After All the Nonsense, Brock Lesnar Will Be Sorely Missed by WWE Fans

With Brock Lesnar likely to drop the Universal Championship to Roman Reigns this Sunday at SummerSlam, his six-year stint with WWE could also be coming to an end.

Granted, it was the same story earlier this year heading into WrestleMania 34 when it was rumored that Lesnar was UFC bound after the event. Of course, he ultimately retained his Universal title in shocking fashion that night, but his appearance at UFC 226 last month indicated that he will fight again sooner than later.

It's entirely possible he will continue to compete for both promotions going forward (similar to what he did in 2016), but either way, SummerSlam will seemingly mark his final on-air appearance in WWE for the foreseeable future.

Credit: WWE.com

Although WWE has succeeded in turning the majority of the viewing audience against Lesnar during the course of his feud with Reigns, he is still one of the biggest stars in the entire company. He may not show up as often as fans would like, but when he does surface, he has an aura about him that no one else can match.

Lesnar's leave of absence will create a noticeable gap toward the top of the card on the Raw brand. He is the sole strong heel on the brand and immediately lends credibility to anyone he works with, so the roster will be worse off without him around.

The Beast Incarnate dropping the Universal title will surely bring joy to fans who have loathed not having a world champion who regularly appears on programming, but after all the nonsense, those same fans are guaranteed to miss him once he's gone.

The 500-day title reign of Lesnar has unquestionably lasted longer than needed, but not everything about his time on top has been abysmal. His matches with Reigns and Braun Strowman underwhelmed, but he had some of his best bouts in years against the likes of Samoa Joe and AJ Styles as well.

There aren't too many fresh faces left for Lesnar to face that would realistically make sense as opponents for him, not to mention that he has had competed less and less over the past year or so. That said, his matches always have a buzz about them and generate interest for the bigger pay-per-views such as SummerSlam and Survivor Series.

Assuming Lesnar won't be wrestling for WWE at least through the end of the year, Paul Heyman is bound to follow in his footsteps out the door, which will be another big blow to the show.

Raw has been in a fairly deplorable state for many months now, and the only time the program has showed signs of life has been when Lesnar and Heyman appear. They make anything they're involved in must-see, so fans can expect Raw to drop off in quality come the fall season due to their departure.

Lesnar has brought a true sense of legitimacy to WWE and never ceases to get fans on their feet whenever he returns. His repetitive matchups featuring nothing but suplexes won't be missed, mind you, but the audience will eventually yearn for everything else he brings to the table that makes him such an attraction.

With the right creative direction, Lesnar can be exciting again down the road, but in the meantime, fans will be forced to endure a WWE world without him in it and come to realize how significant of a cornerstone of the company he has been since 2012.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is an Endicott College alumnus and aspiring journalist. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.