The Smartest Mercenary Alive

*EDITORS NOTE - BE SURE TO CATCH UP WITH LOWDOWN AND BREAKDOWN ALONG WITH PODCASSTS FROM RINGSIDE RAMBLERS, #JUSTSAYIN AND MOC OVER AT LEVELSOFWRESTLING.PODBEAN.COM."

Brock Lesnar is the smartest man in pro wrestling right next to Matt Hardy and AJ Styles. He is the guy working his own contract exactly how he chooses to and gets paid a S*** ton to do so. WWE paid Brock Lesnar 5 million dollars to sign for two years and now suddenly the two years comes to an end the night after Wrestlemania. WWE is up the creek and Brock is standing watching while he snaps the oar over his knee. 

In the last two weeks it became common knowledge that Brock and Vince argued backstage to the point where people were concerned for Vince. No one really knows what the argument was a bout and if someone claims to know please ignore them. Many have said it was about money while others say it was Roman Reigns failing a drug test. BROCK DOESN'T CARE and why should he? He knows he is the money. Vince may as well follow this guy with his wallet and just pay for everything for him. Brock Lesnar is in the main event of Wrestlemania against who we all believe to be the next golden poster boy of the company Roman Reigns. Now if you were Brock Lesnar and you knew you could be leaving the night after Reigns possibly beats you what is the first thing you do? You prove your worth.

Last week Brock Lesnar did just that by proving he is still a name that every household can recognize by showing up to a UFC PPV and was seen on camera talking to Dana White. Is this not just the best bargaining chip? Brock just guaranteed that WWE would up their offer. Not to mention the fact that if fans see him doing this then they are going to start their own rumors and cause a fuss. All Brock needs now is to receive offers from UFC and Bellator and he has Vince's grapefruits in hand. 

Brock Lesnar could easily leave WWE and have a more than comfortable life. But he won't. Many behind the scenes still believe that Brock will re-sign with WWE and that he will continue to have the same kind of schedule he is currently on. This is not a bad thing. I can already hear fans moaning on twitter but what if, what if Brock re-signs and beats Reigns to retain at mania? What option do you prefer then? Reigns as champ, a champ who a lot of you believe is undeserving and green or a champ who is rarely there? I know what I prefer from those two options. But there is a third option. What if the whole thing is a work by HHH, Brock and Paul Heyman? Wouldn't it get fans behind Reigns if Brock threatens to leave with the belt that he rarely shows up with anyway? Imagine Brock left and goes to UFC for a year but upon returning to UFC programming he does a Madusa and trashes the belt and denounces the WWE as garbage. 

*note for this to work Vince needs to agree to Brocks terms of working for both UFC and WWE and Reigns would have to lose at Wrestlemania*
Brock would go between the two shows like he said and you can have him constantly belittle the show until one day Reigns shows up at a UFC event and gets in Brock's face. He challenges Brock to a Hell In A Cell match at Wrestlemania 32. Year long build and the fans get behind Reigns for defending WWE. 
It's along shot but this could all be storyline for all we know. But what we do know is that Brock has set himself up as the most dominant wrestler on WWE's roster and he certainly the most coveted star right next to John Cena and Sting. Follow my blog with Bloglovin

The Goal

34 days. 816 hours. 48960 minutes. This is the length of time WWE have to make Reigns vs Brock work. While this isn't a long time it's certainly more than enough to procure a final goal and make it work. 

Last night at Fast Lane the WWE did what they needed to do and ignored the multitude of fans who were against the idea of Roman Reigns going forward to face Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania. Many had the idea that Daniel Bryan is more deserving than Reigns and that he should play the underdog to the behemoth that is Brock Lesnar. Now while this idea is noble and it shows that the IWC (who claim to be the smart fans) can see that Daniel Bryan is an accomplished athlete who has paid his dues in wrestling and should more than rightfully take his place at the helm of the Wrestlemania main event, it doesn't help the fact that WWE had no new "star power" stars. 

