10 Wrestlers Who Foreshadowed Everything
4. Brock Lesnar
Most assumed that Brock Lesnar had earned Vince McMahon's scorn for the rest of his life when - at just 27 years old - 'The Beast' threw the company's investment in him away to try his hand at football following just two years on the main roster.
He didn't even go out on a high. His infamous WrestleMania XX clash with Bill Goldberg saw both men dogging it as they left through the side door, with Lesnar flipping off the Madison Square Garden crowd in something of a symbolic gesture towards the fanbase at large. Then, before all the water could flow under the bridge, the two sides went to court over the nature of his no-compete clause. A case eventually settled enough for Brock to work again and rename the F5 "The Verdict" as a not-so-subtle dig.
And yet, his near-decade back on WWE's books has been the cushiest of just about any in the company's history. Almost never booked to look weak if he's even booked at all, Lesnar appears in short bursts on massive stages and earns stacks of cash for the privilege. There's no sweeter deal to be found in the industry, and Brock secured it by kicking the billionaire to the kerb.