What’s the story?
As reported on our podcast, the “Dirty Sheets”, Brock Lesnar’s retirement from MMA is far from legit. Vince McMahon was said to not be overly thrilled with Brock Lesnar’s physique at the Royal Rumble and advocated that he would prefer Brock to look how he did at UFC 200.
In order to take any substances that would aid this, Brock Lesnar would have to retire from MMA in order for USADA to no longer test him up until May and through WrestleMania season, as the current sanction means Brock would be tested from May if he were to remain an active MMA fighter.
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In case you didn’t know..
Brock Lesnar allegedly notified UFC that his days fighting in the Octagon are now over. Lesnar failed multiple drug tests stemming from his UFC 200 showdown with Mark Hunt in Las Vegas last year, which led to a one-year suspension of his fighting license by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), as well as a $250,000 fine.
Lesnar returned to UFC in 2016 after five years away, defeated Hunt, but then was hit with two anti-doping violations from the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), which oversees the UFC's drug testing program. Lesnar proclaimed his innocence.
He tested positive for clomiphene, an oestrogen blocker that can remain in the system for about a month after use. His team said it believed the substance in question was part of a foot cream used by Lesnar in the lead-up to the fight, but he was unaware it contained banned substances.
If Lesnar wanted to get back into the Octagon, he would have been eligible in July of this year. This retirement announcement freezes the suspension, and he'd have to fulfil it if he still has a desire to fight down the line.
The heart of the matter
The main fact to look at here, is that if Brock Lesnar decided he wanted to fight in MMA again, he would simply pick up the testing where he left off, so he would be tested for five more months. The fact Brock allowed himself to be tested for seven months up until this point, proves he has no plans on giving up MMA.
The retirement simply allows him to cease testing and get into the shape Vince McMahon wants him to be in for WrestleMania. Brock is exempt from the WWE’s wellness policy, so he can do what he likes and look fantastic until he decides to fight in MMA again.
That will most likely be after WrestleMania 34 when his current WWE deal runs out. It’s unlikely Brock would sign another WWE deal for three more years, unless he was allowed to do MMA fights at the same time.
Brock knows there are a plethora of winnable MMA fights out there for him, even though he will soon be approaching 40 years of age. Brock was paid MORE MONEY to fight Mark Hunt at UFC 200 than he will make in all of 2017 with the WWE; let that sink in.
What’s next?
Brock will be winning the Universal Title at WrestleMania and will likely drop it at SummerSlam. He will probably then put over another WWE talent on his way out at WrestleMania 34, meaning the WWE would have got what they needed from Brock, depending on if suitable stars exist.
I believe they do in Balor, Reigns and Nakamura. However, if the WWE get cold feet, Brock could easily stay on longer. However, I feel the WWE ideally want out of the $3.1M a year, while Brock could make more money in UFC and Bellator, especially Bellator, who would pay as much as UFC, but offer Brock much easier fights.
A fight with Fedor would be a monster money maker for Bellator and both the fighters involved.
Sportskeeda’s take
It’s a strange time to be talking about Brock Lesnar leaving the WWE to do more MMA. The timing couldn’t be more strange. Brock is working more WWE dates than ever since he returned in 2012. He is about to become the WWE’s Universal Champion on the biggest match on their biggest card of the year. However, the facts are all there to see.
Brock’s WWE deal will finish after WrestleMania 34. The WWE will have Brock drop the title before then and put a significant loss on Brock to an up and coming star. In addition to that, if we look at the MMA side of things, Brock allowed himself to be tested for seven whole months before pulling the plug on testing, at the request of Vince McMahon, and announcing his ‘fake’ retirement.
As much as Brock Lesnar looks like he’s a WWE guy through and through right now, I think it’s certain that big fights with either Overeem in UFC or Fedor in Bellator, are in his future- and at $5 million, minimum, per fight, who can blame him.
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