A new report has identified Jacob Fatu, Bron Breakker, and Cody Rhodes as the leading candidates for a program designed to have a superstar ultimately “slay” Brock Lesnar. The long-term strategy follows Lesnar’s dominant victory over John Cena at Wrestlepalooza in Indianapolis on September 20, which was reportedly booked to re-establish The Beast Incarnate as an unstoppable force.
According to the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE’s creative direction is to elevate Lesnar’s kayfabe strength to extreme levels, with the goal of eventually giving a rising star the rub from defeating him. Dave Meltzer explained: “The match was all about making Lesnar as strong as possible, getting a last match with Cena, and the feeling Cena more than anyone is bullet proof no matter what they do with him. They are spending a ton to get Lesnar and the idea is to make him a monster and have someone slay the monster. It would be more valuable saving the big and first Lesnar loss for Jacob Fatu or Bron Breakker, unless Cody Rhodes needs a challenger and if they feud, in the end, Rhodes does have to get a win.”
The angle was set in motion at Wrestlepalooza, which marked Lesnar’s first match in two years. In what was billed as his final encounter with Cena, Lesnar delivered six F-5s to secure the victory and continued the assault after the bell.
Reports have since dismissed speculation that Cena was originally booked to win. Meltzer directly addressed the rumor, clarifying that a Lesnar loss was never under serious consideration: “We were told that was not the case, and that Lesnar was not brought back to lose his first match. There are always discussions and the idea may have been broached for Cena to win, as most expected, but it was never a serious discussion or ever the planned finish.”
This was corroborated by Billi Bhatti on the Wrestling Informer podcast. Bhatti stated: “I can tell you that that story is 100% bulls–t. Brock Lesnar was winning that match all the time, throughout the entire time Brock Lesnar was winning. John Cena did not need to come to television or come to the show on Saturday and say that he wanted the finish changed to Brock Lesnar winning.”
Despite its storyline importance, the match itself received poor reviews. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter rated it two stars, while ESPN’s Andreas Hale gave it a C- in his September 22 review, the lowest grade of the event. Hale described the bout as little more than a setup for a future angle.