Almost 2 Years Later, Should Brock Have Ended The Streak?

[Chicago1989]

It's almost been 2 years since The Streak ended. Looking back on it, it made logical sense having Brock Lesnar beat Undertaker and end The Streak. Brock was on a roll and was looked at by most people to be the most challenging opponent to face Undertaker at WrestleMania. Brock was credible enough in many ways - Dominating wins over CM Punk, Triple H, and Big Show, his credentials, and stature. No one was more credible and threatening.

Now after 2 years have gone by, I feel that Brock didn't need that win. He hasn't shown any change before or after ending The Streak. To me, it feels like it would've made no difference whether he beat The Streak or not because he would still be considered the beast he is today regardless.

In my opinion, Bray Wyatt should've been the one to end The Streak. He could've gone more farther with that win than Brock and it would've set him up for bigger and better things for his career. Bray would've probably been a WWE World Champion and go on to become an instant threat to anyone, especially if Braun Strowman, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan were around from the very beginning to bask in the glory of Bray ending The Streak. Imagine the promos Bray would've cut after being the 1 in 21-1.

To me, it should've been Brock vs Cena and Bray vs Undertaker at WrestleMania XXX.

Looking back, do you think it was still the best decision in having Brock Lesnar end The Streak?

Did you see Bray Wyatt being the one who should've ended The Streak and would he have more mileage out of the win than Brock?

 

[Dagger Dias]

My opinion has not changed since the Wrestlemania 30 match. Brock Lesnar was the absolute worst choice to end Undertaker's undefeated streak. The ending of the streak was a once in a lifetime moment that WWE ruined. They missed the opportunity for a colossal heel turn for any of a number of face characters. Brock Lesnar is going to be seen as an evil monster heel no matter what he does. He did not NEED the momentum that such a huge accomplishment provides. It was a horrible decision on WWE's part that I still, and likely always will, disagree with.

As for the threadstarter's question regarding Bray.... would he have benefited more from ending the streak than Brock? Goodness, yes. He calls himself the "new face of fear" yet he keeps losing the matches that matter. Bray would have every right in the world to call himself the "new face of fear" had he been the one to end the streak instead of Brock. It would have been a great passing of the torch, although that ship has obviously sailed.

 

[J.J.]

Originally I felt WWE missed on a passing the torch moment by not putting Wyatt in Brock's place at WM 30. But Paul Heyman has sold that victory so well since the Lesnar win and he has been booked dominant and it elevated him to higher levels making his second run with WWE more memorable. Clearly is the most intimidating guy on the roster.

You don't want whoever beat the Streak to be around full-time. It would over-expose them and kill the mystique. Lesnar has reached a new godly status in Kayfabe, to the point where now every match he's in is like a Streak match. They've effectively taken the importance of the Streak match and dispersed it to every time Lesnar even has a match. He's what Andre the Giant used to be back in the territory days.

 

[Vanilla Midget]

Too soon to cast judgment, we still haven’t really seen the total fruition of Brock ending The Streak. I think a plan was put in place for Brock to take the mantle of The Streak over from Undertaker and carry it going forward. That mantle isn’t so much an undefeated streak (although it has been) as it is the anointing of a new WrestleMania main attraction.

Brock was the right guy. Anyone else, anyone young or up and coming, would have been shat all over. Brock has the pedigree to back up the accomplishment, whereas a young guy could have something as big as The Streak squandered on them.

Imagine if they went ahead with the rumoured Wade Barrett vs Taker bout that was set up at Survivor Series in 2010. Imagine if Barrett ended The Streak, then went on to be as injury prone or irrelevant as he has.

Imagine if The Streak was still intact this year, and Bray Wyatt went on to break it. Now imagine if something happens to Wyatt. He walks away from wrestling, turns out to be injury prone, or anything that prevents him from being a top star. Would that not be a waste of The Streak?

Brock ending it meant that a surefire hall of famer and legend ended The Streak. Taking a chance on someone, even a multi generation star in Wyatt could have you blow a 25 year effort that can basically never be recreated. So, do you let anyone break The Streak, or do you let someone big end The Streak.

