Category: Pro Wrestling

Vince McMahon resigns from TKO, WWE after disgusting details on allegations surface – UPDATED

Posted on by Zane Simon in Crime, Pro Wrestling, WWE

Update: Vince McMahon has resigned from his roles at WWE and parent company TKO after disturbing new allegations surfaced.

“Out of respect for the WWE Universe, the extraordinary TKO business and its board members and shareholders, partners and constituents, and all of the employees and Superstars who helped make WWE into the global leader it is today, I have decided to resign from my executive chairmanship and the TKO board of directors, effective immediately,” Vince McMahon said in a statement.

For the past several years WWE chairman Vince McMahon has been embroiled in a series of sexual misconduct scandals, some of them stretching back to allegations made more than 30 years ago. In 2022, the company’s board of directors launched an investigation into ‘hush-money’ settlements paid by McMahon totaling nearly $20 million.

As a result of that investigation, Vince McMahon was forced to step down as CEO of the WWE, and eventually announced his retirement. That move was short lived, however, with Vince McMahon returning to the pro-wrestling promotion just six months later to once again take control. In a recent report from the Wall Street Journal, however, one of the apparent recipients of McMahon’s payoffs has filed a lawsuit, exposing his alleged conduct in more disturbing detail.

Wrestling: WWE-Wrestlemania, Apr 3, 2022; Arlington, TX, USA; WWE owner Vince McMahon during WrestleMania at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports, 03.04.2022 22:02:17, 18017398, Wrestling, WWE, AT&T Stadium, Wrestlemania PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY 18017398
Disgusting details have surfaced about the longtime WWE boss Vince McMahon | Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Network, IMAGO

Wall Street Journal exposes Vince McMahon’s sexual assault claims

The Wall Street Journal has gained access to court documents from a former WWE employee as part of a lawsuit filed in January of 2024. In those documents, the employee claims that they were subjected to sex trafficking perpetrated by Vince McMahon.

This lawsuit appears to have come about after McMahon failed to follow through on a $3 million NDA agreement. Paying only $1 million of the money promised before allegations of his past misconduct became public knowledge in 2022, at which point he stopped further payments. As a result the current lawsuit would nullify the terms of the NDA, along with granting unspecified damages.

In the WSJ article, the accusing party alleges that they met McMahon through a manager at her apartment building in 2019, where the WWE executive lived in the penthouse suite. McMahon reportedly showered them with gifts and pressured them into sex in exchange for employment with the WWE. After sharing photos and stories of his sexual exploits to other WWE employees, the plaintiff alleges that they were also coerced to have sex with former WWE head of talent relations John Laurinaitis, who is also named in the lawsuit.

McMahon controlled her professional and personal lives and subjected her to degradation, according to the suit. In the June 2021 encounter inside the WWE office, the suit said McMahon and Laurinaitis forced themselves on her and took turns restraining her for the other, while saying “No means yes” and “Take it, b—.”

The lawsuit also claims that at one point, during a sexual encounter McMahon “defecated” on the plaintiff’s head, as detailed in a report from Variety.

Citing an example of McMahon’s “extreme depravity,” on May 9, 2020, “he defecated on Ms. Grant during a threesome, and then commanded her to continue pleasuring his ‘friend’ — with feces in her hair and running down her back — while McMahon went to the bathroom to shower off,” the lawsuit says.

Eventually McMahon reportedly paid for an extended stay at a health clinic for the plaintiff due to her deteriorating physical and mental health.

Brock Lesnar named

One of the most notable names to come up in this new lawsuit is former UFC and current WWE superstar Brock Lesnar. Allegedly Vince McMahon shared sexually explicit material featuring the plaintiff with Lesnar, as a lure to get the former NCAA D1 national champion wrestler back under contract in 2021. Afterward, McMahon apparently texted the plaintiff that “part of the deal was f—ing U.”

WSJ reports that Lesnar asked the plaintiff to send a video of themselves urinating, then called them a “b—h” after they complied. Lesnar then attempted to “set a play date,” only to cancel the plan after a snowstorm prevented him from traveling.

