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Brock Lesnar has had a seemingly unmatched career in combat sports, as he has been a world champion in both professional wrestling and MMA. While The Beast Incarnate enjoyed most of his success in the UFC and WWE, he was apparently also interested in joining TNA many years ago.
After reaching the main event picture in record time, Lesnar left WWE in 2004 with a desire to pursue a career in football, which didn't go as well as he might have imagined. The former Universal Champion returned to professional wrestling after competing in Japan for a couple of years.
TNA/IMPACT Wrestling was on the rise during the mid-2000s as Kurt Angle and many other top stars signed with the Dixie Carter-led promotion. Brock Lesnar was allegedly interested in working for the company in 2007 and reached out to Angle about possibly getting a spot on the roster.
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As recalled by Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar was willing to sign with TNA for the same amount of money the Olympic gold medalist was making at the time. Unfortunately, the company was not ready to pay a hefty sum to get Lesnar on board, as Angle revealed below on his podcast:
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"Okay, Brock calls me. He is not in the WWE. He says, 'Listen, man. Can you get me in TNA?' I probably shouldn't even be saying this now. But you know what? Brock doesn't care. He said, 'Hey, what are you making?' And I said what I was making. He said, 'If you can get me that, I'll come.' I approached TNA, and they said, 'No, we're not going to give him that kind of money.'" [12:14 - 12:40]
They were at the top of their budget: Kurt Angle on why TNA could not sign Brock Lesnar
There probably isn't a wrestling company out there that'd turn down the chance to have Brock Lesnar on its payroll. The veteran superstar was still a massive draw when he quit WWE for the first time nearly 18 years ago. TNA would have almost certainly signed him had they had strong financial backing.
The Jeff Jarrett-founded promotion brought in several main event talents on huge contracts during its early days, including Kurt Angle and Sting, who were among the top earners in the locker room.
Angle explained that TNA expanded its revenue streams after getting by from the funding of the Carter family. Still, the monetary gains weren't enough to get a superstar like Brock Lesnar on a seven-figure deal.
The WWE and TNA Hall of Famer added:
"I think they were at the top of their budget, where they couldn't really give any more money out. I was making a lot of money. Sting was making a good bit of money, and then you had a bunch of guys on the roster. You know, TNA, the Carter family funded it for a long time, and then TNA started making their own money, but it just wasn't enough to bring in another guy for seven figures a year. I don't think they were capable enough to do that." [12:41 -13:21]
How do you think a TNA run for Brock Lesnar would have panned out had he joined the company in 2007? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit The Kurt Angle Show and H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription.