In my mind there was only a handful of people that should have ended it. It had to be someone that could take up Undertaker’s mantle as a big alternate attraction to the World Title. It was basically up to either Brock or John Cena. Brock comes around a few times a year, like Taker. Cena is the eternal babyface, so the option wasn’t really there.

Even if he split after WrestleMania 31, Brock still ends The Streak. Had Brock not re-signed, I have no doubt we would have seen either Reigns or Rollins pin Brock clean.

And that’s what Brock has now. Eventually someone pins him clean, and that person receives the rub of beating Undertaker, handed to them from Lesnar.

As for Wyatt, he shouldn’t have ended The Streak. We don’t know for sure that he will stick around for years, although all signs point to yes. He can still be the one to pin Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania, effectively receiving The Streak after all.

I think a case could even be made for Undertaker and Wyatt to face each other at WrestleMania 32, but only if it ends with Taker on his back. This is a rematch though, so it could be considered relatively boring. Undertaker should be losing regardless who he faces this year.

 

[J.J.]

I am still for the idea of Wyatt burying The Undertaker in a WM victory, thus putting an end to Taker's in-ring career. I just don't see any other reason for him to be around anymore without the streak. We saw his Survivor Series moment last year and how he quietly erased critics that he couldn't still work a decent match following WM 30. Someone else needs to benefit for a rub before he retires.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Brock Lesnar was the absolute worst choice to end The Streak, and we still have a long way to go to see the long-term, devastating damage caused by this colossal error. Nobody benefited from Brock ending The Streak, except Paul Heyman. A 25 year career and the building of a legendary mystique was destroyed in an instant, to stroke Brock Lesnar's ego. It didn't do anything to improve Brock Lesnar. Those who love Lesnar love him because of his UFC credentials and because they view him as "legitimate". Those who hate Lesnar hate him because of his lack of respect for the wrestling business. Neither group has their opinions changed by WrestleMania 30.

If Undertaker was absolutely adamant that he would not retire with The Streak intact, it should have been Edge in 2008 who ended it. Edge would have been solidified as WWE's top heel and would have been THE man to beat for the remainder of his career, instead of a constant transitional champion who would win titles and then lose them immediately for absolutely no reason.

But it would have been better for The Streak never to end. It was a huge selling point for WrestleMania and it's something that cannot be replaced.

In short, Brock Lesnar ending The Streak was one of the worst, if not the single worst WWE booking decision of all time.

As for this year, regardless of who he faces, Undertaker NEEDS to be the winner at WrestleMania. Undertaker deserves to have some tiny shred of his legacy returned to him. Some of the biggest stars go out on their back, and others walk out with their head high. The last image of Undertaker in a WWE ring should NOT be him getting beaten by some young guy, it should be him establishing his dominance one last time.

 

[WorstWrestlingExcrement]

It's almost been 2 years since The Streak ended. Looking back on it, it made logical sense having Brock Lesnar beat Undertaker and end The Streak. Brock was on a roll and was looked at by most people to be the most challenging opponent to face Undertaker at WrestleMania. Brock was credible enough in many ways - Dominating wins over CM Punk, Triple H, and Big Show, his credentials, and stature. No one was more credible and threatening.

Now after 2 years have gone by, I feel that Brock didn't need that win. He hasn't shown any change before or after ending The Streak. To me, it feels like it would've made no difference whether he beat The Streak or not because he would still be considered the beast he is today regardless.

In my opinion, Bray Wyatt should've been the one to end The Streak. He could've gone more farther with that win than Brock and it would've set him up for bigger and better things for his career. Bray would've probably been a WWE World Champion and go on to become an instant threat to anyone, especially if Braun Strowman, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan were around from the very beginning to bask in the glory of Bray ending The Streak. Imagine the promos Bray would've cut after being the 1 in 21-1.

To me, it should've been Brock vs Cena and Bray vs Undertaker at WrestleMania XXX.

