Brock Lesnar Got Heat Backstage Over Unplanned WWE Royal Rumble Spots
Brock Lesnar‘s time in the 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble match was short and sweet, but earned the Beast Incarnate some backstage heat.
After returning to WWE programming on the Raw is XXX episode, costing Bobby Lashley his United States Championship match against Austin Theory.
Lashley (who returned to WWE in 2018 in the hopes of facing Lesnar,) got a (controversial) win over Brock at Royal Rumble 2022, with Lesnar getting his win back (also in controversial circumstances) at WWE Crown Jewel. Entering the Royal Rumble last weekend, Lesnar scored three eliminations before his shocking elimination by Lashley.
The former WWE Universal Champion lasted less than three minutes in the Rumble match but earned heat backstage over his actions after his elimination. Fightful Select reports that while a post-elimination freakout by Lesnar was planned, some of what happened caught many by surprise.
Some in the ring were not prepared for Lesnar’s spot with the steel steps, and the spot where Lesnar threw a piece of the announcer’s table in the ring was also unplanned.
The spot that earned Lesnar some heat was an unplanned situation when referee Eddie Orengo was thrown over the barricade.
Sources in WWE told Fightful that it was initially believed that Orengo may have injured his foot, and his status remains unclear at this time.
Orengo was supposed to raise the hand of Cody Rhodes, the winner of the Men’s Rumble match, but that was changed as he needed to sell Lesnar’s attack.
While Brock’s actions caught many off-guard, the former Universal Champion is unlikely to face any serious consequences.
One source told Fightful “heat is a relative term for Brock Lesnar. He’s not going to get in trouble.”
The source added that WWE is under a new regime, but Lesnar’s standing seemingly stays the same, and said that while not everyone was mad backstage, some were.
