Ranking the 7 Possible Opponents for Brock Lesnar at WWE WrestleMania 37

WWE will undoubtedly look to bring as many big names as possible into the fold for WrestleMania 37 to make it feel like The Grandest Stage of Them All.

Edge, Christian and Carlito are among those who have returned to the ring in the past year, but one Superstar who has not come back is Brock Lesnar.

The Beast Incarnate hasn't signed a new contract with the company as far as we know, but that could be a secret kept from the WWE Universe to make his return much more surprising.

If he does come back for WrestleMania, though, he will need an opponent to face on April 10-11 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Nothing has been hinted at, but that won't stop us speculating.

Here are seven possible rivals for Lesnar if he does appear at WrestleMania 37.

The least likely scenario would be Lesnar entering the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. It's not impossible, but there are several obstacles that make it an improbable scenario.

First off, the match may not happen at all. WWE dropped the men's and women's Battle Royals at WrestleMania last year as a precautionary measure amid the coronavirus pandemic, but it has since staged several multi-wrestler matches, so the contests could be restored this year.

These matches are more of a catch-all for those without spots on the main card. It's great for tossing in big names who got lost in the shuffle, highlighting NXT call-ups or bringing in legends, but it's not typically used for someone with Lesnar's profile.

It's a decent emergency backup option but not much more than that.

After all the trash-talking Riddle has done in the recent past regarding Goldberg and Lesnar, WWE should capitalize on the animosity.

However, the more time that passes, the less likely it seems the company will go in that direction.

It seems Lesnar is not fond of Riddle, either, and wouldn't be interested in working with him. But that could be a means to toy with the fans and keep the story going.

We've seen The Undertaker challenge The Beast at a UFC event, which led to a WrestleMania program, so it's possible this is all going somewhere, but it remains an unlikely scenario.

Another person who has actively spoken about wanting a match with Lesnar is Bobby Lashley.

It's always the same deal: The All Mighty wants to fight him because they are two monsters with freakish agility and MMA experience. It does make sense.

For some strange reason, though, WWE has kept the two apart. There have been more than enough opportunities since Lashley's return in April 2018, but the company has resisted all of them.

Now, though, Lashley's credibility is through the roof. It's not worth holding your breath over, but maybe after going through everyone else on the Raw roster in dominant fashion, the true test of his United States title reign will be the match he's wanted for years.

Legends like Lesnar eventually reach a point where they should help build stars for the future. On the current roster, there may be no better choice for that role than Keith Lee.

The Limitless One had a brief encounter with The Beast in the 2020 men's Royal Rumble, and fans ate it up.

A win over Lesnar would cement Lee as someone who is ready for that top spot. It would immediately legitimize him in the eyes of fans, meaning his future challenges for world championships would be seen as goals he can obtain rather than being slightly out of his reach.

Like practically everything else on this list, nothing has been hinted at. But it wouldn't take much for it to happen.

From this point on, the list becomes much more believable in all facets, such as being a high-enough spot on the card or some kind of personal connection that would drive the story.

Roman Reigns is working with Paul Heyman, who has been inseparable from Lesnar over the years.

We are led to believe that when The Beast's contract expired, Heyman was cast aside and Reigns was the one who brought him back. But does that mean Lesnar and The Advocate are no longer speaking, or is this just a holding pattern?

Heyman could turn on The Tribal Chief and bring back The Beast Incarnate to take him out, or Reigns could cast his special counsel aside and Heyman could look for revenge by reuniting with Lesnar.

An even more interesting scenario, though, could be that Lesnar returns as the babyface, which hasn't been been the case since his first run with WWE. That would flip the dynamic with Reigns and present something different to their previous encounters.

As this directly involves Heyman and his client, it's much more likely than the other options presented so far. But it's still a stretch.

The easiest option would be a rematch against Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship. Sadly, that makes it one of the most believable scenarios imaginable.

Lesnar is a perennial No. 1 contender to any title he wants because WWE knows he's a big name and always puts him in the title hunt.

As The Beast lost the title to McIntyre at WrestleMania 36 in an empty arena, WWE may want to revisit this rivalry with fans in attendance and give them the environment they should have had 12 months ago.

If men's Rumble match winner Edge chooses to challenge Reigns, this becomes even more likely, as WWE will want to give the Scot a major opponent for the biggest show of the year.

The downside to this, however, is that the dynamic has changed. McIntyre has proved himself as a champion over the past year. Beating Lesnar means nothing in comparison to last year, and losing to him would render the whole journey moot.

That self-defeating booking hasn't stopped WWE in the past, though, so McIntyre is one of Lesnar's most likely opponents if he does return.

The only person who may have a spot above McIntyre on this list is Kevin Owens, and it all boils down to a moment on Talking Smack.

To help hype up his Last Man Standing match with Reigns at the Royal Rumble, KO spoke to Heyman on January 16 and said some key words that are the only acknowledgments of Lesnar in recent months:

"When you're telling me that you like me, you're telling me that you're worried about what's going to happen to me at the Royal Rumble, and you can't contain Roman's anger, I know that's about as sincere as you were every single time I would go to you these past four, five years and tell you 'Hey, I want to fight The Beast Incarnate.' And you would say 'Oh, I'll talk to him.' That never happened. Just like you don't care about what happens to me at the Royal Rumble, Paul."

That could be the foundation for this match.

Since it's the only time recently that Lesnar has factored into discussion, it's the best clue we have with regard to WWE planting the seeds for his return. But it may also just be something Owens said on a whim.

Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.