Last night, Brock Lesnar made his return to professional wrestling when he F-5’d John Cena to close out Monday Night Raw. Since his rumored return, every MMA writer became an authority on professional wrestling, and authored stories about how Lesnar would be the savior of the wrestling world.
There were also been several writers who questioned whether Lesnar’s return would mark the end of the UFC’s dominance.
He was responsible for some of the biggest buy rates in the history of buy rates. Whenever he brandished a pair of four-ounce gloves, he would draw in casual fans who wanted to see the mountain of a man fight.
Lesnar became an anomaly in the sport of mixed martial arts. He bridged the gap between MMA and professional wrestling, and was able to elevate the UFC by creating intrigue and drawing wrestling fans to purchase pay per views to see him fight. He was able to turn professional wrestling fans into MMA fans.
Every card he headlined attracted even the biggest MMA detractors.
Unfortunately, Lesnar’s UFC run was cut short because of multiple bouts with diverticulitis. Following an embarrassing loss to Cain Velasquez where he lost his UFC heavyweight title, Lesnar was sidelined for more than a year before he’d make his return to the octagon.
His final fight against Alistair Overeem saw Lesnar retire in the middle of the cage after yet another poor showing against arguably the top heavyweight in the world. Lesnar closed the night by telling the audience that he would be hanging up his gloves and retiring from MMA. It was an unfortunate end to his successful, albeit short, MMA career.
After those two poor showings, the question remained if professional wrestling fans would accept him as the unstoppable juggernaut that he was almost a decade ago?
Last night’s episode of Raw proved that wrestling fans don’t care about his MMA career. When his music hit, the fans at the American Airlines Arena popped louder than they’ve ever popped and the losses in MMA just didn’t seem to matter. The beast was home and was anointed the savior of the wrestling world.
The WWE had an incredibly successful Wrestlemania weekend in Miami, and has positive momentum on their side. Unfortunately, this is a common occurrence as Wrestlemania is the “grandest stage of them all” and the biggest event the WWE will promote all year. Historically, the momentum is only temporary.
Sooner rather than later, the WWE will settle back to its level of mediocrity.
As for the title? Don’t be ridiculous. The UFC will survive Brock Lesnar’s return to the WWE. The sky isn’t falling, nor is the UFC in any danger of losing momentum. What universe do you live in?
Lesnar will provide some casual interest and will draw fans back into professional wrestling, but it’s just a temporary fix. He’s only under contract for one year, and then he’ll escape back to his house in Minnesota. He’s not the messiah for the wrestling world, nor will his involvement mark the end of the UFC’s reign as the king of pay per view.
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