3 Possible Outcomes for Brock Lesnar at Royal Rumble 2020
When an appearance by Brock Lesnar was advertised for January 6 episode of RAW, it was largely speculated that he was appearing in order to set up a match for his WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble PPV. Rumours were rampant about that opponent being Rusev, but that didn't wind up being the case.
As we know now, WWE had an entirely different storyline planned for ‘The Beast’ at Royal Rumble. Citing a lack of worthy competitors in the RAW roster, Paul Heyman announced that instead of defending his title, Brock would instead be taking part in the men’s Rumble match, entering from number 1 position. Though WWE superstars announcing their entry into the Royal Rumble match number is quite common, the top champion of the company has not entered the match since the stipulation of winning a championship match at WrestleMania was instituted (except when Roman Reigns had to defend his title in 2016, but that's a different scenario altogether).
With this unexpected turn of events, WWE also opened up many avenues for the WWE Championship picture heading into WrestleMania. This move will likely lead to the start of a new rivalry for Lesnar, which one would expect to culminate into a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 36.
Let us take a look at three possible outcomes from Brock’s involvement in the Royal Royal match.
#3 Lesnar goes the distance and wins the match
This is the most unlikely of all the possible outcomes, but given WWE’s penchant for ceaselessly pushing Brock Lesnar and having him do things nobody else has done before (ending The Streak, for example), it cannot be entirely ruled out.
Winning the match would essentially set up ‘The Beast’ Brock Lesnar versus ‘The Fiend’ Bray Wyatt in what could potentially be a double title match at WrestleMania. While this match would surely generate a lot of intrigue among wrestling fans, it my no be the right time for this match to take place.
Putting on a match between Brock and Bray would eliminate having both of the top titles being defended at WrestleMania, which would take away a big opportunity for at least two other Superstars. WWE has a diverse roster, stacked with many main event calibre Superstars and fan favourites. Because of that, the card should feature as many of the top names as possible in prominent roles. Having a double title match disallows this from happening.
#2 Brock exits the ring early only to return towards the end of the match
After dominating for the first few minutes of the Royal Rumble match, Brock may leave the ring without being eliminated. It could be intentional, similar to the way Vince McMahon was able to exit the match way back in 1999, or forced due to a brutal attack, similar to what happened in the fatal four-way match for Universal Title at SummerSlam 2017.
Most of the heavy lifting will be done by other superstars throughout the match, and when Brock returns towards the end of the match, he becomes a big threat to all of the remaining Superstars.
After dominating a few opponents, he may be eliminated by an underdog like Ricochet, a larger man such as Rusev, or even the monstrous Drew McIntyre, who looks to be on the verge of a face turn -- eliminating Lesnar from the Rumble could be a big momentum builder for the Scottish Psychopath. Any man who eliminates Lesnar would be likely to go on to challenge him for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania
While this may prove to be a very intriguing direction for Brock Lesnar, there may be an even better possibility.
#1 Brock gets eliminated early
Brock Lesnar may dominate the first few minutes of the Royal Rumble match, pulling off a few quick eliminations only to be eliminated unceremoniously by someone like Drew McIntyre or Rusev, or even Cain Velasquez to set up an inevitable rematch. Another possibility is that Lesnar is the first one to be eliminated, which would be extremely shocking.
Brock, taking umbrage to his elimination, may in turn cause his attacker to also be eliminated from the match. Even better, maybe, instead of eliminating that Supersrar, Brock may just deliver a brutal beat down. It could end up biting him in the behind if he does that, because that man could then go on to win the match and, with an extra fire burning inside him due to Lesnar's attack, go on to challenge The Beast for his WWE Title at WrestleMania.
Though some may argue that this mode of elimination may affect his credibility as a dominant force, it is not true. He has been built so strongly throughout his career, that a quick elimination will do him no harm. On the contrary, it may benefit the one who eliminates him by bringing a huge spotlight on him. Even someone with zero momentum heading into the match could end up come out of it as a legitimate threat to Brock Lesnar’s title reign.
If handled with adequate care by WWE, this revenge storyline may prove to be a highlight for WrestleMania and may even headline the pay per view and create a brand new star.