WWE SummerSlam 2019: 5 Potential finishes for Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins will challenge Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship in what is expected to be the main event of the 2019 WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view.

The rivalry between the two men started in January 2019 when Rollins won the Royal Rumble to set up a Universal Championship match against “The Beast” at WrestleMania 35.

The former Shield member went on to defeat Lesnar in the opening match of the main PPV, earning the nickname “Beastslayer” in the process, and he began his first reign with the title by defending it against AJ Styles and Baron Corbin between April and July.

During that time, Lesnar surprisingly won the Money In The Bank ladder match in May before cashing in on Rollins at the end of the Extreme Rules PPV in July, becoming a three-time holder of the Universal Championship.

Since then, Rollins has won a 10-Man Battle Royal to set up another rematch at SummerSlam, while Lesnar has repeatedly punished his rival with brutal beatdowns on Raw in the build-up to their meeting in Toronto on August 11.

So, with this match likely to signal the end of the seven-month storyline, will Lesnar retain and emerge as the overall winner of the rivalry? Or will Rollins defeat his beastly opponent once again?

Let’s take a look at five potential finishes to their SummerSlam encounter.

#5 Brock Lesnar destroys Seth Rollins in a squash match

If The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels’ WWE legacies are defined by WrestleMania, then perhaps Brock Lesnar should be defined by his legendary battles at SummerSlam.

One of the Universal Champion’s most famous matches at the PPV came at SummerSlam 2014, where he hit 16 German suplexes on John Cena in one of the most one-sided main events in WWE history.

Now, although Seth Rollins has been among WWE’s top good guys between 2016-2019, there is no question that his momentum as a babyface has gradually deteriorated over the last few months.

Lesnar's rival has come out second-best in every altercation he has had with “The Beast” recently, so is it really believable that he stands even the slightest chance of defeating the former UFC star in a regular one-on-one match?

Based on the evidence of their Raw interactions lately, this could be another dominant Lesnar victory, sealed with his trademark F-5.

#4 Paul Heyman betrays Brock Lesnar

One night after the 2019 Royal Rumble, Seth Rollins received one of the loudest crowd reactions of the year when the Phoenix fans chanted “Slay The Beast! Slay The Beast!” towards the former Shield member as he weighed up whether to challenge for the WWE Championship or Universal Championship at WrestleMania 35.

Fast forward seven months and, sadly for Rollins, he no longer has the huge amount of vocal support from fans that he had earlier this year, as shown on the latest episode of Raw when his defiant promo about facing Lesnar at SummerSlam earned no reaction from the crowd.

WWE’s decision-makers desperately need to make a change to Rollins’ babyface character to avoid him becoming another good-guy Superstar who ends up receiving occasional boos from the audience – and that’s where Paul Heyman could come in.

Brock Lesnar’s advocate previously betrayed “The Beast” at Survivor Series 2002, where he helped The Big Show win the WWE Championship, while a possible split with Lesnar was teased throughout the summer of 2018.

The best betrayals happen when fans least expect it, and is anybody expecting Heyman to slide a steel chair into the ring to cost Lesnar in his match against Rollins on Sunday? No!

Granted, this may seem like an outlandish suggestion, but it would be the perfect way to split up Heyman and Lesnar whilst allowing “The Beastslayer” to reclaim the Universal Championship without damaging his opponent’s character.

#3 Brock Lesnar wins via TKO

Brock Lesnar’s SummerSlam résumé reads as follows: defeated The Rock, lost against Kurt Angle, defeated Triple H, defeated CM Punk, defeated John Cena, lost against The Undertaker, defeated Randy Orton, defeated Roman Reigns, Samoa Joe & Braun Strowman, lost against Roman Reigns.

Out of those nine matches, the 2016 main event against Randy Orton stands out as one of the most memorable in SummerSlam history, simply because the UFC-style finish – several elbows to the head, causing Orton to bleed profusely – is not something that is normally seen in WWE.

The incident even caused a backstage altercation between Lesnar and Chris Jericho, who squared up to “The Beast” because he felt that he went off-script by attacking Orton in the way that he did.

Three years on from that finish, it would be a hugely controversial decision if Seth Rollins played the role of Orton at the 2019 SummerSlam event. But when you consider the attacks we have seen on Raw in recent weeks, it is difficult to see how Lesnar’s beatdowns on Rollins can get any more brutal.

Is it really possible for Lesnar to go from repeatedly F-5ing Rollins onto a steel chair, causing him to bleed from the mouth, to then winning a regular one-on-one match with no weapons or brutality involved?

The next step surely has to be for the Universal Champion to unleash an even more vicious approach in his next in-ring battle with Rollins, which could mean another TKO triumph.

#2 Seth Rollins wins a No Disqualification match

As we previously alluded to, this rivalry between Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins has become so violent that it feels like something is missing ahead of their match at SummerSlam.

That something, perhaps, is a stipulation, as WWE is currently listing the match as a regular one-on-one encounter, which seems bizarre when you take into account the incidents that we have seen involving both men on Raw in recent weeks.

In the words of Paul Heyman, Rollins was “beaten, victimised and conquered” by Lesnar when the Universal Champion threw his rival around the arena – and out of an ambulance – on the July 30 episode of Raw.

The following week, the former UFC fighter inflicted a similar attack on Rollins in the middle of the ring, prompting the No.1 contender to reveal that he has questioned whether he should continue putting his body through so much punishment in his bid to win back the Universal Championship.

WWE has been known to add No Disqualification stipulations to matches on PPV kickoff shows in the past, including at SummerSlam 2013 before Lesnar vs. CM Punk, and it would make sense for Lesnar vs. Rollins to receive the same treatment on Sunday.

If that does indeed happen, then at least “The Beastslayer” will stand a realistic chance of winning with the use of weapons.

#1 The Fiend causes a disqualification

Bray Wyatt will compete in his first match in almost a year when his “Fiend” character makes his in-ring debut against Finn Balor at SummerSlam.

The match is less about the winner – Wyatt is the overwhelming favourite – and more about the direction of the intriguing “Fiend” persona after SummerSlam, with Balor reportedly due to take a two-month sabbatical.

Will Wyatt continue to feud with mid-card Superstars after the PPV? Or will WWE let him loose on Superstars further up the card, such as Brock Lesnar?

There would be few complaints from fans if WWE took the latter approach, especially if it means there will be an exciting finish at SummerSlam with Wyatt’s “Fiend” holding the Universal Championship above his head after attacking Lesnar and/or Seth Rollins to cause a disqualification in the main event.

Besides, if Sunday really is going to mark the end of the Lesnar vs. Rollins rivalry, who is going to realistically step up and challenge “The Beast” next?

The only people who have enough momentum right now to be seen as possible winners against Lesnar are Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman, but both men have had multiple battles with the Universal Champion in the past.

With so much buzz around Wyatt right now, there is no doubt that a refreshing rivalry between Lesnar and “The Fiend” would be a huge hit with fans.