By this I do not mean Daniel Bryan can not pull money to a ppv but what I do mean is that it is time to build new stars. New faces of the company. Daniel Bryan is an already established star and there is no denying that (just ask his adoring fans) but Roman Reigns is currently the rising star. The star that WWE believes can take the wheel from John Cena, their current poster boy, and continue taking WWE on the long road to a continuously profitable future. 

In order to make a new star you need to push a rising star. Daniel Bryan doesn't need to be pushed any more because he is at the top of his game and the pinnacle of his popularity. Roman Reigns on the other hand needs to be elevated in order to reach the level WWE plan for him to be. Many will be feeling he is unworthy of beating the man who broke the streak as this would be "disrespectful" to Undertaker in the eyes of a vast majority of fans but this is what Undertaker wanted. 

Mark Calaway has stated several times that he wanted to go out the same way that his mentors did and that was by giving a rub to an up and coming star. This was what lead to the confusion among fans last year when he lost to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania and the streak was destroyed. Fans believed that that would be Undertakers last match and that Brock was "unworthy" also. So now that the time has come that Brock could possibly lose the title  to Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania (note the possibly there) fans feel cheated. However, when you think this clearly the plan for almost the last year and 6 months or so, this would mean Undertaker gets what he wanted. He made Brock Lesnar look unstoppable. A destroyer. The one in twenty one. This has now left the opportunity that Roman Reigns could be the one to beat the one in twenty one and look like a cemented main eventer. 

Now please don't misconstrue this as me saying Undertaker is giving Roman Reigns the rub. This is me acknowledging the fact that WWE has now has built two stars ready to go. This year Undertaker faces Bray Wyatt at Wrestlemania and Brock Lesnar faces Roman Reigns. Doesn't this seem like a much more acceptable route to take? A new face. A new heel. A new generation. Reigns and Wyatt were always going to be WWEs next big stars coming out of NXT alongside Rollins and Ambrose so does it not seem wise that WWE should ensure they have a future to lean towards? Yes Bryan could have beat the guy who beat the streak but Daniel Bryan may not be in WWE much longer. We have already seen his neck injured and cost him 9 months of wrestling time. He is now 34, Cena is 37 and Reigns is 29. WWE have given this push to Reigns because he is the guy with longevity, He is the guy who will be around for longer than another 5 years. He is the guy who is getting the most beneficial rub. WWE have ensured their own place in the future by doing this. 

In short WWE has made sure at Wrestlemania that;

• Daniel Bryan faces a rising star 
• Roman Reigns gets a push regardless of a win or a loss at Mania
• Undertaker gives Bray Wyatt the rub he wanted before retiring next year

But hey, lets just let WWE forget about business for a while. 

Let us know your thoughts at @LevellerLOW on twitter and be sure to listen to #Lowdown and #Breakdown on levelsofwrestling.podbean.com

Where The Grapefruits Turn Sour

WWE have backed themselves into a corner again. Much like last year they have caved into what the smark heavy crowds of todays product want. It's becoming common knowledge now that there was plans in the work for Bryan vs Sheamus 3. This, by the way, could have easily been the top match of Wrestlemania this year but the fans as per their usual followed their spoiled brat tendencies and had to moan. This has lead to what I believe will be Vince McMahon's final year in full control of the WWE product. I realize this sounds like a very bold, sweeping statement but let's look at the facts shall we?

Vince McMahon is getting old

As a man who has taken years upon years of self inflicted stress, wrestling injuries and of course a double quad tear it's fair to say that Vince is a tough S.O.B but he is getting old. Vince turns 70 this year and to be honest he looks damn good for it all things considered. On the outside he still looks charismatic and charming at times but on the inside can we really say the same? It's no joke when you consider how much Vince does at his age but it can't be good for him. We have seen Jerry Lawler have a heart attack on live television and his current job listing is much lighter than a man who is a self proclaimed workaholic and control freak. How long can Vince seriously run the show?

