Opinion
Brock Lesnar WWE Championship Win Over Kofi Kingston: Inevitable or Unnecessary?
Brock Lesnar is back. The Beast Incarnate returned on the September 17 edition of SmackDown Live and confronted the WWE champion, Kofi Kingston. Lesnar’s advocate Paul Heyman challenged Kingston to a title match and the champ accepted. From the moment that happened, indifference began to take hold.
Brock Lesnar is back. The Beast Incarnate returned on the September 17 edition of SmackDown Live and confronted the WWE champion, Kofi Kingston. Lesnar’s advocate Paul Heyman challenged Kingston to a title match and the champ accepted. From the moment that happened, indifference began to take hold.
It’s the same story once again in WWE and despite how many times it happens, the story continues to cause waves among pro wrestling fans. Everyone knows that Brock is a top draw, just as they know that WWE will always use him as a result. Despite how many times he disappears or how long he stays away, he will be back and will almost always be in the world title picture. But knowing and accepting are two very different things.
When Brock Lesnar is out of sight, he’s out of mind and that’s just the way it is. The WWE faithful may want to believe he’s gone, but it’s only temporary and until the day comes when he actually finishes up with the company, Lesnar is likely always going to be a factor. Like Thanos in Avengers: Endgame, Brock is inevitable.
But even a mad Titan knows when to pick and choose his battles, which is exactly what Lesnar’s character is doing now. Seth Rollins took Brock down at SummerSlam and pinned him clean in the middle of the ring. The Beastslayer was true to his nickname, as he got the win on his own, with no distractions, no assist and no cheap-shots. Rollins had a career defining victory over Lesnar and thus closed the book on their feud.
There was really no point in booking Seth versus Brock again, as there was truly nothing left between them. Rollins got what he needed and Lesnar did the job for him and for WWE. Of course, that fact tends to get lost in the discussion, but that’s typically how it goes for Heyman’s client.
Brock does the honors when called upon and he does it like a pro. Lesnar will sell, he will work hard and he will do it all like a man on a mission. Lesnar knows that the more effort he gives in a loss, the more it helps the man that’s going over on him. But while fans usually don’t acknowledge that fact, they do recognize that he can get it done in the ring.
At his best, Brock Lesnar is a storyteller. The way he moves in the ring, the way he hunts his opponent like a predator in the wild and everything that comes after, is all part of the narrative of his match. When he’s in the moment, Brock is hailed as the smartest guy in the ring and indeed much smarter than he gets credit for. But apart from that, he’s the selfish Brock Lesnar that comes and goes as he pleases, without regard for WWE or its audience. That’s just the way fans see it.
So when The Beast rolled into SmackDown Live, his critics immediately growled in disgust. Lesnar was back and of course, he was after Kofi Kingston. Who else would Brock even care about on the blue brand? This was the sentiment among those, who believe that Lesnar demands to be in the main event spotlight or he will not do business with WWE.
Whether or not that’s true is unknown. But what has become obvious is the fact that Lesnar is called upon when it’s time to make some noise. Sometimes that noise involves getting a guy over, as was the case with Seth Rollins. Other times, it’s about generating excitement over an upcoming event, or spiking a rating. In the case of Kofi Kingston, perhaps it’s all of the above.
Facing Brock Lesnar is like a badge of honor for many WWE Superstars. Going shot for shot with The Beast Incarnate is no small feat and to be able to do that while delivering a compelling match is extremely important for anyone in that position. It’s not just about toughness. It’s about making a statement. Sometimes, it’s WWE that needs that statement to be made.
That’s especially true for Kofi Kingston. From the moment he won the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 35, Kingston has been under fire. Much of that has been because of his booking, which has not always been the best. But some of it has to do with his style in the ring, which has not changed since becoming champion.
Kofi is still the same carefree, fun loving Superstar that fans have followed for years. He does turn up the volume when he’s defending the title but even then, he’s basically the same guy he’s always been. While that’s a good thing in the eyes of many fans, it’s just not enough for others. Kofi is a world champion so he should act the part. At least, that’s what his critics believe.
It seems that everything Kofi’s done has been in an effort to win over the haters. WWE wants the world to see Kingston as championship material and that fact has been used in more than one storyline, most recently, against Randy Orton. But when Kofi steps into the ring with Brock Lesnar, his true mettle will be on display. If Kofi can hang with Lesnar, then maybe he will finally get the respect he deserves. Right?
But at the end of the day, this new angle between Brock and Kofi is perhaps more about Brock. SmackDown Live will become Friday Night SmackDown on October 4, as the blue brand will debut on the FOX Network. When that move was announced in 2018, many predicted that WWE would stack the roster, which meant that the top champ would be a major name. In the world of WWE, there’s no name bigger than Brock Lesnar.