Wrestling: WWE-Royal Rumble, Jan 29, 2022; St. Louis, MO, USA; Brock Lesnar celebrates after winning the Royal Rumble match during the Royal Rumble at The Dome at America s Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports, 29.01.2022 21:56:03, 17587381, Wrestling, Brock Lesnar PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY 17587381
WWE and UFC star Brock Lesnar was also named in the lawsuit. | Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Network, IMAGO

TKO statement

The Wall Street Journal claims they have reached out to McMahon, his attorney, Lesnar, and the WWE for comment, but did not receive a response.

In the Variety report, a spokesperson for TKO claimed the company was currently “addressing this matter internally.”

“Mr. McMahon does not control TKO nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE,” TKO said of the current lawsuit. “While this matter predates our TKO executive team’s tenure at the company, we take [the plaintiff]’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”

Dana White not loving UFC/WWE crossover talk

Posted on by Zane Simon in Pro Wrestling, UFC News

The merger between the world’s largest MMA promotion and the world’s largest pro-wrestling promotion is officially underway. The UFC & WWE made their partnership official this week, uniting under the newly created TKO brand for the company’s debut on Wall Street.

The move has created some minor shakeups among top brass for both sports-entertainment properties, with Vince McMahon taking an executive role on the TKO board, working under the direction of Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel. The deal has also led to some speculation as to what kind of branding partnerships fans might expect from the WWE & UFC going forward.

The most obvious so far has been the potential for the WWE & UFC to hold back-to-back events in the same locations, increasing site fees in cities looking to attract more visitors and increase local commerce. Other ideas, however, have had fans a little worried.

UFC & WWE execs excited for crossover potential

On both the UFC and the WWE side of this new merger, executives have been talking up the potential for not just co-planning events, but the possibility of creating more crossover business opportunities for fans and fighters. In a recent interview with ESPN, WWE president Nick Kahn made it clear, for the most part, that UFC fighters are going to stay in the UFC and WWE talent would keep working the ring. But he also teased the idea that more former UFC fighters could see a future in pro-wrestling as a result.

“UFC fighters are going to stay focused on the UFC and WWE superstars obviously do something different in our ring,” Khan explained. “… But you also see in the UFC people with big personalities who, once their UFC run is done, once the UFC and the fighter says, ‘Hey, maybe now’s the time to call it a day,’ could those people have a longer life at WWE, an extended life with TKO? We think so.”

It may not be nearly as cut and dried a path as more typical athletic careers, but even still, pro-wrestlers tend to get their start in the industry in their teens and twenties, often training for years before making their debut. There are people who have had their start much later, obviously, but it’s hardly the typical path to success in the squared circle. Hell, even Ronda Rousey was only 29 when she retired from the UFC (and had been doing some basic pro-wrestling training with her teammates for years prior). Expecting fighters in their mid-to-late 30s to cross over with any regularity seems pretty far fetched.

On the UFC side of things, executives may not be extolling the potential for their athletes to jump ship. But UFC vice president Lawrence Epstein raised a few eyebrows recently with his hopes for the fan communities, namely that every UFC fan could become a WWE fan and vice-versa.

“Where we want to get is where every UFC fan is a WWE fan and every WWE fan is a UFC fan,” Epstein told ESPN.

Dana White doesn’t buy it

So what gives? Are UFC & WWE brass really sold on plumbing the crossover appeal of their respective industries. Are we going to see a whole new era of CM Punks, Brock Lesnars, and Ronda Rouseys? Dana White didn’t offer any revelations on that possibility, but he didn’t mince words when asked about Epstein’s hopes for fans.

“Lawrence, I love ya,” White told reporters at a Contender Series press conference. “One of the dumbest statements of all time. Yeah, I don’t know why he said that. I don’t even know what to say to that. ‘No,’ there’s no—there’s some crossover. Some people like WWE, some people like UFC, some people like both.

“I don’t think there’s ever going to be a day where we turn every UFC fan into a WWE fan, or every WWE fan—what’s beautiful about the synergy between these two fan-bases is that they are very, completely opposite. There’s very little crossover. Again, maybe he was misquoted? I hope that’s the case, ‘cuz I could not disagree with him more.”

Honestly, between Epstein and Khan, Esptein’s idea may be much closer to the truth. White may not want to hear it, but there’s always been a lot of crossover between MMA & pro wrestling in terms of audience interest. Back in the proto MMA days, there were even lots of crossover events. Many early promoters got found their way to MMA trying to create more realistic pro-wrestling events to separate their product from their competitors.

White has even taken advantage of that crossover appeal, bringing in talents like CM Punk, purely as an attraction geared toward the pro-wrestling fanbase. It may not be the kind of show he wants to put on, but it seems a lot more likely that the UFC could find more common promotional ground with the WWE than it does that yesterday’s UFC stars will find a second life in pro-wrestling.

It’s time! – UFC & WWE merger about to begin

Posted on by Zane Simon in MMA Business, MMA Business and Finances, Pro Wrestling, UFC News, WWE

With the UFC lawsuit getting class certification, PFL in talks to buy Bellator, and Francis Ngannou getting a mega-fight with Tyson Fury fans could be forgiven for forgetting about one of the biggest stories in combat sports over the last year. Just this past spring, Hollywood entertainment giants Endeavor purchased a majority stake in the world’s largest pro-wrestling sports-entertainment business, the WWE.

With the WWE valued at more than $9 billion, the move has given Endeavor serious market dominance in two of the world’s largest sports-event companies—with future plans to merge the UFC & WWE into one publicly traded organization. Well, the future is now.

WWE & UFC merger to start September 12th

Deadline reports that, following their purchase of the WWE back in April, Endeavor plans to move ahead with their stated goal of rolling their two sports-entertainment brands into one, starting this coming Tuesday, September 12th. Despite the merger and new TKO branding, expectations are that we’ll continue to see the WWE and UFC continue as separately run organizations, with Dana White retaining his role as UFC president and Ari Emanuel acting as CEO of TKO.

The merger also, initially, included plans to see Vince McMahon retain his position as chairman of the WWE, but his status is currently a little more murky. Back in July, McMahon was subject to a search warrant by federal agents, as part of an ongoing probe into allegations of funds misappropriation. McMahon has been accused of paying as much as $20 million to settle claims of sexual misconduct stretching back multiple years from multiple women.

“In 2022, WWE formed a special committee to review allegations of misconduct against me,” McMahon said in a statement in early August. “That review was concluded in November 2022 following an extensive investigation. Throughout this experience, I have always denied any intentional wrongdoing and continue to do so. I am confident that the government’s investigation will be resolved without any findings of wrongdoing. I am focused on completing the recovery process from my recent spinal surgery and on closing our transaction with Endeavor, which will create one of the preeminent global sports and entertainment brands.”

McMahon has been on indefinite medical leave following back surgery that took place in July. While the WWE has released statements to the effect that he will remain in his position as chairman of the promotion upon his return, the ongoing nature of the investigation has left his position in this merger unclear.

“This company has been on fire for the last seven years and now that we will be adding WWE to the portfolio, I am excited to take this to another level,” UFC president Dana White said of the merger back in April. “Vince is a savage in the wrestling space, Ari is a beast at what he does, and then add what we at UFC bring to the table and there is no limit to what this company can accomplish in the next few years.”

While it’s unclear what kind of crossover branding might result from the WWE & UFC running side by side under the TKO banner, for now it seems most likely that fans will continue to see both promotions running their business as usual.

UFC business a boon amid writer’s strike

With Endeavor’s WWE/UFC business deal coming to a close, it’s worth noting that the UFC has been a major boon to the company since it’s purchase, for $4 billion back in 2016. Most recently, Endeavor saw a net income of $666.5 million (Q2 2023). And while the Hollywood Reporter suggests that the company is likely to see some serious damage in Q3 due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA writers striker, their ‘unscripted content’ business has been a major strength.

Speaking to the Reporter, Ari Emanuel pinned much of the companies recent revenue gains on “the delivery of projects in Endeavor’s nonscripted content production business,” with a note that their ‘owned sports division’ saw a 2.5 percent revenue increase from 2022.

Paige VanZant lifts lid on OnlyFans income versus UFC pay

Posted on by Zane Simon in Bare Knuckle Fighting, MMA News, Pro Wrestling, UFC News

For most of its history, MMA has been no great way to get rich. For the few fighters that have ridden the wave of their combat sports fame to fortune, plenty more have sacrificed their physical prime chasing dreams that never quite become reality.