Vince McMahon doesn't know his own product anymore

Over the past few weeks it has become abundantly clear that Vince is losing touch with the current trends and the current way the wrestling product should run. Now please forgive me for saying this but honestly we know less than a fraction about wrestling compared to Vince but that doesn't excuse the fact his pop-culture knowledge is atrocious. When was the last time a fart joke was funny? When was the last time making your own daughter (heiress to your machine) throw up on TV was good publicity? When was the last time adding "suffering suchertache" to a promo a good idea? You all know fine well he wrote those promos. But when you add this to the fact that Vince has slowly began to change his own mind on the product its quite clear he doesn't understand his own fans anymore. WWE used to be about giving fans what they want and knowing what they would want before they did but now it's about trying to slip the guy who you feel will benefit the company most into the limelight regardless as to whether it's who the fans want to see. Vince doesn't get it. 

Vince McMahon sees NXT as competition

It's clear that Vince still sees WWE as the top of the mountain but he is scared by those who have the power to climb to the top without him. NXT is a HHH product and that became clear as of this past Monday when HHH and Austin spoke on the network. The WWE provides a "sports entertainment product" and this is something they constantly re-enforce by ensuring they don't use the word "wrestling". Wrestling, however, is what NXT does best and fans know it. So many groups of fans are turning to the darkside so to say and enjoying a product that is primarily wrestling. This is clearly an intimidating thing for Vince. He is in competition with his own company and if a younger fresher model manages to work then surely the shareholders will notice this. The interesting thing will be to see if NXT gets a Wrestlemania match this year especially since the network has gave it such a large following.  

Vince lost his grapefruits

There was a time when Vinnie was the ballsiest person known to television but now he has began letting the great grapefruits of old shrivel up into prunes. Vinnie was literally the higher power, he was the guy who attacked his workers, he was the boss from hell. Basically Vince McMahon was god. But now he is afraid of fan reaction. He caved into the "YES movement" and changed a whoel wrestlemania main event just to change the crowd reaction. Vince McMahon of 99 wouldn't have done that. So what changed?

Also what else does Vince McMahon have left to prove? Absolutely nothing. He has done it, seen it and lived it all. He has reached the golden gates but now he just needs to let go to receive the keys to enter. Vince McMahon will always be "Then. Now. Forever." the greatest mind in professional wrestling in the eyes of historians but he needs to leave before we see that fade.

So what do you think? Let us know on twitter at @LevellerLOW or leave a comment below

The Road To Wrestlemania

Monday night is the start of it all. The beginning of the road to wrestlemania. In theory this is the time of the year that WWE goes into over drive and gives us the best quality product they can with whatever roster they have. Old guys come back, new guys get pushes and stories get depth but most importantly is that fans become crazed psycho marks who believe they are never wrong and deserve the best on golden platter. 

Fact is you dont. You don't deserve it. This is WWEs time to entice new viewers and bring in the pennies to their rich little pockets. Stock holders demand income and income doesn't always mean giving the long term marks and smarks what they want or feel they deserve. New stars will be pushed so that younger generations can begin making a name for themselves and this will sometimes mean disappointing the smarks. I'm pointing the finger at you Reigns haters. But when we really look into the mind of a fan this is when fantasy bookers get the biggest god damn erection they have ever had.

Fantasy booking is at its peak during Wrestlemania season and I don't mean the crap about the night after mania because that's just another excuse for WWE to hang you by your feet until whatever change you have left from your over priced t-shirt that you purchased at the merch stand at mania drops into their melting pot. No. Fantasy bookers love this time of year because 90% of them look at spoilers and dirtsheets and believe that because a few rumours are there that they will write up every match and call every story line. Oh and here's the punch line. THEY THEN CALL WWE PREDICTABLE. Know why it's predictable? Because you read the sheets asshole. 

Want to make Mania even better for yourself? Don't have high expectations, don't fantasy book and most importantly don't read the damn sheets. 
Wrestlemania should be about spectacle and surprise not about who guessed what right. (SAYING THIS WE ALL FANTASY BOOK AND I REALISE ITS HARD NOT TO) Someties though its good to take a backseat and get taken along for the ride. Remember what it was like as a kid seeing your favourite star win on the big stage and not know if they could over come the bad guy? You can still get that feeling by just ensuring you don't assume you already know the winner to a match. Take last years Royal Rumble for example. Everyone assumed that Daniel Bryan would be number 30 in the rumble match and when it never happened everyone was up in arms. This is the perfect example of fans ruining the show for themselves. Plus taking into account the fact we all knew Batista was returning due to the dirtsheets and spoilers everywhere didnt help. 

The point is, Wrestlemania is what you make of it. You can either have your wrestling christmas like all the good little marks or you can be the jackass smark who searches through his presents the week before christmas only to go spit in his parents face and say they bought the wrong things. Choice is yours. 


Let us know your thoughts on this article by getting in touch on twitter at @LevellerLOW

They Rise Only To Fall

*EDITORS NOTE - dont miss the season premier of #LoWdown on Wednesday at 6pm est*

Missing the Boat...much like those dwarves did in the second installment of the Hobbit.

WWE missed the boat when it came to the debut of the Ascension. The Ascension while they were in NXT was the team to beat. They held the NXT Tag Titles for 364 days. In all outings I saw them in they were booked to be pretty much unbeatable; chewing through their opponents like a meat grinder working on a prime cut of beef.  (I will point out that I am talking about the current incarnation of the Ascension – Connor (aka Conor O’Brian) and Viktor (aka Rick Victor); not all that original but hey...). Their coup de grace was the Fall of Man which consists of a leg sweep from Connor and a Jumping European uppercut from Viktor. And as that 364 day reign would indicate...many men fell to the Fall of Man; so in a word it is effective. There were those in the IWC who were chomping at the bit to see the Ascension move up from NXT to the main roster of WWE; I was one of those people. I was interested to see what would happen with them. But like the saying goes...be careful what you wish for...you just might get it.

The Ascension debut...on December 29, 2014. Who debuts a new act over the Christmas/New Year season? WHO DOES THIS? WWE does this. So I missed the debut...but thanks to the wonders of the internet I did find the time to watch it...and as their opponents we got Miz and Mizdow.

This was a blink and you miss it match, where more time was devoted to the entrance then there was to the match...speaking of which...

What is it up with that entrance?  The Eye of Horus superimposed over Illuminati imagery; which if any of you know your stuff about this would know that it’s pretty much a contradiction. The Eye of Horus is associated with the ancient Egyptian Sun God Ra (Horus was an ancient Egyptian Sky God) and one of the Illuminati’s goals was to oppose religious influence over public life (if you believe what is posted on Wikipedia). Anyway moving on...

This past Monday on Raw we saw the Ascension in action again; this time against two jobbers...and not even main roster jobbers like Zack Ryder and Curtis Axel; it was two local jobbers; one of which bared a striking resemblance to a well known – suppose to be funny, but is in fact obnoxious – lady from Film and TV. Before this lame brain match WWE had Conor and Viktor cut a promo...yea gads...no two men on the entire roster would be better suited to have a mouth piece like Paul Heyman or Zeb Colter than Conor and Viktor because these two boys suck when it comes to cutting a promo. 

And just who wrote that promo? The Road Warriors (LoD) and Demolition are still treasured factions amongst the IWC and Talent alike. This promo might have seemed like a work, but it rang like a shoot. 
The remaining Road Warrior – Animal was none too pleased either based on his comments found here. (http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/2015/0107/588317/road-warrior-animal-responds-to-the-ascension-raw-promo/) 

I have to agree with Animal; if you are going to do this, then get him involved somehow. Even if he’s not in-ring worthy, have him get a proxy team to face off against the Ascension. Cheap heat tactics are what heels are all about it, but you need a great talker to pull it off and these two guys are not that, that and you need the guys getting ripped on to come out and fight back. 

