The road to WWE WrestleMania 42 took an interesting turn during the February 23, 2026 episode of WWE Raw when Brock Lesnar issued an open challenge for the event.
However, a recent discussion on the Self Made Sessions podcast suggests that determining Lesnar’s opponent for the show may not be as straightforward as it seems.
During the podcast, it was noted that WWE is aware many fans would like to see Lesnar face rising powerhouse Oba Femi. At the same time, the possibility of a match against Gunther has also reportedly been discussed internally.
The situation becomes complicated due to Lesnar’s long-term booking direction. According to the podcast, Lesnar and his longtime advocate Paul Heyman have communicated to WWE that Lesnar should not lose matches before eventually retiring.
Because of that stance, booking matches against major rising stars like Gunther or Oba Femi could create a creative conflict if the company plans for those wrestlers to emerge victorious.
The podcast explained the situation this way:
“So here’s the problem. They know that the audience wants Oba Femi.
Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman essentially have communicated to WWE and WWE Creative that Brock should not job until his retirement. So that presents WWE with a unique issue because Triple H would like to book at some point Gunther versus Brock and Oba versus Brock.
But if he books those matches, Brock will lose in both matches. So this presents everybody with a conundrum. That’s why it was suggested in the writer room: why don’t we do LA Knight versus Brock Lesnar?
But as we’ve now seen, they’ve realized that people don’t want that match. I’ll put it to you this way: I think they might end up doing that match.”
One of the alternative ideas reportedly discussed internally was a potential showdown between Lesnar and LA Knight. While the match would avoid the issue of Lesnar losing to a rising star, it may not generate the same level of excitement among fans compared to other potential matchups.
For now, Lesnar’s open challenge for WrestleMania 42 remains unanswered, leaving fans speculating about who will ultimately step up to face “The Beast Incarnate” on WWE’s biggest stage.