Brock Lesnar Appears At UFC 146: Anything To This?

[Jack-Hammer]

It's been reported on numerous sites that Brock Lesnar was in the audience last night at the UFC ppv. He was shown on camera watching Junior Dos Santos defeat Frank Mir to successfully defend the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

In a post fight press conference, UFC President, Dana White, was asked if Lesnar's appearance meant anything. White smiled and coyly said "maybe" before coming out and saying that Lesnar MIGHT be heading back to UFC. White said that he hadn't spoken to Lesnar, though would keep people informed if anything did happen.

Lesnar's contract with WWE is through WrestleMania 29 but I'm wondering if there are any special provisions in the contract. After all, Lesnar's trunks have the names of sponsors on them, allowing him to keep current endorsement deals he had prior to signing with WWE, which is a first. I'm wondering if there are any clauses in his deal in which he's allowed to participate in MMA events should the opportunity arise.

Lesnar looks like a dumb, Cro-Magnon looking SOB but he's shrewedly intelligent. The question of Lesnar's fate in WWE after WM is still heavily speculated, with most people thinking that he'll be gone after the event. I find myself wondering if this could possibly be something of an attempt on Lesnar's part to initiate a possible bidding war between WWE and UFC. We all know that Lesnar is always only in it for the money, can't say I blame him when you look at it from a realistic point of view, so I wouldn't put it past him if it meant that he could wind up heading back to one company or staying with the other if it meant an even bigger paycheck for him. At the same time, it could also merely be Lesnar laying the groundwork for a potential UFC return after his current deal with WWE is finished.

 

[bigbootydaddyV]

I wouldn't be surprised if Vince had Lesnar go just as a way to further his stock in the WWE and the current storyline. It was said that Vince was behind Undertaker confronting Brock after the fight and I'm sure this is something similar. Although, in this case, I think they may have talked to Dana ahead of time who may have agreed to let it happen, in which case, I think that's pretty damn classy of him. I don't see Brock returning to the UFC because I think with his injury he can't compete at the level of the others in the division, and it showed his last couple of fights, even with Overeem failing drug tests. If he were to fight guys like Big Country then maybe, but not against championship talent like JDS and Cain. I think White is smart enough to realize that having speculation of Brock coming back is just good for business because it keeps a big name out there, something they are lacking in, and so for him the whole thing was a win-win. I think a question to ask may be if we will ever see something similar reciprocated on WWE television, especially now with guys like King Mo going to TNA.

 

[The Crock]

I said this in another thread, but it's Dana White's job to make something out of nothing, of course he wasn't going to give a straight up answer when asked about Lesnar. There probably is something to it, though. We all know Brock is a very private individual, so I was surprised seeing him there. My first instinct was that he was there to promote something or fulfill a contractual obligation with a sponsor or something, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I see one major hitch in preventing Brock from competing in the UFC again and that's his WWE contract, obviously. Yeah, his contract is quite different (probably) than anything we've seen before, the sponsors on his trunks are unique to him, but do you think Vince McMahon would willingly allow Brock Lesnar to fight, putting his product at jeopardy? No way. If I had to venture a guess, I'd say that Lesnar is exclusive to the WWE until his contract is up, but I obviously don't know.

I'm leaning toward this whole thing being nothing more than a simple appearance, for now. I don't see Brock ever fighting again, with his health and all. Then again, this IS Brock Lesnar, the dude is fairly unpredictable. I can't tell you what he'll chose to do, but I just can't see him fighting while being under a WWE contract. I'm thinking he might announce a card or two, maybe making an appearance on a Fox card for UFC -- that would probably help UFC boost some ratings, while getting Brock a little bit of money, which seems to be his motivation. Plus, it'll bring WWE some publicity too, which I don't think Vince would mind.

Smart move by Brock, to be honest. He'll draw some big time money after WrestleMania 29, especially if he can get both UFC and WWE to bid for his services.

 

[wooooo]

I could see WWE using this in the whole legal battle storyline between Lesnar/Heyman & HHH, I'm not completely convinced it's a "work" though.

 

[LeviCook]

If it does end in some kind of bidding war i think WWE would win. In all honesty WWE needs Lesnar more than the UFC does. Brock Lesnar although bringing high ratings wasn't the greatest fighter. They have a lot of great talent. They don't need Lesnar in anyway. Now i'm not saying it would hurt, it probably would bring buy rates up but they wont be hurt without him. WWE on the other hand have this storyline based around him, hyped up his return, they already struggle to maintain ratings. They need Lesnar to bring viewers especially with going 3 hours. Not to mention the lack of main event talent in WWE.

