5 Biggest Questions About Brock Lesnar's UFC 226 Appearance
1. Is This A One-Fight Deal?
As mentioned previously, WWE's subtle endorsement of Brock's challenge to Daniel Cormier points very clearly to this being only a temporary leave of absence.
A permanent return to MMA doesn't make sense for anyone involved. Brock, now the wrong side of 40, clearly isn't in bad physical shape, but thanks to his bloated WWE contract, he really doesn't need to be fighting competitively on a regular basis. As good a fighter as he is, he's an even better businessman, and will without question demand a sizeable wad for a night's work. He'd be a fool not to.
From WWE's perspective, hoodwinking fans with a 'lapsed contract' story whilst allowing Brock to create headlines away from the company ahead of a return down the line is a no-brainer. If he was planning a long-term exodus, the company would not be giving their implicit blessing.
UFC themselves are relying on the novelty of Brock's comeback - his first fight since his overturned victory against Mark Hunt in 2016 - to inspire interest. Sporting merit is out the window for a match of this nature, and though their fighting pedigree cannot be compared, Lesnar, like CM Punk before him, will see diminished returns for each night he keeps a more deserving contender out of the spotlight. As it has with his fictional run at the top of WWE, that's the sort of unearned dominance which can generate backlash.
Unless, of course, he wins the title...