At one point, Paige Van Zant appeared to be on her way to bonafide UFC stardom. Her tenacity in the cage, willingness to self promote, and undeniable good looks made her a fighter clearly on the rise when she first hit the UFC Octagon. But even for a talent who so clearly had captured the public eye, breaking through proved difficult. Injuries took their toll, as did struggles to find the right training environment. After getting released by the UFC in 2020 it appears PVZ has left the MMA world behind.

Paige VanZant says OnlyFans income dwarfs UFC career pay

In a recent interview with Barstool Sports, VanZant talked about her post UFC career. While that included a short (and reportedly very well paying) stint with bare knuckle boxing promotion BKFC, the biggest moneymaker in VanZant’s career has become her OnlyFans page. In fact, she’s apparently made so much money on the platform that the combat sports world couldn’t even pretend to compete.

“I definitely have,” VanZant admitted when asked if she’d made more money on OnlyFans than she did fighting (transcript via MMA Junkie). “I’d say when I made the switch to OnlyFans—there’s a lot of stuff I’ve done in my career and I’ve been really fortunate my career even outside of the UFC and outside of fighting has been pretty successful. I’ve worked pretty hard in other industries and trying to cross over to more of a mainstream personality.

“But yes, OnlyFans has definitely been my largest source of income. I would say combined, in my fighting career, I think I’ve made more money in 24 hours on OnlyFans than I did in my entire fighting career combined.”

Paige VanZant on making more ‘adult’ content

After amassing millions of fans on her Instagram, Paige VanZant made the move to OnlyFans back in 2021. That decision didn’t come without some trepidation, however. Initially VanZant tried to start her own private social media service for fans to subscribe to her exclusive content, in part because she wasn’t interested in being associated with OnlyFans’ more X-rated branding. Eventually, however she made the jump to the popular subscription site.

“I was nervous about the stigma but now it’s hard to walk away from,” VanZant told Barstool of making more mature content for OnlyFans. “… But I feel like if you’re one of those people who were born poor and grew up poor and then you become rich, it’s almost like you always just feel poor. You always want to continue to work hard.

“I am lucky I’m in a position where I’ve been able to help my family, My husband and I help our family. We do everything we can to bring everybody up to the table. … For me, it justifies doing exclusive content knowing that I’m helping take care of everybody around me.”

VanZant hasn’t competed in any kind of combat sport since her two-fight BKFC run in 2021. She was scheduled for another bare knuckle fight in late 2022, but the bout was eventually scrapped and her opponent re-booked. She made a brief run in professional wrestling as well, performing for AEW between 2021-22, however she has not made an appearance for the promotion this year.

WWE sale worth as much as $9 billion closing in with UFC parent company Endeavor

Posted on by Zane Simon in Pro Wrestling, UFC News

Rumors have been swirling for months about plans to sell the WWE. The world’s premiere pro-wrestling organization appeared to be on slightly rocky ground last summer, after longtime owner and CEO Vince McMahon was forced to step down from the company following sexual misconduct allegations.

However, McMahon swept back into his seat of power, earlier this year, after orchestrating a takeover of the WWE board of directors. Back at the helm of the sports-entertainment powerhouse, McMahon has been courting options for a new ownership partner. While the Saudi government & royal family had appeared to be front-runners, it now seems that a deal with UFC parent company Endeavor Group Holdings have emerged as the most likely new owners.

What’s the WWE worth?

That’s according to a report from CNBC, who note that Endeavor appears poised to take on a 51% ownership stake in the WWE, with a “enterprise value” of $9.3 billion on the pro-wrestling organization. The promotion’s “market value” currently sits at $6.79 billion, following what has, so far, been an exceptionally profitable 2023. The expectation is that a deal between the two companies will be announced this coming week, possibly as soon as Monday.

Endeavor purchased the UFC from the Fertitta brothers along with their Zuffa LLC company back in 2016, for a price of $4.25 billion dollars. As part of the likely upcoming WWE purchase, Endeavor has reportedly set the value of the UFC in 2023 at $12 billion.

Could this mean big changes in WWE management?

The WWE (formerly the WWF) has been a McMahon-owned family business stretching all the way back to the 1950s in one iteration or another. While the sale to Endeavor will likely be the end of that legacy, if the UFC purchase has been anything to go by, it seems unlikely to result in any further big shakeups in the WWE front office.