I know most people are thinking that we cannot give a definitive analysis on Conor and Viktor after only two matches; however I think we can based on previous experiences with NXT personal that have been moved up to the main roster in recent months (the Shield and the Wyatts notwithstanding, and Kidd was a member of the main roster with Smith and Nattie as the Hart Dynasty long before he was on NXT as a solo man).  

So my analysis is as follows...The Ascension is a misnomer...for ascension means to ascend...to rise up...for Conor and Viktor...they are in line to be sent to the fiery pits of Mount Doom riding on the tail of Smaug.


So what do you think? Let Krysta know on twitter at @Krysta_ibach 

Lambey Zayns Road To Wrestlemania

*NOTE FROM LEVELLER - DONT MISS THE SEASON DEBUT OF LoWDOWN ON THE 14TH OF JANUARY AT 6PM EST ON YOUTUBE AND GOOGLE HANGOUTS LIVE.*


So today I’m going to be discussing the card for Wrestlemania as it is expected to be, and how I believe it should be.

As most people in the IWC are aware, there it is incredibly likely that we will get Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns in the main event of Wrestlemania. The WWE want Reigns as their new golden boy, so this all makes sense. However, the question must be asked, is this best for business? As Daniel Bryan used to say – NO, NO, NO!
I am a fan of Reigns, but the man is simply not ready to take the gold, and doing so would be a waste of Lesnar, the man who conquered the streak. What else could happen? Well I’m glad you asked.

In the Royal Rumble, we are expected to see John Cena vs Lesnar vs Rollins for the WWE title. Have Randy Orton cost Rollins the title, forcing him to enter into the rumble match. Reigns should dominate the match, until Rollins calls upon J&J security to eliminate Reigns. While Rollins celebrates, Ambrose should eliminate Rollins, leading to a feud between the 3.
Dean Ambrose VS Seth Rollins VS Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 31. This seems like a good match people will want to see. No Stipulations, no titles involved, just a heavy story involvement, returning to HIAC (with Ambrose and Rollins never finishing their match) and the shield breakup storyline.

So what should be the main event of Wrestlemania? I say it should be a match that we should have had a long time ago – Daniel Bryan vs Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Daniel Bryan is still one of the most popular WWE superstars, despite a lengthy absence from the company due to injury. What better way to light the fire than have Daniel Bryan vs The Beast.

Next is Sting Vs Triple H, which I believe will happen and should.
Finally we are expected to see Wyatt vs Undertaker. This match is an interesting concept that could see Wyatt absorbing the Undertakers power (thanks to the urn and the really creepy talking that Wyatt did at HIAC). He could then move away from the cult leader / crazy person and into a more fitting goal, the guard of the gates of hell itself. A demon that takes the souls of the damned and the lost (and keeps them in his lovely little lantern), allowing him to move away from his current generic promo’s and allowing him to explore new territory, while keeping the creepy and slightly insane gimmick and adding depth. He can throw in sister Abigail and talk about how she always knew he was meant for this.

This could be an incredibly strong Wrestlemania card to allow for greater growth to come out of it, IF (and only if) the WWE focus on the story behind these feuds (along with others). There should be no senseless matches, no bad video packages, etc. All of these stories and characters have the potential to draw interest, and should be treated as such.


WHAT DID YOU THINK? BE SURE TO LET LAMBEY KNOW ON TWITTER AT @LAMBEY332 OR GO SPEAK TO HIM ON OUR NEW FACEBOK PAGE https://www.facebook.com/LevelsOfWrestlingLOW?ref=bookmarks

What If.....

*Have you checked our facebook yet? https://www.facebook.com/LevelsOfWrestlingLOW?ref=bookmarks *

So right now there is a big selection of "What If" questions within the IWC but hey it's almost time for the Royal Rumble so that's nothing new. But I want to get into one question that seems to have slipped most peoples minds until I mentioned it on twitter the other day;

What if we get Roman Reigns vs John Cena at Wrestlemania 31?

