10 WWE Royal Rumble 2019 Impulse Reactions

2. Gut Punch

Nia Jax
WWE

A fiery little fight between Universal Champion Brock Lesnar and Finn Bálor ended in super-smart fashion when an increasingly desperate 'Beast' countered his game Challenger's Coup De Grâce close call for the submission win.

Yet again, Brock seemed incredibly keen to give everything to the cause whilst in there with somebody who never really stood a chance of winning. Had Bálor gambled on his demonic darkside, there may yet have been hope for even more smiling Irish eyes, but Lesnar's ability to answer every one of Finn's relentless assaults put paid to 'David's dreams against 'Goliath'.

This time, anyway.

Post-match, anyway. Brock suplexed the sh*t out of his fallen foe after the bell, implying at very least that he was p*ssed off to have been p*ssed on so profoundly by the inaugural titleholder before he turned the tide. It stands to reason that he'd want to leave an extra mark, but it's not normally something he bothers himself over.

Was this leaving more on the table than meets the eye? The Rumble winner can challenge on either brand - this now seems infinitely preferable just to give The Demon one last go at stopping the unstoppable.

Contributor
Contributor

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