Looking back, do you think it was still the best decision in having Brock Lesnar end The Streak?

Did you see Bray Wyatt being the one who should've ended The Streak and would he have more mileage out of the win than Brock?

I agree with you that Bray Wyatt should have been the second man to beat underflaker right after Brock Lesner but having him come back to beat Bray Wyatt after he carried taker through all promos and thus losing again in SS makes me lose respect for Wyatt! Bray should have beat him and have a second loss it s time flaker starts putting talent over

 

[aaronmb]

It wouldve made sense if Brock had never lost to The Undertaker and had never been defeated at Wrestlemania. Really bad booking, considering he lost to Triple H a year before.

 

[ShinChan]

Looking back, do you think it was still the best decision in having Brock Lesnar end The Streak?

Nopes. It was the worst decision. Brock was an established wrestler and didnot need the rub off Undertaker's streak. It should have been ended by some young talent who needed the rub off the streak.

Did you see Bray Wyatt being the one who should've ended The Streak and would he have more mileage out of the win than Brock? [/B]

Exactly. He is the so-called Face of Fear so he should go over The Phenom to be credible enough to fear us. He should have defeated Undertaker in Taker's last match at Wrestlemania 32 in his hometown itself. In this way, his credibilty would have been increased. He has always come up short against Taker so why we should fear them. I think they really lost a big chance of making a mega-star.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

I'm not exactly sure whether Brock was the "perfect" choice to be the one to break the streak.

But I disagree that Bray Wyatt should have been the one to do so instead. Absolutely horrendous. I agree that he'd have "benifitted" , or rather "needed it" more than Lesnar. But would he really have benifitted? Would the WWE have really capitalized on it?

And I am of the opinion that Bray Wyatt is severely overrated. Can talk. But hardly appeals to me. I call him the less talented Mankind, but to be honest, even associating or comparing him with Mick Foley would be an insult to Mick Foley. His in-ring skills are okay. Mick was GOD.

So I think it was the right decision. Brock Lesnar's every bit the star and the man that we think is capable of actually breaking the streak. I mean, the guy is a former UFC champion right. He could beat The Rock, Austin, Ric Flair, HHH, AND The Undertaker on the same night at Wrestlemania(kayfabe) and we'd still think he'd have kicked their asses were it REAL and not kayfabe. I absolutely love Brock Lesnar, so I'll say that Vince/Taker are smart enough and wouldn't do something stupid were they to know the ramifications, especially when it comes to something so huge as Taker's WM undefeated streak. So there.

 

[yourdamnluck]

The streak was huge. I think Lesner ending it further elevates it not as much as if it was never broken but still.

It took the Beast incarnate, a former ufc champ, KOTR, WWE champ and a top guy to end the greatest streak of all times.

Bray would have gained certainly but the streak would have suffered. He was just a glorified jobber and still is. You want him to be face of fear let him beat lesner, clean, let him destroy guys or at least let him take credit for all the injuries.

So yeah Brock was the best choice to end the streak but ending the streak was a mistake. Brock never needed the rub. We could have had two major attractions at mania instead of just 1.

 

[gvt2000]

I would've had undertaker retire with the streak intact. Establish stars wouldnt need the push and up-and-coming wrestler succeeding where legends like shawn michaels, Triple H and Ric flair have failed could've backfired and put unrealistic expectations on who ever was chosen to end the streak. Look how much bad heat Roman Reigns got for being pushed over Daniel Bryan.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Brock was credible enough in many ways - Dominating wins over CM Punk, Triple H, and Big Show, his credentials, and stature. No one was more credible and threatening.

Point taken, yet perhaps the reasons listed above should serve to prove why Brock shouldn't have been the streak-breaker.

As I see it, with wins over Cena, Punk & others, Brock didn't need the boost of ending the Streak. Effectively, by having Brock destroy everyone put in front of him.....legend or not.....WWE was saying "Brock is wonderful....and everyone else on the roster is shit". The company seemed willing to negatively affect the reputations of everyone in WWE in order to boost Brock who, ironically, needed no boosting.

