Perhaps not like any other competitor in WWE history, Brock Lesnar has been able to maneuver his way into being a two-sport athlete. After an eight-year absence, Lesnar returned and executed an F5 on John Cena to show the world that he is back.
While Lesnar received a thunderous ovation, over the years the fan support for “The Beast” has significantly diminished. Mainly, due to the perception that Lesnar is not very concerned about his WWE status despite being the Universal Champion for approaching 500 days. This perception was further developed when Lesnar appeared at UFC 226 and was called out by newly-crowned champion Daniel Cormier. Not only did Lesnar come into the Octagon, but he told Cormier that he was coming for his title.
UFC 226 video: Brock Lesnar shoves Daniel Cormier, puts heavyweight division on blast https://t.co/IQNLGVgPC2 pic.twitter.com/rQKg168sB0
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) July 8, 2018
Initially, there was supposed to be a multi-person match to determine who will be the number one contender for Lesnar’s Universal Championship at Extreme Rules. However, that match was changed, due to an announcement that there were stalled contract negotiations between Lesnar and WWE. While many believed it to be storyline, the future of Lesnar’s next match did indeed become uncertain.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Lesnar is scheduled to appear at the Barclays Center the night after SummerSlam and be a major part of the show. However, it is still not confirmed whether he will compete at the actual SummerSlam event.
Based on this information, the Raw after SummerSlam will seemingly have either Lesnar forfeit his title, or announce his departure from WWE after losing the title the night before. Despite Lesnar’s mysterious current schedule, him dropping the title to Roman Reigns is still on the table.
Any show.
Any city.
Any country.
Any opponent.I’ll fight. #B2R pic.twitter.com/Skgobxjkva
— Roman Reigns (@WWERomanReigns) April 10, 2018
In addition, not mentioning Lesnar on television at all was reportedly a directive straight from Vince McMahon, as he wants Lesnar to garner more heat in hopes to make Reigns appear more heroic and receive cheers from the fans. According to Wrestling Inc., the speculation is that Vince McMahon knew that Lesnar was going to be at the event, but was not aware that he was going to appear inside the cage and build a storyline for a UFC fight.
It is without question that there have been some snags in this current contract of Lesnar, which is scheduled to go until the end of August. For many fans, Lesnar’s presence in the WWE has been grossly diluted, especially since it has been nearly three months since he has last defended the Universal Championship, and nearly four months until he may defend it next.
UPDATE: Brock Lesnar is now confirmed to compete at SummerSlam, per Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline. As previously mentioned, Lesnar is scheduled to make an appearance on the Raw after SummerSlam, and his contract is expected to expire at the end of August. Lesnar will be eligible to return to UFC on or after January 8, 2019, and is expected to face Daniel Cormier.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