 

[Burrows94]

UFC 100(?) with Lesnar's second fight pulled 1.6 million viewers, More than wrestlemania, alot less promoted than wrestlemania and alot less popular. He was and always will be their biggest draw, simply because he had exposure in WWE before UFC and the fans followed him, And they will do it again if he returns (Assuming the parents will let their children watch cage fighting) since he has had exposure for the second time in WWE. If he returns to UFC, expect more 1.6 million buys for UFC and expect a huge drop in stock and viewership in WWE.

 

[Madeye36]

Yeah he was a draw when he looked unbeatable. If he gets dominated again like his last couple fights people won't buy UFC PPV's just to see him. He is getting too old for MMA & doesn't have the time to gain experience. It showed when guys just as big & fast as him dominated him. Injury or not you don't pick up martial arts in a couple years & dominate.

 

[Chadmw]

UFC 100(?) with Lesnar's second fight pulled 1.6 million viewers, More than wrestlemania, alot less promoted than wrestlemania and alot less popular. He was and always will be their biggest draw, simply because he had exposure in WWE before UFC and the fans followed him, And they will do it again if he returns (Assuming the parents will let their children watch cage fighting) since he has had exposure for the second time in WWE. If he returns to UFC, expect more 1.6 million buys for UFC and expect a huge drop in stock and viewership in WWE.

I'm sorry I have to LOL at your whole comment. UFC 100 a lot less promoted then a wrestlemania, where do you live, in a cave that only shows WWE shows 24 hours a day. UFC overall is way more promoted then anything the WWE does.

And yes Brock was a big draw for the UFC, but unlike the WWE who bank on 2 to 4 stars to draw, the UFC has many more stars that draw on a regular basis.

 

[Rayne]

They also showed Charlize Theron in the crowd. When Dana White was asked if that meant anything, like her in a certain loser-leaves-UFC fight with "Mayhem" Miller, he coyly responded, "maybe".

 

[ProWrestlingFan]

Maybe Brock will grow sick of WWE's booking and go back to UFC again ? WWE booked him to lose his return match after 8 years to John Cena.

 

[Burrows94]

I'm sorry I have to LOL at your whole comment. UFC 100 a lot less promoted then a wrestlemania, where do you live, in a cave that only shows WWE shows 24 hours a day. UFC overall is way more promoted then anything the WWE does.

And yes Brock was a big draw for the UFC, but unlike the WWE who bank on 2 to 4 stars to draw, the UFC has many more stars that draw on a regular basis.

A cave being, England. UFC isn't promoted at all here, I'm willing to say 100% of sports fans here have heard of WWE, not ufc.

 

[BASSER911414]

He turns 35 in July - not really a prime age when it comes to fighting.

frank mir 33
minotauro 35
noguiera 35
lyoto machida 33
anderson silva 37
wanderlei silva 35
and last but certainly not least.

RANDY FUCKING COUTURE. 47 when he retired..

ur logic is completely invalid.

UFC 100(?) with Lesnar's second fight pulled 1.6 million viewers, More than wrestlemania, alot less promoted than wrestlemania and alot less popular. He was and always will be their biggest draw, simply because he had exposure in WWE before UFC and the fans followed him, And they will do it again if he returns (Assuming the parents will let their children watch cage fighting) since he has had exposure for the second time in WWE. If he returns to UFC, expect more 1.6 million buys for UFC and expect a huge drop in stock and viewership in WWE.

A cave being, England. UFC isn't promoted at all here, I'm willing to say 100% of sports fans here have heard of WWE, not ufc.

Well u just said it urself... UFC isnt promoted where u live. And based on what u said u really dont know what ur talking about do u... U probably read stats on wikipedia and decided to name brock lesnar the face of ufc and 'their only draw'.

By 2004-06 ufc surpassed wwe tna and boxing altogether in sales. dont remember brock lesnar being in the ufc in 2006. He strted in 2008. And his only credible win was against frank mir in the second fight and that too because mir had sustained knee injuries 2 months before. He needed surgery to get it fixed. Shane Carwin. Carwin had that fight won but got dumb in the second round. Randy Couture was a man in his mid 40s when he fought lesnar. And any other crdible heavyweight beat the crap out of him. Namely Velasquez and Overeem.

Lesnar is their biggest draw u say. What abt mir, dos santos, velasquez, minotauro, shogun, jon jones, sonnen and of course the greatest fighter in the UFC right now. Anderson Silva. Hell anderson silvas 80 pounds lighter than lesnar and could still kick his ass.

