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As one of WWE’s highest-profile stars, it is only natural that Brock Lesnar sometimes has a say in which opponents he feuds with on television.
The former UFC Heavyweight Champion has been involved in rivalries with almost every top star in WWE over the last two decades. From The Rock and Triple H to John Cena and Roman Reigns, The Beast Incarnate has done battle with the best of the best.
Speaking to the Associated Press in 2016, Lesnar played down suggestions that he has backstage power to influence his own storylines.
“This is a job and I’m not caught up into it like maybe I’m supposed to be,” Lesnar said. “I approach this as, I’m a skilled worker. I clock in, I clock out. People pay to watch me and, by chance, I guess they find me entertaining… When I look back and what I’m proud of is the money in my bank account.” [H/T Wrestling Inc.]
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Despite those comments, several stories have emerged over the years about the eight-time WWE World Champion attempting to change his bookings and storyline developments.
In this article, let’s take a look at five ideas that Lesnar allegedly disagreed with during his WWE career.
#5 Brock Lesnar did not want to break The Undertaker’s undefeated streak
If Brock Lesnar had his way, he would not have been the person to conquer The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania.
Former WWE commentator and executive Jim Ross answered fans’ questions at a Q&A with Shawn Michaels in Manchester, England in 2015. A recap of the event from Wrestling Inc. featured an interesting comment from Ross about Lesnar’s reluctance to defeat his legendary opponent.
“The Undertaker's undefeated WrestleMania streak ending is discussed, and Michaels admits that he wasn't a fan of the decision, and neither was JR,” the report stated. “JR talked about Brock Lesnar not wanting to beat the streak and asking to lose the match, but the decision had been made.”
The Undertaker has previously spoken about Vince McMahon deciding to book Brock Lesnar as the person to end his 21-match winning run at WrestleMania. During a conversation with Kane in 2020, The Brothers of Destruction both agreed that Roman Reigns should have been the person to defeat him first.
#4 Brock Lesnar disagreed with his WrestleMania 35 match position
Seth Rollins’ WrestleMania 35 win over Brock Lesnar was supposed to take place before the Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey main event. However, a last-minute change saw the two men kick off the main pay-per-view instead.
The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported that Lesnar and Paul Heyman changed the match position on the day of the show. Due to the short notice, even WWE legend Hulk Hogan was unaware that Heyman was going to interrupt him in the opening segment.
Speaking in a WWE Break It Down video, Rollins confirmed that he did not expect to go on first when he showed up to WrestleMania.
“We opened the show, which was not the original card,” Rollins said. “You know, WWE is crazy and things change on a whim sometimes and that was one of them. The difference between going on close to midnight and going on at 7pm or 6pm, or whatever it is, is night and day, literally.”
Seth Rollins, a babyface at the time, went on to defeat Brock Lesnar in one of the biggest feel-good moments of the night. The two men continued to feud throughout 2019, leading to Rollins defeating Lesnar again in the main event of SummerSlam.
#3 Brock Lesnar did not want to face Bob Holly in South Africa
Brock Lesnar defeated Bob Holly (a.k.a. Hardcore Holly) in a six-minute match at the 2004 Royal Rumble to retain the WWE Championship. Four weeks after that match, Lesnar defeated Holly in a series of matches at WWE live events in South Africa.
Writing in his book, Death Clutch, Lesnar said he disagreed with WWE executive John Laurinaitis about the South Africa trip. While he respected Holly’s professionalism and work ethic, The Next Big Thing did not believe their match was needed on the show.
“Now I have to travel all the way to South Africa to work with Bob Holly?” Lesnar wrote. “Could anyone please tell me why? I knew no one would pay to see that match. Since I’m not really needed, give me some time off. I really needed the break by this time, but John Laurinaitis told me how much I’m needed on the card. AGAINST BOB HOLLY? Are you sh***ing me?” [H/T What Culture]
Despite his unhappiness in WWE around that time, Brock Lesnar went ahead with the South Africa tour and faced Bob Holly at three consecutive events. The Beast Incarnate left WWE in March 2004, two weeks after his last match against Holly.
#2 Brock Lesnar allegedly disagreed with his WrestleMania 32 booking
In 2016, Brock Lesnar defeated Jon Moxley (f.k.a. Dean Ambrose) at WrestleMania 32 in one of the most disappointing matches of the night.
The 13-minute match, which had a No Holds Barred Street Fight stipulation, received criticism due to its lack of excitement and weapons. Moxley famously said on The Stone Cold Podcast that he was “met with laziness” from Lesnar when he suggested ideas for the match.
The former Shield member elaborated on that remark in an interview with PW Torch’s Wade Keller in 2019. He claimed Lesnar, who main-evented the previous year’s WrestleMania against Roman Reigns, did not want to face him at WrestleMania 32.
“[Brock Lesnar] didn’t wanna be there, I mean he just put in the — and then the week leading up, I’m like — because this thing is a Street Fight,” Moxley said. “It’s not a match you can just call in the ring. It’s a Street Fight at WrestleMania, so we’ve gotta get stunts approved and set up, we’ve gotta get props for table bumps, or whatever we’re gonna do. I pitched all this stuff to everybody, all the producers and I feel like I’m just getting ignored.” [H/T 411mania]
A man of few words, Brock Lesnar hardly ever gives media interviews or makes public appearances. As of the time of writing, he has never given his behind-the-scenes take on why the match was not as successful as people had hoped.
#1 Brock Lesnar did not agree with the original SummerSlam 2018 finish
Brock Lesnar lost the Universal Championship to Roman Reigns in the main event of WWE SummerSlam 2018. The finish to the match saw Reigns hit a distracted Lesnar with a spear after Braun Strowman threatened to get involved from ringside.
In another story from Wade Keller’s interview with Jon Moxley, details emerged about Lesnar disagreeing with the original finish to the show.
Moxley revealed that WWE’s writers planned for The Shield to reunite and celebrate Reigns’ title victory at the end of the pay-per-view. However, The Beast Incarnate successfully pitched a different idea to WWE Chairman Vince McMahon shortly before the show began.
“Brock comes in at 6pm and changes everything,” Moxley said. “And Vince is like, ‘Okay, we’re gonna go with Brock’s idea,’ and it made everybody else look stupid except Brock, and the writers are just sitting there watching it in a room and they’re just like, ‘Come on, we had this great ending to the show...’”
The last-minute booking alteration meant The Shield reunited on the post-SummerSlam 2018 episode of RAW instead. Meanwhile, Brock Lesnar ended up looking strong in defeat thanks to Strowman’s ringside distraction.
