10 Wrestling Matches That Ruled With Builds That Sucked

7. Daniel Bryan Vs Brock Lesnar (WWE Survivor Series 2018)

Shaq AEW
WWE.com

Maybe "sucked" is a little harsh. But "didn't exist" wouldn't be unfair. Not least because this was the second year in a row WWE had played the same trick with their Survivor Series main event.

In 2017, then-WWE Champion Jinder Mahal's chances against Universal Champion Brock Lesnar were buried with such profundity by Paul Heyman that it shouldn't have been such a surprise when AJ Styles took the title off the 'Modern Day Maharaja' with just over a week to go. 12 months later and things were completely different - audiences were already bang up for a Lesnar/Styles sequel before a blockbuster of a title change and heel turn on the pay-per-view go-home edition of SmackDown.

It was quite a cute choice, not least because it brought Bryan Vs Lesnar into existence with almost no time to emotionally prepare. But that time would have been quite nice, and ideally during a period where Bryan was the earnest babyface rather than the low-blowing b*stard he decided to be to take the title in the first place.

 
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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett