One of the UFC’s biggest stars is set to make his return to the competition.
In an appearance on UFC Tonight, UFC president Dana White announced that he expects former heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar, to return to the UFC. Lesnar last competed in MMA at UFC 200 in July 2016, at the time winning a unanimous decision victory over veteran Mark Hunt. In that fight, Lesnar displayed the freakish athleticism and high-level wrestling ability that propelled him to win the heavyweight title in 2008, in only his fourth professional fight.
Lesnar is currently contracted by the WWE, however, the upcoming WrestleMania 34 is expected to be his last for the promotion.
The event is the last on Lesnar’s contract, and both parties have expressed the desire to move on upon its completion.
A historic night at UFC 200
Lesnar made headlines worldwide with his late-notice addition to the UFC’s groundbreaking 200th pay-per-view event in July 2016. He continued to make headlines after the fact when it was announced he had failed both in-competition and out-of-competition drug tests conducted as part of the event.
In December 2016, the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced Lesnar would be suspended for one year based on the results of his drug tests, as well as his fight against Hunt being overturned to a no-contest. Following this news, Lesnar announced he was retiring from MMA competition for the second time.
Lesnar’s second comeback
The news of Lesnar’s imminent return to UFC competition does not come without complications. His suspension was frozen at the time of his retirement, so once he is again an active competitor, he will have to serve the remaining time before he is eligible to fight again. He will also have to complete six months of USADA testing, which is likely to be extremely stringent based on Lesnar’s previous failed tests.
Once he does make his return, he is likely to have no shortage of potential suitors. Despite having only one fight since his loss to Alistair Overeem in 2011, Lesnar’s name still generates a large amount of buzz in the MMA world, and the UFC will want to capitalize on that. A potential superfight between Lesnar and former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has been talked about, although Jones’ own drug test failures could provide a roadblock for this matchup.
Lesnar turns 41 in July, so the UFC will be eager to rush him back into competition as soon as possible. It is unclear how long he has left the top-level MMA competition. However, his performance against Mark Hunt showed he had lost very little in his extended absence from the sport. Once his return is official, look for potential matchups against current heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, light heavyweight champion and heavyweight contender Daniel Cormier, or up-and-coming contender Francis Ngannou.