Since getting bought out by Endeavor in 2016, the UFC still features Dana White as the day-to-day operations manager and face of the promotion, alongside longtime matchmakers Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard. Although the changeover did see the exit of some longterm notable figures, like Joe Silva, Stitch Duran, and Burt Watson.

Whatever the future holds, it seems likely that Endeavor has just gained a functional stranglehold on the sports-entertainment crossover world. With the UFC as the largest combat sports organization on the planet today, and the WWE alongside it, it will likely only get that much more difficult for other promoters and investors to mount significant competition to this corporate giant.

Future WWE talent Gable Steveson secures second straight NCAA D1 title, retires from wrestling

Posted on by Zane Simon in Front Page, NCAA Wrestling, Pro Wrestling, Wrestling

In 2021 NCAA Division 1 champion Gable Steveson made headlines. Not for his accomplishments on the mats, but for what the future might hold for the talented Golden Gophers wrestling star. A 2020 Tokyo Olympics gold medalist in freestyle wrestling, Steveson made his intentions clear. That he wanted to make a move to new athletic horizons, and it was going to be a big one.

He teased the possibility of trying his hand at college football, making a jump straight to the NFL, or even a move to MMA and the UFC, before ultimately landing on a contract with the WWE (not a surprise to longtime wrestling fans who knew Steveson’s ties to and affinity for the sports-entertainment product). And on March 19th he put the final piece into place, announcing his official retirement from the national and international wrestling worlds—fresh off the back of his second straight college championship.

Steveson defeated Arizona State Sun Devil Cohlton Schultz in the final round of the 2022 NCAA D1 tournament, after which he walked to the center of the mats and removed his wrestling shoes.

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“It’s done,” Steveson said, of his wrestling career (transcript via MMA Fighting). “I knew what I came to do. I was going to win an Olympic gold, win the national tournament again. It’s just weird. I don’t know how to describe it.”

No word yet as to when Steveson is set to make his WWE debut, although rumors are swirling that he may make an appearance at WrestleMania 38, on April 2-3 in Arlingonton TX.

In a 2021 appearance on the WWE After the Bell podcast, Steveson spoke about his decision to go with the WWE—noting that one of the key factors in the move was that the promotion was willing to allow him to go back to the University of Minnesota to compete for another NCAA title.

“[The WWE] allowed me to go back to school,” Steveson said of his decision (transcript via WrestlingInc.com). “If I would’ve signed with the UFC or tried to do the NFL, I would’ve had to leave. Leave an open book with the University of Minnesota that I couldn’t finish. I wanted to go back and win the national tournament again, I wanted to go back and wrestle in front of our fans because, last year, we couldn’t because of the COVID rules. The year before that, it got canceled too, so I wanted to go back and have that one last run with everybody seeing me. And the WWE helped me have the NIL so I could be with them, have on stage appearances but also wrestle my college season. And I’m a regular college student at the end of the day too.”

Joe Rogan voices Cain Velasquez support: ‘My only wish is that he did it with his hands’

Posted on by Zane Simon in Crime, Front Page, Pro Wrestling, UFC News

His actions may have been dangerous, reckless, and resulted in the wrong person getting injured, but Cain Velasquez’s attempted killing of accused child molester Harry Goularte has galvanized a lot of support behind him in the MMA community.

Velasquez was arrested on February 28th and charged with attempted first-degree murder, along with a number of other weapons and assault charges, after an 11-mile high-speed car chase—that involved Velasquez ramming and shooting into a vehicle containing Goularte and Goularte’s 63-year-old stepfather. Goularte was apparently uninjured in the attack, however his stepfather suffered a non-lethal gunshot wound. Goularte had been accused of molesting a member of Velasquez’s family as many as 100 times at a daycare facility owned and operated by Goularte’s mother.

On a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Rogan sat down with former champion – and current UFC commentary team member – Michael Bisping. The conversation eventually turned to Velasquez’s arrest (transcript via MMA Fighting).

“You could only imagine the rage, the f-cking rage that must have been going through that man’s mind. I mean, my only wish is that he did it with his hands. My only wish is that he just ran that car off the road, pulled that guy out of the f-cking car, and beat him to death. F-ck you,” Rogan said, with Bisping adding that even that would have been “too good” for Goularte.

