Brock Lesnar "Retires" From UFC

Dana White says 'The Beast' won't be Octagon-bound...

Brock Lesnar
Twitter, @UFC

Brock Lesnar will not be returning to UFC - or any form of MMA, in fact - despite relentless speculation since a 2018 Octagon teaser following a Daniel Cormier/Stipe Miocic showdown.

The decision was confirmed by UFC president Dana White during an interview with ESPN that covered the possibility of 'The Beast' taking on Cormier in a fight that's effectively booked itself over the last despite Lesnar's continued involvement with WWE.

“He told me he’s done, he’s retired,” White told ESPN's Brett Okamoto. “We’re going to move in another direction with Cormier.” The president will likely book a rematch between Cormier and former champion Stipe Miocic in place of anything he might have had in mind for Brock.

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Lesnar’s hasn't fought since July 2016. He scored a victory over Mark Hunt at UFC 200 that was later overturned after he was revealed to have failed the USADA drug test after the fight.

WWE made allusions to his potential UFC return over WrestleMania weekend, with Paul Heyman and Seth Rollins both scripted to reference a flight to Las Vegas either side of his WrestleMania 35 Universal Title loss. That same plane may now be on its way back, perhaps in time for WWE's own trip to Saudi Arabia in June.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett