Exploring Seth Rollins’ rich history with Brock Lesnar ahead of WWE WrestleMania 35

Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar have plenty more history than what WWE has led the masses to believe.

Seth Rollins vs. Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship was made official for WWE WrestleMania 35 one day removed from the Royal Rumble event in late January, yet the build for the bout over the past two months has left a lot to be desired.

Compared to other matches currently on tap for the card, there simply isn’t a ton of excitement surrounding their upcoming encounter. It’s a shame because although their ‘Mania match has been nearly five years in the making, WWE has barely touched on the storied history that these two have.

To really make their matchup as meaningful as possible, WWE should bring up their early interactions from all the way back in 2014. That is how long bad blood has been brewing between Rollins and Lesnar, meaning there is a lot more to their rivalry that what the company has been promoting in recent months.

Rollins and Lesnar first crossed paths at Night of Champions 2014 when The Architect attempted to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase following Lesnar’s successful WWE World Heavyweight Championship defense against John Cena. Rollins came within seconds of beating The Beast Incarnate for the belt before Dean Ambrose thwarted his diabolical plan.

That laid the groundwork for a Triple Threat match with Rollins, Lesnar and Cena for Lesnar’s world title at Royal Rumble 2015. With Rollins and Lesnar showing remarkable chemistry throughout the bout, fans then clamored for them to meet in one-on-one action eventually.

Although the former Shield member’s golden aspirations were dashed that night, it was hardly the end of his championship chase, with Rollins vowing revenge sooner rather than later.

At WrestleMania 31, Rollins interjected himself into the WWE World Heavyweight Championship main event between Lesnar and Roman Reigns by unexpectedly cashing in his contract mid-match, which had never been done before prior to that point. It was one of the most exciting endings in WrestleMania history, and as a result of Rollins beating Reigns, Lesnar didn’t have to be pinned in order to lose his title.

Of course, that only infuriated Lesnar, who showed up the next night ready to fight for the first time on Raw since 2002. He demanded his rightful rematch for the championship, but when Rollins avoided facing his foe by escaping the arena, The Conqueror embarked on a rampage for the ages that saw him annihilate everything and everyone in sight.

That amazing angle set the stage for Rollins and Lesnar to do battle for the belt at Battleground later that summer. In the weeks preceding the pay-per-view, Lesnar looked more motivated than he had in years, while Rollins was riding high as WWE’s lead heel.

The nine-minute match essentially consisted of Lesnar hitting Rollins with countless suplexes and battering him with everything in his arsenal. Lesnar likely would have emerged victorious had The Undertaker not returned out of nowhere to target Lesnar and cost him the title.

The Lesnar vs. Rollins rivalry was put on ice from that point forward, but in the past four years, Lesnar has been on an unstoppable roll that has seen him win far more than he’s lost. Two of his victims have included Rollins’ Shield brethren Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, so Rollins is one of the few notable names remaining on the roster to not be completely squashed by Lesnar.

With that in mind, it would be incredibly asinine of WWE for there to be any other outcome to their upcoming clash at WrestleMania 35 than Rollins taking the title from Lesnar and ceasing his reign of dominance once and for all.

However, it will be easier said than done for Rollins to pull off such a feat, especially with the odds being closer than most might think. Per Odds Shark, Rollins (-250) is slightly favored over Lesnar (+170), and even those odds can change in the next week and a half with one more Raw left to go.

Rollins has been calling out Lesnar for being a lazy part-time champion for nearly a year, so the reasoning for this match happening is there, along with everything else mentioned above. Despite that, Lesnar’s infrequent appearances on programming haven’t given Rollins a ton to work with in terms of promo material.

Regardless of who walks out of WrestleMania the Universal champion, there is no denying how poor of a job WWE has done of building anticipation for their encounter. It has the potential to be a show-stealer, but with the hype for it nearly nonexistent, fans who currently aren’t looking forward to their high-profile match cannot not be blamed.