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Cain Velasquez's WWE debut went exactly how most people had predicted it to pan out. The former UFC Champion got squashed by Brock Lesnar in a two-minute match at WWE Crown Jewel. However, that wasn't the original plan.
Dave Meltzer explained the reason behind why WWE booked the highly-publicized match to be a short and forgettable contest for Velasquez on the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Meltzer revealed that the original idea was to have a Paul Heyman-influenced match littered with big moves, which would have been similar to Goldberg's matches with Brock Lesnar. However, Velasquez' knee injury was worse than expected and WWE didn't want to take any chances, which is why they ended up going with a brief match in which Lesnar went over the WWE debutant.
WWE didn't want Velasquez to do much in the Crown Jewel match as it could have aggravated his knee injury.
Here's what Meltzer wrote in the WON:
"Velasquez’s knee was worse than expected. The idea was always for a short match, with the Paul Heyman style Goldberg match lay out of big moves, but with Velasquez’s knee in such bad shape, they changed it to a match where nothing much happened. The belief is that he needs surgery. No word on the status of the Mexico City match but I’d think he’d want to do that one if possible. But after two very strong performances with AAA, the WWE version of Velasquez did absolutely nothing, and I can’t see anyone caring at all about him going forward. And he’s signed a high-dollar multi-year contract."
The WWE Championship showdown between the Beast Incarnate and the former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion went on early on the Crown Jewel main card.
The contest, which lasted for merely two minutes, ended when Lesnar forced Velasquez to tap out to the Kimura. The MMA-styled match didn't showcase Cain Velasquez' Lucha Libre move set and it was just another day in the office for Lesnar.
Velasquez is expected to undergo knee surgery soon, such that it will enable him to have a successful pro wrestling career. The 37-year-old Mexican has inked a multi-year deal with WWE and it will be interesting to see how Vince McMahon and co. utilize him going forward. Will he be pushed prominently after he gets his knee in order or will Velasquez end up being a failed experiment?