So if Brock is coming back for the sake of SmackDown, he doesn’t necessarily need to destroy Kofi Kingston and become the new WWE champion. Working Lesnar in a championship match will be good for Kofi, but that doesn’t mean he will win. However, Lesnar is the proven commodity and he’s the go-to main event powerhouse WWE loves to use. How does Kofi measure up to that?
There are a few variables to this match and it could go either way. Everyone knows that Kofi has worked hard to get his spot, just as they know that Lesnar is the easy and bankable choice to be champion. Bu knowing and accepting are indeed two very different things.
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Opinion
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS: WWE Bash In Berlin Immediate Reactions
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About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY – Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
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About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
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Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
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Opinion
AJ’s Top 3 Favorite SummerSlams
AJ is back with his annual opinion article, and this time the SummerSlam buzz got him wondering about his personal Top 3.
It’s been a while since I have done any form of writing and SummerSlam is this Saturday. Of all the SummerSlams I’ve seen over the years; which ones are my favorites? While it’s not a revolutionary idea, I figured everyone loves to debate favorites of well, anything. Don’t worry though because this isn’t just going to be pure recency bias. I’ve watched the majority of them so with the ones I put on the list, it hit me more in some way shape or form whether it was story, a really good match or it just felt like a solid event.
At least this proves WWE is trending in a good direction for me, when it gets the ol’ brain juices flowing just because a show is around the corner!
#3: 2022 (Ol’ Brock Lesnar Has A Farm)
Starting off the show, we get Bianca looking for a rematch against Becky from last years SummerSlam and it was better than the 21 second affair that everyone claims was a squash. This time Bianca holds her own and beats the Man in a fairly decent match, good way to get the event started. Next up is the heat seeking missile, Logan Paul against the former heat seeking missile because, well he wasn’t cut out for it and wasn’t a guy in everyone’s eyes, The Miz. After they had their blow off at Mania with Logan coming out on top which… isn’t awful, I just don’t like Logan Paul because he has that dude bro aura and swagger to make him more hateable than any other person on the card. Which I suppose is his gimmick…so…kudos?
First Championship match is for the US Championship and it’s as expected that in Theory, he should never beat someone to the caliber of Bobby Lashley which is no surprise. Dominik and Rey still back when Dom wanted the good fight against the Judgement Day before joining them later. The former Colts players, which they hammered it dahn in this match up showed that the canal swimming, trash talkin’, podcastin’, current RAW Color Commentatin’ goofball we all love, Pat McAfee came out on top again Bum Ass Corbin.
Usos putting the Street Profits on lockdown in the penitentiary since I believe this was peak Bloodline with the belt collecting and running all of WWE. Liv beat Ronda Rousey which isn’t astonishing but it’s not something people had on their bingo cards for anything with WWE so it was a nice little shock factor. The most memorable part of the night is obviously the Main Event, Lesnar brings the tractor, Roman catching the Microphone and Brock stands on top of the vehicle. Damn good match that showed off what they do in the ring since Roman caught his stride as the main bad guy and Brock… liked people after all of this? That is still a weird statement in my head. Brock being a good guy people person. If Liv wasn’t on bingo cards for wrestling, that is not on bingo cards in any aspect of life really.
That is more of the event that had solid matches and story going for it. No weird double count out, multiple people involved, 5 tag matches on the card. Things made sense and weren’t convoluted, had shocking moments that were great to see like Liv actually getting a title defense and there were the results we all expected at the time like Theory losing in 4 minutes to Bobby Lashley.
#2: 2009 (Are You Ready for The Return?)
This event wasn’t that strong. It was strong with the star power involved in 2009 with guys like Rey Mysterio as Intercontinental Champion, Orton and Cena for the WWE Championship as it was becoming as stale as month old chips and CM Punk was facing Jeff Hardy before he ultimately returned to TNA at the beginning of 2010 after this PPV. For me, it’s not so much of the show itself, it was more of the memories because the Balai as our friends Chris Platt and Rey Cash like to call my brother and I, we were just coming back into wrestling and we were TNA Fans. We didn’t watch WWE that much really, it was just what came on after another channel had old ROH shows before they moved to three hours and swallowed the 8pm Eastern Slot. No, the reason why this has so many memories for me is three main reasons. First, Orton and Cena. They have had their rivalry since the beginning it seems, being each others foils like Hogan and Piper before them and there had to be a stipulation where if Randy was Counted Out or DQ’d, he’d lose the championship regardless. This was prime Viper Randy and the obvious joke we had of Super Cena where he very rarely lost, unless it was SummerSlam surprisingly enough.
Number two reason was CM Punk and Jeff Hardy. Hardys known for the Ladder and TLC matches in the past and this being the penultimate match for this feud and it was a banger of a match. If you didn’t know Punk before, it was a great introduction to his wrestling. I used to like Punk a lot because of this match because he could talk, wrestle… and not insanely personal with things in wrestling. In all seriousness, this was a great match. Ultimate risks, high reward for Punk grabbing the World Heavyweight Championship and he was given his next feud because of the final boss of SmackDown at that time. Thanks, Teddy Long.
