The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar: Beast Incarnate Must Win at WWE SummerSlam 2015

The end of WWE Battleground 2015 saw The Undertaker make his long awaited return to WWE TV by immediately setting his sights on Brock Lesnar and costing him the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The next night on Raw, it was confirmed that the two will face off at SummerSlam, but it's a match that Lesnar can't lose.

The general fan reaction to The Undertaker's earlier-than-anticipated comeback on Sunday has been mixed. While most fans are excited to see him during the summer season for the first time in five years, the rekindling of his rivalry with Lesnar left some disappointed regarding a potential rerun of their program from early last year.

After their match was made official for SummerSlam at the start of Monday's Raw, The Undertaker and Lesnar engaged in a red hot brawl that took almost the entire roster to break up. With those few minutes of physicality, they did quite a bit to change the minds of those who weren't convinced their feud would be any different this time around.

If they can continue to deliver similarly strong segments in the weeks leading up to the event, fans will be in for a fun five weeks of programming. The Undertaker and Lesnar proved with that one interaction that they are capable of contesting the match we all hoped they would have at WrestleMania 30.

Regardless, the biggest issue in going with this match as the main event at the biggest party of the summer is who ultimately emerges victorious.

Credit: WWE.com

When they went one-on-one at WrestleMania 30, it seemed to be a forgone conclusion that The Undertaker would win, considering he had gone undefeated on the grand stage for more than two decades and Lesnar wasn't the same mythical being he is now.

Thus, time stood still as Lesnar scored the three count on The Undertaker and handed him his first pinfall loss at WrestleMania. It sent shock waves throughout the WWE Universe and instantly became the single most shocking moment in WWE history.

While it wasn't the ending outcome some would have gone with, WWE capitalized on Lesnar's monumental victory by cementing him as an unstoppable force over the next year. He beat John Cena for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in a lopsided affair at SummerSlam and went on to decimate the likes of Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and everyone else who stepped foot in his path of destruction.

The belief among fans was that Lesnar's momentum from becoming "the one" in 21-1 would be used to "pass the torch" to a young up-and-comer who could benefit from the rub, supposedly Roman Reigns. Of course, plans changed when crowds began to resent Reigns, and Lesnar was kept unbeaten.

It's been two and a half years since Lesnar last lost by way of pinfall, and having him come up short against The Undertaker at SummerSlam would defeat the purpose of him ending "the streak" to begin with.

The decision to put Lesnar over isn't an easy one, either. The Undertaker already suffered the taste of defeat when they first did battle at WrestleMania 30, and assuming he'll be back in action at next year's installment, it'd be odd to see him head into the spring extravaganza with a blemish on his record.

Furthermore, with this blockbuster bout taking place in the main event of the show, the chances of there being a non-finish are slim. This is also in addition to Battleground going off the air with no winner to the title match being announced, so it's crucial SummerSlam features a decisive conclusion.

If Lesnar was on his way out of the company, it'd be appropriate for him to do the honors for The Deadman. However, it'd be asinine to halt his hot streak so soon, as he just signed on for the next three years.

As exciting as the idea of Lesnar and The Undertaker going at it again is, WWE should be focused on pairing Lesnar with the rising stars in an effort to solidify them as draws. It makes sense to do the match from a storyline standpoint because The Undertaker is out for revenge from last year, but it's apparent the low ratings played a major factor in 'Taker coming back when he did.

The rematch could be a vast improvement over their previous encounter for all we know, but the finish is where things get tricky. Although both icons are in need of wins right now, Lesnar has a lot more to lose in defeat and therefore must be the one who comes out on top.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is a journalism major at Endicott College. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.

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