Btw also saying that 100 % ppl know wwe but not ufc is total bullshit. ufc in uk brougt in 800000 viewers for ufc on fox 1
Dont comment on stuff u dont know.

Back on topic. Why would lesnar return. Its not like he can stand up to the big guys now. We saw what velasquez did to lesnar and then bigfoot. What overeem did to lesnar. What dos santos did to velasquez. Maybe he could earn a paycheck but why tarnish his reputation at the same time.

Stick with WWE on a light schedule like the one he has now. Do WM 29 with the rock like its probably being assumed then retire with that walking goddess u call a wife. Hes got enough to not work a day for the rest of his life not to mention the endorsements.

 

[Pedigree1]

I think its much about nothing really. Smart move on brocks part though if a bidding war does indeed take place brocks only in it for himself and the cheddar. But in reality the UFC has more stars than the WWE does storyline wise it makes sense. But no one knows what brock is going to do from one minute to the next.

Hes too old for fighting MMA you cannot pick up all that knowledge u need to have at his age 34 i believe he is! MMA takes yrs and yrs to master i think he is done as a fighter but i have been wrong before so time will tell.

 

[attackgypsy]

IIRC, Brock had at least 1 more fight in his UFC contract.

All UFC contracts, it does't matter who you are, have a retirement clause. It allows you to retire, which Brock did, but the UFC still owns you if you choose to fight anywhere else.

There will be no "bidding war" for Brock. The WWE will give him what he wants, or he goes off into the sunset. He won't fight for UFC again. They'll hold him to his contract. Hell, they told Fedor to go pound salt, so Dana White doesn't compromise easily.

 

[The Dragon Saga]

Personally, I could give no less of a shit if he became a soccer player for LA Galaxy in his spare time, his freakin' decision, as long as he's making RAW more entertaining for me, he's doing his job and thus far he has done exactly that.

Brock Lesnar is as Jack-Hammer said, one of the stupidest looking people walking God's green earth, but he in all actuality one of the smartest people going, I'd say in any sport or even entertainment business today. Brock is squeezing money out of people, chances are he didn't care either way about the fight last night, I was watching and the camera showed him, he was very invested as Dos Santos made his way to the Octagon, he was on his feet, smiling, just looking like he was trying to get peoples attention and that is what he has done, he has people talking about Brock Lesnar.

Crock said it best, Dana White's job is to get people talking about nothing. He may have added to what Brock wanted which was get some more spotlight on a man sitting front row than the fight itself. But all-in-all I don't care. I like Brock Lesnar, I respect Brock Lesnar, I find Brock Lesnar entertaining and I don't jump on his back like some enjoy doing about his sub-par microphone ability. As long as he keeps entertaining me on WWE television, go back to UFC, join the NFL again, go play in the NHL, NBA hell go make a film with The Rock; same thing with him. I don't care what The Rock is doing outside the ring, as long as when he's in it he is entertaining me and boy does he entertain me.

Brock Lesnar is a smart guy who'll do what is right for business and he is his own business. If he needs the money he knows where to turn, although I doubt he needs the money, but what I do know if I was him sitting front row last night watching the reaction as JDS made his way to the ring of Cain destroyed Antonio Silva to the point Silva's entire upperbody was painted in his own blood, I'd of felt like getting back in the Octagon, but I'm not a mixed martial artist so I can't say, but that is my opinion.

 

[Honkey_Kong]

I think it would be in Vince's interest to allow Brock to go to UFC for a fight while in his WWE contract. Problem is that it's not in Dana White's interest.

Dana wants to keep it very clear that UFC is not like the WWE and that it's not scripted. When you got talent appearing on both products, it blurs the line. Which is good for wrestling, but bad for MMA.

I think Dana loved the drawing power of Brock Lesnar. And he knows he needs to have established stars.

 

[Pbenglish]

I read on another site (http://www.prowrestlingscoops.com/wwe/wwe-news/breaking-update-brock-lesnar-in-talks-with-ufc/), that White is not opposed to Lesnar working with both companies at the same time.
The way I look at it is this, White re-signs Lesnar (or allows him to finish out his previous contract, whatever the case might be), and uses WWE for advertising. WWE then gets to claim that they have a CURRENT UFC star under contract.
It does seem a little strange though. It really seems (to me at least) that if this does happen, WWE stands to gain far more than UFC does. UFC gets a massive name coming back, yes, but they also will have to deal with those who claim having a (current) WWE wrestler degrades their sport.
Should be interesting to see what happens, if anything does come of this.

