Monday 7 August 2017

A Speculative Punt On Brock Lesnar's Conqueror

A little under a week ago, I was asked who I thought would face Brock Lesnar at the No Mercy pay-per-view that is scheduled to take place on September 24th. It was shortly after I read that John Cena had been cast for the Transformers spin-off movie, Bumblebee, so prefaced that - if I hadn't known about the movie - I would have guessed Cena. Instead, I settled on Braun Strowman.

After posting the comment underneath the August 1st Comment Bag post, I didn't think any more of it until the weekend when I was looking through the 'Brock Lesnar Conqueror' markets that are available from Kambi. As I usually do, I scanned through the names on the list to see if the odds have changed or to try and make my own case for any of the selections in front of me.

To be honest, the obvious choice on the list - to be the next person to defeat Brock Lesnar by pinfall, submission or ref stoppage in a singles match - is Roman Reigns. This is because of the reports that the WrestleMania 34 plan is for Roman Reigns to unseat Brock Lesnar to become WWE Universal Champion.

That was the original idea. It's very likely that it still is, but - after the reports that the SummerSlam main event had been changed and people started discussing Reigns versus Cena as a possibility for April 8th, I am still not fully back on board the Reigns .vs. Lesnar bus just yet. 

I stopped at the 'John Cena 15/2' option on the list of names in the market. Other than Reigns, it has to be him.

And here's why.

John Cena is chasing the record that WWE has set for world title wins. He's currently tied with Ric Flair at sixteen (in WWE canon), so one more win will make history.

They could set up Cena versus Lesnar for No Mercy with the Universal Championship on the line. I know it's an odd PPV to do a chase for the record, but the venue of the show fits. 

No Mercy 2017 will emanate from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. This is important as it's the building where Cena first became WWE Champion at WrestleMania 21.

Moving on from there, Cena could be the person carrying the title into Mania 34 to defend the strap against Roman Reigns with the latter going over. Going by the plan for Reigns to win the title at Mania, it will be achieved. The only difference is it'll be Cena doing the honours and not Lesnar.

There are holes in my case for Cena winning the title from Brock Lesnar in September, though.

Firstly, there's a chance - albeit slim - that Lesnar could have dropped the title at SummerSlam. 

There's also the idea that Cena's historic victory should be done at a grander stage like WrestleMania, but - to counter- a story like Cena going for the record could help boost interest in a show like No Mercy. 

The most obvious question about backing Cena to be the next person to overcome Brock Lesnar concerns the original idea that I've mentioned already. If it still is Lesnar versus Reigns at WrestleMania, then the bookies already have the right favourite in Reigns.

The 'Brock Lesnar Conqueror' market is available from the sportsbooks and casinos that publish WWE Odds from the Kambi oddsmakers. A few examples can be found below:



1 comment:

  1. I like the price, but as previously mentioned I've gone for NO at 5/1 now 3/1. I may play Cena as a saver because they have no real reason to book that match, both dont need the win, both should be used to put others over but the only reason that would be booked if it was Cena breaking the record.

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