Why Brock Lesnar's Return Is Key for WWE to Truly Move into New Era

There is no better place for WWE to build its new era than on the broad, stout back of Brock Lesnar.

In looking to launch the careers of rising stars like Kevin Owens and Rusev, WWE needs a launchpad from which to lift off. Lesnar's status as a megastar and monster gives him the power to be just that, to transfer stores of momentum.

Starting with Payback, WWE has made sure to tell its audience that a new era has arrived.

Mentions of this have popped up in several interviews since. Shane McMahon, in particular, has beaten the drums of change, telling us that a shift is underway. 

WWE has coupled that rhetoric with showcasing fresh faces, from AJ Styles entering the world title picture to The Vaudevillains challenging for the WWE Tag Team Championships.

To punctuate this movement, the audience needs to see the torch being passed. And as much as John Cena has been the face of WWE over the past decade, it's Lesnar who truly holds that torch.

His part-time status and position on the WWE ladder has made him more of a top star. He's a bona fide marquee attraction.

That's something Lesnar's manager, Paul Heyman, has long proclaimed. In a March interview with Nick Schwartz of Fox Sports, Heyman said of his client:

"

The fact that Brock Lesnar is not on the road 52 weeks a year, is not on Monday Night Raw every episode, is not performing 300 matches per year...I think that dictates to the public 'Brock Lesnar is special.' That an appearance by Brock Lesnar in and of itself is newsworthy. It's not commonplace. It's not something that should be taken for granted, so when Brock Lesnar appears, even if it's just an interview segment let alone on the rare occasions that Brock Lesnar puts on his tights and laces up his boots, you know this is a special event.

"

He's right. Fans have grown numb to Cena and Randy Orton, to a point. Lesnar, however, makes headlines each time he arrives. 

That creates a special energy around him. 

In addition, WWE has portrayed Lesnar as an immortal of sorts. The company goes out of its way to protect his aura of invincibility, marking asterisks next to each of his losses.

When Seth Rollins won the WWE title at WrestleMania 31, he did so by pinning Roman Reigns, not Lesnar, in a Triple Threat match. When Undertaker defeated the powerhouse at last year's SummerSlam, that win came after the referee missed The Deadman's tapout and by way of Lesnar passing out rather than submitting.

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Victory over Lesnar has immense power now. That's a power the linchpins of the new era could use. 

So far, WWE has only allowed established stars to knock off The Beast Incarnate, though. According to Lesnar's CageMatch.net profile, only Undertaker, Triple H and Cena have defeated him in singles action since his 2012 return. 

Letting Owens score a win against Lesnar or having Cesaro overpower The Conqueror would be a career-changing result. That's what needs to happen for WWE to signal this new era it has talked so much about.

The past has seen this kind of changeover before.

Steve Austin defeated Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIV to kick off Stone Cold's time atop the mountain. Ultimate Warrior knocked off Hulk Hogan in 1990 in an attempt by the former to take over the latter's spot. And in 2002, WWE announced Lesnar's arrival to center stage by having him defeat The Rock at SummerSlam.

A rising star putting Lesnar on his back at a major event would create that same sense of change. It would announce the victor as WWE's next centerpiece.

The members of the roster all looking to grab hold of the proverbial brass ring all know that. That's why they so often pinpoint Lesnar as the man they most want to face.

On a media conference call in January, per William Windsor of Wrestling Inc., Ryback named Undertaker, Triple H and Lesnar as his dream opponents. Of The Beast Incarnate, he said, "I believe I can bring out the best in him and he can bring out the best in me from a competitive standpoint."

When asked about his ideal opponent, Owens told talkSPORT's Gorilla Position podcast, per MTV UK, "I think there's only one answer for me right now, and it is Brock Lesnar."

As Scott Fishman of the Miami Herald noted, Sheamus said on a conference call that battling Lesnar would be his dream match:

Even just stepping up to Lesnar ahead of Fastlane and WrestleMania this year raised Dean Ambrose's profile. There was a flood of talk during that feud about The Lunatic Fringe's potential as a top star. He looked every bit like he belonged in that spot, and Lesnar was his measuring stick the entire time. 

WWE chose to have Lesnar eventually win that clash at WrestleMania 32. That showdown still boosted Ambrose, but not like it would have had he achieved a rare win over an almost unbeatable beast.

It's with that victory that WWE can anoint a new megastar, signaling that Owens, Cesaro or Bray Wyatt will be the flag-bearer for this burgeoning era.

That opportunity should arise soon. PWInsider's Mike Johnson, who appeared on The Ross Report with Jim Ross, said Lesnar should return from his current hiatus "by the SummerSlam run."

Who WWE chooses to face The Beast Incarnate at that marquee pay-per-view and whether it decides to have that gladiator outlast Lesnar will be huge. If the company eyes this time as a bridge from one era to another, that SummerSlam match will be remembered in the same way that Lesnar's win over The Rock is—as a game-changer.