10 Shocking Royal Rumble Plans WWE Originally Had

8. Braun Beats The Beast (2019)

Braun Strowman Brock Lesnar
WWE.com

Last year's Rumble was notable for a Seth Rollins' victory that set him on the path towards facing then-Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at 'Mania 35. According to WrestleVotes (reported via The Mix), that wasn't the first thing Vince McMahon and his writers thought of when sitting down to plan out the 2019 Rumble card.

They liked the sound of Braun Strowman toppling Brock.

Had that happened, then reports claim that Drew McIntyre was lined up to win the men's Rumble, not Rollins. Then, at WrestleMania, he would've been the one clashing with Strowman for the belt, and WWE would take things from there. Obviously, none of that happened, plans changed and McMahon went with the rather random pairing of Lesnar vs. Finn Bálor instead.

Braun's title glory (as it typically is) was put on ice yet again. On Raw, Vince himself appeared to cancel the planned bout after some "BRAUN SMASH" shenanigans and hastily arranged a Fatal-4-Way to establish a new challenger.

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