Brock Lesnar’s return to WWE TV at the Royal Rumble was canceled following a sex trafficking lawsuit filed against Vince McMahon and WWE. The lawsuit named a former WWE/UFC Heavyweight Champion, with Lesnar being the only one to fill that billing. Initially, Lesnar was scheduled to fly to Tampa, FL for the show.
Following the Royal Rumble, there has been speculation about who took Lesnar’s place in the match, which was ultimately won by Cody Rhodes.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, Bron Breakker replaced Lesnar in the bout. Meltzer mentioned that Breakker was not originally scheduled for the Rumble but performed all the spots that Lesnar was supposed to do.
