My Friday column for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review is all about the legacy of Brock Lesnar. Here’s an excerpt:
Beating Brock Lesnar in a WWE ring has become the new version of what The Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak stood for.
In the final five years of The Undertaker’s undefeated run at WrestleMania, a match with him on the big stage and opportunity to beat him was greater than a world title. A world title can be lost, the notoriety of a match with The Undertaker can’t.
Lesnar shocked the world, including his peers in the locker room who were left out of the know on the planned finish of the match, when he beat The Undertaker at WrestleMania 30 in 2014. To add to the historic night, it became well-documented Vince McMahon left WrestleMania before it was over for the first time to accompany The Undertaker to the hospital after he collapsed backstage from the effects the match had on him physically.
Since then, Lesnar has been the most impressive and dominating performer in WWE. His next match after WrestleMania 30 was SummerSlam in August, where the construction of Suplex City happened. The Beast hurled then-WWE Champion John Cena across the ring, landing on his head over a dozen times. It was a vicious and decisive victory over one of the most accomplished WWE stars ever.
There’s an unprecedented novelty for professional wrestling in seeing Lesnar perform. It has been protected as a must-see event because of the physical display he puts on and WWE’s protection to keep him from being over-exposed. Months can go by between Lesnar’s appearances or matches, and every match is the main event.
WWE is running out of guys who are fresh opponents for Lesnar that bring a sense of a fighting chance. Most recently, Randy Orton was one of the better and last options to go with. The two had only had one match, and that was on SmackDown in 2002. Orton also presents imposing size and a tough look that resembles that of an MMA fighter.
Orton, of course, got the loss and 10 staples in his head after being cut open by Lesnar’s elbow shots to the skull to force the TKO stoppage that WWE was aiming for. The two will fight again in a few weeks in a non-televised show in Chicago, and more of the same is expected.
It brings the question of who, if anyone, will beat Brock Lesnar?
Someone will beat Lesnar. You can make a case nobody should and nobody ever could legitimately. But it’s entertainment, and somebody will, because otherwise it’s a waste. It’s a waste of all the status Lesnar has built up.
The same way The Undertaker’s streak built up value like a trust fund waiting to be passed on, Lesnar’s legacy is growing. Whenever WWE decides to have someone really beat Brock Lesnar in a clean, one-on-one fashion — and that someone isn’t already a legend or Hall of Famer — it will be a greater crown than any piece of hardware around a waist.
Right now, I can only see two people under WWE contract who possibly could be positioned as credible threats to Lesnar in the next few years.
CLICK HERE for the two possible opponents to beat Lesnar and why.
