If Brock stayed in 04 would Cena have still been the men?

[bluebeach20]

I think Cena had some charisma most didn't have around that time but then again it's Brock Lesnar. The dude was always gonna be on Top and even tho he wasn't the best talker without Heyman on his side i still believe he would have been the nr.1 Top Guy. Lesnar vs Cena would have been propably the year on going feud instead of Cena vs Orton.

[GodzillaIsMyMonster]

I think so. He just had it.

[Dr. Bolty, Disaster Enby]

He would probably have had a more graceful easing into the main event, and he might even have been stuck in a noncommittal push for a few years. But I think Cena's talent was such that once he passed a certain point, it was inevitable.

[ChitownKnight]

Cena looked like he was set to win it at Mania 21 no matter what. Either they would of sent Brock to Raw and Cena would of beaten Angle, Eddie or Booker for the title, they could of still went the JBL route or Brock would of stayed on Smackdown as a heel and Cena would dethrone him and they would have multiple rematches for years to come

[Hit Girl]

Cena can use whatever pronouns he wants. Lesnar would not have objected.

[Finish Uncle Muffin’s Story]

Cena was going to be the guy no matter what and if anything, WWE would have had some really big-money matches with Cena vs. Lesnar. That could have been their Rock/Austin trilogy for the RA era.

[Legion]

Yes.

It would be Batista that wouldnt have been a thing.

[ghost]

Yeah, if anything, Brock would have hurt Batista more than Cena.

[Jindrak Mark]

Cena was always going to be the guy. He was already the top merch seller in the company by Wrestlemania 20 despite the crazy competition at the top of the card at that time and that was also before they released the spinner belt, the album and really went into overdrive with his merch.

Brock would probably have been the heel Cena beat to win his first world title at Wrestlemania 21 which is why I think JBL is the person most affected by Brock staying. If Brock stays he's the top heel on 2004/05 SD and JBL doesn't get that insane overnight push.

Orton and Edge are probably affected slightly if he stays. They'd still be top stars but I don't think they have quite the same amount of world title reigns as they do now because a lot of those heel runs over the years would've went to Brock instead.

I actually don't think Batista would be hurt much either. Brock was confirmed by reports at the time to be staying on Smackdown at least through 2005 so there's no reason the HHH/Orton/Batista stuff doesn't play out exactly as is on Raw and the Batista/HHH portion was so good that it made Batista a top guy for the rest of his career. If anything Brock staying would have given him another big name to feud with. I can see Brock moving to Raw in the 2005 draft and building to Batista/Brock at Wrestlemania 22 (if Batista didn't get injured).

[A Platypus Rave is Correct]

Cena was already getting established before Brock left.

One of Cena's first main event matches was against Lesnar. Hell his finisher for years was a direct reference to Lesnar.

By Mania 20 Cena was already going to be a star.

Would he have been the star going forward might be iffy, since even after winning the title he was the star of the b show.

[chazraps]

I think he and Batista both would have been just as huge.

Honestly, I think the bigger effect of Brock staying would be that even more talent would have gotten over to a massive level as the paranoia around someone leaving after being presented so prominently and him walking wouldn't have happened. All the talent who were right on the top of the upper-midcard on the main event cusp from 04-10 would have gotten to the top spot definitively.

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Yeah, probably. I never cared for the guy, but the audience certainly did. Once he got there, he decided to strip himself of everything that made him cool to the people who liked him, except for children and he made a couple of bucks anyway.

I think the bigger effect is, if Brock had stayed, what would he be doing now? I kind of doubt he'd be around today. So, that changes a lot.

[bob]

probably Cena still rises to the top

conversely, there's no way JBL would've randomly won the title not even 3 months after turning heel if Brock stayed

someone had to fill the void of the top heel leaving

[Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!!]

yeah he would have. he might not have been THE guy but he'd definitely be super important going forward, at the very least at the same level as Randy Orton. but even if Brock had stayed I just don't see him being able to carry the company on his shoulders like John did. Brock has always been about Brock first (which is NOT a bad thing most of the time) whereas John is a company man to a fault. I also just don't see Brock as someone who'd be popular with kids the way John Cena is. IMO in a lot of ways Brock leaving suddenly was probably one of the best things to happen for WWE even if it didn't seem so at the time. Brock being there probably would have kept them from going all in on John Cena, who was definitely better for business over all than Brock was.

[Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!!]

Jul 22, 2022 11:45:50 GMT -5 Legion said:

Yes.

It would be Batista that wouldnt have been a thing.

I think Big Dave would've gotten a shot because he was one of Hunter's pet projects but he probably would have been more on the level with Sheamus than Cena/Orton if Brock were still around. JBL on the other hand, yeah I don't think he gets a near year long title reign if Brock is still there.