman Reigns soon, presumably after Survivor Series.

#2. Shouldn't have: Roman Reigns deserved to retain the title over Brock Lesnar

Although Roman Reigns' Universal title length is still shorter than Brock Lesnar's, that doesn't mean the quality has been the same. Brock Lesnar's entire run with the title was as a part-timer, and WWE often had to find ways to work around not having the main world title on RAW all the time.

It should be noted that it was nearly a 1-and-a-half year reign, and the last few months were exclusively used to feud with Roman Reigns. On the other hand, Roman Reigns has been a full-time dominant champion.

Although most weeks of SmackDown start and end with him, the character development has been incredible.

We argued that there's only one credible name to dethrone Roman Reigns. But if things are working, why try to change them? This is a different kind of lengthy and dominant reign, and it's the best of Roman Reigns' career. This was only Brock Lesnar's first match in 19 months, and Roman Reigns deserved to retain the Universal title more than Brock Lesnar deserved to win.

#2. Should have: Brock Lesnar winning would be a big shake-up to SmackDown's new era

Brock Lesnar wrestled his first free TV match in over 15-and-a-half years on the SmackDown on FOX premiere and he walked out as the WWE Champion after beating Kofi Kingston in ten seconds.

Brock Lesnar is a free agent but had he won the Universal title, it would have been a huge shake-up to Friday Night SmackDown. Although it isn't exactly the season premiere of SmackDown, it feels that way with the WWE Draft taking effect tomorrow onwards.

Roman Reigns' Universal title reign has been long enough where he has established a whole new side of his legacy. Losing it to Brock Lesnar at Crown Jewel wouldn't have harmed him as much as people think it would.

Sometimes in WWE and wrestling in general, a huge shake-up is needed. There would be an instant difference felt in programming, and it may positively reflect in the ratings as well for FOX.

#1. Shouldn't have: Brock Lesnar's part-time Universal title reign isn't needed right now

Although Brock Lesnar as the Universal Champion might be good for FOX's ratings, it isn't what WWE needs right now. There seems to be occasional usage of part-timers, with names like John Cena having lesser appearances by the year.

We haven't had part-time World Champions in a while, and perhaps it's better that way. WWE programming is better when it's carried by full-time talent. As great as Brock Lesnar is, another part-time Universal title reign from him isn't what's best for programming.

Roman Reigns is currently better suited to continue staying in his role, and fans seem to prefer that to Brock Lesnar's part-time status. It creates some problems in between, as it's known that Brock Lesnar will only compete in the "A" shows in early 2022 - meaning Royal Rumble and WrestleMania.

It's good to utilize part-time stars the way WWE is right now. The usage of Edge has been great, Goldberg put on his best match in four-and-a-half years against Bobby Lashley at Crown Jewel, and fans enjoy part-time stars more when they're used away from the main title pictures.

#1. Should have: Brock Lesnar winning would add a new dimension to the Paul Heyman story

As mentioned before, the story of the main event wasn't even fully about Brock Lesnar or Roman Reigns. It was the man with whom they both share a history - Paul Heyman.

While Heyman was once an advocate for The Beast Incarnate, he has been serving as the special counsel to The Tribal Chief throughout the duration of his Universal Championship reign.

Brock Lesnar insisted that he was friends with Heyman and their advocate. But things got tense before Crown Jewel, and the confusing finish was the boiling point.

It was Paul Heyman who slid the Universal title into the ring, hinting at helping Brock Lesnar. Roman Reigns took advantage instead, but there seems to be an indication of consequences for Paul Heyman.

With that said, we understand the decision for WWE not to have Paul Heyman turn on Roman Reigns immediately. It's simply too obvious to do it right now - and perhaps premature as well.

Brock Lesnar winning would have added another layer to the Paul Heyman story in between.