Yes, yes....he's a monster and we were somehow supposed to forget that Cena and Triple H had beaten him before, because he's unbeatable now.

Aside from the Brock factor, I believe WWE management may have thought Undertaker's career was about over.....and if the Streak was going to end at all, they'd better do it before he decided to pack it in......or even worse, before injury forced 'Taker's retirement and killed any opportunity to get the Streak ended in a wrestling ring instead of a discussion in Mark Calaway's living room.

So.....no, the Streak needn't have been ended by Brock.......and I believe it shouldn't have ended at all.

 

[OYDK]

At the time, I was in the camp of "legitimacy over the rub". Basically, I thought Lesnar's legitimacy as a competitor overrode the fact that he didn't really need the rub of ending The Streak. I viewed Brock as the perfect guy to end The Streak because in reality, has there ever been a tougher or more legitimate guy in the WWE than Brock Lesnar? Who better to end the unbeatable Streak? Two years later however, I don't view it the same way.

As has already been brought up, Lesnar did not need to end The Streak in order to become the monster that he is today. For all intents and purposes, the WWE could have booked Lesnar the exact same way and he would have ended up in the exact same position he's in today, even if he had lost that match. Another point is, they gave Taker the win back at Summerslam. Why the fuck would they do that? If Lesnar was going to end The Streak, than Taker definitely should never have beaten him afterwards. I always felt like that was such a ridiculous booking decision by the WWE.

On the other hand, I was somebody who wanted Bray Wyatt to end Takers streak and look at the position he's in. I legitimately don't see anybody that would have been worthy of ending the streak other than Lesnar. So was he the best choice? I'd say yes. But that implies The Streak really didn't need to end at all.

 

[HORRORHOLIC]

I think Wyatt is actually underrated if anything. I don't think the streak should have ended at all, unless it was Taker's last match. I would have went with Wyatt in that case instead of Lesnar anyway.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think Lesnar was a believable choice to end The Streak, but I don't think he needed to do it. He's already the biggest star (other than Cena) that WWE had, a permanent main eventer. It hasn't helped him "rise up the card" at all.

I don't think The Streak needed to end at all, 'Taker should have retired with it intact. If he HAD to lose it, it should only have been to the next "can't miss" talent, like a Rock or Austin when they were breaking into the main event and were 100% going to be stars. It's a shame there isn't anyone coming through like that at the moment...

 

[Stone Cold Tea]

I have no issue with Lesnar ending the streak.

You want great unbelievable moments?

You think you're all smart and know what's going on?

Here then have this. Bang one of the top 3 wrestling moments ever!

Before the even not a single person believed that Lesnar could break the streak. If Lesnar would have lost that match I don't believe he could have been built up the way that he has been.

I don't believe he would have gone in to SummerSlam and dominated Cena the way that he did.

Before Lesnar broke the streak he lost to Cena. After Lesnar broke the stroke he went on to dominate Cena.

Now Seth Rollins is one of the most over guys even though he is out injured and believe me that is in part to do with the fact he bettered Lesnar at every turn last year bar the Royal Rumble.

Reigns has slowly been built up and gained a lot of respect from ''smart'' fans after he tangoed with Lesnar last year. If Lesnar hadn't have been built up the way that he did after defeating 'Taker then we don't get Reigns ass kicking.

People saying breaking the streak didn't benefit Lesnar are forgetting they are probably the same people complaining Lesnar was always getting beat before.

So yes it did benefit him and imo it was the correct decision.

 

[King Patrick Star]

Looking back, looking forward, looking sideways, it doesn’t matter. Brock Lesnar should not have ended the Streak. Brock Lesnar should have just lost at WrestleMania XXX and then won at SummerSlam and Hell In A Cell in 2015.

I do not see Bray Wyatt being the one who should have ended the Streak, and he would not have more mileage out of the win than Brock. Wins and losses don’t matter. What matters is being in the WrestleMania Undertaker Streak match and I think that was enough for Bray Wyatt to be where he is today.

