v2 Wrestling Podcast 5th September: Brock Lesnar Special

We're late, we're late, I know! But it's Gavin's fault. He made comments so offensive on the last podcast that the V2 legal team refused to publish it.

After a god awful week of wrestling we chose to talk the Beast Incarnate - Brock Lesnar.

The best thing in professional wrestling by some distance, we talk about his current impact and what it is that makes Lesnar work so well.

Listen at http://v2wrestling.podomatic.com/entry/2014-09-06T07_29_41-07_00 and follow us on twitter @v2wrestlingshow

I think the problem when discussing whether Cena would want to turn heel is the main point has nothing to do with how much money made, or whether he feels comfortable playing a heel. It is all to do with the Make-a-Wish foundation and other things like that, I don't think Cena wants to turn heel because of the effect it would have on those children.

That'd be even more so a reason to turn him a heel for Gavin.

I think he wants to, I really do. On a professional level, anyway. That man hit the top of the industry, you don't do that without a sense of pride in your work and accepting challenges. The challenge of being a huge heel would be great for him. He just needs a figure to replace him.

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:I think he wants to, I really do. On a professional level, anyway. That man hit the top of the industry, you don't do that without a sense of pride in your work and accepting challenges. The challenge of being a huge heel would be great for him. He just needs a figure to replace him.

I still don't think that addresses the problem of the fact that lots and lots of kids do look up to him in a way that isn't comparable to any wrestling star right now, the only person I can think of that compares in the past is Hogan and he had similar qualms about turning heel and this was years after he had the same child following that Cena has now. With reports of children crying after he lost to Lesnar at Summerslam, can you imagine the heartbreak of kids if he turned heel. I think that is a concern, particularly when some of these kids' dying wish is to see him, can you imagine knowing you've crushed their hopes and dreams. That's a very real consequence and one I'm sure that plays a big role in the fact that he has never turned heel.

From a merchandise and creative point of view I think that Cena is replaceable and I imagine he does want to challenge himself with a heel turn. But with that being one of the consequences I can see why a heel turn is very unlikely. It's not the same as a CM Punk heel turn or even a Daniel Bryan heel turn because they simply doesn't have the same kind of fanatical support from the impressionable and the terminally ill.

I think the time will come. I don't think it would be good business to not try it, at least if hes full-time. And in the long run kids will turn to new heroes, whether that be because Bryan/Reigns/etc becomes more popular or Cena becomes a baddie so they don't like him any more. And thats what it is, it isn't his particular ideals appealing to the terminally ill as much as him appealing to kids.

I enjoyed the special. I mean really enjoyed it, I'd have listened to another hour of that.

I've been trying to think of reasons why Brock is not the best thing in WWE right now, and to be honest I've failed. I mean, its a pretty strong assertion of the back of just a couple of PPVs. In fairness, the nearest I could get was The Shield who had such a run of IMO unmissable TV and PPV bouts.

Read that the Big Show will challenge Brock after Cena - so excited

You kind of get the impression that someone in WWE creative occasionally remembers that Big Show exists and they really should do something with him.

The problem is that most of us without the memory of a goldfish can remember their previous feuds. Indeed, who could forget the collapsing ring ending to Smackdown, the first time that Brock F5s the big man, or the number of chair shots that Show took from Brock.

And, if WWE uses this right, then they could help sell the network on re-living or seeing these moments again.

But, if they don't, it will just have a feeling of deja vu all over again. Particularly as in the meantime Brock has got better in the eyes of the world with his MMA career and Show has done nothing of real value in the WWE.

I'm not sold on the idea, but let's see what creative can do with it.

On Brock, I'll freely admit that I've not got round to seeing this week's Raw and watched the previous ones on fast forward. But I think WWE is missing a trick in this more reality based booking of Brock and Cena.

If this were any other sport, analysts (or commentators) would be frequently raising the question of how Cena is going to counter the Lesnar ground and pound or suplexes. I feel that if we had a video of Cena training with Dan Severn (or Shamrock, or any other MMA face) this could raise the idea that Brock can be beaten by someone with the right equipment and training. Not necessarily Cena, but I think that seed of an idea should be sown. The idea that if Cena tries hard he'll win is just too childlike I think for the way this is being booked.