The rumor of Brock Lesnar’s return resurfaces frequently, but sources with an excellent track record confirmed the story this time. While not surprising, it’s still disappointing.
Lesnar was last seen getting ousted by Cody Rhodes, the company’s top star, fourteen months ago. Since then, WWE has thrived like never before, and to be blunt, the company has moved past the need for Lesnar.
While Lesnar wasn’t named in the Janel Grant lawsuit, the Wall Street Journal and the Mr. McMahon Netflix documentary identified him as the former UFC fighter referenced. The suit alleges Vince McMahon used Grant as a sexual bargaining chip while negotiating to re-sign Lesnar in 2021.
History was made last Friday when Gunther became the longest-reigning WWE Intercontinental Champion of all time. Friday was day 455, topping the Honky Tonk Man’s 36-year record.
Honky Tonk Man won the title from Ricky Steamboat in June 1987 and lost it to the Ultimate Warrior at the inaugural SummerSlam in 1988.
Gunther beat Ricochet on the June 10, 2022 edition of SmackDown to win the title. In the main event of the 9/4/23 episode of Raw, Gunther defeated Chad Gable to ensure he would break the record.
Seeing a dominant wrestler carry the workhorse title to record-breaking success is nice. Honky Tonk Man could draw more heat than a furnace on Elm Street. However, his work in the ring looked too phony to take him seriously.
Whether it’s turning on his family or hiding behind his on-screen girlfriend, Rhea Ripley, Dominik Mysterio is an enigma people love to hate. He’s essentially Ziggy from The Wire (If you know, you know).
Cowardly saboteurs are commonplace in wrestling. MJF does a great job in the role in AEW as their world champion.
However, MJF drips with arrogance because he’s as good as he says he is but chooses to cheat. On the other hand, Dominik’s hubris immensely exceeds his station, exacerbating the crowd heat he garners.
After focusing his long-running daddy issues on Cody Rhodes, Dominik has a date with “The American Nightmare” on July 1st at Money in the Bank. The match-making segment on Raw ended with Rhodes calling Brock Lesnar a coward for not answering his challenge for a third encounter.
Like Wile E. Coyote, a lightbulb went on in my head. Rhodes’ crack about Lesnar was the spark. It’s all so clear now.
Ric Flair said it best when he proclaimed the WWE Championship “is the only title in the wrestling world that makes you number one. When you are the king of the WWF, you rule the world.” No title is more coveted, and no belt symbolizes success more.
Many wrestlers spend years grinding it out to prove they have what it takes for WWE to put them front and center on the marquee. Bret Hart thought he’d never win the title. Eight years, one month, and fourteen days later, “The Hitman” hoisted the title up high.
However, an elect few made such an impression in a short time; tenure and inexperience were ignored to serve the bottom line. We’re going to look at the 12 wrestlers who won their first WWE Championship in the fastest time since Vincent Kennedy McMahon went all in on Hulkamania in 1984.
Bob Backlund won his first WWE Championship four months after he started working for the company exclusively under Vincent J. McMahon. The now-retired McMahon inherited Backlund when he bought the company from his father in 1982 and therefore did not make our list.
Universal and World Heavyweight Championships are not on the menu here. It’s all about the most coveted prize in the industry.
The fairest way to chart the list is to start when the wrestler made their in-ring/television debut in a match or angle. Many debut matches were filmed days, weeks, and months before they aired on television. To the audience, a character is only in play once they’re on TV.
Paul Levesque’s body of work in NXT suggested his creative style was more pro wrestling than sports entertainment. That couldn’t have been further from the truth, as he struck the perfect balance on Saturday to produce a SummerSlam for the ages.
Roman Reigns closing out the show #AndStill champion could signify the shroud of Vince McMahon looming over the new era of WWE. One could be forgiven for conjuring such an idea. After all, wrestling has embedded the art of “the worfans’ minds of fans everywhere.
Bianca Belair’s victory over Becky Lynch, followed by Bayley’s reemergence along with Io Shirai and Dakota Kai’s introduction to the main roster, set a pronounced pace and tone to open the show.
It was a statement that things are going to be different.
The multiverse of madness shifted tonight’s SummerSlam to the end of July instead of its usual spot on the calendar at the end of August. Nissan Stadium in Nashville is the site of what was just another edition of WWE’s “biggest party of the summer.” Now it will be the company’s first major event without Vince McMahon.
Paul “Triple H” Levesque is officially the head of creative, and we’ll see how he plays the game with our viewing pleasure. Do you see what I did there? “How well he plays the game?” Because he’s called “The Ga….”
Unless he contributed to this week’s episode of NXT, Raw on Monday was the last piece of pro wrestling content Vince McMahon will ever create.
July 22, 2022, will be a day-long remember when the biggest announcement in the history of the industry occured. At 4:05 PM Friday, Vince McMahon announced his retirement from WWE on Twitter.
The company followed up with a full statement issued by McMahon confirming his complete retirement from WWE, including the head of creative. Stephanie McMahon and Nick Kahn will assume the role as the new co-CEOs of the company.
WrestleMania 38 Night 2 kicked off with an unexpected appearance by Triple H, who came to the ring, did his classic water spit, and left his wrestling boots in the middle of the ring, signifying his retirement from the squared circle. While H officially two weeks ago, it was on ESPN +. It was fitting for him to have one more meaningful appearance in front of a contemporary WWE crowd that he helped cultivate.
Some of the year’s biggest matches will occur this weekend at WrestleMania 38. It’s a fun time to reminisce on past Mania matches and think about those that never occurred. The Ultimate Show on the WWE Network booked the Ultimate WrestleMania Card.
The rules are you can pick any wrestler from any era who competed at a WrestleMania. Also, you can only use a wrestler once. So, I put my promoter’s cap on and created what I believe would be the Ultimate WrestleMania.
Since WrestleMania has been a two-night event for the last three years, I’m going to treat this card the same. Two nights, six matches each, and headlined by a blockbuster main event.
AJ Styles vs. Edge is the latest match added to WrestleMania 38 on April 2 and April 3 from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Edge blindsided Styles with a kick below the belt at the end of Monday Night Raw and gave him two conchairtos. Six matches are official, with several more rumored.
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