I mean this could be a seriously big thing. No one feels that Reigns is ready for Brock, let alone the main event of mania. And let me be honest, I like Reigns and I do not doubt for a single second that he will be THE guy in time but that time will not happen until he is ready.
Now as far as things are looking WWE has a few options. Reigns cant win the Rumble now that Daniel Bryan has announced he will enter the Rumble or else he will be booed out of the building ala Batista. Bryan winning the Rumble will give us Bryan/Lesnar so I suggest the following situation.

Cena barely loses to Lesnar and as a condolence prize The Authority inform Cena he can have a free entry spot to the Rumble. Cena accepts and discovers its the Number One spot. He seems disheartened but enters anyway. The final four comes down to Rusev, Reigns, Cena and Bryan. The four go at it and outta no where Lesnars music hits. Reigns who is about to eliminate Rusev gets distracted and Rusev exits via the bottom rope and Lana decides its time to leave. Rusev exits as Lesnar approaches the ring. Bryan gets hit with an AA and is down. Cena and Reigns begin to fight but Brock gets into the ring and breaks both men down. Bryan gets back up and begins kicking Lesnar as hard as he can but Lesnar fights back and nails Bryan with an F5. He then grabs Cena and gives him an F5 and lays him next to Bryan. Reigns manages to hit a Superman Punch on Lesnar but Lesnar only stumbles before fighting back. Reigns gets got with a big punch and then Lesnar hits him with a ground and pound until Vince makes an entrance. Vince decides things have gone to far and demands the referees try pull Lesnar out the ring. Lesnar leaves and all three men lay in a pile in the centre of the ring. Vince declares there is no winner as no one is fit to compete. Cena has taken two beatings from Lesnar, Reigns took an extensive beating until he bleeds and Bryan is just back from injury. 

Next night on RAW Vince announces there will be a three way at Fast Lane to see who faces Lesnar. Bryan, Cena or Reigns. The match will be held in a Cell in order to ensure no one interferes and the two losers will face off at mania in a match. Vince then calls out HHH and tells him that he needs to stop being so insolent as a boss. He tells him that he has seen enough and that he is not happy with the way he runs the company and that the shareholders want him gone. This leads to team authority vs team vince for ownership of WWE. HHH tells Vince that he has better things to do like deal with vigilantes such as Sting and prevent them from running a muck in his company. Stephanie steps up for team authority and states that she will choose a team. During this month Cena keeps reminding both men he is the measuring stick and he constantly reminds Reigns he is the new blood who has to prove himself. Bryan reminds everyone how he defeated The Authority single handed yadda yadda. 

Fast Lane comes around and the main event happens. Lesnar makes an entrance near the end of the match with HHH by his side. Both men begin tearing at the cell door but Stings music hits and he appears behind HHH. HHH and Sting brawl to the back and Lesnar finally gets into the cell. He destroys both Cena and Reigns before hitting an F5 on Bryan and dragging Bryans limp carcass onto Cena and forces the ref to make the pin. Bryan goes on to face Lesnar while Cena faces Reigns at Mania. 

HHH explains on RAW that he and Lesnar cut a deal that Lesnar would use help Bryan get the pin in order to then humiliate Bryan and attempt to end his career at Mania because HHH paid him to as he is still wanting revenge on Daniel Bryan. Its wrestling. Don't tell me you don't think that idea wouldn't happen cause it's been done before *HHH vs Goldberg before survivor series 2003*.


So in summary this leads to;

• Team Vince (headed by whatever legend/babyface) vs Team Authority (headed by Rollins)
• Reigns vs Cena in a match where Reigns proves he can be just as good as Cena (old school torch passing)
• Bryan vs Lesnar with Paul Heyman and HHH
• HHH vs Sting

I realize it's a long shot but surely that sounds better than rushing Reigns into the main event. let me know your thoughts on twitter at @LevellerLOW