The Real Reason Brock Lesnar Returned On Last Night’s WWE SmackDown

Brock Lesnar Paul Heyman
WWE.com

Brock Lesnar's return was, according POST Wrestling's John Pollock "in the works for a long time". This is fascinating not because it's particularly shocking, but because it isn't. Articles on this and every other wrestling destination online have speculated about the prospect of Brock moving to SmackDown on a semi-full time basis because he's the biggest star they've got by some distance that isn't liable to be pregnant after an extended vacation.

Indeed, with Ronda Rousey perhaps never set to return to a place she made her own so magnificently, Lesnar's theoretical value rockets even higher. SmackDown's move to Fridays on Fox promises the potential of huge growth for the blue brand thanks to the additional homes it will reach and the presumed pressure the network will place on making good on their multi-year billion dollar investment.

But read that again. "Theoretical", "potential", "presumed". These might be the terms George Barrios dines out on during investor conference calls, or the ones scattered across the powerpoint presentation Eric Bischoff knocked up to get himself rehired as an Executive Director earlier this year, but they're not exactly definitive.

Worryingly for WWE, nor is Brock Lesnar's appeal.

CONT'D...

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Contributor
Contributor

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