Whether that happens or not remains to be seen and will be mainly dependent on what WWE’s plan is here, but expect a fallout if WWE decides to keep the title on him long term. Unfortunately for the WWE Universe, members that do decide to wait things out and see if WWE corrects their mistake, here are some of the superstars that will be affected in the meantime.
As always, be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments below and also tell us how long you think Brock Lesnar will end up holding onto the title this time.
#8 Drew McIntyre
While Drew McIntyre originally looked like he was slated for a Universal title feud with Braun Strowman, it now seems like that won’t be the plan going forward. In fact, with the rumors circulating that Lesnar is only set for two dates in his new contract, it doesn’t look like Strowman or McIntyre will be getting anywhere close to the big red belt for a while.
Unfortunately for McIntyre, that is going to stall his ascent to the top of the card a bit and might force WWE to throw him back into the midcard for a while.
Of course there is always a chance that WWE pulls a 360 once they see how bad this decision is, but until then, don’t expect McIntyre to be anywhere near the title picture going forward.
#7 Roman Reigns
Believe it or not, Brock Lesnar winning the Universal title at Crown Jewel could have a profound impact on Roman Reigns and his career. In fact, if WWE keeps just giving the title back to Lesnar every time something happens to Reigns, it’s going to create a situation where the company is going to be afraid to take the title away from the Beast.
Beyond that, with all the attention that Brock Lesnar will receive when he shows back up to the octagon with the Universal title, it’s hard to imagine that WWE is going to pass up on that even for Roman Reigns. Whether that ends up happening or not remains to be seen, but the possibility is definitely out there with everything that’s been going on.
In the end, it’s going to be interesting to see who WWE sides with going forward and if they are actually willing to put Reigns back in the title hunt when he returns. Furthermore, the decision is going to be somewhat determined by how much publicity Lesnar can nab for WWE in the octagon, which might tip the scales in The Beast’s favor.
#6 Finn Balor
Another person that will be negatively affected by Brock Lesnar winning the Universal title at Crown Jewel is Finn Balor, who has not had a title shot since the night after SummerSlam and he had to wait over a year and a half just to get that. If nothing else, that means it’s going to be a long time before Balor is ever considered title worth again if ever.
Unfortunately for the WWE Universe that love to watch the extraordinary man that can do extraordinary things, that means he will most likely continue to toil away in the midcard for the foreseeable future. Of course, WWE will probably trot him out for the Survivor Series match or a multi-man title match, but he will never be a legitimate contender in either.
With that being said, Balor ever being a contender for the title again is contingent on whether WWE goes forward with Brock Lesnar as champion or not. If they do, however, fans can pretty much expect for Balor to get next to nothing storyline-wise and only occasionally do something that will be of interest.
He will still have awesome matches though!
#5 Bobby Lashley
For a guy that is supposed to look and smell like money, Bobby Lashley sure as hell doesn’t look like it without the big red belt around his waist. Unfortunately for Lashley and his hype man, Lio Rush, the goal of getting the belt around the big man’s waist has become infinitely harder after Lesnar won it at Crown Jewel.
In fact, with both Lesnar and Lashley currently heels at the moment, it’s highly unlikely that the two would meet for any kind of matchup. Furthermore, if WWE did decide to do a match between the two, they would have to turn Lashley into a face again, which would ruin the work they have done with him so far.
In the end, things don’t look good for Lashley right now and his whole back to dominate moniker is looking dumber by the minute. Beyond that, no matter how many squash matches Lashley can win or popular superstars he can beat up, it’s never going to compare to going one on one with The Beast for the belt.
#4 Dean Ambrose
Once again, Dean Ambrose finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and while WWE might do something with him later on, there’s no way he’s going anywhere near the title scene with Lesnar there. Furthermore, it looks like WWE might have little for him to do once his feud with Seth Rollins ends up concluding.
As always, WWE can always reverse this and start the process of putting the title on someone else, but that would involve WWE choosing to pass up on the massive publicity they would receive from UFC. Furthermore, WWE would have to find something else for Lesnar to do, which probably won’t happen after signing a new deal so abruptly.
Of course, Ambrose might have a shot at chasing the title for a few pay per views, especially since he is one of the few guys his size to go one on one with Lesnar, but it’s not like they are just going to put the belt on him.
Unfortunately for Ambrose, a loss so quickly after his newly minted heel turn could hurt Ambrose more than WWE not having him chase the title at all.
#3 WWE
While the WWE Universe wasn’t always behind Roman Reigns, a lot of that changed when Reigns became a fighting champion and promised to defend the championship every chance he got.
In fact, it was that characteristic alone that somewhat turned the tide in Reigns’ favor and at least made him a respected figure in the title scene.
With that being said Vince McMahon has killed credibility the title held and maybe even his own flagship show with the decision to put the title on Lesnar at Crown Jewel. Not only is that evident by how little the title will probably be defended now, but also by the outcry from fans after Lesnar beat Strowman with help from Baron Corbin.
In the end, WWE is going to suffer from this in multiple ways, including low ratings, low pay per view buys and maybe even some cancellation to the network.
#2 The WWE Universe
The WWE Universe deserves better than this - not only did fans have to wait over a year before Brock Lesnar finally lost the Universal title to Roman Reigns of Summerslam, but they also had to endure pay per view after pay per view where the title wasn’t even defended. With that being said and the signs pointing to it happening again, is it any surprise that the WWE Universe is unhappy over this decision?
Sure, Vince McMahon might be happy as a clam that Brock Lesnar will now step into UFC and give WWE added publicity in the process, but at what cost? It would be understandable if he defended the belt at every pay per view and acted like a fighting champion, but it just looks like a prop to show to the world if he doesn’t.
Maybe this changes and WWE does something to make all of this better, but it really doesn’t seem like it will happen anytime soon. In fact, with Lesnar not even scheduled to step into a UFC octagon yet, WWE might even have Lesnar hold onto the title until after the first fight, which could have catastrophic consequences for WWE.
#1 Braun Strowman
Let’s be honest here, Braun Strowman has been chasing the Universal title on and off for over a year now and while WWE had the perfect opportunity to finally grab the belt at Crown Jewel, WWE decided that Brock Lesnar was a safer bet. Interestingly enough, that seems to show that WWE has a lack of faith in their replacement for Roman Reigns at the top stop.
Of course, Strowman’s time at the top will probably be temporary, especially when Roman Reigns comes back from his battle with Leukemia, but it’s not a good sign that WWE didn’t put the belt on him at the overseas pay per view. In fact, it may prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the company does not see Strowman as a top guy.
In the end, maybe WWE can turn Strowman chasing the title into something interesting, but it doesn’t look like he will ever legitimately get his hands on it. Again, maybe all this changes if WWE gets a negative response over the course of the next few weeks, but until then, look for Lesnar to hold on to the belt for a while.
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