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A week ago, I was depressed about Wrestlemania 31 and the future of the WWE. The best storyline arc for the last 3 years was the return of Brock Lesnar and his rise to be an unstoppable machine. Furthermore, the "rebirth" of Paul Heyman as a manager in the WWE has been quite awesome as well. Even when your personal favorites were receiving awful booking assignments, you could always count on Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman to always entertain. Funny thing is that the Brock Lesnar ship almost sank... Many forget that Vince McMahon almost sent Brock Lesnar home permanently following the Extreme Rules 2012 Pay Per View. Reportedly, Vince was FURIOUS that Brock Lesnar attended an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event and he was about to send Brock Lesnar home (swallowing the $5 million contract in the process). To show value in Triple H as an executive in the WWE, HHH took it upon himself to work with Brock Lesnar and convince Vince McMahon that Brock should not be sent home permanently. Thus, SummerSlam 2012's HUGE match-up happened and then Lesnar/HHH continued their feud through Wrestlemania 29 and then Extreme Rules 2013. The work with Triple H was actually enough for Vince McMahon to pick up the 2nd year option. Since that Triple H feud, Vince McMahon came to believe in Brock Lesnar to become his biggest asset in the company. Since Extreme Rules 2013, Brock Lesnar has been on an absolute TERROR! He'd go on to defeat CM Punk at SummerSlam 2013, destroy Big Show at Royal Rumble 2014, end the streak of Undertaker's at Wrestlemania 30, squash John Cena at SummerSlam 2014, and defeat both John Cena/Seth Rollins at Royal Rumble 2015. Vince's belief in Brock Lesnar actually built up the Lesnar brand to unbelievable heights and could have handed an even bigger draw than before to UFC on a silver platter. This time last week, I was seriously worried that Lesnar would go the UFC route after storming out of a late February RAW and appearing at the recent UFC event with company president Dana White. However, Brock signed an offer from the WWE he "couldn't refuse" in a 3 year extension for $3 million per year. I feel GREAT now as a WWE fan... I get to enjoy Brock Lesnar for another 3 years and in all probability, Paul Heyman too. Brock now has a real chance of adding significantly to his legacy and join the "Mount Rushmore of WWE" along with the extreme greats like Bruno Sammartino, Andre "the Giant", Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, the Rock and John Cena, the biggest draws and big match wrestlers in WWE history. Think of the potential matches we could see from Lesnar over the next 3 years: - Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan - Brock Lesanr vs. Randy Orton - Brock Lesnar vs. Bray Wyatt - Brock Lesnar vs. Rusev - Brock Lesnar vs. Rock #2 - Brock Lesnar vs. Sting - Brock Lesnar vs. Batista (if he comes back) - Brock Lesnar vs. Samoa Joe (if he joins WWE) And onward... I'm sure there are many wrestlers that other fans would rather see and that's fine. We're ALL HAPPY that Brock Lesnar is back and better yet, he didn't bankrupt the WWE to return for 3 more years. That's a good deal for the WWE at $3 million per and gives you legitimate reason to buy the WWE Network and retain it. For the first time, I'm actually considering buying the WWE Network because of the Brock Lesnar signing. His return is the type of move that I want to see from the WWE. It's a solid investment for the fans and anybody riding in the wake of Lesnar will benefit. The beauty is that Lesnar will get further and further away from his UFC career and will be getting older. WWE can easily tell the story about Lesnar when he starts losing and putting over talent regularly. In my opinion, the Brock Lesnar signing takes pressure off of Roman Reigns and I'm actually happy for the guy. I had nothing against Reigns... My issue was that for 2015, he wasn't ready to beat someone as well built up as Brock Lesnar. Just too inexperienced at this juncture compared to other talent on the roster. But now, even if Brock Lesnar still does lose, we still have THREE YEARS OF LESNAR to enjoy. If Lesnar loses, it's not the end of the world... Lesnar can get the WWE Title back or just move on to one of the matches listed above (or your picks). I see everybody predicting a SHIELD reunion of some sorts and I could actually live with that. WWE could use the Shield stable to build Reigns back up again if they so truly believe that he's "the one" to replace John Cena as the top guy for the future. Signing Lesnar actually avoids a Wrestlemania 20 debacle like what was seen during Brock Lesnar vs. Bill Goldberg and the misery throughout the night. It was well know that Bill