The match between Brock Lesnar and Rey Mysterio for the WWE Championship will be a huge part of the upcoming Survivor Series event. Unlike most of the other matches opting for cross-brand contests, the Lesnar and Mysterio feud is personal and features two Raw wrestlers. The angle started when Brock attacked Rey and his son Dominic in brutal fashion.
MMA fighter Cain Velasquez tried his luck representing the Mysterio family against Brock, but he lost in a matter of minutes. Mysterio attacked Lesnar after the match with a chair and on the following episode of Raw with a baseball bat. The match has a lot of hype thanks to some impressive storytelling by both legends.
Here are five reasons Brock should retain the belt, along with another five in favor of Rey winning the WWE Championship.
10 Brock: Dominant champion
Brock Lesnar's track record in recent years depicts him as a dominant champion. Lesnar’s reigns with the WWE and Universal Championship have often led to long runs; however, his most recent Universal Championship run ended after just a few weeks to Seth Rollins.
It could expose Lesnar and risk losing his invincibility factor if he drops the WWE Championship after a short run as well. WWE loves the appeal of Brock since he comes off as an unbeatable beast. The act of having him lose this many times in a year could hurt that appeal.
9 Rey: A Relatively new champion
Raw seeing the return of Brock Lesnar as their new champion, with the Universal Championship heading to SmackDown, has the red brand falling behind again. The past few years have seen Raw without a world champion since Lesnar dominated the title picture in a part-time role.
Fans of Raw must watch the stars compete without a major title at the top of the card since Brock only appears for the big PPVs. Rey Mysterio would give them a fresh champion as he has not had a legitimate world title reign since 2010.
8 Brock: Years of investment
WWE has spent the past five years establishing Brock Lesnar as a top attraction. The selling point is that Lesnar almost always wins and it takes a miraculous effort from a superstar to outmatch him. WWE has been selective with the wrestlers that do score victories over him.
Rey Mysterio beating Brock would diminish some of the latter's luster, but Lesnar retaining continues his track record of being such a force in WWE. Vince McMahon has sacrificed many wrestlers to get Brock to this point.
7 Rey: Great story of redemption
The storyline between Brock Lesnar and Rey Mysterio started with a father getting attacked in front of his son and his son getting attacked with him failing to help. Lesnar doing such a disgraceful act would often lead to the face getting revenge in old school storytelling.
Mysterio would have one of the greatest moments of his iconic career by overcoming the biggest obstacle yet. The visual of his son Dominic and even Cain Velasquez raising Rey in the air with the WWE Championship would be a beautiful sight.
6 Brock: Bigger name for WrestleMania season
WWE would be silly to have the title change here and go back to Brock Lesnar a few months later. The chances are that the winner of this match will at least enter WrestleMania season as the WWE Champion. Despite the polarizing nature, Lesnar is a huge name for that time of the year.
WWE tries to sell the biggest matches possible. Brock on posters and headlining the main event match instantly adds another appeal to WrestleMania. Rey Mysterio is a legend, but WWE needs to book him against the right opponent. Lesnar is a draw regardless of who he faces.
5 Rey: Would be all-time great underdog win
Rey Mysterio beating Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship would create one of the coolest underdog moments in WWE history. Lesnar has been built as arguably the most credible and unbeatable wrestler in recent memory.
Mysterio is among the smallest wrestlers in WWE to find success. Combined with Lesnar's dominance and the feud's story, this could create an iconic moment that makes Rey an even bigger star. Wrestling promotions would kill to have a story like this perfectly set up, but WWE may not even go through with it.
4 Brock: Losing would hurt his credibility
Brock Lesnar’s losses are quite rare on WWE television. Fans are stunned at the rare moments when someone gets to pin or make Lesnar tap out. Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Goldberg are among the few wrestlers to have such luck against Brock.
Rey Mysterio joining that list would hurt Lesnar's credibility. Not only would it add a third loss in 2019, but the size difference is glaringly obvious. Brock getting pinned by the smallest male wrestler on the roster could take away from all the time WWE spent booking him as a monster.
3 Rey: Full-time champion
The lack of a world champion on Raw completely destroys the main event scene. Wrestlers have nothing to work towards in the short-term unless they are involved in deep storylines. Rey Mysterio beating Brock Lesnar would give Raw a champion that shows up every week.
Raw has already struggled in the ratings and Brock's title reign will only hurt more since he rarely comes around. Mysterio representing the brand as the WWE Champion brings back that appeal of tuning in every week to see who is the newest contender for the belt.
2 Brock: A Younger star would benefit more from beating Brock
The person to end a Lesnar title reign is always going to receive a huge rise in credibility due to it. WWE has struggled to make it count, as both Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins' booking left a lot to be desired after they ended Lesnar’s various title reigns.
Rey Mysterio may be a great choice to end it since he’s been a great performer for twenty-five years now. However, the logical booking is always to have someone younger beat Brock so they can take it further and become a bigger draw in the long term.
1 Rey: No fresh matches left for Brock
Brock Lesnar has wrestled most of the upper-level names on the Raw brand. Fans have zero interest in seeing him face off with Seth Rollins again. WWE could always push someone like Kevin Owens, Ricochet, or Aleister Black into the title picture, but that seems unlikely right now.
Lesnar will struggle to find opponents with another title reign dragging out. Rey Mysterio instantly creates new matches as he could have classics with almost every on the roster. The veteran opens the door for a new world of Raw with fresh matches and a different champion for once.