“That is a sickness,” Rogan added, speaking of the allegations against Goularte. “There’s like a certain sickness that people have, that human beings have, sicknesses of the mind. But that one, molesting a f-cking baby? A four-year-old is like a baby. The molesting children is the sickest of all of those sicknesses.”

Velasquez is currently being detained at the Santa Clara County Jail, following a judges decision to withhold bail on Monday, March 7th, due to “clear and convincing evidence that there is a substantial likelihood that release would result in great bodily injury, not just to the named complaining witnesses in this case but to Santa Clara residents at large.” His next court appearance is set for April 12th.

‘I’m too old’ – Brock Lesnar done with UFC, resigned to being just a WWE superstar

Posted on by Zane Simon in Front Page, Pro Wrestling, UFC News

Never say never. Especially not in a sport like MMA, where the option for just one more fight is always on the table with combat sports. That said, it’d be a hell of a surprise to see Brock Lesnar ever make another return to the UFC.

The former heavyweight champ and pro-wrestling superstar made a shocking run through the MMA world back in 2007, when he debuted against Min-Soo Kim in the main event of Dynamite!! USA. Just a little over one year later and the onetime NCAA D1 national champion wrestler was wearing UFC gold. He stepped away from the sport in 2011, due to health complications, but made a return to the Octagon in 2016 for something of an inglorious victory over Mark Hunt—which has since been changed to a ‘no contest’ due to a drug test failure.

Even given the specter of PEDs surrounding that UFC 200 main event bout, however, the idea that Lesnar could someday make another run in the world’s largest MMA promotion never entirely went away. After all, who wouldn’t want to see Lesnar vs. Ngannou, even in 2022?

But, if that kind of ‘superfight’ seemed unlikely before, it sounds like there’s no hope for it now. In a recent interview with the New York Post, Lesnar talked about his time with the UFC, and the potential for another late-career return. Short answer: it’s not happening.

“That door is closed,” Lesnar admitted. “You know what, Dana White, the Fertitta brothers [Lorenzo and Frank] were exceptional to me.”

“I’m too old,” he added. “That’s a young man’s sport, and that door is closed. I’m Brock Lesnar, the WWE Superstar.”

The UFC recently played part in a bidding war for Lesnar mentee – 2021 D1 national champion and Tokyo Olympics gold medal winner – Gable Steveson; with the then 19-year old looking to decide between MMA, pro-wrestling, or even a possible NFL career. Ultimately Steveson decided to sign with the WWE, noting that the UFC never truly made a serious offer to sign him. Maybe someday in the future, he’ll truly follow in Lesnar’s footsteps and make the jump from pro wrestling fame to MMA stardom.

Report: Olympic star Gable Steveson signs with the WWE

Posted on by Zane Simon in Front Page, MMA News, NCAA Wrestling, Pro Wrestling, Wrestling

One of the hottest commodities in the sports world appears to have found a home. It sounds like Olympic freestyle wrestling star and gold medal winner Gable Steveson is headed to the WWE. That’s according to the Wrestling Observer, who reported the move just shortly after the NCAA D1 champion hit Twitter with a cryptic message, telling fans that he had “just put pen to paper.”

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Steveson apparently met with WWE owner Vince McMahon back in August, while attending the promotion’s SummerSlam event. The former Golden Gopher will be following in the footsteps of his brother Bobby Steveson, who reported to the WWE Performance Center last month to begin training. Speaking to Sports Illustrated, Steveson told the outlet that “If I ever go to WWE, I’d be a ‘Paul Heyman Guy,’” adding that WWE superstar and former UFC champ Brock Lesnar has been advising him on his future career moves since high school.

“WWE has been so great to me,” Steveson explained. “Triple H, Brock, Heyman, Ric Flair and so many others have been so supportive,” adding that he’d also received lots of support from UFC stars like Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier, and Henry Cejudo.

After coming home from his standout performance in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Steveson made public ovations to both the WWE & UFC, while also making it known that he’d been in contact with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and Minnesota Vikings. There was even talk that he might return to school for another year of wrestling, or find a spot on the Gophers’ Football team.

Ultimately, however, it seems that the offer from the WWE was just too good to refuse. Tough luck for MMA fans who may have been hoping to see yet another standout, top-tier athlete hit the Octagon. Still, if he’s got Lesnar in his ear, giving him advice, there may be time for a UFC run somewhere down the line in his future.