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A lot of big changes has happened in the Universal Title picture over the last couple of weeks. The Universal Title match between Strowman and Lesnar was originally scheduled for Royal Rumble but was changed to Finn Balor and Brock Lesnar instead.
Various reasons for this shift has been cited by many. Some believed that this was always the plan Vince McMahon's mind and for others, it was due to the growing popularity of AEW so WWE had to give former Bullet Club leader Finn Balor a shot at Raw's top title.
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For whatever reason it may have happened it has certainly set the ball rolling for the Universal Championship match at the Showcase of the Immortals. My knowledge regarding the reasons is as good as yours. With that being in mind we can do nothing except speculate what it could have been.
Today we are going to do exactly the same by listing out six possible scenarios for the top championship belt of the Raw brand at WrestleMania 35.
#5 Brock Lesnar (c) vs Seth Rollins
The aforementioned match has been rumoured to happen since Roman Reigns took time off to battle Leukaemia.
The way Rollins was booked for the better part of 2018 since Reigns' departure as the biggest face of the Raw roster further validated the speculation. Even his constant denoting of himself as the fighting champion unlike Lesnar was also indicative of the plans.
To be precise, The Kingslayer slaying The Beast at 'Mania will be a delight to watch. With that being said, the possibility of this match took a strike when the Rollins vs Ambrose match at TLC was booed by fans last year. Vince McMahon was believed to be unhappy by the reaction of fans and wanted an alternative.
Still, this can come to fruition with Rollins being the prima facie favourite to win the Rumble this year. According to me, Rollins for all his accolades deserves to conquer the mayor of 'Suplex City' at Mania for good.
#4 Brock Lesnar (c) vs Bobby Lashley
Two superstars who had a stint in WWE and MMA and still have never shared a ring together are Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley. It is a mistake which can be rectified by WWE at this year's Mania. Both Lashley and Lesnar are holding gold in WWE at the moment.
Lesnar has been running wild as Universal Champion for a long time now and Lashley's reign as IC Champion is relatively fresh. The prestigious championship has added a rejuvenated life to his character. A Champion vs Champion match at Mania will be a great idea. Even Lashley bemoaned in an interview about his dissent towards WWE for not pitting him against Lesnar last year.
Lashley was highly underutilised since his return to WWE on Raw after WrestleMania 35 only for Lio Rush to provide him with a wave of new energy. During the build to this feud, Rush and Heyman can go all shots against each other. Whilst it will be a fresh idea but WWE booking a Heel vs Heel feud is a very rare scenario these days.
#3 Brock Lesnar (c) vs Braun Strowman
One thing we learned from the opening segment of this weeks Monday Night Raw was that Strowman is not injured as what was thought earlier. Also, he could still be involved in the Universal Championship picture.
It is uncertain as of now whether Strowman will enter the Rumble match or not. WWE can swerve the audience by sending Strowman at No. 30 instead of R Truth. He can go on to win the Rumble this year. Strowman was the hottest superstar for the most part of 2018 but soon WWE's reluctance to crown him took away his charisma.
WWE can start the rebuilding process at Royal Rumble. The promo delivered by Strowman one week prior to his exile from the Rumble match clearly showed how badly he is in need of a manager. WWE can provide him with one during the build-up. The Monster finally conquering The Beast will be a fitting end to a two-year-long tyranny (excluding Reigns brief run as champion).
#2 Brock Lesnar (c) vs Demon Finn Balor/Finn Balor
Finn Balor has already stated he will not bring his demonic persona at the Royal Rumble PPV. This has further reduced Balor's chance of winning the Universal Championship. With that being said, WWE can build an interesting narrative from this match. Balor with all his might will try to slay Lesnar only to fall prey to him in the end. This will ignite a fire inside an otherwise smiling babyface and will force him to bring out The Demon residing inside him.
Balor disguised as Demon King can enter the Rumble and end up winning it. He has stayed on the sideline for far too long in his main roster career both due to injury and dismal booking. With this step, WWE can make Balor the biggest superstar in the entire WWE. Demon Finn Balor versus Brock Lesnar has all the crucial things needed to be worthy of a WrestleMania main-event spot.
It is almost certain that Lesnar is going to leave Royal Rumble as champion. It is also hard to argue that WWE is changing themselves for good in the recent times. If the company takes the risk of pulling the trigger on Balor's push then the Universal Championship match at 'Mania can turn into a rematch.
Whilst WWE has ended the contractual rematches in this new era, Lesnar can still demand one. To add more heat Vince may grant it as he was not happy with a superstar of Balor's size running his flagship show against which Triple H can defend Balor and his ability. This will create their rematch at WrestleMania 35 even more intriguing.
#1 Finn Balor (c) vs Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins or Drew McIntyre (Triple threat)
As we have already discussed a possibility in case Balor beats Lesnar at Royal Rumble here's another one.
There are high speculations regarding a Raw superstar winning the men's Royal Rumble this year after SmackDown won it for the last two years. With that being said the two favourites for the win are Rollins and McIntyre.
To be precise both these superstars will be great opponents for their in-ring technicality and ability. Even Balor and McIntyre were in a feud together few weeks prior.
A thing WWE can do here is to include Lesnar in perspective just like in the prior slide. This will turn the Universal Championship match at Mania into a triple threat affair.
The build-up to this match can be centred around Balor and the Royal Rumble winner with Lesnar doing sporadic appearances in-between.
Lesnar's presence may undermine the technical aspect of the match but Pro Wrestling has never been about only pure wrestling but more about emphatic storytelling which can be brought in this match.