I am one of the fans who think the Streak should never have been broken. I’m one of the fans who think if the Streak had to be broken, it should not have been a loss by the Undertaker, but instead have someone else go undefeated and have more wins than the Undertaker. Let’s say Undertaker’s final record was 23-0, I would have rather seen someone go 24-0, that to see the Undertaker go 22-1. I will never change my opinion on this matter.

 

[J.J.]

Looking back, looking forward, looking sideways, it doesn’t matter. Brock Lesnar should not have ended the Streak. Brock Lesnar should have just lost at WrestleMania XXX and then won at SummerSlam and Hell In A Cell in 2015.

I do not see Bray Wyatt being the one who should have ended the Streak, and he would not have more mileage out of the win than Brock. Wins and losses don’t matter. What matters is being in the WrestleMania Undertaker Streak match and I think that was enough for Bray Wyatt to be where he is today.

I am one of the fans who think the Streak should never have been broken. I’m one of the fans who think if the Streak had to be broken, it should not have been a loss by the Undertaker, but instead have someone else go undefeated and have more wins than the Undertaker. Let’s say Undertaker’s final record was 23-0, I would have rather seen someone go 24-0, that to see the Undertaker go 22-1. I will never change my opinion on this matter.

The streak ends that future - "would Undertaker's streak been broken by Wrestler A?" If Undertaker wanted to put anyone over there was no better way than losing at WM. You said so yourself that wins and loses don't matter. It doesn't tarnish his legacy and if anything he'll be remembered as the guy that won 21 years straight at WM on top of everything else he accomplished.

 

[boozinjedi]

The names of both Brock and Bray are being brought up in this discussion which brings me to an interesting point...Brock's conquest of the streak could be used as a seed for a Brock/Bray rivalry??
would be promo gold,
Bray comes on...."As little children we are told,not to take things that don't belong to you"
That's what you did Brock,the streak.....the streak should've belonged to me Brock!!
And there are consequences to your actions Brock,for they are dark,hidden places in your Suplex City that even you are even afraid to look for,even you are afraid to go...
That's where you'll find me Brock...FOLLOW THE BUZZARDS!

The wording may not exact.but you get the general meaning of it

 

[BeastFromTheEast]

I agree with the OP that Bray should have been the one to break the streak. The whole new face of fear thing would just make more sense if he did. It's kind of like how can you be the new face of fear but aren't able to beat the old face of fear?

However, what's done is done. They can't go back in time and change anything so we'll forever have to live with the fact that someone that didn't need the rub or the heat got to accomplish something that most of us thought would never end.

 

[Azane]

Brock Lesnar really needed to end the streak, he was such an obscure and unknown person before hand, and the streak really helped him gain popularity.

No really, Brock didn't gain anything from it, and it ruined the chances of someone who could build an entire career from the accomplishment from having that opportunity. I also don't really care about the Undertaker match at Wmania like I used to, I won't say it ruined the card, but it definitely takes away from it for me.

Who should have ended the streak? My opinion is nobody, should have let Taker go down with it, the streak is marketable, the people that "need" the rub, wouldn't be worthy of ending it, because they'd still be in the growing process.

Brock Lesnar ending it just cost WWE a ton of money, they went short term hoping that Brock Lesnar Merch for the 2 weeks he was back would outsell Taker's next 5 years.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

In order to understand how important and much of a good choice it was to end the streak, we have to look how much it helped WWE evolve in the long run.

How the character of Brock Lesnar benefited.
IMO Brock Lesnar benefited greatly froom the ending of the streak. Well, of course, since he was the one to break it. However what this also did for Brock, was that it put him in the top position of the company as he now stood out of the Triple Hs and the John Cenas. It also helped soldify Brock Lesnar as that huge dominant draw.
But to tell you the truth, Brock Lesnar would still be huge, had he been given the squash victory over Cena at Summerslam only. Him breaking the streak and squashing Cena felt too much for me. Too much was being given to Brock Lesnar. Only the John Cena vicotry was enough to sell him as the ultimate Beast.

