Due to his highly inconsistent schedule, Brock Lesnar has lost a significant amount of goodwill from WWE‘s fan base. Once heralded as the destructive anti-hero and the karmic answer to John Cena‘s corniness, ironically it’s the Beast Incarnate that fans are begging to be unseated.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Lesnar’s current WWE contract is set to expire right after WrestleMania 34. However, WWE does possess the power to exercise an option that will keep the current Universal Champion under contract until August 2018.
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But should they execute that clause? Or is it best to allow Lesnar to walk away from WWE?
A report from Forbes estimates that Brock Lesnar made $12 million in 2016, and with his ultra-convenient schedule Brock we can guess that Brock made about $1 million per WWE appearance. Life is good for the Beast.
However, thanks to his hyper-Brock-friendly dates and his lucrative salary, Lesnar is by far the most expensive employee in WWE. The argument could be made that WWE could be better off without him.
As great as Brock is, his routine absences feel like he’s holding WWE and the Universal Championship hostage.
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To WWE fans, a part-time champion is an ultimate heel. That’s why when WWE Superstars get into verbal spats with John Cena they never hesitate to point out his diminishing schedule. It’s all too easy to drum up sentiments of betrayal, selfishness, and greed for the guys like Cena and Lesnar who bounce from WWE to their personal projects. The part-time Superstars are only in it for themselves. They don’t care about the fans and the sooner they leave for good the better.
Give me a “hell yeah!”
Now that we’ve established that Lesnar is more or less a high paid vulture of WWE’s money and our pure passion it’s probably best that WWE shows him the door after WrestleMania 34, right?
Wrong. Very, very wrong.
As much as Lesnar makes, the value Lesnar offers (both tangible and intangible) is incalculable. Realistically speaking, WWE can’t pay him enough.
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Let’s take a trip back to 1998 when Mike Tyson made a few cameos in WWE. Whenever Jim Ross famously exclaimed “Tyson and Austin, Tyson and Austin!” during an in-ring bar fight between Stone Cold and Iron Mike, the Monday Night Wars with WCW were effectively finished. While it would take a few more year to play out, WWE won in that single moment.
Tyson was the most bankable name in all of the sports and a legitimate real-life heel. However, he was intoxicating to watch. The fact that the most legitimate fighter on the planet was now in the world of professional wrestling helped WWE temporarily shed every negative stigma that came with their business.
In 2017, Brock Lesnar is Mike Tyson. Seeing that heavyweight boxing is dead, the Heavyweight Champion of UFC is now the “Baddest Man on the Planet.” Not too long ago, Lesnar was literally the king of both UFC and WWE.
This type of legitimacy is something Vince McMahon has been praying for ever since Mike Tyson left WWE in the late 90’s. His invocations were mostly answered with Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle, but his hopes wouldn’t truly manifest until Brock began pursuing his MMA career. In the same instant Brock Lesnar knocked out Randy Couture in 2008, Vince McMahon might as well have been shaking hand with the Devil himself.
This is why Brock Lesnar was fed the Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak. This is why WWE allows him to come and go when he pleases. This is why Vince McMahon never hesitates to make Brock Lesnar his Champion. Vince and WWE are all too aware that opportunities like this simply do not come around.
If WWE were a zoo, having Lesnar it would be like having the Loch Ness Monster in a wave pool. So not only should WWE lock down Lesnar with another contract, but they will. Regardless of how honorary fans may get with Lesnar’s apathy, we all love to see him toss things around.
Here’s to hoping Brock Lesnar is still F-5’ing things in the year 2029.