The main and final reason though why this match gave me the memories flowing back is more of the fact that one of my closest and longest termed friends of 23 years, also loves wrestling. Back when we were younger, he’d do MoCap videos on YouTube with his figures. We’d have friends come over for parties at his house and we’d do the one thing WWE always told us not to do and that was try it at home. He was always stronger than me, I was always more charismatic. He had the power aspect and did things with brute force, I could talk my way out of trouble with parents if we did something wrong. There was always one thing that our respective mother’s always called us though… it’s on the tip of my tongue… oh right, ‘Degenerates’.
As soon as we were called that, we kind of parodied the DX line. I was limber enough to do the HBK pose and do a Superkick before it became the new DDT and he would just Spinebuster people and knew how to do the water spit. So what do you think was the main reason we even ordered this PPV for his 13th Birthday? I think the two guys we were pretending to be were set to return on a tank and toss out some glow sticks. The return of DX, Shawn Michaels coming back after Mania with Triple H to deal with the Legacy problem was an amazing return for them and made everything so much fun.
So we have the solid card and this one has a personal story… what’s my number one SummerSlam? Is it personal? Well yes but not going into that. Is it a good card? To me, it was a phenomenal card! Is it memorable? Seeing how wrestling fans still mention at least three matches to this day.
#1: 2005 (Octopus in the Washer, Lover’s Quarrel and Where the F%#$ is Vickie?)
Quite possibly some of the best matches I’ve seen and one that was just the most hilarious moments of overselling in wrestling history, I know why I love this SummerSlam but it’s also a really good card at the same time. Redacted beats Orlando Jordan in 25 seconds for the US Title and they made jokes about it like, he can make a coffee faster than he beat Orlando and stuff like that, it’s pretty funny. Angle getting sick of Eugene’s antics for his Gold Medal was also a great bit they had play up, the Year long feud of Randy Orton and Undertaker was still going on where Orton comes out on top this time around to get the win back from Mania, Jericho returning for the match with Cena in a whole promotional thing for each other’s groups, Fozzy for Jericho and the Chain Gang doing Bad, Bad Man for Cena leading up to a match for the WWE Championship. JBL won a 20 man battle royal on SmackDown to win the Championship…… Opportunity to face the newest member of SmackDown, Batista but the three main matches that a lot of people talk about to this day; Edge vs Matt Hardy, Rey vs Eddie for Dominik and Hogan vs HBK in the Main Event.
I have reasons to enjoy the Hardy/Edge match but it looked like a real fight, it really made us believe that Matt Hardy was going to kill Edge because real names were dropped during this tirade from Hardy. It wasn’t Edge and Lita, it was Adam and Amy. Matt was so dead set on beating the hell out of Edge that they made a situation into gold and it was a great moment for this match to happen, I believe it was also an Unsanctioned Match too which added the intensity until matt got concussed and knocked senseless that it looked like he couldn’t fight for anything but the build up was what made it seem like a marque match. It made it feel real, it made it feel awesome and it made it feel personal.
Eddie kept tormenting Rey Mysterio about Dominik not being Rey’s but Eddie’s for the summer. That’s all you heard from Eddie being the weasel he was is hanging out with Dominik, making the world believe it’s his son and what not (Let’s not do a fast forward to today where he has the mullet, mustache and everything like Eddie) but they settle this in a Ladder Match where the top of it is a document for the custody of Dominik and my god, this match is better than it should have been. I expect nothing else from Eddie because the man hated having a bad match, Dom got involved and stopped Eddie, Vickie was late and stopped Eddie. The whole match was good it was just very weird with the premise but was a great match. I wonder if Rey regrets his decision to win the match now…
Octopus in a Washing Machine… those five words have resonated with Shawn Michaels’ performance in this match, forever. It was supposed to be an amazing match up between Hogan and Michaels, Icon vs Icon it said and suddenly Hogan’s back gives out, can’t do a trilogy of matches so we can only do the one and then pull out of everything after. This match was set up to be a classic and instead turned into the most unbelievable sell fest ever. A Hogan big boot caused Shawn to tumble 3 or 4 times, getting crotched on the ropes had HBK bouncing higher than he should have, being tossed out of the ring made it look like Shawn never broke his back in 1998 from how much he flopped and flipped around like crazy. It’s bad… or maybe even good that a lot of current wrestlers watched this match that went, “I can sell like that, I want to be a wrestler” and did. So good or bad, I don’t know but for some reason this PPV has always had a place in my heart for how memorable it was.
Those are my top three SummerSlams so far but who knows, 2024 has potential to maybe bump something or at least get me to consider a shift. Should be fun to see how the show plays out! What are some of your favorite SummerSlams?
About Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)
TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends
Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5
Classic POD is WAR
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!