What it did for The Undertaker.
Nothing really. I believe the ending of the streak really devaluated his drawing power. Taker just didn't feel as the same attraction to mewhen he came back at Wrestlemania 31.
What WWE could have done, was to have the streak ending give Taker some character growth and depth. Even more than what he already has. He had a little spark in his Brock Lesnar revange feud, but then he just went back to the Deadman persona. So nothing was accomplished here either.

What it did for the WWE
The plan was to use Lesnar's heat for breaking the streak in order to put over Roman Reigns. That never happened and the fire Brock Lesnar had going into Mania 31 is now gone. Lesnar's peak was Wrestlemania 30 to 31. Now he's just regular old Brock. WWE failed to use Lesnar to get over somebody during that time, since they were focused only in Roman Reigns. So, another hole in the water.
The only benefit WWE had from this was the Undertaker vs Brock rematch which of course made them make a lot of money. But once again, all they did earn was money. Nothing else was achieved in order to give the company a future foundation.

To sum up, when someone goes through all these point, WWE really blew it big time. Lesnar was already in top level, so he really did not need that. No young star was being elevated. There wasn't not even a proper story behind that match that WWE used to make it seem like a bigger deal. When the result came it was just shocking and nothing more.

However if there was anyone that was a safe bet to break it and WWE would get the less backlash, it was Lesnar. A young star ending the streak was a risky move. Who knows where that young star is going in the future?

I understand WWE's plan. They wanted to use Brock to get Reigns super over. That was the problem with the whole deal. They only cared about putting Reigns over. There was no subtitute. That's what made the whole streak breaking fail so bad. Brock Lesnar's pontetial was never used in its full degree.

So, judging it from the current standpoint, I would reverse the desicion if I could.
But, at the time, it was a right and smart call. However the entire thing should not have revolved only around Reigns. The best call would be to have the hottest young names at the time (Ambrose, Wyatt, Reigns and Rollins) enter a race in order to find out who's facing Brock at WM 31. A one year race. That would be, best for bussiness.

 

[Kris Benwa]

I dont see why not? They booked him right and he became the hottest star in the company because of it. Seems like a success to me. The worst thing they did was have him lose to Taker at SS. Took a lot of steam off him. Lesnar should have dominated Taker that way they can do the proper heat transfer from Lesnar to Reigns

 

[S.J. Maximus]

I'm on the side of those who feel that the streak should have never ended. It's truly incredible to think about how much steam the streak was able to gain and how over it became with both die-hard and casual wrestling fans. For WrestleManias 23-29 it was a HUGE selling point that brought people from all over the world to witness.

While I agree the idea of someone ending it would be a huge honor and the ultimate way to put someone over, I've always felt like there was never a guy who fit the bill. At the time, I thought no one was worthy enough to succeed where HOFers like Ric Flair, HBK, HHH, and Edge had failed. A newcomer was an interesting option, and I think there was even a thread on here about Ted DiBiase jr being the one who deserved to end it since his dad first introduced The Undertaker to us.

But I never thought the "shock" of ending the streak would ever be worth losing the actual aura of the streak itself. Two years later, I feel like I was absolutely right. I didn't realize it then, but the streak might've become bigger than Taker himself. Looking back now, the Streak was pretty much all he had left from 2010-present. 5 straight years of coming back solely to defend that incredible streak. Once the streak was broken, so was the magic of the Undertaker. I don't think anyone gave a damn about his match with Bray at the following WrestleMania (I sure as hell didn't) and the only draw to his matches with Brock was the direct fallout of the Streak. Nostalgic efforts like the one at Survivor Series will always be welcomed with people of his stature (think back to the Rock's in-ring return at Survivor Series 2011) but I don't think anyone can ever take him seriously as a threatening figure again without the streak.

If someone had to end it, I'll agree with the OP's choice of Bray Wyatt but I don't think it ever should have ended.