QUESTION: Brock Lesnar booking

[Mr. Nerfect]

Specifically: Now that it is clear Brock wants to be WWE World Heavyweight Champion, how do you keep the title off him for the immediate future? I mean, the WWE clearly didn't put the WWE Title on him at Battleground for a reason, even though Lesnar vs. Undertaker is being billed as the SummerSlam main event.

I've been scratching my head on this one for a while, as it seems that the WWE has booked themselves into a corner on this one. The obstacles are getting more and more contrived. The suspension angle was cute, but now that is up, how do you explain Brock's absences from WWE television?

Say the likely happens, and Brock beats Taker again at SummerSlam. Does it make sense for Paul Heyman to come out and say "Now that Brock Lesnar has beaten The Undertaker, he's going to take three months off before he comes back and challenges for the WWE Title"? That is surely disappointing, right?

They could run an injury angle, but doesn't that weaken The Beast too much? I have no idea how you keep the wheels spinning with this thing and keep the World Title off Brock Lesnar past Night of Champions. The best possible option is to probably "injure" Paul Heyman. If Brock's best friend is hurt because of enemies Brock has made, it not only provides a sympathetic and dramatic context to Brock's arc, but Lesnar might even wait on the sidelines until his comrade and somewhat of a handler returns to enact a focused revenge attack. But who would be insane enough to hurt Paul Heyman? An enraged Seth Rollins? Sheamus? A masochistic Wyatt Family?

Does anyone else have an ideas how you can keep the title off Brock Lesnar without reaching into the same transparent bag of tricks each time?

[Simple Fan]

Give him the IC title and have him issue open challenges when he appears.

[Johnny Vegas]

As a writer, an injury angle is probably the best route. After his title defense against the Undertake (if he retains it), he could suffer a backstage injury from a lead/steel pipe. Have makeup artist create a huge lump on his forehead or the back of his head so that it looks as real as possible. Have EMTs try to get him onto a stretcher, but being prideful, he walks himself onto the ambulance truck and he's taken away.

Head injuries are always the better angles when it comes to champions, imo.

[Maluco]

A well done injury angle could be intriguing. You could have a whodunnit story with it always on the back burner. Authority figures bringing it up, maybe occasional updates informing about clues and progressions in the "case".

The big problem with stories like that is, however, the disappointment at the reveal, so they would need a shock worthy culprit with a solid reason to do it, which would lead to a noteworthy Mania match.

The best would be Austin (tie in with Rikishi angle, recent podcast comments, dream match etc...). Kevin Owens would also make sense and I think he could be convincing in a role like that, and the match quality would probably be excellent.

[drave]

Have him get knocked in the head and be out for a bit. Then start running videos of him being taken in by The Wyatts because he has amnesia or something. This gives him a reason to grow the fight beard to epic proportions, give the Wyatt's new life and other spiffy stuff.

[drave]

The above post was not srsbsnss.

[rockman725]

I still believe what they should have done at Battleground was have Lesnar win, Taker show up to take him out, Sheamus cashes in. Following night on Raw, Rollins gets back the title with his rematch against Sheamus, Lesnar feuds with Taker, then later on down the road Brock seeks out the title again having lost the belt TWICE on MITB cash-ins.

As far as the belt is concerned, that scenario would have kept Lesnar looking strong for the long run.

[#1-norm-fan]

No more losing the belt on MITB cash-ins BS. He's arguably the most credible champion we've ever seen. It's bad enough that next time he holds the title, the "who's possibly gonna be able to beat him for it?" drama will be deadened a little by them giving everyone the idea that someone can just cash in and take it without conquering him. You don't want people EXPECTING it to happen now and killing all of the drama for good.

[Mr. Nerfect]

The cashing-in business isn't that bad. Except I wouldn't have Rollins win the title back. Have Sheamus keep the title, and Rollins enters into a feud with Cena over the US Title. It can begin the "Authority loses faith in Rollins as their guy" storyline. Or kick it into another gear if it's already started.

[Mr. Nerfect]

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of the head injury. It being Owens would make the most sense. It'd be a good way to "Get Brock's attention."

[#1-norm-fan]

You wanna keep up the idea that someone is gonna have to actually defeat Lesnar to take the title off of him. People would tune in to see that. The more you pass off the idea that they're just gonna do a copout and have him lose via cash-in, the less people care.

Not to mention the whole "Lesnar shouldn't lose until it's a big moment" thing.

[Dark One]

Have him get knocked in the head and be out for a bit. Then start running videos of him being taken in by The Wyatts because he has amnesia or something. This gives him a reason to grow the fight beard to epic proportions, give the Wyatt's new life and other spiffy stuff.

http://mmafighterswallpaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Beard-Brock-Lesnar-HD-Wallpaper.jpg

[Simple Fan]

No more losing the belt on MITB cash-ins BS. He's arguably the most credible champion we've ever seen. It's bad enough that next time he holds the title, the "who's possibly gonna be able to beat him for it?" drama will be deadened a little by them giving everyone the idea that someone can just cash in and take it without conquering him. You don't want people EXPECTING it to happen now and killing all of the drama for good.

If it happens again Brock should crash the next MITB match and suplex the shit out of every one in it and grab the case for himself, even if he is champion at the time.

[Damian Rey]

You could pull a page out of the Undertaker's book and have the entire heel roster destroy him. Just have him start mauling the authority left and right, only to have Triple H send every heel and their mother out to stop him. Have him take chair shot (to the back) after chair shot, put him through the announce table, throw him/hit him with the stairs, etc. Write him off.

Then have him come back in December, win a match to qualify for the Rumble, with the catch being he'd have to enter #1, and have him go the distance and rip through the other 29 guys,and into mania he goes to win back the belt.