 

[TimeIsWasting]

Honestly, I hope he does go back to the UFC. So we can watch him get his butt whooped. He is not an MMA fighter. People have these ideas that Lesnar has helped ratings for the WWE which is false. Lesnar did not help ratings at all. The ratings have been staying the same. Then OP says that Lesnar is shrewdly intelligent.......lol. There is nothing intelligent about Brock Lesnar. He needs help with everything he does. Paul Heyman has been instrumental with all of brocks doings behind the scenes. Lastly, I do not think there is anything to it, I just think he wanted to get into Frank Mirs head and watch Mir lose to JDS.

 

[JaceEvans]

I think its just him going back and enjoying watching what he used to do. I don't think he will return to UFC anytime soon and this is just pure speculation.

Last time I saw Lesnar in UFC it reminded me of Daniel Bryan's match against Sheamus at Wrestlemaina. I don't think he can compete at that level anymore especially with his ailment of diverticulitis.

What I really think is going on is his plan, which is just to get the media talking and keep the buzz around him alive since he's not being used by the WWE at this time due to his limited work dates. Nothing more should be made of this.

 

[DetectiveZelix]

Exactly. He's just appearing at the show to watch it. Kind of reminds me of Punk at comic con. It's like they're also trying to build the story of Brock "Legitimate" quitting, which no one really buys....I could care less about this. Don't really know why anyone would make anything out of it anyways

 

[rge2010]

What planet are people on? How on earth could it hurt WWE or UFC's product having him on both shows? Cross promoting never did anyone any harm, it benefits both companies immensely.

I'd hazard a guess that 98% of the people on here can distinguish the differences between WWE and UFC. One is scripted, one is legit, the other 2% is that fat kid from the school gym and a few babies who still believe in Santa Claus.

Brock can do both with ease. He can booked how WWE see fit to suit the current storylines.

 

[asslber]

It shows that Lesnar still likes the UFC and he wants to be entertained. Just because he's performing in a different company, doesn't mean he can't attend a UFC fight, which is totally unrelated to the WWE anyway.

It's just the same thing when Undertaker went to that UFC event. It didn't lead to nothing because that's all that it means - NOTHING.

 

[MCMG]

No, he wont return. His body isn't capable of getting the abuse u get in the UFC. He has had too many problems. That is why he will have a very light and favorable schedule in the WWE where he will be protected and any threat to his well being is minimal. I'm not sure but i'd imagine he would get paid a very nice wage at either organisation.

There is nothing left for him to prove in the UFC. People doubted him but he won the world title. Smashed Mir, beat Carwin and although he didn't fight JDS i reckon he would have of beaten him too.

 

[thebarber]

They also showed Charlize Theron in the crowd. When Dana White was asked if that meant anything, like her in a certain loser-leaves-UFC fight with "Mayhem" Miller, he coyly responded, "maybe".

hahaha 100% what I was going to add. Of course if he was in the crowd they would show him. I dont ever recall Rock, Austin, Heyman, Jim Ross or Taker, Michael Clarke Duncan or the litany of other sport stars or celebrities that get shown on camera all of a sudden be accused of joining the UFC. Brock Lesnar was very good in the sport, but he got out and good luck to him, He banked millions and kept his health, somethnig that would not have happened if he kept getting smashed like he was against Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez and the raping he got from Alsister Overeem. Brock knew he was in over his head thus why he got out. HE HAS RETIRED from mixed martial arts. Brock would only go back to be the top guy, and this clearly would not happen. Brock being at the UFC should only be looked at as a guy whose obviously a fan, probabl got given tickets by Dana White to attend

 

[Honkey_Kong]

No, he wont return. His body isn't capable of getting the abuse u get in the UFC. He has had too many problems. That is why he will have a very light and favorable schedule in the WWE where he will be protected and any threat to his well being is minimal. I'm not sure but i'd imagine he would get paid a very nice wage at either organisation.

There is nothing left for him to prove in the UFC. People doubted him but he won the world title. Smashed Mir, beat Carwin and although he didn't fight JDS i reckon he would have of beaten him too.

I don't know if Brock can recover from his illnesses fully or not. None of us know where he stands physically. I think if he had some time off they could easily book him in a rematch against Velasquez. It'd draw too. Brock didn't REALLY lose to Overeem since he was on steroids. I bet it's eating away at him to come back and finish on a good note.

As far as his easy WWE schedule, I think that's more due to the fact that Brock doesn't like traveling or pro-wrestling for that matter than to protect him. He's a big enough name in the sport he can dictate what he's going to do.