SUMMARY
- Brock Lesnar is among the few stars who have achieved success in UFC as well as WWE.
- But according to a WWE Hall of Famer, Brock Lesnar wanted to join TNA before starting his UFC career.
Brock Lesnar is one of the best athletes in the history of combat sports, and his success across UFC and WWE proves it. The Beast has achieved just everything in both the promotions, and it has helped him attain a legendary stature among other superstars of both these industries.
Lesnar is known mostly for the success of his second stint with the Triple H-led promotion, but before that he was a part of the company in early 2000’s. At that time, Brock was presented as the next big thing by the organization, but in 2004, he left the promotion to join the NFL; however things didn’t go as per plans, and later he began fighting in UFC.
Even though he achieved a lot in the Dana White-led company, a WWE Hall of Famer reveals that Brock Lesnar asked for him help to join TNA before becoming a star in the UFC. It was revealed by Kurt Angle on a 2022 episode of his podcast, as he shared that The Beast Incarnate wanted to join the organization in 2007.
Talking about the conversation they had, Kurt said, “Brock calls me. He’s not in the WWE. Listen, Man, Can you get me in TNA. I probably shouldn’t be saying this stuff. He said, hey, what are you making, and I told him what I was making. He said, If you can get me that, I’ll come. And I approached TNA, they said, No, we aren’t not going to give him that kind of money.”
In this way, Angle revealed that the company wasn’t ready to give Lesnar the kind of money he was expecting, and that’s why things didn’t work. Due to this, the WWE legend wasn’t able to make it to the promotion, but he chose different paths after that, which have now established him as one of the biggest draws in the combat sports world.
Brock Lesnar’s UFC career made him a combat sports megastar
After being declined an offer by TNA, The Beast shifted his entire focus towards mixed martial arts and got trained at the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy. Brock then joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship with a one-fight contract during UFC 77 on October 20, 2007. Just months after the deal, the WWE star made his debut with the promotion at UFC 81: Breaking Point against former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir.
The Beast lost the bout, as Frank forced a submission at 1:30 of the first round, but due to his strong performance, he was offered a new contract by the company. After this, Hall of Famer Mark Coleman was announced to fight Lesnar at UFC 87, but Mark was later replaced by Heath Herring, and Brock was able to secure a victory in the fight via unanimous decision.
In his third match in the promotion, Lesnar faced Randy Couture for the UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC 91 on November 15 and went on to become the new champ, thus making a name for himself early in his career. After this, Brock fought Mir at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009, and it was eventually won by The Beast Incarnate in a dominant manner.
Following this win, Lesnar took a hiatus, but in January 2010, he revealed a UFC return in the summer. Amid this, a match between Frank Mir and Shane Carwin took place to determine Brock’s next opponent. After Shane won, Lesnar and Carwin fought each other at UFC 116 to unify the titles. In their fight, he secured the victory and became the undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion. This victory also tied a record for the most consecutive successful UFC Heavyweight Championship defenses.
Lesnar’s next bout was against undefeated top contender Cain Velasquez at the Honda Center at UFC 121. Even after a good start, Brock lost the match, as Cain finished the bout with a technical knockout. After this, in 2011, Brock Lesnar made his return at UFC 141 against Alistair Overeem. But he wasn’t the same inside the cage, and after a loss in this bout, he announced his retirement due to health related issues.
Even though he retired from UFC with a loss, the way he dominated the industry through his viciousness inside the cage, Brock was able to make an everlasting impact. Moreover, his career in the Ultimate Fighting Championship made him a megastar in the combat sports world and eventually helped in his career in the professional wrestling industry.
Brock Lesnar made a return to pro wrestling in 2012
After retiring from the UFC, Brock Lesnar made a return to professional wrestling in 2012, as he confronted John Cena on the RAW after WrestleMania 28. As he had initially left WWE for a different career, his return to the company was unexpected, and that’s why The Beast’s comeback was an absolute shocker for all.
Making a strong statement with his heel tactics, Lesnar straight away made a huge impact as he attacked The Cenation Leader in the first appearance of his return. After this, he never looked back, and fought against some of the biggest names in the Stamford-based promotion. Brock was involved in feuds with John, Triple H, Randy Orton, and CM Punk, which once again made him one of the biggest names in the organization.
At WrestleMania XXX, The Beast did the unthinkable by defeating The Undertaker, thus breaking his 21-year-long streak. At SummerSlam 2014, he defeated John Cena to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and carried it on until next year’s WrestleMania, where Seth Rollins won the title by cashing in his MITB contract during the match between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns.
Throughout the next decade, the former UFC star continued to be a major draw, as he was constantly involved in top-tier feuds in the promotion. In addition to this, The Beast was able to have multiple reigns with the Universal Championship and WWE Championship, and he had one of the longest-stretched rivalries in history with The Tribal Chief.
In his last feud in the company before going on a hiatus, Brock Lesnar had a trilogy of matches with Cody Rhodes that eventually ended at SummerSlam 2023. Even though Brock was rumored to be coming back to the promotion around Royal Rumble 2024, the Vince McMahon lawsuit made things pretty bad for him.
After the allegations against him, the Stamford-based promotion tried to end their association with The Beast by doing a number of things, like replacing him from the SmackDown video package. But when The Game was asked about it in a press conference, he hinted that things had gotten better. Thus, it’s possible that we might see Brock Lesnar making a return to the WWE sooner than expected.
