Bobby Lashley might have squashed The Miz to become WWE Champion in a series of events that did far too much to babyface him during his ascent than was ideal, but 2021 was at long last the year 'The All Mighty' rose to a position he should have occupied for years.
Look at Bobby Lashley, man. He is, for so many reasons, Vince McMahon's dream wrestler, and McMahon himself proved this when trying a little too hard to get him over as a people's champion back when he still had some coherent thoughts back in his head during the mid-2000s. It may seem like fluff and nonsense now, but it felt like a curse that hadn't been lifted when Lashley returned in 2018. The whole thing was happening again, until MVP formed The Hurt Business around him and at long last made a win undeniable.
A good-to-great feud (with good-to-great ramifications) with Drew McIntyre will likely be forgotten - everything is - but he was a made man by virtue of his time at the top. It helped him do the same as he did the favour to the next Champion too...
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
