I Owe Brock An Apology

 

2022 marks 20 years since Brock Lesnar came on the scene destroying everything in his path. As “The Next Best Thing” Brock used his ability of freakish strength and agility to quickly rise up the ranks and become a premiere player in the WWE. After a couple of years, he decided to step away, citing the grueling travel schedule and wanting to conquer other fields. He tried his hand in the NFL to minimal success, did a spin around the Japan wrestling circuit and then to UFC to great success.


In 2012 he returned to the WWE as The “Beast Incarnate”, same thing occurred he quickly was added to the top of the card. Beating the likes of John Cena, CM Punk, and Randy Orton to become world champion. That soon became a problem as world champion he would disappear for months, until the next big Pay-Per-View event was on the horizon. Work for a month or two, take a few folks to Suplex City and vanish again with the title. Other times he would return and instantly be thrown back into the title scene.


That led to a lot of frustration from the WWE fanbase who were tired of the same thing happening every time Brock showed up. Last year at SummerSlam Brock returned and pretty much the same thing occurred. He was instantly pitted against universal champion Roman Reigns.
However, there was some freshness about Brock this go round. This new version of Brock appeared, with a bread, ponytail and his farmer attire. Hillbilly Brock's target was Roman not only for the championship, but for Paul Heyman's loyalty as well. He started talking more holding his own, cracking jokes and switching up his mannerisms. Reminding folks he has some personality to go with his athleticism. He has displayed personality during his first run on Smackdown in the early 2000s. Also, remember his boombox segment with R-Truth a couple years ago?


I will admit I was not a fan of Brock since his return, but this new Brock persona made me reevaluate things and I owe Brock an apology.


In-ring Brock is just as good if not better than he was during his initial run. He used his ring psychology, freakish strength, incorporated his MMA training, and learned that he had to adjust his style to adapt to his age and work smarter. If you go back and look at some of Brock’s matches since his return, he’s had a pretty good run of matches.


On the flip side, it’s hard to be mad at a guy who is doing things his way. He was just slightly ahead of the curve before the rest of the world figured out the power of doing things their way. He put his time in and decided he didn’t want to be confined to a box, so he challenged himself. He realized his market value based on his skillset and found someone willing to pay him top dollar to work a few times throughout the year.


He make’s his money and goes home to his sanctuary not bothering a soul doing what makes him happy. As long as WWE is paying him an insane amount of money to do that, he will probably continue that cycle as long as he can. How can you be mad at a guy for that?


Hindsight is always 20/20 and in hindsight Brock is presented exactly how he should be a special attraction that appears only a few times a year. He has my full support for making his own lane and living how he wants. I apologize to Brock for hating on his wrestling skills and business acumen.

Brock Lesnar faces Bobby Lashley for the WWE Championship this Saturday, at The Royal Rumble.