Examining the History Between Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar

Paul Heyman made his surprise return to WWE on Monday night, serving in the role of Brock Lesnar's legal representation. There could not be a more perfect person to pair with Lesnar, both because of his personality and the long history these two men share. 

Today's WWE fans might not know a lot about the Heyman-Lesnar dynamic, simply because the company appeals to a much younger demographic now than it did when Lesnar debuted in 2002 all the way through 2004. 

While Heyman and Lesnar weren't always together during that time, the influence Heyman had on Lesnar until he left the company in 2004 was vital to Lesnar's success in WWE. 

Here is a look back at the rich history between Heyman and Lesnar, in and out of WWE. 

"The Next Big Thing" Debuts

Brock Lesnar debuted with WWE in 2002—ironically, the night after WrestleMania X8. He attacked a bunch of wrestlers who were nothing more than jobbers at that point, with Heyman guiding him every step of the way. 

That was the beginning of what would turn out to be the best job WWE has done in building a new, young, main event star over the course of one summer. 

King of the Ring and WWE Champion 

Three months after debuting, Lesnar went on to win the King of the Ring by defeating Rob Van Dam. As a condition of the victory, he was awarded a WWE championship match at SummerSlam. 

It just so happens that that match would come against The Rock, who at the time was the youngest WWE champion in company history. In front of a very partisan New York crowd, Lesnar went on to defeat The Rock to win the championship and take the crown of youngest champion in WWE history.

A quick side note: The build for that WWE championship match, which Heyman was almost completely responsible for, was as good a build as WWE has done for an individual match in the last 10 years. 

Lesnar vs. Heyman

WWE jumped the shark very early with the Brock Lesnar face turn at Survivor Series by having Heyman turn on him and make The Big Show WWE champion. 

The two feuded off and on for the next few months after the Royal Rumble, but Heyman left for a while before returning in late-2003 as the SmackDown general manager. 

Post-WWE 

Once Lesnar left WWE, Heyman moved into a more prominent backstage role as head writer of SmackDown. The show was, unsurprisingly, awesome because he knows how to book for anyone. 

Also unsurprisingly, Vince McMahon and Stephanie didn't agree with what Heyman was doing, because it was good, smart and logical, so he ended up stepping away from the company. He would return from time to time and even did work with the WWECW before realizing that Vince McMahon wanted to ruin that brand. 

Mixed Martial Arts and Return to WWE

Both Lesnar and Heyman took a heavy interest in mixed martial arts after leaving WWE, with Heyman in attendance at Lesnar's big return match in 2010 against Shane Carwin. 

Then we've got last night, with Heyman becoming Lesnar's legal representative. It is just a way to get someone on camera since Lesnar can't be around every week, but because Heyman is so great, he will make it work. 

Lesnar's WWE career has been defined a lot by the work that he has done with Heyman. And Heyman has gotten the best out of Lesnar throughout his career. He understands how to book the big man and make him look like the monster he is. 

Check back for more on the WWE as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s Wrestling Page to get your fill of the WWE. For more WWE talk, check out Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics you just can’t miss.

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