Goldberg was leaving but Brock Lesnar's exit was very abrupt during 2004. He quit the WWE due to burnout of the WWE road schedule. Lesnar saw former WCW stars like Bill Goldberg getting a limited dates schedule and he wanted that as a perk of being the top guy. The nagging injuries of working nightly caught up to Lesnar as well and he saw how his friend, Kurt Angle, was struggling from the wear & tear of the business. For that Wrestlemania 20 match, both Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg lacked motivation to put on a great match because both guys were leaving the company. The crowd knew it, too, and shit all over this match in what is a very embarrassing moment in Wrestlemania history for the WWE. Now, however, Brock Lesnar signed a 3 year extension and the San Francisco fans will be more forgiving if Reigns wins... And with that, the pressure is off Reigns and he might wrestle a better match. Best of all, the Brock Lesnar re-signing adds amazing intrigue to Wrestlemania 31. Before, it was a forgone conclusion that Brock Lesnar would likely walk out of Wrestlemania 31 without the WWE Title whether it was Roman Reigns or Seth Rollins taking the belt. Now, however, there is a real possibility that Brock Lesnar retains the WWE. Furthermore, WWE's long-term plans are probably changing right now... Before Monday, the WWE had to consider the post-Lesnar era in the WWE and pushing other stars. I believe Wrestlemania 31 has been purposely booked to "make" new stars like Roman Reigns (wrestling Lesnar), Rusev (wrestling Cena), and Bray Wyatt (wrestling Undertaker). The immediate need or "sense of urgency" to make a star NOW has washed away a bit... WWE probably felt that Rusev and Bray Wyatt were developing nicely but Roman Reigns needed a boost by defeating Brock Lesnar. Now, they can be patient... Reigns could fail at Wrestlemania 31 but possibly get Lesnar back at SummerSlam 2015 or even Wrestlemania 32. Possibilities are endless now with Brock Lesnar... Life in the WWE has just significantly improved because they have retained their biggest star and at the exact time that they have many developmental stars on the rise (Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Rusev, Barrett, Wyatt, Harper, etc.). Meanwhile, John Cena and Randy Orton are still there along with other WWE veterans like Triple H, Undertaker, and the WCW veteran Sting. I would be very curious to see if Batista would return although Hollywood opportunities have just expanded for that guy after Guardians of the Galaxy was HUGE and will spawn many sequels. I would love to see Brock Lesnar's WWE return inspire the return of Shelton Benjamin (turning 40 this year) as he was the NCAA amateur wrestling teammate of Lesnar's at University of Minnesota and also tagged with Brock Lesnar in Ohio Valley Wrestling. Benjamin remains to be, in my opinion, the biggest opportunity lost to make a major superstar. Nobody performed like Benjamin in the ring... He was AMAZING! Brock Lesnar possibly leaving the WWE and WWE using his exit to possibly put over the wrong guy (Roman Reigns) placed a dark cloud over San Francisco and Wrestlemania 31... But now that has lifted! Brock is staying and we could live with Roman winning... Maybe. With the dark cloud gone, we can now look look forward to this weekend and actually consider that this might be a GREAT Wrestlemania event. As I said in another column, there's some decent matches here and it was just that the WWE Title match was such a drag. Lesnar's signing, however, upgrades the WWE Title match significantly and adds needed hype to that match. Now, Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar is worthy of the main event. You will NOT see San Francisco fans filing out... Fans in attendance at Wrestlemania 31 will be curious to see what happens because Brock Lesnar doesn't have to lose like before... Moving the Andre "the Giant" Battle Royal to the Pre-Game show was genius by the WWE. That gives the important matches (yes, I said it) more time to develop. Oh, the WWE is planning to have ridiculous entrances for this show? That's FINE... WWE was planning to have ridiculous entrances anyway... Freeing up 15-20 minutes will be beneficial for the rest of the matches losing time already because of the entrances. LESS IS MORE... Not every wrestler deserves to be on the Wrestlemania card. It should be a privilege to be on the Wrestlemania card and a carrot held over wrestler's heads to improve throughout the year. Besides, we already had a clusterfuck match with the Intercontinental Title ladder match. As seen by Cesaro doing nothing after his "big" Andre the Giant Battle Royal win, it's just a filler match that is worthy of the Pre-Game show. Most are going to watch it on the WWE Network, anyway, so thus it technically "makes" the Wrestlemania 31 show. But look at this FINAL Wrestlemania 31 Card: -Pregame: Andre "the Giant" Battle Royal -Pregame: Fatal 4 Way Tag Title Match -AJ Lee/Paige vs. Bella Twins -Seth Rollins vs. Randy Orton -Intercontinental Title Ladder Match -Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt -Rusev (c) vs. John Cena -Triple H vs. Sting -Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Roman Reigns That's a damn good show, on paper... I'm expecting that Seth Rollins vs. Randy Orton and John Cena vs. Rusev will be great in-ring battles. I figure that the Intercontinental Title Ladder Match will be fun and crazy. Honestly, I'm not expecting much with Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt but Wyatt is a fantastic worker and he might carry the older Undertaker to a great match. He should watch that Wrestlemania 29 match between CM Punk vs. Undertaker closely for tips... I've already said enough on Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns and just the mystery of the finish will keep the San Francisco fans and everyone watching at home on edge. But there are 2 matches that actually have me curious to see how good they could really be... For one, Bellas vs. AJ Lee/Paige could really revolutionize the Divas division. Both Bella Twins have improved in the ring, especially Nikki Bella now that she's healthy and in amazing shape. She's a little thicker than Brie but it's all muscle. Both of her recent matches with AJ and Paige have been impressive and not because she was working with AJ/Paige. Nikki was shining in those matches. Bellas are a natural fit as heels and AJ is very over as a babyface (although San Francisco will troll with "CM PUNK" chants, especially in light of recent Twitter drama). The match will have legitimate heat and will be well worked, in my opinion. If they pull off a great match, it could show what the WWE has been missing in the Divas division since Trish/Lita/Victoria/Mickie James left. The other match that has me fascinated is Triple H vs. Sting. I don't know what to expect from that match... I figure that both guys are veterans and know how to work a match as needed. But something close to 4 stars? I don't know... I saw what Triple H did with the Undertaker at both Wrestlemania 27 and 28. Sting will have major babyface heat behind him because this is actually his first WWE match AND first Wrestlemania. San Francisco fans are actually witnessing history in the making. Additionally, this match could be huge for Sting's wrestling career and gives him momentum for working over the next year. In my opinion, Sting cannot lose this match. If he loses, WWE has nothing with the guy... But if Sting wins, I could easily see Triple H getting revenge on Sting by forcing him to wrestle Brock Lesnar at Extreme Rules 2015. Who wouldn't want to see Sting vs. Brock Lesnar as a first time match? But I'm more fascinated at how good Triple H and Sting can make their match. Wrestlemania 31 is just one of those shows that could just click all night... I just don't know... But what I do know is that I'm more relieved as a WWE wrestling fan now that Brock Lesnar is here to stay for the next 3 years. With the WWE investing in Lesnar, I'll continue to invest more time in the WWE and look forward to future Wrestlemanias. I believe that I'll be writing my Wrestlemania 31 review as it happens and try to instantly post my review as Wrestlemania 31 ends. Insta-column returns for what may be a good-to-great Wrestlemania show. WRESTLEMANIA 31 PREDICTIONS, with 1 revision from my Wrestlemania 31 Predictions Column as I wrote this during Monday Night RAW before Brock Lesnar re-signed with the WWE (or at least announced it Tuesday on ESPN): -Returning Sheamus wins Andre "the Giant" Battle Royal -Tyson Kidd/Cesaro retain Tag Titles in 4 Way -AJ Lee/Paige defeat Bellas -Randy Orton defeats Seth Rollins -Dean Ambrose wins Intercontinental Title Ladder Match -Undertaker defeats Bray Wyatt -John Cena defeats Rusev -Sting defeats Triple H -Brock Lesnar defeats Roman Reigns (REVISED), with Seth Rollins probably cashing in and also losing to Brock Lesnar. Happy to be a wrestling fan right now. Everytime that you think WWE is about to let you down, they always find a way to bring you back... As I've said for years now, Vince McMahon is a genius. But as described above, his apprentice Triple H might not be a bad guy after all. Without Triple H stepping in and wanting to work with Lesnar to salvage that 2012 WWE deal, who knows where we'd be today. SO JUST CHILL... 'TIL THE NEXT EPISODE! Comments and feedback are welcome. Follow and Tweet me @titowrestling or login in below to post comments. © Mr. Tito and LordsofPain.net/WrestlingHeadlines.com - 1998-2015
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